Best of our wild blogs: 14 Jun 09

Orthetrum chrysis: Larva Emergence
on the Creatures Big & Small blog

A Rare Skipper @ USR
on the Beauty of Fauna and Flora in Nature blog

Wild monkeys at breakfast in Admiralty Park
on the wild shores of singapore blog

Sentosa with the Naked Hermit Crabs
on the Urban Forest blog

Blue-winged Leafbird and mistletoe
on the Bird Ecology Study Group blog

Hotbed of Hoyas at Admiralty Park
on the wild shores of singapore blog

Blue-winged Pitta vs. Mangrove Pitta
from Bird Ecology Study Group blog

Danger lurks beneath
on the Urban Forest blog

How do critters get their scientific names, and what do they mean?
on the Right Blue blog

Read more!

Let's have a natural history museum for Singapore

A specialist showcase will do justice to the richness of the region's environment
Tan Dawn Wei, Straits Times 14 Jun 09;

For many Singaporeans over the age of 40, memories of the old National Museum invariably linger over one particular exhibit: a blue whale skeleton that once loomed from the ceiling near the entrance.

It is, however, no longer in Singapore.
The 13m-long skeleton of a blue whale, which once loomed from the ceiling of the old National Museum, was given to the Muzium Negara in Kuala Lumpur when Singapore's museum changed its focus in 1972.

That 13m-long showpiece - the whale had beached in southern Malacca in 1892 - was given to Malaysia's Muzium Negara in 1972.

It is not the only piece of historical specimen that Singapore has 'lost'. Owing to a decision from top government ranks to clear out animal and plant exhibits from the museum and make way for art and ethnographic displays, Singapore's rich natural heritage has been kept out of the public eye for the past 30 years.

Stored away in the vaults of the Department of Biological Sciences at the National University of Singapore (NUS), these prized possessions have been accessible only to local and foreign researchers studying the region's fauna.

A tiny sampling is displayed in the modest public gallery of the department's Raffles Museum of Biodiversity Research, but most Singaporeans do not even know that the museum exists.
The modest public gallery - the size of three regular classrooms - at the Raffles Museum of Biodiversity Research. Less than 1 per cent of the Zoological Reference Collection is on display. -- ST PHOTO: JOYCE FANG

So, when 3,000 people showed up at the museum's gallery - the size of three regular classrooms - on International Museum Day three weeks ago, museum staff could not believe their eyes.

Never before have they hosted so many visitors: There were only 400 walk-in visitors for the whole of last year.

While media write-ups prior to the event played a part in bringing in the crowds, the large number was perhaps a good indication that Singaporeans are now interested in their natural heritage.

Since then, several readers have written to this newspaper, and an online discussion among history and nature buffs has been ignited, over one issue: Is it not high time that Singapore has a stand-alone natural history museum that will complement the other big ones in the country?

The answer is practically a no-brainer if you knew what national treasures have been hidden away for so long.

In the back rooms of the gallery is a treasure trove of 500,000 specimens of mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, fishes, crustaceans, insects, molluscs and other invertebrates, making it one of the largest collections of South-east Asian animals in the region.

Among them are century-old specimens inherited from the British, extinct and endangered animals as well as new discoveries made by the current museum's researchers.

The stature of a museum rests on its collection of type specimen - the original specimen from which the description of a new species is made - and Raffles Museum has 6,000 of these.

It is a cache that any foreign museum would want to lay its hands on. And some, like the British Museum, almost did.

When the Government decided to give the National Museum fresh focus in 1970, natural history was not on the agenda.

'They didn't see the value then of dead specimens. At that time, we were fighting for our survival and economic imperatives were the priority,' said Professor Leo Tan, director of the Singapore Science Centre from 1982 to 1991 and a marine biologist.

The entire collection was relegated to the new Science Centre, which was being set up to promote science and technology.

But since the centre had no mandate to do research, it donated the collection to the then University of Singapore.

Despite its great historic and scientific value, the thousands of specimens languished in poor conditions for nearly 10 years without a permanent home.

Those dark years saw the collection being moved from five World War II huts where the National University Hospital now stands, to the university's Bukit Timah campus, to Nanyang University's library building.

A lack of storage space - and appreciation from the higher authorities - for this heritage can be blamed for Singapore losing the iconic whale skeleton to Malaysia, and some specimens to the heat, fungal and insect attacks.

It is believed that some big-game heads and deer antlers may also have been auctioned off.

'We fought hard to keep the collection. There was a move to give it to the British Museum,' recalled Professor Lam Toong Jin, former head of the zoology department at NUS and now Emeritus Professor at the biological sciences department.

When the Faculty of Science decided to make the collection a focal point of biodiversity studies in NUS, it was finally given a permanent home in 1988.

But there was no consideration for a public gallery then, said Prof Lam. The collection was strictly for research.

'It is a shame the public can't enjoy it. When we do have important people who visit, sometimes these views were expressed, so that led to some opening up.'

A modest public gallery was started, with an idea to slowly growing it.

But with a yearly operating budget of $300,000 which goes to pay for utilities and maintenance, there is little the museum's caretakers can do about public outreach.

'We're running on a shoestring budget, with eight or nine staff members and our hands full just maintaining and adding to the collection,' said Dr Tan Swee Hee, curator of crustacea at the museum.

'The spirit is willing, but the money is not coming,' he said, with a laugh. Which leads one back to the no-brainer answer - one that even the collection's custodians echo.

In fact, the subject of building a proper natural history museum has come up during discussions with the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA).

Land has even been set aside, next to the Singapore Science Centre in Jurong, in the URA Masterplan.

Such a pairing makes perfect sense, said Prof Tan, now director of special projects at the dean's office of the science faculty.

The London Natural History Museum and Science Museum are sited side by side, and the duo attract millions of visitors yearly.

'The two are synergistic,' he said.

Even if Singapore's natural history museum were to stand alone, its value would be multi-fold: education, heritage preservation, research and tourism, said Prof Tan.

Ms Ilsa Sharp, an author and former council member of the Nature Society in Malaysia and Singapore, hopes to see a 'Singapore Green Museum' that will not only tell the story of our natural environment, but also place Singapore's biome in its proper regional and global context.

'The educational opportunities are immense. But the continued link with living science is also crucial,' she said, adding that these could come in the form of hands- on laboratory experiences for student naturalists within the museum.

Making it relevant to this nation's future generation seems to be the overriding benefit of having such a museum as far as stakeholders are concerned.

'As a society, we have to realise that museums, discovery and research - even in things that might not yield any practical benefit - enrich us and make us better, wiser and more enlightened people,' said Dr Shawn Lum, president of the Nature Society.

The next logical question then is: Should this new museum be driven from a national level? And, is there the political will for such an institution to be developed?

Mr Michael Koh, chief executive officer of the National Heritage Board (NHB), which runs eight museums including the National Museum, was non-committal when asked.

He said the board strongly supports the excellent work that the Raffles Museum has done to showcase Singapore's natural heritage, and is happy that there are plans for a new building on the university campus for the museum's expansion.

'NHB will continue to work closely with the Raffles Museum and our Museum Roundtable members to grow the heritage eco-system and foster a museum-going culture,' he said.

