Best of our wild blogs: 25 Dec 09

Another Red-Legged Crake found dead
from Bird Ecology Study Group

Venus Drive
from Singapore Nature

Oriental Pied Hornbill and papaya
from Bird Ecology Study Group

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The Singapore Green Plan and "Areas of Natural Scenic Beauty"

Not part of the plan
Home to several endangered species, but this green spot at Lorong Halus is itself in danger of being wiped out
Esther Ng Today Online 25 Dec 09;

SINGAPORE - The path leading to the ponds at Lorong Halus is a scenic sight of grasslands and wooded hills. If it is hard to imagine that this once housed a landfill and sewage works, it's probably even harder to recall that before it became a dumping ground, this was once an area full of mangroves, mudflats and ponds.

"Thousands of birds during their annual migration would swarm here like the globally-threatened Chinese Egret and Asian Dowitcher," said the deputy chairman of Nature Society Singapore's (NSS) conservation committee, Dr Ho Hua Chew.

Since the Lorong Halus landfill was closed in 1999, some green shoots with patches of woodlands and two small ponds have emerged here.

It is the only known site for the breeding of the Little Grebe, a critically-endangered bird, with only 10 such birds believed to be surviving in all of Singapore.

Yet while Lorong Halus and other green spots like Bukit Brown, the grassland at Simpang, Bidadari and Springleaf Woodlands are home to several endangered species such as the Straw-headed Bulbul, the rare Twin-barred Tree Snake and critically endangered orchid species like Dendrobium Lobii and Liparis ferruginea - they are not part of the Singapore Green Plan (SGP) - which is a sore point with the NSS.

The NSS believes these places should be designated "Areas of Natural Scenic Beauty" - and legislated protected areas - as is the practice in other countries like the United Kingdom, with potential for being turned into an educational and conservation asset.

"Being a small nation, our areas of natural scenic beauty are rather unspectacular but they have a charm of their own, if our sense of scenic beauty is not constricted by what we see overseas on our holidays and if we bother to explore our countryside," said Dr Ho.

According to a report from the National Parks Board (NParks) and the National University of Singapore's Centre for Remote Imaging, Sensing and Processing, Singapore's greenery grew from 36 per cent in 1986 to 47 per cent in 2007.

Out of the 47 per cent, 10 per cent has been set aside for nature reserves and parks, while the remaining green areas are open to future development.

NSS estimates that these green pockets are mostly undeveloped areas - patches of mangrove, scrublands, woodlands as well as remnant orchards and rubber plantations which have reverted to a wild state.

They also include areas once designated as Nature Areas in the 1992 SGP - Mandai Estuary, Sungei Khatib Bongsu and Pulau Semakau - which were de-listed from the URA's Master Plan in 2003. Six years on, the NSS is still calling for these areas to be re-listed as such.

Restoring de-listed nature areas into green plan

"These green areas have become a refuge for the remaining wildlife of Singapore, including many species that are thought by experts to be supposedly extinct or rare, as well as serving as harbours for migratory species," said Dr Ho.

"Given this scenario, the possibility of increasing our nature areas in the SGP should not be automatically ruled out in the name of land scarcity," he added.

When asked, NParks and the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) told MediaCorp the Government has to take a balanced and pragmatic approach to land-use planning - and it may not always be possible to keep as much of the existing greenery or nature areas as it would like to.

But it gave the assurance "a process is in place to ensure that where possible, the necessary studies are done and mitigating measures taken to minimise the possible environmental impact whenever development projects are planned in or close to areas with significant biodiversity".

The URA and NParks told MediaCorp that some of the areas mentioned in the 1992 SGP were not included as nature areas in the Parks and Waterbodies Plan as they have been committed for "strategic and long-term development".

However, these areas will still be "retained for as long as they are not required for development".

As it stands now, Bukit Timah Nature Reserve, Central Catchment Nature Reserve, Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve and Labrador Nature Reserve cover about 4.5 per cent of Singapore's land area and represent indigenous ecosystems, such as primary lowland forest, freshwater swamp forest and mangroves, said the agencies.

In addition, the 300-km Park Connector Network, when completed, will link up green spaces throughout the island, bringing the community closer to nature.

However, this does not go far enough for NSS. It wants all 47 per cent of Singapore's green spaces to be preserved as a "carbon sink" which can be traded for carbon credits.

In environment-speak, a carbon sink is a natural or man-made reservoir or area that accumulates and stores some carbon-containing chemical compound.

"Planting individual trees is less effective in creating a carbon sink than allowing woodlands to remain as they are.

"We're prone to protest about forest fires in Indonesia but our protests sound very hollow if we were to progressively wipe out our remaining greenery until what is left are nature reserves and public parks."

