Renewed fears for rare Mekong dolphin in Cambodia

Reuters 5 Mar 08;

PHNOM PENH (Reuters) - A sharp drop in the number Mekong dolphins born in Cambodia has renewed fears for the survival of the rare mammals, wildlife experts said on Wednesday.

Only three baby dolphins, one of them dead, were found during an annual survey conducted in late November, down from six newborns in previous years, Touch Seang Tana told Reuters.

Their weight had also dropped to under 2 kg (4.4 lb) from 5 kg (11 lb) in the 1980s, the chairman of the Commission for Mekong Dolphins Conservation said.

"A group of 10 full-grown dolphins living in the upper Mekong River had no babies at all this year," he said, blaming a shortage of fish and rising water temperatures which might have affected their reproductive systems.

There are about 150 dolphins living in the upper Mekong River, up from only 90 before a 2006 ban on net fishing in the eastern provinces of Kratie and Steung Treng.

Conservationists had hoped for a surge in newborn dolphins after the ban was imposed.

"Global warming may be a possible indirect threat to the dolphin population, particularly if their fitness is reduced," said Teak Seng of the World Wildlife Fund.

"Dolphins are very sensitive to changes in their environment such as water temperature and quality. Other factors may be more influential such as diseases and water pollution," he said.

(Reporting by Ek Madra; Editing by Darren Schuettler)

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Controversial Russian oil pipeline defeated

WWF website 5 Mar 08;

WWF-UK is celebrating the successful culmination of four years of campaigning today, after Sakhalin Energy announced the withdrawal of its request for government backing for its controversial oil and gas project in the Russian Far East.
"WWF is delighted that Sakhalin Energy's application for financial backing from the UK government has proved unsuccessful," said James Leaton, Oil and Gas Policy Advisor for WWF-UK.

"The fact that the company has been unable to secure financial support despite four years of deliberation demonstrates the flaws that are built into this project," he added.

Western Gray Whale faces extinction

The Sakhalin II project, a multi-billion dollar undertaking to construct oil and gas platforms and an 800km pipeline across the island of Sakhalin, is threatening the critically endangered Western Gray Whale with extinction.

It also cuts through the breeding grounds of at least two other critically endangered species.

For the last four years Sakhalin Energy, a conglomerate of oil companies led by Shell (and latterly Gazprom), has sought UK government support for the project and the announcement that it has withdrawn its application for support is a major environmental win.

Environmentalists critical of UK department

WWF-UK has been lobbying the UK Government to ensure that the project did not receive support from the Export Credits Guarantee Department (ECGD) - the government body responsible for underwriting British industry overseas.

"The Sakhalin II project has raised a number of issues around how ECGD conducts its business," Leaton continued.

"It is imperative that ECGD reviews how it can prevent wasting resources on unsustainable oil projects, and ensure it contributes to Government commitments on sustainable development," he explained.

Now that the company is no longer seeking financial backing from the ECGD, or from the US Export-Import Bank, WWF-UK urges other financial institutions to refuse any requests that may be made for their financial support of the project.

"Sakhalin Energy has tried for four years to get UK and US public finance for this project, but it has failed to meet the various standards required," said Leaton.

"Now that the company has indicated that it will be seeking finance from elsewhere, WWF-UK stresses that it is vital that any bank considering giving finance to Sakhalin II is aware of the ongoing social and environmental problems facing the project. There are no effective techniques for cleaning up an oil spill in the winter ice conditions in Sakhalin and the world's 120 remaining Western Gray Whales are being further threatened by the project. Essentially, any bank who considers supporting this project into the future will be inheriting an environmental disaster waiting to happen," he concluded.

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Leading coastal specialist calls for change in reclamation and coastal works

AME Info 5 Mar 08;

Professor Kees d'Angremond, a leading consultant on coastal engineering, has called for major change in the way countries and corporations plan, execute and manage coastal development.

The effect of accelerated mega-project development on people and environments was at the heart of his closing keynote speech at PIANC-COPEDEC VII, the international coastal and port engineering conference.

At the start of a balanced address, the pre-eminent consultant from The Netherlands gave an overview of the world's biggest and most ambitious mega-projects.

He charted evolution in both size and technology from developments like the Suez and Panama Canals, which were completed in the mid-19th Century and the early 20th Century respectively, through Lake Ijssel's closure and reclamation in The Netherlands (1950s and '60s), Singapore's Tuas and Changi reclamation projects (1980s), Hong Kong's Chek Lap Kok island airport (1990s), culminating with residence and leisure-based projects today in areas like the UAE (The Palm, The World), Oman (The Pearl), Bahrain and Qatar.

Prof d'Angremond focused on the effects these may be having on the natural world, noting that ever-larger projects have ever-larger and more widespread impact. However, he identified accelerated production times, rather than sheer size, as the main environmental issue.

'The Suez and Panama Canals, the Ijssel reclamation, the Delta Project, they were gigantic undertakings - far larger than the mega-projects of today. But Suez took 11 years to build. Including its initial failure, the Panama Canal took double that - at a cost of 27,500 lives. Ijssel took 40 years.'

But slower execution times are actually better for Mother Nature. Although average mega-project scales are three to five times smaller now, completion times are between one to three years on average. However, nature's response time remains a constant. This means the environmental effects are sometimes unclear until long after contractors and consultants have moved on.'

Prof d'Angremond emphasised the danger of less available time for concurrent evaluation. Short job times mean fewer critical engineers with less time observing how the environment is being affected. To offset this danger, he underscored the need for rapid response scenarios formulated in advance, money to be spent on more critical engineers on site, and more investment in post-construction monitoring - our 'after-care' service to Nature.

He also drew attention to what he called The Human Element.

'The stress factor for people working on mega-projects is increasing all the time,' he said. Accelerated planning and production has psychological and physical effects not only on employers, consultants and designers, but also very much on supervisors, shore staff and crews of workers on site.

According to Professor d'Angremond, pressure on The Human Element must be alleviated by innovation across a broad canvas. He called for a proactive approach to create professionals who can predict and plan for what may happen and who can also implement fast and successful countermeasures if and when a sudden crisis occurs. To do this, he explained, requires the introduction of new enterprise, organisation and financial models - plus crucially improved Human Resources management.

