Latest news with #OFG
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
Why Are Hawai‘i's Waters So Laden with Bacteria?
Alongside Surfrider's 2024 Clean Water Report, which produces water sample analyses of hundreds of beaches with the help of volunteers at Surfrider chapters across the greater U.S., the nonprofit organization also put together a Water Quality Report for Hawai'i. According to the data, seven test sites across O'ahu and Kaua'i showed harmful bacteria levels that exceeded state health standards more than half of the times they were tested by Surfrider's volunteer-based water-testing program, Blue Water Task Force (BWTF). Several of those failed to reach safe levels for human contact more than 80% of the time: 'On Kauaʻi, three BWTF sites located at stream or river mouths (Hanalei River at Weke Rd., Hanamāʻulu Stream Mouth, and Nāwiliwili Stream) failed every single water test performed in 2024,' a Surfrider Hawai'i press release announcing the report reads. 'Similarly, on Oʻahu, the highest bacteria sites are located adjacent to stream mouths. The Chings (Punaluʻu Beach Park) sampling site, near Punaluʻu Stream on East Oʻahu, failed every water quality sample, and Kahaluʻu Beach failed 92% of samples. In our second year of sampling in Waiʻanae with Kingdom Pathways, one of the sites, Kaupuni Stream, is yet again exceeding state health standards consistently, with 80% of samples having failed.' So where's all that dirty water coming from? 'It is definitely a common misconception—tropical turquoise beaches in a remote island chain = safe water,' Hanna Lilley, Surfrider's Hawai'i Regional Manager who oversaw the report told me, pointing out that it is one of the larger hurdles of public awareness around water-quality issues. It might be hard to fathom that a string of volcanic rocks out in the middle of the Pacific Ocean can't seem to flush and dissipate all its pollution into the surrounding blue expanse, but currents around the island only help so much—and in some cases exacerbate issues—while a continuous flow of sewage and runoff from a population of nearly 1.5 million can perpetually foul the its 2024 report, Surfrider cites that sewage pollution from Hawai'i's 83,000 cesspools is among the biggest culprit, as they collectively discharge a daily 52 million gallons into coastal waters. The meta message? While stream mouths can make for shallow, relatively safe nearshore waters free of shorebreak and currents, the water quality near them is almost never safe and can even prove deadly. Granted, this is hardly news—see: Hawaii News Now's 'Hawaii Leads Nation in Deadly Staph Infections.' Apart from proactively working to inform the public on better environmental practices—like its Ocean Friendly Gardens (OFG) initiative—helping the public become more aware of unsafe conditions at the beach is also a prerogative. One recent feat saw Surfrider's Maui Chapter help convince the Maui County Ocean Safety Bureau to provide Brown Water Advisory (BWA) signs to lifeguards so that they could place physical warnings of dangerous water quality on beaches where, previously, such warnings were only posted online or on television and radio public service announcements. to warn beachgoers of polluted conditions on the beach after it rains. The Hawaii Department of Health (HDOH) also 'recently agreed to revise their beach monitoring program to continue to test popular Tier 1 beaches when Brown Water Advisories are in effect, thereby providing better water quality information to the public during both dry and wet weather,' Surfrider wrote, considering this a feat, particularly in the face of federal funding cuts slated for Fiscal Year 2026 that could completely cut funding for the EPA's Beach Act Grants program, which supports water quality monitoring and public notifications across 35 states in total and might leave us all 'completely blind to pollution issues at our local beaches'—yikes, indeed. Surfrider is calling on Congress to reject the Trump administration's proposal to slash funding for the EPA and support robust funding for the BEACH Act and other clean water programs. Everyone deserves to enjoy a fun day at the beach without worrying about getting sick from exposure to pollution. Why Are Hawai'i's Waters So Laden with Bacteria? first appeared on Surfer on Jun 1, 2025
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Surfrider Releases 2024 'Clean' Water Report and It's…A Doozy
The list of this summer's Surfrider Clean Water Report of 'Beach Bacteria Hot Spots,' as they're called, probably come as a surprise to few, but then the number of days during which what public safety offices deem unsafe levels of certain bacteria (e.g., enterococcus bacteria, eDNA samples to determine presence of E. coli, human, cow, dog, poultry, sheep, and swine eDNA) might be enough for you to change your surf-going plans for this summer altogether. Topping the list. Hawaii offers not one but two swimming holes that mark the lowest water quality found within the greater U.S. of A. Kahalu'u, on Oahu, saw a 92% high-bacteria rate this past year, which, if data means anything to you, suggests that setting so much as a stubbed toe in that waterway is to invite vicious wrath that knows no bounds—you would be far from the first sorry soul to slowly and agonizingly make your grave by taking your chances there. Also high on the list, with more than half of sample analyses finding unsafe bathing conditions are: Park View Kayak Launch in Miami, Florida, (90%); Imperial Beach, San Diego (82%); Linda Mar Beach in Pacifica, California (71%); South Sound Thea Foss Floating Dock (64%); and Ballard Park in Melbourne, Florida. But Surfrider isn't just highlighting the doom and gloom of all these grim findings, they're addressing upstream sources of pollution that are often a leading cause of supercharged bacterial blooms: gardens. The Ocean Friendly Gardens' (OFG) initiative works to educate the public on better, safer, and cleaner gardening solutions that prevent excessive runoff of fertilizers containing nitrates and phosphates, the super-catalyzers for bacteria Surfrider's Blue Water Task Force's (BWTF) report analyzes over 10,000 water samples from hundreds of beaches, increasing their number of tests thanks to new labs in Isabela, Puerto Rico, Waianae High School on Oahu, Coos Bay in Oregon, and a relaunch of California's Sonoma County Chapter. 