Mangrove clearance may have worsened Myanmar cyclone toll

Forest Clearing May Have Worsened Toll
By Jane Spencer, The Wall Street Journal 9 May 08;

HONG KONG -- The impact of the Myanmar cyclone was likely worsened by an environmental problem plaguing Asia's coastlines: widespread degradation of mangrove forests that once protected coastal villages from tidal surges and strong winds.

In Myanmar's Irrawaddy Delta, the region ravaged by last Friday's cyclone, vast swaths of mangroves have been cleared over the decades to make way for rice fields and shrimp ponds and to provide wood for fuel. Ecologists say the destruction of the forests may have worsened the effects of the natural disaster.

Mangrove forests "used to serve as a buffer between the rising tide, big waves and storms and the residential area," said Surin Pitsuwan, secretary-general of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in Singapore earlier this week. "All those lands have been destroyed. Human beings are now direct victims of such natural forces."Mangroves, the dense networks of trees and shrubs that live in tropical tidal zones, line one-quarter of the world's tropical coastlines. But in Asia they have been hurriedly uprooted to create farmland and aquaculture farms and for urban development.

Researchers in Myanmar estimate that 83% of the mangroves in the Irrawaddy were destroyed between 1924 and 1999. The destruction was spearheaded by British colonial authorities who encouraged rice cultivation in the delta, which was once known as the "rice bowl" of the world. More recently, coastal development and demand for wood have added to the problem.

In other parts of Asia, the greatest spoiler of coastline is shrimp farms as Thailand, Indonesia and India have become some of the world's biggest shrimp exporters. Shrimp farms demand brackish water and flat land, both found in abundance where mangroves grow.

A typical shrimp pond lasts for no more than eight years before the many chemicals and antibiotics that are poured into it in the process of raising shrimp make it unusable. The shrimp farmers move on, cutting more mangrove forests for new farms. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations estimates that world-wide, 1% of the world's mangroves are destroyed each year.

Environmentalists have long lamented the loss of biodiversity associated with mangrove destruction, but a growing body of research suggests humans also pay a price for the destruction. Several studies following the 2004 Asian tsunami found that villages protected by healthy mangrove forests experienced fewer casualties, because the forests can dissipate the impact of a wave. Since then, nations including India and Bangladesh have launched projects to regrow mangroves to provide storm buffers.

Mangroves offer a double layer of protection against the pounding surf. Low red mangroves anchor themselves in mud flats along tidal estuaries, their flexible branches and tangled roots absorbing the sea's power. Behind them stand black mangroves as tall as trees. Scientists say they can also slow winds.

The rampant poverty in Myanmar has accelerated destruction of tidal forests. "People in the city of Rangoon [Yangon] can't afford to buy propane or gas, so mangrove is being cut continuously for fuel," says Jim Enright, Asia coordinator for the nonprofit Mangrove Action Project, who previously has visited the region hit by the cyclone. "When I was there, you could see large barges of wood headed to Rangoon."

Groups such as Mangrove Action Project have launched mangrove-regrowth projects in countries including Sri Lanka, Cambodia and Thailand.

Scientists in Myanmar are still in the very early stages of assessing the relationship between mangroves and the damage wrought by the cyclone.

"From our initial analysis, there's no doubt there's a connection," says Faizal Parish, an ecologist at the Global Environment Center, a Malaysian nonprofit group that focuses on mangrove protection, who has been in touch with environmentalists on the ground in Myanmar.

Mr. Parish says that part of the problem is that as the mangroves have been converted to agricultural lands, residents have moved closer to the sea and built homes in vulnerable areas. Many villages in Myanmar are in rice-growing areas that are actually below sea level.

The closed nature of Myanmar's government is making it even more difficult for outside scientists to get accurate information on the issue. For years, Myanmar's military government has blocked outside nongovernmental organizations and scientists from accessing the region, so data about mangrove destruction were limited even prior to the cyclone.

Edward Barbier, a professor of environmental economics at the University of Wyoming who has studied Asia's mangroves, says more study is needed before definitive conclusions about the relationship between mangroves and the cyclone death toll can be assessed.

