Best of our wild blogs: 28 Feb 09

Help needed for Horseshoe Crab Population & Distribution Survey
on the Midnight Monkey Monitor blog

Butterfly Predators - Death in the Wind
on the Butterflies of Singapore blog

Birds leaf-bathing at Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve
on the Bird Ecology Study Group blog

Ubin Tour
on the Pulau Ubin Tour with Justin blog

What is that green spot?
on the otterman speaks blog

Systems at Peril: Climate Change, Agriculture and Biodiversity in Australia on the Running with the Wind blog

Malaysia Environmental Organizations - Get Active!
on the Nature Escapes Blog

Peak fish, is it real?
on blogfish

Read more!

Move to block Ulu Muda logging plan

Noor Adzman Baharuddin, New Straits Times 28 Feb 09;

ALOR STAR: A nationwide signature campaign against Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Azizan Abdul Razak's plan to log timber in the Ulu Muda forest reserve was launched yesterday.
A spokesman for the 19-member group, Shamsul Ery Shamsudin, said: "The 'Save the Ulu Muda forest reserve' campaign is on.

"We waited for feedback from the menteri besar for almost one year, but there was no response. He didn't even want to meet us.

"We fear the logging plan is on and we want to stop this."

Shamsul, who is a field research officer with Penang-based Sahabat Alam Malaysia, said the group expected to collect 1,000,000 signatures before the end of the year.
"We are also targeting 100,000 signatures in Penang, Kedah and Perlis.

"We will not relent until the menteri besar rescinds his decision."

He said the group was appealing to the Federal Government to honour its promise to pay the Kedah government RM100 million annually if it spared the forest reserve.

He said the Penang and Perlis governments should also pay the Kedah government for preserving the forest reserve, which is about twice the size of Perlis, as it was a major source of water for the three states.

Azizan had proposed to fell timber in the forest reserve to earn revenue that will help the state government carry out development programmes.

Members of the group, led by Sahabat Alam Malaysia, are Malaysian Nature Society, Malaysian Karst Society, World Wide Fund for Nature Malaysia, Environmental Protection Society of Malaysia, WaterWatch Penang, Partners of Community Organisations, Treat Every Environment Special, Environmental Management and Research Organisation of Malaysia, United Rural Citizens Association of Kedah, Mada Farmers' Action Group, Community Development and Research Movement, Campus Environmentalist Network, National Friends of Environment Coalition, Consumers Association of Penang, Malay Empowerment Group, Suara Rakyat Malaysia in Penang, Malaysia Social and Health Awareness Association and the Fishermen's Action Network.

Read more!

Risks of Global Warming Rising: Is It Too Late to Reverse Course?

The negative impacts of climate change are beginning to appear--and we may soon cross a threshold of significant damage
David Biello, Scientific American 27 Feb 09

The risk of catastrophic climate change is getting worse, according to a new study from scientists involved with the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). Threats—ranging from the destruction of coral reefs to more extreme weather events like hurricanes, droughts and floods—are becoming more likely at the temperature change already underway: as little as 1.8 degree Fahrenheit (1 degree Celsius) of warming in global average temperatures.

"Most people thought that the risks were going to be for certain species and poor people. But all of a sudden the European heat wave of 2003 comes along and kills 50,000, [Hurricane] Katrina comes along and there's a lot of data about the increased intensity of droughts and floods. Plus, the dramatic melting of Greenland that nobody can explain certainly has to increase your concern," says climatologist Stephen Schneider of Stanford University, who co-authored the research published this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences as well as in several IPCC reports.

"Everywhere we looked, there was evidence that what was believed to be likely has happened. Nature has been cooperating with [climate change] theory unfortunately."

Schneider and his colleagues updated a graph, dubbed the "burning embers," that is designed to map the risks of damage from global warming. The initial version of the graph [left] drawn in 2001 had the risks of climate change beginning to appear after 3.6 or 5.4 degrees F (2 to 3 degrees C) of warming, but the years since have shown that climate risks kick in with less warming.

According to the new graph, risks to "unique and threatened systems" such as coral reefs and risks of extreme weather events become likely when temperatures rise by as little as 1.8 degrees F from 1990 levels, which is on course to occur by mid-century given the current concentrations of atmospheric greenhouse gases. In addition, risks of negative consequences such as increased droughts and the complete melting of ice caps in Greenland and Antarctica definitively outweigh any potential positives, such as longer growing seasons in countries such as Canada and Russia.

"We're definitely going to overshoot some of these temperatures where we see these very large vulnerabilities manifest," says economist Gary Yohe of Wesleyan University in Middletown, Conn., another co-author. "We're going to have to learn how to adapt."

Adaptation notwithstanding, Yohe and Schneider say that scientists must also figure out a way to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to reverse the heating trend to prevent further damage.

Several bills pending in Congress would set a so-called cap-and-trade policy under which an overall limit on pollution would be set—and companies with low output could sell their allowances to those that fail to cut emissions as long as the total stays within the total pollution cap. Any such federal policy would put a price on carbon dioxide pollution, which is currently free to vent into the atmosphere, Yohe note. He, however, favors a so-called carbon tax that would set a fixed price for such climate-changing pollution rather than the cap-and-trade proposals favored by the Obama administration. "It's a predictable price, not a thing that bounces around."

But even with such policies in place—not only in the U.S. but across the globe—climate change is a foregone conclusion; global average temperatures have already risen by at least 1.1 degrees Fahrenheit (0.6 degree C) and further warming of at least 0.7 degree F (0.4 degree C) is virtually certain, according to the IPCC. And a host of studies, including a recent one from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, have shown that global warming is already worse than predicted even a few years ago. The question is: Will it be catastrophic or not? "We've dawdled, and if we dawdle more it will get even worse," Schneider says. "It's time to move."

