Wild boar sightings in Punggol not uncommon but rarely a problem: Residents

Fann Sim Channel NewsAsia 29 Aug 18;

SINGAPORE: Despite the wild boar attack on a woman outside Punggol Secondary School on Tuesday (Aug 28), residents in the area that Channel NewsAsia spoke with said the animals are usually not aggressive and will not attack unless provoked.

One man said that he has seen wild boars around the Punggol Serangoon reservoir, about 2 kilometres from the secondary school, more than 20 times in the last two years.

“They are usually in the jungle but sometimes they come out to eat around the slopes of the hill. There are a lot of them, probably 20-25 wild boars from babies to middle-sized to adults,” Mr Amalraj said.

They usually run away when they see people, he added.

A retired resident Mr Koh said that he once saw more than 10 wild boars grazing near the Lorong Halus bridge that spans the reservoir.

“I’ve seen them many times and they are usually finding food. They were not fierce or aggressive and I could even go up close to take photos,” Mr Koh said.

He cycles along Sungei Punggol daily, which runs along many of the new residential projects in the neighbourhood, and has seen people feed the boars, usually in the evening.

Wild boars have also been spotted at the forested areas around Punggol Safra near Sam Kee LRT station, about 1 kilometre away from the secondary school.

Homemaker Mrs Lee told Channel NewsAsia that she has heard from other residents as well as her children's classmates that they have spotted wild boars near Punggol Safra but they were "friendly".

READ: Government working with stakeholders to 'manage wild boar issues': MND
Retiree Susie Woo said her group of elderly friends who play Pokemon Go together have warned each other to watch out for wild boars in the area when they are out and about.

"We saw them at My Waterway @ Punggol where there is a Pokemon gym. I saw two big boars. One was digging the ground and it's fine. Nothing happened. I saw boars three times there," Mdm Woo said.

"It's not so serious. If you don't provoke them they will not attack you," she added.

Resident Low Woon Teck said that there used to be a field with an area of big trees that made it look "like a forest". He came across two boars under a flyover while waiting for the rain to pass when he was out running.

"Why would I be scared? They were grazing like goats and just running up and down. Everybody was watching under the flyover," Mr Low said.

"There are also wild dogs here but it's nothing much. It's not a real concern to me," he added.

Source: CNA/fs


Punggol Secondary students told to be vigilant after boar injures school employee: Principal
Channel NewsAsia 29 Aug 18;

SINGAPORE: Staff and students of Punggol Secondary have been reminded to be vigilant and watchful of their surroundings after a woman was injured by a boar outside the school, said its principal Benedict Keh on Wednesday (Aug 29).

He confirmed that the woman injured on Tuesday is an administrative employee at the school, adding that she remains in hospital.

"We will render her continued assistance, including giving her the time to recover from her wounds," said Mr Keh in response to Channel NewsAsia's queries.

"We have reminded our staff and students to be vigilant and watchful of their surroundings," he added.

"As an added precaution, we are working with the relevant authorities to ensure the safety of our staff and students."

The Singapore Civil Defence Force said it responded to a call for medical assistance at about 5.15pm on Tuesday, along 51 Edgefield Plains.

After the incident, the boar ran into a nearby executive condominium's rubbish collection point, according to a report by Channel 8 News.

The animal was stranded there and was eventually sedated and moved from the area, said the Animal Concerns Research and Education Society (ACRES).

NO INCREASE IN WILD BOAR SIGHTINGS IN PUNGGOL: AVA

The Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) said it contacted ACRES after being alerted to a boar at the condominium, adding that the animal was subsequently relocated at the Lorong Halus area.

"The wild boar likely came from forested areas at the end of Punggol and/or Coney Island, where boars are known to be present," said AVA in response to Channel NewsAsia's queries.

"AVA has been monitoring the wild boar situation and has not observed any increased trend of wild boar sightings at this area."

The agency added that it has been working closely with the National Parks Board, ACRES, Wildlife Reserves Singapore and the National University of Singapore to "mitigate encounters with wild boars".

