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Channel NewsAsia 22 Aug 09;
SINGAPORE: Globally, 30 per cent of the greenhouse gases are produced as a result of transport.
In a bid to reduce greenhouse emissions, a local NGO has launched an initiative, called the Green Transport Week, to drive home the message of using public transport and other environmentally friendly vehicles.
On Saturday, 100 cyclists travelled from the east and west coast parks to the Singapore Management University (SMU) city campus for the launch of the Green Transport Week.
The campaign aims to inculcate environmentally friendly transport habits among Singaporeans, particularly the youths.
Its organisers also said they find it a challenge to persuade another segment of the population to give up driving and to take another form of transport.
Howard Shaw, executive director of the Singapore Environment Council (SEC), said: "This is a campaign about changing habits and old people are more set in their ways."
On the streets, Channel NewsAsia found Singaporeans with varying knowledge of transport habits that are environmentally friendly.
"A lot of people are encouraged to be green to use public transport as much as possible," one said.
Another added: "It depends. If I am alone, perhaps it would be more environmentally friendly to take public transport. But if we have three or four people, then we'll drive."
To travel one kilometre, a driver will use at least nine times more energy than a passenger travelling by bus or train.
But for those who cannot resist buying cars, they can consider other greener alternatives like CNG-powered, hybrid, and maybe in the future, electric cars.
The SEC is targeting to get some 4,000 individuals and 100 corporations to pledge their commitment to be more environmentally friendly on the event's official website.
- CNA/so
More about the event on the Green Transport Week website and wildsingapore happenings.
The man behind Singapore's first wildlife shelter has survived death threats and public scepticism
Frankie Chee, Straits Times 23 Aug 09;
In his drive to fight illegal wildlife trade in Singapore, Mr Louis Ng, 31, has endured death threats, had his front door splattered with red paint and the windows of his van smashed.
But Mr Ng, founder of the Animal Concerns Research and Education Society (Acres), persevered and eight years on, opened a wildlife rescue centre here just over a week ago.
The Wildlife Rescue Centre - the first of its kind here - is located at a sprawling 2ha plot of land in Jalan Lekar, among a cluster of fish farms and nurseries near Choa Chu Kang.
The location is also the new headquarters for the society.
The opening of the non-government centre, which will take in reptiles and amphibians rescued from smugglers and owners who keep them illegally, is a milestone for Mr Ng who has toiled for his cause.
The $500,000 centre currently only has one animal occupant - a star tortoise that was left at the centre's gate - but it is early days. Yet, Mr Ng already has plans to open another centre in Malaysia, and offices in other countries.
The opening of the centre is a far cry from Acres' humble beginnings in a small office with two tables at the Golden Mile Complex. The organisation was registered in 2001.
Since then, Mr Ng has worked to uncover evidence of the illegal wildlife trade here.
The animal lover - his HDB apartment in Jurong West that he shares with wife and fellow Acres worker Amy Corrigan is currently home to a dog with a deformed leg that he found abandoned - has petitioned for wildlife causes ceaselessly.
He has also pushed for legislation changes on endangered species.
And he has achieved much. Acres has successfully lobbied for the penalty for wildlife smuggling to be increased from $5,000 to $50,000, and has also worked to persuade the upcoming Resorts World in Sentosa to drop its plans to import whale sharks as an attraction.
And, more than just talk, the staff and volunteers at Acres actively get their hands dirty by posing as buyers of illegal wildlife or wildlife products and gathering evidence against them using hidden cameras, then handing these over to the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA).
'We don't want to just leave it to the authorities to handle the problem, we want to actively participate in solving it,' he explains.
Some of Acres' achievements include the rescue of a rare South African vervet monkey locked in a factory in 2003, the seizure of 11 animals of seven different species kept by a man in his bedroom in 2001 and bringing about a drop in the number of traditional Chinese medicine shops illegally selling bear bile and gall bladders after an undercover stint the same year.
For all his efforts, Ng is paid only $1,600 a month, while wife Amy, 32, the director of education in Acres, receives $400 less. The rest of the seven staff get between $500 and $1,600.
Mr Ng, who has no children yet, admits: 'There are some drawbacks to this job but we are passionate enough about our work not to be concerned by them. We're one of the most dedicated teams around and my colleagues and I are not here for the money, but to make a difference.'
Indeed, the charity-funded society has had to struggle with money as the majority of its funds come from donations, with government grants and corporate contributions making up the rest.
The society's operating costs are between $400,000 and $500,000 annually, while its new Wildlife Rescue Centre needs about $20,000 a month.
'The bulk of our money comes from the man on the street, the $5 or $10 donations. So it takes a lot of effort to raise the funds,' he says.
He recalls how he raised funds during Acres' early years through 'sheer perseverence' by cold-calling companies. That is how he got an initial $8,000 from the Lee Foundation. And, in 2005, with only $8,000 in Acres' bank account, the gutsy young man had to call donors and beg for money.
Today, the society has 18,000 supporters in its database.
Money aside, he also faced initial criticisms and scepticism. Even his parents, retired civil servant Angela Quek, 60, and sales manager Robert Ng, 61, were upset that the younger of two children, a National University of Singapore biology graduate, went down this path and had a starting pay of only $500.
But, after successfully campaigning for a baby chimpanzee, used by the zoo for photo-taking sessions, to be returned to its mother, he realised that he would have to speak up against cruelty to animals beyond the usual dogs and cats.
He recalls: 'It was a challenge in the beginning because we were starting something new, and we were not going to just rescue animals but also change people's mindset.'
Through roadshows and campaigns, he showed that Acres is not just another society fighting animal cruelty but is also trying to put an end to the illegal wildlife trade, which is estimated to be worth US$10 billion (S$14.5 billion) worldwide. He raises awareness of the problem at these events.
'Acres can't do everything, we need to get the public involved. If we can get four million Singaporeans to be our eyes, we can wipe out the illegal wildlife trade,' he stresses.
So there is still acres of work ahead for the animal rights group which has made its presence felt here.
'It's a continuing process. After eight years of our work here, people now believe we're here to stay because we have a proper focus,' he says.
Acres' milestones
The Straits Times 23 Aug 09;
The Acres Wildlife Rescue Centre, which opened over a week ago, has a garden with educational fun facts about wildlife. -- ST PHOTO: JOYCE FANG
2001: Mr Louis Ng, then a 23-year old undergraduate studying biology at the National University of Singapore (NUS), sets up the Animal Concerns Research and Education Society (Acres) with eight other friends.
The plucky activist writes letters to several organisations, including the Lee Foundation, to seek funding.
2002: An investigation by Acres leads to a clampdown by the Agri-food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) on shops illegally selling bear bile and gall bladder here.
2003: Acting on a tip-off, Acres rescues a rare South African vervet monkey which was caged in a factory in Tuas.
It also petitions for Underwater World's pink dolphins kept at its Dolphin Lagoon in Sentosa to be released, and threatens to report the attraction's owners for animal abuse.
2004: Acres sets up a hotline for the public to inform it about any illegal wildlife activities. It offers a $1,000 reward for information about a tiger and a Malayan sun bear being kept as pets. Acres finds a home for the vervet monkey rescued a year ago - the Munda Wanga Sanctuary in Zambia. The repatriation project costs $6,000.
2005: The society has just $8,000 left in its bank account, prompting Mr Ng to go knocking on doors for donations. It receives an approval from the AVA to set up a wildlife shelter.
2008: Together with the Singapore Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) and the Nature Society of Singapore, Acres lobbies for the upcoming Resorts World in Sentosa to drop its plans to import a whale shark for its oceanarium.
2009: Resorts World agrees not to bring in the whale shark. Acres opens its Wildlife Rescue Centre, which will be used to house rescued animals till they can be repatriated.
Adoption numbers are at an all-time low, forcing group to look overseas for takers
Tan Dawn Wei, Straits Times 23 Aug 09;
In June, American Amy Ferber got an e-mail from a friend in Singapore asking if she would like to adopt a stray dog from Singapore.
She was surprised at the idea.
Having lived in Singapore with her family for two years before she moved back to the United States four years ago, she knew that this would be an expensive and tedious process involving export permits and flight, among other things.
But she was won over by the story of how the three-year-old brown and white mongrel, Lilly, had been rescued by animal welfare group Action For Singapore Dogs (ASD) from a construction site near Leisure Park Kallang.
Last month, Lilly took a flight as excess baggage checked in by a volunteer traveller en route to New York on business. Ms Ferber's sister then drove the dog to Ms Ferber's farmhouse in rural Massachusetts.
She joins Ms Ferber's three other dogs, two teenage daughters and husband, and enjoys twice-daily romps, leash-free, in the orchard around the house.
'The US is a big country with lots of open space and Singapore is a small, urban country which necessarily has to place limits on the number of animals in people's homes,' said Ms Ferber, a psychotherapist who works for a hospice.
'It makes more sense to find homes outside Singapore, and focus efforts on spay and neuter efforts there to keep the number of unwanted animals to a minimum.'
Lilly is the first dog to be successfully re-homed under ASD's new international adoption programme, Singapore Specials Overseas.