Read more!

Singapore blooms as lush as Eden itself

Linda Watanabe McFerrin, San Francisco Chronicle 27 Feb 09;

"Ah, that fragrance is beautiful, like gardenia or tuberose."

I am standing in a perfectly groomed Eden, a few feet away from a tumbling waterfall, gazing into the dark eyes of a man who looks both ancient and young.

"It is a butterfly lily," he explains. The white blossom is perfectly reflected in the black eyes of Rahman Salleh, grounds manager and my guide through the gardens of Shangri-la.

No, not the legendary Himalayan lamasery and paradise celebrated in James Hilton's 1933 novel "Lost Horizon," but a hotel in Singapore, the first property in a luxury chain built on the principles of the lush utopian kingdom.

A breeze rustles the fronds of the fishtail palms, giving their long, Rasta-look seedpods a vigorous shake. We continue our walk through the oasis, past fan and hurricane palms, delicate gingers, past the waterfalls, koi ponds and pools where pleasantly braised and toasted guests loll. All have beatific smiles on their sun-dazed faces. So do I. I've come to Singapore, after an absence of many years, to rediscover paradise - the lush, leafy heart of a nation better known for its obsessions with commercial success. I think I've found it here. But this is not the only slice of heaven in this land of sunlight, flowers and friendly people.

Singapore is, in many ways, a little miracle. Young by any standards - the 273-square-mile island nation is only 43 years old - although it is a little over a quarter of the size of Rhode Island and is one of the most crowded countries in the world (around 16,000 residents per square mile), it is also one of the cleanest and most picturesque, and its gross domestic product ranks high. Its ethnically and religiously diverse people - mostly Chinese, Malay, Indian - are well-educated and live and work in apparent harmony. English is the universal language in Singapore, though Mandarin Chinese, Malay, Tamil and others deemed "mother tongues" are also taught and studied.

Unfortunately, what most Westerners know about Singapore is limited to the restrictions imposed on its citizens by a repressive government that dictates the mix of races; regulates reproductive matters, public housing and other seemingly personal matters; bans chewing gum, canes kids and keeps a stranglehold on the media. Westerners know that it's commercial, that its citizens are materialistic, and that the food and the shopping are great. I must admit, headquartered in the towering pagoda of the Singapore Marriott on Orchard Road, where the swell of humanity ebbs and flows above and below ground through high-rise department stores and high-end boutiques, this assumption seems accurate.

But beyond this, beyond the rules and the regulations and the obsession with making and spending money, is another Singapore, a Singapore as graceful and gracious as the mythical utopia that Hilton conjured for readers, a place that I, like Hilton's hero, Conway, never leave without a pang of longing.

Partly it's the people. The Singaporeans I have met are swift: quick in business, quick to learn new things and quick to welcome you. But another reason I love the place is the order and harmony that is one of the outcomes of the nation's strict governance. Even in the midst of massive urbanization and modernization, Singapore has managed to retain much of its tropical island ambience. Ten percent of the country's limited space is devoted to green zones: to parks and nature areas. And then, of course, there are the islands.

Singapore, itself an island separated from the Malaysian mainland by the Strait of Johor, is surrounded by 35 smaller islands. Boomerang-shaped Pulau Ubin, a mere 10 minutes away by bumboat, is a little less than 4 square miles of abandoned granite quarries, coconut and rubber plantations, mangrove and coastal forests, seagrass lagoons and rocky shore. It is home to some of Singapore's last traditional villages, or kampongs, and to the beautiful Chek Jawa Wetlands, where anemones, cowries, volutes, sea stars, sea horses and a myriad of other forms of rarely seen water and land life abound. You can rent a van to take you about the island, but the best way to see Pulau Ubin is to rent a bike when you arrive or set out on foot along one of the many trails that traverse it. Stop for a cold chrysanthemum tea along the way or join schoolchildren, families and others for a quick bite at one of the island's tiny trailside eateries.

It takes a little longer to get to Kusu Island. Access is by ferry, which sets out from the Marina South Pier and stops at sleepy St. John's Island. Once a quarantine facility for lepers, today St. John's draws visitors interested in family outings, a quiet shoreline stroll or an intimate seaside picnic. Kusu or Tortoise Island is a bit busier. Every year, at a certain point in the lunar calendar, nearly 90,000 Taoist devotees make the trip to Kusu to pay homage and pray for the five blessings: longevity, wealth, tranquility, health of body and peace of mind. The rest of the year it is peaceful, with little to distract from the stunning seascapes. Legend has it that a giant sea turtle turned itself into this island to save two shipwrecked sailors, one Chinese, the other Malay. Today its offspring are everywhere. On my recent visit, I threw a few wishful coins into the lotus in front of Tua Pekong Temple, climbed the 152 steps to Kramat Kusu, the Muslim shrine that sits at the high point of the island, and communed with the turtles. Their message was clear: Slow down.

Other islands around Singapore include Subar Laut (Big Sister Island) and Subar Darat (Little Sister Island), named for two beautiful sisters, Minah and Lina, who escaped kidnapping by jumping into the sea; Pulau Hantu, which is great for diving; and Pulau Satumu, another top diving location. It is surrounded by rich coral reefs, and the lighthouse on the island is more than a century old.

Perhaps the most popular, though, is Sentosa Island. If there is a fantasy island, I believe this is it.

