The third Ocean Health Index created by scientists at UCSB’s National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis and nonprofit Conservation International scored the world’s seas a 67 out of 100. The healthiest bodies of water are the Western Indian Ocean and the Eastern Central Atlantic Ocean, both at 79; the Northwestern Pacific Ocean fared the worst, with a score of 53. The index’s first two iterations only examined waters within 200 miles of coastlines, while this year’s looked at the high seas, for which fewer analyses exist. Metrics were assigned based on factors including food production, tourism and recreation, coastal protection, clean water, and biodiversity.
