Best of our wild blogs: 20 Jun 10

How is Chek Jawa doing after the oil spill?
from wild shores of singapore

Chek Jawa seagrasses after the oil spill (19 Jun 10)
from teamseagrass

Life History of the Branded Imperial
from Butterflies of Singapore

Hunt for the Tree Stump Orb Weaver
from Macro Photography in Singapore

Venus Drive
from Singapore Nature

Asian Palm Swift feeding chicks
from Bird Ecology Study Group

Raffles Museum Treasures: Centipede
from Lazy Lizard's Tales and Leopard cat

So Just What is Shark Fin Soup?
from EcoWalkthetalk

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Singapore, Johor study cross-border eco-tourist attraction on Sungei Buloh and three Johor sites

Joanne Chan Channel NewsAsia 19 Jun 10;

SINGAPORE: Singapore is conducting a joint study with Johor to develop a cross-border tourist attraction.

It involves linking up Singapore's Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve and three sites in Johor to promote eco-tourism.

The joint study aims to provide a seamless travel experience for eco-tourists.

This means nature lovers can hop from Sungei Buloh to the nature parks and mangrove forests of Sungai Pulai, Pulau Kukup and Tanjong Piai in Iskandar Malaysia.

Senior Minister of State for National Development Grace Fu said visitors can enjoy the unique characteristics of each site.

"If we have tourists coming to Singapore, and you come to Sungei Buloh, and you find that it's interesting and you want to explore more, a bigger area, a different type of environment, then perhaps from here, you could think about moving on to other areas in Johor, and vice-versa," she said.

Ms Fu said discussions are still underway, including talks about how to link up the 4 sites.

As for Sungei Buloh, work will start later this year to redevelop its facilities to cope with a higher number of visitors, which averages some 140,000 a year.

The 130-hectare wetland is a familiar stomping ground for nature lovers and bird watchers. It's home to a wide variety of flora and fauna, including over 220 species of birds.

Once completed, it will feature a new 38-hectare park for the casual visitor.

The park will have facilities such as observation hides and coastal boardwalks to allow visitors to get closer to nature.

Another focus of the redevelopment is preserving the biodiversity of the wetland reserve. It will be set aside for conservation work and research.

It will boast of a new mangrove arboretum or living gallery of trees, showcasing all 67 species of mangrove plants and trees found in Singapore.

The existing visitor centre here at the Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve will be upgraded to become a research and education hub. New facilities such as dormitories for researchers could be added, as well as meeting rooms to host conferences and workshops.

The wetland reserve will become a restricted access area to protect its biodiversity. This is a similar arrangement for Chek Jawa and Semakau eco-park, where special permits to visits the sites have to be obtained.

"We want to conserve and protect the rich biodiversity within Sungei Buloh. Anyone can still enter, but you will need a guide, or do some preparation before you come," said James Gan, assistant director of Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve, NParks.

Development works on Sungei Buloh will start by the end of this year, and will be completed by mid-2013.

The public can get a sneak peek of the S$50 million redevelopment at an exhibition at its visitor centre until August 1.

NParks said the construction will be carried out in phases so that visitors can still visit the reserve. - CNA/jy/ls

Wetland reserve gets $50m makeover
New 38ha park to help Sungei Buloh cope with growing number of casual visitors
Kimberly Spykerman Straits Times 20 Jun 10;

Conservation will get a boost in the $50 million makeover for the Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve.

The wetland will get a 38ha park - named the Sungei Buloh Wetland Park - to help it cope with the rising number of visitors.

It is hoped that the park will attract more casual visitors, leaving the main reserve area for researchers, serious nature lovers and bird watchers. The authorities fear that rising and unregulated visitor numbers may have a negative impact on the reserve's rich biodiversity.

The site of the new 38ha park is an extension of the reserve now known as the Kranji Nature Trail.

Funding for the park will come from the Singapore Tote Board.

The park, which has no visitor cap, will house facilities such as observation pods, coastal boardwalks, educational play facilities and wireless learning trails.

To further ensure that the area's biodiversity remains largely unspoilt, access to the 138ha reserve, on the other hand, is likely to be controlled. Visitors may have to apply for permission in advance.

These plans were unveiled yesterday by Senior Minister of State for National Development and Education Grace Fu.

Said Ms Fu: 'While we treasure Sungei Buloh's rich biodiversity, we want to bring the public to nature as well. And the challenge is how do we balance the need to keep nature as it is, and allowing public access?'

