For Immediate Release, September 1, 2026
Contacts: Joanie Steinhaus, Ocean Program Director, joanie@seaturtles.org
Elise Bennett, Florida & Caribbean Director, Center for Biological Diversity, ebennett@biologicaldiversity.org, 727-755-6950
Ella Stern, Communications Specialist, Defenders of Wildlife, estern@defenders.org
Rumela Roy, Senior Attorney, Earthjustice, rroy@earthjustice.org

U.S. Appeals Court Rules to Protect Imperiled Sea Turtles from Drowning in Fishing Nets

Rejects Louisiana Shrimp Association attempt to exempt shrimp boats from using
Turtle Excluder Devices

New Orleans, Louisiana— A federal appeals court has affirmed a district court ruling upholding the National Marine Fisheries Service’s (NMFS) 2019 rule requiring some shrimp trawling vessels to use turtle excluder devices (TEDs). The August 28 unanimous panel decision by the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals rejects a challenge brought by the Louisiana Shrimp Association and several individual shrimpers, who argued the rule was arbitrary and capricious under the Administrative Procedure Act.

The court found that NMFS provided a rational, evidence-backed explanation for the rule’s TED requirements for skimmer trawl shrimp vessels 40 feet and longer, citing federal observer data and post-interaction mortality studies showing that skimmer trawls capture and kill imperiled sea turtles. The court also pointed to evidence demonstrating skimmer trawl vessels’ widespread noncompliance with tow-time restrictions (limits on how long trawlers can tow their nets before having to check for captured turtles) that the rule replaced. In some years, less than 35% of observed tows complied with the limits.

The Center for Biological Diversity, Defenders of Wildlife, and Turtle Island Restoration Network, represented by Earthjustice, filed an amicus brief in the case in support of TED requirements to protect endangered and threatened sea turtles. TEDs have been required, and successfully used, on many fishing vessels for nearly forty years to help sea turtles escape when they get caught in shrimp trawler nets. Conservation groups have long advocated for TEDs to also be required on skimmer trawl vessels, which for decades operated under an exemption that conservation groups say allowed thousands of preventable sea turtle deaths in the Gulf of Mexico and along the southeastern coast. 

“We are delighted by this current ruling that will reduce the number of sea turtles from drowning in large shrimp nets, but we will continue to advocate for TEDs to be required in all skimmer trawls to prevent the continuing cruel and unnecessary drowning of these gentle endangered turtles,” said Joanie Steinhaus, Ocean Director for Turtle Island Restoration Network.

“It’s a relief that the court didn’t take the bait and dismantle protections that are already far weaker than what’s needed to secure a future for our precious sea turtles,” said Elise Bennett, Florida and Caribbean director at the Center for Biological Diversity. “We won’t rest easy until these commonsense, lifesaving protections prevent senseless deaths of turtles in all skimmer trawls.”

“This decision maintains a vital lifeline for Kemp’s ridley sea turtles, the smallest and most endangered sea turtle species worldwide, for which Louisiana’s waters are key foraging habitat,” said Jane Davenport, senior attorney at Defenders of Wildlife. “Tow-time restrictions just don’t work. TEDs are a coexistence win for sea turtles and fishermen alike.”

“As the court recognized, the science has shown for years that tow-time limits simply don’t work and turtle excluder devices do,” said Earthjustice attorney Rumela Roy. “But the agency’s rule covers only a fraction of skimmer trawls. More protections are needed to rescue endangered and threatened sea turtles in the Gulf.”

Background

The 2019 rule was the product of a regulatory process stretching back to 1987, when NMFS first required TEDs on larger offshore shrimp trawlers. Skimmer-trawl vessels — used almost exclusively out of Louisiana, with smaller numbers operating from Mississippi, Alabama, North Carolina, and Florida — were exempted from the TED requirement in 1992 and allowed instead to comply with tow-time restrictions.

After a 2012 spike in sea turtle strandings in the Gulf, NMFS proposed eliminating the tow-time alternative altogether and replacing it with TED requirements, but withdrew that proposal in 2013 after discovering flaws in existing TED designs. Following years of additional testing and a 2016 proposed rule, NMFS finalized a narrower version in 2019, applying the TED requirement only to skimmer-trawl vessels 40 feet and longer. That restriction reduced the number of affected vessels by roughly 82% compared to the original 2016 proposal, while still projecting a conservation benefit of 801 to 1,168 sea turtles annually across the southeastern U.S. shrimp fisheries.