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Government should formulate policy on mangrove forest: Malaysian activists

SAM wants govt to formulate policy on mangrove forest
The Star 24 Dec 09;

PENANG: Sahabat Alam Malaysia (SAM) has urged the government to draw up a specific policy on the mangrove forest to ensure that the forest would not be destroyed to enable development activities to be carried out.

Its president, SM Mohamed Idris said the policy should include the conservation of the mangrove forest and outline the measures that would be implemented to achieve the objective.

"Priority should be given to preserve the mangrove swamp area," he told reporters here, Thursday.

He also wanted the mangrove forests to be stated in the Forestry Acts as a permanent forest reserve.

He said the tsunami that hit several countries on Dec 26, 2004 should always be remembered and the conservation of the mangrove forest was important as the forest could lessen the impact of the disaster.

"It appears as though we have never learnt from the destruction caused by the tsunami. We continue to destroy the mangrove forests for development," said Mohd Idris. - Bernama

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Subsidise methane bio-power: Sabah activist

Jaswinder Kaur, New Straits Times 24 Dec 09;

KOTA KINABALU: The Malaysian Palm Oil Board's suggestion for Sabah to use methane from mills to generate electricity, instead of building a coal-fired power plant, is in line with calls to use renewable energy to solve power shortage in the state.
Sabah Environment Protection Association (Sepa) president Wong Tack said there was a need for political will to provide incentives to make use of green technologies.

"What MPOB has said reinforces the point that we have been making, and we hope these growing voices will be taken seriously.

"The generation of renewable energy is subsidised in many countries and they are allowed to sell to the grid at higher prices.

"I hope Tenaga Nasional Berhad and the government will do the same. The government can step in as a matter of policy because an initiative like this has to be supported and encouraged."

Wong was responding to a recent statement by MPOB chairman Datuk Sabri Ahmad that there were 117 palm oil mills in Sabah that emitted methane, which could be trapped to fuel steam turbines.

Sabri had said it was a cleaner alternative for Sabah, instead of a coal-fired plant, adding that biomass and biogas technologies were also available.

Wong said Sabri's statement showed that he knew the potential of renewable energy from vast oil palm plantations in Sabah.

A coalition of non-governmental organisations that calls itself Green Surf wants TNB and its subsidiary, Sabah Electricity, to increase the efficiency of power facilities and to look at other alternatives instead of the 300-megawatt coal plant at a Felda plantation in Lahad Datu.

'Need for study on biomass option'
New Straits Times 24 Dec 09;

KOTA KINABALU: Studies should be done on the feasibility of using biomass and biogas to resolve the electricity shortage in Sabah, state Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister Datuk Masidi Manjun said yesterday.
"If it is possible, it is a good substitute for fossil fuels. I'm curious to know whether it can be done.

"I think all of us in Sabah are eager to know if indeed it (biomass-generated power) can be done here. That is something for Sabah Electricity Sdn Bhd and Tenaga Nasional Berhad to think about."

Masidi said it was up to these bodies to conduct a thorough study to see if agricultural waste could be used to generate power on a sufficient scale for residential and commercial use.

He was asked to comment on a recent report which quoted Malaysian Palm Oil Board chairman Datuk Sabri Ahmad as saying that biogas methane emitted by waste sludge in the retention ponds of 117 oil mills in Sabah could be trapped to fuel steam turbines and generate electricity.

Sabri had said it was a cleaner alternative to building a coal-fired power plant. Sabri had said biomass and biogas technologies were available now.

"I'm sure it is possible on a small scale, but we are talking about an entire grid -- a much bigger scale," said Masidi after opening the Snips College of Creative Arts in Karamunsing here yesterday.

"It must also be made cheaper for consumers. Will our consumers be ready to pay a premium for electricity?"

A coal-fired plant to be built in Felda Sahabat on the east coast of Sabah to solve the state's power woes has attracted much controversy.

On another matter, Masidi said Sabah was not ready for single-session schools as the infrastructure in many schools was not in place for such a plan.

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Study On Turtle Population In Feeding Grounds In Semporna

Bernama 25 Dec 09;

SANDAKAN, Dec 25 (Bernama) -- A study to determine the turtle population in feeding ground areas has been conducted at the Tun Sakaran Marine Park and Sipadan Islands in Semporna from Sept 29 until Oct 12 this year.

The study, the first in the country, was conducted by a group of researchers from the Sea Turtle Research Unit (SEATRU), Universiti Malaysia Terengganu, led by Dr Juanita Joseph.

Dr Juanita said blood samples of 69 Green turtles and nine Hawksbill turtles were taken for the study, adding that the turtles were marked before they were released.

"The marking of the turtles was done in the feeding ground for long-term observation and monitoring," she told Bernama here.

She said similar studies had been conducted in Australia and the United States of America.

The study was important to aid efforts for turtle conservation, as well as identify feeding grounds which are threatened by fishing activities, she added.