You can take the expressway to get to Sentosa or you can swing into the scene on the aerial cable car, which will drop you off in Imbiah right next to the Butterfly Park and the Insect Kingdom. Rasa Sentosa, on Siloso Point on the western end of the island, is a beachfront property with a playful Disney-like atmosphere. With its long white beaches and round-the-clock activities, it's a favorite of Singaporean families and visitors who want to go from zero to a hundred and back again in a few short steps. If the Underwater World, Flying Trapeze, Luge and Skyride, Fish Reflexology spa (where the fish nibble dead skin off your feet) or friendly pythons don't grab you, try a little beach volleyball, a snooze on the sand or a cocktail at one of the numerous restaurants, lounges and seaside cafes. Peacocks and monkeys roam the grounds as do blissed-out children and adults.

Further inland, on the eastern side of the island, the Sentosa Resort & Spa, adjacent to Sentosa Golf Club, caters to a more serene crowd. The resort is home to Spa Botanica, one of the most luxurious in Asia, where clients are treated to a wide range of therapies, indoors and out. Massages, scrubs, baths, body wraps, manicures, pedicures, scalp treatments - every imaginable therapy is on the menu. The pampering takes place indoors (private rooms) or outdoors (exquisite personal pavilions). You can opt for hours of hands-on relaxation or you can spend the day at leisure, wandering amid the frangipani and ferns on the facility's tropically landscaped grounds, enjoying the tea house, swimming pools, cascading waterfalls, volcanic mud pool, meditation labyrinths, float pools, whirlpools and inviting umbrellas of shade.

Returning from Sentosa to Singapore Island does not mean you have to abandon the sense of island calm. It's always mere minutes away in a country and city where colorful districts like Chinatown and Little India are tucked in between great clouds of green. Chief among these and a must for anyone who wants to really feel the green pulse of this carefully landscaped city, is Singapore Botanic Gardens. Established in 1859, these gardens precisely illustrate the close connection between the world of nature and the well being of humanity and exemplify the balance that Singapore's leaders mean to preserve. This is, after all, where 'Hevea brasiliensis,' or Para rubber, was first grown and cultivated in Asia, introducing a crop that would transform the region's economy and usher in a new era of prosperity and modernization.

It is also home to major developments in orchid breeding and hybridization. The National Orchid Garden is a riot of vibrant color, sometimes laced with the faint smell of vanilla, which happens to be an orchid as well. Like the other gardens in the 155-plus-acre complex of lakes, meadows, kiosks, information centers and cafes, they are not simply eye candy; they instruct. The Botany Center located near Tanglin Gate at the park's entrance is an education center that houses important resources like the Singapore Herbarium, the Library of Botany and Horticulture and the Orchid Breeding and Micropropagation Laboratory.

For all their beauty, the Singapore Botanic Gardens are not about romantic notions of nature; they are about the inter-relationship of man and his environment, and in that sense, they are - like just about everything in Singapore - pragmatic. This is nature with a purpose, and that purpose, in some worldviews, is to serve man, just as man's purpose is to be an able and responsible steward of the natural world. This philosophy is explicit throughout the park: in gardens that highlight the commercial contributions of the vegetable kingdom, trace the evolution of plants or teach children to create and explore in a flowering world; in the careful integration of people-friendly structures and meticulously maintained landscapes and in the property's promotion as a popular attraction. Admission to just about everything is free. In the morning, the park is full of parents and children, dog walkers, joggers, cyclists, martial arts practitioners, friends, lovers and a few savvy tourists.

I could spend months in those gardens and possibly years becoming more familiar with Singapore's 300 large and small parks. But, as luck would have it, my trip led elsewhere.

My final day in Singapore was spent at HortPark, the gardening and lifestyle hub of the island country. In this 56-acre regional park full of greenhouses, flower marts, display plots, floral walks, galleries, activity centers and event lawns, the community coalesces around horticultural and landscaping issues, from preparing a new, young generation of gardeners, to greening the Singapore of the future. Some of my last heady moments on the island were spent in the midst of that vision as I sat listening to a short lecture on the National Parks Board's latest ecological adventure.

Their proposed Gardens by the Bay community will occupy around 250 acres of prime waterfront land designed to frame urban dwellers in a serene mantle of ecologically balanced, technologically supported and sustainable greenery.

Among the features under development are Cool Conservatories, massive multi-acre, all-weather glass structures that will showcase flora using sustainable energy technologies. In the Gardens at Marina South, SuperTrees - 98- to 180-foot structures each covered with a living "skin" of greenery - will function very much like natural trees, housing photovoltaic cells in their canopies and collecting the rainwater essential to the Cool Conservatories, even as they provide shade and visual beauty for the people who move beneath them.

The developments go on and on, all focused on marrying technology and nature for the betterment of man. Artificial or not, it's a wise direction in our use-it-or-lose-it day and age. Sitting there, amazed, it occurs to me that what they are doing here is re-engineering Paradise. In Singapore, they are not so much bemoaning a lost horizon as finding a new one.--
If You Go

For more information about Singapore parks and gardens go to, www.nparks.gov.sg or www.visitsingapore.com

Best Places to Stay

Singapore Marriott: www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/sindt-singa pore-marriott-hotel/

Shangri-La, Singapore and Rasa Sentosa: www.shangri-la.com

The Sentosa Resort & Spa: www.thesentosa.com

Poet, travel writer and novelist Linda Watanabe McFerrin ( www.lwmcferrin.com ) writes frequently about the natural world. She is the author of "Namako: Sea Cucumber" and "The Hand of Buddha" and a member of Left Coast Writers ( www.leftcoastwriters.com).

This article appeared on page U - 22 of the San Francisco Chronicle

Read more!

