When the Hunters Became the Hunted – Hunters & Collectors
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Acres' facility to take in reptiles and amphibians rescued from smugglers and illegal owners
Grace Chua, Straits Times 14 Aug 09;
AFTER a rocky five-year journey, the first dedicated wildlife rescue centre here opened its doors yesterday.
The Animal Concerns Research and Education Society (Acres) Wildlife Rescue Centre will take in reptiles and amphibians rescued from smugglers and owners who keep them illegally.
Reptiles like star tortoises and bearded dragon lizards, and Asian arowana fish, make up the bulk of illegal shipments confiscated here each year. Most confiscated animals are either repatriated or sent to zoos, the Jurong BirdPark or other facilities.
The rescue centre will be another outlet 'if there is a need', the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority said. Native species taken to the centre will be rehabilitated and released back into the wild.
'Having a rescue centre is a sign that there's a problem, but it's also a sign that society wants to solve the problem,' said Acres' 30-year-old founder and executive director Louis Ng.
The idea for the rescue centre was sparked in 2004, after Mr Ng freed a vervet monkey from a cage at a factory here. The monkey, dubbed 'Blue', was temporarily cared for at the Singapore Zoo before being sent to a wildlife sanctuary in its native Africa. This experience convinced Mr Ng, who has a master's in primate conservation, of the need for such a wildlife rescue facility.
Acres' 2ha site off Choa Chu Kang was originally slated to open in 2007, but construction on the project stalled due to lack of funds.
The non-profit group also faced problems allegedly caused by its building contractor after woodchips, used to level a 100m stretch of ground, rotted and contaminated the area.
A civil suit against A.N.A Contractor and its director was heard in May, and judgment is pending.
The facility's administrative office, education centre and staff living quarters opened last September, and the rescue area was partially opened yesterday. It is able to house up to 50 animals at the moment in 3m by 3m by 3m cages, with veterinarians on hand to care for the sick.
After judgment is passed on the suit, construction will begin on open-air enclosures. When complete, the centre will house up to 400 creatures.
But financial worries remain.
The centre has a monthly operating budget of $20,000, including for animal care, salaries and land rental, and the organisation has just six months' funding at present, said Mr Ng, who is always in search of committed volunteers to help out.
Besides the rescue operations, Acres also carries out education and outreach programmes to discourage people from buying illegal exotic pets.
Singapore is a wildlife smuggling hub because of its transport networks and proximity to sources of animals, according to wildlife trade watchdog Traffic. In 2007, there were 20 cases of illegal animal trading or possession, and the figure rose to 22 last year. This year to date, there have been 14 such cases.
Singapore is a signatory to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (Cites), and has strict penalties for smuggling protected wildlife: a maximum fine of $50,000 per Cites species, up to $500,000, and/or a jail term of up to two years.
Local charity launches Singapore's first dedicated wildlife rescue centre
Gladys Ow, Channel NewsAsia 13 Aug 09;
SINGAPORE : More efforts are being made to tackle the illegal wildlife trade in Singapore, which is surpassed only by the trafficking of drugs and weapons.
A new shelter aims to rescue distressed animals and return them to their native homes.
"Blue", a Vervet monkey, is the inspiration for setting up Singapore's first dedicated wildlife rescue centre.
Six years ago, Blue was kept illegally as a pet at a house. But thanks to the Animal Concerns Research and Education Society (ACRES), Blue became Singapore's first-ever primate to be repatriated home to Zambia.
ACRES hopes Blue's story is only the beginning of more successful rescue efforts.
More than 9,000 animals were seized in the last three years.
At ACRES' newly-launched Wildlife Rescue Centre at Chua Chu Kang, protected species found will be nursed back to health, before being returned to their native environment.
However, it is not just about tackling the illegal wildlife trade. ACRES also wants to educate the public on protecting animals and the environment.
"Penny" has a deformed hind leg. Penny would have been put down by the puppy farm she was brought from if ACRES had not rescued her and cared for her.
Penny is now the centre's mascot for education, which ACRES believes is key to ending animal cruelty and illegal wildlife trade.
The charity has worked closely with schools and community groups since 2001. ACRES' education programmes, reaching over 100,000 children and adults every year, encourage compassion and responsible behaviour. It has worked with 83 schools since 2001.
Louis Ng, executive director of ACRES said: "Most importantly, what we want to do at the ACRES Wildlife Rescue Centre is to create awareness, which is why the first block you see at the entrance is the Lee Foundation Education Centre.
"It is not just about rescuing the animals; it's really about creating awareness, getting the public involved, getting them interested about this issue. Now we have 18,000 supporters in our database. Is that a sign of progress in Singapore? Without a doubt it is."
Progress did not come easy for ACRES. The building of the centre's main sanctuary area has been delayed because of a pending court decision on a pollution lawsuit.
It has been delayed for about two years and will be delayed by at least another six months. Its contractor had allegedly dumped woodchips onto the site, which caused the discharge of wastewater into a channel linked to the Kranji reservoir.
ACRES is awaiting the decision of the judge on whether the main contractor and its director are liable to ACRES in this regard.
When completed, the centre can hold up to 400 rescued wildlife, including reptiles, primates and native birds. Pets like dogs will be handed over to other organisations like the SPCA. - CNA /ls
After tears, delays and a lawsuit ...
Singapore's first wildlife rescue shelter opens
Esther Ng, Today Online 14 Aug 09;
AFTER five long and rocky years, the Animal Concerns Research and Education Society (Acres) finally opened its rescue shelter yesterday, a mission its executive director and founder Louis Ng never expected would drive him to tears.
Funding problems delayed the opening of Singapore's first dedicated wildlife rescue shelter from April 2007 to October 2007. But a month before this scheduled launch, a foul smell necessitated soil tests - and the hardest blow was finding out, in March 2008, that the animal enclosures were sitting on 1.5 hectares of rotting wood chips, rendering the buildings unstable.
"Yes, I cried," Mr Ng, 30, admitted. "It meant having to demolish the kitchen, primate and turtle sanctuaries, and all the cages which were built-to-order. They were welded to structures and could not be salvaged."
It was a huge blow to the non-profit group which had spent 18 months raising $500,000 to build the 2-hectare centre. It took out a lawsuit against its contractor last year.
Even as it awaits the outcome of the legal action, the Acres Wildlife Rescue Centre is resuming the rescue work it had put on hold for one-and-a-half years while waiting for its premises to be built.
In Mr Ng's words: "We have to stay positive and move on."
Its quarantine centre can house up to 50 animals at any one time.
"We're focusing on just reptiles and amphibians now because they form the bulk of illegal wildlife trade," Mr Ng said.
The public can call its new 24-hour hotline at 9783 7782 to report illegal activity. In Singapore, the number of cases of illegal possession or import of protected wildlife reached a high of 97 cases in 2004, declining to 17 cases last year. As of July this year, there were 14 cases.
Acres will continue to pass on any tip-offs it gets to the authorities for offences to be prosecuted. The Agri-Food & Veterinary Authority (AVA) will send wildlife it confiscates to Acres "if there is a need", said AVA spokesman Goh Shih Yong.