The Roundtable was formed in 1996 to develop a stronger museum-going culture in Singapore. Chaired by NHB, it has 46 members, including the Raffles Museum.

What about corporations? Can they play an endowment role, much like how museums in the West operate?

Raffles Museum's Dr Tan is somewhat sceptical.

'We can't adopt the American model as the ethos and feeling towards natural history is very different. They have a strong endowment element and culture. People are willing to donate,' he said.

Ultimately, such a museum will need more than one champion.

Dr Lum said: 'For Singapore to have a natural history museum, which I hope it will, there needs to be commitment not only from the government authorities and foundations who have to support it, but also from the public.'

The good news is there is already fresh commitment from the university. It is early days, but the school has said it has plans for a new building that will give the bursting-at-the-seams museum, teaching and research laboratories more breathing space.

And there is more anticipated good news. Word is that Singapore is trying to get the collection's piece de resistance - the whale skeleton - back.

Perhaps it will lord over visitors once again - this time at a new natural history museum.

dawntan@sph.com.sg

PRIZED TREASURES

# Leathery Turtle (Dermochelys coriacea)

Found stranded at Siglap beach in 1883, these turtles are not usually seen in Singapore waters. It is the largest living member of the Testudines (turtles, terrapins and tortoises) and is several thousand times larger than the regular pet terrapin.

# Golden Babirusa (Babyrousa babyrussa)

The name comes from combining the Malay words for pig (babi) and deer (rusa). This rare pig, which sometimes gets mistaken for a deer, was found in Buru, Sulawesi in Indonesia in 1913.

# Basket Star (Euryale aspera)

This highly rare benthic invertebrate with a silhouette-like delicate lace is the only one ever to be captured in Singapore. It was found off St John's Island in 1896.

# Cream-coloured Giant Squirrel (Ratufa affinis)
This large squirrel (below) was found in Changi in 1908. Local scientists believe it faces extinction because its habitat has been destroyed by urbanisation.

# Tiger Shark (Galeocerdo cuvieri)

Discovered in Pasir Panjang in 1967, this shark - the first of this species found in Singapore waters - was found to have human remains inside it.

# Great Bittern (Botaurus stellaris)

This bird was found in Singapore in 1927. It represents the only known record of this species to be found here.

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More in Singapore eating exotic meats

Going wild over game
Jessica Lim, Straits Times 14 Jun 09;

More people here are game for exotic meats.

Local suppliers of quail and crocodile have seen demand as much as doubled compared to last year.

At Lian Wah Hung Farm in Lim Chu Kang, the only quail supplier in Singapore, more than 10,000 of the birds are sold monthly now, up from half that number last year.

At neighbouring Long Kuan Hung Crocodile Farm, about 1,500kg of crocodile meat is sold a month, up from 1,000kg two years ago. It, too, is the sole supplier of the meat here.

Mr Ho Seng Choon, 85, owner of Lian Wah Hung Farm, said: 'Last time, we had to knock on the doors of restaurants to ask them to consider putting quail on their menus. Now, they come to us.'

This trend mirrors the rising imports of frozen wild game.

Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) figures show that frozen emu, kangaroo, rabbit and wild pig imports have risen.

So far this year, Singapore has imported 1,850kg of frozen emu meat, much more than the 120kg recorded last year. And this year, the Republic has also imported 400kg of kangaroo, 430kg of wild pig and 450kg of rabbit meat, up from none last year.

Ms Angie Tang, head of retail management at Singapore Polytechnic, attributes the rise to two reasons: more adventurous people and restaurant owners trying to stay ahead of the curve.

'The new trend is a surge in self-indulgent spending, where people who work hard look for stimulation and excitement with everyday things like food,' she said.

'Another reason is demand from restaurants eager to offer unique dishes to get attention from diners. If they continue offering just regular items, customers might not want to spend that extra money to eat there.'

Restaurants such as Turtle House Seafood Restaurant, No Signboard Seafood and even eateries such as Sheng Siong Food Mall and King Of Crocodile in the Old Airport Road food centre sell such meats.

Business has been brisk.

At Turtle House in Guillemard Road, sales of crocodile meat have increased to $10,000 a month, up from $2,000 two years ago when it first started selling it.

'People think it's novel and we wanted to add more interesting stuff to the menu,' said owner Ong Siong Lim, who has crocodile soups and stews on his menu.

Many Chinese physicians believe that eating crocodile meat alleviates asthma and improves blood circulation, said Mr Robin Lee, manager of Long Kuan Hung Crocodile Farm, and this might be another reason the meat is finding favour.

'People are looking for ways to stay healthy. It's better than paying a big medical bill,' he said, adding that he supplies the meat to about 300 customers, including wet markets, hawkers, restaurants and supermarkets.

Exotic fare cost more than common meats such as pork and chicken. Crocodile meat can cost about $40 a kg and quail meat $18. Meats such as chilled pork fillets cost about $16 a kg and chilled chicken wings about $7.

Still, to cater to demand, some major supermarket chains, including Cold Storage, Shop N Save and FairPrice, have started stocking their shelves with crocodile meat.

'We started selling it as we see a growing trend of people eating crocodile meat,' said a spokesman for Cold Storage and Shop N Save.

One such consumer is Mr Tony Tan, 45, who started eating the meat a year ago. He now has it once a week.

'Basically, I was curious. Then I ate it and realised the meat was very lean,' said the father of three, who boils the meat with Chinese herbs for 40 minutes.

'It looks like pork and tastes like chicken.'

Read more!

Discovering Singapore's wild places

Even the ants upgrade
Linda Collins, Straits Times 14 Jun 09;

I am standing on top of Mount Faber with about 20 people on a Singapore Press Club outing to explore the Southern Ridges walking trail.

A minibus has chugged up the hill, taking us above congested streets and concrete flyovers to the tropical environment of rainforest greenery.

This high point marks the start of a 4km section of the 9km Southern Ridges Trail that takes us on a jolly jaunt to the gardens of HortPark, just off Alexandra Road.

Our group consists of chattering, excited Singaporeans, and me, the sole ang moh, who is excited but not so chatty.

The Southern Ridges Trail is one of those 'must-do' things I had been meaning to experience ever since it opened to the public a year ago. But I never found the time to sit down and map out which part to do.

So the Press Club outing that came up one Saturday afternoon last month was timely.

It covers an easy stretch of the route, and I needn't worry about getting lost - welcoming us is a cheery, uniformed guide from the National Parks Board (NParks).

About 20 chattering locals and a taciturn-by-nature Kiwi climb out of the bus - and stumble into a side of Singapore most have never seen before.

Sure, we've all been on the cable car to Sentosa,�and admired the view from the wading pools atop VivoCity mall after a spot of retail therapy, but this is something� different.

The view is jaw-droppingly panoramic. A breeze cools us as we 'ooh' and 'aah' at the emerald canopy of nature that clings to the hill, its untidy beauty a contrast to the angular roads and tower blocks below.

In the distance is the sea, dotted with ships, and the Southern Islands, dotted with petrochemical plants.

But it is the sensations that elevate this experience to new heights. We smell the perfume of wild flowers, brush against soft leaves, and hear the exotic shrieks of jungle birds and the late afternoon cries of joggers dodging capering kids and canoodling couples.