The Sungei Buloh wetland was gazetted as a nature reserve in 2002, with its wide variety of flora and fauna, including more than 220 species of birds. It has been identified as a zone for core conservation.

Currently, the reserve sees about 140,000 visitors a year, and the authorities hope to bring the number down to 100,000.

This is so that they can better manage visitor impact on the wildlife, an arrangement that visitors to sites like Chek Jawa and the Semakau eco-park are already familiar with, said Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve assistant director James Gan.

'We are taking the proactive approach. We don't want to wait for signs of deterioration due to visitor impact before we take action,' he added.

Mr Wong Tuan Wah, director of conservation at the National Parks Board, said nature enthusiasts often lament a lack of animal sightings at the reserve, and this could largely be due to congestion and noise from crowds within the reserve.

'It's like having a party in there, and that scares away the animals. So by having the segregation, the serious bird watchers and nature lovers have the opportunity to observe... It's no point for you to be able to go everywhere unrestricted, but you don't get to see or experience.'

Conservation efforts within the reserve will also be beefed up. For example, a Mangrove Arboretum - a living gallery of trees - will be set up. A first in the region, it will be a collection of all 67 species of mangrove plants and trees found in Singapore. It will allow students and researchers to view all species easily within a single location.

In addition, more will be done to protect the reserve's biodiversity and habitats, such as the creation of a freshwater pond to enhance the dragonfly population, and erection of a breakwater to mitigate the impact of waves.

Work on the reserve will be done in phases, starting from the end of the year, and is expected to be completed by mid-2013.

Ms Fu also highlighted a joint study that Singapore is conducting with Johor to develop a cross-border tourist attraction involving the Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve and the three Ramsar sites of Sungai Pulai, Pulau Kukup and Tanjong Piai.

A Ramsar site is a title granted by the Geneva-based Ramsar Convention Bureau to identify wetlands of international importance.

She added that the study has the potential to move beyond eco-tourism to include collaboration on environmental and biodiversity conservation.

NParks to enhance outdoor learning and education facilities at Sungei Buloh Mast er Plan Public Exhibition on display from 19 June to 1 August
NParks media release 19 Jun 10;

The National Parks Board (NParks) unveiled the detailed plans for Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve today. Under the Master Plan, conservation of the wetland's rich biodiversity will be strengthened, while its outdoor learning and education facilities will be enhanced. In time to come, visitors can look forward to new facilities, programmes and activities to cater to all groups, from students, families, nature lovers to researchers.

A public exhibition showcasing the future plans for Sungei Buloh was launched today by Ms Grace Fu, Senior Minister of State for National Development and Education.

Speaking at the launch, she said, "We are now writing the new pages of history for Sungei Buloh with the new Sungei Buloh Master Plan. This Master Plan is developed with the twin objectives of strengthening biodiversity conservation, and enhancing Sungei Buloh's status as a premier outdoor education, learning and research centre. NParks and the Ministry of Education (MOE) recognise the richness in learning opportunity that nature provides. Both agencies are exploring ways for our students to step out of their classrooms and learn from the environment that we live in. This year, we embarked on a pilot project to raise students' awareness of Singapore's rich flora and fauna under MOE's Programme for Active Learning, or PAL in short.

The Draft Master Plan for Sungei Buloh was first announced by Senior Minister Mr Goh Chok Tong at Sungei Buloh's 15th anniversary in December 2008. Since then, a working group, comprising representatives from Nature Society Singapore (NSS), the Singapore Environment Council (SEC), National University of Singapore (NUS), National Institute of Education (NIE), National Technological University (NTU), PUB, Ministry of Education (MOE) and volunteers, had worked on the detailed plan for Sungei Buloh.

Enhancing Sungei Buloh's role as an outdoor learning classroom

An extension of Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve, currently known as Kranji Nature Trail, will be redeveloped as a buffer to the wetland reserve, with a focus on nature learning and recreation. Renamed as Sungei Buloh Wetland Park, this 38 hectare park aims to diversify the visitor experience, and also take on the additional visitorship to the wetland reserve.

New facilities in the pipeline for students and family groups include observation hides, coastal boardwalks as well as educational play facilities to support the programmes and activities which will be implemented. Wireless learning trails will also enhance the learning experience.

Educational trails with themes such as 'Life in Mangroves' and 'Conserving Mangroves' will be developed so that visitors can gain a deeper understanding about this rich ecosystem. This helps to promote family bonding out in the field and allows them to get closer to the natural mangrove environment.