Asia needs to rethink export model: PM

PM's interview with CNBC
Era of over-reliance on the US as the world's customer not sustainable
Jeremy Au Yong, Straits Times 28 Feb 09;

THE United States can no longer be the world's customer, said Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong as he pointed to the need for a rebalancing of how the global economy and countries operated.

In an interview with the CNBC channel aired last night, he acknowledged that this could mean a shift away from Asia's current export-driven model.

As consumption in the US comes down, Asia will have to take up the slack.

'There will have to be a global rebalancing because we cannot expect the Americans to be consumers of things made all over the world. And the rest of the world as savers, lending money to the US to buy things from you,' he said.

But he said that this shift would be difficult given the large, structural changes that have to be made. 'I mean we can't just tell households: 'Go and spend more money', because they have their needs now, their needs in the future,' he said on the programme, CNBC Conversations.

'When they grow old they need to save. They need to save for their retirement, what to save it in. And these are structural and life-cycle matters which have to be taken into account.'

On top of that, some small countries like Singapore simply had no way of moving away from an export-driven model.

Domestic consumption here, said PM Lee, was too small to take in everything that was produced locally.

'We are part of the world economy. We make chips, we make pharmaceuticals, we make petrochemicals. We consume maybe 1 per cent of what we make in these things. Probably less,' he said.

'We are making for the world. We buy from the world, we make from the world, for the world...That's how we prosper. That's how the global economy prospers.'

His remarks drove home again just how much work is still left to be done before the world can emerge from the grips of the current downturn.

And PM Lee made clear that at home, the Government was prepared to do its best to 'minimise the damage' to Singapore's economy, even if it meant dipping into the reserves again.

'We've had a very big Budget ... And if we need to do more we will do more. We have the resources, we can do it. But it is not a problem where spending the money will cure you,' he said.

During the wide-ranging interview, he also responded to questions on issues such as the planned Asean Economic Community, and US-China ties.

Asked if the current crisis could derail plans for an economic community by 2015, PM Lee said it had the potential to do so.

But he stressed that even if the grouping achieved only three-quarters of what had been laid out in its roadmap, Asean would be much better off than it is today.

PM Lee is currently in Thailand attending the Asean Summit.

As for US-China ties, he said he was encouraged that the new Obama administration had recognised China as an important partner, and had not started off with an 'antagonistic stance'.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton clearly showed during her recent visit to China that Washington wanted Beijing to 'be part of the solution to this global crisis'.

'They want China to continue to invest in US Treasury Bonds, for example. That's a very significant statement,' he said. 'And while the US continues to maintain its position on human rights and other religious freedoms, they will not let this overshadow the entire US-China relationship. So I think that's a very good sign.'

PM Lee also dismissed the suggestion that Asian countries were more comfortable with a Republican rather than a Democrat in office. Current US President Barack Obama is a Democrat.

'Whoever is the administration in America, we do business with them,' he said.

jeremyau@sph.com.sg

PUSHING AHEAD WITH COOPERATION

'Several of the countries are pre-occupied also with political issues, consuming domestic political issues, political succession in some cases.

And then against this background, to pay attention to Asean cooperation and to push it forward - that's tough.

But it's important for Asean to do that because in this global environment, if we give the impression that Asean is not fully open for business, I think we will be the losers when the new landscape emerges.'

Mr Lee, when asked whether the current crisis will derail efforts to create an Asean economic bloc.

JUGGLING THEM ALL

'Obama has taken over at a time when there are many balls in the air and he has to deal with all of them. The economy in America certainly, the global economy, but also international issues for them - Iraq, Afghanistan, the Middle East and their relations in Asia too. So I think they have to be able to juggle many balls at once.'

Mr Lee, on the challenges facing the new Obama administration.

Read more!

Renewing Singapore's urban landscape

Recyclable buildings and materials could reduce costs for Singapore
Gary Ong Khim Chye, Straits Times 28 Feb 09;

MORE than half the world lives in cities. According to the United Nations, the urban population is growing by an average of 1.6million people every 10 days. By 2030, two in three people will be city-dwellers.

Larger countries may still be able to afford the old model of urban sprawl, where the city boundary grows ever outwards.

In smaller countries like Singapore, however, evolving a city of the future will be very different.

When the Republic gained independence 44 years ago, urban development focused on the country's needs: public housing to address a housing shortage, and infrastructure catering to low-technology and labour-intensive industries.

As Singapore's needs have evolved, so has the urban landscape.

The country has grown without choking on its own exhaust fumes, via measures such as limiting the car population and having an established and vigorously enforced environmental policy.

We are unique, and we need to develop our own holistic model and solutions for future sustainable urban development.

Sustainable construction refers to the adoption of building designs, construction methods and materials that are environmentally friendly.

It also means using materials and resources that have sustainable supplies.

The issue of sustainability came under the spotlight in 2007 when an unexpected disruption in the supply of sand and granite from Indonesia resulted in the prices of these materials tripling virtually overnight.

This is just one example of how over-dependence on imports of materials from overseas can put the construction industry in a stranglehold.

Research on sustainable development at institutions such as the National University of Singapore is ongoing.

A number of interesting projects are targeted at developing sustainable solutions to meet challenges unique to Singapore.

One project involves using microwave rays to increase the yield and quality of recycled materials.

This novel technique utilises microwave heating to separate the components of recycled concrete for reuse. Heating causes mortar, which sticks to the surface of granite particles, to peel off like the layers of an onion.

Such work aims to provide a sustainable supply of construction materials available locally, which can reduce an over-reliance on imported sand and aggregates, and temper the negative impact of any unexpected disruption in supply.

Another project funded by the National Development Ministry which is being worked on in conjunction with the Housing Board, is to design high-rise buildings which - like building blocks - can be disassembled and reused.

