In recent months, you may have heard about the disruption in the Strait of Hormuz – and its consequences for global trade and oil prices. But you probably haven’t heard about its impact on the dugongs that call these waters home.

Around 7000 dugongs live in the Gulf, making it the world’s second-largest dugong population. In peacetime, these ‘sea cows’ already face threats from:

🚢 Ship strikes 🔊Underwater noise
🌱Habitat loss 🛢️Pollution

These pressures have only intensified during the current conflict. Military activity, naval mines, explosions, oil spills, and congested shipping lanes are placing greater strain on these creatures and their habitat.

Dugongs are uniquely adapted to the Gulf’s hot, high-salinity waters and rely entirely on its seagrass meadows for their food. Simply put, there’s nowhere else they can escape to.

Although we may not have the power to end this conflict, we do have choices about what we buy and use.

This World Dugong Day, let’s be mindful of the connection between our actions and the ocean. Moving away from overconsumption – and fossil fuels – helps protect marine ecosystems and ocean life, including the dugongs!

Find sources and further reading in the comments below.
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🇦🇶🐧 “Einblicke aus der Praxis - Die Antarktis verstehen und schützen im @panometer Leipzig

Wohnst Du in Leipzig, Dresden, Berlin…und hast am 13. Juni um 14:30 Zeit?

Dann haben wir eine Empfehlung für Dich: In der Sonderführung “Einblicke aus der Praxis - Die Antarktis verstehen und schützen” wird Anette Küster, wissenschaftliche Mitarbeiterin im Polarteam des @umweltbundesamt einen Einblick in wissenschaftliche Untersuchungen, Umweltbewertungen und internationale Zusammenarbeit geben.

Es wird spannend, denn unter den Ausstellungsstücken sind echte Pinguineier, die auf Schadstoffe untersucht wurden und sichtbar machen, wie weit menschliche Einflüsse reichen. 🥚

Die Ausstellung “Antarktis” von Yagedar Asisi, in deren Rahmen dies Führung stattfindet, ist sehr eindrucksvoll, wir können sie wämstens empfehlen …übrigens: Durch Deine Teilnahme unterstützt Du gleichzeitig Ocean. Now! - und dies bedeutet uns in diesen Zeiten sehr viel. 🙏🏽 Bist Du dabei?

Tickets -> Bio @panometer 🍿

#Antarktis #OhneKrillKeineWale

🧥⚠️ Let’s look at the real-world cost of lowered ambitions: the clothes on your skin and the water in your glass.

Because the EU is shifting its baseline, the promises of 2022 are slipping away:

1. PFAS & Toxins: Instead of the promised ban, hazardous chemicals remain in our waterproof gear and "stain-resistant" fabrics due to legislative delays.

2. Microfibers: Because the EU is backing away from regulating unintentional microplastics, billions of synthetic fibers continue to flow from our laundry into the food chain.

3. Zero Pollution: We`re trading a Zero Pollution target for a "managed pollution" reality.

It`s not just "red tape" – it`s the water we drink and the clothes we wear. We refuse to let human health be treated as a secondary priority.

The EU has the science to protect us. We just need them to return to the high standards of 2022.

Environmental and human health are the only baselines that matter. ✊

...Synthetic clothes release plastic microfibers into the ocean with every wash. It`s time to rethink what we wear 👗🐬

🤔 How can you help? One easy way is by signing our petition to adidas (find the link in our bio)!

#OceanConservation #FastFashion #OceanLovers #ProtectWhatYouLove

🕵️‍♂️ Is "simplification" just a fancy word for "deregulation"?

Today, we’re looking at the EU’s 2025/2026 "Omnibus" packages. These are the tools currently shifting our baselines right under our noses.

Erasure in action:

→ Dumping the zero pollution target: Under pressure for "competitiveness," the 30% reduction goal for microplastics is being sidelined.

→ Hiding the microfibers: Reporting requirements for unintentional microplastics are being "simplified," making the pollution invisible again.

→ The PFAS delay: REACH revisions are being stalled, allowing hazardous chemicals to stay in our homes while the "administrative burden" is debated.