With adoption numbers at an all-time low in the past year, the nine-year-old volunteer outfit, which rescues and re-homes stray or abandoned dogs, has had to look outside Singapore.
In the past year, it has not managed to find new homes for more than two to three dogs a month.
Some months go by with no adoptions. It takes in about five strays a month now as its adoption and rescue centre is full. The group, which has a no-kill policy, has some 100 dogs up for adoption.
'It has been a bad year... It is really out of desperation that we are exploring this. It is another avenue to getting homes for these rescued dogs,' said ASD president Ricky Yeo.
The programme - believed to be the first of its kind here - took off with the help of an expatriate volunteer, Ms Sherry Conisbee, who founded another animal welfare group, Soi Cats And Dogs (SCAD), when she was living in Bangkok up until two years ago.
When she could not find anyone to adopt a dog she rescued in 2002, her niece in the US suggested looking there.
Since then, the Bangkok outfit has been sending an average of 20 dogs a year to the US.
Said Ms Conisbee, a British native now based in Singapore with her husband: 'Everyone asks, haven't they got dogs over there? Yes, but it is the same reason people will adopt children or causes which aren't necessarily at their own doorstep. They recognise lives of strays in South-east Asia are pretty bad.'
It was a friend of Ms Conisbee's friend who had contacted Ms Ferber.
Bangkok has an estimated 300,000 street dogs, while Singapore has between 5,000 and 8,000.
Dogs under the new programme could either be directly adopted by an overseas family or go to a foster network which will find a home for them.
They will undergo socialisation and crate training for between two weeks and a month to prepare them for the hours they have to spend in crates on the plane.
ASD will then look for travellers bound for major cities in the US and Europe who will volunteer to take the dogs as check-in baggage.
All it took for Lilly was an export permit from the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority, a health certificate from a veterinarian, a rabies vaccination and a volunteer traveller.
Her air journey cost ASD $300. Dogs bound for the US and the Netherlands, where ASD now has adoption networks, are also not required to be quarantined as Singapore is rabies-free.
Despite the extra work involved, international adoptions make sense. 'Keeping a dog in our adoption centre long-term and waiting for an adopter will take more than $300, which typically is what it will cost to maintain a dog for about two to three months,' said Mr Yeo.
ASD plans to send out at least one dog a month for a start, while actively expanding its network of foreign partners.
Next on the list is Kiwi, a stray dog whose hind paw was severed after it got caught in an illegal trap in Lim Chu Kang two months ago.
The three-legged dog, whose plight was reported in The Straits Times, is destined for a shelter in Seattle which has agreed to take her and put her up for adoption there.
Mr Yeo said Western countries are more receptive to 'imperfect' dogs, unlike in Singapore, where Kiwi's prospects of getting adopted are small.
ASD is ramping up its fund-raising efforts to cater to this programme, which will cost $40,000, next year. It is also looking for volunteer travellers bound for Boston, New York, Seattle or Amsterdam.
The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, the largest animal welfare organisation here, said it has no plans to follow in ASD's footsteps.
'For us, we prefer to meet the people, counsel them and follow up if necessary,' said its executive officer, Ms Deirdre Moss, adding that its adoption centre in Mount Vernon Road sees high human traffic.
Lilly has proven to be such a fine ambassador for Singapore dogs that Ms Ferber plans to train her as a therapy dog.
'We intend on reciprocating with an open door for more Singapore dogs and doing everything we are able to from this end to enable more dogs to find happy homes with families in the US,' she said.
No guarantee that strays sent abroad will find good homes
Straits Times 30 Aug 09;
I refer to last Sunday's report, 'Wanted: Homes abroad for strays'.
Sending a dog abroad to be adopted does not ensure that the dog will be loved and well cared for there.
How will the house checks be done? How can you ensure that the dog will not be abandoned, or end up spending the rest of its life in another shelter abroad?
Does the country not have its own strays? Why help others when it probably faces the same pet abandonment issues at home?
Why does animal welfare group Action For Singapore Dogs (ASD) have to raise $40,000 to send more strays abroad?
Should the onus not be on the new family to pay to adopt a pet?
We all know that pets, like other items, are valued more when one has to pay for them.
Does it not make sense for the new adoptive family to make a payment or donation to ASD in exchange for adopting the stray?
With the donation, ASD would then be able to help and rescue more strays, rather than spend time raising funds.
Chew Annie (Mdm)
Screening, adoption fees part of scheme to rehome strays abroad
Straits Times 6 Sep 09;
I refer to Madam Annie Chew's letter last Sunday, 'No guarantee that strays sent abroad will find good homes'.
On behalf of Action for Singapore Dogs (ASD), I wish to respond regarding the launch of our overseas adoption programme, which aims to find homes in the United States and Europe for strays which we are unable to rehome locally.
Had Madam Chew checked with us first before writing in, we could have put her mind at rest.
The organisations and foster networks we work with all have sterling reputations and good track records in the area of adoptions, and follow the strict no-kill policy that we adhere to.
Screening of potential adopters such as house checks and references will be carried out as standard procedure, and adoptive families will get to meet the dogs ahead of any commitment.
All parties involved are constantly in touch through e-mail and photos even past the adoption stage.
Adoption fees are required, equivalent to those levied in shelters overseas, and the amount is actually more than in Singapore.
The $40,000 ASD needs is actually used for the strays, to cover the costs of the rescue, veterinary treatment, sterilisation, vaccinations, shelter and the procedural costs and flight to the destination country.
There can never be any guarantee that strays will find good homes in Singapore either.
Ironically, the 'Singapore Special' is not warmly received by the local population, and even with the few good families that eventually adopt, we do get a 20per cent to 30per cent return rate due to various circumstances.
At the same time, many adoptions of these mixed-breed puppies are handled by individual rehomers without adequate pre-adoption checks and follow-ups.
The biggest battle is that homes are hard to find in Singapore, where 80per cent of our population live in HDB housing with restrictions that do not allow ownership of a 15kg to 20kg mid-sized 'Singapore Special'.
There are still an estimated 5,000 to 8,000 strays out there, and we cannot shelter and rehome them all.
While ASD strives to find loving homes locally and overseas, the only long-term solution is a cooperative collaboration between the Government and non-governmental organisations, careful changes to the current HDB rules to allow these dogs into such homes and a humane sterilisation programme for the strays, which will eventually lead to a stray-free Singapore
Ricky Yeo
President
Action for Singapore Dogs Society
Straits Times 23 Aug 09;
Since The Straits Times highlighted the plight of a stray dog whose leg was caught in an illegal trap two months ago, another dog has fallen victim in the same area.
The second dog, named Mimi by volunteers at Action For Singapore Dogs (ASD), was found two weeks ago with its front leg mangled. The leg had to be amputated.
Mr Ricky Yeo, president of ASD, said Mimi had not showed up at the regular feeding spot near a forested area in Lim Chu Kang for two weeks.
On Aug 10, while ASD volunteers were doing their feeding rounds, Mimi limped out, its front leg stripped of skin and with bones showing. The dog was also suffering from severe heartworm infection.
After the first dog, Kiwi, was found with its hind paw severed, the animal welfare group made a police report and alerted the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA).
Its volunteers also dismantled two traps that they found.
AVA told The Sunday Times that it did not find any traps in the area.
It is an offence to set traps - to catch protected wild animals - which could also endanger human life or cause grievous hurt. The maximum fine is $1,000 or a jail term of up to six months, or both.
AVA said it is monitoring the situation and is asking the public to contact the agency on 6471-9987 if they have any information on these illegal traps.
New Scientist 19 Aug 09;
THE threat posed by climate change is all too real, but some of the solutions are all in the mind. That's the message from work in the field known as conservation psychology, which is beginning to show how people can be encouraged to change their lifestyles to cut greenhouse gas emissions.
As well as showing what does work, this research also tells us what does not. And in that regard, groups trying to promote action to fight global warming could pay closer attention to what the psychologists are saying. Environmental groups have already learned some obvious lessons: no one likes to be hectored, and preachiness is not a winning tactic. Positive campaigns like "We can solve the climate crisis", run by Al Gore's Alliance for Climate Protection, are a better idea. Meanwhile, other research suggests that human nature need not be as rapacious and short-sighted as it sometimes appears: we are surprisingly ready to act in the interests of others and the natural world (see "Triumph of the commons").
But other tricks are still being missed. The website of the "We can solve the climate crisis" campaign features a video by Will.i.am of the hip-hop group Black Eyed Peas. As a backdrop to his song Take Our Planet Back, it shows images of environmental degradation coupled with statements like "Every American generates 2000 pounds of trash each year".
Approaches like this can be counterproductive, reinforcing the idea that heavy consumption is the societal norm and promoting a sense of helplessness in the face of an apparently insurmountable problem. Like it or not, most of us go with the herd. Show people this video and they will find little motivation not to carry on generating trash and burning oil like there's no tomorrow. But tell them about the steps their peers are taking to make things better, and they may just follow suit.
Over at the Earth Day Network site, it gets worse. There you can find out how many planets it would take to support your lifestyle if everyone on Earth lived the same way. It's hard to find any positive messages: a vegan who doesn't own a car, never flies, takes public transport to work and shares a tiny apartment in a US city would still be told that their lifestyle requires 3.3 Earths. It is hard to see what this is going to achieve, other than disillusioning people who are already doing their bit and telling everyone else that it isn't worth the bother.