'Worldwide innovation usually addresses the small scale,' he observed. 'We are talking about nanotechnology, electronics, and communications. But in our industry, we need innovation on a scale to deal with water, climate and ecological sustainability.'

Praising the advanced state of coastal engineering as a discipline, Prof d'Angremond confidently stated it is around 99% developed. It cannot get much better. But given this fact, where are the opportunities for the large scale innovation?

He identified interface at various levels as the most significant opportunity. Through disciplinary interface, for example between engineering, geology and biology, the improvement of technology is still possible. These days engineering technology allows us to extend time horizons of morphological models by up to two centuries. As this is theoretical, we need to calibrate the model to prove it. How can we do that?

'Well, with the assistance of geology, we can prove the validity of a model by hindcasting to a known geological point in the past. If the model's hindcast matches the recorded reality, it can be said to be valid.'

More important, perhaps, are the potential interfaces between countries, cultures, and even corporate competitors. Involving borderless strategies and new business models is the way forward, according to Prof d'Angremond. This means more joint ventures and partnerships not only in the commercial world but also in Research & Development.

To date, 95% of worldwide research expenditure is concentrated in the northern hemisphere. Over two thirds originate in North America and Europe. By contrast, of the technical research papers and case studies presented at PIANC-COPEDEC VII, around 45% came from Asia. Only 4% originated in North America.

Partner papers, however - those written jointly by authors in more than one world area - accounted for 10% of selected submissions. This is a percentage Prof d'Angremond expects to increase at future PIANC-COPEDEC conferences.

On this positive note, he hailed coastal engineering as a borderless industry. 'Many of us have a growing feeling that the distinction between developing and developed countries is disappearing in our profession,' he said. 'Assessing the ethnicity of authors at the conference, then comparing them to where their papers originated, it is inspiring to see the high degree of overseas staff basing, general world travel links, and in particular university partnering.'

Prof d'Angremond was one of the many engineering veterans at PIANC-COPEDEC VII clearly delighted to see so many young students and professionals, the industry's next generation, taking part.

'Innovation must impact Education,' he said. 'Our need for 'global engineers' is paramount.'

He clarified that it is not only Education's role to provide a theoretical background. It must prepare the next generation for their jobs by bridging the gap between academic and real situations. This means curricula that build in more exposure to reality. Traineeships and partnerships with commercial firms during and after study help, he said, to enhance the independence of the next generation.

The students also need time to digest what they have learned. Ultimately, this means creating opportunities to combine academic knowledge and field observations, producing abstract experience and understanding. The best way to achieve this, in Prof d'Angremond's view, is to write about one's experience - to produce a case study. He expressed hope that future PIANC-COPEDEC conferences would see more and more such case studies presented.

Thanking Dubai Municipality for its funding of close to 100 Fellows from countries in transition, Prof d'Angremond said that PIANC-COPEDEC should remain the principal platform, not only for young people but all coastal development and science professionals worldwide, to discuss and present the merger between science and experience.

In summary, he called on universities and employers to demonstrate proactive vision, especially in the field of human resource development, even during the 'boom periods' of which now is an example.

PIANC-COPEDEC VII, hosted and organised by Dubai Municipality from 24-28 February, accommodated almost 1,000 delegates from 66 countries.

Sama Dubai was the conference's Platinum Sponsor. Dubai's Roads and Transport Authority was the Gold Sponsor. The Silver Sponsor was Dubai Maritime City.

Waterfront 2008, an exhibition of related products, services and technologies, ran concurrently. More than 30 international companies participated.

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Best of our wild blogs: 5 Mar 08

At Sentosa: dredging, reclamation and sea wall construction
MPA notice of works on the wildfilms blog

The “S” Word and more questions
solar-energy in Singapore, updates on the AsiaIsGreen blog

Oriental plover
on the bird ecology blog

Forget Facebook, MySpace or You Tube: here comes connect2earth a new platform to start changing the world, more on the Social Media and Environmental Education blog

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Survey ranks Singapore as best place to live for Asian expats

Channel NewsAsia 4 Mar 08;

SINGAPORE - Singapore is the best city in the world for Asian expatriates to live in due mainly to its quality of life and low crime rate, a survey released Tuesday by ECA International showed.

Sydney was rated second in the survey, with third spot shared by Melbourne and Kobe in Japan, the human resources firm said.

Rounding out the top 10 list for Asian expatriates was Copenhagen in fifth spot, followed by Canberra and Vancouver. Wellington and Yokohama shared eighth spot, with Dublin next.

ECA said Singapore, Southeast Asia's most advanced economy, was also ranked above the other cities because it offered Asian expatriates a similar feel to their home countries.

"Since quality of living is relative to where someone comes from and to where they are going, our scores take into account the home and destination country," said Lee Quane, ECA International's general manager in Hong Kong.

Hong Kong, Singapore's long-running regional rival as a business hub, was ranked 15th in the global cities list, with the territory's air pollution cited as a drawback.

Among Chinese cities, Shanghai was seen as the best place for top Asian professionals while Xian ranked as the worst location, according to the survey, which compared living standards in 254 locations worldwide.

Beijing, host of the 2008 Olympic Games in August, fared worse than other Chinese cities such as Nanjing and Tianjin because of its notorious air pollution, the survey showed.

ECA International's annual survey is based on categories such as climate, air quality, health services, housing, political tension and personal safety.

Within Asia, Hong Kong and Tokyo were ranked joint fourth behind Singapore, Kobe and Yokohama, the survey said.

Trailing in sixth spot was Taipei, followed by Macau and Bangkok, with Malaysia's Kuala Lumpur and Georgetown cities sharing ninth spot while Shanghai and Seoul were in 11th and 12th places, respectively.

Brunei's Bandar Seri Begawan was in 13th place in Asia and 89th place globally.

Manila was ranked 24th in Asia and 133 globally, while Jakarta was in 39th place regionally and 190th worldwide.

Chennai was the highest ranked Indian city within Asia, in 26th spot, with Mumbai in 30th and New Delhi 37th. - AFP/ir

Never mind rising rentals, they want order
Tan Hui Leng, Today Online 5 mar 08;

EVEN as skyrocketing rentals, other rising costs and the competition for places in international schools have raised concerns about whether Singapore is losing its attractiveness to expatriate talent, one survey has laid such fears to rest — at least where Asian expats are concerned.