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Best of our wild blogs: 9 May 08

Cyrene Reef: Learning more
Nemos and another Special Star found on the wonderful creations blog and mapping out the Reef on the wildfilms blog and thoughts about priceless Cyrene on the career breaker blog with magical wonderful stories on the leafmonkey blog and clip of melibe's expandable hood on the colourful clouds blog with thoughts of a first time visitor to Cyrene on the ashira blog

and MORE on the budak blog knob knob and home on the green and what happens to people who leave Cyrene too late on LOLZCyrene

Divers take action for coral reefs
Support PADI's reef pledge and join their Coral Reef Conservation Course, more on the singapore celebrates the reefs blog

Knobbly sea stars at Changi
on the manta blog

Strange sunbird shenanigans
on the bird ecology blog

St. John's Island
a first visit on the manta blog

Gold-whiskered Barbet preying on Eurasian Tree Sparrow
on the bird ecology blog

Snow flat
a beautiful butterfly on the future of our forest blog

Read more!

Concrete and corals?

Meredith Price Levitt, The Jerusalem Post 7 May 08;

For most people, the idea of concrete blocks replacing coral reefs might seem far-fetched. But for a group of marine scientists at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, it is just what the doctor ordered.

Sturdy enough to last, yet porous enough to be implanted with corals, concrete is the basis for an innovative technique that may help save coral reefs in the Red Sea from further destruction from overzealous divers.

According to leading experts, more than 25 percent of the world's coral reefs have already been destroyed. The causes are varied, and they include pollution, global warming and irresponsible fishing, but another large factor is uncontrolled and careless tourism.

And perhaps more alarming is the fact that although coral bleaching (the most obvious sign of sick and dying coral) has been happening since at least the turn of the last century, most of the dramatic damage has occurred over the last 20 years.

The Red Sea has a reputation for being one of the most spectacular places to dive, and Eilat attracts thousands of vacationers a year, most of whom come to dive and snorkel in the coral reefs. But the very attraction they come to enjoy is suffering from the intensive tourism, and more and more of it is disappearing every year.

According to Dr. Nadav Shashar, a marine biologist at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev who worked side by side with Dr. Faud al-Horni in Jordan on the project funded by the US State Department's USAID-MERC program, the challenge was to find a solution that would go beyond mere conservation without limiting tourism.

What the team came up with was to create specially designed concrete blocks that are implanted with real coral and are intended to attract both fish and, in turn, divers. "In the marine environment, people have tried to create artificial reefs by throwing in junk like old ships and tires, but it's like putting old train tracks in a nice, new location. People don't move in by the herds," Shashar says.

To lure both fish and divers, the unique design also had to consider a diverse array of factors - from water currents and sand patterns to size and shape. Each concrete block in the Tamar Reef, as it is called, weighs four tons. Shashar says that since their introduction near the natural reef last April, the same number of species of fish can be found in the blocks as in the natural coral. "The numbers of fish in the concrete are lower, but the divers are attracted to them, and this is an important accomplishment in preserving the natural reef."

Shashar says that there are three main innovations in this particular project. The first is the ability to build whatever size artificial reef is necessary rather than having to maintain the traditional, small structures. Second, the concrete reef is supported by a coral "nursery" so that if parts of it are lost or broken, they can be easily replaced by others that are already being grown. In the nursery, the young coral is placed in optimal conditions to encourage rapid growth, which then enables the scientists to place it wherever it is needed in the reef.

Finally, Shashar points out that until now, most of the experimental artificial reef projects have focused on conservation and not sustainability. "If you only conserve what you have and don't increase your area, it's a losing concept, because if any parts of the area are damaged, you lose it. Our challenge was to find a way to increase the area and the species to make it truly sustainable," he says.