Students can also look forward to an additional Visitor Centre at Sungei Buloh Wetland Park. It serves as a second gateway to Sungei Buloh, with experiential trails leading out into the park. This Visitor Centre will have interactive exhibits and interpretative displays to educate the public on mangroves and conservation.

Strengthening conservation of Sungei Buloh

As a site along the East Asian-Australasian Flyway for migratory shorebirds and an ASEAN Heritage Park, Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve is a unique asset for conservation, education and recreation in a land-scarce city state like Singapore. It is home to a wide variety of flora and fauna, including over 220 species of birds.

To enhance Sungei Buloh's biodiversity, a new Mangrove Arboretum, the first in the region, will be set up. It will be a national collection of all 67 species of mangrove plants and trees found in Singapore, featuring common types of mangroves such as the Nipah Palm as well as the critically threatened Api-api jambu (Avicennia marina). This is about 80% of the world's total mangrove flora. When established, this arboretum enables students and researchers on mangroves to view all species easily at one location.

Measures will also be taken to regularly maintain the mudflats as shorebirds use these non-vegetated plots to roost and feed. A series of improvement works will also be implemented to further protect Sungei Buloh's biodiversity and habitats, such as erecting a new breakwater to mitigate the impact of waves. Nature areas within the wetland reserve will also be linked up through tree planting to form corridors of complementary habitats. In addition, a new freshwater pond will be created, which helps in enhancing the population of dragonflies.

Existing Visitor Centre to become a Research Hub

Over at Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve, the existing Visitor Centre will be upgraded to become a research and education hub, with amenities such as multi-purpose rooms and workshops to facilitate research into the biodiversity of mangroves. Facilities for meetings and corporate events are also envisioned which can cater to local and regional workshops on biodiversity conservation and corporate retreats.

Sungei Buloh Master Plan recognised at ASLA 2010

The Sungei Buloh Master Plan received an Honour Award in the Analysis and Planning Category at the 2010 American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) Professional Awards, which was recently concluded in April 2010.

Development works will commence by the end of this year, and are targeted to be completed by mid 2013.

New Coffee table Book on Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve

A new coffee table book called 'Wetlands in the City' was also launched at the event. It is a joint collaboration between NParks and Dr Chua Ee Kiam, a prolific nature photographer cum writer, and a long time volunteer with NParks.

Featuring 360 vivid and stunning photos of the wetland reserve, the 176-page publication aims to showcase the wonders of mangroves, captured from various locations in the reserve such as boardwalks, trails, the observatory tower and the Main Bridge. Dr Chua has also documented the key milestones of Sungei Buloh, from its early days as an area of prawn farms and fruit orchards, to today's wetland reserve of rich biodiversity.

'Wetlands in the City' can be purchased at Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve, the Garden Shop and Library Shop at the Singapore Botanic Gardens from today onwards at $48 each. It is also available at major bookstores from mid July onwards.

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All major canals to be reviewed: Yaacob

Minister pledges to make public measures to be taken following Orchard flood probe
Goh Chin Lian Straits Times 20 Jun 10;

A thorough review of all major canals in Singapore will be carried out, following the massive Orchard Road flood last Wednesday.

Minister for the Environment and Water Resources Yaacob Ibrahim, who asked the PUB to do the review, also promised yesterday to make public the measures to be taken arising from the current investigation into the flood.

'We are not going to leave any stone unturned,' he told reporters after chairing an annual general meeting of Malay self-help group Mendaki.

'I want to assure Singaporeans that we take this matter very seriously,' he added, a point he made three times during the interview.

His comments follow the PUB's explanation last Thursday and Friday for the cause of the flooding.

It said a culvert had become blocked by debris during a rainstorm and had directed water into one instead of two channels flowing under Orchard Road, in a drainage system known as the Stamford Canal.

Like PUB chief executive officer Khoo Teng Chye last Friday, Dr Yaacob described the debacle as 'totally unacceptable'. But he also defended Singapore's drainage system as sound and comprehensive.

In a full review of the drainage system three years ago after floods in Bukit Timah, hot spots were identified and improvements made.

The drains also 'worked perfectly' during the first of two heavy downpours that fateful morning, he said. The PUB's computation is that they could have taken the load from both downpours, had it not been for the blockage by the debris.

And most importantly, he said, the Marina Barrage, which was built to prevent high-tide waters from rushing in, also worked.