According to the survey by United Kingdom-based human resource consultancy ECA International of living standards in 254 international locations, Asian expats ranked Singapore as the best place to live. Hong Kong ranked 15th.

The annual survey is based on categories such as climate, air quality, health services, housing, political tensions and personal safety. ECA International general manager Lee Quane said the survey helps firms decide if they should pay a hardship allowance "to encourage employees to move to a location".

Last year, another survey by Watson Wyatt showed that most foreigners got the same wages as their Singapore counterparts, as companies do not see the need to pay employees a premium to work here.

The overwhelming appeal of Singapore it seems, lies in its "orderliness".

"I worked in Malaysia for 12 years but chose to come here to set up my business because everything here is systematic and proper," said Indian Sunil Francis, 35, who holds an Employment Pass for entrepreneurs.

Singapore International Chamber of Commerce executive director Phillip Overmeyer told Today the merits of Singapore as cited in the ECA survey confirms what the chamber has been hearing from its members.

But Mr Quane said that while Singapore scored well in most categories, expats are concerned about the deterioration in air quality and rising property prices.

Indeed, Mr Francis said he had to give up renting a HDB master bedroom when the monthly rental rose from $450 to $800 last year. He now stays with a relative.

Both Mr Quane and Mr Overmeyer also noted the shortage of places in international school places, a crucial consideration for many expat parents.

Mr Quane added: "In news and media, we regard Hong Kong as much freer and fairer than in Singapore." But Mr Overmeyer said while people miss the "excitement" of political debate, this is not of concern to expats as they cannot vote here. Also, the Government here is equated with security and stability.

Singapore is most liveable city in Asia
Europeans and Americans view country as best in region while Asians say it is world's top spot
Grace Ng, Straits Times 5 Mar 08;

SINGAPORE has hit another home run with expatriates - Europeans and Americans reckon it is the best place in Asia to live, while Asians say it is the top spot anywhere in the world.

The annual survey, which has a major influence on luring foreign talent, compares living standards in 254 locations across the globe.

For the sixth straight year, Asian expatriates have named Singapore as the best city worldwide for quality of life.

Its fine infrastructure and health facilities, cosmopolitan population, and low health risks and crime rates scored the Republic plenty of points among those surveyed, according to the poll by human resources consultancy ECA International.

Singapore trumped the Australian cities of Sydney and Melbourne, which were ranked the second and third most attractive places worldwide for Asians to call home.

Europeans and Americans were also sold on Singapore, ranking it as their preferred choice in Asia, although on a global scale, they opted for Copenhagen. The Danish capital also ranked as the fifth best place worldwide for Asians to live in.

About 1,500 companies globally buy the report, so the ranking can greatly influence hiring policies.

ECA recommends that companies do not need to pay any 'hardship' allowances to their workers assigned to Singapore. This allowance, which can comprise up to 30 per cent of an expat's salary, is paid to workers in countries where the standard of living is lower than in their home base.

The more comfortable the location, the lower the allowance and Singapore's is set at zero.

However, there were some negatives this year with scores for air quality in Singapore hit by the smoke haze.

The Republic's score for availability of quality accommodation also declined slightly, primarily due to the collective sale fever which has 'reduced the supply of decent-standard accommodation in Singapore, irrespective of cost', said Mr Lee Quane, ECA International's general manager.

This narrowed the gap between Singapore and other locations such as Hong Kong, which jumped eight places in the rankings to No. 4 on the list of Asian cities with the best quality of life for Asians.

Hong Kong's scores improved, thanks to significantly better scores for personal security.

Mr P.Maran, an Indian national in his 40s working for a technology multinational firm here, said Singapore was 'by far the best place for Asians to live as it is safe, clean and is closer to home than other locations such as Australia'.

But he noted that the cost of such high-quality living comes at a price. 'The cost of everything from rental to transport to children's education is shooting up,' he said.

While this survey did not rank Singapore in terms of cost of living, an ECA study last November showed that the Republic rose 10 places in a global survey of the most expensive places for expatriates to live.

But despite the jump, Singapore, at No. 122, is still significantly cheaper for expats than Hong Kong and other key global centres, such as London - at No. 10.

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Prof Victor Savage on mitigating climate change

Climate Change: Mitigating Its Effect
Khairunnisa Ibrahim, Brunei Times BruneiDirect.com Mar 08

Brunei-Muara - Climate change is a very real issue that needs to be addressed because of its impact on human, ecosystems and the environment.

This was shared by Professor Victor Savage from the National University of Singapore (NUS), who gave a talk on climate change and mitigation issues yesterday at Universiti Brunei Darussalam (UBD).

He said that it would take the concerted effort of all, especially the multi-national companies and the most developed countries in the world, to mitigate its effects, not only in terms of reducing emissions, but also deforestation and ecological footprints.

Here on the invitation of UBD's Geography Department, the NUS lecturer enlightened the audience on the different theories on climate change and global warming, the impact of the changing climate and weather patterns' and what needs to be done to mitigate these impact.

Among the impact mentioned were rising sea levels, widespread health problems, food security, water stress, species extinction and extreme weather.

To illustrate how climate change contributes to worsening health, Savage used Singapore as a case study, noting that in the densely-populated city-state, rising temperatures cause tropical diseases like dengue and malaria to become more widespread. The problem is exacerbated given the country's compact settlements.

One of the ways to mitigate climate change, said Savage, is by putting the focus on the main culprit, the biggest producers of greenhouse gases.

According to Savage, the worlds richest make up 20 per cent of the population, but produce 80 per cent of global income and output. Among the biggest emitters of carbon dioxide are the United States, European Union countries, China and India.

In terms of per capita emissions in 2005, Singapore had the second highest, producing 35 tonnes of carbon per person annually.

Singapore and Brunei both have high per capita carbon emissions, said Savage. This is due to two reasons: the countries' small populations and large oil and gas industries.

Energy systems should also be switched to those that are cleaner, safer and more effective, and that encourage the use of hydrogen energy vehicles and public transport to reduce harmful emissions.

Other mitigation measures mentioned include having benchmarks for environmental management, related laws and regulations and political sustainability.-- Courtesy of The Brunei Times

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Energy-efficient properties popular with companies

Matthew Phan, Business Times 5 Mar 08;

(SINGAPORE) Contrary to what some developers think, a majority of companies are willing to pay a premium for properties designed with 'sustainable' principles in mind, a recent survey by real estate firms Jones Lang LaSalle and CoreNet Global shows.