Dr Juanita said the outcome of the study would be presented in a working paper on strategy to address illegal catching of turtles in Malaysian waters and the Indo-Pacific region.

-- BERNAMA

Study to help in turtle conservation
The Star 30 Dec 09;

SANDAKAN: Blood samples were taken from 69 green turtles and nine hawksbill turtles under a study in Semporna to determine the turtle population at feeding grounds.

Dr Juanita Joseph, who led the group of researchers from the Sea Turtle Research Unit in Universiti Malaysia Terengganu, said the turtles were also marked before they were released.

“The marking was done at the feeding ground for long-term observation and monitoring,” she said here.

She said that similar studies had been conducted in Australia and the United States.

However, the study in Sabah carried out from Sept 29 to Oct 12 was the first in Malaysia. It covered two areas – the Tun Sakaran Marine Park and Sipadan Islands.

The study was important to aid efforts in turtle conservation and to identify feeding grounds threatened by fishing, said Dr Joseph.

She said the study’s outcome would be presented in a working paper on strategies to address illegal catching of turtles in Malaysian waters and the Indo-Pacific region. — Bernama

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Christmas with the leatherbacks

Larry Greenemeier, Scientific American 24 Dec 09;

Want to know where Noelle and Darwinia—two intrepid adult female leatherback turtles (Dermochelys coriacea) that nest in Gabon—are spending their Christmas? Researchers at the University of Exeter in the U.K. have made it easy by launching a new Web site on Wednesday that uses satellite tracking technology to monitor the turtles' movements off the coast of west central Africa.

The turtles are each traveling solo but have logged about 1,287 kilometers between them since the researchers began tracking on December 7. The transmitters allow the researchers to determine the turtles' positions when they surface to breathe.

The story of Noelle and Darwinia is more a story of survival than of their progress, as the waters around Gabon are increasingly subject to industrial fishing, pollution and oil exploitation, particularly from nations outside western Africa, including countries in Europe, according to the researchers. "It is only by having detailed information on where these creatures go that we can try to protect them," Exeter postdoctoral researcher Matthew Witt said in a prepared statement.

During three nesting seasons, scientists conducted land and aerial surveys along Gabon's 600-kilometer coast, estimating that a population of up to 41,373 female turtles uses the nesting beaches. Gathering information about leatherbacks when they are at sea is not as easy, given that they are the deepest diving of all sea turtles. Researchers have recorded dives of up to 1.2 kilometers, on par with the dives of sperm whales.

Leatherbacks—the largest of all sea turtles, generally measuring up to nearly two meters long and weighing up to 540 kilograms—saw their population in the Indo-Pacific region diminish by more than 90 percent in the 1980s and 1990s. Although the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) issued a report (pdf) last week indicating that leatherbacks (along with the Artic fox and koala) are "the species destined to be hardest hit by climate change," the Exeter researchers say there is a lack of information about their populations in much of the Atlantic, especially near Africa.

The IUCN reports that the "critically endangered" turtles are being affected by rising sea levels and increased storm activity due to climate change destroying their nesting habitats on beaches. Temperature increases may also lead to a reduction in the proportion of males relative to females. The sex of leatherbacks is determined by the temperature of eggs during incubation. With leatherbacks, temperatures above 29 degrees Celsius result in female hatchlings.

The Exeter researchers are working with Gabon's government and a number of NGOs working there, including the Wildlife Conservation Society and Seaturtle.org, to learn more about the leatherbacks' movements.

"Over the Christmas period we will follow their movements with great interest with the hope that the information we gather can feed into truly useful approaches to help promote the protection of the species," Witt said.

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Impact of warming seas on Indian Ocean reefs

Coral reefs may be affected due to sea warming
IANS Thaindian 24 Dec 09;

New Delhi, Dec 24 (IANS) Coral reefs, the most diverse marine habitat that support half-a-million species, may start losing dominance from Indian seas starting 2030 following increase in sea temperature, says a new study.

Scientists from the Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute, Cochin studied the coral vulnerability due to warming of Indian seas reef regions of the Andaman & Nicobar, Lakshadweep, the Gulf of Mannar and the Gulf of Kutch.

According to scientists, corals are among the most sensitive ecosystems to temperature changes, exhibiting bleaching - a process of whitening of corals when stressed by higher than normal sea temperature.

Indian coral reefs have experienced 29 widespread bleaching events since 1989 and 2002. Bleaching events and the ambient temperature at the time of bleaching provide scope for making projections, on the vulnerability of coral reefs with future warming of seas. The study was based on future projection of rise in sea temperature from 2000 to 2099.

“The results indicate that if there is no increase in thermal tolerance capacity, bleaching would become an annual or biannual event for almost all reef regions along the Indian coasts in next 30-50 years,” said scientist E.Vivekanandan, who led the study.