'When the rainfall came, we opened up six gates and the water flowed out. There was no flooding downtown. Had there not been a blockage, it would have been a very good system,' Dr Yaacob said.

The construction of new buildings in the Orchard area was not a contributing factor to the flood, as the PUB would have checked their building plans, he added.

He also gave the PUB due credit for its actions post-flood.

'I think the response by the PUB, by the agencies, has been commendable. We have done our best to help the businesses affected, the people affected.'

Asked about compensating their losses, estimated to be in the millions of dollars, he said: 'At the end of the day, we will continue to assist them as much as possible, and the PUB has gone out of its way to help them clear the water.'

The focus now is on learning from the episode and preventing such floods, said Dr Yaacob.

PUB's director of catchment and waterways, Mr Tan Nguan Sen, told The Sunday Times that following its immediate review of the Stamford Canal, the PUB will install additional gratings in the open drains upstream of the canal within a week, to trap debris during rain. It will install two or more water-level sensors along the canal as well.

Dr Yaacob said the PUB and the National Environment Agency will work with the cleaning contractors. Their contracts will be for five years, up from three, so that they have more reason to invest in new cleaning technology.

The PUB will also identify old buildings that are susceptible to floods but were built after flood alleviation measures were spelt out, he said.

In spelling out these measures, Dr Yaacob also left room for the vagaries of the weather. The two successive downpours were unexpected and not seen before, he said.

The key is to be alert - such as doing predictive modelling so that people on the ground can be warned ahead of time - and to improve along the way.

'Every new storm which is unique, that we have not seen, will throw up new challenges,' he said.

'These are the realities of living in a tropical climate.'

Only one underpass affected
Straits Times 20 Jun 10;

One end of the underpass links to Lucky Plaza, but luck was not on its side during the Orchard flood on Wednesday last week.

Of the three pedestrian underpasses in the Orchard-Scotts area, it was the only one that flooded.

The other two underpasses, between Tangs and Ion Orchard, and from Wheelock Place to Shaw House, were unaffected.

The 50m-long passageway linking Lucky Plaza and Ngee Ann City was built by the developers of Ngee Ann City in 1993.

A spokesman for PUB, the national water agency, attributed the flooding to the design of Lucky Plaza: 'As the building was built before 1984, it did not meet the PUB guideline that states that the entrances be 1m above the highest-known flood level.'

The entrance to the underpass at Ngee Ann City meets the guideline. PUB has been talking to the owners of Lucky Plaza on ways to upgrade the building to deal with any flooding. One possible weapon is a feature called a floodgate. When activated, a metal barrier serves to impede the flow of water.

A floodgate was used to stop the water in the underpass from entering Ngee Ann City.

'The floodgate at the underpass to Lucky Plaza was activated when the water level rose to 20mm on Wednesday morning,' said Ngee Ann Property Management deputy complex manager Chan Pei Chun.

Ngee Ann City first made sure nobody was using the underpass as the floodgate would prevent people from entering the building. The staircase leading to the underpass from the mall was also cordoned off.

The National Environment Agency said the cleanup in the underpass involved a team of five workers. The work started at about 8pm when most of the water had been pumped out. It was completed by 10pm.

The other two Orchard-Scotts underpasses, which follow the PUB guidelines, also have floodgates.

Another mall, Wisma Atria, also activated a floodgate located outside its Gap store. The mall has a

water-monitoring system in the canals under the road along the mall. The barrier is put up when sensors detect that the water level is high.

The Orchard MRT station was also kept dry. An SMRT spokesman said stations are designed in accordance with the flood-protection guidelines set by PUB.

Measures include building entrances at least 1m above flood levels. At Orchard MRT station, there is also a flight of stairs leading up from the Orchard sidewalk before one enters the station.

Sumita Sreedharan

Government to review canals across Singapore as part of efforts to prevent floods
Jeremy Koh Channel NewsAsia 19 Jun 10;

SINGAPORE : Following Wednesday's Orchard Road floods, the government will be reviewing all canals across Singapore to prevent a recurrence of the floods.

Environment and Water Resources Minister Yaacob Ibrahim said this on Saturday on the sidelines of a community event.

He added that it is a matter the government is taking "very seriously".

Dr Yaacob said the government will be reviewing all canals in Singapore to see what more can be done.

It will look at ways to improve maintenance.

For example, the cleaning contracts for canals will be extended from three to five years so that contractors can invest in new technologies to clean the canals.