Psychology, often denigrated as a "soft science", has a vital role to play as humankind grapples with a truly vexing problem. Better to employ its findings now than to turn to psychologists only when we need help in dealing with the distress of occupying a world that has passed some dangerous climate tipping points.
Peter Aldhous, New Scientist 20 Aug 09;
"I'M NOT convinced it's as bad as the experts make out... It's everyone else's fault... Even if I turn down my thermostat, it will make no difference." The list of reasons for not acting to combat global warming goes on and on.
This month, an American Psychological Association (APA) task force released a report highlighting these and other psychological barriers standing in the way of action. But don't despair. The report also points to strategies that could be used to convince us to play our part.
Sourced from psychological experiments, we review tricks that could be deployed by companies or organisations to encourage climate-friendly behaviour. Also, on page 40 of this issue, psychologist Mark van Vugt of the Free University of Amsterdam in the Netherlands describes the elements of human nature that push us to act altruistically.
As advertisers of consumer products well know, different groups of people may have quite distinct interests and motivations, and messages that seek to change behaviour need to be tailored to take these into account. "You have to target the marketing to the demographic," says Robert Gifford of the University of Victoria in British Columbia, Canada, another of the report's authors.
The affluent young, for instance, tend to be diet conscious, and this could be used to steer them away from foods like cheeseburgers - one of the most climate-unfriendly meals around because of the energy it takes to raise cattle. So when trying to convince them to forgo that carbon-intensive beef pattie, better to stress health benefits than harp on about the global climate.
Though conservative pundits have been known to attack such efforts, characterising them as psychological manipulation or "mind control", experiments indicate that people are willing to be persuaded. "From participants in our experiments, we've never heard a negative backlash," says Wesley Schultz of California State University in San Marcos. In fact, according to John Petersen of Oberlin College, Ohio, we are used to far worse. "Compared to the barrage of advertising, it seems milder than anything I experience in my daily life," he says.
Good neighbours
DEEP down, most of us want to fit in with the crowd, and psychologists are exploiting this urge to conform to encourage environmentally friendly behaviour.
Researchers led by Wesley Schultz at California State University in San Marcos and Jessica Nolan, now at the University of Scranton in Pennsylvania, have found that people will cut their electricity usage if told that their neighbours use less than they do.
In one experiment, the researchers left information with households in San Marcos asking them to use fans rather than air conditioners at night, turn off lights and take shorter showers. Some messages simply stressed energy conservation, some talked about future generations, while others emphasised the financial savings. But it was the flyers that implored residents to join with their neighbours in saving energy that were most effective in cutting electricity consumption (Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, vol 34, p 913).
In another study, the researchers told households what others in their neighbourhood used on average. High users cut their consumption in response, but low users increased theirs. The problem disappeared if the messages were reinforced with sad or smiley faces. The smileys received by the residents who were already saving energy provided sufficient encouragement for them to keep doing so (Psychological Science, vol 18, p 429).
Information economy
MOST people seem to conserve energy if provided with real-time feedback on how much they are using. But feedback can be too immediate.
For instance, Janet Swim has a General Motors car that shows her mileage per gallon plummeting each time she accelerates. It's just not very useful, she argues, because it's hard to place that momentary piece of feedback in the context of her overall driving behaviour and fuel efficiency.
In contrast, the Toyota Prius display shows mileage per gallon over 5-minute intervals for the previous half-hour. With that contextual information, people can experiment with different driving styles to see how they affect mileage, and even compete with themselves to improve over time. The 2010 Honda Insight goes one better, flashing up an image of a trophy to reward thrifty driving.
The benefits of feedback are not restricted to car gadgets. Studies show that devices that display domestic energy usage produce savings of between 5 and 12 per cent.
Competitive instincts
EVERY spring, selected student dormitories at Oberlin College in Ohio compete to discover which one can cut energy use by the most. Computer screens give the students detailed feedback on electricity consumption, and in one study dorms cut their electricity use by 55 per cent (International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education, vol 8, p 16).
The researchers running the study have not yet crunched their numbers to separate out the effects of competition from the feedback on electricity consumption, but the large savings compared to other studies that lack a competitive element suggest a strong effect. "The competition, at least in this environment, is critical," says John Petersen, Oberlin's head of environmental studies.
Petersen concedes that Oberlin may attract students with green sensibilities atypical of society at large. The project is about to extend into the real world. Equipment to provide detailed feedback on electricity use will be fitted into 53 apartments and six business units in a development now under construction in the city of Oberlin. "We hope to create volunteer groups that will compete with one another," says psychologist Cindy Frantz.
Here and now
PEOPLE have to be persuaded to act on climate change even though the benefit won't be felt for decades. Research by David Hardisty and Elke Weber of Columbia University in New York suggests ways to achieve this.
Hardisty and Weber have found that people respond in exactly the same way to decisions involving future environmental gains and losses as they do when making financial decisions (Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, vol 138, p 329). This allows psychologists' knowledge of how to manipulate financial decision-making to be brought into play.
For instance, schemes that give people an upfront cash payment for insulating their home will work better than those promising long-term savings, even if the people receiving cash end up paying a little more in the long run.
And because we are generally more worried about future losses than we are impressed by future gains, messages are more effective if framed to warn people that they will lose $500 over 10 years if they don't follow a particular course of action to limit climate change than if they are told they'll be $500 better off if they do take action.
Social networks
AS SOCIAL animals, we like to interact with others and take inspiration from their actions. Psychologists are working out how to exploit this to spread behaviours that will help limit climate change. "My sense is that social networks are going to be important," says Swim.
Allowing people to document successes in saving energy on their Facebook pages could drive change among their friends, and the Oberlin team is considering integrating this into its urban residence experiment.
Tawanna Dillahunt and colleagues at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, think such opportunities presented by Facebook can be combined with our liking for furry animals. Inspired by the attachment that people can develop towards Tamagotchi virtual pets, the team is testing the persuasive power of a "virtual polar bear" standing on an ice floe that grows bigger as people adopt environmentally friendly behaviours such as taking shorter showers. Initial results suggests the polar bear has pull.
James Fairbairn, ScienceAlert 20 Aug 09;
The Earth’s climate is changing. Of that there is no doubt. Then again there is also no doubt that the Earth’s climate has always been changing, since day one. The debate that is raging is whether, this time, man in all his dark glory is causing it. This is not an article about the complex science of climate, it is an article about why it is important that each of us does our research and makes an informed decision.
This topic is the single most important topic of our times. What governments do as a result will affect us all. None of us can afford to be agnostic or to go with the flow. It is not being overly dramatic to say that the entire future of the human race potentially depends upon the outcome.
The argument that you are presented with each day is very simple. It has to be. Our entire mass media system is based on short bursts of information: sound bites. The hypothesis is that carbon dioxide (CO2) is a “greenhouse gas” and its increasing concentration in the Earth’s atmosphere - from about 0.0290 per cent to 0.0385 per cent in the last 100 years - has been caused by mankind's use of fossil fuels. The CO2 is “polluting” the atmosphere and leading to a “runaway greenhouse effect” where the planet will get warmer and warmer, leading to mass extinctions, sea level rises and will threaten our entire civilisation. CO2 is to blame. And we have caused it. Therefore we must and can solve it.
The solutions presented are, again, pretty simple. Governments will tax CO2 emissions through a quota system by which companies will have to buy permits allowing them the right to “pollute” the Earth with additional CO2, and will be able to trade their quotas in a global carbon trading system. Over time the quotas will become more and more stringent, reducing CO2 envisions, and hence saving the planet from doom. It all sounds pretty sensible.
If only life and science were that simple in reality. As I said before this is not an article about the science of climate, however it is essential to briefly consider the Earth’s ever changing climate and the factors that have historically influenced it. So what are they?
The Sun, the source of our heat and light. Does its energy output ever vary, and what impact does that have on climate?
Volcanoes. Do the vast releases of gases and heat from surface and submarine volcanoes influence climate? Are we measuring all these releases?
Water Vapour. It too is a greenhouse gas, and it is more than 30 times more prevalent in the atmosphere than CO2. Does the cloud cover of Earth affect climate, and if so what affects this cloud cover?
Further considerations include other greenhouse gases, such as methane; the inter-action of gases between the air, plants, oceans, bacteria, animals; wobbles in the Earth’s orbit, and its movement through the universe in general…
And I’m afraid that is just the tip of the mountain of information with which you will need to familiarise yourself. I bet you wish you had paid more attention during school geography and science lessons now, don’t you?
So what other questions do you need to ask?
Is the recent CO2 increase being caused by man? Does the increase in CO2 cause climate to change or is it caused by changing climate? Is the speed and amount of modern climate change unprecedented? Is the temperature range in the last 100 years outside normal variability? Has CO2 been considerably higher, and lower, than present and yet the Earth’s oceans have neither boiled away nor permanently frozen solid? Is CO2 actually pollution? Plants rather thrive on it after all.