After taking in this botanical beauty, someone in the group mutters, 'Gee, I feel like a foreigner', and I, the bona fide foreign species of the group, find myself nodding in agreement.

Our next vista fiesta is the 12-storey-high Henderson Waves bridge, Singapore's highest pedestrian bridge linking Mount Faber with Telok Blangah Hill.

Its 'wavy' design is reason enough to visit the Southern Ridges, forget all that walking. Its long, undulating shape is like the body of a sinuous, whirling dragon that sometimes features in�Chinese New Year lion dances.

Our NParks guide tells us that at night, the bridge is lit up, making it look even more like a dragon.

Around me, I note that the word 'dragon' is repeated by the Singaporeans,�said with a mix of awe and delight.�

As we amble along, the party listens intently as the guide rambles on about the bridge and the efforts to preserve its surroundings. She often stops to share tidbits about the fauna and flora.

I, in turn, observe that the Singaporeans in this outdoor habitat seem both relaxed and happy, and are keen to add their own unique comments to the proceedings.

For example, the guide points to a tree which has strange-shaped, leafy balls. These are nests made by red ants, she informs us. When the leafy balls turn brown and dry out, the ants build new homes of green leaves.

'See, even ants go en bloc', someone from the group notes proudly.

Noticing a bird perched high in a tree, another in the group says almost enviously: 'High floor. Got unblocked view'.

Some women in the group reminisce about a type of leaf they spot, noting that it was once used to wrap food in the days before plastic containers. They even mimic the action of kampung grandmothers folding the leaves.

I am also reminded of the pragmatic nature of the Singaporean as we descend on stylish wooden boardwalks through trees.

The guide informs us that it will take NParks five years to reforest a particular section and remove the non-native creepers strangling the greenery there.

She seems curiously happy at this lengthy timeframe, and seeing my puzzlement, explains: 'Five years, so I will not be retrenched'.

We are now at the Alexandra Arch, which goes one better than nature by being leaf-shaped, in steel. Ahead lie the manicured gardens, butterflies and other delights of HortPark.

But already I, and the others in the party, are planning further visits to this riveting trail through rainforest remnants.

This little walk on the wild side has shown me that even to those born here, there are new things to learn about the place we all call home.

The writer, a copy editor with Life!, has lived here for 15 years. She is of a sub-species called Kiwi, a flightless bird with a long beak.

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Singaporeans' reactions to the hot weather

Keeping your cool
The sizzling weather has sent people running for cover indoors, and sales of air-conditioners soaring
Tan Yi Hui, Straits Times 14 Jun 09;

It is hot, hot, hot in the city and Singaporeans are diving for cover. Some are taking the plunge into public pools. Others are staying inside, in offices and bars.

No wonder. It is the hottest time of the year - the south-west monsoon season between April and September - when temperatures can go as high as 35 deg C.

And not to rain on your parade, but when LifeStyle checked out how people are coping, most reckoned that it has been even hotter than usual recently.

However, data released by the National Environment Agency (NEA), which provides regular weather forecasts, do not show any drastic increase in average temperatures for April and May compared to last year.

But this will be cold comfort - or not - to those who say it is a belter of a swelter.

For example, on weekends, Ms Tan Mei Hui, a lawyer, now tries not to go out before the sun sets, or if she has to, she heads straight for air-conditioned places.

Says the 26-year-old: 'It seems to be getting worse every year. I can't walk to the bus stop or the MRT station without perspiring.'

Technical executive Jimmy Tan runs a fan off his computer to stay cool - even in his air-conditioned office. The 35-year-old blames the sizzling heat on global-warming.

Enthusiasm for exercising outdoors has dried up too.

Student Junko Tan, 17, who is a competitive runner, says: 'I get very reluctant to run after 10am because the heat makes you feel like you have no energy.'

Even the eating habits of this food- loving nation are being stir-fried.

Audit associate Li Kai Yuen, 24, says: 'During lunch hour, I ask my friends to bring food back so that I don't have to squeeze among people and sweat it out at food courts and hawker centres that are not air-conditioned.

'The heat is crazy and the humidity makes it worse. If I go out for lunch, the back of my shirt will be stained with patches of perspiration within 10 minutes.'

Hawkers at the popular Maxwell Food Centre say lunchtime customer numbers have dropped by as much as 40 per cent.

Carrot cake and char kway teow seller Ling Chong Seng, 68, says: 'This year seems to be worse. And when the weather gets this hot, people will eat less fried stuff.'

Those with outdoor businesses are sweating as well.

Over at Rent-A-Bike Kiosk at Pasir Ris Park, co-owner Lilian Neo says business has dropped by 30 per cent, especially on weekdays over the past month.

But it is sunny side up for air-conditioner retailers.

Electronics chain Best Denki, which sells fans, air-conditioners and air-coolers, says sales of these products so far for the last week of May and early June this year compared with the same period last year have jumped by 33 per cent.

Another electronics chain, Harvey Norman, says sales of air-conditioners, fans and coolers typically increase by 30 per cent in this period every year.

A spokesman for air-conditioner retail and servicing company AireControl says it has seen an increase of 5 per cent in business compared to the same period last year, 'due to the weather getting hotter every year'.

Do not expect operators of malls, cinemas, buses and trains to cool things down, though.

Transport operator SMRT says its temperatures in trains, stations and buses are kept at an 'optimal balance'.

CapitaLand Retail, the group behind malls such as Bugis Junction and Plaza Singapura, has no plans for colder air-conditioning as this would 'consume greater energy'.

However, cold is gold for some businesses. Eski Bar, which has a sub-zero theme, with temperatures as low as minus 16 deg C, has seen business soar by 30 per cent.

Its marketing manager Prue Chin says that office workers nearby have been coming in as early as 4pm to beat the heat.

She adds: 'We don't usually have an early crowd but for the past month, it has been good, and these are not even our regulars.'

Here, and on the facing page, LifeStyle tells you how to chill despite the heat.

Additional reporting by Cheryl Tan and Frankie Chee

Company invents "Walking Air Con" vest to battle heat wave
Hoe Yeen Nie, Channel NewsAsia 13 Jun 09;

SINGAPORE: It has been unusually warm the whole of May and according to the weatherman, no respite from the heat is expected in the next two months.

But instead of getting hot and bothered about it, one Singapore company, FTG Marketing (S.E.A), has a pretty cool idea on how to tackle the heat wave.

It has developed a vest that promises to keep you nice and cool for up to three hours. All you have to do is to pop cooler packs into the freezer, then stick them into the inner pockets of the vest.

FTG, which makes cooler bags, adapted the technology for the vest which they have named "The Walking Air Con".

At 2 kilogrammes, the vest is not physically heavy, but it will come at a hefty price tag of about S$250. The company intends to patent this product.- CNA/so

Read more!

Dry spell but water level still healthy

Showers provide respite from heatwave and more rain is expected early this week
Teo Wan Gek, Straits Times 14 Jun 09;

Singaporeans finally had some respite from the sweltering heat yesterday.

There were showers in the morning, breaking an eight-day dry spell. As of 3pm, rainfall of 27.6mm was recorded.

And there is more rain to come. Thunderstorms are predicted in the late morning and early afternoon over the next few days until Tuesday, said the National Environment Agency's (NEA) Meteorological Service Division.