This ruling is the third time a federal court has weighed in on the 2019 rule. The Fifth Circuit previously dismissed a separate challenge from the State of Louisiana for lack of standing, and the D.C. Circuit upheld the rule against a 2024 challenge from environmental groups arguing it was not protective enough.

To learn more about Turtle Island Restoration Network, visit https://seaturtles.org.

Turtle Island Restoration Network is a global ocean conservation nonprofit with offices in California and Texas, whose mission is to inspire and mobilize people around the world to protect marine biodiversity, the oceans and watersheds that sustain all life on Earth.

The Center for Biological Diversity is a national, nonprofit conservation organization with more than 1.8 million members and online activists dedicated to the protection of endangered species and wild places.

For nearly 80 years, Defenders of Wildlife has worked to protect and restore America’s wildlife at risk of extinction, advancing a vision of a future in which wildlife thrives, sustained by broad public support and a resilient network of healthy lands and waters. With a network of more than 2 million supporters, Defenders is an advocate for innovative solutions to safeguard wildlife for generations to come. To learn more, please visit https://defenders.org/newsroom or follow us on Instagram @defendersofwildlife.

Earthjustice, the nation’s premier nonprofit environmental law organization, wields the power of law and the strength of partnership to protect people’s health, to preserve magnificent places and wildlife, to advance clean energy, and to combat climate change. Because the earth needs a good lawyer.

Written by Dinah Sandoval and GIS maps and illustrations by Alex Novoa.

Imagine opening an interactive map and watching it populate with individual trees, to a grove and as the years go by, into a mighty forest.  

You can also explore the places where restoration is happening, learn about the people and organizations making this effort possible, and see how individual actions become part of a larger movement to restore redwood ecosystems.

Over time, this map becomes more than a collection of locations and data points. It becomes a living story of restoration: the partnerships formed, the communities engaged, the landscapes protected, and the trees growing stronger year after year.

This is the vision behind the Geographic Information System (GIS) mapping efforts of the 10,000 Redwoods (10kRW) Program, a program of Turtle Island Restoration Network (TIRN). Through interactive maps, images, and data, we aim to transform information into an engaging learning experience that helps people build a deeper connection to place and understand the impact of restoration over time.

Our mapping approach serves three purposes:

• Creating an interactive learning experience that allows people to explore restoration efforts and develop a deeper connection to the landscapes we are working to protect.
• Establishing a baseline through Geographic Information System (GIS) maps that document current conditions and help illustrate changes over time.
• Tracking program progress by visualizing tree plantings, partnerships, restoration sites, and other key data points.

While storytelling for the 10,000 Redwoods Program extends beyond GIS, we are using four core maps to help tell this evolving story:

• Historical Redwood Planting Sites
• Partnership Development Map
• Seed Collection Sites
• Land Protection Map (TIRN properties)

Identifying Restoration Opportunities

The map below highlights a portion of the 30 acres of land stewarded and protected by TIRN. It includes two parcels: Parcel A, a residential area with two existing redwoods and additional space for future planting, and Parcel B, an area currently covered by trees and brush.

Parcel A’s proximity to San Geronimo Creek, a tributary within the Lagunitas Creek watershed, creates an opportunity to advance both redwood restoration and watershed health. The site’s consistent moisture availability, protection from strong winds due to the surrounding hills, and frequent summer fog create favorable conditions for coast redwood establishment and long-term growth.

Planting redwoods near San Geronimo Creek also advances another major focus of Turtle Island Restoration Network’s work: protecting and restoring habitat for Coho salmon. Healthy riparian forests play an essential role in watershed function by stabilizing streambanks, reducing erosion, improving water quality, and creating conditions that support resilient aquatic ecosystems.

Through their extensive root systems, redwoods help slow and absorb rainfall, allowing water to gradually move through forest soils and into surrounding ecosystems. Over time, these functions contribute to healthier watersheds and improved habitat conditions for native species, including Coho salmon.

The GIS map helps us identify restoration opportunities by showing not only where redwoods currently exist, but where additional trees can be planted. Parcel A demonstrates the potential for expanding redwood habitat, as shown in the images below.

The image above pinpoints where five additional trees can be planted separated by 20 feet.