When en bloc fever reached a peak here last year, many older buildings were demolished to make way for new ones.

Unfortunately, there are no recyclable buildings here yet, so many were demolished even though they had plenty of service life left in them.

If they had been designed for disassembly, they could have been reincarnated as new buildings.

Currently, most of the recycled concrete aggregates from demolition debris have been used in land reclamation, roads, and in non-structural applications, such as in carparks and pavement slabs, as they cannot fully replace fresh stocks of aggregates used in constructing new structures.

Also, additional resources are needed to reuse them - they have to be sorted, then crushed, sieved and graded.

Reuse of precast concrete structural components in new buildings would actually take recycling a step further, by removing the need for these steps.

Premature demolition, which generates demolition waste for disposal, would be unnecessary, together with the need for fresh stocks of construction materials for the new building.

The Design for Disassembly (DfD) process involves the management of resources throughout the lifecycle of a building; from the extraction of raw materials, through manufacturing, design, construction and operation, to the eventual demolition.

The DfD building system takes full advantage of the flexibility, convertibility, addition and removal of future buildings.

With this concept in place, the next generation of buildings constructed in Singapore can be viewed as store houses of future building materials.

Spiralling construction costs are here to stay, due to increased global demand and the rising costs of construction materials and manpower.

With dwindling resources and an urgent need to preserve the environment, the concept of unlimited supplies of construction materials is no longer viable.

Stakeholders in the construction industry and members of the public must work together to develop a uniquely Singaporean model, so that future generations will also be able to live, work and play comfortably in Singapore.

The writer is deputy head (infrastructure and resources) at the National University of Singapore's Department of Civil Engineering.

When en bloc fever reached a peak here last year, many older buildings were demolished to make way for new ones.

Read more!

Singapore 5 on list of young global leaders

Christopher de Souza, Eunice Olsen in group picked for Davos meet
Robin Chan, Straits Times 28 Feb 09;

FIVE talented young people from Singapore who are determined to make a difference have just been given their ticket to climb onto the world stage.

The five - a lawyer, violinist, Nominated Member of Parliament, entrepreneur and bank executive - are high-fliers in their own fields here.

They have now been invited by the Swiss-based World Economic Forum (WEF) to join other young leaders aged 40 and under from across the globe to tackle the world's pressing problems.

The WEF is a non-profit foundation devoted to social and economic issues and is best known for its annual Davos summit.

The Singapore five will rub shoulders with golf sensation Tiger Woods, Formula One legend Michael Schumacher and Chinese actress Zhang Ziyi - just some of the global stars on this year's list.

American whiz-kids Mark Zuckerberg, founder of social networking site Facebook, and Chad Hurley of YouTube fame will also be joining them.

The Singapore group includes MP and litigator Christopher de Souza, 33, and Nominated MP Eunice Olsen, 31, a well-known TV host and former beauty queen.

They follow in the footsteps of past nominees, MPs Teo Ser Luck, who is chairman of the Young PAP, and Penny Low, as politically active figures who have caught the eye of the WEF's 31-member panel led by Queen Rania of Jordan.

But it is not only in the political arena that the rising stars have made a name for themselves.

This year, adding colour to the field is entrepreneur Calvin Cheng, 33, who founded fashion and media company Looque International, and Singapore's prodigious violinist Lee Huei Min, 26.

Ms Karen Bell, 40, the Australia- born, Singapore-based managing director at Deutsche Bank, was also selected out of Singapore. She has lived here for two years.

Singapore's group of five will be invited to a series of regional forums leading up to the Davos summit next year.

They are well aware of the serious challenges facing the world and Ms Olsen said that the network and exchange of ideas between so many young leaders will certainly be key.

Mr De Souza is determined to urge other members to fight trade protectionism in these trying economic times.

'Without a doubt, the key challenge facing all generations for at least the next two years will be the global economy,' he said.

Mr Cheng said that climate change and the growing income gap between the rich and the poor will also need addressing.

This year, 230 people in total were selected worldwide. This includes 54 from East Asia, the most from any region. They now join the group of 480 past nominees.

chanckr@sph.com.sg

Additional reporting by Joanna Seow

Going to the World Economic Forum

MS LEE HUEI MIN, 26, concert violinist

Also known as Min Lee, she is a gifted violinist who has raised over $5million for charity. Since her first public performance at the age of five, she has performed with top orchestras such as the Royal Philharmonic and the Prague Chamber, and has released two albums on Universal Music.

MR CALVIN CHENG, 33, director of Lumina-Looque International

He co-founded Looque International, a firm that operates modelling agencies, lifestyle event firms, and media houses, but his key interest is in youth - education in particular. He is on the steering committee of the Red Cross Humanitarian Network. He was featured in the 2005 National Day commemorative video as one of '40 outstanding Singaporeans under 40'.

MS KAREN BELL, 40, managing director, head of group technology and operations for Asia-Pacific, Deutsche Bank

Since joining Deutsche Bank in 1995, she has held various management roles within the company in Australia, Singapore and Britain. She is particularly interested in the environment and the widening rich-poor gap.

MR CHRISTOPHER DE SOUZA, 33, vice-chairman of Young PAP, partner at Lee and Lee, and an MP for Holland-Bukit Timah GRC

The youngest MP and the vice-chairman of the Young PAP since last year, he has led dialogues for young people in his ward as a way to give voice to their concerns.

He began his career as a lawyer in the government but joined Lee and Lee in 2006. He is an avid sportsman, and played in the Singapore national men's hockey team in 1997 and 2005.

