1. Do not buy anything shipped from overseas. Shipping things overseas causes problems besides the obvious extra CO2 that comes from shipping things thousands of miles. On the East coast the North Atlantic Right Whale population is being decimated by big container ships and oil tankers. On the west coast, the same thing is happening with the Blue Whales, which are on the endangered species list. Most things people need are made here in the U.S. Ok , so you have to pay a little more. Not only is this helping the environment but it is also helping to keep your fellow Americans working.

2. Do not hang out on cruise ships. Think of the energy and resources it takes just to build these things, let alone the energy it takes to move them around. If you must go on a ocean voyage, go on a sailboat. These types of trips are available. The best way to think about a cruise ship would be to see it as a Hummer on the water. Cruise ships are notorious for dumping sewage in areas that they should not be. (Really, they shouldn't be dumping it anywhere. I mean, like would you want a whale taking a dump in your bedroom?). They also burn a lot of the oil that is recycled at those automobile oil recycling stations. This is very dirty stuff to be using for fuel because, among other things, it is very high in hydrocarbons because it is already used. Cruise ships, like other types of overseas shipping is responsible for the proliferation of many types of invasive plant and animal species. Invasive plant and animal species are the number two reason for loss of biodiversity. It seems also that cruise ships these days are getting a reputation as being great places to catch nasty "Close Quarter" diseases such as the Norovirus.

3. Go Vegan - Eat less meat. Agriculture is the number one cause of water pollution and animal agriculture is grain intensive. Also, eating a pound of beef consumes 24,000 gallons of water which leaves less water in the creeks for fish and other riparian flora and fauna.

4. Do not purchase items packaged in single use plastic wrapping. Try to buy in bulk or with your own reusable container or canned items or no packaging such as fruit. The bottom line here is that even if you put that plastic in the proper receptacle, that does not necessarily mean it will make it to its intended destination. Delivery systems are not perfect and a lot of CO2 is created in the production of the plastic and hauling all of that trash to its intended destination, which in our area means a lot if it is hauled more than 50 miles away. Try to get this mantra implanted in your brain: PLASTIC IS EVIL!

5. Get active at the local level to some up with unique solutions. Perhaps it is time to increase the fines for littering to the point where the fines would be able to sustain a squad of undercover trash police to get our local citizens to fall into line. Also get active at the local level with environmental groups that work in riparian areas doing important projects such as removal of invasive species such as Ludwigia or Arundo Donax.

6. Do not eat farmed fish. There several problems with farmed fish such as genetic problems due to imbreeding. Some of these fish will escape into the wild, breed with wild fish and destroy the gene pool. Also, farmed fish have higher levels of PCB's abd Dioxin. All things considered it would be best just not to eat fish at all. There are all kinds of problems with by-catch issues, marine mammals getting caught in fish nets and drowning, etc. Seeing as how 90 % of all top predator fish (that is the fish we eat: Salmon, tuna, cod, etc.) have dissapeared out of the ocean in the last 50 years due to human demand, maybe it is time to let the fishies rest and replenish.

7. Do not use scrubbing cleansers. New information suggests that these type of items are made of very tiny plastic balls which are not filtered out by the local sewer systems and therefore end up in the rivers and oceans.

8. Fix your oil leak. If you drive an automobile, make sure your car does not leak oil or any other fluids. As a person who gets around exclusively on a bicycle, it is very frustrating when I ride my bike in the rain and I see a big rainbow drop of oil in the middle of the road every 20 or 30 feet or so all the way down the street because some fool would rather buy the newest cell phone than get his oil leak fixed. Perhaps this is another area where legislation might be appropriate. Cars could be checked regularly for oil leaks just like they do with air quality and related smog tests.

9. Help to fix the educational system in the U.S. that is not teaching our kids nearly enough in this area.

10. Consider the BIG PICTURE. Three big forces are destroying our planet and these three big forces are all inter-related. These forces are overpopulation, overconsumption, and our broken political system. Our broken political system encourages overpopulation and overconsumption for purely economic reasons. Not only are these the main drivers of our problems with the oceans, but with the land masses and skyward as well. The anthropocentric philosophy of dominance can never be sustainable in a world of seven billion people. Heavy man! More about this abstract stuff in the following articles. Fasten your safety belts!

11. EXTRA (no charge!) Clean Ocean tip. Say NO to offshore oil rigs. Perhaps now is the time to take the bold step and give up your car like the creator of this website did. Well actually, my car gave up on me. At the time I did not have the money or credit to get another car, so I was semi forced into the situation. After a time however, I found that if I situated myself right, I really did not need a car for anything. I can get pretty much everywhere I need to go with a bicycle, bus, or AMTRAK (the REAL smart train.) The exception being when I move, then I need a truck. Now I have a steady job and money in the bank and the last thing I am thinking about right now is buying a car. And check it out, I am 56 years old! I am very proud of the fact that a big chunk of my paycheck does not go to some VERY NASTY people, like big oil tycoons and insurance industry CEO's, lobbyists and lawyers who turn the politicians we all love to vote for into political prostitutes. But I digest. Just remember, the oil rig disaster that happened recently in the gulf of Mexico won't be the last blown out oil rig, and nobody that drives a car can escape partial responsibility for those types of disasters.