The bottleneck is, rather, on the supply side, where the ability to address market demand is 'presently sporadic at best and needs to be urgently addressed', says the survey, which was published yesterday.

Entitled Global Trends in Sustainable Real Estate: An Occupier's Perspective - Feb 2008, it was conducted on 400 corporate occupiers at conferences in Singapore, Denver, Melbourne and London last year.

Most occupiers recognise that energy-efficient and environmentally friendly property, such as buildings designed to US LEED or equivalent standards, could cost 10 per cent more to build.

However, 62 per cent of respondents globally, said they were prepared to pay a premium of up to 10 per cent, and 8 per cent indicated willingness to pay even more.

The willingness to pay varied across markets. American occupiers were most enthusiastic, with 77 per cent willing to pay more, followed by occupiers in Australasia and Europe.

In Asia, 48 per cent were willing to pay up to 10 per cent more, significantly less than elsewhere, but 16 per cent were willing to pay a premium of over 10 per cent, significantly higher than elsewhere. This was 'possibly due to the market scarcity of solutions', said JLL and CoreNet.

Globally, 'despite willingness to pay the price, a lack of options and services in some areas has been a limiting factor', the survey found.

Overall, 46 per cent of respondents felt there was minimal availability, while about 38 per cent felt it was good in some markets but not in others. The remainder felt there was good availability in all markets.

'Various elements of the real estate industry are not yet doing a good job in thinking and acting ahead', or at least that's what the market perceives, the survey said.

Appraisers, brokers, contractors and landlords, in that order, were perceived as the least proactive, though architects and designers were regarded as generally proactive.

The survey also asked the corporates what factors might influence their future attitudes to sustainability.

The most common factor, cited by four-fifths of respondents, was significant increases in energy costs - showing that cost-saving through green design is very much on the mind, said JLL and CoreNet.

Other well-cited factors were increased regulation, influence from customers or employees, and better technology.

Specific environmental issues like water utilisation and carbon emissions were 'ranked lower , and by a significant gap', suggesting that not all the details of sustainability are yet in full focus, the survey said.

'Corporate occupiers may not fully grasp how interdependent the components are in terms of their cumulative impact on the environment', it said.

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Singapore bags second solar cell wafer fab

NorSun's US$300m plant, opening in Q3 2009 will be its largest worldwide
Ronnie Lim, Business Times 5 Mar 08;

IT'S 'sunny days' for Singapore's fledgling solar industry which has just attracted a second world-scale solar cell wafer fabrication plant, also from Norway.

NorSun's US$300 million plant will produce monocrystalline wafers - catering to the high-end 40 per cent of the global solar cell market - complementing that of Renewable Energy Corporation's (REC) earlier multicrystalline wafer investment here.

'Our decision to invest in Singapore was independent of REC's move here and was based on the merits of discussions with the EDB. And our product will be complementary to REC's as both involve different technologies and serve different market segments,' said Alf Bjorseth, who was founder and former CEO of REC, and who subsequently retired from REC to found NorSun.

NorSun's planned solar cell wafer fab in Jurong, with a manufacturing capacity of up to 350 MW when operational in Q3, 2009, will be its largest worldwide.

It will add to its existing fab in Vantaa, Finland, and its new fab in Ardal, Norway, which will start operations soon. By end-2010, Singapore will account for over 60 per cent of NorSun's total global capacity.

Scale-wise, its manufacturing capacity is slightly less than one-quarter of REC's S$6.3 billion fab to be built in Singapore. With a capacity of 1.5 gigawatts or 1,500 MW of solar generating capacity annually, REC's facility - whose construction will start in Q1, 2009 - is also the world's largest.

Why is solar important? In the long term, studies project that solar energy will be the largest energy source globally, Dr Bjorseth stressed. Its drivers include high oil prices - which almost hit US$104 on Monday - and technological advances which make solar's use economically feasible.

Earlier reports said that 'grid parity' here - where solar energy becomes as cost competitive as electricity off the grid - could be achieved as early as 2010.

Explaining the rationale for its Singapore investment, CEO Jon Hindar said: 'NorSun has already customer commitments that require a rapid capacity expansion of high quality monocrystalline wafers.' This includes contracts with customers like SunPower of the US whose main manufacturing facilities are in Manila.

'At the same time, NorSun is committed to continue to reduce its manufacturing cost. In this context, both the project execution and costs of construction and operations become crucial.'

'As Singapore is well positioned to provide exactly that, the choice of Singapore for our latest world-scale solar wafer fab is ideal,' he added.

NorSun's Singapore facility - which will employ 300 skilled workers in the initial phase - will source its raw material, polysilicon, from a new joint venture US$350 million facility it is setting up in Jubail, Saudi Arabia.

It chose to establish the polysilicon facility there because it is an energy-intensive process.

Besides, it is able to make use of certain chemical streams from the Al-Jubail petrochemical complex, he added.

To ensure that the Singapore facility stays state-of-the-art - in the face of rapid advances in solar technology - NorSun aims to incorporate new processes, as they are developed, into the fab here, Mr Hindar stressed. NorSun said it will also consider Singapore for expected future capacity expansions globally.

Mr Ko Kheng Hwa, managing director of the Economic Development Board, said NorSun's investment is another booster shot for the solar industry here, and will help diversify the industry ecosystem here.

Its monocrystalline wafer fab will be the first of its kind here, adding to other projects here, including equipment suppliers and supporting companies like Oerlikon Solar.

NorSun to light up S'pore solar industry
Company will build its third and largest plant in Singapore later this year
Cheow Xin Yi, Today Online 5 Mar 08;

THE Economic Development Board has drawn yet another solar manufacturing investment for Singapore in its drive to develop a top-notch solar energy industry.

NorSun AS, a Norwegian manufacturer of solar panel components, will build a US$300 million ($418 million) plant in Singapore later this year — the company's third and largest investment ever. Production at the facility is expected to begin in the third quarter of next year, and will account for more than 60 per cent of its global output in 2010.

NorSun's project is the second solar wafer-manufacturing plant announced by EDB after its $6.3 billion-investment prize catch in October last year from Norway's Renewable Energy Corporation (REC).