So why is all this important? If we are to believe that “CO2 is a pollutant” and it is the only problem, then you have a problem because, if you take the argument to its ultimate conclusion then you are the problem. You exhale more than 350kg of CO2 each year. Your lifestyle leads to further CO2 emissions through the use of transportation, your consumables and your food supply - whether it be methane emitting livestock or the transportation of your food from the farm to your table.
Therefore if man is the problem, surely the only effective solution will be fewer humans: a lot less than the seven billion who are currently causing the apparent problem.
You are probably saying to yourself “But why would governments go along with this if it wasn’t necessarily correct?” And for that matter why would corporations or scientific bodies either?
Let’s look at governments first. Politicians have two raisons d’etre: to be seen to be taking positive action by the electorate; and when in power to raise taxes to pay for services to appease the never satisfied voters. Making CO2 the problem addresses both of these issues very effectively.
A politician who is seen to be taking action to combat “carbon pollution” (probably the most unscientific term ever created as it is open to debate whether it is pollution) gains lots of kudos when it comes to the all important “green” vote.
As for taxation well there are literally billions of reasons. Take Australia for example. Its carbon emissions scheme is expected to raise revenues of about $20 billion a year by 2012. More than enough, for example, to pay off the deficits created by the recent economic stimulus packages. And the best bit is that the voters love it. A tax that is popular is manna from heaven.
So what about corporations: surely they hate extra taxes? Well, yes and no. Certainly, there are some industry sectors which will thrive for as long as CO2 is seen as the problem, and will naturally manipulate the agenda to their benefit as much as they can. Examples such as the nuclear power industry (remember Chernobyl, Three Mile Island and Sizewell?), or arable agri-businesses (nasty old farting cows causing global warming) spring to mind. But anyway, as with any tax, the ultimate payers will be the end consumers, you and I, through higher costs passed on by the corporations.
But the biggest winners by far will be the banks. There are literally trillions of reasons why they love this scheme. It is estimated that by 2020 the global market in “carbon” will be worth more than US$2 trillion, thus making it the single biggest market in the world! And, what’s more, it is a market created out of, and trading in, thin air. Can you think of any reasons why they might be motivated to smooth the agenda onwards?
Yes, that’s all very well. Corporations are all in it for themselves, as are politicians. We all know and expect that. However we are told daily in the (corporate or government owned) media that the scientific debate is over and consensus has been achieved, aren’t we? But has it?
Where do scientists get their research grants from? And who wouldn’t like to attend all expenses paid junkets, sorry conferences, in exotic locations?
In a way this whole CO2 thing is our placebo. We are “doing something about our wicked ways” after-all. And maybe our polluting ways have given us an over inflated sense of power and control over nature itself. Maybe we can do what King Canute failed to do and we can hold back the tide. Assuming that is that CO2 is the only cause.
However the big danger is that while we sit there at the waters edge, shouting “stop!” at the rising tide, we ignore what we are actually doing to the environment. More than 99 per cent of environment-related media stories are about CO2. But is it 99 per cent more dangerous to our survival than all the other things we are doing?
Now don’t get me wrong. I’m not pro-car: or in the pay of the oil companies. To survive our species must live sustainably in harmony with the eco-system. We must stop polluting in every way. We must change the way we live or eventually Mother Nature will punish us and we will go the way of T-Rex. That is inevitable. The big question here is, by “tackling CO2” are we addressing the problem, or ignoring it and potentially making it a damn sight worse for our ultimate survival? No doubt other pollution reducing benefits will come from CO2 reducing activities; however, would it not be more efficient to deal with the actual problem directly rather than indirectly? Recent media reports have shown that corporations are already simply moving their worst polluting activities to the developing world where carbon restrictions will be less onerous. Is the human life there worth any less?
The world economy is being re-shaped through the development of a new multi-trillion dollar global financial industry paid for by an indirect tax on all consumers. The question you must ask yourself is whether this is the right solution to the problem at hand?
The downside with making an informed opinion from this is, of course, is that you can never be 100 per cent sure you are right. You can only make the most informed choice based on the balance of probabilities from the information you have received. Many of us, no doubt, will have placed considerable intellectual credibility on taking a stance on this whole subject. However each one of us must keep our minds open to new arguments and information. There is too much at stake and ultimately we must be prepared to take a volte-face if necessary.
As CS Lewis very presciently once said “We all want progress, but if you’re on the wrong road, progress means doing an about-turn and walking back to the right road; in that case, the man who turns back soonest is the most progressive.”
Roger Highfield, New Scientist 22 Aug 09;
Saving Earth's biodiversity will take nothing less than an IPCC for species, says the world's leading biologist and ant guru.
What's this idea all about?
It sounds immodest but I call it Wilson's law. It says that if you save the living environment, you will automatically save the physical environment. But if you only try to save the physical environment, you will lose them both. That is a defensible law.
So we need a major rethink?
When we talk about the world going green, the media and the public think of pollution or fresh-water shortage. They understand, and want to do something. But that is the physical world; concern for the living environment has been slow to take off, as Julia Marton-Lefèvre, head of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), will agree. We are not making the headway we should be in preventing the destruction of ecosystems and species. I have written book after book arguing that if we don't start caring about holding onto them, we will have big problems - some unforeseeable. Most Americans have only the vaguest notion about any of that, even though they can talk intelligently about climate change. Yet when it comes to the living world they are in danger of losing something they scarcely understand.
What are these people missing out on?
People see nature as trees, plants and vertebrates. Yet the world is run by little creatures most people have not heard of; 99 per cent of Earth's organisms are extremely small. For example, some of the most abundant and crucial land animals are the tiny oribatid mites, which are the size of a pinhead and look like a cross between a turtle and a spider. They are a linchpin organism of the environment, but 20 years ago when I set out to identify them no one had heard of them. Back then there were just two people in the US able to identify them. Fortunately one agreed to work with me. Yet we still don't know what the vast majority of oribatids do.
Do you have a plan for what we should do?
I am working on a joint proposal with Simon Stuart, head of the Species Survival Commission at the IUCN. I want to set up an effort along the lines of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change to protect species. The panel has had huge success marshalling global science to address climate change, providing models and the evidence to show climate change is happening, and that it is due to human activity. But it is still all about the physical world.
This sounds like a natural fit with your other big project, the Encyclopedia of Life
Yes, it is. In 2003, I suggested we set up an electronic encyclopedia to register everything known about the 1.8 million or so species on Earth. People thought it would be a wonderful base from which to find out about millions of species we don't know about. We ended up with $30 million, and the EoL went live in February 2008. Now, if we can have a partnership between the EoL, the IUCN and other key conservation organisations, we would soon be able to make much more "surgical" recommendations about conserving species.
Profile
E. O. Wilson is Pellegrino University Research Professor at Harvard University. His latest book, with Bert Hölldobler, is The Superorganism: The beauty, elegance, and strangeness of insect societies (W. W. Norton, 2008)
Sarah Stewart, AFP Google News 23 Aug 09;
LONG BELOK, Malaysia — Hundreds of Penan tribespeople armed with spears and blowpipes have set up new blockades deep in the Borneo jungles, escalating their campaign against logging and palm oil plantations.
Three new barricades, guarded by Penan men and women who challenged approaching timber trucks, have been established in recent days. There are now seven in the interior of Malaysia's Sarawak state.
"They are staging this protest now because most of their land is already gone, destroyed by logging and grabbed by the plantation companies," said Jok Jau Evong from Friends of the Earth in Sarawak.
"This is the last chance for them to protect their territory. If they don't succeed, there will be no life for them, no chance for them to survive."
Penan chiefs said that after enduring decades of logging which has decimated the jungles they rely on for food and shelter, they now face the new threat of clear-felling to make way for crops of palm oil and planted timber.
"Since these companies came in, life has been very hard for us. Before it was easy to find animals in the forest and hunt them with blowpipes," said Alah Beling, headman of Long Belok where one of the barricades has been built.
"The forest was once our supermarket, but now it's hard to find food, the wild boar have gone," he said in his settlement, a scenic cluster of wooden dwellings home to 298 people and reachable only by a long suspension bridge.
Alah Beling said he fears that plans to establish plantations for palm oil -- which is used in food and for biofuel -- on their ancestral territory, will threaten their lifestyle and further pollute the village river with pesticide run-off.
"Once our river was so clear you could see fish swimming six feet deep," he said as he gestured at the waterway, which like most others in the region has been turned reddish-brown by the soil that cascades from eroded hillsides.
Indigenous rights group Survival International said the blockades are the most extensive since the late 1980s and early 1990s when the Penan's campaign to protect their forests shot to world attention.
"It's amazing they're still struggling on after all these years, more than 20 years after they began to try to fight off these powerful companies," said Miriam Ross from the London-based group.
Official figures say there are more than 16,000 Penan in Sarawak, including about 300 who still roam the jungle and are among the last truly nomadic people on Earth.
The blockades, which Friends of the Earth said involve 13 Penan communities home to up to 3,000 people, are aimed at several Malaysian timber and plantation companies including Samling, KTS, Shin Yang and Rimbunan Hijau.
After clearing much of the valuable timber from Sarawak, a vast state which lies on Malaysia's half of Borneo island, some of these companies are now converting their logging concessions into palm oil and acacia plantations.