MS EUNICE OLSEN, 31, Nominated Member of Parliament

A recipient of the Asean Youth Award 2008, she has used her reach as a Nominated Member of Parliament and winner of Miss Singapore Universe 2000 to promote volunteerism, a cause in which she actively participates.

She is known for her work as a television and event host, an actress, and an accomplished pianist. She is a goodwill ambassador for World Vision International - Singapore.

Read more!

Glitch hits GST credits for some Ubin residents

Finance ministry says those affected by mistake will be given more credits
Teh Jen Lee, The New Paper 28 Feb 09;

PULAU Ubin residents have reason to celebrate over the amount of GST credits that they will be receiving.

It looked like they were going to get only the minimum amount this year because their humble island homes were treated the same as landed property on the mainland.

They had earlier faced a similar problem in getting a payout from the Government, though they had received their proper allotment of GST credits last year.

The Ministry of Finance (MOF) has acknowledged that there was a 'system error' this time and will be giving them more GST credits.

Among those affected is driver and odd-job labourer Ong Kim Cheng, 51.

He was happy to get a letter saying he would be receiving money from the Government.

Then he realised he was getting only $200, apparently because his identity card address, 218D Pulau Ubin, was taken to mean that he lives in a landed house.

Mr Ong has lived on Ubin all his life.

'I was born and bred here. I don't think it's fair that they consider our attap houses to be the same as landed property on the mainland,' he said in Mandarin.

His house, like the others in Pulau Ubin, does not have piped water from PUB. They have to get water pumped from wells.

As for electricity, they have to rely on diesel generators as they are not connected to the national grid.

For the GST credits, adults aged 21 to 54 living in four-room, five-room or executive HDB flats are eligible for $400. Those living in three-room flats and below are eligible for $500.

Another way to determine how much each person is eligible for is to look at the annual value of the home.

Those living in homes with an annual value below $5,000 are supposed to get $500.

An idea of how much Mr Ong's home is worth is to look at how much he paid the Singapore Land Authority annually for his temporary occupational licence.

He showed us a receipt for $360. Going by this, he should get $500, not $200.

Second time

Mr Ong said: 'This is the second time that the authorities have given us less because the address on our identity card is not an HDB block address.'

When The New Paper visited Ubin last week, about half a dozen residents showed us their letters on the GST credits.

All of them were given the lowest amount of credits and senior citizens' bonus.

Mr Tan Teck Giap, 38, a driver, said he called the hotline number given in the letter to clarify that he does not live on mainland landed property.

'I was told that they will make an appeal for me. But some people who don't know how to read would just accept what is given,' he said.

In 2004, Ubin residents were allotted only 200 Economic Restructuring Shares (ERS) while those who lived in HDB flats got 400.

After The New Paper raised this with the CPF board, which administers the ERS scheme, it apologised and gave 200 more shares to about 70 affected Ubin residents.

About 70 to 100 people live on Ubin now.

An MOF spokesman said that if citizens there and on other outlying islands have properties with an assessed annual value, it will be used in the allotment of their GST credits.

The annual value of properties that have not been assessed will be considered as less than $5,000, as most of them are likely to be farm or attap-type residences.

'Due to a system error, some properties in Pulau Ubin were not tagged as island addresses, and were therefore allotted a lower amount than they should have received in 2009,' the spokesman said.

'This error has been noted and the 2009 payouts for the affected Singaporeans will be adjusted by 1 Mar.

'The affected individuals, about 60 of them, will also receive a notification letter to inform them of their revised allotment this week.'

When told about this, Mr Ong said: 'So the whole island will get the correct amount now? We thank The New Paper for helping us. We're all very happy to hear this news.'

Read more!

Chemical spill in Tuas: 5 workers suffer chemical burns

Cheryl Frois, Channel NewsAsia 27 Feb 09;

SINGAPORE : Five workers suffered chemical burns when a chemical spill took place at their worksite in Tuas on Friday.

The Singapore Civil Defence Force was alerted to the incident when yellow fumes were seen coming from the first level of the building.

The workers were conducting equipment maintenance works when the incident took place.

The Civil Defence Hazardous Materials team de-contaminated the workers before they were sent to the National University Hospital for treatment.

The workplace was then cleared of the fumes using absorbents and water. - CNA/ms

Read more!

Fire hazard: Kudos to Government, but not Shell

Straits Times Forum 28 Feb 09;

WITH the recent spate of forest fires around Singapore over the past few weeks, I had grown increasingly concerned over a potential fire hazard caused by overgrown vegetation surrounding a Shell petrol station in New Loyang Link.

So I wrote to Shell Petroleum on Feb 17 via its media relations webpage but did not receive any response.

After three days of anxious waiting, on Feb 19, I reported the matter to the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) via its 'Reporting of fire hazard' Web link.

I immediately received a reply from Lieutenant Nicholas Tang, telling me he had forwarded my feedback to the National Parks Board (NParks). He also assured me he would continue to monitor the case.

Within 24 hours, Ms Liu Li Ting of NParks replied to tell me she had forwarded my feedback to HDB, which was responsible for the area concerned.

On Monday, Mr Megat Azman of HDB replied via e-mail that a work order had been filed for the area to be cleared.

The next day, when I passed the Shell station, I was relieved to note that the surrounding area had been trimmed and cleared a reasonable distance around the station.

I would like to thank SCDF, NParks and HDB for their prompt action.

This is a stark contrast to the indifference shown by Shell Petroleum, which does not seem to be concerned about the safety of its customers, staff or residents living in the area.

I have yet to receive a response from Shell Petroleum.

Andora Tan (Mdm)

Shell replies
Straits Times Forum 5 Mar 09;

'While we had taken steps immediately to address any potential fire hazard, we neglected to inform Madam Tan of the actions taken.'