Mitigating the Impacts of Climate Change Through Redwood Restoration

Coast redwoods are extraordinary carbon sinks, capturing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere through photosynthesis and storing it within their trunks, branches, roots, and surrounding soils. Their immense size, longevity, and ability to accumulate biomass allow them to store carbon for generations, making them one of nature’s most powerful tools for addressing climate change.

Potter, Christopher. (2012). Net primary production and carbon cycling in coast redwood forests of central California. Open Journal of Ecology. 02. 147-153. 10.4236/oje.2012.23018.

However, the value of redwoods extends far beyond carbon storage. When we plant and protect redwoods,  we participate in a relationship of reciprocity—restoring forests that provide cleaner air, healthier watersheds, habitat for wildlife, and resilience for future generations.

In return for the many benefits ecosystems provide us, restoration offers an opportunity to give back by helping these forests thrive for centuries to come.

Measuring Our Impact Over Time

Through GIS mapping and additional data collection, our goal is to measure the impact of the 10,000 Redwoods Program over time. This includes estimating the carbon currently captured by redwoods protected on TIRN properties, as well as tracking the additional carbon storage and ecological benefits created as new trees are planted.

As the program grows, these maps will allow us to visualize restoration in action—from the first seed collected to the planting of thousands of redwoods across the landscape.

If you want to hear more about the 10,000 Redwoods Program, please reach out to Dinah Sandoval at dssandoval@tirn.net.
To support this work, you can donate directly through: https://seaturtles.org/campaigns/plant-10000-redwoods/

For Immediate Release, August 17, 2026
Contacts: Ken Bouley, Executive Director, kbouley@seaturtles.org
Laurel Irvine, Communications Manager, lirvine@seaturtles.org 

Drakes Estero Could Be the First Step in Returning Sea Otters to Northern California

New report explores the case for reintroducing southern sea otters to Point Reyes National Seashore

POINT REYES, CALIFORNIA — Point Reyes National Seashore has the potential to enter a new era of ecological restoration. A newly released report from Turtle Island Restoration Network explores what it could look like to bring one of California’s most iconic marine mammals back to its historic range.

Following our recent report, “Review of Seven Mammalian Species for Potential Reintroduction to Point Reyes National Seashore,” our newest position paper, “Drakes Estero, the First Stepping Stone: An Estuary-Based Strategy for Southern Sea Otter Reintroduction to Northern California,” takes a closer look at one species in particular: the southern sea otter.

Once found abundantly along much of California’s coast, southern sea otters have been absent from large portions of their historic range generations. Their return to Northern California could represent a significant step toward restoring an important native species and the ecological processes it helps support for thriving ecosystems, rippling into the Pacific Ocean.

This report makes the case that Drakes Estero could provide an ideal first stepping stone for that restoration. Located within Point Reyes National Seashore, Drakes Estero is a sheltered estuarine environment with several characteristics that distinguish it from more exposed coastal habitats. Its relatively protected waters, limited boat traffic and lower exposure to predators could provide important advantages for establishing a new population of southern sea otters.

“Southern sea otters have been threatened since 1977 and their recovery is stalled, and yet there has been no reintroduction effort for almost 40 years,” explains Ken Bouley, Executive Director. “Drakes Estero offers the perfect opportunity to act on law and policy and avoid extinction, which is forever. Let’s hope the relevant agencies and environmental community finally act to save this species.”

But the opportunity extends beyond simply bringing the otters back. Sea otters are a keystone species whose presence can influence entire coastal ecosystems. By feeding on marine invertebrates such as sea urchins and crabs, they help regulate food webs and can support the health of kelp forests and eelgrass ecosystems. Restoring sea otters, therefore, has the potential to restore ecological relationships that have been missing from Northern California waters for decades.

Rather than proposing that reintroduction happen overnight, the position paper lays out a pathway forward grounded in science, careful evaluation, collaboration and long-term stewardship. Any future reintroduction would require rigorous scientific assessment, regulatory review, monitoring and engagement with the many communities connected to Point Reyes National Seashore and its surrounding waters.

Point Reyes has already demonstrated that seemingly ambitious conservation efforts can succeed. The reintroduction of tule elk in the late 1970s transformed the landscape and became one of California’s great wildlife restoration stories. Today, as thousands of acres of the Seashore enter a new era of ecological restoration, we have an opportunity to think just as boldly about the waters surrounding this extraordinary landscape.