This was made even more challenging by the fact that it traditionally takes between 80 and 100 years for coral to completely cover an artificial structure. "I don't have that kind of patience," says Shashar, whose nursery concept has reduced the amount of time it will take to just five years. Nevertheless, since its inception, 10%-15% of the coral has been lost by careless divers inadvertently knocking it down. "This is experimental, and we are still learning. The next project in Jordan, which is supposed to be planted in a few months, has a better design and is 10 times the size of the one in Israel."

Of course, this project has also attracted the attention of foreign press and scientists from around the world who are interested in emulating its success.

Shashar, who wanted to be a marine biologist since he went diving in Sharm e-Sheikh at 10, says that the idea came from two places: an emotional one as a human being and another as a scientist who believes if scientists don't lead the way in saving the coral, no one else will. "This type of project allows me to play God. With water and sand I get to create an environment that I hope will be successful ecologically. Whether or not we know exactly what we're doing is another question."

Read more!

Four imported cases of chikungunya fever reported in Singapore

Channel NewsAsia 8 May 08;

SINGAPORE : Three more people have been confirmed to have the chikungunya disease. This is on top of the latest victim, 62-year-old EC Sng, whose case was alerted to the Ministry of Health (MOH) on May 2.

With the latest update, the total number of people hit by the virus this year now stands at 17.

MOH revealed that the three other cases involved a 45-year-old tourist who arrived here from Sri Lanka in February, a 54-year-old American who travelled to Sri Lanka before coming here in March, and a 48-year-old housewife who arrived from Indonesia in April.

As for Sng, MOH said his case was also imported because he had visited Indonesia prior to the onset of the illness. His infectious period is now over.

However, the National Environment Agency (NEA) is not taking any chances and has combed the area where he lives.

NEA is carrying out "search and destroy" efforts of mosquito-breeding sites.

So far, there have been 13 cases of local transmission and this took place in January when some people staying in Little India were infected. MOH said although the local outbreak was contained in the area, the public needs to stay vigilant to prevent mosquitoes from breeding.

Authorities are also taking the necessary precautions to stop chikungunya cases from being imported into Singapore from endemic countries.

Currently, there is no vaccine to prevent chikungunya fever, which is characterised by fever and joint aches.

Like dengue fever, chikungunya fever is a mosquito-borne disease. MOH said the best way to prevent chikungunya fever is to take precautionary measures to prevent mosquito breeding around the house and to protect oneself against mosquito bites.

To reduce the risk of contracting chikungunya fever while travelling to chikungunya fever outbreak areas, travellers should take measures to reduce their exposure to mosquito bites - like wearing long-sleeved shirts and long pants when outdoors, using mosquito coils and electric vapour mats, as well as using insect repellent over the exposed parts of the body.

- AFP /ls

MOH reveals four imported cases of chikungunya
Today Online 9 May 08;

THE Ministry of Health (MOH) has confirmed an imported case of chikungunya fever involving a 62-year-old Singaporean retiree who had visited Indonesia prior to the onset of his illness.

An MOH spokesperson said the period during which the illness is infectious is over, and the National Environment Agency has been notified to carry out vector control operations in the vicinity of his residence.

This brings the total number of reported chikungunya cases this year to 17. Of these, four, including the latest, were imported. The ministry revealed that the three other cases involved a 45-year-old tourist who arrived here from Sri Lanka in February, a 54-year-old American who travelled to Sri Lanka before coming to Singapore in March, and a 48-year-old housewife who arrived from Indonesia in April.

The disease made the headlines in January when Singapore had its first case of local transmission. In all, 13 people in Little India were infected. The outbreak has since been contained, but the ministry said the public needs to stay alert.

The MOH spokesperson cautioned: "There is still a need to be vigilant against new chikungunya cases imported from endemic countries, especially with the influx of foreign workers and tourists here. The virus can still be carried into Singapore and the presence of the Aedes mosquito means the threat will remain."

There is no effective vaccine to prevent the mosquito-borne disease, which is characterised by fever and joint aches. — Alicia Wong

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Solar energy is the way to go in Singapore

Letter from Wong Weng Fai, Today Online 9 May 08;

I REFER to "Here comes the sun" (May 7).