MR HENRY CHU, General Manager, Retail Sales & Operations, Shell Eastern Petroleum: 'I refer to last Saturday's letter by Madam Andora Tan, 'Fire hazard: Kudos to Govt, but not Shell'. We received Madam Tan's e-mail on Feb 17 and contacted the authorities before noon the same day to seek their assistance to clear the plants around the petrol station. The Singapore Land Authority referred us to the HDB and told us HDB would contact us shortly. In view of the recent dry spell, we also activated our internal safety precautions at our sites, including watering dry vegetation around our premises. Regrettably, while we had taken steps immediately to address any potential fire hazard around our sites, we neglected to inform Madam Tan of the actions taken. We have since contacted Madam Tan and apologised for not responding to her e-mail promptly, as is our normal procedure. Shell takes feedback seriously, especially when it concerns the safety of customers and staff at our facilities, and the communities around them. I thank Madam Tan for her civic-mindedness in bringing this potential fire hazard to our attention.'

Read more!

Fourth Sumatran tiger killed in Indonesia: official

AFP 27 Feb 09;

JAKARTA (AFP) — Indonesian villagers have trapped and killed a fourth endangered Sumatran tiger amid a spate of tiger attacks blamed on illegal logging, according to environmental group WWF.

Four tigers and six people have been killed on Sumatra island this month, it said.

"We learnt on February 24 that another Sumatran tiger had been trapped and killed by villagers after it attacked two farmers on Sunday," WWF spokeswoman Syamsidar told AFP.

"This is the fourth tiger killed this month and we are concerned because it is a protected animal and an endangered species."

The farmers from Simpang Gaung village in Riau province were seriously injured in the attack, Syamsidar said.

"The tiger in the latest killing had wandered into the village as its habitat had been destroyed by people," she added.

Indonesian Forestry Minister Malam Sambat Kaban urged the provincial police to arrest the tiger killers, Detikcom news website reported.

"I urge the police to carry out a complete investigation... the killers must be arrested quickly," he was quoted as saying.

"They can't kill these tigers as they please. Whatever their excuse, the tigers must be protected."

There are fewer than 400 Sumatran tigers left in the wild and their increasing contact with people is a result of habitat loss due to deforestation, according to the wildlife group.

It said about 12 million hectares (30 million acres) of forest on Sumatra had been cleared in the past 22 years, a loss of nearly 50 percent islandwide.

The incidents in Riau occurred in an area dotted with pulp and oil palm plantations and recently subjected to burning to clear forests.

Read more!

Indonesia receives $250 million in grants for World Ocean Conference

The Jakarta Post 27 Feb 09;

Indonesia has received US$250 million in grants from various countries for the implementation of the World Ocean Conference which will be held in Manado, North Sulawesi, on May 11-15, 2009.

"Of the total, US$40 million is from the United States," Indroyono Soesilo, chairman of the WOC organizing committee, said in Jakarta on Thursday as quoted by state news agency Antara.

Six heads of state from member countries of the Coral Triangle Initiative (CTI) would participate in the CTI Summit to be organized on May 15, in parallel with WOC, he said.

CTI has six member countries, namely the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, Timor Leste, and Solomon Island. Australia and the United States are observers of CTI.

He also said that US President Barack Obama had appreciated Indonesia's Coral Triangle Initiative.

North Sulawesi Governor Sandurajang said his province was ready to receive around 1,500 participants from 121 countries during the WOC 2009.

The province had constructed new eight star-rated hotels to accommodate the WOC participants, he said.

Marine experts would discuss efforts to save the marine ecology from the impacts of the global warming during the conference.

Read more!

Turtle film set to become Hollywood blockbuster

The story behind Turtle: The Incredible Journey, a film tracking the journey of a loggerhead turtle as she travels across the Atlantic Ocean and narrated by twice Oscar-nominated actress Miranda Richardson.

Cheryl-Samantha Owen, Save Our Seas Foundation
The Telegraph 27 Feb 09;

With the growing interest in cinema documentaries, entering the big screen domain of Hollywood gives us a chance to reach new audiences and raise much needed awareness about the threats to our oceans. We hope to inspire the children of today to be custodians of our marine world tomorrow, while at the same time stirring their parents to save our seas now.

SOSF believes that watching Turtle: The Incredible Journey at the cinema will allow for a more dramatic and emotional experience than a TV production, keeping the ocean and issues such as over-fishing, destructive and wasteful fishing methods, pollution and the negative impacts of beach development at the forefront of people's minds. Though the popcorn may have long vanished we hope the impact on people from the film will help stop the ocean's inhabitants from going the same way.

The star of the film is a loggerhead named FeeBee that was released off the Florida coast in 2008 as part of a project led by one of the world's leading turtle biologists and the film's key science consultant, Professor Jeanette Wyneken from the Florida Atlantic University.

Filming took the crew to Florida, the Arctic Circle, Sargasso Sea, Azores and Caribbean to recreate the epic distances and dangers faced by a female loggerhead turtle from the time it hatches until it returns to lay eggs on the beach of its birth 20 or so years later.

The film is part of a greater conservation campaign to increase awareness and support for marine turtles, and the Foundation supports turtle projects in Florida, The Seychelles, Malaysia, and Kenya, and a scientific workshop in Hawaii.

Like reptiles from a bygone era the seven species of sea turtles swim through Earth's oceans today just as they did one hundred million years ago. Despite having survived the mass extinction of the dinosaurs, they are not indestructible. Today they face an arguably more perilous existence at the hand of man and their numbers have drastically reduced dangerously close to the point of collapse.