Unlike REC's integrated solar manufacturing complex, which makes wafers, cells and modules for the final production of solar panels, however, NorSun's plant will concentrate on the production of monocrystalline silicon wafers, a product that is more efficient in converting sunlight into energy.

"This world scale facility will produce monocrystalline silicon wafers, the first of its kind in Singapore, and will diversify our solar industry ecosystem here. It will also generate significant spin-offs to our supporting industry and provide opportunities for them to upgrade, diversify and enter to new high-growth area of solar energy," said EDB's managing director Ko Kheng Hwa.

Founder of Norsun Dr Alf Bjorseth said Singapore was chosen from among 10 locations, including Norway, for its "total package, good economic conditions and excellent research facilities". With its tropical climate, Singapore is "also well-suited for applications of solar energy", he added.

Situated on a 7-ha plot in Jurong, the 300,000 sq m facility will have a production capacity of 350 megawatt and is expected to hire up to 300 staff by early 2009.

The company added that NorSun also plans to increase its global capacity in the next few years and Singapore will be considered for such expansions.

Norwegian group to open $419m solar facility
Solar wafer maker NorSun is the latest entrant in the fast-growing industry in S'pore
Jessica Cheam, Straits Times 5 Mar 08;

SINGAPORE is hotting up as a centre for global solar industry players.

The latest company to join the burgeoning sunrise industry in the Republic is Norwegian solar wafer manufacturer NorSun.

The private firm yesterday announced that it will build its biggest solar wafer manufacturing plant in Singapore at a cost of US$300 million (S$419 million).

The 30,000 sq m facility in Jurong will employ 300 professionals - mostly local.

It will eventually be able to produce enough solar wafers each year to generate 350 megawatts of electricity.

NorSun, established in 2005, is the latest in a string of solar firms to set up shop here.

Last year, Norwegian solar firm Renewable Energy Corp (REC) chose to locate a giant manufacturing plant in Singapore at a cost of $6.3 billion. Then, Swiss-based Oerlikon Solar unveiled plans for a $39 million manufacturing and research and development (R&D) facility.

NorSun's factory, which specialises in mono- crystalline silicon wafers, is the first of its kind in Singapore, said Economic Development Board (EDB) managing director Ko Kheng Hwa.

These wafers serve the high-end solar market and have a higher efficiency than traditional multi-crystalline silicon wafers - which REC focuses on. NorSun's founder, Dr Alf Bj�rseth, was REC's former president.

Chief executive Jon Hindar said NorSun's products will 'complement REC's, with different technologies serving different parts of the market'. He added that the decision to locate in Singapore was unrelated to REC's decision to set up a facility.

'Our move is due to Singapore's highly skilled workforce and its strengths in the semiconductor and logistics sector. We can see it is also strongly committed to growing the solar industry,' he said.

NorSun has also found a Singaporean to head its local operations - Mr Ong Eng Kian, who was formerly vice-president of semiconductor firm Systems on Silicon Manufacturing.

NorSun recently formed a joint venture in Saudi Arabia to build a polysilicon complex.

Polysilicon is the raw material used in all solar panels. NorSun has two other manufacturing plants in Norway and Finland, and sells to solar firms from the United States and Europe.

NorSun's news comes on the heels of the setting up of the Solar Energy Research Institute of Singapore, which has a $130 million budget for the next five years for solar R&D.

A clearer picture of Singapore's stature as a global energy hub is emerging. the EDB aims to get all solar industry players to be located here.

This will enable Singapore to compete with market leaders such as Japan and Germany.

Germany's Freiburg, for example, known as a 'solar capital', is well-known for its solar panels and the presence of solar firms and institutes.

Mr Ko said the recent slate of investments and initiatives 'clearly show the Singapore solar industry gaining strong momentum'.

Minister of State (Trade and Industry) S. Iswaran announced on Monday a new $20 million Solar Capability Scheme which will help offset part of the cost of installing solar panels in new, green buildings.

This will help lead users such as developers and building owners adopt solar energy, and more importantly, help Singaporeans build up capability and skills in solar applications, said Mr Ko.

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Mangrove reforestation in the Philippines

Reforesting mangroves + mitigating global warming
Yolanda Sotelo-Fuertes, Philippine Daily Inquirer 5 Mar 08;

BOLINAO, Pangasinan – They only wanted to stop the destruction and degradation of marine resources – their main source of livelihood – in Bolinao, Pangasinan, but in their own little way, they are helping mitigate the serious problem of global warming.

Members of Kaisaka (Kaisahan ng mga Samahan Alay sa Kalikasan or Union of Organizations for the Environment), a federation of 10 village-based fishermen’s groups, have replanted 74 hectares of mangroves, established eight marine sanctuaries with a total area of 90 hectares, and helped implement livelihood projects and formulate the town’s coastal development plan.

“There was a rapid reduction in our income because the fish were fast disappearing. Illegal fishing was rampant and the corals were mostly dead,” Jesem Gabatin, Kaisaka board chair, said. “Old residents had told us that our town used to have thick mangrove forests, but these were depleted because the areas were turned into fishponds. The mangroves were cut and used as housing materials or firewood.”

Gabatin, one of the organizing pioneers, said all he knew then was that he wanted to help stop the environmental degradation. “It was only later that we found that we were helping abate global warming.”

Vested interest

Nileema Noble, resident representative of the United Nations Development Program in the Philippines, assured the fishermen that nothing was wrong with starting projects laden with “vested interests.”

“As human beings, we do things with our vested interest first,” Noble said when she visited Bolinao to monitor projects of the Sagip Lingayen Gulf Project (SLGP) of the Marine Environment Resources Foundation Inc.

In the island town of Anda, Mayor Nestor Pulido said people who had reforested the mangrove areas several years ago were already reaping the fruits of their labor.

When a storm surge hit the town in November last year, houses in the coastal villages were spared because of the presence of mangroves. People have also learned that mangrove areas are nurseries for fish.

Noble said she was “impressed” by the projects of the fishermen, whom she described as “not scientists but people with a lot of common sense.” She called on local officials to consider global warming in all their development projects.

Mangroves absorb carbon dioxide sent into the atmosphere by industries and other human activities. “Through photosynthesis, mangroves absorb carbon from the atmosphere and store it in all their parts, just like any terrestrial (land) plants. But unlike terrestrial plants, mangroves store carbon in the sediments as well. Less carbon means low global warming,” said Severino Salmo, a mangrove researcher pursuing a doctoral degree in marine science at the University of Queensland in Australia.