"Some measures which have been implemented include putting up signage about wildlife crossings at specific locations to warn motorists," said AVA.

​​​​​​​Authorities said last year that they were working on managing wild boar issues in Singapore after reports of more sightings near residential areas.

Last November, police fired tasers at a boar at Punggol West Flyover after it charged towards officers and members of the public.

In October 2017, a man was injured after he was attacked by a wild boar near a bus stop at Hillview Road.

ACRES said on Tuesday that the wild boar in the latest incident likely came from Lorong Halus.

"Development works in that area could have caused this individual to venture out and subsequently finding itself lost in the urban area," said ACRES deputy chief executive Kalai Vanan.

"Feeding by people may have had a part to play as well to cause the animal to venture out as well."

AVA cautioned members of the public not to approach, disturb, feed or try to catch any wildlife.

"We urge the public to keep a safe distance from all wild boars and avoid confronting or cornering the animals.

"Do not interact with the animal, and ensure that young children and pets are kept away as they may be curious and approach it," said AVA.​​​​​​​

Source: CNA/zl/(gs)


Woman hurt by wild boar: AVA says boar likely from forested areas in Punggol or Coney Island
Timothy Goh and Tee Zhuo Straits Times 28 AUg 18;

SINGAPORE - The Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority of Singapore (AVA) said it has not observed any increased trend of wild boar sightings in Punggol, after a woman was hurt in an encounter with the animal near Punggol Secondary School on Tuesday (Aug 28).

It added that the wild boar likely came from forested areas at the end of Punggol or Coney Island, where the animals are known to be present.

"AVA has been working closely with relevant stakeholders including NParks, Acres, Wildlife Reserves Singapore and NUS, to mitigate encounters with wild boars and ensure public safety," it said on Wednesday, in response to queries from The Straits Times. "Some measures which have been implemented include putting up signages about wildlife crossings at specific locations to warn motorists."

AVA did not provide updated numbers. But it was reported in August 2016 that wild boar sightings in Punggol had doubled to 24 from the previous year.

In the incident on Tuesday afternoon, the woman in her 30s was injured in a wild boar encounter near the school and was taken to Khoo Teck Puat Hospital. The school is located a few bus stops away from a forested area which is being cleared for development.

The wild boar was later found in a nearby executive condominium and was captured by staff from the Animal Concerns Research and Education Society (Acres). It was sedated and relocated.

The school said on Wednesday it is working with the relevant authorities to ensure the safety of its staff and students after the incident. Staff and students have also been reminded to be vigilant and watchful of their surroundings.

School principal Benedict Keh said that the woman, who is an administrative employee, is now in hospital. He said: "We will render her continued assistance, including giving her the time to recover from her wounds."

Punggol Secondary students who spoke to ST said it is the first time they have heard of such an incident happening near the school.

A Secondary 4 student said that he first heard about the incident when his teacher sent a message to his class' WhatsApp chat group. He said he felt "a bit scared" after hearing about it.

Some students, however, said they became aware of the incident only after reading about it online.

After injuring the school employee, the boar, which weighed about 40kg, fled to a nearby executive condominium, Waterbay.

According to Chinese daily Lianhe Wanbao, Mr Yang, a security guard at Waterbay, saw the boar running into the condominium. The 54-year-old had initially mistaken it for a dog. When he realised that it was a boar, he notified the condominium's management.

"I was worried that the wild boar would run rampant in the condo and attack people, so I rushed down to the security room to close the rubbish bay doors remotely to trap it. I then called the police," he said.

The report added that two cleaners were trapped in the rubbish bay with the boar briefly, but escaped via the stairs and side door.

A Waterbay resident, who did not want to be named, told ST that he saw the boar being removed by the authorities.

He said that there had not been much of a commotion, adding that in his two years of living there, he had not heard of such an incident. "It seemed like a one-off incident," he said.

Another resident, who gave her name as Ms Ivy, said that a fellow resident first posted a picture of the boar in their condo's WhatsApp group chat. The clerk, who is in her 40s, wondered how the animal made its way from the school to the condo. She said: "The traffic here is so heavy. How did it cross the road?"