"They told us earlier this month they were coming to plant palm oil, and I said if you do we will blockade," said Alah Beling.
"They told us we don't have any rights to the land, that they have the licence to plant here. I felt very angry -- how can they say we have no right to this land where our ancestors have lived for generations?"
Even on land that has been logged in the past, Penan can still forage for sago which is their staple food, medicinal plants, and rattan and precious aromatic woods which are sold to buy essential goods.
"Oil palm is worse because nothing is left. If they take all our land, we will not be able to survive," the Long Belok headman said.
Sarawak's Rural Development Minister James Masing admitted some logging companies had behaved badly and "caused extensive damage" but said the Penan were "good storytellers" and their claims should be treated with caution.
"The Penan are the darlings of the West, they can't do any wrong in the eyes of the West," he said.
Masing said disputes were often aimed at wringing more compensation from companies, or stemmed from conflicts between Penan and other indigenous tribes including the Kenyah and Kayan about overlapping territorial claims.
He said the current surge in plantation activity was triggered by Sarawak's goal to double its palm oil coverage to 1.0 million hectares (2.47 million acres) -- an area 14 times bigger than Singapore.
"The time we have been given to do this is running short. 2010 is next year so we want to make that target and that is why there may be a push to do it now, to fulfil our goal established 10 years ago," he said.
"In some areas the logging has not been done in accordance with the rules and some of the loggers have caused extensive damage. That does happen and I do sympathise with the Penan along those lines," he said.
"But the forest has become a source of income for the state government so we have to exploit it".
Driving through the unsealed roads that reach deep into the Borneo interior, evidence of the new activity is clear with whole valleys stripped of vegetation and crude terraces carved into the hills ready for seedlings.
Most of the companies declined to comment on the allegations made by the Penan, but Samling said it "regrets to learn about the blockades".
"We have long worked with communities in areas we operate to ensure they lead better lives," it said in a statement.
Its website says its acacia timber plantations in Sarawak will "enhance the health of the forests" and that it uses "only the most sensitive ways to clear the land".
The Penan allegations could discredit Malaysia?s claims that it produces sustainable palm oil, particularly in Europe and the US where activists blame the industry for deforestation and driving orangutans towards extinction.
Indigenous campaigners say that past blockades have seen violence and arrests against tribespeople, but village chiefs -- some of whom were detained during the 1980s blockades -- said they did not fear retribution.
"We're not afraid. They're the ones destroying my property. Last time we didn't know the law and now to protect ourselves, but now we know our rights," said Ngau Luin, the chief of Long Nen where another barricade was set up.
An AFP team reporting at the blockades was photographed by angry timber company officials, and later intercepted at a roadblock by police armed with machineguns and taken away for questioning.
The plight of the Penan was made famous in the 1980s by environmental activist Bruno Manser, who waged a crusade to protect their way of life and fend off the loggers. He vanished in 2000 -- many suspect foul play.
The New Straits Times 23 Aug 09;
The bird's nest industry is a money-spinner, which explains the sudden proliferation of swiftlet 'motels' in the country. The downside is that many are operating without licences, write HEIDI FOO and DHARSHINI BALAN.
THE edible bird's nest industry in Malaysia is a potentially lucrative one but not enough is being done to develop it.
Operators are hampered by confusing rules and guidelines, and this has resulted in 90 per cent of them operating without licences.
Currently, Malaysia is the third largest producer of the costly delicacy behind Indonesia and Thailand, which dominate the export market at 80 and 12 per cent respectively.
"Our share is only about eight per cent, which is worth RM1 billion per annum. We hope to increase our export market and generate some RM5 billion per annum within the next five years," says Datuk Beh Hee Seong, president of the Federation of Malaysian Edible-Nest Swiftlet Merchants Association.
The largest consumer of the interwoven strands of hardened bird's saliva is China, followed by the United States.
Beh said there were 40,000 operators in the country, but the majority were operating without licences.
The reason: the complicated hodgepodge of rules and guidelines set by local authorities in the districts.
As many are operating without licences, it is difficult to monitor their practices. This has resulted in public complaints and protests over the noise and unhygienic conditions of premises where the birds roost.
Beh admits that complaints over noise is a major issue. The operators use recorded bird sounds to attract the swiftlets to nest at their premises.
"The operators will turn up the volume or fail to turn it off after a certain time."
He suggests that licensed operators be given a sticker with a hotline number for complaints. They can affix the sticker on their premises.
As for the business being messy and unhygienic, Beh says the converse is true.
"The public is ill-informed. They think that the birds put them at risk of diseases such as dengue. But with the technology available, most operators are using humidity controllers.
"The swiftlets also eat mosquitoes and flies and only excrete inside the building."
He said the association had proposed that only those who could show a letter of support from residents in the vicinity of the bird motel, be given a licence.
Beh said an operator was considered successful if he could produce 100 bird's nests in a year from one premise.
"For every 1kg of bird's nest, they can get between RM5,000 and RM18,000, depending on the grade of the product," he adds.
Fortunately, the government has given an undertaking to look into the problems faced by the industry.
It has set up a committee to coordinate activities as well as come up with standard rules and regulations for those who want to venture into the business.
Veterinary Services Department director-general Datuk Dr Abdul Aziz Jamaluddin admitted that at present, there was an overlapping of local government by-laws, the Animals Act and also the Wildlife Protection Act.
"The role of this technical committee will be to look into the issues faced by the breeders and work with them to come up with standard rules and regulations which will be applicable for the entire industry.
"However, this will take time and for now, we will do our best to assist breeders obtain approval to run their businesses."
He said the cabinet had acknowledged that the industry was highly profitable and had tasked the department with developing it.
"We have started work on a blueprint for the industry and expect it to be ready by the end of the year."
Dr Aziz said there has also been complaints about red tape and problems in applying for a licence.
"We have been informed that there are discrepancies in the export procedures and this eventually leads to the smuggling of the products. We are also looking into a product grading system."
Dr Aziz said the department would help operators obtain the necessary certification, including the halal label.
"This will make their products more marketable, especially in Organisation of Islamic Conference member countries."
He said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak would be meeting operators soon at a forum in Pekan.
"We are fully supportive of this industry and encourage more people, especially Bumiputeras to venture into it."
He said the department was also looking into the possibility of captive breeding and providing feed throughout the year.
"This way, the birds will be ensured food throughout the year. This kind of environment will also help the birds produce better quality nests.
"However, this method is still being researched. Once we obtain a grant from the government, we will proceed with our pioneer project."
Chinese delicacy for over 400 years
EDIBLE bird's nest is among the most expensive animal product in the world. They have been used in traditional Chinese cooking for more than 400 years.
The nests are built by the male swiftlet over a period of 35 days during the breeding season. It takes the shape of a shallow cup and is stuck to the walls of a cave or building.
The nests consist of interwoven strands of salivary laminae cement and have high levels of calcium, iron, potassium and magnesium.
Negri Sembilan Association of Bird's Nest Traders president Datuk Lee Yuen Fong said the nests were harvested thrice a year, with each harvesting period lasting for up to three months.
"Swiftlets are monogamous birds and both partners take turns caring for the nestlings. The average life span of a swiflet is between 15 and 18 years."
Traditionally, the nests were harvested from limestone caves such as Niah Caves at Niah National Park and Gunung Mulu National Park in Sarawak. However, over the years, businessmen have turned houses into breeding grounds for swiftlets.
To lure the birds, which breed in colonies, recorded sounds of chirping females are played constantly on speakers.
Lee said it was important to be able to distinguish between genuine and fake bird's nest.
"One of our problems is the increasing number of fake bird's nest in the market."
He said anyone who was familiar with the product would be able to tell them apart.
"Swiftlets build their nests with their saliva. These strands of saliva will detach from each other when soaked in water and will be of different lengths and sizes.
"The strands in a fake product will be identical in size."
He said genuine high quality bird's nests would expand to double its size after being soaked and cooked.
"This is a multi-million ringgit industry and because of this there are many unscrupulous parties trying to cash in."
Josh Gordon, The Age 23 Aug 09;
THE operator of an oil rig responsible for a massive oil leak off the West Australian coast will be forced to pay millions of dollars to clean up the spill, which authorities warn poses a serious threat to the environment.
The Australian Maritime Safety Authority yesterday launched a major clean-up operation as oil and gas continued to seep from a 1200-metre-deep well drilled by the West Atlas - an oil rig located 690 kilometres west of Darwin, 250 kilometres off the far north Kimberley coast and 150 kilometres south-east of Ashmore Reef.
The spill, which is eight nautical miles long and 30 metres wide, began early on Friday, forcing the evacuation of 69 workers to Darwin.
The company responsible for the rig, PTTEP Australasia, said the leak had not yet been brought under control.
PTTEP director Jose Martins said the leak was mainly gas, with a much lower oil content than when the spill began, but the related fire risk meant it was impossible to get back on to the platform.
''So that option for bringing the leak under control is ruled out for now,'' he said.
He said early reports that poisonous hydrogen sulphide gas had been released were wrong.
The company has called in gas and oil spill experts to help with the clean-up.