Typically, it sends the animals to the Singapore Zoo, Jurong Bird Park and Underwater World, depending on the species, while some are repatriated to the country of origin while local species may be released into the wild after consultation with the National Parks Board.
What if members of the public try to dump their regular household pets - not wildlife - with the centre? It will not take them in, stressed Mr Ng. "We will hand them over to the appropriate NGOs."
Volunteers can sleep over
Rescue work will not be Acres' main focus. Its two other missions are undercover work and public education; it has worked with 83 schools since 2001.
Now, its Outdoor Conservation Classroom at the new centre will allow students to examine native wildlife which includes plants. They can also catch exhibits on wildlife protection and performances at the Lee Foundation Centre onsite.
There is even a building specially for volunteers - it comes with dining and lounge areas and five bedrooms.
"We want to get the public involved in our work. They can watch TV, have their meals or stay overnight. We want them to feel that they are part of a team, not that we're making use of them," said Mr Ng.
"Now we have 18,000 supporters in our database. Is that a sign of progress in Singapore? Without a doubt it is."
Business Times 14 Aug 09;
Colourful spandex and fast bikes are now a common sight on Singapore roads as the cycling community blossoms, reports ONG BOON KIAT
'I'M a speed maniac,' concedes Tan Yen Yen, who by day is the Singapore managing director of Hewlett-Packard but, come weekends, trades in her power suit and Lexus for cycling tights and an Italian bike.
The 44-year-old ardent triathlon competitor and mother of four's idea of fun is to take two-hour bike rides on weekend mornings across half of Singapore. 'When you are out there on your own and cruising at over 40kph, there is a feeling that you own the world and it is just you and your bike conquering the roads ahead.'
The thrill of going very fast on two wheels, not to mention the camaraderie of group cycling and - she quips - 'stopping for nice breakfasts', is why she is part of a growing contingent of serious cyclists in Singapore.
Donning colourful spandex jerseys, skinny foam helmets and riding on exotic - and expensive - bikes, they are a diverse mix of professional executives, government officers, expatriates, retirees and students.
Favourite haunts include Changi Coastal Road, West Coast Road, Upper Thomson Road near the Longhouse foodcourt, East Coast Park Service Road, and also the hills of Mount Faber, Selarang Park and Bukit Perepok.
Growing numbers
There are no official statistics, but anecdotally it seems cycling as a serious sporting pursuit has taken off here - driven by the government's call to Singaporeans to live a healthy lifestyle. By one estimate, there could be over 10,000 cyclists in Singapore with sports bikes that cost over $500 and who cycle regularly. This is not including the tens of thousands more who commute to work and MRT stations by bikes daily.
Membership of three-year-old local cycling club JoyRiders has ballooned to over 600, due to people wanting to lead a more sporty lifestyle, says club spokeswoman Joyce Leong.
'Having a group to ride with also attracted more people to join,' says the 53-year-old retiree, who rides six days a week and logs a leg-numbing 410km weekly.
Local online cycling forum and website Togoparts now boasts 150,000 unique visitors a month - 10 times more than numbers clocked during its first year of operation seven years ago.
Founder Lee Zi Shin is not surprised cycling has taken off in highly-strung Singapore. 'As the pace of life becomes faster, more people are looking to get fit - and cycling is one viable option as it provides thrills together with exercise,' he says.
Andi Hari Wahyudi, who owns high-end bike shop Swissvalley at River Valley Road and rides regularly at the Changi Coastal Road, reckons there are easily over 300 cyclists thronging that stretch every weekend. When he first started cycling in Singapore in 2002, only a handful of hardcore cyclists would show up regularly.
Talk about serious cycling and inevitably the subject of seriously expensive bikes comes up. In the world of high-end bikes, $10,000 machines are commonplace. These employ the same cutting-edge technologies and material science found in Formula One racing cars and Nasa spacecraft. And big-ticket bikes have been selling well here, according to bike shops.
'$5,000 bikes used to be considered very expensive, but they have become very common these days,' says one shopowner.
But why are these flimsy-looking bikes so expensive and what drives enthusiasts to splurge large sums on them?
'For many people, it is difficult to understand why we are paying so much for a bike, which can cost even more than some motorbikes,' says Casey Kwan, director at Abacus Capital, who rides with a group of cycling friends on both weekdays and weekends, and regularly logs over 100km per week.
The 46-year-old owns a $15,000 bike made by Italian bike maker Pinarello. The bike is called the Prince and boasts features like artsy talon-like carbon fibre tubes that makes the bike look fast even when at rest. It is believed that more than 100 of these coveted bikes were sold in Singapore last year.
The secret edge in high-end bikes like the Pinarello Prince lies in their carbon fibre frame, the best of which are said to be many times stronger than steel. Spend more and you also get expensive wind tunnel-tested aerodynamic niceties and top-end parts. 'What you are paying for is cutting-edge technology that helps you ride faster, and also gives you confidence. When you are descending a hill at 80kph, you want to know your bike is not going to break up - that's what you are paying for,' Mr Kwan explains.
Clement Goh, managing director of Equinix Singapore, rides a $10,000 Italian-designed Colnago CLX carbon fibre bike decked with top-end components from Japan. While he admits that the performance differences between a budget and high-end bike could be more psychological than real, he is nonetheless glad to have shelled out for his investment.
'If you join a gym, say, over a three year period, you will end up spending about the same amount of money. And because I have spent so much on my bike, I actually force myself to get on the bike more, which means I get to exercise more,' says the 40-year-old who picked up the sport only two years ago but now rides round-island treks with a regular cycling group on weekends.
The allure of high-tech and big-ticket bikes has seen the high-end bike industry blossom in Singapore in the past decade. From a handful of specialist shops in the 1990s, there are now well over 100 bike shops, with more expected to sprout despite the dour economy. Swissvalley, for one, is planning a second shop in the next 12 months.
Sporty lifestyle
Treknology Bikes 3, one of Singapore's biggest bike stores, is also expanding. This longstanding chain, which operates at Tanglin Place and Holland Grove Road, is now putting the finishing touches to its mega 30,000 sq ft five-storey bike superstore and distribution hub at Jalan Kilang Barat before year-end.
Cycling has blossomed in Singapore 'because the government has promoted a more sporty lifestyle to its citizens', Mr Wahyudi says. The government has also paved the way for many sporting events like triathlons in recent years, which boosted the sport, as well as stoked demand for high-end bikes.
Haresh Balani, owner of Treknology, agrees. He also points to Singapore's sprawling park connector network as a key spark for the sport. 'Suddenly, we saw a surge of sales in hybrid bikes, which many people have used for this type of cycling,' he says.
Singapore's park connector network is a project that has connected major parks here with jogging, rollerblading and cycling pathways. Although many serious cyclists stay off park connectors because they can't ride as fast there as they can on roads, this network has been a key instigator for many to pick up the sport. 'A lot of people were initially afraid to ride bikes because of the traffic on the road, and there were limited areas where they could enjoy a bike without fear of being run down by vehicles. This is where the park connectors have really helped,' Mr Balani says.
'The URA (Urban Redevelopment Authority) is also coming up with the linking of the east and west of Singapore, which will encourage even more bike sales,' he adds.