I applaud the Economic Development Board's foresight in implementing the Solar Capability Scheme.

My question is: Why limit this scheme to new buildings? Why don't we extend the list to allow buildings that are due to undergo major renovations, to consider going green and to utilise solar energy?

Also, the public sector should take the lead in erecting green buildings.

The price of solar energy is decreasing. What is important is to establish the practice and to accumulate experience in exploiting reusable energy.

Read more!

Expect to pay higher electricity bills

No relief soon as high oil prices push up costs for power companies
Yang Huiwen, Straits Times 9 May 08;

IF YOUR latest power bill gave you a jolt, you had better get used to it because there is more to come.

Soaring crude oil prices drove the benchmark market price of electricity to a record last month, and there is not much relief in sight.

In fact, the pain for consumers will likely go on for the next two quarters. That is because oil prices will continue to be high, and the six months from April to September tend to see higher power use nationwide.

The wholesale price is what power companies pay for electricity, plus a small amount of regulation and administrative costs and adjustments. It affects how much consumers end up paying.

Yesterday, the Energy Market Co, which runs the wholesale electricity market here, said that this price - known as the Uniform Singapore Energy Price - jumped 17.7 per cent from March to hit $173 per megawatt hour (MWh) last month.

That is the highest monthly average since 2003, when wholesale market trading began, and well up on the last high of $168.34 per MWh in August 2006. Last year, the average price was $124.57 per MWh.

The result is a corresponding spike in electricity prices consumers pay, though it is not a direct correlation.

In response to rising wholesale prices, Singapore Power Services (SPS), which supplies electricity to about 1.2 million households, has been steadily increasing electricity tariffs.

The so-called Low Tension Tariff, which is what the man-in-the-street pays, was 18.88 cents per kilowatt hour (kwh) from April to June last year.

The rate jumped to 22.62 cents per kwh by the first quarter of this year. And a month ago, the rate - which is set by SPS every quarter - rose 5.7 per cent to 23.88 cents per kwh.

For people such retiree Loh T.E., this means higher electricity bills.

Mr Loh, who lives in a five-room flat without air-conditioning, said electricity costs now make up 12 per cent of his household expenses, compared with 8 per cent last year.

EMC chief executive David Carlson said yesterday that the main reason behind the higher bills is the rising price of crude oil, which hit close to US$124 (S$170) per barrel yesterday.

And fuel oil, which is priced in tandem with crude oil, forms the largest cost component for power generating companies.

'Fuel oil prices continued to rise coming into this year, so during the first quarter, fuel costs have had to be paid by (power) generators. That had an impact on what they can offer into the market,' said Mr Carlson.

'We expect to see higher demand (for power) in the second and third quarter.'

But he declined to predict if that would translate to higher electricity prices, saying that there were other factors at play.

First, demand is heavily influenced by economic growth. If the economy slows down, then prices should ease a little.

Second, Singapore's power market has been liberalised, and new power generation companies are free to enter the market and compete, bringing down prices.

Mr Carlson said greater competition has cushioned the impact of oil prices on electricity prices in the past three years and will continue doing so.

Oil industry trips on spiralling power rates
With tariffs likely to rise further, cogeneration plants could be the answer
Ronnie Lim, Business Times 9 May 08;

(SINGAPORE) What goes around, comes around. On the back of the hike in oil prices which almost touched US$124 yesterday, electricity tariffs in Singapore have climbed to uncomfortable heights. And ironically, the oil industry here - which uses a lot of electricity - is feeling the most pain.

BT has learnt that the worst may not be over as electricity rates are likely to face more upward pressure in the coming months.

This was disclosed by Energy Market Company (EMC) CEO Dave Carlson yesterday in response to queries from BT. He said that the rising crude prices had pushed up the price of high-sulphur fuel oil, which is used by some power stations here. But the bigger impact came through the hike in the price of natural gas - the main feedstock - which is pegged to the price of high-sulphur fuel oil.

The impact has been obvious. The average monthly electricity tariffs stood at just over $140 a megawatt hour last December, he said. They shot to $158 in January, before cooling to $149 in February and $147 in March. In April, the spike was the steepest as this rate climbed to $173.