"Every event is a new learning experience for us. This rainfall was totally unexpected, I can be very honest about it. If you look at rainfall patterns, we've never seen such a pattern," said Dr Yaacob.

"Having said that, it means there are new things happening, so the approach we should be taking is to learn from this, improve upon it, and assure Singaporeans that we'll do our best to prevent this as much as possible," he added.

"The Marina Barrage works because when the rainfall came, we opened up six gates and the water flowed out and there was no flooding downtown. So had there not been a blockage, it'll be a very good system as far as we're concerned," he said.

Dr Yaacob said early investigations showed that both sections of the Stamford Canal in Orchard Road could handle the storm surge, if not for the blockage in one of them.

So this is one area that agencies like PUB and the National Environment Agency (NEA) will be looking into to prevent a future occurrence.

"The ministries responsible will have to take it up. On my part, PUB and NEA will do their part to improve this, (and) if we have to work with NParks, we'll work with NParks. The PUB will be going around, looking at which buildings are susceptible to such rainfall and see what we can do with them," said Dr Yaacob.

The minister also said the response by PUB and other agencies has been commendable, as they did their best to help the businesses and people affected.

"The PUB will be going around, looking at which buildings are susceptible to such rainfall and see what we can do with them," said dr Yaacob.

Asked about compensation for the damage, Dr Yaacob said the government will assist those affected as much as possible.

He also said that new buildings and construction in the area are not a contributing factor to the floods, contrary to what some believe. - CNA /ls

Business resumes at Delfi Orchard
Jamie Ee Wen Wei Straits Times 20 Jun 10;

The tenants at Delfi Orchard are now breathing easier. It was business as usual yesterday when The Sunday Times visited the building whose water pumps were damaged in last Wednesday's flood in Orchard.

Most of the shops were opened and tenants said they had a continuous supply of water, dousing fears that they would face a shortage.

Last Thursday, the building's management had informed tenants and residents that Delfi would 'run out of water very soon' because of the damage to the water pumps. Many businesses were forced to close the shutters that day as the air-conditioning system in the building had shut down.

But the smiles were back yesterday.

The air-con has been working since last Friday. An employee at Rocky Master cafe, who declined to be named, said it had 20 buckets of potable water from national water agency PUB, but did not have to use them. 'We anticipated a shortage in water but nothing like that happened,' she said.

Since last Thursday, PUB had deployed a high-pressure booster pump and officers to channel water into the building.

Yesterday, the carpark at basement level three was closed for cleaning. But the flood water, which was at ankle level last Friday, had been drained out.

The carpark at basement levels one and two was open. The building's staff said they were awaiting instructions from the management on when the carpark at basement level three would reopen. Tenants said this hiccup would not affect their business.

Ms Agnes Shum, who owns a fashion boutique, said: 'The building's management and the authorities have been very efficient and fast to react to the situation.'

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Catfish getting national `recognition` in Indonesia as food for all

Andi Abdussalam Antara 19 Jun 10;

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - At least two tons of catfish were unloaded at the east parking lot of the Jakarta Senayan Sports Stadium this weekend, not to feed football match spectators but to get `recognition` as one of the country`s food resilience commodities.

Catfish, locally called `lele` is a very popular dish served in various food stalls beginning from roadside food tents to luxury restaurants.

Affordable by the lower segment of society, the most popular type of this fish dish is "pecel lele," or fried lele served with chilli sauce and vegetables.

As if coming out of the blue, people flocked to the Senayan parking lot on Saturday where different kinds of lele were displayed or served like boiled and fried lele shredded meat and pecel lele.

People came to the parking lot as it was the venue of a "Grand Catfish Festival 2010". No less than First Lady Ani Yudhoyono also attended the festivity.

When she inaugurated the event, she declared catfish as one of the country`s food resilience commodities, calling on people to eat the protein-rich fish and encourage the cultivation of the fresh water fish.

"I have one grandchild and I want to teach her to eat lele when she has reached the age of five years," she said.

At the inauguration of the "Grand Catfish Festival 2010," the First Lady said the food resilience program should not be measured from carbohydrate content only but also from the availability of protein content, and catfish was rich in protein.

Catfish, according to Ani Yudhoyono, not only contained 17 percent protein but was also low in cholesterol, had a delicious flavor. "Catfish prices are low making it affordable by common people. Lele or catfish is one of the country`s food resilience commodities," Ani said.

