Media Releases
World Oceans Day Celebration
Posted on: June 2, 2010
June 2, 1010 SIDNEY, BC — The Shaw Ocean Discovery Centre is hosting a World Oceans Day Celebration on Sunday, June 6th, 2010.
The Centre will be offering a variety of activities and displays inside and outside of the Centre. Special exhibits inside the Centre will be set up all day from 10:00 AM to 4:30 PM. In light of the recent oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, there will be a simulated crude oil spill. There will also be information on what is affected by an oil spill, how they are cleaned up, and the potential for such an occurrence in the Salish Sea. Other environmental exhibits will focus on marine debris and whale-wise boating. There will be a craft station set up for kids to create sea creature headbands. At 1:00 PM, join James Clowater in the Ocean’s Heartbeat for “Alcids: Birds that Fly Underwater”, a lecture on our local marine bird species.
Outside the Shaw Ocean Discovery Centre in Beacon Park, there will be free activities and displays from 11:00 AM to 3:00 PM. Activities will include face painting for kids, and a chance to meet Cooper the Peninsula Co-op bear and the Ocean Discovery mascots. The Raincoast Conservation Foundation, Gulf Islands National Park and Shorekeeper’s will have informative displays on their work on the Salish Sea. Tseycum Canoe Tours will have a traditionally styled dug out canoe in the park and will share the traditional ways of the Coast Salish people with guests. At 2:00 PM, there will be divers on the waterfront demonstrating a Remote Operating Vehicle (ROV), a miniature submarine with a high-tech underwater camera. They will be bringing deep sea animals to the ROVs lens so that guests on shore can experience the bottom of the Salish Sea without getting wet. The Sidney Pier Hotel & Spa will be selling hot dogs and drinks from their patio, and will be displaying ocean-inspired art created by the kids at Discovery House in their lobby.
The Celebration will also mark the launch of three other exciting projects at the Shaw Ocean Discovery Centre.
The Capital Regional District and Pacific Salmon Foundation have partnered with the Centre to unveil a brand new exhibit called, “The Ocean is Our Home”. Visitors will be encouraged to explore the replica home to discover how closely our at home lives affect our ocean. They will learn what happens to things poured down the drain, energy efficient appliances and environmentally friendly home products.
Marineapedia of My Salish Sea is a bold citizen scientist project that will establish a new relationship with the ocean. The easily searchable online library will include approximately 3,000 species from anemones to zooplankton, and will enlist the skills of students, schools, youth organizations, amateur biologists and marine life enthusiasts to collect information, photos and videos. Explore Marineapedia and adopt a species from the Salish Sea at www.mysalishsea.ca.
The Shaw Ocean Discovery Centre’s seventeen habitats are home to more than 300 species. To offer visitors a roadmap to the live marine life, the Centre is launching an official guidebook to the Salish Sea. The Salish Sea includes details on many of these species, which are categorized into families and accompanied by a photo. The guide book also shares background on the Shaw Ocean Discovery Centre, Salish Sea and Coast Salish people.
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About the Shaw Ocean Discovery Centre
The Shaw Ocean Discovery Centre, located in a spectacular waterfront building in Sidney, BC, is an aquarium and marine education centre focused on the amazing ecosystem of the Salish Sea. The Centre operates as a not-for-profit community facility that is self-supporting through admission fees, grants and donations. Funds for the Shaw Ocean Discovery Centre were raised through generous community support, and a major donation from Shaw Communications.
For further information, please contact Robyn Waterman, Public Relations Manager, Shaw Ocean Discovery Centre, 250.665.7511 or pr@oceandiscovery.ca