'With electricity demand in the second and third quarters traditionally higher, more upward pressure on tariffs is expected,' Mr Carlson added. Last year's surprise 6 per cent dip in tariffs is now just a distant memory.

Separately, an oil industry source later said 'we are feeling the pain - it's a significant increase', when asked if the latest run-up in electricity tariffs was starting to hurt.

Oil refineries and petrochemical complexes are big power users, with electricity costs accounting for as much as 25-30 per cent of total operating costs, the source said. 'So the 25 per cent jump in tariffs in the last few months is significant,' he added.

'But we have no control over electricity prices and have to manage our costs. One option, however, will be to build our own cogeneration plant, and this is something we are looking at,' he added.

BT had earlier reported that oil companies here like ExxonMobil are already building additional cogen plants to supply power to their big expansion projects, including its US$5 billion-plus new petrochemical cracker. And this is clearly the industry's answer to ever-rising electricity and other utility costs.

EMC's Mr Carlson, who was giving a media briefing on the electricity market here, earlier indicated that average electricity prices dipped in 2007 to $124.57/MW hour - after climbing from $82.35 in 2004 to $109.90 in 2005 and $132.42 in 2006.

The 2007 dip was attributed to efficiency gains and increased competition among the generation companies, spurred by the entry of new player Keppel Merlimau Cogen with its 500 MW station.

He, however, declined to project how much electricity tariffs could go up by this year, as this depends on various factors, including whether oil prices will rise further.

Another factor is electricity demand growth, which tends to follow Singapore's gross domestic product growth. Latest official indications are that Singapore's GDP is expected to moderate this year to 4-6 per cent - lower than last year's 7.5 per cent.

But this doesn't mean that electricity demand growth is also going to slow down this year, Mr Carlson said. He added that a decision by a big investor - say, another oil refinery coming into Singapore - would affect demand as well.

Hopefully, increased competition in electricity generation, 'with new investment entering the market', will help temper electricity tariff increases, he said.

This includes the entry of new players - like China Huaneng Group, China's largest power producer, which recently took over Tuas Power - as Temasek Holdings continues with the divestment of the two remaining big gencos, Senoko Power and PowerSeraya.

More players here, like Senoko Power, are also converting more of their older plants to more efficient cogeneration plants, while others like Sembcorp Cogen are also looking into cheaper alternatives like waste-derived fuels to stay competitive amid a high oil price environment.

As electricity prices go up, up and away
Demand for more power, as factories increase output, could result in higher bills
Esther Fung, Today Online 9 May 08;

Consumers be warned. Household electricity prices have shot up 11.7 per cent in the first four months of this year — and Singapore's electricity market operator said that consumers should expect more upward pressure in coming months.

Oil prices shot up 18 per cent over the same period, yesterday touching a new fresh record of US$124 per barrel in international trading.

As Singapore manufacturers ramp up activity in the second and third quarters of the year, there is likely to be additional demand for power, which could lead to higher prices.

"Traditionally, this is the time of the year when companies use up more electricity," said Mr Dave Carlson, chief executive of the Energy Market Company (EMC).

Recent higher temperatures have also resulted in more energy usage from air conditioners.

EMC operates Singapore's wholesale electricity market, from which service providers such as Singapore Power Services and Senoko Energy buy their electricity to sell to end-users such as households and firms. The service providers paid an average $151 per megawatt-hour for electricity in the first quarter this year. This was 21 per cent higher than last year's $125 average.

Oil prices may have risen consistently over the past year, but some cost savings have been made in Singapore thanks to increased efficiencies brought about by escalating competition.

Over the last five years, power generation companies (gencos) have been increasingly using gas piped in from Indonesia and Malaysia, which results in more efficient electricity generation as compared to steam turbine plants.

Last year, demand for electricity rose 4 per cent, while average wholesale prices service providers paid for electricity actually fell 6 per cent.

An additional gas source is also slated to come on board. Singapore's first liquefied natural gas terminal will start operations in 2012.