An NEA spokesman said the June-to-September period coincides with the south-west monsoon and is generally a drier season compared with other times of the year.

But rain is still possible.

Associate Professor Matthias Roth of the National University of Singapore's Geography Department said: 'There is no reason why there could not be rain; maybe not widespread, but local convective rain is always possible.'

An NEA spokesman agreed, saying rain could still occur because of convection, when water vapour evaporates and condenses to fall as rain.

The total rainfall recorded this month, as of June 11, was 2.8mm. The lowest figure for this month was 37mm, in 1985.

From March till May this year, the total monthly rainfall was 223.3mm, 183.7mm and 198.6mm respectively. Temperature-wise, if you feel things are hotter now, you are right.

The NEA said June is the hottest month of the year, followed by May and April, because of factors like light winds and strong solar heating.

The average temperatures for this April and May were 28.5 deg C and 28.7 deg C respectively, and for June so far, 29.5 deg C. The long-term average is 27.3deg C, 27.7 deg C and 27.7 deg C respectively.

Malaysia is also suffering a heatwave, and water rationing could kick off from next month if people do not start conserving water.

In Singapore, a spokesman for the Public Utilities Board (PUB) said water levels in the 15 reservoirs remain healthy.

Noting that the weather over the past few weeks has been drier than usual, the spokesman added that 'Singapore will continue to have enough water to sustain all our needs'.

The PUB has diversified water sources to keep fluid the so-called Four National Taps - local catchment water, imported water, Newater and desalinated water.

Water is piped in from Johor under two bilateral agreements, which will expire in 2011 and 2061. By 2010, Newater will meet 30 per cent of Singapore's needs. The country's last water-rationing exercise was in 1963.

This means that, just like the call to conserve water in Malaysia, a similar effort will also make sense here.

Indeed, on July 1, the PUB is launching a mandatory water-efficiency labelling scheme which will start with taps, low-capacity flushing cisterns and urinals.

They will be labelled with zero, one, two or three ticks, with three ticks indicating the most water-efficient device.

Read more!

Humans Intrude on Indonesian Park, Threatening Forests and Wildlife

Norimitsu Onishi, The New York Times 13 Jun 09;

KUTAI NATIONAL PARK, Indonesia — Countless houses and shops built by squatters flank the 40-mile, two-lane road slicing through this national park that, once rich with orangutans and lowland rain forest, now symbolizes Indonesia’s struggle to protect its rare wildlife.

As construction has intensified along the road here on the island of Borneo, it has also brought a sometimes surprising diversity of businesses to the park, including a brothel, the Dika karaoke bar and the Mitra Hotel, which was marking its recent opening with discounts of 40 percent. A new bus terminal and gas station, nearly complete, will perhaps be greeting customers soon.

At one spot by the road, Mursidin, a farmer in his 50s, was one of many people building a home from the park’s trees. Using a sander and a saw hooked to a red generator, he was polishing and laying sheets of wood on the house’s frame as his wife, Nuramanah, looked on.

“We’re worried because the forest rangers warned us several times that we weren’t permitted to build here,” Ms. Nuramanah, who like many Indonesians goes by one name, said as her anxiety seemed punctuated by her husband’s hammering.

If the new houses lining the road were any indication, however, the couple had little to worry about. Forest rangers have been powerless in checking development inside the park as the local authorities have urged people to settle and open businesses here.

Control over the country’s 50 national parks, including Kutai, has grown murky in the past decade as authority has shifted from the central government to the provinces as part of a decentralization of power. Local governments, emphasizing economic development over conservation, have seen parks bursting with natural resources as a way to fill their coffers.

At the same time, Kutai National Park, like others, has been losing trees to illegal loggers, at a rate of one to two truckloads a day, according to forestry officials. Mining companies have also been pushing to explore inside the coal-rich park here, which is already surrounded by coal, fertilizer, gas and timber companies. More than 27,000 people lived inside the park in 2007, according to a government survey conducted that year.

“It’s difficult to control the construction of new houses, which is increasing, because the local governments simply ignore national laws,” Tandya Tjahjana, who took over the Forestry Ministry’s office here a few months ago, said as trucks rumbled by his headquarters here.

As many as half of the park’s 490,000 acres have been damaged because of development and illegal logging, Mr. Tandya said, adding that he had only 27 rangers to patrol the entire park.

Half of all the mammal species in Borneo are said to inhabit Kutai National Park, including the Sambar deer, wild ox, proboscis monkey and orangutan. Aside from a population of orangutans at a research center inside the park, the number of great apes — estimated at 600 — has sharply decreased in recent years because of two fires and human encroachment, researchers and forestry officials said.

Widespread illegal logging and deforestation have reduced Indonesia’s overall orangutan population to about 60,000, an estimated 80 percent reduction in the past decade, said Anne Russon, an orangutan expert from York University in Toronto who has done extensive research on the apes in Indonesia for the past 14 years, including in this park.

Much of the timber is used to make furniture for domestic and overseas markets, while the cleared land is often turned into palm oil plantations. The shrinking of the forest habitats, which threatens some of the world’s rarest wildlife, regularly pits animals against human beings.

In recent months, Sumatran tigers, which face extinction, have killed illegal loggers pushing into the animals’ territory on the island of Sumatra and have been killed in turn by villagers. Also in Sumatra, wild elephants have been fatally poisoned near a palm oil plantation, reportedly by villagers running the site.

The Kutai National Park here was established in the 1980s but, located in what is Borneo’s most developed area, it faced threats from the start. Pertamina, the state oil company, was permitted to operate here and still pumps oil inside a fenced-in enclave. And years before the road was built in the mid-1990s, people had begun squatting here.

“Before, there was only one or two villages here,” said Saparuddin, executive director of Bikal, a local environmental organization. “Now there are seven. You see new houses and businesses being built every day. Maybe someday they’ll build a mall here.”

Mr. Saparuddin, 35, who grew up inside the park and still has relatives living here, said giant lowland rain-forest trees used to cover the areas now traversed by the road.

Nowadays, squatters have burned and cleared the areas on either side of the road. The sounds of chainsaws could be heard from inside the forest on a recent drive. In some patches, a single surviving large tree could be seen towering over a cleared area.

The park’s human population has risen in recent years as local governments, emboldened by decentralization, challenged the central government by encouraging people and businesses to settle inside the park.

“The problem of incursions into national parks is very common in Indonesia,” said Ms. Russon, the orangutan expert. “Some are illegal. Others, like the case of Kutai National Park, are sanctioned by local governments.”

Forestry officials are now trying to stop the new bus terminal and gas station from operating. But it is not clear whether they will succeed, especially since the buildings are almost finished.

The government east of here, called East Kutai, has been pressing to have an enclave amounting to more than 10 percent of the park excised from Kutai and officially turned into a subdistrict.

Zairin Zain, a spokesman for the provincial government of East Kalimantan, which supports the enclave plan, said the local authorities believed that they should be allowed to develop it because it had been stripped of wildlife and had been damaged beyond repair.

The bid for the enclave has drawn newcomers to the park, some apparently hoping to sell the land they have grabbed to mining companies in the future. Others have come seeking cheap land and business opportunities.