At every stage of their life cycle, sea turtles are impacted by human activities. These challenges start from a loss of nesting beach and foraging habitats and continue with mortalities on the high seas through intense pelagic fishing practices. If the turtles manage to survive these hooks of death, they then have to negotiate their way through an ocean full of non-biodegradable waste and pollutants.

Sea turtles have a priority for conservation through their listing in the Convention on the Conservation on Migratory species (CMS), the Convention on international Trade in Endangered species of wild fauna and flora (CITES-appendix 1) and the World Conservation Union (IUCN) as either endangered or critically endangered (IUCN- EARO and IUCN/SSC, 1996).

To learn more about sea turtles and to watch the film's trailer please visit: http://www.saveourseas.com/turtlefilm

Read more!

US denounces Iceland whaling move

Yahoo News 27 Feb 09;

WASHINGTON (AFP) – The United States on Friday denounced Iceland's decision to go ahead with a sharply higher whaling quota, voicing concern there were not whales to sustain the hunt.

Iceland's new left-wing government said last week it will maintain an earlier decision for a quota of 150 fin and 150 minke whales this year -- a sixfold increase -- despite international calls for it to reconsider.

The US State Department said it "strongly opposes" the decision.

"We are deeply concerned that stocks of fin and minke whales are not adequate to support this harvest," it said in a statement.

"We call upon the government of Iceland to rescind this decision and to focus on the long-term conservation of whale stocks, rather than on the short-term interests of its whaling industry," it said.

The United States also said the decision would undermine ongoing talks on the future of the International Whaling Commission (IWC).

The IWC reform talks are part of a US-led drive to reduce tensions around close ally Japan, which infuriates Australia and New Zealand by killing hundreds of whales each year in the Antarctic Ocean.

Japan says it abides by a 1986 IWC moratorium on commercial whaling as it uses a loophole that allows "lethal research" on the ocean giants, with the meat then heading to restaurants and supermarkets.

Norway and Iceland defy the moratorium altogether.

Iceland's new government came to office after the global financial crisis ravaged the economy of the island, which became the first Western European nation in three decades to need a bailout from the International Monetary Fund.

The new government includes parties opposed to whaling, but it said it was maintaining the new whaling quota because it concluded it was legally bound to it.

Read more!

South Koreans buy air purifiers amid "yellow dust" warning

Yahoo News 28 Feb 09;

SEOUL (AFP) – South Koreans are stocking up on air purifiers following a forecast of especially severe "yellow dust" storms from China and Mongolia this spring, officials said Friday.

Forecasters say the annual dust storms will be particularly bad this spring because north China and the deserts of Mongolia, where they originate, suffered the worst drought in 50 years.

The temperature there is also two to six degrees Centigrade higher than usual, adding momentum to the dust storms which usually strike South Korea and Japan between March and early May and cause health problems.

"The sales of air purifiers have gone up 30 percent since the forecast about the yellow dust storms on February 20," Sohn Min-Ok, manager of electronics retailer Himart, told AFP.

"Sales of air purifiers are expected to rise further as electronics makers are introducing new models late this month and in March to meet growing demand," she said.

Shares of companies expected to benefit from the storms, such as filter makers and eye drop manufacturers, have also surged -- bucking the overall trend.

Yellow dust -- fine sand from northern China and Mongolia's Gobi Desert -- sometimes includes industrial pollutants emitted by Chinese factories and can cause respiratory disorders.

Read more!

World faces last chance to avoid fatal warming: EU

Gergely Szakacs, Reuters 27 Feb 09;

BUDAPEST (Reuters) - The world faces a final opportunity to agree an adequate global response to climate change at a U.N.-led meeting in Copenhagen in December, the European Union's environment chief said on Friday.

World leaders from about 190 countries meet in Copenhagen in December to try to agree a global framework to replace the Kyoto Protocol on fighting global warming, which expires in 2012.

"It is now 12 years since Kyoto was created. This makes Copenhagen the world's last chance to stop climate change before it passes the point of no return," European Union Environment Commissioner Stavros Dimas told a climate conference in Budapest on Friday.

"Having an agreement in Copenhagen is not only possible, it is imperative and we are going to have it," Dimas said.

With greenhouse gas emissions rising faster than projected, Dimas said it was essential that big polluters such as the United States and emerging economies in the Far East and South America also sign up for an agreement. "President Obama's commitment to re-engage the United States fully in combating climate change is an enormously encouraging sign that progress is possible. So are positive initiatives coming from China, India, Brazil and other emerging economies."

Dimas said an agreement in Copenhagen should aim to limit global warming below the critical 2 degrees Celsius over pre-industrial times, or less than 1.2 degrees above the current level, by at least halving global emissions by 2050 from 1990 levels.

"Developed countries will have to go further, with cuts of 80-95 percent in order to (enable) developing countries to lift themselves out of poverty," he said.

Dimas said rich nations had a moral obligation to lead the war against global warming and the EU was ready to commit to deeper emissions cuts, provided that developed countries match those cuts with similar reductions.

"The European Union is committed to increasing its reductions targets from 20 percent to 30 percent (by 2020) on two conditions," Dimas said.

"Firstly that our partners in the industrialized world commit to comparable cuts, secondly, that developing countries agree to take action in line with their capabilities."

However, he said richer countries should provide financial incentives for emerging economies to facilitate a deal.

"The Copenhagen agreement will have to involve a major scaling up of financial aid to help developing countries to both mitigate emissions and adapt to climate change," Dimas said.

"If there is no money on the table there will be no deal."

(Reporting by Gergely Szakacs, Editing by Peter Blackburn)

Read more!