But while it is heartening that more is being done to make cycling more widespread and enjoyable here, one aspect remains a bugbear for many road cyclists: impatient drivers.
Cyclist-unfriendly
Ms Tan is blunt in her assessment of riding safety on roads here. 'Singapore roads are just not friendly for cyclists, full stop,' she says.
Less than pleasant encounters previously have led her to believe that 'many motorists feel that since cyclists don't pay road tax, that maybe we shouldn't be on the road'. She looks at bike-friendly countries like Holland and hopes that the kind of extensive cycling lanes seen there can become a reality for Singapore in the future.
Cyclists are sometimes put in dangerous situations by drivers on the road because the latter underestimate how fast cyclists are going, says Mr Kwan. 'I think there should be more done to educate drivers. Of course, cyclists also need to make themselves more visible and they shouldn't abuse the road.' For instance, cyclists shouldn't ride two abreast on a single-lane road like the East Coast Park Service Road.
'The frustration of riding in Singapore is sharing the road with other road users. If only the drivers understand how vulnerable cyclists are and learn to give way,' says Ms Leong. And the JoyRider is suggesting a somewhat draconian solution to inculcate road ethics: make drivers go through cycling training before they can get their driving licence.
'Teaching bus drivers and taxi drivers to respect cyclists, and teaching cyclists how to ride safely are equally important,' she says.
Decrease in demand results in 6.32% fall in electricity generated in H1
Ronnie Lim, Business Times 14 Aug 09;
TUAS Power - now owned by China's Huaneng Power International - generated 6.32 per cent less electricity in the first half of this year than in the same period last year, says Huaneng, China's biggest coal-fuelled power producer.
While Huaneng Power did not give reasons, Tuas Power's lower output of 4.72 billion kilowatt-hours in January-June clearly reflected a drop in demand sparked by the economic downturn. The power industry here is only just starting to see demand creep back up again.
The first-half slide in output at Singapore's third-largest generating company - which Huaneng bought for $4.235 billion from Temasek Holdings in March last year - mirrored that of its China operations.
Huaneng said that its power plants back home generated a total 86.1 billion kWh in January-June - a 5.84 per cent drop from H1 2008. It attributed this fall to the global slowdown and competition from new power plants.
Nevertheless, it chalked up an H1 net profit of 1.87 billion yuan (S$394.7 million) on a 9 per cent increase in revenue of 33.6 billion yuan.
Besides Tuas Power in Singapore, Huaneng wholly owns 17 power plants, has controlling interests in 13 power companies and minority interests in five power companies in China. This gives it a controlling generation capacity of 40,939 megawatts and a total generating capacity of 39,203 MW on an equity basis.
Huaneng is keen to pursue Tuas Power's plan - earlier approved by the Energy Market Authority - to build a $2 billion clean coal/biomass plant on Jurong Island.
Construction of the standalone 80 per cent clean coal, 20 per cent biomass plant was supposed to start this year, but it has been held back pending Tuas Power firming up customers for the project.
The genco's 'business development team is focused on developing the project as well as securing customers in Tembusu (sector of Jurong Island)', Tuas Power said in its latest annual report.
The project, which will include a 20 million gallons a day desalination plant and waste-water treatment facility, will produce mainly steam, at about 900 tonnes an hour.
Slamet Susanto, The Jakarta Post 11 Aug 09;
Once upon a time, before the mangrove forests were grown, any crops sown in the fields around Tirtohargo, in Kretek, Bantul, were doomed.
Up to about one kilometer inland from the coastal area, plants generally had one of two fates: If the spray of seawater didn’t kill them, the coastal wind would dry out their leaves.
On top of that, at high tide, the seawater washed over the land, often penetrating more than 500 meters from the coast. The water took soil away with it, eroding the land, and damaged hectares of fields, making them unsuitable for agriculture.
But now more than 50 hectares of what was once desolate space is a changed landscape, with a range of crops growing in the area, and growing well.
Behind the difference is another kind of plant: Mangroves. All along the beach at Tirtohargo, tens of thousands of mangroves are now thriving, forming a natural barrier along the shore line that protects the inland fields and prevents erosion.
“Look at that area where there are no mangroves,” said Warsono, a 71-year-old farmer and resident of the area, waving a hand at the empty fields. “See that crop of hard plants. Their leaves have been dried by the wind and salt spray.”
Warsono is one of those actively involved in watching over and taking care of the mangrove trees. He and Samperno, a resident of Parangtritis in Kretek, decided to start planting mangroves in the south beach area of Bantul out of concerns for the environment and the dire state of local agriculture.
In 2001, they planted 50 mangrove seedlings; buffalo came through and ate every single one of them.
The same year they planted again, first 100 mangrove seedlings then 500 mangrove seedlings. But each time the results were the same: None of the plants survived. The seedlings were trampled or eaten by buffalo, cut down or blown away.
What they realized was that for the mangroves project to survive, the two men needed the whole community behind them – the community had to be made aware of the need to preserve the mangroves and work together to look after them.
In 2003, a self-supporting community NGO called Relung joined the mangrove project, offering support in the form of training and coaching members of the community.
To create a feeling of good will among residents, Warsono offered up 3,000 square meters of his rice fields to be planted with seedling mangroves. Relung set about planting the land, and this time with success. About 400,000 mangrove seedlings were successfully planted and grown along the beaches of Bantul, Kulonprogo, Purworejo and Kebumen.
Warsono and Relung then provided seedlings and invited residents to take an active role in planning them. They included other members of community by giving them the job of packing the mangrove seedlings in plastic, for which residents were paid Rp 50 (less than 1 US cent) per seedling.
The NGO also offered incentives for members of the community to plant and care for their seedlings: They offered a reward of Rp 100 for each seedling a resident grew.
On Bantul beach, around 250,000 seedlings were planted, but of these only 100,000 seedlings survived. Currently, there are about 30,000 plants growing, mostly in the Tirtohargo area in Kretek, Bantul.
“Mangroves can live and grow well here because there is support and awareness from the community, the village people and community leaders,” says Karjono, the Tirtohargo village head. “In other subdistricts, mangrove tend to be cut down for livestock feed and aren’t looked after. And that’s really because the people there haven’t been made aware of the importance of mangroves.”
Recently, to help raise community awareness, representatives of the Indonesian Red Cross in Bantul, the German Red Cross, the Bantul Regency government and local government officials, together with the community, carried out the planting of 5,000 mangrove seedlings.
They also spread out thousands of crab eggs around the area, with the idea that the crab community would grow with the mangroves and thrive in the area, thus creating a potential industry and source of income for the surrounding communities.
“So straightaway, if there is a chance to make money, the community will support it with volunteers,” said Karjono.
Karjono said that by working with various related institutions and NGOs, in the near future local people would be trained to farm crabs in bamboo cages. The dual aims of the project are to improve the local economy and preserve the environment.
“Crabs are happy if there are mangrove plantations,” Karjono said. “The development of crab farming automatically ensures that the residents watch over the mangroves because they get the financial benefit.”
To preserve the mangroves already growing on the 50-hectare area and to care for the thousands of seedlings, the Tirtohargo village leaders are currently drafting a Village Regulation (Perdes) designed to protect the mangroves.
