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Mahmood Saberi, Gulf News 10 Oct 08;
Dubai: The groundswell of support is growing for the campaign to free Sammy the Shark with readers' comments pouring into the Gulf News website from across the globe.
Readers have also made cut-outs of the 'Free Sammy the Shark' badge and are flaunting it. One reader pasted it on their vehicle and children especially find the campaign very appealing.
"After viewing the whale shark at Atlantis gathering swim patterns, it isn't rocket science," said Jarrod, from Melbourne, Australia. "It just swims in a circle constantly instead of navigating the ocean. The hotel would have known all along they wanted an attraction like a whale shark and made a poor excuse of rescuing it."
Rajesh from Dubai is more forthright: "Those who feel the shark is alright in the aquarium, I request them to lock themselves up in a room for a few years and see," he said.
Then there are pleas: "Please release Sammy, he belongs in the ocean, not in an aquarium. I've seen him, it's far too small in there for him," says Charisse from Dubai.
Neurotic behaviour
"If it is true that the people in Atlantis Hotel are taking care of Sammy, then it's okay, but they should free Sammy. As we know sharks stay in the sea not in an aquarium," said Chona, a Filipino expatriate in Dubai.
"To say the animal is not endangered does not mean it is safe," said Roland, from Dubai. "Very little is known about these animals and being as large as they are they take a lot longer to reach sexual maturity (around 30 years).
"Removing them from the ocean could have a significant effect on the population. Also, they are not being kept in a "safe" environment, they are being kept in a cage, and all animals in cages begin to display neurotic behaviour over time," he added.
Sophie again from Dubai notes that the travel range of a whale shark is much larger than what Atlantis could provide.
"If they are keeping the fish without the proper permits, they should release it," she said. "I would think whale watching trips to the sea could be a very popular activity the Atlantis could provide and charge for if they are worried about the loss of revenue from releasing the shark," she added.
But Abid from Melbourne, Australia, has a different take of the issue.
"I think the whale shark should stay in the Atlantis aquarium as there are lot of sharks in the ocean to play with, especially in Australia."
Rahanash from Sharjah thinks along the same lines. "Since this is not an endangered species and the hotel authorities are taking good care of it, I believe it's okay to stay there," says Rahanash. "Besides, every day, hundreds of such animals are caught, killed and eaten world over... at least one will be safe...at least for the time being. "It's just another publicity stunt... people should concentrate their time, efforts and resources in areas where it is really required."
Ahmad from Dubai says, "Shark in an aquarium, what is the problem? As long as professional people will take care of the shark, then there shouldn't be any issue to worry about."
Michele from Sharjah, a conservationist, believes that the actions and statements of Atlantis are "appalling". The whale shark is being kept in an artificial tank, what data can be gathered on swim patterns and feeding behaviours, she says.
Ownership proof owner's responsibility
Gulf News 10 Oct 08;
Dubai: The UAE Federal Law No 11 for 2002 concerning regulating and Controlling International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) of wild fauna and flora states in Article 3 that proof of legal ownership of any specimen within the included species in the appendices shall be the responsibility of the holder.
Article 6 states that any specimen taken from the sea, listed on CITES appendices, is prohibited unless prior permit is obtained.
Sammy, the whale shark in captivity in Atlantis has generated attention from international organisations such as the WWF and the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW).
Azzedine Downes, Vice-President for International Operations, International Fund for Animal Welfare in the UAE said IFAW has over one million supporters, many of whom are very willing to write to the Palm Atlantis management.
"[They] will change their travel plans if they believe that the Palm is not going to release the whale shark. We will be happy to begin forwarding these inquiries to the Palm Atlantis given that they do not seem to respond to Gulf News inquiries ... IFAW calls on the Palm Atlantis to simply do the right thing. Release the whale shark," he said.
Readers fear about shark's future
Sanya Nayeem, Gulf News 11 Oct 08;
Dubai: It has been 35 days and counting but there is still one less whale shark in the ocean. Growing concern among Gulf News readers has them all asking the same question - will Sammy the Shark ever swim to freedom?
Sofiane Boufas, an Algerian expatriate, was optimistic. He "I have heard of such incidents happening occasionally in places such as Canada. However, once the animals are treated, they are usually returned to their natural habitat and that is how it is supposed to be," said.
According to Fiona Mindonca, a Dubai resident, sharks and whales cannot be domesticated or treated as other animals. "Sammy should be swimming in the direction of the sea, instead of going around in circles in a tank," she said.