Mr Subaraj Rajathurai, director of Strix Wildlife consultancy, said that many pockets of nature had been removed for housing development in recent years, causing wildlife to lose their habitats and wander around looking for food.

He said: “We have encroached on their homes, where do you expect them to go?”

Asked how a boar could have ended up some distance away from its forest habitat, he said: “Animals in a desperate search for food will wander through areas that used to be their foraging grounds.”

Mr Subaraj said that Punggol, with its forested areas being cleared for development, also lacks a "green corridor" which could act as a passageway for animals to move around without coming into contact with humans.

At least two people have been injured in encounters with wild boars in the past two years.

In October 2017, a 44-year-old man was injured when a wild boar attacked him outside a condominium at Hillview Avenue. He suffered cuts and lacerations on both legs.

The next month, police shot a wild boar that was rampaging on a road in Punggol. The injured animal was lying on the road when policemen arrived at the location. When it got up and began charging, the policemen fired their tasers at the boar, but it continued to charge towards them and the public. A policeman had to draw his revolver to fire a shot at it. The boar was later euthanised due to injuries sustained by the shot fired.


Boar attack victim recounts her ordeal, worries for kids in vicinity
The New Paper 31 Aug 18;

The wild boar attack on an administrator from Punggol Secondary School on Tuesday left her with a vicious bite and lacerations on her back, arms and legs.

Chinese evening daily Lianhe Wanbao identified the woman as 32-year-old Ms Alice Ng. She was attacked at Edgefield Plains in Punggol.

Recounting her ordeal from her hospital bed at Khoo Teck Puat Hospital on Wednesday, Ms Ng said she did not provoke the animal and found out there were wild boars in the area only after the attack.

Ms Ng, who is expected to be discharged next week, told Wanbao: "I was listening to music on my earphones and I did not feel anything amiss before the incident. A strong force then knocked me down from behind."

She said: "Only when I was knocked to the ground did I realise that it was a big wild boar."

The frenzied boar charged and bit her repeatedly, Ms Ng recounted, tearing her blouse and gashing her on the back.

Dazed, bleeding and in pain, Ms Ng said she had no strength to escape as the boar continued to linger around her.

A passing cyclist then tried to use his bicycle to scare the boar away.

Shin Min Daily News reported that another passerby, Ms Sun, 36, saw the attack and called an ambulance, which arrived in about 10 minutes.

Ms Sun told Shin Min that the cyclist could not chase the boar away until two Punggol Secondary students rushed to the scene after hearing Ms Ng's screams.

They used the lid of a nearby rubbish bin to help the cyclist protect Ms Ng until the animal scampered off.

The attack occurred just outside her school and Ms Ng told Wanbao: "Now I'm worried that there will be danger for the students (at Punggol Secondary School). There is also a pre-school opposite and if the young children were attacked, the consequences would be unimaginable."

After the news broke, a Pasir Ris resident, Mr Xie, 57, told Shin Min that he saw at least 20 wild boarsat a grass patch near Pasir Ris Farmway 1, where he was jogging, at about 8pm on Wednesday.

"I was on the opposite side of the storm drain about 20m away," said Mr Xie, who is self-employed.

When reporters from Shin Min visited the scene, they found a grass patch littered with chewed up pieces of bread.


Punggol wild boar attacked pregnant woman from behind, was not provoked, says husband
Kok Yufeng Straits Times 30 Aug 18;

SINGAPORE (THE NEW PAPER) - A wild boar suddenly attacked a pregnant woman from behind, inflicting deep cuts on her right calf, at Edgefield Plains in Punggol on Tuesday afternoon (Aug 28).

The incident occurred as she was walking to a bus stop from Punggol Secondary School, where she works as an administrator.

Her husband, who declined to be named, told The New Paper on Wednesday (Aug 29): "The wild boar suddenly attacked her from behind."

He said the attack ended only after a passing cyclist used his bike to fend off the animal, which ran away, leaving her in pain and bleeding badly from her wounds.