Some gencos are also planning to combine electricity production with others. "You will see electricity and steam coming together; you will see electricity, steam and water also coming together," said Mr Carlson.

"Putting those together, you can get more efficient use of the fuel and environmental savings as well."

Singapore can look forward to further competition with Keppel Merlimau Cogen being the most recent genco to start operations.

"With Keppel, we saw prices come down. And that was partly due to more efficient generation," said Mr Carlson.

Island Power will soon open a new gas plant as well.

However, Mr Carlson said it remains unclear if increasing competition can continue to cushion electricity prices.

"It's a hard one to predict," he said.

Read more!

Cyclone may boost next rice harvest

Straits Times 9 May 08;

TOKYO - IN STREWING death and destruction across a rice-rich delta, the weekend cyclone that battered Myanmar has raised a new question for other poor Asian countries already scrambling to find affordable food: Will damage to its current crop force Myanmar to join the clamour for rice imports at a time when prices are at a record high?

So far, rising rice prices on commodity markets suggest the answer is yes. The price of rice has jumped over the last four days, a sign that traders see a further squeeze on a tight global market.

Storm damage to the Irrawaddy delta, Myanmar's low-lying rice bowl, means the country is likely to move from being a modest exporter to a major importer, traders say.

But other experts say they expect the cyclone's impact on the rice market to be minor, adding that Myanmar produced only 1 per cent of the rice traded on global markets in 2007.

And while acknowledging that the cyclone damaged at least part of the current crop and that some supplies were lost, they say the next harvest due later this year may, in fact, benefit from the cyclone's soaking.

'The moisture on the land is a good thing for rice, so their yearly production should go up, not down,' said Thai Rice Exporters Association honorary president Vichai Sriprasert. 'The rice fields are going to get plenty of water now.'

Mr Duncan Macintosh, a spokesman for the Philippine-based International Rice Research Institute, agreed. 'This is a country blessed for growing rice,' he said.

Experts believe Myanmar has a great capability to grow rice with ease, and are convinced that its people will be able to feed themselves again within a few months.

Said Mr Sriprasert: 'The land and the water there is better than in Thailand, the river systems are huge,' he said. 'They'll start to plant soon, and the crop will be good.'

Still, there will be a short-term scramble for food. Officials from the UN World Food Programme working inside Myanmar report that at least one major rice warehouse was destroyed.

They also say that much of the spring rice in the field which had yet to be harvested was showing signs of spoilage.

ASSOCIATED PRESS

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Germany Warns Of Economic Risks From Species Loss

PlanetArk 9 May 09;

BERLIN - Nations must act to slow extinction rates, German Environment Minister Sigmar Gabriel said on Thursday, arguing the loss of species threatened food supplies for billions of people.

Just 10 days before the start of a UN summit on biodiversity in the western city of Bonn, Gabriel told the German parliament that both industrialised and developing countries had to step up their efforts.

"When we talk about biodiversity, we are talking about an instruction manual for the planet," Gabriel said. "There are a huge number of examples to show this is about the survival of billions of people."

Gabriel, due to open the Bonn summit, pointed to marine life as an example.

"If we don't do anything, there won't be any more commercial fishing by 2050. Imagine what that means for the world's food supplies," Gabriel said, noting several billion people rely on protein from fish to survive.

UN experts say human activity, including the emission of greenhouse gases, threatens to cause the worst spate of extinctions on earth since the dinosaurs died out 65 million years ago. Some experts say three species disappear every hour.

Gabriel also pointed to a rice virus which wiped out many of the world's varieties of rice. He said scientists found one type of rice that was resistant to the virus.

"That stopped the destruction of rice stocks around the world and people dying of hunger. Imagine if we had destroyed this variety of rice through development," he said.

About 4,000 international experts and government ministers will try to agree on ways to slow the rate of loss of plants and animals at the Bonn Convention on Biological Diversity meeting.

A summit in 2002 set a goal of slowing the rate of biodiversity loss by 2010 but experts say little progress has been made, not least because no baselines were set.