In a typical, opaque exchange, Mukayan, 43, acquired a piece of land near the park’s northern border from the previous owner about four years ago. He had chosen the location because of rumors that a bus terminal would be built across the road, he said, adding that he had hoped to open a small shop selling snacks to travelers.

Though opposition from the Forest Ministry has halted construction on the terminal for now, Mr. Mukayan said the price of his land had increased sevenfold. What is more, the number of neighboring houses — just a handful four years ago — was growing so fast he had lost count.

In the meantime, Mr. Mukayan kept busy attending to small birds he had caught from the forest and kept in cages hanging from his garage ceiling. A bird he had named General won first prize in a local bird contest.

“I hope, for my business, that the bus terminal will open soon,” Mr. Mukayan said, looking across the road at what must have seemed to him a building tantalizingly close to completion. “I know this is a national park. But we just want to use the land alongside the road. We’ll leave the inside untouched.”

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Saving the Sea Cucumber in the Philippines

High prices, unregulated harvests drive sea cucumber to extinction
Cesario R. Pagdilao, Special To The Manila Times 14 Jun 09;

SEA cucumbers are facing extinction in the Philippines. A multimillion industry in sea cucumbers, more popularly known abroad as beche-de mer or trepang, it is the country’s fourth priority fishery commodity and eighth among its top fishery exports.

The threat of extinction is the result of increasing world demand, high prices and unregulated harvests.

Of the 1,200 species known worldwide, about 100 species are found in the country of which 25 species are commercially exploited.

Philippine sea cucumber fisheries have been in existence since the 18th century.

Recent discovery on the ecological, pharmaceutical and economic values of the sea cucumber, and the lack of fishery and trade management, entices the poor to overharvest.

All these conspire to threaten the sea cucumber natural population.

In 2002, urgent concern for the sea cucumber was raised at the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). The CITES, with more than 150 signatory countries, lists Holothuridae (Putian) and Stichopodidae (Hanginan) sea cucumbers as threatened with extinction.

The Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) has drafted an Administrative Order to implement conservation efforts to limit and regulate harvest of wild sea cucumber based on size limits.

The BFAR National Fisheries Research and Development Institute (NFRDI), through its stock assessment program, conducts national surveys and stock assessments of sea cucumber.

This puts pressure on the economies of major exporting countries such as Indonesia, the largest seller, and the Philippines, the second. Other sources are Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Fiji and Australia.

US$150 per kilo

Sea cucumber is one of the most important and highly priced seafood products in the international market. The highest prices are paid for tropical sea cucumber species Holothuria scabra (sandfish) at US$110 a kilogram and Holothuria versicolor (golden sandfish) at US$130 to US$150 per kg.

The product is mostly exported in dried form but also, in rare cases, as fresh and frozen items. The main market is the oriental Asians of Chinese origins, especially Hong Kong, the largest importer, and Singapore.

Hong Kong, the major Philippine market, packages and processes the sea cucumber further then sells it to China at a higher price.

“For the past decade, sea cucumbers have been underutilized due to their unacceptability in the domestic market and undeveloped export market,” says Rosario Ragaza of NFRDI’s Post Harvest Research Division. “Today, the pressure of expanding food requirements led to its exploitation and utilization.”

The Philippine export of sea cucumber from 2004 to 2006 totaled 3,532 tons valued at P756.85 million. The 1,162 metric tons harvested in 2006 was worth P 255.20 million.

About 30 of the 100 sea cucumber species in the Philippines are regularly collected.

Fresh sea cucumbers are gathered by hand either near shores or by skin diving or diving with the use of an air compressor to reach deeper areas. They are then placed in an open container with clean seawater to keep the sea cucumber alive while collecting and chilling them for transport.

Fishers then sell them to traders for immediate consumption or for processing and export.

“With the increasing popularity of sea cucumber as a health food purportedly able to cure arthritis and some types of cancer, other forms of high value processed sea cucumbers are expected to receive good market acceptance and preference in local and international markets,” says Ragaza.

The resulting low prices are brought about by high moisture content, poor packaging, poor hygiene and sanitation practices and inconsistent quality of the final products. “If these problems were solved, we would be able to achieve export competitiveness,” she says.

“One or few financiers can fund several local traders, creating competition among traders and depressing the buying price of sea cucumber,” says Aurelia Luzviminda Gomes of the University of the Philippines Mindanao. “Ultimately, the local fishers are the real losers.”

Little is known of the ecology and biology of the sea cucumber (e.g. timing of spawning, larval development, juvenile ecology, population distribution and abundance).

This led to problems in understanding the life history of sea cucumber for management of natural populations in fishery and conservation terms.

The lack of knowledge also forms a barrier to intensive hatchery-based activities.

Thus in 2007, the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) provided funds to improve the management and production of sea cucumber resources for sustainable development. The research project is being undertaken by the University of the Philippines (UP) Marine Science Institute in Diliman and UP in the Visayas in Iloilo.

In 2008, UP Mindanao joined sea cucumber research also with funding from DOST. The Australian Center for International Agricultural Research through World Fish also provided funds for sea ranching and restocking of sandfish.

The research focuses on the grow-out culture of sand fish specifically on broodstock development and management, refinement of hatchery protocols for cultivable species, reproductive biology and ecology studies of commercially important species other than sandfish and sea ranching.

(Dr. Cesario R. Pagdilao is the deputy executive director of the Philippine Council for Aquatic Marine Research and Development).

Hookah diving and sex in the full moon
Paul M. Icamina, The Manila Times 14 Jun 09;

DAVAO CITY: For the first time, experimental hatchery has reared the first batch of sea cucumber larvae that will hopefully encourage sea farming and replenish depleted stocks in the wilds.

Since August 2008, the first production of sea cucumber outside its natural habitat occurred in two hatcheries, including the 6,000-square-meter laboratory in Barangay Binugay that started operations last January by applying low-technology from Vietnam.

That is, eggs are collected when sea cucumbers spawn in their natural setting. They are put inside a tank and fertilized by drops of sperm. They feed on ordinary micro-algae.

The hatcheries are part of a research project of the University of the Philippines Mindanao (UPM). The idea is to produce juveniles in the hatchery then re-introduce them to their natural habitat.

Sea cucumbers favor the sandy-muddy bottom where seagrass thrives. The sea cucumbers are nocturnal and burrow under the sand during the day.

Adapting well up to 24 parts per thousand salinity, they thrive in temperatures of 26 degrees to 30 degrees Celsius and in sites down to a depth of 30 feet.

The UPM experimental hatchery inside the sprawling High Ponds resort owned by the JV Ayala Group of Companies (no relation to the Makati conglomerate) speaks well of the market potentials of sea cucumber.

Another UPM hatchery is located inside Alson’s, an intensive tilapia operator.

“We have the science, how about the technology?” asked Alson’s farm Manager Ramon Macaraig.

“We need private sector interest,” said Science Secretary Estrella Alabastro in a recent visit here. “Unless you transfer it to the private sector, nothing will happen even after a century of research and development.”

She plans to convene a technical committee to see how quickly the technology of hatchery breeding can be commercialized.

Saving the sea cucumber

Before anything else, researchers want to restock and save the sea cucumber.

The first batch, about 2,000 juveniles each weighing about three grams, has been released inside sea pens in Barangay Bato, Santa Cruz, Davao del Sur. It was done painstakingly, piece by piece, each sea cucumber placed a little underneath the sandy and muddy bottom.