The Village Regulation, Karjono explained, will set out penalties for anyone found to have destroyed plants or broken the laws prohibiting cutting down mangroves for animal feed.
According to Karjono, the regulations are needed as people continue to cut down mangroves. “The people who are looking for goat feed come from outside Tirtohargo,” he said.
As a further initiative, the local tourism department is preparing a strategy to develop a nature tour through the mangrove forests in Bantul, with the aims of contributing to the local economy, raising awareness of the relevant issues and ensuring the protection of the natural environment.
To complement the mangroves in creating wind barriers along the Bantul coast, local residents have also started planting casuarinas, a hardy tree that thrives in the beach environment.
Casuarinas have been successfully planted along a 10-kilometer stretch from Samas Beach to Pandansimo. Although before 2003 the sandy area was infertile, it now supports tens of thousands of casuarinas, which create an effective wind barrier, offering protection to the agricultural crops grown in the coastal area.
Bantul Regent Idham Samawi added that his administration would always give whatever support was necessary in order to develop the mangrove forests along the coastline.
As part of this commitment, the Bantul Regency government has been providing related training in farming saltwater fish, the success of which is also closely associated with the mangroves.
And as Idham points out, ignorance remains the main barrier.
“According to many accounts, there is a certain level of failure in the planting projects because many residents are still not aware of the issues,” he said.
“But with hard work and support by village people and community leaders such as those from Tirtohargo village, the future will keep bringing success.”
Fardah, Antara 13 Aug 09;
Jakarta (ANTARA News) - The forestry ministry has finally decided to set up a team of experts to study its plan to transfer 10 komodo dragons from Flores to Bali, following a controversy on the plan.
The formation of the team was recommended by a meeting of various stakeholders in the matter, chaired by Forestry Minister MS Kaban in Jakarta, on Wednesday (Aug 12).
The meeting recommended the setting up of the study team to formulate preventive measures related to the forestry ministry`s decree issued on May 13, 2009 regarding the plan to move 10 komodo dragons to the Indonesian Safari Park located in Serongga Kelod, Gianyar subdistrict, Bali Province.
Present at the coordinating meeting were representatives of the East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) administration, the Environmental Affairs Ministry, the Indonesian Safari Park, the Tourism and Culture Ministry, the West Manggarai District Head, the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI) officials, the Bogor Institute of Agriculture (IPB) and the University of Gadjah Mada.
The Komodo National Park which covers Komodo, Rinca and Padar islands in West Manggarai district, East Nusa Tenggara, is home to the komodo dragons (varanus komodoensis).
On July 21 2009, New 7 Wonders Foundation announced the 1,817 sq km Komodo National Park, which was set up in 1980, as one of the 28 finalists qualified to advance to the final stage (Third round). The foundation will officially declare the theme parks eligible to be appointed as the New Seven Wonders of Nature in 2011.
Although the forestry ministry`s officials have explained repeatedly that the transfer of the giant lizards is aimed at promoting komodo dragon genetic purification, the plan has triggered a controversy since July 2009.
"The planned transfer from Flores to Bali is aimed at genetic purification, not for other purpose," Darori, the forestry ministry`s director general of forest protection and nature conservation, said recently.
According to the forestry ministry, the plan is in line with the demand of the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) which recommends a studbook system of genetic purification for endangered species.
IUCN recommends a national studbook keeper on komodo dragons in Flores because the habitat of komodo dragons is not in Flores, which is not part of the Komodo National Park (TNK), East Nusa Tenggara.
According to Darori, 17 komodo dragons in Flores have started to enter human resettlement areas and they could threaten local residents and their own survival.
"Komodo dragons are cannibals. If their food chain is cut off, they will eat each other. The forestry ministry is worried that komodo dragons in Flores will disappear naturally. Therefore, we plan to carry out an ex-situ conservation through a breeding program at Gianjar Safari Park in Bali," he said.
He believed that the participation of the Gianjar Safari Park would help increase the number of komodo dragons within the next five years, which would be quite costly but the forestry ministry did not have to spend any money thanks to the Safari park`s involvement.
After they had bred and the population had grown large enough, the giant lizards would be returned to their original habitat in Flores, he promised.
However, due to opposition from several parties, the forestry ministry has decided to postpone the transfer until the public gets a clearer understanding on the matter, according to Darori.
Last July, some 30 students rallied in Mataram, West Nusa Tenggara, rejecting the plan to move the komodo dragons.
Quoting the results of a research conducted by the Nature Resources Conservation Agency (BKSD), the students said the population of Komodo dragons at the Komodo National Park had dwindled to 17, a condition that the species believed to be the remnants of animals living in Jurassic period was on the verge of extinction.
"Why must the location be moved to Bali? Why aren`t they bred at their habitat. As a rare animal, the Komodo dragons can only live at their habitat," Syaiful, the rally`s coordinator, said.
Activists from ProFauna in Bali have also protested the planned move. The coordinator for the Bali office of ProFauna, I Wayan Wiradnyana, said the ministry`s reasoning for the relocation plan had not been thought out.
The countrys leading environmental watchdog, the Indonesian Forum for the Environment (Walhi), also opposes the plan. Agung Wardhana, director of the Bali chapter of Walhi, argued that it would have negative environmental and social ramifications.
Bali Governor I Made Mangku Pastika and the Bali Legislative Council have joined the growing chorus of protest against the Forestry Ministry`s plan.
Ida Bagus Putu Wesnawa, the speaker of the council, recently denounced the plan to move the endangered lizards from Flores Island to Taman Safari Indonesia in Gianyar after meeting with dozens of demonstrators at his office in Denpasar recently.
He said Bali`s main draws were its unique culture and natural attractions, and that relocating animals from outside the province was not necessary.
Tourism and Culture Minister Jero Wacik, however, explained in Denpasar, Bali, on Thursday (Aug. 13) that the purpose of a government plan to move 10 komodo dragons from their present habitat to Bali was not to create another tourist attraction on the resort island.
The objective of the komodo dragon transfer to Bali is to protect the species from the threat of extinction, not to serve tourism or commercial purposes, according to Minister Wacik.
Environmental Affairs Minister Rachmat Witoelar said on the same occasion the plan to move 10 komodo dragons to Bali was intended to enable them to breed in an environment where enough food for them was available.
Both decisions taken by the forestry ministry, namely to postpone the transfer and to set up the team to study the move plan, are expected to ease the controversy regarding komodo dragons, believed to be among surviving prehistoric animals.(*)
Desmond Davidson, New Straits Times 14 Aug 09;
KUCHING: Bau district in the Kuching division is a hot spot in the state's wildlife trade.
The sale of protected wildlife, particularly turtle eggs, is rampant, state Director of Forests and Controller of Wildlife Datuk Len Talif Salleh said yesterday.
Turtles are a totally protected species in Sarawak but the trade in their eggs is rampant in the border town of Serkin.
Frequent visitors to Serikin would not find the eggs openly displayed.
Sellers would normally approach a potential buyer quietly and ask quietly if they were looking for turtle eggs.