To enliven the catfish festival, a total of 37 stalls of `pecel lele joined forces to sell one ton of "pecel lele" worth Rp6.000 per package. Some 600 kilogram (kg) of live catfish was put up for sale directly to the public at the price of Rp7.000 per kg.

"About 400 kg of catfish will be used for cooking demonstrations that will be followed by 150 participants from the Greater Jakarta area," Soen`an Hadi Purnomo of the Maritime and Fisheries Affairs (KKP) said.

In order to meet the need for catfish at the festival, the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries had supplied two tons of catfish to be sold to the public at a low price.

Soen`an Hadi Purnomo, who is head of Data Center for Statistics and Information (Pusdatin) of KKP, said the two tons of catfish were donated by the Directorate General of Fisheries and Aquaculture.

"Some of the catfish will be sold live, some after being cooked, and some parts for the purposes of cooking demos," he said.

According to First Lady Ani Yudhoyono, catfish-related exhibitions will also feature the festival which is held from June 19 to 20 at the Parking Lot of the Bung Karno Sports Stadium in Senayan.

The public could get various kinds of information ranging from technical catfish cultivation, feed, until processed catfish.

Another interesting thing was the holding of special business meeting to bring together catfish farmers and entrepreneurs.

Some stakeholders such as PT Alang-alang from Boyolali, abon (boiled and fried shredded meat) catfish producers, "Cat Fish Club", Lele Lela, Department of Marine Fisheries in Yogyakarta and Central Java, to the catfish feed companies took part in the festival.

Ani said cultivating catfish ponds did not require extensive land. After all, catfish has strong resistance against moody water making its cultivation much easier and offering opportunities that could improve the people`s welfare.

For the purpose, Ani urged the Civil Servant Wives Organization (PKK) in the regions throughout the country to encourage backyard cultivation of catfish.

"Raise catfish in the yards for both own consumption and for sale. So this catfish can make families healthy and prosperous," she said.

Even in Jakarta which has a dense population and limited land, catfish farming can be run, Ani said.

At the event, organized by the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, Ani also called on the entire community to change their outlook that often saw catfish as an unhealthy food product.

Moreover, Ani also urged parents to teach their children to eat fish which had high protein in an effort to improve the quality of human resources.

The catfish festival is intended to improve the image of cultured fish which is often considered as not clear but a clean fish which is safe and healthy for consumption and could improve the intelligence and welfare of the people.
The catfish festival includes such activities as business meetings which bring together catfish entrepreneurs. It also presents cooking competitions for various kinds of catfish menus.

Exhibitions on various kinds of processed catfish food products ranging from catfish abon (shredded meat), catfish crisp, pecel lele to catfish soup.

National production of catfish in 2008 reached 114,371 tons, and in 2009 it increased nearly 75 percent to around 200 thousand tons.

The Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries has set itself a target of an increase catfish production by 450 percent to 900 thousand tonnes in 2014.

Catfish is a popular fish species in communities that has a significant growth of approximately 32 percent per annum during the period 2005-2009.

The national consumption of catfish in 2009 only reached 30.17 kg per capita per year, still below the recommended 31.40 kg per capita per year.

The Grand Catfish Festival aims to encourage the development of the catfish industry in Indonesia, particularly in the marketing aspect and encourage the development of catfish consumption in the community.(*)

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Rescued elephant in Malaysia dies after two weeks

The Star 19 Jun 10;

KOTA KINABALU: An endangered Borneo pygmy elephant lost its struggle for survival after being rescued two weeks ago.

The orphaned two-year-old female calf died after it suffered from severe internal bleeding at the Lok Kawi Wildlife Park here on Wednesday.

“She had perforated ulcers in the intestines. It was a tough fight for survival,” Wildlife De­­partment chief senior field veterinarian Dr Sen Nathan said yes­terday.

On June 4, the wildlife rescue unit saved the highly dehydrated pygmy elephant from a moat at an oil palm plantation in Lahad Datu after the public alerted them to the animal in distress.

The calf, which had apparently been left abandoned for a few days before it was rescued, was brought to the Lok Kawi Wildlife Park here, but failed to respond to treatment.

It was among two young elephants rescued by wildlife personnel in the last four weeks.

In mid-May, wildlife personnel rescued a six-month-old female calf from Ladang Felcra/KTS, also in the Lahad Datu district.

Dr Nathan said the other rescued calf, which the department personnel had named Huminidon, was recovering well.

“`It is gaining weight,” he added.