The goal is not simply to bring back a beloved species, it is to restore the ecological relationships that make healthy coastal ecosystems possible, and to imagine what Point Reyes could become when we give nature the opportunity to heal and thrive.

To learn more about Turtle Island Restoration Network and this report, visit https://seaturtles.org/reports. 

Turtle Island Restoration Network is a global ocean conservation nonprofit with offices in California and Texas, whose mission is to inspire and mobilize people around the world to protect marine biodiversity, the oceans and watersheds that sustain all life on Earth.

Today we’ve published a new report from TIRN’s Environmental Advocacy intern,  Savanna Stewart, and board member Dr. Rick Lanman: Drakes Estero, the First Stepping Stone: An Estuary-Based Strategy for Southern Sea Otter Reintroduction to Northern California.

Following on from our earlier report by Dr. Lanman and intern Alexis Evripidou entitled,  “Review of Seven Mammalian Species for Potential Reintroduction to Point Reyes National Seashore,” today’s report takes a deep-dive into the plausibility, issues, and benefits around reintroducing southern sea otters,  who have been federally listed as endangered since 1977, and whose recovery is stalled, to Point Reyes.

The paper surveys a vast amount of published science on the topic and makes the case that Drakes Estero, free of predatory sharks and boat traffic, surrounded by protected waters and situated in designated wilderness,  is the best place to make the next, long-overdue reintroduction.

For Immediate Release, August 10, 2026
Contacts: Joanie Steinhaus, Ocean Program Director, joanie@seaturtles.org
Brittany McWhorter, Gulf Environmental Program Coordinator, brittany@seaturtles.org 

Gulf Coast Communities Rally in Galveston to Defend the Endangered Species Act:
Turtle Island Restoration Network to lead local Day of Action calling on Congress to protect Gulf species from offshore drilling threats

GALVESTON, TEXAS — On Saturday, August 15th, coastal communities will come together in Galveston for a rally calling to uphold protection of endangered wildlife in the Gulf of Mexico and urging Congress to take action following a decision that removed Endangered Species Act protections from more than 20 Gulf species in connection with offshore oil and gas activities.

Led locally by Turtle Island Restoration Network, the Galveston rally is part of a Gulf-wide  Action bringing together communities across the five Gulf states to demonstrate that people care deeply about the wildlife, ecosystems, and waters that define the Gulf of Mexico.

“Endangered species protection has been in place since 1973, and it has worked to bring several species, including the Texas state sea turtle- the Kemp’s ridley, back from the brink of extinction”, said Joanie Steinhaus, Ocean Program Director. “For the past 50 years the oil and gas industry has worked in the Gulf, making record breaking profits, with this protection in place. The decision to eliminate this protection must be reversed to ensure the long-term health and continued existence of all threatened and endangered animals in the Gulf.  

For more than five decades, the Endangered Species Act has provided critical protections for wildlife in the Gulf of Mexico. But at the end of March, a government committee made a decision that environmental advocates say puts those protections, and the future of Gulf wildlife, at risk. The exemption allows offshore oil and gas activities to move forward despite the potential consequences for more than 20 endangered and threatened Gulf species.

Among those at risk are the critically endangered Kemp’s ridley sea turtles, which depend on Gulf beaches to nest; and Rice’s whales, with only approximately 51 individuals remaining. Other species affected include manatees, queen conchs, smalltooth sawfish, and coral species that cannot simply relocate when their habitat becomes unsafe.

The threat is particularly immediate for sea turtles. Every summer, thousands of hatchlings emerge from nests along Gulf beaches and make the perilous journey to the water. Once they enter the Gulf, they face a host of natural and human-caused threats, including those associated with offshore industrial activity.

The Galveston rally will give local residents, conservation advocates, families, and visitors an opportunity to stand together for these species and call on Congress to pass the Protect Gulf Life Act and use every available congressional oversight tool to restore Endangered Species Act protections for Gulf wildlife threatened by offshore drilling.

Community members are encouraged to bring their best sea turtle and Rice’s whale signs and join the rally to use their voices for Gulf wildlife, or join us on Thursday, August 13 at the Naked Iguana Brewery for a sign making workshop, details here.