'Last year, 80% of beaches and sampling sites tested (483 of 604) yielded at least one high bacteria result that exceeded state health standards,' a Surfrider press release reads. That is a decidedly depressing number that, again, might make you think twice about paddling out at your local peak this summer. Lest we get too dour on all this, though, know that Surfrider and its supporters are being proactive in more ways than the aforementioned: 'Through grassroots campaigns and programs, Surfrider is working hard to ensure that the beaches and ocean are clean and safe for all people to enjoy for generations to come. Learn more about how Surfrider's national network of coastal advocates is fighting at the local, state, and federal levels to protect clean water in the 2024 Clean Water Annual Report.'Surfrider Releases 2024 'Clean' Water Report and It's…A Doozy first appeared on Surfer on May 28, 2025
Business Wire
30-04-2025
- Business
- Business Wire
OFG Bancorp Announces New $100 Million Share Repurchase Plan
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico--(BUSINESS WIRE)--OFG Bancorp (NYSE: OFG) today announced its Board of Directors approved a new $100 million stock repurchase authorization plan as part of OFG's capital actions. The new plan, which is open-ended, is in addition to the previously authorized stock repurchase plan. About OFG Bancorp Now in its 61st year in business, OFG Bancorp is a diversified financial holding company that operates under U.S., Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin Islands banking laws and regulations. Its three principal subsidiaries, Oriental Bank, Oriental Financial Services and Oriental Insurance, provide a wide range of retail and commercial banking, lending and wealth management products, services, and technology, primarily in Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin Islands. Our mission is to make progress possible for our customers, employees, shareholders, and the communities we serve. Visit us at
Yahoo
27-01-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Tiburon Subsea & Ocean Floor Geophysics Sign MOU to Expand Capabilities of Revolutionary AUV Design
NEW YORK, Jan. 27, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Tiburon Subsea Inc. (TSI) and Ocean Floor Geophysics Inc. (OFG) are excited to announce their professional collaboration for 2025. In 2024, Tiburon Subsea introduced its patented vectored thrust control system JETTE for defense markets and established AUV manufacturers. In 2025, Tiburon is launching an initiative to develop its own revolutionary commercial AUV with its patent-pending technology. As a key part of this initiative, Tiburon announces an agreement to incorporate OFG's Self-Compensating Magnetometer, Hypermag, iCP, and HyperEMF systems for non-contact cathodic protection inspection, AC/DC cable EMF and depth of burial, and UXO survey. "Our respective companies share a goal and vision of creating new subsea survey and inspection capabilities for our clients. We believe that advancing dynamic underwater technologies will propel us into a new era in marine robotics. Consider how satellite networks are the backbone hardware of the earth's science data network; autonomous vehicles are quickly becoming the same backbone needed to open data acquisition on a planet which is 70% water. Renewable energy, climate change remediation, marine fishery protection, weather monitoring, and coastal engineering will all benefit from access to this technology," writes Tiburon Subsea Founder and CEO, Tim Taylor. TSI's revolutionary design offers hydrodynamic efficiency and redundancy and allows autonomous underwater vehicles to operate in all dimensions. Essentially, Tiburon Subsea is offering a dual market product. The JETTE system can provide all AUV manufacturers with vehicles featuring the ability to traverse any environment, hover, scan, stabilize, and carry larger payloads with more power. This new technology solves multiple shortcomings of current vehicles. Ideal uses for the Tiburon fleet will include site exploration, oceanographic research, biodiversity management, defense, wind and wave renewable energy survey and maintenance, export and inter-array cable inspection, hydrographic survey, subsea security, methane leak detection, and coastal health monitoring. Tiburon Subsea is expanding into a platform that will disrupt current industry processes and help its clients overcome barriers to technology. OFG CEO Matthew Kowalczyk states: "I have worked with Tim Taylor on many subsea projects throughout the years and his latest tech innovation will allow us to deploy our systems on a platform with unique capabilities to provide comprehensive data to our clients and the underwater marine community. OFG and Tiburon Subsea share a belief that the future of the ocean economy is digital, autonomous, and resident. That future requires quality data." About OFG OFG provides solutions to address our clients' subsea surveying challenges across a range of markets including the renewables, oil and gas, defense and minerals sectors. OFG brings together expert teams of engineers and geoscientists to design, integrate and operationalize complex sensor systems deployed from AUV, ROV, USV and surface vessels. OFG collects rich multiphysics datasets and interprets these to meet and exceed survey objectives efficiently and safely, with minimal environmental impact. More info on OFG can be found at About Tiburon Subsea Founded by acclaimed ocean explorer Tim Taylor and famed ocean scientist Dr. Sylvia Earle, Tiburon Subsea is building the world's first global autonomous undersea drone and data technology platform. TSI's new commercial AUV will be equipped with the proprietary JETTE thruster system, offering more speed, maneuverability, reliability, and versatility than current defense industry and commercial survey vehicles. Companies interested in access to survey quality AUV systems are encouraged to learn more at For more information contact Christine Dennison - Media Relations: 389205@ or 917-423-1369. View original content to download multimedia: SOURCE Tiburon Subsea, Inc.