A hectare of mangrove forest can absorb around 20 tons of carbon each year, Salmo said.

But Noble said the fishermen’s efforts were not enough to counter global warming. “It is a problem that should be addressed on international, provincial, community, individual levels. All of us [should] contribute in reducing global warming,” she said.

Early days

Cesar Junsan, president of Kaisaka, said it was in 1995 when the Marine Environment Resources Foundation (MERF) and the local government started the community-based coastal resources management (CBCRM).

Seeds for marine development projects were sown, including the formation of five grassroots organizations and the establishment of a mangrove reforestation site in Barangay Pilar and a protected area in Balingasay.

In 1997, the CBCRM project was stopped. “We coordinated with the local government to survive. When we had meetings, we all contributed to buy our snacks,” Gabatin said.

The fishermen started planting mangroves in Pilar and Arnedo, two of the four original member-villages of Kaisaka. The others are Binabalian and Balingasay.

The next year, the MERF and the Haribon Foundation resumed implementation of the CBCRM project until 2002. The Asian Social Institute, provincial government, the Bolinao Marine Ecological Fund Foundation and Glaxo-Smith Klein, a pharmaceutical firm, contributed to the mangrove rehabilitation efforts.

Kaisaka became a partner of the SLGP for the implementation of the CBCRM programs and other activities in 2002. The original four groups increased to 10 when more villages joined the federation.

Challenges

Challenges were plenty along the way, said Annabelle Echavez, Kaisaka secretary. She cited an incident when a resident asked then Bolinao Mayor Jesus Celeste to stop fishermen from planting mangroves in a proposed fishpond site.

“The mayor sent somebody to stop us. With muddied feet, we trooped to his office and explained what we were doing. In the end, he told us to go on planting,” Echavez said.

In 2004, Kaisaka obtained P2.5 million from the UNDP for the mangroves projects and sanctuaries.

The fishermen learned some lessons in planting mangroves, Gabatin said. For one, mortality rate was high because “we did not put nets around the plantation.” During high tide, plastic and dead sea grasses would wound around the plants, depriving these of sunlight. Barnacles suffocated the plants.

“We will replant the areas again,” Junsan said.

Kaisaka had already included nets in a proposal for a P1.5-million funding, which the Philippine Tropical Conservation Foundation approved.

While most residents are already aware of environmental protection, others are stubborn, Gabatin said. Some people would gather shells in the mangrove sites, killing the plants, although these already abound with crustaceans and fish. Others, however, would drive them away, telling them to fish elsewhere.

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Bangladesh tiger collaring project suspended

Mark Dummett, BBC News 4 Mar 08;

Bangladesh has asked conservationists to stop attaching radio collars to wild tigers while it investigates the deaths of two of the endangered animals.

Wildlife photographer Sirajul Hossein said two Royal Bengal tigers collared by the Sundarbans Tiger Project had died soon afterwards.

The project defended its work, saying the tigers probably died of old age.

The collars are used to track the tigers so that their movements and behaviour can be better understood.

Royal Bengals are the second largest tiger subspecies and the most common.

'Tranquilisers not controversial'

Mr Hossein said the tigers may have died because of a drug used to sedate the animals so that the radio-collars could be fitted.

"People should be careful of any kind of invasive method, such as injecting the tiger with chemicals," Mr Hossein told the BBC.

"We just don't know what the affect of Telazol is on the tigers."

He also said the drug could provoke "abnormal behaviour", even leading to attacks on people, but did not provide any evidence that this had happened.

Adam Barlow of the Sundarbans Tiger Project, which monitors and protects the 300-500 tigers of Bangladesh's giant Sundarbans mangrove forest, dismissed Mr Hossein's theory of why the tigers died.

He said he uses standard techniques employed by tiger experts around the world.

"Telazol has been used on wild tigers in Nepal, Thailand and now Bangladesh. No adverse effects from the drug's metabolism were observed."

"There is little, or possibly no, evidence available that categorically proves Telazol to be harmful to tigers," he said.

According to Raghu Chundawat, a Delhi-based wildlife scientist who is not connected to the project, any long-term suspension of the radio-collar programme would be a "disaster" for the Sundarbans, and doubts about the safety of the drugs are "absolute nonsense".

"The use of tranquilisers is not controversial. When this is done properly there is no problem," he said.

'Worth the risk'

A spokesman for Fort Dodge, the company which makes Telazol, said it had not performed any safety studies on its use on tigers, and does not market or recommend Telazol for this purpose.

"Telazol is a veterinary prescription-only anaesthetic licensed in numerous countries exclusively for use in domestic dogs and cats," Tom Lenz, the vice-president of Fort Dodge's Animal Health department said.

"Telazol has been manufactured and sold for 25 years, during which time the product has maintained an excellent safety record," he said.

The longest running field study of tigers has taken place in eastern Russia. There, the US-based World Conservation Society says it has sedated and radio collared over 60 tigers with no ill-effects.

"With trained professionals, the risk of capture and immobilisation is low, although it will never be zero," director Dale Miquelle said.

"Based on our 16-year project in Russia, we believe the information gained is worth the risk."

Adam Barlow, of the Sundarbans Tiger Project, agrees.

While Bangladesh's Forestry Department looks into the allegations, he says he has stopped work on a project to attach a radio-collar to a tiger that has killed over 60 domestic animals and one person since last April.

Mr Barlow hopes that once it is collared the people living in Chandpai village will be able to follow its movements and so prevent any more attacks.

He says that a similar project to collar lions in Kenya has greatly reduced attacks on livestock and lions there.

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Sumatran tigers on brink of extinction

Antara 4 Mar 08;

Banda Aceh (ANTARA News) - The Leuser International Foundation (YLI) said, according to its data, Sumatran tigers (Panthera tigris Sumatrae) still exist in the Leuser ecosystem area (KEL) but they were very endangered.

Poaching and human encroachment on their habitat had pushed the Sumatran tigers to the brink of extinction, Chik Rini, a YLI spokesperson said here on Tuesday.

In 2007, 10 tigers had been caught by local people in Labuhan Haji Timur, Meukek, Samadua and Kluet Timur, in South Aceh district alone, she said.

