EU Commits $107 Million to Ocean Monitoring as US Moves to Dismantle $368 Million System
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Jun 3
EU Commits $107 Million to Ocean Monitoring as US Moves to Dismantle $368 Million System
1 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Jun 3
Summary
$107 million in new EU funding will expand ocean observation to improve climate forecasting and track changes in marine ecosystems, with Brussels casting the move as a strategic necessity.
More than half the money will go to an existing international monitoring program backed by UNESCO and the World Meteorological Organization, reinforcing Europe’s role in global data collection.
The announcement came days after the Trump administration said it would begin dismantling a $368 million U.S. deep-ocean observation network that has operated since 2016.
That U.S. rollback would remove 900 seabed-anchored instruments off Oregon, Washington, Alaska, North Carolina and in the Irminger Sea between Greenland and Iceland.
EU officials said the investment was planned before the U.S. decision, but they openly highlighted the contrast as Europe seeks to lead ocean science.