The issue is becoming more serious with the passing of time, as concerns about Sammy's future keep readers on tenterhooks.
Mohammad Ebrahim, a Pakistani expatriate, said: "Right now, Sammy is a baby and is just about 13 feet long. When she grows up to be the size of a school bus, with physiological needs and a predator's appetite. How can it possibly remain in the aquarium?"
He questioned the experience of medical professionals handling the 'vulnerable' species of fish at the Atlantis. Ebrahim added: "Personally, I do not think the shark can be well taken care of in a tank, simply because it is not her real home."
For Chris, a Gulf News reader, the fact that "one of the rarest creatures on the planet" is in captivity, was hard to digest. In his comment on gulfnews.com, he said: "I have been an active diver for over 14 years in many places around the world, but I have never seen a whale shark in the wild. Sammy must be released, so that future generations of the same species can exist."
According to David Pereira, a Dubai resident, Sammy should have been set free a long time ago. "If released too late, it may not be able to settle in its natural habitat and learn to hunt," he said.
Leong Wee Keat, Today Online 11 Oct 08;
THE stir in the coffee cup appears to have ceased, with coffee chains Spinelli and Starbucks closing their “dipper wells”.
The establishments have turned off the taps that were allowed to run into a container all day despite authorities declaring their flow rates to be “low”.
Both chains have put in place seemingly simple solutions — reducing the need for constantly flowing water to wash utensils, but maintaining customer safety standards at the same time.
Starbucks, which turned off its taps on Thursday evening, has started testing a single-use spoon as an alternative.
On Friday, Spinelli adopted a new operating procedure: Rinsing utensils with milk residue immediately — thermometers with normal water, spoons dipped in boiling water and placed in a mug filled with hot water. The mug is emptied once the water turns milky, said Spinelli.
Both coffee chains said they made the changes with water conservation in mind, but were unable to gauge how much water would be saved under the new systems.
According to one estimate, reported in British newspaper The Sun, the dipper well practice wastes over 23 million litres of water daily at Starbucks’ locations globally.
But how much did Public Utilities Board (PUB) officials — who visited both chains on Wednesday — play a part ininfluencing the changes?
Starbucks, which has 57 outlets here, said it recognised that the amount of water used by the dipper well system was “unacceptable” and has been working since last year to find a suitable solution.
The decision to embark on the single-use spoon test is from Starbucks Coffee, said marketing manager Ruth Yam.
Spinelli, with 28 branches here, however, admitted that PUB’s visit influenced the change and took the national water agency’s advice “seriously”, said assistant marketing communications manager Walts Tan.
When contacted, PUB’s director of water supply network Chong Hou Chun said officers conducted checks at the coffee joints to understand the function of dipper wells as well as determine the flow rates.
They were told that the use of dipper wells is an international practice for food safety and hygiene reasons, said Mr Chong.
“The tap flow rates at dipper wells are low,” he added.
Flow rates measured about 0.5 litres per minute as compared to an average unregulated flow rate of 12 litres per minute for wash basin taps.
PUB requires flow rates at wash basin taps not to exceed 6 litres per minute.
While Spinelli and Starbucks have made changes, the dipper well was still seen being used at Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf’s outlet at Republic Plaza. The coffee chain could not be reached for comment on Friday.
Starbucks, Spinelli turn off the tap
All 85 outlets of the two chains here abandon water-wasting dipper-well system for cleaning utensils
Amelia Tan, Straits Times 11 Oct 08;
ALL Starbucks and Spinelli coffee shops in Singapore have stopped using a controversial method of cleaning spoons that has drawn fire from environmentalists around the world.
The chains, which have a combined 85 outlets here, made the decision days after government water inspectors visited several outlets to examine their much maligned dipper-well system.
In this method, utensils are bathed in a continuous flow of tap water. The practice has been called 'wasteful' by environmentalists, and one estimate says it squanders 23 million litres of water a day in Starbucks locations world-wide.
Singapore's 57 Starbucks locations axed the dipper-well system on Thursday evening, while Spinelli's 28 outlets followed suit yesterday morning.
Staff at one Spinelli outlet said earlier this week that they were warned by officers from the national water agency PUB that they risked being fined if they continued using the system. Penalties for wasting water can go up to $50,000 for a first offence.
Singapore and Britain are the first countries with Starbucks stores to see the dipper wells discontinued.
Starbucks said baristas will now clean spoons in a dishwasher, while Spinelli said it plans to rinse the utensils under hot water and plunk them in a container.
