Best of our wild blogs: 25 Oct 18

Our Crazy Rich Shores: St Jonh's Island
Celebrating Singapore Shores!

Singapore Raptor Report, Early Autumn Migration, July-September 2018
Singapore Bird Group

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Electric buses to serve Singapore commuters from 2020

Channel NewsAsia 24 Oct 18;

SINGAPORE: Electric public buses will hit the roads from 2020, said the Land Transport Authority (LTA) on Wednesday (Oct 24) as it announced the award of S$50 million worth of contracts to three suppliers.

Sixty buses, of which 10 are double-deck, will provide commuters with quieter and smoother rides, said LTA.

It added that the buses will progressively arrive in Singapore from next year, with the final batch due in 2020.

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More than 303,300 people and groups sign climate action pledge to reduce carbon footprint

Cheryl Teh Straits Times 24 Oct 18;

SINGAPORE - Over 300 individuals attending an environment-themed event made a pledge on Wednesday (Oct 24) to make a difference in the fight against climate change.

More than 303,300 individuals, schools and organisations so far have committed to the climate action pledge, which includes making a commitment to recycle, use energy efficient devices and conserve water, so as to reduce one's carbon footprint.

Among those who signed the pledge on Wednesday was Dr Amy Khor, Senior Minister of State for the Environment and Water Resources, who delivered the keynote address at the RHT Asean Summit 2018 at Suntec City Convention Centre.

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Philippines to re-open 'cesspool' Boracay after clean up

AFP Yahoo News 24 Oct 18;

The Philippines re-opens its crown jewel resort island Boracay to holidaymakers on Friday, after a six-month clean up aimed at repairing the damage inflicted by years of unrestrained mass tourism.

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte ordered the island shuttered in April for a major effort to fortify weak infrastructure and crack down on the rampant overdevelopment that had left it, what he termed, a "cesspool".

When the government throws open the doors, Boracay will have fewer hotels and restaurants, a cap on the number of visitors and anti-beach boozing rules aimed at taming its party-hard reputation.

All of this is intended to protect the bruised beauty of the island's turquoise waters and expanses of white sand beaches which were being loved to death by two million tourists per year.

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Plastics have entered human food chain, study shows

Marlowe HOOD AFP Yahoo News 23 Oct 18;

Paris (AFP) - Bits of plastic have been detected in the faeces of people in Europe, Russia and Japan, according to research claiming to show for the first time the widespread presence of plastics in the human food chain.

All eight volunteers in a small pilot study were found to have passed several types of plastic, with an average of 20 micro-particles per 10 grams of stool, researchers reported Tuesday at a gastroenterology congress in Vienna.

The scientists speculated that the tiny specks -- ranging in size from 50 to 500 micrometres -- may been ingested via seafood, food wrapping, dust or plastic bottles.

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Hawaiian island erased by powerful hurricane: ‘The loss is a huge blow’

East Island has vanished after coming into contact with Hurricane Walaka, an intense storm that hit Hawaii earlier this month
Oliver Milman The Guardian 24 Oct 18;

A piece of the United States has been dramatically wiped off the map after an island in Hawaii was washed away by a powerful hurricane.

East Island, a remote spit of gravel and sand that sat atop a coral reef, has vanished after having this misfortune to come into contact with Hurricane Walaka, an intense storm that surged past Hawaii earlier this month.

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