Len Talif said that this year alone, four people, known to be habitual offenders, have been jailed for possessing and selling turtle eggs.
Three of them are Indonesians.
Speaking after witnessing the presentation of letters of appointment to 333 honorary wildlife rangers from Kuching, Bau, Sri Aman and Betong, Len Talif said charging people caught in the wildlife trade would be done only if they could not be educated and were persistent offenders.
He said officers from the Sarawak Forestry Corporation were currently conducting surveillance on the "jungle restaurants" reportedly serving exotic meat dishes.
"We will act if they are found to be serving meat of protected wildlife," he said.
The restaurants dot the road from Bau to Serikin.
The state's chief wildlife warden, Wilfred Stephen Landong, blamed consumers from the city for fuelling the trade in wildlife and the mushrooming of restaurants serving exotic meat.
"The people from the city are the biggest culprits. They are the ones with the money to buy and who are fuelling the demand," he said.
Another wildlife hot spot is Selangau, near Sibu, where the trade in wild boar meat is rampant.
The wild boar had been placed on the protection list as it is being hunted to near extinction.
However, the law exempts people in rural areas who hunt the wild boar for their own consumption.
Adianto P. Simamora, The Jakarta Post 12 Aug 09;
A government investigating team has found fire hot spots spread across concessions belonging to 77 companies operating in Riau during the first-seven months that forced the closure of thousands of schools due to thick haze.
A team from the environment ministry is still investigating the sources of forest fires on land owned by the forest concession holders and industrial timber and plantation firms.
"We want to find out for sure if the fires were lit by the respective firms or by local residents," Hilmar Sirait, an assistant to the ministry's deputy for law enforcement, said Tuesday.
"There's also the possibility these companies are hiring local people to burn the land."
Nine hundred hot spots have been recorded in the province in the period from January to July, ministry data shows. A hot spot is defined as a fire covering at least 1 hectare of land.
Hilmar said the ministry would focus on forest fires raging on land owned by the four companies with the most hot spots.
The environment ministry has pledged to submit findings on forest fires in Riau to police, for legal action against perpetrators showing a disdain for the environmental law.
Those found guilty of breaching any of the articles in the law can face up to 10 years in prison and/or Rp 500 million (US$50,000) in fines.
Environment minister Rachmat Witoelar said the government would rope off all the burned land as evidence.
"We'll forbid the companies from expanding their business into areas where fire hot spots have been detected," he said.
In July, WWF Indonesia detected 9,841 hot spots in Riau, West Kalimantan, Jambi and South Sumatra.
By comparison, the WWF detected 31,648 hotspots in the whole of 2007 and 32,838 in 2008.
However, Jambi Forestry Agency head Budidaya said as quoted by Antara that there were no more hot spots in Jambi as of Tuesday, due to rains.
He said the agency had detected only 110 hot spots in Riau and 75 in South Sumatra.
Forest fires are an annual occurrence across the vastly forested country during the dry season. In 2006, 145,000 hot spots were detected, making it the second-worst season since 1997.
The El Ni*o weather phenomenon is expected to worsen the situation this year.
Indonesian Employers Association (Apindo) chairman Sofyan Wanandi urged the government to take stern action against companies engaging in slash-and-burn clearing of land, as a deterrent to prevent future fires.
"The violators must be taken to jail for damaging the environment," he said Tuesday as quoted by Antara, during a visit to Palangkaraya.
"It's wrong of the companies to burn forests as a low-cost way to expand business. If no action is taken, more forest fires will break out in coming years."
He said slash-and-burn methods would damage the ecology and worsen the climate.
In response, Central Kalimantan Governor Agustin Teras Narang said he would revoke the business permits of companies clearing land through burning.
"I'll revoke the permits of the companies if there is strong evidence, because we've long prohibited them from burning land for whatever reason," he said.
Yahoo News 13 Aug 09;
MADRID (AFP) – Greenpeace Thursday warned of an imminent "global emergency" as climate change fuels forest fires that have already destroyed tens of thousands of hectares in southern Europe this year.
"Climate change is driving a new generation of fires with unknown social and economic consequences," said Miguel Soto, Greenpeace Spain forests campaigner.
Spain, Italy, France, Greece and Portugal have been among the countries worst hit by wildfires that swept across southern Europe in July amid sizzling temperatures and fierce winds.
Europe as a whole has lost some 200,000 hectares (500,000 acres) of forest to fires so far this summer, far more than the whole of 2008, when 158,621 hectares were destroyed, the EU said on Monday.
In Spain, fires have ravaged some 75,000 hectares of land this year, almost double the number for the whole of 2008, the government in Madrid said.
"Forest fires are becoming more intense and out of control in Spain and across southern Europe, as well as in other semi-arid regions such as California and Australia," Soto told reporters at the launch of their report on the issue.
"With climate models predicting increased heat waves in the coming years, we are fast approaching a global emergency."
The Greenpeace report said heat waves and drier land caused by climate change have combined with "land use changes, abandonment of rural areas and a lack of management of forest areas" to make forests "more flammable, leading to ever larger and more uncontrollable fires."
In a "vicious cycle" the fires also contribute to the climate crisis as "forests are giant carbon stores and when they are burnt massive amounts of greenhouse gases are emitted to the atmosphere."
It warned of more fires in many regions, not just in southern Europe but in parts of the Amazon and the Boreal Forest, a belt of coniferous trees that runs almost continuously across North America and Eurasia.
Christoph Ties, Greenpeace International forests campaigner, appealed to world leaders "not let our planet burn.
"We need to see them cut greenhouse gas emissions and put serious money on the table to stop deforestation. If they fail to act they will be leaving our future in the ashes."
Teenagers gain little from “green” projects in the countryside, such as picking up litter or planting trees, according to a new study by the Economic and Social Research Council.
Louise Gray, The Telegraph 13 Aug 09;
Environmental projects have drawn hundreds of young people every year to help on schemes like building foot paths, cleaning out rivers or counting rare plants.
Many volunteer to take part in the projects as part of “work experience” while children from deprived inner city areas or youth offenders are sent to learn about the countryside for the first time.
However a new study funded by the ESRC found young people gain little from environmental volunteering and are often just coerced into “grunt activities” like digging holes.
The survey of young people by the University of Exeter found many saw conservation work as having no relevance to their future employment, or educating them on green issues.
Some, who had travelled long distances from cities to short-term projects in rural areas, felt they were being punished for being disruptive or naughty at school.
Dr Michael Leyshon, who led the research, called for more co-ordination between youth services and environmental organisations so activities are more relevant to young people while also benefiting the countryside.
He said environmental projects need to teach children relevant rural skills not only to boost chances of employment but to benefit the rural economy.
For example, the National Trust runs a variety of certificated courses on rural skills.
“Managing the countryside for the purposes of environmental sustainability is one of the few sectors of the rural economy that can offer the soft skills, like the ability to work in a team as well as the practical skills that could be useful in many other kinds of jobs,” he said.
“Environmental projects should be part of mainstream education, not somewhere for excluded kids and youth offenders to take a bit of exercise in a green gym.”