BITE MARKS

It was not clear if the boar, which weighs 40kg, had gored her, but her husband said she had many bite marks.

When the story broke on Tuesday night, netizens had speculated whether the woman had provoked the animal.

But her husband denied that she had provoked the animal. "She was attacked from behind."

The wild boar later entered the nearby Waterbay executive condominium, where security guards trapped it in the bin centre. It was then tranquillised and captured.

A wild boar is seen in a condominium

The husband said students from the school also helped his wife, who is in her 30s. She later underwent surgery at Khoo Teck Puat Hospital.

Chinese newspaper Shin Min Daily News reported that her foetus was unharmed in the attack.

The Singapore Civil Defence Force said it responded to a call for medical assistance at about 5.15pm at 51 Edgefield Plains, and the woman was conscious when taken to the hospital.

Punggol Secondary School principal Benedict Keh told TNP on Wednesday: "We have reminded our staff and students to be vigilant and watchful of their surroundings.

"We are also working with the relevant authorities to ensure (their) safety."

Waterbay's security supervisor, Mr Douglas Rabin, 44, told TNP that the wild boar charged into the bin centre where several cleaners and a security guard were resting, at about 5.30pm.

"When we shouted, they dashed out. That's when we closed the gate so it could not get out," he said.

The Straits Times understands that the woman suffered from lacerations in the incident which happened near Punggol Secondary School. The wild boar was later found and captured in a nearby executive condominium.

The animal was finally subdued at about 8.10pm after the condominium management called the police and the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA).

Mr Rabin added that the boar had smashed some items in the bin centre but no one was hurt.

Animal Concerns Research and Education Society (Acres) personnel relocated the boar to the Lorong Halus area after sedating it.

Acres said the young boar could have come from Lorong Halus, a couple of kilometres south-east of where the attack occurred.

AVA said the boar could have also come from forested areas at the end of Punggol or Coney Island. It said there has been no increase in wild boar sightings there.

Mr Ben Lee, 54, founder of nature conservation group Nature Trekker, told TNP that animals usually do not attack humans unless provoked.

He wondered if the woman might have unknowingly made a movement that the boar found threatening in the unfamiliar urban environment.

Mr Kalai Vanan Balakrishnan, Acres' deputy chief executive, said development works could have caused the boar to venture out of its comfort zone.

Mr Kalai said: "Feeding by people may have had a part to play as well."

TNP reported in 2016 that some families would feed wild boars in the Lorong Halus area.

An AVA spokesman advised the public not to approach, disturb, feed or try to catch any wildlife, including boars.

Residents in the area said they were not surprised by the appearance of a wild boar because of the loss of forested areas to development.

Some, like Mr Eric Kam, 58, were concerned about the safety of the young and the elderly.

"I'm definitely worried because this area has a lot of children. There are so many schools here," he said.


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Man fined S$5,000 after bird found stuffed in paper packet at Woodlands Checkpoint

Channel NewsAsia 29 Aug 18;

SINGAPORE: A 43-year-old man has been fined S$5,000 for importing a bird without a licence, said the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) and Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) in a joint news release on Wednesday (Aug 29).

Hairolhisham Sa’don was caught on Feb 9 at Woodlands Checkpoint.

ICA officers who stopped him for checks found a live Red-whiskered Bulbul cramped in a paper packet, which was placed in a drawstring pouch and hidden in a handbag.

Immigration officers at Woodlands Checkpoint found a live Red-whiskered Bulbul cramped in a paper packet, which was placed in a drawstring pouch and hidden in a handbag. (Photo: AVA)

"The manner of transportation caused unnecessary suffering to the bird," said the authorities, adding that the bird has since been placed under the care of Wildlife Reserves Singapore.

In sentencing Hairolhisham, a second charge of failing to ensure that the animal was not subjected to unnecessary suffering was taken into consideration.

"Animals that are smuggled into Singapore are of unknown health status and may introduce exotic diseases such as bird flu into the country," cautioned the authorities.

Anyone found guilty of the offence may be fined up to S$10,000, jailed up to 12 months or both.