Event Details:
–What: Rally for Gulf Wildlife / Gulf Coast Day of Action
–When: Saturday, August 15, 2026, 10–11 a.m. Central
–Where: Balinese Room Pier marker, 2107 Seawall, Galveston, TX
–Who: Hosted by Turtle Island Restoration Network’s Gulf of Mexico team, in collaboration with the Endangered Species Coalition

To learn more about this event, visit https://seaturtles.org/event/rally-for-gulf-wildlife-august-15/
To sign on in support of the Protect Gulf Life Act, visit https://seaturtles.org/action-alert-urge-your-legislators-to-support-the-protect-gulf-life-act-h-r-8919-beyer-bill/ 

Turtle Island Restoration Network is a global ocean conservation nonprofit with offices in California and Texas, whose mission is to inspire and mobilize people around the world to protect marine biodiversity, the oceans and watersheds that sustain all life on Earth.

The 36-hour crossing from Costa Rica’s port town of Puntarenas to Cocos Island had exceptionally calm seas, a beautiful sunset, and occasional pods of bottlenose dolphins riding the bow of the 115-foot SeaHunter, our home for the next ten days and 21 dives.

Some brown boobies accompanied us on part of the trip, flying around our vessel and picking off flying fish startled by the Sea Hunter (using the vessel much as cattle egrets use cows, riding along to catch the insects they stir up). The birds also used the vessel as a safe place to rest, landing on the railing unbothered by our close presence. One turtle, most likely an olive ridley, and a sea snake were spotted at the surface of the open sea.

Arriving at Cocos before sunrise, we awoke to greetings from boobies, white (fairy) terns, and one or both of the frigatebirds of Cocos, resembling miniature Archaeopteryx. The two species are hard to distinguish: the magnificent frigatebird is slightly larger, with a wingspan of 3 to 4 feet, while female great frigatebirds have a distinctive red eye ring. It was apparently mating season, as the males were regularly soaring the skies with their showy red gular sacs inflated.

While the two skiffs — one for the yellow team and one for the blue team, each with nine divers and two divemasters — were lifted off the mother ship by crane, we had an extensive safety briefing before plunging into the sea at Chatham Bay for our check-out dive, a chance to refine our buoyancy and test our equipment.

We were met with scores of colorful reef fish: blue and gold snappers, bright yellow juvenile hogfish cleaning, and Cortez rainbow wrasse cleaning red Pacific creolefish, known as sandía, or “watermelon” fish, in Spanish. Documenting fish-cleaning activity, a form of symbiosis, was one of our research objectives for the trip (more on that below).

Ever-present and abundant whitetip reef sharks were seen lying on the sand and swimming through the coral heads, and a beautiful marbled ray glided by to greet us.

It’s always great to be back “home” at Cocos Island, my favorite underwater place on the planet.

But I was alarmed by the water temperature — 84°F. The effects of an incipient El Niño were clearly felt in the overheated water and visible in coral bleaching, which I estimated to already be affecting 10–15% of the shallow coral in Chatham Bay.

Temperatures in the range of 82–86°F were felt throughout the trip, from the surface to depths of 100 feet, and coral bleaching was present at every dive site. El Niño was probably also responsible for a general reduced abundance of fish overall — schools seemed smaller, and fewer seabirds were seen diving on schools of small “bait” fish.

Oceanic Cleaning Stations

Oceanic cleaning stations — sometimes called the “spas (or car washes) of the sea” — are specific locations, often on coral reefs, where small animals remove wounded or dead skin and parasites from larger fish (and sometimes turtles), helping to maintain the health of their clients while getting an easy meal for themselves. This form of symbiosis is called mutualism, where both species benefit, and it’s critical to maintaining healthy marine communities. (When you don’t have hands, sometimes you need a little help from your friends.)

Documenting the various species of cleaner fish and their client fish is one measure of Cocos’s importance to both migratory and resident species — data collected on this trip, and others, will be compared with past and future regional studies at other oceanic island sites like Malpelo and the Galápagos in the Eastern Pacific.

A major draw for divers at Cocos is that several large sharks, especially scalloped hammerheads, use well-established cleaning stations, giving divers the chance to wait nearby for close encounters with a shark that normally keeps its distance from divers and their exhaled bubbles.

I believe these cleaning stations are especially important to female hammerheads following mating, which leaves them with open wounds from males aggressively biting and scraping the pectoral and gill region to align their bodies for copulation (again, fish don’t have hands). In fact, the vast majority of hammerheads at Cocos are females, and the cleaning stations seem most active when the wounds are recent.

Hammerheads swim into schools of yellow barberfish, and the less abundant king angels, slowing down and turning slightly sideways — probably signaling to the cleaner fish that they aren’t a threat and are ready for their “treatment.”