Singapore Environment Council executive director Howard Shaw applauded the moves.
'I believe it was an oversight of the corporations. They probably didn't realise that they were wasting huge amounts of water. This case shows that public attention can lead to change.'
The controversy follows a report in the British tabloid The Sun - called the 'The great drain robbery' - that said Starbucks wastes enough water to fill an Olympic-size pool every 83 minutes.
The revelations have proven to be a public relations problem for the world's largest coffee chain, which has billed itself as environmentally sensitive.
The company maintains that a continuous flow of water is the most hygienic way to clean milk residue off spoons.
'The challenge lies in balancing customer safety and water conservation,' said Starbucks Coffee Singapore managing director Jeff Miller. 'We recognise that water usage is a topic of public concern and we have been working on alternatives to the dipper-well system since last year,' he said.
Mr Miller said he met all 57 Starbucks managers here on Wednesday to discuss cleaning the spoons in a dishwasher, a process that is less efficient than than the dipper-well system.
The company has ordered 2,200 new stainless steel spoons - along with 180 plastic collection containers - to make sure there are enough clean utensils to go around.
Spinelli spokesman Ross Bright said unlike Starbucks, the chain's stores switched off dipper wells during off-peak hours. But public outcry has convinced the company to shelve the system.
'Public perception is important to us. (The wells) have drawn so much attention recently as a source of water wastage.'
Spoons will now be rinsed under hot water and bathed in cups before being used again. Baristas will change the hot water in the cups once it is cloudy.
The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf and Swensen's, which use the dipper-well method, did not reply to e-mail seeking comment.
Richard Black, BBC News website 10 Oct 08;
The global economy is losing more money from the disappearance of forests than through the current banking crisis, according to an EU-commissioned study.
It puts the annual cost of forest loss at between $2 trillion and $5 trillion.
The figure comes from adding the value of the various services that forests perform, such as providing clean water and absorbing carbon dioxide.
The study, headed by a Deutsche Bank economist, parallels the Stern Review into the economics of climate change.
It has been discussed during many sessions here at the World Conservation Congress.
Some conservationists see it as a new way of persuading policymakers to fund nature protection rather than allowing the decline in ecosystems and species, highlighted in the release on Monday of the Red List of Threatened Species, to continue.
Capital losses
Speaking to BBC News on the fringes of the congress, study leader Pavan Sukhdev emphasised that the cost of natural decline dwarfs losses on the financial markets.
"It's not only greater but it's also continuous, it's been happening every year, year after year," he told BBC News.
"So whereas Wall Street by various calculations has to date lost, within the financial sector, $1-$1.5 trillion, the reality is that at today's rate we are losing natural capital at least between $2-$5 trillion every year."
The review that Mr Sukhdev leads, The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (Teeb), was initiated by Germany under its recent EU presidency, with the European Commission providing funding.
The first phase concluded in May when the team released its finding that forest decline could be costing about 7% of global GDP. The second phase will expand the scope to other natural systems.
Stern message
Key to understanding his conclusions is that as forests decline, nature stops providing services which it used to provide essentially for free.
So the human economy either has to provide them instead, perhaps through building reservoirs, building facilities to sequester carbon dioxide, or farming foods that were once naturally available.
Or we have to do without them; either way, there is a financial cost.
The Teeb calculations show that the cost falls disproportionately on the poor, because a greater part of their livelihood depends directly on the forest, especially in tropical regions.
The greatest cost to western nations would initially come through losing a natural absorber of the most important greenhouse gas.
Just as the Stern Review brought the economics of climate change into the political arena and helped politicians see the consequences of their policy choices, many in the conservation community believe the Teeb review will lay open the economic consequences of halting or not halting the slide in biodiversity.
"The numbers in the Stern Review enabled politicians to wake up to reality," said Andrew Mitchell, director of the Global Canopy Programme, an organisation concerned with directing financial resources into forest preservation.
"Teeb will do the same for the value of nature, and show the risks we run by not valuing it adequately."
A number of nations, businesses and global organisations are beginning to direct funds into forest conservation, and there are signs of a trade in natural ecosystems developing, analogous to the carbon trade, although it is clearly very early days.
Some have ethical concerns over the valuing of nature purely in terms of the services it provides humanity; but the counter-argument is that decades of trying to halt biodiversity decline by arguing for the intrinsic worth of nature have not worked, so something different must be tried.
Whether Mr Sukhdev's arguments will find political traction in an era of financial constraint is an open question, even though many of the governments that would presumably be called on to fund forest protection are the ones directly or indirectly paying for the review.