Source: CNA/aa/(gs)


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Malaysia: Female pygmy elephant shot dead in Tongod


Avila Geraldine New Straits Times 29 Aug 18;

KOTA KINABALU: A female Borneo pygmy elephant was shot dead at a plantation in Tongod, recently.

The carcass of the elephant, aged between 12 and 15, was discovered at Ladang Bintang Emas Property Sdn Bhd on Aug 25.

Sabah Wildlife Department public relations officer Siti Nur’ain Ampuan Acheh said today that a team of rangers and veterinary officer were despatched to the site after they were alerted by the Tongod district forestry officer.

“The team investigated and conducted a post-mortem on the elephant on Aug 27,” she said.

“It was estimated that it died about a week earlier.”

Siti said there was a round-shaped wound in the middle of the elephant’s temple area, which had penetrated into its skull.

“The right temporal part of the skull was found to have severe bleeding and debris from the impact, most probably from a gunshot. No bullets were found on the body.

“Death of the elephant is highly probably due to neurological damage caused to the brain.”


A female Borneo pygmy elephant was shot dead at a plantation in Tongod, recently. Pic by NSTP/ courtesy of Sabah Wildlife Department
Prior to the latest death, four Borneo Pygmy elephants were found dead in Sabah’s east coast.

It was reported that a cow and its calf were shot by poachers. Another elephant died after a tree fell on it, while the fourth was found dead with unknown causes.

A total of 25 elephant deaths have been reported this year. State wildlife director Augustine Tuuga saying all toxicology tests were done locally.

“The results are usually not conclusive (but there is) negative result to most known poisons and also bacteria or viruses,” he said.

On the department’s efforts to catch culprits responsible for killing the elephants, including using poison and snare traps, Tuuga said it would not be easy.

“It’s difficult to detect them and no witnesses have come forward to give information even when we have offer a RM120,000 reward,” he said, stressing that the reward was still on offer.

The RM120,000 reward was first offered five years ago to facilitate the department’s investigations into the deaths of 14 elephants in the Gunung Rara forest reserve.

Tuuga said the department had also offered RM20,000 for information on the killing of a sabre elephant, adding that nobody had come forward.


Elephant deaths: Sabah offers RM120,000 reward to catch poachers
natasha joibi The Star 29 Aug 18;

TELUPID: The Sabah Wildlife Department (SWD) is offering a reward of RM120,000 for any information that would lead to the arrests of poachers or people setting up snare traps in the state.

The offer was announced following the shocking deaths of 25 Borneo pygmy elephants in the first eight months of this year, with 24 of them dying in the last four months.

The causes of death ranged from gunshot injuries, to wounds incurred from traps set up by hunters and other unknown causes.

Elephants injured by trapping devices will develop infections before they die.

Though elephants are very rarely the target of poachers, they commonly fall victim to these devices as they use the same trails as other wildlife.

SWD director Augustine Tuuga said it was not easy to detect the culprits as no witnesses have come forward so far to give information despite the RM120,000 reward offer.

This is not the first time the department has offered cash rewards for information leading to the arrest of the culprits. It had previously made a similar offer following the deaths of 14 elephants in the Gunung Rara Forest Reserve in 2013.

According to Tuuga, that case is still open.

"We also offered RM20,000 reward for information on the killing of the elephant with sabre tusks (in 2017) but nobody came forward.

"Don’t know, maybe they really do not have any information," Tuuga said, when asked why no one had come forward.

In the latest case, a female elephant was found dead at Ladang Bintang Emas Property Sdn Bhd in Tongod here on Saturday (Aug 25).

The cow, aged between 12 and 15, was believed to have been shot dead about a week before its discovery.

SWD public relations officer Siti Nur'ain Ampuan Acheh said the case was reported to the department by the Tongod District Forest Officer.

"SWD despatched a team of rangers and veterinary officer to investigate and conduct a post-mortem on the animal on Monday (Aug 27).

"The carcass was mildly decomposing. It was estimated that it had died about a week earlier," she said.

Siti Nur'ain said a round-shaped penetrating wound was found near the elephant's temple.