Yahoo News 12 Aug 09;
KALMHOUT, Belgium (AFP) – An endangered Chinese tree has flowered in a Belgian arboretum, an event seldom seen anywhere in Europe, the garden's curator said Wednesday.
The Emmenopterys henryi, billed as "one of the most strikingly beautiful trees of the Chinese forests" has brought flower lovers flocking to the Kalmthout Arboretum in the northern province of Antwerp and will do so for up to a month, the site's curator Abraham Rammeloo told AFP.
He described the greeny-white trumpet-shaped blooms, which grow in clusters, as being "a bit like climbing hydrangeas but much more beautiful,"
According to the arboretum, there have only been four previous major flowerings of the tree in Europe since it was first brought over from China a 100 years ago.
The first time was in Italy in 1971, another was at Wakehurst Place in England in 1987 and twice before it has bloomed at the same Belgian location.
"We're probably just lucky," said Rammeloo, before explaining that the 40-50 year old tree was relatively mature for Europe.
"We probably chose the most suitable location by accident," he added.
"We cleared a ditch and there was probably plenty of moisture for it there," which it needs and "a couple of other trees have been taken away in the last ten years to allow it more sun," he explained.
The tree, indigenous to southern China's temperate forests, is under threat there from deforestation and is now rare both in the wild and in gardens.
Rammeloo said the best time to see the rare flowers in Antwerp would be over the next two weeks, although they could last through to mid-September.
A special viewing platform has been built for visitors to admire the little flowers, which blossom at the top of the tree.
Emmenopterys henryi have also flowered occasionally in the United States.
Australian National University
ScienceAlert 14 Aug 09;
Australian birds have dwindled in size over the last 100 years and climate change appears to be to blame, say researchers from the Australian National University and CSIRO.
“Using museum specimens, we measured changes in the size of eight Australian bird species, and found that they have become smaller by 2 to 4 per cent, over time. That doesn’t sound much but it’s a significant change,” said research leader Dr Janet Gardner from the Research School of Biology at ANU.
Birds, like other animals, tend to be smaller in warmer climates, because smaller bodies lose heat more quickly than larger bodies. As a result, individuals of the same species tend to be larger near the poles and smaller near the equator.
“We looked at size patterns of individual species across South-eastern Australia and found that these gradients have shifted because birds are getting smaller as temperatures rise. Birds of a size once found near Brisbane now occur in Sydney, 7 degrees further south,” Dr Gardner said.
The researchers measured the brown treecreeper, grey-crowned babbler, hooded robin, speckled warbler, jacky winter, yellow–rumped thornbill, white-browed scrubwren, and the variegated fairy-wren.
They found that the birds appear to be adapting to global warming by getting smaller, thus minimizing the costs of heat stress. “We’d like to look at a broader range of species to see if the same pattern of size changes is evident,” Dr Gardner said.
“How much and how rapidly a species can change in response to rising temperatures remains to be answered,” she said.
The findings are published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society London. The research team included Dr Leo Joseph at the Australian National Wildlife Collection, CSIRO Sustainable Ecosystems and Associate Professor Robert Heinsohn at the Fenner School of Environment and Society at ANU.
The work was funded by the Australian National Wildlife Collection Foundation.
Editor's Note: Original news release can be found here.
Yahoo News 13 Aug 09;
WASHINGTON (AFP) – US oil and gas company Exxon-Mobil has pleaded guilty to killing 85 protected birds by exposing them to hydrocarbons at sites in five different US states, the Justice Department said on Thursday.
The company pleaded guilty before a Denver court to having violated the federal Migratory Bird Treaty Act by allowing hydrocarbons to escape from uncovered natural gas well reserve pits and waste water storage facilities at sites in Colorado, Wyoming, Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas.
The exposure killed birds including waterfowl, hawks, ibis, and owls at Exxon-Mobil drilling and production facilities. The birds are listed as protected, but are not in danger of extinction.
The guilty plea came as part of an agreement with the government that will see Exxon-Mobil plead guilty to five charges and pay 400,000 dollars in fines and 200,000 in community service payments, the Justice Department said.
The fines will go towards a federally-administered fund to protect wetlands, while the community service payments will be divided between a bird foundation in Colorado and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation chapter in each affected state.
"The environmental compliance plan that Exxon-Mobil has agreed to in this multi-district plea agreement is an important step in protecting migratory birds in these five states," said John Cruden, acting assistant attorney general for the Justice Department's Environment and Natural Resources Division.
Exxon agrees to pay $600,000 in bird killings case
Yahoo News 13 Aug 09;
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Exxon Mobil Corp has agreed to pay $600,000 and has already spent more than $2.5 million as part of a guilty plea to killing migratory birds in five states, the U.S. Justice Department said on Thursday.
It said Exxon, the world's largest publicly traded oil and gas company, had agreed to pay $400,000 in fines and $200,000 in community service payments as part of the plea deal.
Exxon also has already spent more than $2.5 million to begin implementing an environmental compliance plan over the next three years to prevent bird deaths at its facilities, the Justice Department said.
It said Exxon pleaded guilty in federal court in Denver to violating a federal law designed to protect migratory birds.
The department said the case stemmed from the deaths of about 85 protected birds, including waterfowl, hawks and owls, at Exxon drilling and production facilities in Colorado, Wyoming, Oklahoma, Texas and Kansas.
According to court documents, most of the birds died after exposure to hydrocarbons in uncovered natural gas well reserve pits and waste water storage facilities.
During a three-year probationary period, Texas-based Exxon must implement a plan designed to keep birds from coming into contact with oily waters at its facilities in the five states, the department said.
(Reporting by James Vicini, Editing by Lisa Von Ahn)
Michel Comte Yahoo News 13 Aug 09;
OTTAWA (AFP) – Millions of sockeye salmon expected to reach the Fraser River on Canada's Pacific Coast this month have vanished, devastating the local fishery, officials said Thursday.
According to the Department of Fisheries and Oceans, between six to 10 million sockeye were projected to return to the river this month.
But the official count is now just 600,000 for the "summer run" -- by far the largest of four salmon groupings that return to area lakes and rivers each year from June to late August.
Where the other fish went remains a mystery.
The daily Globe and Mail cited fishermen who said the situation was "shocking," a "catastrophe" and a "crisis," while public broadcaster CBC said this could end up being the worst year ever for the Pacific salmon fishery.
A record number of smolts were born in the Fraser watershed in 2005 and migrated to the ocean, and were expected this month to return en masse to spawn.
"It's a bit of a mystery," Watershed Watch Salmon Society fish biologist Stan Proboszcz told AFP.
Officials and ecologists speculated they could have been affected by warmer ocean temperatures, fewer food sources, or more prey.
Others suggested juvenile salmon may have contracted sea lice or other infections from some 30 fish farms in the Straight of Georgia as they migrated out to sea.
Fisheries officials may have also erred in their complex forecasting calculations, or the fish could just be late arriving, although the latter is very unlikely, said Proboszcz.
"Honestly, we don't know what happens to them when they go out into the ocean," he said. "There's a myriad of factors that could explain what's going on."
Regardless, this outcome is "quite shocking," he said.