Three 78-square-meter Australian-designed sea pens are the high-tech, high investment part; it is being popularized as well in Tasmania and the Solomon islands in the Pacific.

All these have come about after the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) sent in mid-2008 marine researchers to a sandfish sea cucumber hatchery and grow-out facility at the Research Institute for Aquaculture 3 in Nha Trang, Vietnam.

The knowledge gained was immediately applied in Davao. In a three-year national program, UPM’s role is to assess and then enhance sea cucumber stock. The UP Diliman Marine Science Institute’s Bolinao Marine Laboratory has also initiated pilot scale hatchery.

After a year, the laboratory harvested sea cucumber weighing 200 to 250 grams; the ideal commercial weight is 500 grams. In contrast, Vietnam harvests after just eight months.

The objectives are to mitigate the problem of overfishing through sea farming and ensure benefits to small fishers.

UP Visayas in Iloilo, which concentrates on seed production and stock enhancement in Guimaras Island, has released its first batch in to the wilds as well.

All are part of the three-year national program on sea cucumber culture and resources management supported by the DOST Philippine Council for Aquatic and Marine Research Development (PCAMRD).

“The objective is to fast track the development and refinement of resource management and sea farming and improve the local sea cucumber industry,” says Dr. Ruth de Guzman, a marine biologist who oversees the UPM research.

“So far, we have identified 20 species in Barangay Bato, Santa Cruz, Davao del Sur. Community-based stock assessments have been conducted. Other species with commercial value have been identified,” she says.

The mass spawning observed during a lunar phase in Bolinas has not been seen in Mindanao; more observations this year will be made. In two other species, natural spawning was observed three nights after the first quarter moon. Another species spawned three nights after the full moon.

Trade

The sea cucumber is one of the most important marine resources of the country.

Trade in beche-de-mer, the dried sea cucumber product, dates as far back as the Sultanate days in Mindanao. Today, the Philippines is the second major exporter next to Indonesia.

Dried sea cucumber now fetches P4,500 per kilogram; this is just 10 percent of the original weight.

No wonder, wild populations are being threatened by over harvesting and continuous degradation of their habitat.

As a result, the bigger individuals are found in deeper waters and harvested by hookah diving, so-called because divers stay longer under the sea by using long tubes connected to an oxygen compressor aboard a boat.

Generally, sea cucumbers occupy the narrow continental shelf (e.g. seagrass beds, coral reefs), which is vulnerable to stresses from human activities.

Besides being high-priced food items, here and abroad, sea cucumbers are claimed to have other important uses such as the natural equivalent of Viagra.

Ecologically, they are responsible for the extensive shifting and mixing of the seabed and recycling detritus. Hence, they are called the “earthworms” of the sea.

They can also determine the habitat structure of other species.

Sea cucumbers are also known as a cure for arthritis, wounds and high blood pressure. Indeed, health supplement sea cucumber products are available locally.

What were problems 20 years ago remain the same issues today. These include local depletion, lower catch, absence of inventory, uncontrolled harvesting, absence of regulating guidelines and management plans.

Only hatchery technology is making some progress to preserve sea cucumber populations.

Currently, the family Sticho-podidae is listed as threatened with extinction by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna.

To sustain sea cucumber resources, the country needs to identify a management program.

It needs to identify and assess species used in trading and there should be a regulation as to size and sexual maturity of sea cucumbers bought and sold.

Due to depletion and competition, middlemen are not very selective of the sizes. They buy everything, even the small ones, says de Guzman.

Because of the very high prices abroad, middlemen stimulate local demand, in turn causing the over-harvest of an already decreasing resource, says UPM Research Assistant Lance Concepcion.

Fisher folks only get a small part of the profit
The Manila Times 14 Jun 09;

WIDESPREAD reduction in sizes, volume and a shift to lower valued species are reported by sea cucumber fishers, traders and researchers.

The absence of standardized assessment methods, trained field researchers and funds resulted in the lack of initiatives to make an inventory of the sea cucumber resource in every municipality or, at least, at the regional level.

The unavailability of Philippine atlas of sea cucumbers and inaccessibility of field guides that include taxonomic identification contribute to the problem.

There is also limited knowledge of the reproductive biology and other aspects of commercially important trepang species. This knowledge is necessary for developing appropriate management interventions.

Resource managers and stakeholders lack understanding and a sense of responsible fishery practices. This leads to improper and inadequate management of this very important resource.

Currently, fisher folk engaged in the fishery of sea cucumbers do not benefit enough. They only get a minuscule part of the profit derived from their products since they lack information on market prices, production data, proper post harvest handling and processing, and grow-out technology.

The major issue in the grow-out culture of sea cucumber is the lack of technical know-how.

There are grow-out initiatives in a few places. But overstocking, harvest at low-value sizes, and attempts to enrich the sediment with feeds can further accelerate resource depletion.

As of now, studies on grow-out culture are being developed for only a few species. And there are still many gaps in baseline information about the biology and ecology of the targeted species for culture.

Moreover, research and development are considered as second priority only, thus the limited financial support from the government and funding agencies.

Environmental factors such as the degradation of habitat, depletion of the resource and inadequate supply of juveniles for grow-out are the other concerns.

Illegal fishing, increased fishing pressure, coastal development, weak law enforcement, and lack of resource management are some of the causes of these concerns.

The feasibility of farming sea cucumber should be considered given the limited experience and access to credit, especially of poor farmers.

The quality of the final products is often found to be inconsistent. Poor quality is indicated by high moisture content, presence of toxic substances, and contamination of pathogenic bacteria.

To ensure sustainable sea cucumber fisheries, the degradation of habitat and resource depletion /declining catch brought about by illegal fishing/increased fishing pressure, coastal development/siltation, weak law enforcement and lack of political will, should be addressed.

Technical know-how in relation to species, area, production, reproductive biology of commercial species and packaged technology should be made accessible.

The unavailability of juveniles for grow out due to the absence of commercial hatcheries should be also be addressed.

Overwhelming hurdles, even for basic research
The Manila Times 14 Jun 09;

FOR sea cucumbers, there is no scientific names for many species that have otherwise common names in Cebuano, Tagalog and Ilocano.

No molecular studies have been made. Knowledge of reproductive biology of commercially important species is lacking.

In order to develop a management strategy, there is a need to collect more baseline information on available wildstock, basic biology/ecology, fishery, and so on.

The list seems endless. Data on population status, impact of overexploitation in traditional and nontraditional fishing grounds are lacking.

Assessment methods are not standardized. No inventory has been done per regions, province and municipality. There is no Philippine sea cucumber atlas.

Not only is funding limited, qualified expertise is lacking to conduct basic research on depletion; destructive fishing method; land based pollution; deterioration of habitat; and unregulated harvest methods.

A nationwide assessment of sea cucumber resources has been done in 14 areas to address the lack of extensive research on the taxonomy, fisheries, and population dynamics, according to the Fisheries Research and Development Institute (NFRDI).

The NFRDI has gathered data that could lead to understanding the life history strategy and fundamental biology of sea cucumbers. These data will be used for the establishment of size limits as well as delineation of sea cucumber areas.

Spatial distribution of various species was determined. Medium to high value and low value commercially important species were identified.