But, he said, governments and businesses are getting the point.
"Times have changed. Almost three years ago, even two years ago, their eyes would glaze over.
"Today, when I say this, they listen. In fact I get questions asked - so how do you calculate this, how can we monetize it, what can we do about it, why don't you speak with so and so politician or such and such business."
The aim is to complete the Teeb review by the middle of 2010, the date by which governments are committed under the Convention of Biological Diversity to have begun slowing the rate of biodiversity loss.
Yahoo News 10 Oct 08;
OSLO (Reuters) - A "lost" type of deer has been found on a remote mountainside in Indonesia's Sumatra island 80 years after the last confirmed sighting, experts said Friday.
The Sumatran muntjac, about the size of a large dog, was photographed and rescued from a hunter's snare 6,400 feet high in mountains of the Kerinci-Seblat National Park.
The species was originally discovered in 1914 but had not been seen since 1930, Flora & Fauna International, whose experts found the deer along with park officials, said in a statement.
Two more of the deer were later photographed elsewhere in the park.
The snared deer was photographed in 2002 but only recognized as a Sumatran muntjac this year, in a 2008 international "Red List" of endangered species, after scientists confirmed that it was a different species from the related red muntjac.
(Editing by Angus MacSwan)
More details on Legendary deer rediscovered in Sumatran national park on Wildlife Extra
Yahoo News 10 Oct 08;
Palm oil companies are clearing massive swathes of untouched forest in Indonesia's remote easternmost Papua region, environmental group Greenpeace said Friday.
"Palm oil companies have obtained the land conversion permits for tens of thousand of hectares," Greenpeace campaigner Bustar Maitar told AFP.
Observations from the air in the Lereh region near Papuan capital Jayapura showed palm oil producers including Indonesian giant Sinar Mas had started widespread clearing to make way for palm oil plantations, Maitar said.
Continued clearing and expansion of the concessions will have a devastating impact on Papua's forests, Maitar said, adding the land-clearing is allowed under Indonesian law.
Greenpeace in a statement called for an immediate moratorium on all forest conversion in Papua, which has so far been largely isolated from Indonesia's palm oil boom by poor transport links.
Fears are that the expansion of palm oil and logging could send Papua down the road of other Indonesian islands Sumatra and Borneo, where land-clearing and the illegal logging that has followed has stripped once-great forests.
"It is crucial that the last remaining intact tracts of Indonesia's forest are protected in order to combat climate change," Maitar said in the statement.
Local people in the area are heavily reliant on the forest for food and building materials and face the collapse of communities if clearing goes ahead, Greenpeace said.
"The locals can't depend on getting basic necessities from Java island or other places. And because of climate change, they can't predict the timing of rice harvests," Maitar said.
Sinar Mas could not be reached for comment.
Land-clearing for palm oil is a major source of deforestation in Indonesia, where the clearing of forests has pushed the country into the position of the world's third-highest carbon emitter.
Papua, which occupies the western end of New Guinea island, is a largely inaccessible region of highlands and thick forests that has been under the control of Jakarta since the 1960s.
Foreign journalists are barred from the region without a special permit.
Susan Montoya Bryan, Associated Press Yahoo News 10 Oct 08;
A tortoise, a hare, a mouse and a half-dozen mussels are some of the creatures that a conservation group hopes to save through a "Western Ark" project aimed at petitioning the government for federal protection.
WildEarth Guardians filed eight petitions Thursday seeking protection for a diverse group of 13 plants and animals with ranges that span more than a dozen states and stretch into Mexico and Canada.
"We deliberately wanted to petition at once for a variety of plants and animals and this is to underscore that the Endangered Species Act really is like Noah's ark," said Nicole Rosmarino, the organization's wildlife program director. "We want as many species that are in need to board the ark as possible."
WildEarth Guardians reviewed the status of hundreds of species — including mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians and invertebrates — looking for those that had the best cases for protection under the federal act.
"We really wanted a wide range just to demonstrate to the government and the public that that's what this law is all about," Rosmarino said. "The Endangered Species Act is all about protecting the rich tapestry of life."
The "Western Ark" petitions are the latest salvo in the battle the group has been waging against the federal government over endangered species listings. WildEarth Guardians points out that the polar bear was the first U.S. species to be listed in over two years and that all of the listings under the Bush administration have been prompted by either citizen petitions or legal action.