Hammerhead cleaning stations are found at several Cocos dive sites, with Manuelita Outside, Dirty Rock, and Alcyone being the most active.

This trip was timed to coincide with post-mating activity and the increased hammerhead numbers usually present in June and July, but cleaning activity was low this time. Plenty of hammerheads were seen, but in small schools, usually numbering 5–20 animals. Interestingly, no recent wounds were noted on the females, suggesting the mating season may have shifted this year — possibly due to El Niño. It’s also possible the hammerheads spent more time at depths below where we could dive, seeking cooler water.

Interestingly, the dive site at Little Dos Amigos, a cleaning station for Galápagos and hammerhead sharks, was quite active, with the big sharks being cleaned by yellow barberfish. Oceanic blacktips were also present and being cleaned, but I observed very few hammerheads, and none being cleaned.

The Giant Fish of Cocos Island

The highlight of this trip was seeing three of the five largest fish in the ocean — whale sharks, giant mantas, and tiger sharks — though these riches weren’t evenly distributed between the two skiffs, with the yellow team hitting the jackpot: three whale shark sightings, plus several giant mantas and tiger sharks!

Whale sharks were sighted on different dives: one at Alcyone, and twice at Little Dos Amigos.

These 30-foot behemoths, the largest fish in the sea, make their living filter-feeding on plankton. The whale sharks also provided passage for numerous remoras (suckerfish), which use a modified first dorsal fin — evolved into an oval, sucker-like organ — to hitch rides on sharks, mantas, other fish, turtles, and even whales and dolphins.

The relationship between remoras and their hosts can take various forms of symbiosis. It’s sometimes considered mutualistic, since remoras move around their hosts and feed on skin parasites while hitching a free ride. But it can also be viewed as parasitic: large numbers of remoras, each 1–3 feet long, can create significant drag, forcing even a whale shark to expend more energy to swim.

Another interesting observation, captured on video during this trip, was a Galápagos shark circling a whale shark and seemingly trying to eat the remoras off its body. Is this cleaning behavior a form of commensalism, where only one organism benefits (the Galápagos shark gets an easy meal, with no real benefit to the whale shark), or mutualism (the Galápagos shark gets a meal, and the whale shark benefits from reduced drag)?

Giant mantas are also filter feeders, with wingspans that can reach 22 feet. One encounter with a manta at Punta Maria lasted nearly 20 minutes, the animal moving back and forth and seemingly making eye contact with each diver. Remoras were seen on the giant mantas as well.

Cocos Island’s marine life is so diverse and dynamic, always in flux due to shifting weather and currents that deliver different water temperatures and nutrients. After 30 trips and more than 600 dives, I am always amazed, and never disappointed.

Help Turtle Island protect Cocos Island’s biodiversity and its highly migratory sharks and turtles. Take action to encourage its completion and support the Cocos-Galápagos Swimway Campaign with a donation.

Photo and video credits: Fish photos by Avi Klapfer, Hammerhead photo by Edwar Herreno. Whale shark video by Dr. Jason E. Farley and Mr. David Dial from Middle River, MD, Hammerhead shark and manta videos by Oscar Steiner.

Article written by Communications Intern, Desmond de Jesus. 

Every meaningful movement begins with people deciding that change is possible.

Plastic Free July is no different. What started as a grassroots campaign has grown into a global movement, encouraging millions to rethink their relationship with single-use plastics—not because one reusable water bottle or grocery bag will solve the plastic crisis overnight, but because lasting change happens when communities act together.

It can be easy to look at the scale of plastic pollution and wonder if individual actions matter. After all, what difference does one less plastic bottle or one reusable shopping bag make? There’s a saying that puts this into perspective: “It’s just one bottle,” said seven billion people. If billions of small choices helped create today’s plastic problem, then billions of different choices can help create tomorrow’s solution. Jane Fonda reminds us, “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.” Progress depends on millions moving in a similar direction, streamlining a foundational positive mindset, all while adapting and learning each other’s needs.

Plastic Free July is also an opportunity to look beyond daily habits and ask bigger questions about the systems producing so much plastic, and how those systems shape our scope on individuality. For decades, consumers have been misled to believe recycling alone would solve plastic pollution. Yet despite those promises, only a small fraction of plastic waste in the United States is recycled (About 5%), while plastic production continues to increase.

