OCEAN: Sewage Spill in New Zealand & more – 10th Feb 2026

Ahoy from BA! This is the Rorshok Ocean Update from the 10th of February twenty twenty-six. A summary of what's going down in the 70% surface of the Earth covered in saltwater.

We start this week with a reflection on a problem we’ve covered many times before, but that remains urgent.

On Sunday the 4th, US journalist and sustainability advocate Mitch Ratcliffe published an op-ed in Earth911 examining where ocean plastic pollution stands in twenty twenty-six. He argues that although recycling and local bans have expanded, plastic producers continue to increase output, and marine waste keeps growing.

He points out that most progress comes from scattered local action rather than coordinated global enforcement. Ratcliffe calls on governments and companies to support a strong international treaty and shift away from single-use plastics.

Check the link in the show notes to read the full piece.

Meanwhile, waters in Wellington, New Zealand, are facing serious threats.

On Monday the 5th, Wellington Water, the city’s water utility, confirmed that nearly seventy million litres of untreated wastewater had flowed into Wellington Harbour after a critical pipeline burst in the central business district.

The spill affected popular waterfront areas, including Oriental Bay, and triggered immediate beach closures. Public health officials banned swimming, seafood gathering, and even walking along the shore.

City residents are demanding swift upgrades to aging wastewater infrastructure, which has failed repeatedly in recent years.

On another note, global shipping lanes in the Northern Hemisphere are shifting back to familiar routes.

On Sunday the 4th, Danish shipping company Maersk announced the resumption of operations through the Red Sea and Suez Canal, after temporarily rerouting vessels around the Cape of Good Hope due to missile attacks and regional instability in the Bab al-Mandab Strait. The decision comes as security escorts and coordinated patrols in the region improve. Industry experts expect faster Asia–Europe shipping times and reduced freight costs in the coming weeks.

However, port officials in Rotterdam and Hamburg warned that the sudden surge in traffic could lead to short-term congestion at European terminals.

But as shipping steadies, warming waters are stirring up new problems beneath the surface.

On Tuesday the 6th, researchers at the Alaska Fisheries Science Center released a new study showing that Pacific cod larvae are experiencing higher mortality rates due to increased ocean temperatures. The study, based on controlled lab simulations and field data from the Bering Sea, found that larvae exposed to warmer conditions showed signs of energy deficiency, immune stress, and impaired development.

Cod is one of Alaska’s most important commercial fish species, and scientists warn that early-life die-offs could threaten future fishery yields.

Shifting to exploration, scientists encountered something rare and ghostly deep below the surface.

On Wednesday the 5th, researchers aboard the Schmidt Ocean Institute’s vessel Falkor filmed a giant phantom jellyfish, Stygiomedusa gigantea, drifting in the deep waters off Argentina’s continental slope. The jellyfish, with its bell-shaped body and ribbon-like arms stretching over ten meters (thirty-three feet) long, has only been recorded around a hundred times since its discovery over a century ago. This marks the first time it’s been documented in Argentine waters.

Scientists say the sighting underscores how much biodiversity in the deep sea remains undocumented and poorly understood.

Meanwhile, another creature from the deep just got a name, and it wasn’t chosen by scientists.

On Friday the 9th, researchers at the UK’s National Oceanography Centre announced that a newly discovered deep-sea worm, an eyeless, soft-bodied invertebrate collected near hydrothermal vents, had been officially named Nudirama enigmatica after a global online vote. Thousands of people submitted names during the campaign, and the final choice reflects the animal’s strange shape and nudibranch-like features.

The worm lives over 3,000 meters (almost 10,000 feet) below the surface and is helping researchers understand how life evolves in extreme, high-pressure environments.

At the same time, new research is revealing just how deeply plastic pollution is affecting the global seafood supply.

On Monday the 5th, marine scientists from the Scripps Institution of Oceanography published a study showing widespread microplastic contamination in fish caught across the Pacific Ocean. The research analyzed commercial species sold in markets and found plastic particles in the digestive systems of nearly every sample, including tuna and mahi-mahi. Researchers say that the findings highlight the urgent need for a strong global plastics treaty, as negotiations continue under the United Nations.

The study adds to mounting evidence that plastic pollution is no longer just a coastal or environmental issue, but a direct threat to the safety and sustainability of ocean-based diets.

In other news, tech teams are deploying new tools to track life in the open ocean.

On Monday the 5th, the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (or NOAA) Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center launched a two-week trial of autonomous underwater gliders in the waters surrounding the Hawaiian archipelago. These torpedo-shaped drones are equipped with passive acoustic sensors that can detect the calls of whales and dolphins from hundreds of meters away.

The program aims to test whether gliders can provide continuous, low-cost monitoring in areas that are too remote for traditional ship surveys. If successful, NOAA hopes to expand the technology to improve marine mammal population assessments across the Pacific.

Yet as tech advances, new challenges continue to arise.

On Saturday the 3rd, a research team from the University of Miami’s Rosenstiel School published new findings on what they call the turf trap affecting coral recovery along Florida’s Coral Reef. They found that thin, sand-trapping algae – called algal turf – are covering reef surfaces in the absence of healthy corals. These algae strands form a dense layer over the reef, making it difficult for coral larvae to settle and grow. Even herbivorous fish avoid them, which allows the algae to spread unchecked.

Scientists say they must adjust current restoration strategies to account for this overlooked threat.

Looking ahead, changing ocean patterns could bring even more disruption, with El Niño on the horizon.

On Wednesday the 7th, both the US National Weather Service and the Australian Bureau of Meteorology issued early indicators that an El Niño event could develop in the second half of twenty twenty-six. El Niño refers to the periodic warming of sea surface temperatures in the eastern and central Pacific, which alters global weather and ocean conditions.

It typically occurs every two to seven years and can last for several months at a time. This climate pattern could lead to more frequent marine heatwaves, coral bleaching events, and fish migration shifts.

Experts say that if the trend continues, twenty twenty-seven could become the hottest year ever recorded.

In the far north, conservation groups are ramping up efforts to protect Arctic waters.

On Tuesday the 6th, the World Wide Fund for Nature (or WWF) Norway announced a new phase of its Arctic marine protection work, in partnership with coastal communities in the counties of Troms and Finnmark. The project focuses on strengthening traditional Sami ocean stewardship and supporting the creation of locally managed marine conservation zones.

The initiative is part of WWF’s wider Arctic strategy, which aims to preserve biodiversity and support food security as ocean conditions shift. WWF officials stressed that locally led conservation is critical to protecting Arctic ecosystems from the growing impacts of fishing, shipping, and warming seas.

And to wrap up this episode, scientists say we may be overlooking a key player in Earth’s climate system.

On Friday the 9th, researchers from several marine science institutes warned that a group of microscopic organisms called mixoplankton is missing from most climate models. These plankton can both photosynthesize and feed on other organisms, playing a dual role in ocean food webs and carbon cycling.

Researchers say ignoring mixoplankton may leave serious gaps in climate forecasts. They are calling for more funding and monitoring to understand how these organisms respond to warming seas and how they might influence future climate patterns.

Aaand that’s it for this week! Thank you for joining us!

A few of you have asked for an easy way to connect and get updates on Rorshok and the Ocean Update, since maybe someday we will get it going again. We will set up a way for you to let us know you are interested, and share it with you this coming week.

See you next week!