The EU has a more ambitious goal to halt biodiversity loss by 2010.

Campaigners say Germany itself has its work cut out. A World Wildlife Fund report this week showed Europe's biggest economy saw the proportion of endangered species rise.

Read more!

UN sounds alarm over decline in migratory birds

Yahoo News 8 May 08;

The United Nations Environment Programme on Thursday voiced concern over declining numbers of migratory birds globally, in what it said was an alarming sign of the state of world biodiversity.

"The decline in numbers is currently being recorded for many of the migratory bird species along all of the world's major flyways," UNEP said in a statement issued ahead of the May 10-11 World Migratory Bird Day.

"For example: 41 percent of the 522 migratory waterbird populations on the African-Eurasian flyways are declining and there are reports that numbers of migratory songbirds using the same flyways are also decreasing," it said.

Migratory birds are vulnerable to environmental changes and are considered some of the best indicators of the state of the world's ecosystems.

"The overall decline in bird numbers may be signalling a wider environmental problem linked to the loss of habitats and biodiversity worldwide," the statement said.

It added that this phenomenon was compounded by climate change, which has seen deserts expand and wetlands disappear.

The environment agency urged world leaders to step up efforts aimed at protecting sites used by migratory birds in a move that would benefit the planet's wider biodiversity.

Read more!

Risk Of Bird Flu Pandemic Probably Growing: Experts

Stephanie Nebehay, PlanetArk 7 May 08;

GENEVA - The risk of a human influenza pandemic remains real and is probably growing as the bird flu virus becomes entrenched in poultry in more countries, health officials warned on Tuesday.

Some 150 experts are attending a meeting hosted by the World Health Organisation (WHO) to update its guidance to countries on how to boost their defences against a deadly global epidemic.

The H5N1 avian flu virus has infected flocks in much of Asia, Africa and parts of Europe. Experts fear it could mutate into a form that passes easily from person to person, sparking an influenza pandemic that could kill millions.

"The risk of a pandemic remains and is probably expanding," said Dr. Supamit Chunsuttiwat, a disease control expert at Thailand's health ministry who is chairing the four-day meeting.

Supamit noted the highly pathogenic H5N1 virus persisted on three continents and had caused human cases in Indonesia, Egypt and China this year.

"We are concerned that the spread through migratory birds hasn't stopped. Once the virus is established in birds, it is difficult to get rid of the virus and the risk (to humans) remains unless countries develop good control of transmission in birds," he told Reuters. The avian flu virus rarely infects people, but there have been 382 human cases worldwide since 2003, 241 of them fatal, according to the WHO, a United Nations agency.

Keiji Fukuda, coordinator of WHO's global influenza programme, told the talks: "We can't delude ourselves about the threat of pandemic influenza -- it has not diminished."

The timing of a pandemic "remains speculative," he said.


OVERWHELMING EFFECT OF PANDEMIC

A pandemic could shut down businesses and schools and overwhelm healthcare systems, particularly in poor countries.

Infected people can shed the virus before symptoms appear, and this increases the risk of international spread through asymptomatic air travellers, the WHO says.

Most countries have drawn up pandemic plans, but the level of preparedness varies. The WHO aims to revise its 2005 guidance to its 193 member states by year-end.

"We are going to improve our guidance and give people and countries better tools to deal with," Fukuda said. "Pandemic preparedness is not just a health sector effort, it is something that requires the whole of society's perspective."

The WHO has set up two global stockpiles of the antiviral Tamiflu, containing 5 million treatment courses donated by the Swiss drugmaker Roche for use in a pandemic.

It is also developing a vaccine stockpile which -- when a vaccine has been produced -- should initially contain 150 million doses, Fukuda said.

At least 16 companies are working on vaccines to prevent bird flu infection in people, including GlaxoSmithKline and Sanofi-Aventis .

"Some are very close to regulatory approval. These are the newer generation vaccines which use less antigen and contain adjuvant but still stimulate an immune response," Fukuda said.