When we "simplify" the rules, we complicate the future of our health❗️

Transparency isn`t a burden – it’s a human right. We need @reneweurope and the europeancommission to hold the line.

📍 Stay tuned for Part 4: How these shifts end up in your laundry basket!

🤔 Do you remember when a "toxic-free future" was a political commitment? In 2022, the EU’s baselines were set to protect us, not industry profits.

These high baselines focused on:

→ Hazardous chemicals: The Restrictions Roadmap aimed to phase out PFAS and the most harmful toxins from everyday products.
→ Unintentional microplastics: The Textiles Strategy promised a legislative push to stop microfibers at the source – production lines and our washing machines.
→ Zero pollution: We were on a path to reach a Zero Pollution target, ensuring that by 2030, our ecosystems could actually begin to recover.

This was the promise made to the next generation

🚨But as we move toward 2026, those goalposts are being moved under the guise of "simplification."

Stay tuned for Part 3: How the "Omnibus" packages are erasing these specific targets 👀

🥳 Großer Erfolg für das Südpolarmeer - Das Europäische Parlament @europeanparliament hat gerade klare Kante gezeigt und zwei wichtige Änderungsanträge zum Schutz der Antarktis angenommen.

Die Fakten:
Das Parlament äußert tiefe Besorgnis über die massive Ausweitung der Krillfischerei im Südpolarmeer. Krill ist das Fundament des antarktischen Ökosystems – ohne ihn verhungern Wale, Pinguine und Robben. 🐧🐋

Dieser Beschluss ist ein starkes Signal gegen die rücksichtslose Ausbeutung durch industrielle Fischereiflotten. Wir begrüßen diesen Schritt in Richtung einer nachhaltigeren Meeresdiplomatie!

🤔 Wie geht es weiter?

Als nächstes wird die EU-Kommission europeancommission prüfen, wie diese Forderungen in konkrete politische Maßnahmen und Abkommen umgesetzt werden können. Wir bleiben dran und werden genau beobachten, ob den Worten nun auch Taten zum Schutz der Antarktis folgen. 🛡️⚓️ 🇦🇶

🔊 carmsie / freesound.org

#OhneKrillKeineWale #Antarktis #Krill #EUParlament #KrillBoycott #StopOverfishing

🪤 The Baseline Trap: Why we’re settling for less. In the coming weeks, we’ll share something dangerous we’re seeing in EU politics: shifting baselines.

We’re here to call out names because we won’t accept lowering standards!

In the previous administration, EU politics made some truly progressive moves towards creating a healthy environment for its citizens – a solid foundation that should be built upon. But is that foundation crumbling right now? 💔

Our basis for this series is the psychological glitch known as Shifting Baseline Syndrome (SBS). Originally coined to describe how we forget the ocean’s past richness, it’s now being used as a smoke screen for the deregulation of our health.

🤔 What is the trap?

The trap is simple: we adapt. When the EU shifts from promising a "toxic-free environment" to merely "managing risk," our collective memory of higher ambition fades.

We start to accept a slightly more polluted and more toxic world as the "new normal."

🫵 Why this matters for YOU:

This is about:

- The clothes you wear: Will they continue to shed microplastics and carry "forever chemicals" because standards were "simplified"?
- The water you drink: Are we settling for "safe-ish" levels of toxins because the original bans were too "administratively heavy"?
- Your long-term health: We refuse to let human health become a secondary priority to "regulatory fitness."

Note: "administrative simplifications" or the new "Omnibus" packages trick us into thinking we’re making progress. But we aren`t just losing environmental standards; we’re losing the baseline for our physical well-being.

We saw this just weeks ago with the Chemicals Omnibus. While @sanddgroup and @greensefa fought to reinstate safeguards for our everyday products, the pressure to deregulate is still high. We need @reneweurope and the europeancommission to realize: a "toxic-free environment" isn`t an administrative burden—it’s a human right 👀

The EU has the tools and the science to protect us. We just need to stop falling for the trap.

📍 Stay tuned for Part 2, where we go back to the "High Baseline" of 2022 to see exactly which promises are being quietly erased!