The organization in the past year has petitioned for protections for hundreds of species, including prairie wildflowers, butterflies, amphibians, fishes, snails, trees and cactus.
The Fish and Wildlife Service vowed at the beginning of this year to make a dent in the backlog of species needing to be reviewed for possible ESA protection. In a step toward that goal, the agency announced last month it was taking a new, ecosystem-based approach to the endangered species list and proposing an all-at-once addition of 48 Hawaiian species to list.
Rosmarino said the approach makes sense and is long overdue but the administration still has a lot of catching up to do.
She added that her group will keep plugging away with petitions and legal pressure.
"If nothing else, we're going to greet the next administration with a long line of passengers that urgently need to board the ark that the Endangered Species Act provides," she said.
Nearly all the species listed in the petitions filed Thursday face a common threat of climate change, including the New Mexico meadow jumping mouse, the Jemez Mountains salamander, the white-sided jackrabbit and the Sonoran desert tortoise.
The tortoise, which ranges across southern Arizona and Sonora, Mexico, is the focus of one petition filed jointly by WildEarth Guardians and the Western Watersheds Project. The groups say the tortoise's population has been reduced by more than half since 1987, and that urban sprawl, off-roading and grazing continue to put pressure on the species.
In addition, long droughts brought on by climate change are expected to result in less food and lower reproduction rates for the tortoise, the groups say.
Rosmarino said drought is also likely to have an impact on the white-sided jackrabbit's grassland habitat.
Without federal protection, Rosmarino said, conservationists worry that the tortoise and the jackrabbit — like the other species listed in the petitions — might be lost.
She quipped that the tortoise and the hare are not racing each other but are "in a race with extinction and neither of them has an interest in winning that race."
___
On the Net:
WildEarth Guardians: http://www.wildearthguardians.org
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service: http://www.fws.gov/
Jasmin Melvin, Reuters 10 Oct 08;
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Stocks of Alaska pollock, a staple of the U.S. fast food industry, have shrunk 50 percent from last year to record low levels and put the world's largest food fishery on the brink of collapse, environmental group Greenpeace said on Friday.
Taina Honkalehto, a research fishery biologist with the U.S. National Marine Fisheries Service, said pollock biomass in U.S. waters was down to 940,000 tons from 1.8 million tons last year.
Pollock is used in McDonald's fish sandwiches, frozen fish sticks, fish and chips and imitation crabmeat. It also helps feed fur seals, whales and the endangered Steller sea lions.
Pollock stocks have been unable to reproduce quickly enough to recover from yearly catch of 1 million tons, environmentalists say.
"Just as the financial institutions on Wall Street collapsed due to poor oversight and mismanagement, the pollock fishery is on the fast-track to collapse as well," Greenpeace said.
A collapse of the fishery would have hurt Alaska's commercial fishermen and coastal communities that depend on the sea for income.
"Economic pressures to keep on fishing at such high levels have overwhelmed common sense," said Jeremy Jackson, director of the Center for Marine Biodiversity and Conservation at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, in a statement.
Jackson recommended a "far more precautionary, ecosystem-based approach" to fisheries management.
Greenpeace has called for the North Pacific Fishery Management Council to cut the catch in half for pollock when it meets in December to set limits for 2009.
The 2008 catch limit was set at 1 million tons last December, a 28 percent cut from the 2007 limit.
"We are on the cusp of one of the largest fishery collapses in history," said John Hocevar, Greenpeace's oceans campaign director. "It may still be possible to prevent disaster."
The group also advised that fishing on spawning populations be suspended and marine reserves be created to protect pollock habitats as the fishery has seen poor juvenile survival rates for several years.
(Reporting by Jasmin Melvin; Editing by Marguerita Choy)
Reuters 10 Oct 08;
There are only two SECA currently -- the North Sea and the Baltic -- but it is expected that the European Union, the U.S., Japan, Singapore and Australia will be declared SECA by 2015
LONDON (Reuters) - Countries have agreed new sulfur limits for ship fuels that will slash air pollutants and clean up the world's oceans, but raise costs for the oil and ship industry, a maritime industry source said on Friday.
Governments agreed the new measures, which will sharply cut harmful sulfur dioxide (SO2) emissions from ships through a staggered timetable to 2015, at a U.N. International Maritime Organization (IMO) meeting in London.
"It's a very significant agreement because it means that there will be substantial reductions in the emissions of harmful sulfur by ships," Simon Bennett, secretary at the International Chamber of Shipping, told Reuters.