Antigens are substances like toxins, viruses and bacteria that stimulate the production of antibodies. They can be difficult to culture, and scientists have been trying to fix that by using adjuvants, which boost a vaccine's effectiveness.

Large-scale commercial production of a vaccine will not start until a pandemic virus has emerged, because the vaccine must closely match the strain.

The WHO uses six phases of pandemic alert to gauge levels of threat. The world is currently in phase 3, meaning that a new influenza virus sub-type is causing disease in humans but is not yet spreading efficiently.

"The risk is as great as it has ever been. We hope to send out a very clear message that this effort needs to continue and the threat has not gone away," Fukuda told Reuters.

(Editing by Tim Pearce)

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Indonesia Adopts Stringent "Green" Palm Oil Standard

PlanetArk 8 May 08;

JAKARTA - Indonesia, the world's biggest palm oil producer, plans to take firm measures aimed at ensuring palm oil firms meet stringent standards before labelling their products as eco-friendly, an industry watchdog said on Wednesday.

The rapidly expanding palm oil industry in Southeast Asia has come under attack by green groups for destroying rainforests and wildlife, as well the emission of greenhouse gases.

An industry-led initiative, the Round Table on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO), has launched a green labelling certification process that includes commitments to preserve rainforests and wildlife and avoiding conflicts with indigenous people.

RSPO groups producers, consumers and green groups and palm oil companies that meet the criteria set by the RSPO will be able to market their certified "green products" in global markets.

Desi Kusumadewi, spokeswoman of Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) for Indonesia, said independent surveyors will be assigned to audit palm oil plantations and certify them as 'eco-friendly'.

"Hopefully, the criteria will be officially approved by the end of May," Kusumadewi said. "Basically, Indonesia will use the international standards but it will personalise the criteria based on its own considerations."

Kusumadewi said three firms -- PT Mutuagung Lestari, PT Tuv Nord and state surveyor firm PT Sucofindo -- were waiting for approval to be RSPO audit programmers in Indonesia.

Malaysia, the world's second-largest palm oil producer, has already had four certification bodies approved by RSPO.

Malaysia and Indonesia, home to more than 4 percent of the world's rainforests, produce nearly 85 percent of total palm oil.

Both nations already have laws to protect tracts of rainforests against illegal logging, but green groups say penalties should be stiffened and that more rainforests should be locked away.

Earlier this month, Unilever one of Indonesia's top palm oil buyers, said it will start buying palm oil from certified sustainable sources this year and aims to have all its palm oil certified by 2015.

Indonesia is estimated to have produced more than 17 million tonnes of crude palm oil in 2007. It exported about 11.9 million tonnes of palm oil products to China, India and European countries.

Greenpeace estimates Indonesia had the fastest pace of deforestation in the world between 2000 and 2005, equivalent to 300 soccer pitches of forest destroyed every hour.

(Reporting by Mita Valina Liem, editing by Sugita Katyal and Ben Tan)

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Brazil launches sustainable development plan for Amazon

Yahoo News 8 May 08;

Brazil on Thursday launched an ambitious sustainable development plan for the Amazon that aims to lay down a new model for the vast jungle area balancing economic and environmental priorities, President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said.

"We all understand that the Amazon needs to develop, but we also understand that there had to be a development model that is well thought-out, and not predatory, just like we have in other regions of the country," he said.

The initiative aims at laying down infrastructure works in nine Brazilian states that are within the Amazon, opening credit lines to small farmers, and adopting new criteria for the registration of people in the area.

It provides for various methods to fight deforestation and the illegal occupation of public land.

"There are people who think the Amazon should belong to mankind. And we think that way, too. We think that it needs to benefit everyone. But we also have to say loudly and clearly that it is Brazil that is in charge of looking after the Amazon," Lula said.

That was seen as a shot across the bow of foreign governments and groups that want to pressure Brazil in terms of limitations on Amazon development.

"Each time someone talks about the Amazon abroad, usually it provokes a defense, responses to questions about deforestation, burning of land, pollution and other things that we raise. We often have a lot of problems with that," he said.

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