"No bullet was found on the body. The death of the elephant is probably due to neurological damages caused to the brain," she said.

The cow was among four elephants found dead over the weekend in Sabah's east coast. Another elephant was found trapped in a snare trap and suffered injuries.


No info on those behind jumbo deaths despite reward
natasha joibi The Star 30 Aug 18;

TELUPID: Despite the reward of RM120,000, no one has come forth with any information on the culprits who caused the deaths of 25 Borneo pygmy elephants in the state this year.

Sabah Wildlife Department director Augustine Tuuga said the reward has been around for the past five years.

“Investigation into the deaths of the 14 elephants in the Gunung Rara Forest Reserve (in 2013) is still not closed.

“We also offered RM20,000 on the killing of the elephant with ‘sabre’ tusks (in 2017) but nobody came forward,” he said.

The causes of the deaths ranged from gunshot injuries to wounds incurred from traps set up by hunters and other unknown causes.

Elephants that are injured by trapping devices will develop infections before they die.

WWF Malaysia said that snares are commonly used by poachers along animal trails in forest reserves bordering plantations with the intention of catching wild boars and deer. Though elephants are very rarely the target of poachers, they commonly fall victim to these devices as they use the same trails as other wildlife.

In the latest case, a female elephant was found dead at Ladang Bintang Emas Property Sdn Bhd in Tongod here on Saturday.

SWD public relations officer Siti Nur’ain Ampuan Acheh said the case was reported to the department by the Tongod district forest officer.

“SWD despatched a team of rangers and veterinary officer to investigate and conduct post-mortem on the animal on Monday.

“The carcass was mildly decomposing. It is believed to have died about a week earlier,” she said.


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Indonesia: 27 people named suspects in forest fires in W. Kalimantan

Severianus Endi The Jakarta Post 29 Aug 18;

The West Kalimantan Police have named 27 people as suspects in the forest and land fire cases that have caused thick smog, which affected residents in the province.

There were 20 police reports related to forest and land fires with 27 people named suspects, West Kalimantan Police chief Insp. Gen. Didi Haryono said on Monday. From those numbers, 14 were arrested and 11 were released, while two other suspects died in the fire.

The police, along with other officers, monitor a 147,307-square-kilometer area spread across 14 regencies and municipalities, where 1.68 million hectares are peatland areas and the rest are mineral soil, Didi said. The police had also conducted operations for prevention as well as promotion to raise awareness among members of the public.

“We will keep making maximum efforts,” he said on Monday.

The forest fires have caused thick smog covering several areas in the province affecting thousands of people and disrupting flights in Pontianak on Monday.

National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho said the agency had deployed eight helicopters for water bombing operations. The agency also worked on artificial rain with Agency for the Assessment and Application of Technology (BPPT) using Casa 212 aircraft from the Air Force.

Authorities in Pontianak decided to close schools last week following thick haze blanketing the city. A number of flights from Supadio International Airport in Pontianak were also disrupted by thick haze on Monday. (vny)


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Fish populations could rise in warming climate with better management

Study finds potential for fisheries to benefit in future - as long as warming can be kept in check
Fiona Harvey The Guardian 29 Aug 18;

Better management of fisheries and fishing rights around the world could increase profits and leave more fish in the sea as long as measures to meet climate obligations are taken, new research has found.

Even if temperatures rise by as much as 4C above pre-industrial levels – in the upper range of current forecasts – the damaging effects on fishing can be reduced through improving how stocks are fished and managed.

Governments are meeting from 4 September in New York for the first round of talks on a new global treaty of the high seas, which would aim to conserve overfished stocks and make access to key fisheries more equitable. Any agreement is likely to take several years to negotiateand longer to come into force, but scientists say there is no time to be lost, given the magnitude of the threat to the world’s marine ecosystems.

Climate change is already causing the movement of some species as their traditional habitats grow warmer, and overfishing is wreaking heavy damage on stocks. However, by adapting fisheries management to a warming climate, and instituting better systems such as monitoring of fleets, the global catch can be increased despite these factors, according to the paper published on Wednesday in the journal Science Advances.