Department of Fisheries and Oceans spokeswoman Lara Sloan said the Fraser River commercial sockeye fishery has not opened as a result of the drop in fish stocks, and a parallel aboriginal fishery scaled back its catch this season to just five percent of its usual take.
Moreover, no recreational fishing has been allowed allowed.
Sloan also declined to try to pinpoint the specific reason for the collapse in sockeye salmon stocks.
"There are a lot of variations in the ocean," she said. "They're all interconnected, so it's impossible to point to one reason for this happening."
"So far, they're not coming back in the numbers we expected, but we will continue to look for them," she said.
Meanwhile, pink and Chum salmon are still due to arrive around the end of August through October. So far there is no indication they have been affected.
Chinook salmon are also returning to spawn in the region, but they have been a "conservation concern" for several years, and their numbers remain low.
Millions of salmon disappear from Canadian river
Rod Nickel, Reuters 13 Aug 09;
WINNIPEG, Manitoba (Reuters) - Millions of sockeye salmon have disappeared mysteriously from a river on Canada's Pacific Coast that was once known as the world's most fertile spawning ground for sockeye.
Up to 10.6 million bright-red sockeye salmon were expected to return to spawn this summer on the Fraser River, which empties into the Pacific ocean near Vancouver, British Columbia. The latest estimates say fewer than 1 million have returned.
The Canadian government has closed the river to commercial and recreational sockeye fishing for the third straight year, hitting the livelihood of nearby Indian reserves.
"It's quite the shocking drop," said Stan Proboszcz, fisheries biologist at the Watershed Watch Salmon Society. "No one's exactly sure what happened to these fish."
Salmon are born in fresh water before migrating to oceans to feed. They return as adults to the same rivers to spawn.
Several theories have been put forward to try to explain the sockeye's disappearance:
* Climate change may have reduced food supply for salmon in the ocean.
* The commercial fish farms that the young Fraser River salmon pass en route to the ocean may have infected them with sea lice, a marine parasite.
* The rising temperature of the river may have weakened the fish.
The Canadian government doesn't know what's killing the fish, but believes the sockeye are dying off in the ocean, not in fresh water, based on healthy out-migrations, said Jeff Grout, regional resource manager of salmon for the Department of Fisheries and Oceans.
It's too soon to know yet how widespread salmon losses are in the Pacific salmon fishery, but British Columbia's northern Skeena River has also seen lower-than-expected returns this year, Grout said.
Signs are more positive for other salmon species such as chinook, pink and coho, he said.
The reduced salmon return affects the environment around the Fraser River, Proboszcz said. After spawning, adult salmon die, creating a food source for bears and eagles and adding nutrients for plants.
Food companies that rely on the Fraser for some of their salmon supply will have to look to other areas of British Columbia or Alaska, Grout said.
(Editing by Peter Galloway)
Millions of salmon disappear from Canadian river
Rod Nickel, Reuters 13 Aug 09;
WINNIPEG, Manitoba (Reuters) - Millions of sockeye salmon have disappeared mysteriously from a river on Canada's Pacific Coast that was once known as the world's most fertile spawning ground for sockeye.
Up to 10.6 million bright-red sockeye salmon were expected to return to spawn this summer on the Fraser River, which empties into the Pacific ocean near Vancouver, British Columbia. The latest estimates say fewer than 1 million have returned.
The Canadian government has closed the river to commercial and recreational sockeye fishing for the third straight year, hitting the livelihood of nearby Indian reserves.
"It's quite the shocking drop," said Stan Proboszcz, fisheries biologist at the Watershed Watch Salmon Society. "No one's exactly sure what happened to these fish."
Salmon are born in fresh water before migrating to oceans to feed. They return as adults to the same rivers to spawn.
Several theories have been put forward to try to explain the sockeye's disappearance:
* Climate change may have reduced food supply for salmon in the ocean.
* The commercial fish farms that the young Fraser River salmon pass en route to the ocean may have infected them with sea lice, a marine parasite.
* The rising temperature of the river may have weakened the fish.
The Canadian government doesn't know what's killing the fish, but believes the sockeye are dying off in the ocean, not in fresh water, based on healthy out-migrations, said Jeff Grout, regional resource manager of salmon for the Department of Fisheries and Oceans.
It's too soon to know yet how widespread salmon losses are in the Pacific salmon fishery, but British Columbia's northern Skeena River has also seen lower-than-expected returns this year, Grout said.
Signs are more positive for other salmon species such as chinook, pink and coho, he said.
The reduced salmon return affects the environment around the Fraser River, Proboszcz said. After spawning, adult salmon die, creating a food source for bears and eagles and adding nutrients for plants.
Food companies that rely on the Fraser for some of their salmon supply will have to look to other areas of British Columbia or Alaska, Grout said.
(Editing by Peter Galloway)
ScienceDaily 13 Aug 09;
The same things that make Alaska's marine waters among the most productive in the world may also make them the most vulnerable to ocean acidification. According to new findings by a University of Alaska Fairbanks scientist, Alaska's oceans are becoming increasingly acidic, which could damage Alaska's king crab and salmon fisheries.
This spring, chemical oceanographer Jeremy Mathis returned from a cruise armed with seawater samples collected from the depths of the Gulf of Alaska. When he tested the samples' acidity in his lab, the results were higher than expected. They show that ocean acidification is likely more severe and is happening more rapidly in Alaska than in tropical waters. The results also matched his recent findings in the Chukchi and Bering Seas.
"It seems like everywhere we look in Alaska's coastal oceans, we see signs of increased ocean acidification," said Mathis.
Often referred to as the "sister problem to climate change," ocean acidification is a term to describe increasing acidity in the world's oceans. The ocean absorbs carbon dioxide from the air. As the ocean absorbs more carbon dioxide, seawater becomes more acidic. Scientists estimate that the ocean is 25 percent more acidic today than it was 300 years ago.
"The increasing acidification of Alaska waters could have a destructive effect on all of our commercial fisheries. This is a problem that we have to think about in terms of the next decade instead of the next century," said Mathis.
The ocean contains minerals that organisms like oysters and crabs use to build their shells. Ocean acidification makes it more difficult to build shells, and in some cases the water can become acidic enough to break down existing shells. Mathis' recent research in the Gulf of Alaska uncovered multiple sites where the concentrations of shell-building minerals were so low that shellfish and other organisms in the region would be unable to build strong shells.
"We're not saying that crab shells are going to start dissolving, but these organisms have adapted their physiology to a certain range of acidity. Early results have shown that when some species of crabs and fish are exposed to more acidic water, certain stress hormones increase and their metabolism slows down. If they are spending energy responding to acidity changes, then that energy is diverted away from growth, foraging and reproduction," said Mathis.
Another organism that could be affected by ocean acidification is the tiny pteropod, also known as a sea butterfly or swimming sea snail. The pteropod is at the base of the food chain and makes up nearly half of the pink salmon's diet. A 10 percent decrease in the population of pteropods could mean a 20 percent decrease in an adult salmon's body weight.
"This is a case where we see ocean acidification having an indirect effect on a commercially viable species by reducing its food supply," said Mathis.