The Australian Maritime Safety Authority was put in charge of the operation after the size of the spill became apparent. It warned that the remote location of the rig would make the clean-up difficult.
Authority chief executive Graham Peachey said it was too early to determine the environmental impact, cost, or when the leak would be stopped.
''It hasn't been contained but the slick hasn't grown overnight, and indications are it is either breaking down or evaporating as quickly as it is leaking out of the ocean floor, but all of that has to be confirmed by the science,'' Mr Peachey said.
While the slick remained a long way offshore and had not moved closer to the coastline, Mr Peachey said the environmental threat remained serious.
''Oil on the water is not good for the environment. What we are trying to do is mitigate the risks to the environment and to do so as quickly as we can.''
The authority has chartered a Hercules aircraft from Singapore to spray the slick with about 50 tonnes of chemicals to help disperse the oil. Two more aircraft are on standby for support.
Mr Peachey said the clean-up would be expensive but he would not speculate on the final bill.
He said only that the authority had insisted that PTTEP agree to meet the cost.
''I'd be speculating, but you can imagine, we've got two aircraft on the spot, we've got personnel all round the north, we've got a Hercules chartered from Singapore, and we've got a lot of stockpile of dispersant moved up there, so this is going to cost a lot,'' he said.
One of the evacuated rig workers told ABC Radio his colleagues had detected a gas leak and observed bubbling around one of the platform's 1200-metre-deep drilling holes.
He said the rig had been evacuated after concerns that hydrogen sulphide was leaking from the area.
Australian Marine Conservation Society director Darren Kindleysides said there was huge potential for damage to unique marine biodiversity.
''With the west continuing to grow as a frontier for oil and gas exploration, this could become more regular,'' Mr Kindleysides said.
WA Greens senator and the party's marine spokeswoman, Rachel Siewert, accused the company of withholding information and said the clean-up plan was taking too long.
''We should be putting out emergency response equipment much closer to those sites so that we don't have to wait 24 hours,'' Senator Siewert said.
Green group urges oil spill action
ABC Net 23 Aug 09;
An environmental action group says the delay in cleaning up an oil spill off Australia's north-west coast shows the shortcomings in the Federal Government's emergency planning for oil spills at sea.
But the Government say the spill, at the West Atlas mobile offshore drilling unit in the Timor sea, is smaller than first thought.
The incident occurred early Friday morning and 69 workers were evacuated from the site when oil and gas began leaking from the rig.
The slick is 14 kilometres long and 30 metres wide and is about 100 kilometres off the Western Australia coast.
Authorities on Saturday declared a 37-kilometre exclusion zone around the rig, which is owned by Norwegian company Seadrill and operated by Thai-based PTTEP Australasia.
John Dee from the environmental action group Do Something says urgent steps need to be taken.
"This is a particularly pristine marine environment and that's what makes this spill so concerning," he said.
"It's teeming with baby turtles at this time of year, it's a migratory whale route, and of course we need to make sure that this spill is contained because the Ashmore Reef is just 150 kilometres away.
"That's why the Government needs to make sure all efforts are made to ensure it's cleaned up as soon as possible."
Resources and Energy Minister Martin Ferguson says the slick is beginning to evaporate naturally and chemical dispersants will be used to speed up that process.
He has told Channel 10 that it poses no threat to the Australian coastline.
"The oil spill is not as big as first thought. It's in the Montara [oil] field," he said.
"The Australian Maritime Safety Authority is on the job. They're in charge of the clean-up and the company itself has flown in the necessary technical advice to work out how they cap the developed well as quickly as possible."
Size assessment
The Australian Maritime Safety Authority says a search and rescue aircraft has just left Darwin to assess whether an oil slick off the Western Australian coast has grown overnight.
The Authority's Tracey Jiggins says a plane was sent out this morning to assess the situation, but it is expected the spill has stayed the same size.
She says a Hercules aircraft carrying chemicals to start dispersing the oil spill has also just left Darwin.
"What they'll do is they'll go out and assess the situation all the safety measurements and things will be put in place to make sure it's safe to go," she said.
"Our information is that the slick has remained quite constant. It appears to be evaporating at the same rate as it's leaking.
"We don't expect that will have changed overnight but we'll have to wait until those aircraft get on scene and feed back information about how it's going this morning."
She says a decision will then be made on how much chemical will be sprayed, with the aircraft allowed to fly within two nautical miles of the rig.
Jose Martins from PTTEP Australasia says any environmental impact will be minimal.
"The oil is dispersing very quickly, so the rate of dispersement [sic] is quite quick," he said.
"Therefore there's no visible endangerment to any wildlife at this stage, and it's quite far from any land. It is a remote location."
Fix 'could take days'
He says a group of experts is trying to work out how to fix the leak.
"Until we can get a proper report ... only then we can tell you what the next stage is and how long this will take to repair," he said.
Mr Martins says the leaking gas poses a major fire risk, making it difficult for anyone to access the site.
"We have engaged international experts and they will be given whatever resources they need to bring the situation under control," he said.
Australian oil well to gush for nearly two months
Reuters 23 Aug 09;
SYDNEY, Aug 23 (Reuters) - A leaking Australian oil well is likely to pour oil into the Timor Sea for nearly two months before it can be stopped, the operator said on Sunday, as environmentalists expressed grave fears for rare wildlife.
Rig operator PTTEP Australasia said it planned to drill a relief well and pour mud to stop the leak, which began on Friday with a blow-out more than three kilometres (two miles) deep.
It would take 20 days to bring a new offshore drilling rig by barge from Singapore, plus four weeks to drill, the company said in a statement.
Asked if this meant the well would flow for nearly two months, a company spokesman told Reuters: "That is pretty much the estimation."
Environmentalists have expressed concern about the giant slick, saying the entire area is ecologically significant and part of an "ocean super highway" for migrating animals between the Indian and Pacific Oceans.
Many breathe air and could surface in the oil, an official of WWF Australia said.
Earlier on Sunday the Australian Maritime Safety Authority used C-130 Hercules aircraft to spray dispersant chemicals on the slick, which was in excess of 8 nautical miles (15 kilometres) in length.
Spokeswoman Tracey Jiggins said the results were encouraging but the agency was prepared for a long operation.
PTTEP Australasia, a unit of Thailand's PTT Exploration and Production PCL PTTE.BK, said a team of international experts recommended drilling a relief well, to intersect the existing well and stop its flow.
Company spokesman Ian Williams gave no estimate of the amount of oil that would be released, but said the company believed it would be possible to prevent the slick spreading.
"There is a blow-out of some kind. It is very deep," Williams told Reuters, putting the depth at around 3,500 metres.
An air exclusion zone had been set up and ships advised to stay more than 20 nautical miles away from the rig, considered too dangerous to board.
WWF Australia called for changes to ensure better preparations for such disasters, noting it took three days for the first dispersant to be sprayed.
"From a global scale this is one of the most important places on the planet for ocean wildlife," Gilly Llewelyn, WWF Australia's director of conservation, told Reuters.
Among the animals affected were three endangered species of turtles, plus sea snakes, she said. Even a pygmy blue whale has been monitored there.
"It seems to be one of these critical migration routes -- an oceanic super highway," she said.
The spill occurred at the Montara development, a project due to come on stream later this year. The West Atlas drilling unit is owned by Norway's SeaDrill Ltd (SDRL.OL: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), but operated by PTTEP Australasia.
The location has been given as about 250 km (155 miles) off the far north Kimberley coast of Western Australia state.
Australia's official overseer for the petroleum industry, the National Offshore Petroleum Safety Authority, was investigating the incident. (Editing by Jerry Norton) (Sydney Newsroom +612 6273 2730)
The Jakarta Post 22 Aug 09;
The El Nino heat wave, predicted to strike in September, will potentially reduce the country’s rice production by at least 750,000 tons, a discussion heard on Saturday.
“The Agricultural Ministry even predicted recently that the decline in rice production could reach 1.6 million tons due to El Nino,” said Darmayanto, a member of the House of Representatives Commission IV on agriculture.
“That means around 300,000 farmers and their families will face a serious economic problem.”
The Central Statistics Agency (BPS) has predicted that rice production this year would reach 60.93 million tons, slightly higher from last year’s 60.25 million tons.
State Logistics Agency (Bulog) chief Mustafa Abubakar expressed his confidence the national rice stock would remain adequate despite the El Nino weather anomaly.
“We plan to increase our rice reserves to five million tons from currently 2.5 million tons to anticipate prolonged drought as a result of El Nino,” he said.
The country currently has about 12.4 million hectares of rice fields, 4 million of which are irrigated.
Mustafa said that without securing extra reserves the country would not run out of rice stock for at least in the next three or four months.
“If we manage to increase the reserves, we hope to provide a sufficient back-up of rice supply for the next five or six months.” (hdt)
Kim Knight, Sunday Star Times, Stuff.co.nz 23 Aug 09;
Dairy farmers have been implicated in a new palm oil scandal after revelations that last year the national herd ate one-quarter of the world's palm kernel stock food supply.