Corals are small animals that live in colonies and form reefs. The coral reefs are important marine ecosystem that act as life support system for million of coastal inhabitants in terms of coastal protection, nutrient cycling, recreation, tourism and fisheries.

“We studied the sea surface temperature date prior to, during and after 1998 coral bleaching events in the five regions and found that coral bleaching occurred when the maximum summer sea surface temperature exceeded 31 degrees Celsius and remained high for more than 30 days,” said Vivekanandan.

The study found that the reef building corals may lose dominance between 2030 and 2040 in the Lakshadweep region and between 2050 and 2070 in the other four regions.

The results show that monthly sea surface temperature is predicted to increase to 34 degrees in all the regions of the Indian seas during 2000-99.

“The annual average sea surface temperature may increase by 3 degrees to 3.5 degrees in the Indian seas by the turn of this century. With rise in temperature, coral bleaching in all the five regions may exceed frequently until the middle of this century and almost every year after 2050,” he said.

Scientists warn that catastrophic exposure is the most likely outcome of the bleaching by 2050.

“Given that recovery time of such a event is at least 10 years and 50 years for full recovery, this scenario would mean a non-coral dominated reef structure,” he added.

Read more: http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/enviornment/coral-reefs-may-be-affected-due-to-sea-warming_100294026.html#ixzz0aazRxfKY

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Super rice under development

Scientists genetically engineering plant hope to boost crops by 50%
Alastair McIndoe, Philippines Correspondent Straits Times 25 Dec 09;

LOS BANOS: Near a patchwork of emerald-green rice fields, a research facility is being built here to house the experimental plants that crop scientists hope will produce a revolutionary high-yielding rice strain.

If successful, the project led by the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) will ensure that future global demand for the food staple can be comfortably met.

'This is an Apollo project - long range, high risk, but with an extremely high pay-off,' IRRI director-general Robert Zeigler told The Straits Times.

After the spikes in world food prices in 2007 and last year, 'now is the right time to start this bold challenge', he added.

Leading plant scientists from Asia, Europe and the United States are collaborating on the 'C4 Project' to alter the intricate biochemisty of rice plants so that they capture sunlight - a process called photosynthesis - more efficiently.

The programme, already under way, is in uncharted scientific territory.

Newly-appointed project leader William Quick, a professor of plant physiology and photosynthesis specialist from Britain's University of Sheffield, thinks it will be between 15 and 25 years before C4 rice is ready for farmers' fields.

Funding to get the project off the ground came from an US$11.5 million (S$16.2 million) grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. An early breakthrough would probably see more funds being ploughed in from other sources.

The goal is to genetically modify rice into a C4 photosynthesis plant, like maize, sorghum and sugar cane, which absorb sunlight faster and more efficiently than C3 plants, which include rice.

Dr Quick said: 'To make the conversion to C4 photosynthesis, we have to change the biochemistry and anatomy of the leaf, and we don't yet understand the mechanism for doing this. But we're just at the start.'

The IRRI - which initiated the first green revolution of high-yield rice and is marking its 50th anniversary - believes C4 rice could boost yields by 50 per cent.

As Dr Zeigler put it: 'If the project is successful, we won't have to worry about rice supplies.'

And Dr Quick added: 'It would be like a second green revolution.'

Meanwhile, there are renewed supply concerns after last year's rice crisis, when prices surged to record highs and countries scrambled to stock up.

Typhoons in the Philippines, severe monsoons in India, and insect damage to crops in Thailand, a major rice exporter, have again put upward pressure on prices - and again focused international attention on the challenge of ensuring global food security for rice.

According to the IRRI, production will have to rise around 2 per cent a year to keep pace with consumption, but not even half that is being achieved.

While there is hope that new land for planting rice may open up in Brazil and Argentina, land in Asia's traditional rice-growing countries is being squeezed by urbanisation and pressured by the impact of climate change. This means higher-yielding and more resilient rice will need to be developed.

But Dr Zeigler said: 'There is a reasonable certainty that we can build rice plants that produce well in the difficult environments we'll be facing.'

He noted that research is progressing into developing rice with high tolerance to flooding, drought and salinity in soil.

'So if farmers manage crops better, improve post-harvest handling - by not drying rice on roads, for example - and use the technologies that we know are good, then I think over the next 20 years demand can be met,' he said.

The research rainbow does not end with developing C4 rice, however.

'The next frontier would be a really smart rice plant that would not need a lot of fertiliser. It could detect the nitrogen content in soil and balance out its own needs by capturing additional nitrogen from the air,' said Dr Zeigler.

'Basically, it would have its own genetic control system to fine-tune how it interacts with the environment.'

Another possibility is creating a rice strain that requires less cooking or, in other words, rice that would be nearly edible at harvest.

'We're talking about some very funky plants,' said Dr Zeigler.

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