The cold waters and broad, shallow continental shelves around Alaska's coast could be accelerating the process of ocean acidification in the North, Mathis said. Cold water can hold more gas than warmer water, which means that the frigid waters off Alaska's coasts can absorb more carbon dioxide. The shallow waters of Alaska's continental shelves also retain more carbon dioxide because there is less mixing of seawater from deeper ocean waters.
Ask any coastal Alaskan and they will tell you that Alaska's waters are teeming with biological life, from tiny plankton to humpback whales. All of these animals use oxygen and emit carbon dioxide. Mathis and other scientists call this the "biological pump."
"We are blessed with highly productive coastal areas that support vast commercial fisheries, but this productivity acts like a pump, absorbing more and more carbon dioxide from the atmosphere," said Mathis. "Because of this, the acidity of Alaska's coastal seas will continue to increase, and likely accelerate, over the next decade."
Mathis said that it is still unclear what the full range of effects of ocean acidification will be, but that it is a clear threat to Alaska's commercial fisheries and subsistence communities.
"We need to give our policy makers and industry managers information and forecasts on ocean acidification in Alaska so they can make decisions that will keep our fisheries viable," said Mathis. "Ecosystems in Alaska are going to take a hit from ocean acidification. Right now, we don't know how they are going to respond."
Adapted from materials provided by University of Alaska Fairbanks.
Rising Ocean Acidity Erodes Alaska's Fisheries
New research from the University of Alaska Fairbanks suggests Arctic oceans are already seeing the effects of acidification, with potentially dire consequences to Alaska's rich crab and salmon fisheries
Douglas Fischer, Scientific American 20 Aug 09;
The Arctic's increased vulnerability to climate change is not limited to higher temperatures and melting permafrost.
New research from the University of Alaska Fairbanks suggests Arctic oceans are particularly susceptible to acidification, with potentially dire consequences to Alaska's rich crab and salmon fisheries.
"Everything is acting in unison on the environment - it's not just the ice loss or the warming or the acidification," said UAF chemical oceanographer Jeremy Mathis. "The Arctic is taking a multilateral hit."
Mathis' newest data from the Gulf of Alaska shows acidity levels far higher than expected are already having an impact. In several sites the increasing acidity has changed ocean chemistry so significantly that organisms are unable to pull crucial minerals out of the water to build shells, he said.
Ocean acidification, often called the sister problem to climate change, refers to the rising acidity of the world's seas as seawater absorbs carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.
By some accounts the oceans have absorbed 30 percent of the carbon dioxide humans have pumped into the atmosphere since the dawn of the industrial age, buffering the atmosphere from the harm posed by that greenhouse gas.
But that storage comes with a price. The ocean's pH has dropped nearly 30 percent over the past 250 years to levels not seen in the last 800,000 years; if emissions continue unchecked, the oceans could be more acidic than anything experienced in the past 12 million years. Scientists increasingly consider this change in ocean chemistry to be as consequential and potentially catastrophic for the globe as any temperature rise associated with climate disruption.
"When people talk about ocean acidification, it's a whole suite of changes in the chemical system," said Joanie Kleypas, an oceanographer with the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Boulder, Colo. "There's all sorts of stuff going on, and it's hard to piece it all together."
But one of the most noticeable impacts is hampered shell formation: As ocean pH drops (and acidity rises), organisms such as corals, oysters, clams and crabs have trouble pulling minerals necessary for their shells out of the seawater.
It's too soon to say whether an acidifying Arctic means curtains for Alaska's lucrative king crab fishery, Mathis said.
The impact is already being felt by a tiny creature at the base of the food web supporting the state's legendary salmon runs - the pteropod, or swimming sea snail. Accounting for up to half the diet of pink salmon, pteropods have trouble building shells - and hence surviving - at the Gulf of Alaska's current acidity, Mathis has found.
Mathis, talking with commercial salmon fishermen in Alaska's Kenai Peninsula, said many have reported that fish this year weighed 20 percent less than those from past runs. The change could be significant for all Americans: Alaska in 2007 accounted 62 percent of the United States' commercial seafood catch, according to the Marine Conservation Alliance.
"The increasing acidification of Alaska waters could have a destructive effect on all of our commercial fisheries," Mathis said. "This is a problem that we have to think about in terms of the next decade instead of the next century."
But others are more cautious about stating that Arctic ecosystems are any more at risk by acidification than tropical ones.
Cold water holds more gas than warmer water - the reason why a refrigerated can of cola fizzes less aggressively when opened than a warm one. While this means frigid waters off Alaska's coasts can absorb more carbon dioxide from burning fossil fuels, it also means the waters were naturally more acidic and that species in those waters are adapted to lower pH levels.
"It won't necessarily have a more severe impact," said Oceana marine scientist Ellycia Harrould-Kolieb. "It's having an earlier impact."
David Shukman, BBC News 13 Aug 09;
One of the largest glaciers in Antarctica is thinning four times faster than it was 10 years ago, according to research seen by the BBC.
A study of satellite measurements of Pine Island glacier in west Antarctica reveals the surface of the ice is now dropping at a rate of up to 16m a year.
Since 1994, the glacier has lowered by as much as 90m, which has serious implications for sea-level rise.
The work by British scientists appears in Geophysical Research Letters.
The team was led by Professor Duncan Wingham of University College London (UCL).
Calculations based on the rate of melting 15 years ago had suggested the glacier would last for 600 years. But the new data points to a lifespan for the vast ice stream of only another 100 years.
The rate of loss is fastest in the centre of the glacier and the concern is that if the process continues, the glacier may break up and start to affect the ice sheet further inland.
One of the authors, Professor Andrew Shepherd of Leeds University, said that the melting from the centre of the glacier would add about 3cm to global sea level.
"But the ice trapped behind it is about 20-30cm of sea level rise and as soon as we destabilise or remove the middle of the glacier we don't know really know what's going to happen to the ice behind it," he told BBC News.
"This is unprecedented in this area of Antarctica. We've known that it's been out of balance for some time, but nothing in the natural world is lost at an accelerating exponential rate like this glacier."
Pine Island glacier has been the subject of an intense research effort in recent years amid fears that its collapse could lead to a rapid disintegration of the West Antarctic ice sheet.
Five years ago, I joined a flight by the Chilean Navy and Nasa to survey Pine Island glacier with radar and laser equipment.
The 11-hour round-trip from Punta Arenas included a series of low-level passes over the massive ice stream which is 20 miles wide and in places more than one mile thick.
Back then, the researchers on board were concerned at the speed of change they were detecting. This latest study of the satellite data will add to the alarm among polar specialists.
This comes as scientists in the Arctic are finding evidence of dramatic change. Researchers on board a Greenpeace vessel have been studying the northwestern part of Greenland.
One of those taking part, Professor Jason Box of Ohio State University, has been surprised by how little sea ice they encountered in the Nares Strait between Greenland and Canada.
He has also set up time lapse cameras to monitor the massive Petermann glacier. Huge new cracks have been observed and it's expected that a major part of it could break off imminently.
Professor Box told BBC News: "The science community has been surprised by how sensitive these large glaciers are to climate warming. First it was the glaciers in south Greenland and now as we move further north in Greenland we find retreat at major glaciers. It's like removing a cork from a bottle."
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