More than one million tonnes of palm kernel expeller (PKE) was imported last year, mostly from Indonesia and Malaysia, where environmental groups are concerned at the palm industry's role in the loss of tropical rainforest and destruction of tiger and orang-utan habitat.
An international body, the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil, has been set up to ensure sustainable supply of palm product, but secretary-general Dr Vengeta Rao said last week that "very little" of what entered New Zealand would have been certified.
His comment follows Cadbury's decision to back down on plans to introduce palm oil to its Dairy Milk chocolate, after a public outcry.
PKE is created when palm fruit is crushed and processed to produce palm kernel oil. Based on figures provided by the roundtable, a maximum 330,000 tonnes of PKE on the global market since last August could be considered certified. This country imported 1,104,387 tonnes, putting our consumption rates second only to the combined 27 countries of the European Union.
Two weeks ago, the Sunday Star-Times travelled to Indonesia with Greenpeace communications manager Suzette Jackson and Waitakaruru farmer Max Purnell to see, first hand, the impact of this trade that the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry says has increased one thousand-fold since 2000.
We spoke to community leaders who said they had been jailed in their fight to keep land from palm companies, and conservationists who feared for the future of animals such as the Sumatran orang-utan.
"Not only is this trade damaging to the environment on the ground here, it's also really damaging to how we are trying to portray ourselves internationally, as a country that does care, that does give a damn, and wants to live up to what we trade on our clean, green identity," said Jackson.
Farmers argue the spike in imports was due to last year's devastating drought and the need to provide supplementary feed. But, says Jackson, "the figures have climbed really steadily over the past 10 years. Drought has a little bit to do with it, but the major reason this increase has come about is through the intensification and corporatisation of New Zealand's dairy sector."
Purnell said he had witnessed the "systematic, deliberate, studied rape and desecration of land and the local people's ability to have a future with it". He believed that if dairy farmers knew the potential impact of the PKE trade, they would find alternatives.
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Hew Dalrymple, Federated Farmers' grain and seed section vice-chairman, said there were serious biosecurity concerns about PKE. "There are threats from imported insects, risk from soil contamination and foot and mouth disease and food safety issues... with that amount of product coming into the country, shipload after shipload, it is a real biosecurity issue for us."
Lachlan McKenzie, Federated Farmers' dairy chairman, said farmers needed supplementary feed during last year's drought, and PKE was just a by-product. "The palm is grown for oil, not its by-product. This is the husk that is left after the oil is taken out... palm oil is the prime driver of this."
He said it was up to importers, not farmers, to ensure the product was being sustainably produced.
Biosecurity and Agriculture Minister David Carter said the government recognised the importance of New Zealand's reputation and image in world markets, and the dairy industry was aware of the need to improve sustainability.
"It has made significant progress on sustainability in recent years, for example the Dairying and Clean Streams Accord and recent work on greenhouse gas footprinting."
The emergence of the palm kernel issue, Carter said, "reinforces the importance of the dairy industry continuing to work on its sustainability".
Fed Farmers fight off palm kernel criticism
tvnz.co.nz 24 Aug 09;
Federated Farmers is rejecting claims that the importation of palm kernel extract for dairy feed is contributing to the destruction of rainforests.
Dairy giant Fonterra is being accused of buying cheap cow feed at the expense of the environment.
Greenpeace says Fonterra imported a quarter of the world's palm kernel based animal feed for New Zealand cows last year.
Greenpeace says rainforests in Indonesia and Malaysia are cleared to produce cheap palm oil.
But Federated Farmers says the kernel is a waste product and the real cause of deforestation is consumer demand for palm oil based products.
Federated Farmers says it is more concerned by the biosecurity risks of the huge amount of uncertified palm kernel entering New Zealand.
Meanwhile, the Green Party is calling on the government and Fonterra to reduce the importation of palm kernel feed.
Palm kernel imports went from 0.4 tonnes in 1999 to 455,000 tonnes in 2007 and then to 1.1 million tonnes in 2008.
Green Party co-leader Russel Norman Norman says this was a quarter of all global palm kernel production which threatened not only the local grain industry but New Zealand's environmental reputation.
He says the government and Fonterra, which part owns rural supply chain RD1, had to do something to stop the "addiction" to the cheap but unsustainable palm kernel, which was being used to prop up unsustainable dairy farming.
Greenpeace NZ climate campaigner Simon Boxer also said it was a "scandal" that Fonterra was feeding its dairy cows a product that was directly contributing to the destruction of the world's remaining rainforests - and climate change.
Wilmar International, the company supplying kernel to RD1 to sell, was the world's largest trader of palm oils and kernel and had a bad reputation for rainforest destruction, he said.
But Fonterra sustainability manager John Hutchings told Radio New Zealand Wilmar International was a reputable company.
"They've been working very hard to ensure that all of their mills and plantations are RSPO - Round Table on Sustainable Palm Oil - certified, and they have almost completed that task."
Hutchings said palm kernel was an important feed supplement when grass was in short supply.
Last week chocolate maker Cadbury bowed to public pressure and removed palm oil from its chocolate recipe.
Arlina Arshad Yahoo News 23 Aug 09;
JAKARTA (AFP) – Powerful earthquakes that have jolted Asia recently do not presage a disaster, although it is only a matter of time before the next catastrophe befalls the quake-prone region, seismologists say.
From India to Japan, Indonesia and as far south as New Zealand, the region has been rattled by what appear to be a connected spate of strong quakes in the past few weeks.
Luckily they have caused little damage and few casualties, but for people living in countries straddling the so-called "Pacific Ring of Fire" of major fault-lines, each new tremor raises the question: when will the "big one" hit?
The bottom line is that earthquakes are impossible to predict and, while catastrophic quakes are inevitable, no one can say when they will strike.
Japan in particular has been bracing itself for an expected magnitude-eight quake believed most likely to strike in the Tokai region near Tokyo. People even have a name for the anticipated disaster: the Tokai Quake.
"Series of earthquakes can often be monitored, but last week's earthquake does not appear to be a sign pointing to the 'big one'," Tokyo University honorary professor of seismology Ryohei Morimoto told AFP, referring to a 6.6-magnitude quake that struck Japan on August 17.
Around 20 percent of the world's most powerful earthquakes strike Japan. The megacity of Tokyo in particular sits on the intersection of three continental plates -- the Eurasian, Pacific and Philippine Sea plates.
The last time a "big one" struck Tokyo was in 1923, when the Great Kanto Earthquake claimed more than 140,000 lives, many of them in fires. Previously, in 1855, the Ansei Edo quake also devastated the city.
Experts say quakes in particular areas may be related, but they see no link between quakes on different boundaries of tectonic plates, such as the huge 7.5-magnitude tremor that shook the Andaman Islands in the Indian Ocean and the 6.4-magnitude quake that hit Japan almost simultaneously on August 11.
D. Srinageswar, a senior seismologist with India's National Geophysical Research Institute based in the southern city of Hyderabad, said scientists simply did not know enough about the movements of the earth's crust to be able to predict when and where the next cataclysmic event would take place.
"Prediction of a quake in time is not possible. The process will need data going back hundreds or even thousands of years," he explained.
"It was only in 1960 that instruments came up that helped understand at what depths the quakes occur, the magnitude of the quakes.... Spatially we know where it is going to happen, but in time we can't say."
Indonesian Meteorology and Geophysics Agency technical chief Suharjono likened the tectonic shifts of the earth's surface to a speeding car.
"There was a big 6.9-magnitude quake in Sumatra recently, followed by aftershocks. The aftershocks aren't unusual... they happen so that a new stability can be achieved," he said.
"Just like putting a brake on a speeding vehicle, it will wobble a little as it tries to stabilise itself. It's the same with earthquakes."
Suharjono said it might look like there had been a lot of quakes recently but the numbers from year to year were stable.
"About 5,000 to 6,000 quakes over a magnitude of 4.5 take place in the Indonesian region every year, this number hasn't changed," he said.
"If the concern is because of what's been happening recently, I'd say there's no need to worry."
The apparent spate of quakes is nothing unusual, but they have fuelled debate over whether seismic activity can be considered a precursor to a bigger one in the same region, or whether it reduces the risk by releasing tectonic pressure.
"When there is a large earthquake, it will release stress on that part of the system but it might transfer some of that stress to another part which might bring forward another earthquake," said Ken Gledhill, a government seismologist in New Zealand where a giant 7.8-magnitude quake hit on July 15.
"This will happen every now and again where there appear to be a group of earthquakes near in time if not in space. That's bound to happen -- these earthquakes happen all the time."
Red Orbit 22 Aug 09;
NASA scientists Maury Estes and Mohammad Al-Hamdan have been seafaring in the Gulf of Mexico, and one of them grew a bit green around the gills. It's not surprising that a space agency scientist might have trouble getting his sea legs, but what was he doing out there in the surf to begin with?
"We were gathering water samples," explains Estes.
That doesn't sound much like rocket science, but consider the following:
At this moment, a fleet of NASA Earth-observing satellites is silently passing overhead, gathering vital information about our planet. Estes and Al-Hamdan are combining that heavenly data with local water samples to help the Mobile Bay National Estuary Program, or NEP, check the health of the coast.