Malaysia's rescued baby pygmy elephant dies
Yahoo News 20 Jun 10;

KUALA LUMPUR (AFP) – An endangered pygmy elephant calf that was rescued on Borneo island early this month has died, a minister said Sunday.

Masidi Manjun, eastern Sabah-state tourism, culture and environment minister said the two-year-old female calf died from severe internal bleeding.

On June 4, the wildlife rescue unit saved the highly dehydrated pygmy elephant from a moat at an oil palm estate. She was one of two calves found starving in Sabah.

"The lesson we learn from this tragedy is that the best place for the animal to survive is in its natural habitat and not in human captivation," Masidi said.

Pygmy elephants on Borneo form a sub-species of the Asian elephant. The creatures have a rounded appearance and are smaller than their mainland cousins.

Authorities say there are around 1,500-2,000 left on Borneo island.

Wildlife activists have warned that Borneo Pygmy elephants are fast losing their natural habitat to deforestation and human encroachment.

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APEC agrees to promote nuclear power: reports

Yahoo News 19 Jun 10;

TOKYO (AFP) – Asia-Pacific ministers and officials agreed Saturday to promote renewable sources and nuclear power in a bid to maintain energy security and cut greenhouse gas emissions in the region.

Japan hosted the one-day energy meeting of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation forum (APEC), in Fukui, ahead of a summit scheduled for November in Yokohama, southwest of Tokyo.

In a statement adopted at the meeting, the forum agreed that the deployment of renewable energy, nuclear energy and power generation involving carbon capture and storage technology should be promoted, Kyodo News reported.

As for new nuclear power plant construction, the statement said "solid financial frameworks as well as cooperation among member economies and with relevant multilateral organisations" could be of help, Kyodo said.

It was the first time APEC had clearly stipulated the promotion of building new nuclear power plants, Kyodo said, quoting Japanese government officials.

Japan has been eager to promote nuclear power as a largely carbon-free energy source, although it has often been plagued by safety concerns and problems related to radioactive waste disposal.

During the meeting, US Deputy Secretary of Energy Daniel Poneman touched on the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, a US spokeswoman said.

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More than a million evacuated in China over flood threat

Yahoo News 19 Jun 10;

BEIJING (AFP) – More than a million people living along rivers in China's south have been evacuated with water rising to dangerous levels, state media said Saturday, as torrential rains left at least 88 dead.

The government said more than 1.4 million residents living on river banks and in low-lying areas had had to move, according to the official China Daily.

Zhang Zhitong, deputy director of the Office of State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters, said China's second-largest waterway, the Pearl River, which crosses the south, had breached warning marks on Thursday.

Torrential and virtually unrelenting rain has battered large swathes of China's south since Sunday, triggering devastating floods and landslides that have killed 88 people.

The official Xinhua news agency reported that, in the southeastern province of Fujian alone, 31 people had died in rain-triggered landslides.

Photos on China News Service showed people in Fujian's Gutian county wearing lifejackets and wading deep in water through flooded streets.

State television broadcast images of a bridge in another Fujian town collapsing as water raged underneath it, and in neighbouring Guangdong province, houses were shown almost entirely submerged.

Meanwhile, diggers in nearby Jiangxi were seen clearing roads of huge rocks caused by landslides and workers hung off poles, working at restoring electricity for residents.

Rescue workers in another town in Jiangxi were seen throwing ropes across a raging river to help people cross to the other side, as they also fetched children stuck in a kindergarten and put them in a small boat.

According to the latest statement from the nation's civil affairs ministry, 48 people were still missing in eight provinces and regions in the south and the cost of the disaster had now reached 11 billion yuan (1.6 billion dollars).

A total of 155,000 houses had been damaged -- almost half of which had collapsed -- and more than 500,000 hectares of crops had been affected, the ministry said.

Authorities have raised the level of their emergency response as rescue and flood-prevention work continues, it added.

The National Meteorological Centre warned on Saturday of more rainstorms to come, a day after it issued an orange storm alert -- just one level lower than the nation's most serious red alert.

"There will be heavy rain over the next three days, and flood-control work will face enormous challenges," it said in a statement, adding that some of the rainfall in the south was up to three times greater than normal years.

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Can painting a mountain restore a glacier?

Dan Collyns BBC News 17 Jun 10;

Slowly but surely an extinct glacier in a remote corner of the Peruvian Andes is being returned to its former colour, not by falling snow or regenerated ice sheets, but by whitewash.