The residents caught and shot the tigers because the animals had killed 6 people, she said.

Sumatran tigers were the largest terrestrial carnivores in Asia and have a good reproduction capability if they live in favorable condition, she said.

The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) had put Sumatran tigers in the endangered species category in its Red List of Threatened Species.

During monitoring in 2007, researchers found 142 signs of the Sumatran tiger`s presence in the Leuser ecosystem area, consisting of 53 signs found in South Aceh District, 67 signs in Southeast Asia, 18 in Gayo Lues District and four signs in East Aceh, she said.

The 142 signs included four scratches of Sumatran tigers, 51 heaps of excrement, 40 foot prints, a piece of leftover food , one direct encounter. (*)

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Scientists think weather changes left salmon starving in ocean

Jeff Barnard, The Seattle Times 3 Mar 08;

GRANTS PASS, Ore. — Scientists examining the sudden and widespread collapse of West Coast salmon returns are pointing to the unusual changes in weather patterns that caused the bottom to fall out of the ocean food web in 2005.

NOAA Fisheries Service oceanographer Bill Peterson said Monday the juvenile salmon that left their native rivers and entered the Pacific Ocean in 2005 found little food being transported by the California Current, which flows from the northern Pacific south along the West Coast.

The reason was that the jet stream had shifted to the south, delaying the spring onset of winds out of the north that create a condition known as upwelling, which kickstarts the ocean food web by stirring the water from bottom to top, the agency said.

"If there is no upwelling, there is no phytoplankton growth, no zooplankton growth, and basically you have no food chain that develops, because it all depends on the upwelling," Peterson said from Newport.

"We are not dismissing other potential causes for this year's low salmon returns," NOAA Fisheries Service Northwest Science Center Director Usha Varanasi said in a statement. "But the widespread pattern of low returns along the West Coast for (both coho and chinook) salmon indicates an environmental anomaly occurred in the California Current in 2005."

That was the year that countless seabirds, showing signs of starvation, were washing up dead on beaches and nesting colonies were sparse. Off Oregon, water temperatures near shore — where chinook spend much of their time in the ocean — were 5 to 7 degrees warmer than normal and yielded about one-fourth the usual amount of phytoplankton, the tiny plants that are at the bottom of the food web.

Since then, upwelling has been better, but not much, Peterson said.

However, he is looking forward to this year being very good. This winter has been very unusual, with temperatures colder and winds out of the north and west more prevalent than normal, all of which indicates 2008 could be the best year for upwelling since 2000, Peterson said.

Chinook returns in the Sacramento River in California last year were a third of what biologists expected, and forecasts are for an all-time low this year. Coho salmon returns to streams in Oregon and California were also lower than expected.

Federal fisheries managers will be wrestling with the problem when they meet in Sacramento, Calif., next week to set options for commercial, sport and tribal fishing seasons for the ocean off California, Oregon and Washington. The Pacific Fishery Management Council will set the final seasons when it meets in Seattle in April.

While no decisions have been made, there are likely to be some salmon fishing closures, said Chuck Tracy, salmon staff for the council.

The council has said that even with no ocean fishing allowed, Sacramento chinook would have a tough time meeting the minimum of 122,000 to 180,000 adults returning to hatcheries and rivers to spawn the next generation.

Sport and commercial salmon fishing off California and most of Oregon was worth an average of $103 million a year from 1979 through 2000, but dropped to $61 million a year from 2001 through 2005, according to council figures.

Salmon fishing cutbacks this year come on the heels of severe limitations in 2006 to protect weak stocks from the Klamath River in Northern California and a poor catch last year despite relatively open seasons.

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Shark numbers increase ten-fold off Spain

Fiona Govan, The Telegraph 3 Mar 08;

Spanish scientists have reported a ten-fold increase in the number of sharks spotted off popular tourist beaches in north eastern Spain.

At least 20 sharks were recorded in Mediterranean waters off the Catalan coast last year, a figure that far exceeded previous years.

In 2003 three were seen, in 2004 five were reported and in 2005 and 2006 only two of the fish were found each year.

A report published by the Foundation for the Conservation and Rehabilitation of Marine Animals (CRAM) revealed that among the unusual visitors to the area were a hammerhead shark and several sandbar sharks, one of which was caught and transferred to Barcelona Aquarium last August where it died several days later.

Although there were no reported attacks on bathers, the hammerhead shark (Sphyrna zygaena) , which can grow to four metres, is said to be potentially dangerous to humans.

Four basking sharks were also spotted in the region. The harmless fish can grow to over 12 metres and are common in the Mediterranean, but are not usually found so close to shore.

here has also been an increasing number of giant rays recorded in waters off north eastern Spain.

The authors of the report were at a loss to explain why so many sharks and rays had found their way into northern Mediterranean waters when their usual habitat was to the east and south.

"Although the appearance of some of the species can be regarded as rare or exceptional there is insufficient data to establish a relationship between events and changes in weather patterns," the report said.

But scientists have in the past suggested that warmer waters and altering marine currents caused by climate change are in part to blame for a shift in species behaviour in the region.

One such change is the now regular invasion of jellyfish that plague Spanish beaches each summer.

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21 dead dolphins found on Texas shore

Yahoo News 5 Mar 08;

Marine officials are worried that they may be facing another significant dolphin die-off in the Gulf of Mexico after 21 of the marine mammals were found washed up on Texas beaches over two days.

The carcasses were discovered a year after about 70 dolphins washed up in the same area over a two week period.

"We are concerned, especially because (of) what happened last year," said Blair Maise, the marine mammal stranding coordinator for the national marine fisheries service.

"There may be more."

Researchers weren't able to determine a cause for last year's significant die-off because the animals' carcasses were too decomposed when they were discovered.

The bottlenosed dolphins found on Monday and Tuesday on the Bolivar peninsula near Galveston, Texas were also badly decomposed, but officials are hopeful they may still be able to determine a cause.

"We're going to take a more proactive role (this time) in trying to do aerial searches for fresher carcasses so we can get better information on the cause," Maise said in a telephone interview.

Researchers have collected samples from the dolphin carcasses which will be studied to see if signs of disease can be found.

They will also study satellite photos taken over the past three weeks to see if the dolphins could have been killed by a red tide, a harmful algal bloom which is becoming increasingly common in the Gulf.

