How potted plants on cement save the right whales

Down by the ocean in Salem, Massachusetts, Rob Moir shares his personal story about why he advocates for a Right Whale National Marine Sanctuary. Right whales are in dire straits.  It is time to do more than just slow ship speeds and use lineless lobster traps. Diverse ocean users and interest groups must work together to better protect the whales. What we do on land is hurting whales because warm stormwater carries pollutants to the ocean.

In the spring, right whales migrate to the sandy, shallow waters around Cape Cod, from Duxbury Beach to Block Island. Mother and calf right whales are especially migratory because right whales are born in warm waters without much blubber. They need to come here to feed on zooplankton, mainly copepods.

Unfortunately, phytoplankton, tiny ocean plants, are 65% less productive. As the foundation of the ocean food pyramid, this is harmful to marine life. Copepods, the main food source for the right whale, have lower caloric content, causing whales to eat more to get the same nutrition.

Our activities on the land, like removing vegetation and replacing soils with hardscape and heat islands, are harming whales and ocean life through stormwater runoff.

Cities in Eastern Massachusetts with over 40,000 residents are taking steps to reduce stormwater runoff in areas where expanding green spaces is difficult. They are improving patches of land with pocket forests that feature a wide variety of woody plants. With 35 different native woody species, these forests cooperate and form a single organism, with roots connected through a large mycorrhizal network. These mini-forests absorb ten times more carbon dioxide and produce ten times more soil, creating a larger carbon sponge that can hold significantly more water than a stand of just one type of tree.

Help protect the ocean and right whales by placing a potted plant on your step or patio. Your action will help hold back rainwater and keep your space a bit cooler. Together, we can make a difference.