It is the first experimental step in an innovative plan to recuperate Peru's disappearing Andean glaciers.

But there is debate between those who dismiss the idea as just plain daft and those who think it could be a simple but brilliant solution, or at least one which should be put to the test.

The World Bank clearly believes the idea - the brainchild of 55-year-old Peruvian inventor, Eduardo Gold - has merit as it was one of the 26 winners from around 1,700 submissions in the "100 Ideas to Save the Planet" competition at the end of 2009.

Mr Gold, who has no scientific qualifications but has studiously read up on glaciology, is enthused that the time has come to put his theory into practice.

Although he is yet to receive the $200,000 (£135,000) awarded by the World Bank, his pilot project is already underway on the Chalon Sombrero peak, 4,756 metres above sea level, in an area some 100km west of the regional capital of Ayacucho.

The area has long been denuded of its snowy, white peaks.

Four men from Licapa, the village which lies further down the valley, don boiler suits and mix the paint from three simple and environmentally-friendly ingredients: lime, industrial egg white and water.

The mixture which has been used since Peru's colonial times.

There are no paint brushes, the workers use jugs to splash the whitewash onto the loose rocks around the summit.

It is a laborious process but they have whitewashed two hectares in two weeks.

They plan is to paint the whole summit, then in due course, two other peaks totalling overall some 70 hectares.
'Cold generates cold'

Mr Gold may not be a scientist but his idea is based on the simple scientific principle that when sunlight is reflected off a white or light-coloured surface, solar energy passes back through the atmosphere and out into space, rather than warming the Earth's surface.

The US Energy Secretary, Steven Chu, has endorsed a similar idea using white roofs in the United States - possibly more pragmatic than painting mountains.

Changing the albedo (a measure of how strongly an object reflects light) of the rock surface, would bring about a cooling of the peak's surface, says Mr Gold, which in turn would generate a cold micro-climate around the peak.

"Cold generates more cold, just as heat generates more heat," says Mr Gold.

"I am hopeful that we could re-grow a glacier here because we would be recreating all the climatic conditions necessary for a glacier to form."

The 900-strong population of Licapa, the village which depends on Chalon Sombrero for its water supply, did not think twice about accepting Mr Gold's proposal and the funding it would bring.

"When I was around 15-20 years old, Chalon Sombrero was a big glacier, all white, then little by little it started to melt," says 65-year-old Pablo Parco, who is one of the project's supporters.

"Forty years on and the river's never been lower, the nights are very cold and the days are unbearably hot. It wasn't like this when I was growing up... it was always bearable.

"So we're happy to see this project to paint the mountain. I can tell you this morning there was snow on the ground, something we rarely see.

"Up here we live from our animals, up here there's no work, there's no crops, when there's less water, there's less pasture and that means less livestock."
Finding solutions

In Peru, home to more than 70% of the world's tropical glaciers, global warming has already melted away 22% of them in the last 30 years, according to a World Bank report of 2009.

The remaining glaciers could disappear in 20 years if measures are not taken to mitigate climate change, it adds.

The impact would go way beyond Andean communities, with dramatic consequences for the water supply on Peru's populous coast and hydroelectric power.

In May, Peru's environment minister, Antonio Brack, said Peru would need $400m a year to mitigate climate change.

He is one of the sceptics who is not prepared to give Mr Gold's idea the benefit of the doubt.

"I think there are much more interesting projects which would have more impact in mitigating climate change and that's where this money should be invested," he told the BBC.

But the ministry's climate change chief, Eduardo Durand has said: "Every innovative idea has the right to be heard" and has given the pilot project the green light.

"On a local scale, it might have an impact, it might change a trend, improve things a little," says Thomas Condom, a glaciologist and hydrologist working at the French Institute for Research and Development, which has been monitoring tropical glaciers in the Andes for the past 15 years.

"But the impact is bound to remain local, it is not going to reverse or stop a trend on the scale of a whole region. It would be very difficult to do something similar on a very big scale in the Andes."

A report by the UK's Royal Society in 2009 said the technology of "geo-engineering" projects was still "barely formed" and governments should continue to focus on cutting carbon emissions.

But if Mr Gold's pilot project proves successful in pushing down the temperature, he envisages expanding it to Peru's most threatened glacial regions on a large scale.

"I'd rather try and fail to find a solution than start working out how we are going to survive without the glaciers, as if the situation was irreversible," he says.

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