"There is going to be much greater demands in the use of distillate fuels, particularly in the years running up to 2015," he said.
Through the IMO, countries agreed to impose sulfur limits in so-called special Sulphur Emission Control Areas (SECA) of 0.1 percent by 2015 from the current 1.5 percent.
By 2010 sulfur limits will be limited to just 1 percent in the protected areas.
There are only two SECA currently -- the North Sea and the Baltic -- but it is expected that the European Union, the U.S., Japan, Singapore and Australia will be declared SECA by that time.
Bennett said that the ambitious targets, first formally aired in April, will likely cost the oil and ship industry billions of dollars to implement.
They could also raise the price of road transport fuels as the industry, which numbers 50,000 ocean going ships, switches from heavy fuel oil to cleaner burning distillates.
"The big question will be whether or not the oil refining industry will be able to deliver this new demand for distillate that is going to be created for shipping," Bennett said.
(Reporting by Stefano Ambrogi; editing by James Jukwey)
IMO environment meeting adopts revised regulations on ship emissions
IMO website 10 Oct 08;
Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) - 58th session: 6 to 10 October 2008
The Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) unanimously adopted amendments to the MARPOL Annex VI regulations to reduce harmful emissions from ships even further, when it met for its 58th session at IMO's London headquarters.
The main changes to MARPOL Annex VI will see a progressive reduction in sulphur oxide (SOx) emissions from ships, with the global sulphur cap reduced initially to 3.50% (from the current 4.50%), effective from 1 January 2012; then progressively to 0.50 %, effective from 1 January 2020, subject to a feasibility review to be completed no later than 2018.
The limits applicable in Sulphur Emission Control Areas (SECAs) will be reduced to 1.00%, beginning on 1 July 2010 (from the current 1.50 %); being further reduced to 0.10 %, effective from 1 January 2015.
Progressive reductions in nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions from marine engines were also agreed, with the most stringent controls on so-called "Tier III" engines, i.e. those installed on ships constructed on or after 1 January 2016, operating in Emission Control Areas.
The revised Annex VI will allow for an Emission Control Area to be designated for SOx and particulate matter, or NOx, or all three types of emissions from ships, subject to a proposal from a Party or Parties to the Annex, which would be considered for adoption by the Organization, if supported by a demonstrated need to prevent, reduce and control one or all three of those emissions from ships.
The revised Annex VI will enter into force on 1 July 2010, under the tacit acceptance amendment procedure
MARPOL Annex VI Regulations for the Prevention of Air Pollution from Ships entered into force in May 2005 and has, so far, been ratified by 53 countries, representing approximately 81.88 % of the gross tonnage of the world's merchant shipping fleet.
The MEPC also adopted amendments to the associated NOx Technical Code, to give a revised NOx Technical Code 2008. The amended Code includes a new chapter based on the agreed approach for NOx regulation of existing (pre-2000) engines established in MARPOL Annex VI, and provisions for direct measurement and monitoring methods, a certification procedure for existing engines, and test cycles to be applied to Tier II and Tier III engines.
Revised Guidelines for Exhaust Gas Cleaning Systems and Guidelines for the development of a VOC management plan were also adopted.
The revised measures are expected to have a significant beneficial impact on the atmospheric environment and on human health, particularly that of people living in port cities and coastal communities.
Louise Gray, The Telegraph 10 Oct 08;
Tesco is to review the sale of shark fin products in its stores following claims by environmentalists that demand for the product is in danger of wiping out endangered species.
More than half of the world's sharks are under threat of extinction but demand for the delicacy shark fin soup means millions are killed every year.
According to conservationists, the fins are cut from living sharks that are left to die in the water.
However Tesco, the world's third largest retail group, is selling shark fin products in its stores in Thailand where it is considered to have medicinal properties.
Ali Hood, Shark Trust director of conservation, said a multinational group that prides itself on its environmental record should withdraw the product.
She said: "Sharks now rank amongst the most endangered species on the planet and the demand for shark fins is the root cause of the alarming decline in shark populations.
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"The Trust has asked Tesco to follow the example of Disney who withdrew Shark fin soup from the menu of their Hong Kong theme park."
In response Tesco said they could review selling the product in an effort to ensure all the shark fins are caught in a sustainable way.
A spokesman said: "Our Thai customers expect to be able to purchase Sharks Fin from us.
"It is a traditional food in Thailand that is sold widely and as a local business we have to respect that.
"However, we do want to do this in a sustainable way, so we will review our supplies and take expert advice on how best we can achieve this".
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