As a decisive step to mitigate the observed widespread dwindling of wild stocks and the impending threat of local-species extinction, the National Forum on Sea Cucumber Fisheries Management was held last year in Dagupan City.

The forum discussed the biology of sea cucumbers, their ecological and economic importance. It also discussed a review of the status, management initiatives and practices related to sea cucumber fisheries and culture, production, post harvest processing and trade and marketing.

The forum recommended the development of a comprehensive national management plan. In policy formulation, conservation should be integrated with protected marine areas.

The meeting agreed that training courses on taxonomic identification, stock enhancement and grow-out culture and proper post harvest work (handling, sorting, processing) are needed.

Environmental issues include habitat degradation and resource depletion or declining catch; illegal cyanide and dynamite fishing; coastal siltation; increased fishing pressure; and weak law enforcement (there is no regulation regarding harvest size).

Sea cucumber farming is uncertain because technical know-how is lacking. The supply of juveniles for cultivation is limited. There are no commercial hatcheries and no reserved area for wild source.

It was recommended that fishery laws should be strongly enforced and that there be clear management guidelines and policies regarding, for example, permit issuance and licensing, identification and zoning of potential sites for culture.

Because of the absence of a formal marketing system in the local trade of sea cucumber products, traders have no absolute idea of the export market.

Pricing is based on trust and loyalty. A rapid market system study and value chain analysis is clearly needed.

When sea farming means conservation
The Manila Times 14 Jun 09;

ONLY three major exporting countries have no national management or regulatory measures regarding the sea cucumber: the Philippines, Malaysia and Micronesia.

Other countries encourage sustainable sea cucumber fisheries through quota, size limit, gear restriction, limited licensing and so on. Others employ mariculture, sea ranching operation and restocking programs.

“Adapting the minimum size limit established by Papua New for sea cucumber species in trade is the most practical and highly recommended management strategy for the Philippines,” says Ludivina Labe, Marine Fisheries Research Division, National Fisheries Research and Development Institute (NFRDI).

“The data from Honda Bay in Davao suggests that occurrence of species is seasonal. It was observed that most of the freshly caught sea cucumbers are smaller than the minimum size limit [in terms of length] set by Papua New Guinea,” says her colleague Lea Katherine Acera.

Sagay City’s initiative, in Negros Occidental, can serve as a model to other municipalities.

About nine common species of sea cucumber are found in the Sagay Marine Reserve. Only the Neocucumis proteus, or “bola-bola” species is largely collected from August to February.

Harvest permits are given to the highest bidders who should be local residents with boats registered in the city. Buyers come from Cebu, Cadiz and Bacolod.

The Sagay environment office determines the schedule and location of harvest within the reserve. It limits the number of boats, method of harvest (bottom trawl is strictly prohibited), duration of harvesting, and the amount of harvest per day (maximum of 1,000 pieces sized less than 2 inches in diameter).

Harvests are reported to the weighing (buying) stations for monitoring purposes. The city government and barangays share the income.

Despite these regulations being in place, catches have declined consistently in recent years although marine scientists don’t know why, according to Terence Paul Dacles, executive director, Northern Negros Aquatic Resources Advisory Council.

Research collaboration has been initiated between the marine reserve and the Southeast Asian Fisheries Development Center-Aqua-culture Department and UP-Visayas, both based in Iloilo.

Another successful conservation move is evident in Danao Bay, Misamis Oriental.

As recently as the 1980s, there were so much sea cucumbers in Danao Bay shores that people slipped when they stepped on them, says Exequiel Laureano Jr., Danao Bay resource management Office, Baliangao, Misamis Occidental.

Traditionally, the sea cucumber is a very important food during typhoons when it substitutes for fish.

More intensive harvests started in 1983 when traders were buying sacks of dried sea cucumber that were sold in Zamboanga City. By the next year, the high demand and price encouraged even outsiders to haphazardly harvest the sea cucumber, resulting in its rapid depletion around the bay.

Even when harvesting was limited to locals, it came to the point when it was very hard to find sea cucumbers. Consequently, in 1986, the municipality banned its harvesting and selling. By 1991, a sea cucumber sanctuary was established.

Eventually, sea cucumber populations increased to the abundance of the past. So much so that in 1997, Laureano recalls, poachers entered the sanctuary and harvested sacks of sea cucumbers.

Farming

Elsewhere, sea cucumber farming have mixed blessings.

Hermino Paredes grows about 10,000 sea cucumbers and harvests about 3,500 pieces a year from a 1.8-hectare fish pen in Puerto Princesa, Palawan. The harvestable size weighs from 50 to 100 grams. His concern: he’s not making much profit and there is insufficient data on best culture practices.

With an investment of P100,000, Emerlinda Dizon raises sea cucumbers inside two fish pens in Panglit. Harvestable size: 1,000 grams. Her fresh, dried and smoked products are sold to Binondo exporters.

She says high stocking density stunts their growth.

Artemio Caasi, of the Samahan ng Maliliit na Mangingisda also raises sea cucumber in Victory village, Bolinao, Pangasinan. In sea ranching, he says, harvest must be done when sea cucumbers each weigh 500 grams or more.

Jaime Fernandez, of the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources in Davao del Sur, runs a sea cucumber pen in Barangay Bato, Santa Cruz. He complains about low reproduction. For areas that are already depleted, he says the culture of sea cucumber in pens or establishing of sea cucumber reserve is an option.

Trader Benito Reyes, who sources sea cucumbers from Quezon, and Irene Jamero, who gets them from Siargao, say the cooking process is critical to the quality of the dried sea cucumber.

They say there is a need to standardize prices nationwide because of the big disparity of rates in the Visayas and Mindanao.

“The Bolinao Marine Laboratory has initiated pilot scale hatchery for sea cucumber,” says Dr. Marie Antonette Juinio-Meñez of the UP Marine Science Institute (UP MSI). “It is recommended that stocking density should be maintained at about 200 grams per square meter. This ensures not only good growth but also good reproductive output and fertilization success.”
--Paul M. Icamina

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Testing begins to save legendary Vietnam turtle

Ian Timberlake Yahoo News 13 Jun 09;

HANOI (AFP) – Researchers have begun testing mechanical "SediTurtles" they say will protect a legendary Vietnamese turtle while cleaning the historical lake in which the creature lives.

Experts showed off the German-developed sediment-eating machines this week as part of preparations before an expected cleanup of Hoan Kiem Lake, the heart and soul of Vietnam's capital.

Nestled in the centre of rapidly urbanising Hanoi, the so-called Lake of the Returned Sword is home to an elusive turtle which symbolises Vietnam's centuries-old struggle for independence.

In a story that is taught to all Vietnamese school children, the 15th century rebel leader Le Loi used a magical sword to drive out Chinese invaders and founded the dynasty named after him.

Le Loi later became emperor and one day went boating on the lake. A turtle appeared, took his sacred sword and dived to the bottom, keeping the weapon safe for the next time Vietnam may have to defend its freedom, the story says.

Occasional sightings of a giant soft-shell turtle draw large crowds, and photographs and amateur video clips attest to the claim that at least one turtle indeed still lives in the lake.

Reported sightings of the turtle, a symbol of eternity, are deemed auspicious, especially when they coincide with major national events.