“This is a positive message amid the doom and gloom,” said Kristin Kleisner, one of the authors of the study and a senior scientist at the US Environmental Defense Fund. “We can control how we manage our fisheries. We will have severe effects [from climate change] but this shows what we can do as humans to control that.”

If temperatures were to hit 4C above pre-industrial levels, but good management was put in place, there could still be an increase of 17% of the amount of fish in oceans, compared with a decline of 5% of fish biomass if current practices continue and the world warmed by only 1C.

She noted that new technologies, such as monitoring of fishing vessels from satellites and through the internet, could make a big difference in enabling closer management. These techniques can also make fisheries management more responsive to the changing dynamics of ocean ecosystems, so that fishing can be redirected if stocks appear to be declining, for instance.

Under 2C of warming, improved management could yield even better returns, resulting in a 16% increase in the catch, amounting to 25bn servings of seafood a year, and nearly a third more fish in the sea than there are today. The finding is crucial because more than 1 billion people globally rely on fish, particularly key species such as tuna and mackerel, as their main source of protein.

Governments agreed in 2015 to take action to limit warming to no more than 2C, regarded as the threshold of safety beyond which the effects of climate change are likely to become catastrophic and irreversible.

Kleisner said the results of the study showed that governments should take prompt action to bring in modern fisheries management.

Global Fishing Watch, an international NGO, has used technological improvements to open up vast amounts of new data on fishing around the world. These include data made public earlier this year on tens of thousands of global vessels, which would have been impossible even five years ago.

Sarah Bladen, of Global Fishing Watch, said even newer techniques were being brought to bear, with results that could be “game-changing” for fisheries management and preventing illegal fishing. “Technological innovation is putting us within reach of a ‘real-time’ digital ocean. The open ocean has long been characterised as the wild west: lawless, remote and plagued by a paucity of data. However, our ability to directly detect and track fishing vessel activity globally is undergoing an extraordinary transformation.”

She called on the fishing industry to take note: “This really is, or needs to be, a wake-up call: the era of ‘secret’ fishing spots is over. To maintain the social licence to operate, fishing industries worldwide need to step up and accept, indeed embrace, levels of transparency in fishing activities that were unimaginable a decade ago.”

Prof Alex Rogers of Oxford University told the Guardian that international action and a global treaty must be brought in as soon as possible, before the current damage turns into a catastrophe. “The situation is very urgent. We need to bring our activities at sea to a sustainable level,” he said. “The status quo cannot be allowed to continue, if we want to preserve ocean health and have fish for tomorrow.”

The threats to ocean life include not only climate change, acidification and overfishing, but the pollution, including plastics and agricultural chemicals that we pour into the sea, and our industrial exploitation of the seabed, for instance for oil and gas exploration and mining. These activities have been enabled by new technology, which is not taken into account in current sea governance, which dates back to the 16th century, according to Rogers.

The governance of the high seas, which cover most of the oceans beyond national jurisdictions, had failed to keep up with this pace of change, he added: “These new activities can ramp up very quickly, and do tremendous damage in a very short time.”


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300 endangered turtles found dead on Mexico beach

AFP Yahoo News 30 Aug 18;

Mexico City (AFP) - More than 300 sea turtles from an endangered species were found dead on a beach in southern Mexico, trapped in a banned type of fishing net, environmental authorities said.

In Mexico's second mass turtle death in as many weeks, the Pacific Ridley turtles (Lepidochelys olivacea) were found floating just off the beach of Puerto Escondido in the state of Oaxaca, their shells forming a bleak mini-island.

"They had drowned at sea about eight days earlier, trapped in banned 120-meter fishing nets and six-inch nylon fishing line," said Mexico's prosecution unit for environmental crimes.

On August 17, authorities said they had found 122 sea turtles dead on a beach in the neighboring state of Chiapas, mostly from the same species.

In that case, some of the turtles had wounds to the head or shell.

Mexico banned the capture of sea turtles in 1990, but there is still a lucrative black market for their eggs.


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