"We're most interested in sea grass and marine vegetation," says Al-Hamdan. "A region's plant health tells you a lot about the health of the area itself."
"It's fair to say that if seagrass is in trouble, so is everything else in the area," explains Dr. Ken Heck of the Dauphin Island Sea Lab in Mobile. "Sea grass beds provide shelter and food for many ecologically and economically important fish and shellfish, and even for the manatee -- an endangered gentle giant that regularly visits Mobile Bay. These beds also stabilize the shoreline, prevent erosion, and even help filter and cleanse the water that enters our estuaries from the watershed."
According to Estes and Al-Hamdan, the way the land is used throughout the watershed influences how much fresh water flows into the salt water areas and what that fresh water contains. Homes, farms, forests, small towns, big cities, etc., all affect the water in distinctive ways. "For instance, sediments cloud the fresh water flow," explains Estes. "And fertilizers can boost invasive species and algae that choke out the 'good' plants like sea grass."
"So we knew we'd get environmentally valuable information by looking at how the land was used in the past and how it's used now," says Al-Hamdan. "Historical NASA satellite data told us what we wanted to know."
That "heavenly" data, along with local water samples, revealed land use-related trends in water flow quality and properties like salinity, temperature, and clarity. These factors have both a literal and figurative trickle-down effect on marine plant life and therefore overall habitat health.
"This research helps us model, or predict, how different types of land use might affect the coastal environment in the future, not only in the Mobile Bay area but also in other coastal areas," says Al-Hamdan.
"The work NASA's doing will help coastal resource managers direct the limited resources available for habitat conservation and restoration," says Mobile Bay NEP Director Roberta Swann. "It will help us focus restoration efforts where they're most needed and most likely to succeed."
When Estes and Al-Hamdan aren't in the office pouring over satellite images to help foresee the coastal future, they're heading out to sea, where they collect water samples to analyze for "ground truth" to validate their model. The ocean voyages also give them a first-hand view of what they're studying and why.
"You do science in the real world – not in the office," explains Estes. "Going out there gives you a good perspective on the research data. If you don't physically know the area you're studying, it limits your understanding."
"From the boat, we got to see the coastal areas we're targeting. Turns out that the northern third of the Mobile Bay environment is natural shore, but the southern two thirds is primarily sea walls, rip raps [man-made piles of big rocks], and revetments [sea wall /rip raps combination]. Plant and animal life can't flourish in rocks and concrete."
Estes sees the modification of natural coastline as a self-perpetuating problem.
"Development feeds on itself," says Estes. "If your neighbor builds a sea wall to help protect his own shore from eroding, your shore starts eroding, so you put up a sea wall too. And it's much more difficult to get a permit to restore a natural beach or marsh area on one's property than to get permission to build a sea wall. Plus there are all kinds of docks and boat launches along the coast."
The scientists spent an entire day, recently, on the open ocean gathering water samples and mentally cataloging the coast line. They're quite serious about their work but will take a few moments for fun.
"I got a nice tan out in the boat," jokes Al-Hamdan. "It sure beats green."
The Madagascar Pochard, the world's rarest duck, is on the brink of becoming extinct, wildlife experts have warned.
The Telegraph 23 Aug 09;
There are thought to be just 19 of the diving ducks left in the world - only six of which are female - living on a small remote lake on the Indean Ocean island.
The lake was visited last month by staff from the Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust (WWT), Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust (Durrell) and The Peregrine Fund.
The charities planned to set up a breeding programme for the ducks, but were alarmed to find dwindling numbers because none of the 11 birds born last year had survived.
They are now trying to take emergency action before the species dies out.
Nigel Jarrett, WWT's aviculture manager was one of the staff who made the trip. He said: "With possibly only six females, the total population of Madagascar Pochard might well number just six pairs, and with no successful fledglings from the 2008 season the need to establish a captive breeding facility has become even more urgent.
"The plan is to develop a conservation breeding centre in collaboration with the government of Madagascar in 2010. However, following the expedition, discussions are underway to see if temporary measures can be taken to secure the population in the interim. If so, the team will return to the lake in October this year.
"Once we have secured eggs from the wild, WWT's and Durrell's extensive experience of rearing endangered wildfowl at Slimbridge and Jersey will be used to breed the birds at a purpose-built facility in Madagascar. This will act as a safety net, greatly reducing the immediate risk of extinction.
"Within three years, we hope to at least double the total numbers of pochards. In time, these will be released into the wild at suitable sites."
The species is classed as critically endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List. During the 1990s it was thought Madagascar Pochards were already extinct, but biologists rediscovered the birds in 2006.
WWT has blamed their declining numbers on degraded wetlands following agricultural conversion, deforestation and the introduction of non-native fish. The charity's long-term goal is to restore the wetlands and their endemic wildlife, and work with local communities to make sure they are used sustainably.
Glyn Young, Durrell's project leader, said: "The window of opportunity to save the species from extinction is incredibly small, and we must all muster the energy and resources necessary to stop another species from becoming extinct."
Lily-Arison Rene de Roland, national director of The Peregrine Fund's Madagascar project, said: "Since the 2006 rediscovery, the birds have successfully raised only 11 young. This low productivity is a great concern and warrants a captive breeding programme and conservation of the site."
Yahoo News 22 Aug 09;
BRUSSELS (AFP) – The European Union will decide in the autumn whether to add bluefin tuna to a list of threatened species, a move that would mean a temporary ban on its sale on world markets, a spokeswoman said Saturday.
"An EU position will be established this autumn, in line with the normal process for the preparation of the Cites (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species) meeting," said the European Commission spokeswoman, Katharina von Schnurbein.
She confirmed the existence of an internal document prepared by the commission which recommends putting bluefin tuna on the list of threatened species. The draft document, which will form the basis of discussions between the 27 EU member nations, was revealed Saturday by the Financial Times.
"From a scientific and technical point of view, the criteria for the listing of Atlantic bluefin tuna (as an endangered species) appear to be met," the newspaper cited the document as saying.
"There is no doubt about the link between international trade and over-exploitation of the species."
However, the commission -- which oversees fisheries policy in the 27-nation European Union -- stipulated that any decision on a ban would not be made before the end of the 2010 fishing season.
A common position will nevertheless be difficult to find with some fishing nations such as Spain, Italy and Malta remaining lukewarm to the idea of a ban, the newspaper said.
"The commission has taken note of the individual positions expressed by some member states supporting the listing of bluefin tuna under the Cites convention," Von Schnurbein said.
"However it is clear that internal coordination is still to come on this issue."
She said the European Commission would be working with all member states "towards the establishment of a common EU position" before the Cites meeting in March 2010.
At the moment bluefin tuna has no protection under Cites, the only global body with the power to limit or ban international trade in endangered species.
If bluefin tuna are given protected status at the meeting in Qatar next March the sale of the fish on international markets would be banned although it could still be sold locally.
Such a measure would eliminate the main cause of over-fishing: the strong demand for the delicacy as sushi and sashimi in countries such as Japan and the United States.
France, Germany, Britain and the Netherlands have said they would support a ban.
Sebastien Buffet Yahoo News 23 Aug 09;
STOCKHOLM (AFP) – By rethinking the humble toilet, Indian sanitation expert Bindeshwar Pathak has found a way that can save water -- and lives -- in developing countries.
For four decades, His Sulabh Sanitation Movement has equipped more than 1.2 million households with eco-friendly toilets and installed 7,500 public lavatories across India.
Yet almost three out of four Indians, or around 700 million people, still have no access to basic sanitation.
This leads to up to half a million deaths each year, Pathak, 66, told AFP at the World Water Week conference in Stockholm, where he was awarded this year's Stockholm Water Prize for his groundbreaking work.
To lower the risk to human health, Pathak developed a twin-pit, pour-flush toilet known as the Sulabh, that uses a pair of tanks to store waste matter with no smell or soil pollution, pending recycling as fertiliser.
It uses significantly less water than a standard toilet, Pathak said.
"It requires only 1.0 to 1.5 liters to flush instead of 10 liters," he said. "It saves trillions of litres of water each year."
The idea is to discourage both open-air defecation and the use of bucket toilets -- options that ramp up the risk of the spread of disease and diarrhoea.
"People have died of cholera cleaning the bucket toilets," Pathak explained.
When a Sulabh is sold to households, its price is adjusted according to a family's ability to pay. The poorest families pay 15 dollars (10 euros) whereas richer families can be asked to pay up to 1,000 dollars.
The Sulabh Sanitation Movement's campaign to raise awareness of health issues has also seen more and more Indians prepared to pay user charges for its 7,500 public toilets.
Staffed 24 hours a day, they cost one dollar a month to use them by subscription -- with an exemption for slum dwellers, women and children.
"For the whole month, you can go to the toilet, you can have a bath, you can drink water," Pathak said.
The Sulabh has been exported to Afghanistan and Bhutan, and there are also plans to ship some to 15 other countries, most of them in Africa.
"I feel very happy because what we have been doing for the last 40 years, now it feels that we are going in the right direction," Pathak told AFP.
As the winner of the Stockholm Water Prize, Pathak receives a cheque for 150,000 dollars (104,700 euros) in recognition of his work to conserve water and improve public health.
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