The site's historical importance therefore requires a delicate clean-up operation, and the joint team of Vietnamese and German experts have been planning how to clean the turtle's home with minimum risk to the creature.

Leonhard Fechter, of Berlin's Herbst Umwelttechnik GmbH, said he knows people care about the turtle, so his company made the SediTurtle with a "soft" technology that will not harm the animal.

"We are sure we won't touch the turtle," he said as he demonstrated the devices at a fish pond on the grounds of founding president Ho Chi Minh's former home.

A thick red hose floating on the water was connected to what looked like a grey metal box. An attached dredging device was invisible below the surface, sucking out sediment from the bottom and sending it down the hose to another machine which separates sludge from water.

The box moved with the slow, quiet movements of a turtle, winched along by ropes connected to a small blue boat.

"That device is moving very slowly. That big turtle can easily escape" from its path, said Celia Hahn, the project manager from Dresden University of Technology.

A second, more sophisticated SediTurtle resembles a giant corkscrew and operates by remote control "like a submarine", said Peter Werner, a professor from the same Dresden university.

This less obtrusive option is Werner's preferred choice because it would not need unsightly ropes to pull it around the picturesque Hoan Kiem lake.

Hoan Kiem has suffered the fate of all lakes. Over time, sediment increases and the water level drops, particularly in urban areas.

The experts said Hanoi's much-photographed lake is only about 1.5 metres (five feet) deep -- close to half a metre at its shallowest -- but a four-to-six metre layer of sludge containing industrial pollutants has built up on the bottom.

Draining the lake, the more conventional way of removing contaminants, is out of the question because it would destroy the treasured water body's entire ecosystem, experts said.

"The big turtle is living from crabs or small fish," Werner said, adding that sediment removal will be done in phases, to ensure part of the lake is always left free for the animal.

Christian Richter, of FUGRO-HGN GmbH, said his engineering firm has already assessed the lake's geology and hydrology.

By the end of this year it will map areas of the lake where sediment can be removed without causing water to drain out, he said.

The Vietnamese and German governments are funding the preliminary stages of the programme but financing is needed for the estimated 2.8 million dollar cleanup of Hoan Kiem to begin, the experts said.

"There are banks interested in financing," Werner said.

Hanoi next year will mark its 1,000th birthday, and the lake cleanup was initially expected to be finished in time for the celebration.

That deadline cannot be met because of the care with which sediment removal must be done, the engineers said.

"Even if they start immediately, they would need at least one or two years for the removal," Richter said.

Read more!

Call for halt to golf courses in Vietnam: report

Yahoo News 13 Jun 09;

HANOI (AFP) – Golf course development in Vietnam is threatening its agricultural land and almost one third of the projects should be stopped, a newspaper quoted government ministers as saying.

Fifty of the 166 golf courses under development or approved should be cancelled, Minister of Planning and Investment Vo Hong Phuc was quoted by Thanh Nien newspaper as saying in the National Assembly.

He asked the communist-dominated assembly to tell provincial authorities to abort the projects, the report said.

"There is no reason to use rice-growing land to build golf courses," Phuc was quoted as saying.

He added that farmland accounted for a high ratio of the land being cleared for golf, and his ministry had proposed tighter regulation of the projects, Thanh Nien reported.

Under the proposals, an 18-hole course would be licensed in most cases if it covered less than 100 hectares (247 acres) of land, and each course could use a maximum of only 10 hectares of infertile rice fields, the report said.

"Rice fields must be retained to ensure the nation's food security," the Minister of Natural Resources and Environment, Pham Khoi Nguyen, was quoted as saying.

Vietnam is one of the world's leading rice exporters.

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Climate talks: Proposals proliferate as clock ticks

Richard Ingham And Anne Chaon Yahoo News 12 Jun 09;

BONN, Germany (AFP) – New talks on building a treaty to tackle climate change headed for a close here Friday after a negotiation blueprint ballooned into a forest of rival proposals, leaving only six months on the clock to seal a deal.

Delegates saw little common ground in the 12-day talks held under the UN's Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), but some remained upbeat the historic pact would emerge on schedule in Copenhagen in December.

A 50-page draft negotiation text grew to more than 200 pages by Friday, generating a phonebook-sized compilation of overlapping or competing proposals and creating an unprecedented task in haggling over the coming months.

UNFCCC Executive Secretary Yvo de Boer, though, insisted that clarity and purpose had now emerged, even if a difficult road lay ahead.

"This session has made clear what governments want to see in a Copenhagen agreement, it shows that they are committed to reaching an agreement, and this is a big achievement," de Boer told a press conference.

"Yes, there is no question that industrialised countries must raise their sights higher in terms of mid-term emission cuts, and yes, time is short but we still have enough time."

The planned treaty, due to take effect from 2013 after pledges of the Kyoto Protocol run out, will shape planetary action up to the middle of the century.

The big issues are who should pledge to cut their emissions of heat-trapping "greenhouse" gases and when, and how to channel money and technology to poor countries to cope with climate change and switch to low-carbon energy.

Compared with previous sessions, "the attitudes have been more constructive but the level of ambition is lower," France's climate ambassador, Brice Lalonde told AFP.

"Everybody knows that global emissions have to be halved by 2050 [compared with 1990 levels], which implies that industrialised countries reduce theirs by 80 percent. And everyone knows that emissions by developing countries have to start falling by 2025 at the latest," he said. "But nobody's signing up."

Rich countries -- historically most to blame for today's problems -- are being told by poor nations to make deep emissions cuts, mostly in the range of 25-40 percent by 2020 compared with 1990 levels. Some nations, including China, have said 40 percent must be a minimum.

But within industrialised nations, a gulf has emerged between the European Union (EU), which has offered a cut of at least 20 percent over 1990, and Japan and the United States, which would make reductions of around eight percent or four percent respectively, under announced plans or draft legislation.

The emerging giants are under pressure to come up with detailed commitments as to what they intend to do to bring their fast-growing pollution under control.

China, India, Brazil and others have refused to sign up to binding emissions targets, saying this will hamper their rise out of poverty.

They say they are willing to take other measures that would slow their likely growth in emissions, but they have not spelt out what these would be and tie such action to help from the West.

Seeking to bridge the gap, the United States put forward a proposal in Bonn under which developing countries would spell out what actions they would take.

They would be legally bound to take the action, but the outcome of this action would not be binding -- they would not be penalised if the goals were not met.

"We expect that would in fact satisfy [the US] Congress, so long as the actions were measurable and as long as there is comparability of the level of effort both from China and other parties, including the United States," said Jonathan Pershing, the chief US negotiator.

Green groups described the talks as deadlocked.

"Climate delegates finally agreed -- only that they disagreed," said WWF, while the US Nature Conservancy complained: "The text is too long and the pace is too slow to get us to a deal in Copenhagen."

But Michael Zammit Cutajar, chairing one of the two big negotiation groups, disagreed, contending that breakthroughs traditionally come in the very final days or hours of haggling.

"This is like the evolutionary process in reverse. The Big Bang comes at the end," he said.

Three more rounds are left under the UNFCCC banner before Copenhagen, but there are also a range of meetings among major emitters, at the Group of Eight (G8) and at a reported UN climate summit in New York in September that intend to give a political push.

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