Many of the same industries producing plastic now promote another supposed solution: “chemical recycling,” sometimes called “advanced” or “molecular” recycling. While the name suggests innovation, many of these processes heat plastics into fuels and petrochemical feedstocks rather than creating new recyclable materials. Often, the process still depends on new fossil fuel-based plastic while generating greenhouse gas emissions, toxic waste, and hazardous pollutants. Rather than reducing plastic dependence, these technologies risk extending it, all while pushing an agenda centered around your individualism being the root of their negative impacts.

Progress against these large corporations who pull the strings behind today’s hyper-individualistic society will be defined by communities collectively reducing plastic consumption at its source. Investing in refill and reuse systems, supporting policies that hold polluters accountable, and demanding honest conversations from our leadership about what sustainability truly looks like before more damage is done is of utmost importance to mitigate consequences of plastic pollution that extend far beyond our own communities.

Every year, marine animals encounter plastic debris in the waters they depend on to survive. Sea turtles mistake floating plastic bags for jellyfish, seabirds feed plastic fragments to their chicks, marine mammals become entangled in discarded fishing gear, and microscopic plastics continue to move through ocean food webs in ways scientists are still working to understand. Protecting marine life begins long before plastic reaches the waterways. Check out our Gulf programs to combat marine debris here!

At Turtle Island Restoration Network, this belief guides our daily work; healthy oceans require more than cleanup efforts after the fact. They require preventing pollution before it begins, and advancing policies that prioritize wildlife, coastal communities, and long-term environmental health over short-term industry profits.

Plastic Free July reminds us that our hope is not passive but empowered through a collective consciousness. It grows when neighbors inspire neighbors, when communities organize around shared values, and when people choose to believe that their voices—and their actions—are part of something much larger than just themselves.

No single person will solve the plastic crisis alone, nor are you expected to. But together, we can use our choices, our advocacy, and our willingness to question false solutions to help ensure marine life is ethically monitored and future generations of humanity will inherit a cleaner and healthier Blue-Green planet.

Plastic Free July campaign graphics by Elsie Barcena.

Header image of the industrial cooling towers at a Google data center located in The Dalles, Oregon, credit: El País. Image 1 of OpenAI’s Stargate project in Abilene, Texas via Distilled Earth. Image 2 of Amazon’s New Carlisle, Indiana data center via Distilled Earth.

Data Center development is at the forefront of national conversations as society’s insatiable thirst for Artificial Intelligence soars. It’s likely you’ve heard of Virginia as the epicenter for this industrial boom following the birth of Amazon, Microsoft, Meta and Google – but now the tech giants are looking to states like Texas as their new frontier of destruction. As it stands today, there are more than 4,500 data centers around our country, with upwards of 1,500 additional centers in various stages of planning.

What’s at stake with this hyper-scale expansion? For one, data centers require enormous amounts of electricity and water – placing additional strain on already stressed natural resources – extending the lifespan of fossil fuel infrastructure and increasing demand for new gas and nuclear energy projects. New research indicates that the costs of powering data centers could be shifted onto everyday utility customers through higher bills. Communities are facing increased pollution, land use conflicts and infrastructure burdens while receiving few to no long-term local benefits.

Why Texas? Texas is often viewed as a bellwether because of its size, rapidly growing economy and leadership in energy production – despite the already stretched demands of operating its own electric grid. Thus, the decisions made in Texas will have implications for communities and policymakers across the country.

In southern Nevada, the Trump administration recently approved a massive AI data center on federal land without public notice or environmental review. The proposed facility would consume 167 megawatts of electricity, draw water from the already drought-stricken Colorado River Basin, and destroy habitat for imperiled species.

In response, Representative Rashida Tlaib introduced the No AI Data Centers on Federal Lands Act, legislation that would permanently prohibit large AI data centers on federally owned and managed lands. As the AI boom accelerates without guardrails, the bill underscores a growing call to ensure America’s public lands remain protected for wildlife, recreation and future generations.

This is about more than technology – it’s about who bears the environmental and economic costs of our digital future. Across the country, concerned residents are successfully organizing to slow or stop harmful projects through moratoriums, local ordinances, and stronger oversight.

Every campaign builds momentum for the next – and this particular movement is growing quickly as more communities experience the negative impacts firsthand. Texas Data Center Action Week, and staying in tune with your state’s news, is an opportunity to turn public concern into lasting grassroots organizing and policy change.