"It's been around for hundreds and hundreds of years, the red tide, but what's unusual is the areas where we're starting to see it more and the impact on the marine life," Maise said.

These red tides have been responsible for the bulk of the mass marine kill-offs recorded in the Gulf Coast in recent years, she said.

"Over the years these unusual mortality events have become more and more frequent," Maise said.

Some 41 mass kill-offs in US waters have been classified as unusual mortality events since 1991, 23 of which were in the past three years. The latest dolphin incident has not yet been classified.

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US biologist who urges economic incentives wins $100,000 prize

U.S. biologist wins $100,000 Norwegian prize
Reuters 4 Mar 08;

OSLO (Reuters) - A U.S. biologist who urges wider use of economic incentives to solve problems such as pollution or a rising loss of animal and plant species was awarded a $100,000 environmental prize in Norway on Tuesday.

Gretchen Daily, a scientist at Stanford University, won the 11th annual Sophie Prize, set up by Norwegian Jostein Gaarder, the author of the 1991 best-selling novel and teenagers' guide to philosophy "Sophie's World."

"As a scientist she has shown that there are different ways to put a value on nature," the award committee said. "She has shown us that there are also economical arguments for conserving species and eco-systems."

Daily, who was born in 1964, has said New York City's investments to protect the Catskill region meant a cleaner supply of water used by millions of people, averting a need for costly purification plants.

She suggests that a drive by China, for instance, to protect forests could prevent floods and safeguard animals and plants.

"We're in trouble as a species and as a society," she said in a telephone call from California. "One of our best hopes is to align economic incentives with conservation."

U.N. studies say the world is facing the highest number of extinctions since dinosaurs were wiped out 65 million years ago because of habitat loss, climate change and pollution.

(Reporting by Alister Doyle; Editing by Alastair Sharp)

Environmental prize goes to US biologist
Yahoo News 4 Mar 08;

US biologist Gretchen Daily was awarded Tuesday the Sophie Prize for her efforts in highlighting the economic arguments for environmental protection, the Norwegian foundation behind the award said.

Daily is "one of the world's forerunners in the debate on sustainable development and conservation of biological diversity," the Sophie Foundation said.

Born in 1964, Daily, a professor at Stanford University, "has shown that there are different ways to put a value on nature.

"She has shown us that there are also economical arguments for conserving species and eco-systems and demonstrated how this dimension can be included in political decisions," the jury said.

Daily's theories were presented in her 2002 book "The New Economy of Nature."

The Sophie Prize was founded in 1997 by Norwegian writer Jostein Gaarder, author of the bestselling philosophical novel "Sophie's World".

The prize, which comes with a 100,000 dollar cheque, will be formally presented to Daily on June 12 at a ceremony in Oslo.

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California cows start passing gas to the grid

Nichola Groom, Reuters 4 Mar 08;

RIVERDALE, California (Reuters) - Imagine a vat of liquid cow manure covering the area of five football fields and 33 feet deep. Meet California's most alternative new energy.

On a dairy farm in the Golden State's agricultural heartland, utility PG&E Corp began on Tuesday producing natural gas derived from manure, in what it hopes will be a new way to power homes with renewable, if not entirely clean, energy.

The Vintage Dairy Biogas Project, the brainchild of life- long dairyman David Albers, aims to provide the natural gas needed to power 1,200 homes a day, Albers said at the facility's inauguration ceremony.

"When most people see a pile of manure, they see a pile of manure. We saw it as an opportunity for farmers, for utilities, and for California," Albers said.

In addition to being a partner in the 5,000-head Vintage Dairy, Albers is also president of BioEnergy Solutions, the company that funded and built the facility which cost millions of dollars. PG&E is simply a customer and the companies declined to give details of project finances.

As cow manure decomposes, it produces methane, a greenhouse gas more potent than carbon dioxide. Scientists say controlling methane emissions from animals such as cows would be a major step in addressing climate change.

Enter the Vintage Dairy project. As luck would have it, methane can be captured and treated to produce renewable gas, and California regulators have directed PG&E and other utilities to make renewable energy at least 20 percent of their electricity supplies by 2010.

PG&E expects to reach 14 percent this year, thanks in small part at least to its partnership with BioEnergy Solutions.

To tap the renewable gas from cow manure, the Vintage Dairy farm first flushes manure into a large, octagonal pit, where it becomes about 99 percent water. It is then pumped into a covered lagoon, first passing through a screen that filters out large solids that eventually become the cows' bedding.

The covered lagoon, or "digester," is the size of nearly five football fields and about 33 feet deep. It is lined with plastic to protect the ground water and the cover, made of high density polyethylene, is held down at the edges by concrete. The digester's cover was sunken into the lagoon on Tuesday, but officials said it would be taut and raised in a few days as the gas collects underneath it.

Weights on top of the digester channel the gas to the small facility where it is "scrubbed" of hydrogen sulfide and carbon dioxide. The end product is "close to 99 percent pure methane" according to BioEnergy Chief Operating Officer Thomas Hintz.

Once it is treated, the gas is injected into PG&E's pipeline, where it will be shipped to a power plant in Northern California.

According to Albers, PG&E and California state officials, biogas is a major opportunity for dairy farmers to make extra revenue while helping the environment.

"There are a lot of lagoons like this in California that don't have lining in them," said James Boyd, commissioner and vice chair of the California Energy Commission. "There is a business case to be made for this ... climate change has really provided the incentive to do this."

Both BioEnergy Solutions and PG&E are actively courting dairy farmers, whose cow manure is now simply being used as fertilizer, allowing the methane to be released into the air as a greenhouse gas.

"With nearly 2 million dairy cows in California, the potential is great," said Roy Kuga, vice president of energy supply for San Fransisco-based PG&E. The company has a partnership with another company, Microgy, which is currently setting up biogas projects at three California dairies.

In practice, however, not every dairy could participate in such a project because some are not located close enough to the necessary gas transmission lines, PG&E officials said.

Still, for now there are plenty of dairies to get on board. A second dairy in Fresno county has already agreed to join the Vintage Dairy project and Albers estimated gas from the two dairies combined could power 2,500 homes a day. The Vintage Dairy facility could accommodate gas from up to two or three more dairies, depending on the size, officials said.

(Editing by Andre Grenon)

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