A new report released at the Our Ocean Conference in Greece by SkyTruth, a nonprofit conservation technology organization, identified 757 oil slicks covering 1.9 million hectares in the Mediterranean Sea between July 2020 - January 2024. Most of these slicks were discharged from vessels in transit. The data comes from their new online platform, Cerulean, the first free, digital tool that uses AI and satellite imagery to track ocean oil pollution and its potential culprits. 

The exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of Greece, where the Conference is taking place, had the highest number of slicks (182), followed by Italy (163) and Egypt (102).

"Greece is plagued by this pollution problem, but it's hardly alone," said John Amos, CEO of SkyTruth. "This is a global issue that will take international cooperation and vigorous, transparent action to address. Vessels dumping toxic oil into the ocean is not new, but our ability to detect this formerly hidden behavior with Cerulean now leaves polluters nowhere to hide. Raising visibility is the first step to solving the problem." 

Additional Key Findings from Today's Report: 

• Six flag states - Marshall Islands, Panama, Malta, Singapore, Liberia, and Togo - were associated with over 60% of slicks by identifiable vessels.

• Six repeat polluters were associated with more than one oil slick. These vessels included a container ship flagged by Egypt and oil/chemical tankers flagged by Hong Kong, Panama, Russia, Marshall Islands, and Liberia.

•  Two minimally-protected marine protected areas (MPAs) - the Mediterranean Cetacean Migration Corridor and the Pelagos Sanctuary for the Conservation of Marine Mammals - saw the greatest number of oil slicks inside their borders. 

The Mediterranean Sea is a biodiversity hotspot, home to approximately 11% of all marine species in less than 1% of the global marine area. Furthermore, around 20% of these species exist only in the Mediterranean. This includes whales, dolphins, porpoises, loggerhead and green turtles, monk seals, and more than 80 species of sharks and rays. Despite its immense importance to the global ecosystem, the Sea is facing huge pollution-related risks and is already warming 20% faster than the global ocean average due to climate change. Over the last 50 years, marine mammal populations in the region have decreased by 41%.

MPAs were created to protect this unique nature hub, but there is still a long road to go before regulation efforts are sufficient to meet the goals enumerated in the 30x30 target. Adopted in 2022 by nearly 200 nations, the 30x30 agreement aims to protect 30% of the world's ocean and land areas by 2030 ("30x30").

In support of that effort and in addition to the Mediterranean analysis, SkyTruth also today released the "30x30 Progress Tracker," a new digital platform bringing together key marine biodiversity data. With support from the Bloomberg Ocean Initiative, the Tracker is the first free, interactive platform designed for the general public to see -- at a glance -- how well the world is doing in enhancing ocean protection globally in line with the 30x30 goal. The platform can be used by civil society campaigns to accelerate country-by-country participation, and by government agencies and policymakers to gain insights on 30x30 and track regional and global progress. The goal is to make information about 30x30 more accessible and transparent to everyone, particularly people in communities impacted by this ambitious conservation initiative.

"At SkyTruth we aim to make the invisible, visible," said Amos. "At Our Ocean we're hoping to raise awareness about chronic oil pollution as well as efforts to protect marine biodiversity. The first step to progressing on these issues is for people to be aware."