Best of our wild blogs: 3 Sep 14

Our Avian Visitors, the August Stars
from Singapore Bird Group

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One individual, 2 institutes receive President’s Award for the Environment

Channel NewsAsia 2 Sep 14;

SINGAPORE: One individual and two institutes have received the President's Award for the Environment, the highest environmental accolade in Singapore. They received the awards from President Tony Tan Keng Yam at the Istana on Tuesday evening (Sep 2).

The award was given to Mr Eugene Heng, chairman of the Waterways Watch Society, a volunteer group he founded in 1998 to help keep Singapore's waterways clean. This is the first time since 2011 that an individual has won the award.

The award also went to the Institute of Technical Education (ITE). The Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources said ITE is dedicated to environmental education, even infusing it into its curriculum.

Ngee Ann Polytechnic received the award for being a pioneer in environmental advocacy and influencing many students to continue contributing even after they graduate.

- CNA/ms

Individual, education institutions awarded President's Award for the Environment
Carolyn Khew Straits Times 2 Sep 14;

SINGAPORE - He has spent the past 16 years monitoring Singapore's waterways and picking up litter in rivers and reservoirs with his volunteers.

During the other days of the week, the founder and chairman of environmental group Waterways Watch Society (WWS) Eugene Heng spends time planning programmes and running activities to educate students about the island's waterways.

For such efforts and more, Mr Heng, a 65-year-old retiree, was awarded the country's highest environmental accolade on Tuesday.

The other two recipients of the award were the Institute of Technical Education (ITE) and Ngee Ann Polytechnic (NP), both of which actively promote environmental awareness among its students and include environment-related courses in their curriculum.

Organised by the Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources, the annual award, which recognises individuals and organisations for their contributions towards the environment, received 26 nominations this year.

The three winners each received a trophy and certificate from President Tony Tan Keng Yam at the Istana.

To encourage its students to learn more about the environment, environment-related topics are incorporated in about 70 per cent of ITE's courses.

All three of ITE's campuses - ITE College East, ITE College West and ITE College Central, have also been Green Mark certified. Their green features include installing solar panels on roofs to generate electrical power for the building's use and having ceiling boards made of recycled materials.

Three win S'pore's top award for green efforts
Carolyn Khew The Straits Times AsiaOne 5 Sep 14;

When it comes to promoting awareness of the environment among the young, Ngee Ann Polytechnic could be considered one of the pioneers - it started doing so more than 20 years ago.

Today, topics on the environment are taught at the polytechnic. Its Clementi Road campus is also home to technology centres that come up with projects to improve sustainability efforts.

Yesterday, the institution received the President's Award for the Environment - Singapore's highest environmental accolade - from President Tony Tan Keng Yam at the Istana.

The other two recipients of the award this year are the Institute of Technical Education and Mr Eugene Heng, chairman of environmental group Waterways Watch Society (WWS). The three winners each received a trophy and a certificate.

Organised by the Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources, the annual award recognises individuals and organisations for their contributions towards the environment. There were 26 nominations this year.

For Mr Heng and his volunteers, at least two hours are spent every weekend picking up flotsam along waterways.

Plastic bags are the most common trash item. They also pick up styrofoam boxes, cans, shopping trolleys and television sets.

The group makes its rounds on boats and bicycles to monitor the waterways and alert the authorities on areas that need attention, like those polluted by oil spills.

WWS, which has 370 volunteers, also conducts workshops for students to better understand how drains, canals and rivers are connected to reservoirs. While every drop of water can be treated to drinking water standards, it is vital for people to stop littering because litter is transported from the catchment areas and waterways to reservoirs when it rains.

"We have a nation that runs things very well and supplies water so efficiently. People tend to forget it's a gift. They tend to abuse it and take it for granted," said Mr Heng.

While he feels that enforcement officers need to be more visible and be at the "right place, at the right time", he says educating the public on the consequences of littering is still more important.

"The Government can only do so much," he added.

At Ngee Ann Poly, a major part of its green efforts involves teaching the right values on protecting the environment. All students are required to take a module where they learn about climate change and environmental degradation. The school also has four diploma courses related to the environment, including the diploma in environmental and water technology, and the diploma in clean energy management.

As part of the school's push for clean, sustainable technology, the Environmental and Water Technology Centre of Innovation was set up to help small and medium-sized enterprises grow their business in a green way.

Said Ngee Ann Poly principal Clarence Ti: "As parents and educators, we want our students to not only have good values and learn a trade but also be meaningful contributors to society."

Rooftop gardens, solar panels at ITE campuses

Classroom ceiling boards made of recycled materials, rooftop gardens and offices designed to maximise the usage of natural light - these are some of the green features at the Institute of Technical Education's (ITE) three campuses.

For those efforts, and more, the ITE was given the President's Award for the Environment - Singapore's highest environmental accolade - at the Istana yesterday. It is among three recipients of the prestigious award this year.

The ITE's three campuses had also received the BCA Green Mark Award by the Building and Construction Authority.

At ITE College East, located in Simei, open staircases and circulation spaces help to cool the interiors and minimise energy use. The ceiling boards in laboratories, classrooms and toilets are also made with 40 per cent recycled materials.

Meanwhile, the ITE College West in Choa Chu Kang has a green roof and rooftop gardens that cover 40 per cent of the total roof area. This helps to absorb heat and reduce the energy used for cooling the building.

Over at ITE College Central in Ang Mo Kio, solar panels installed on the roofs generate electrical power.

The ITE has also incorporated environment-related topics in about 70 per cent of its courses, such as those on course-relevant environmental regulation and waste handling.
- See more at: http://news.asiaone.com/news/singapore/three-win-spores-top-award-green-efforts#sthash.6MoDpHOK.dpuf

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Singapore opens S$950m underground rock cavern at Jurong

Linette Lim Channel NewsAsia 2 Sep 14;

SINGAPORE: The Jurong Rock Caverns (JRC), the first commercial underground rock cavern storage facility for liquid hydrocarbons in Southeast Asia, was officially opened on Tuesday (Sep 2). It will be a key support for Singapore's petrochemical industry.

Speaking at the opening, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong says that with this experience, the Government is considering more subterranean projects. This includes building an underground science city, an underground warehousing and logistics facility, and potential underground caverns near CleanTech Park in Jurong.

He also said that the project shows Singapore's determination to build a petrochemical industry, despite land constraints and the potential impact of an impending United Nations agreement on carbon emissions, the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.

HOW THE JURONG CAVERNS WERE CONSTRUCTED

The S$950-million dollar Jurong Rock Caverns took six years of planning, and another eight years of construction. It will be used to store liquid hydrocarbons such as crude oil and condensate.

The rock cavern was excavated using explosives, and it takes about one and a half to two years to excavate each rock cavern. The water pressure outside the cavern keeps the contents of the cavern in their place.

The caverns are the deepest known public works in Singapore to date - deeper than underpasses, the deep tunnel sewerage system, and four times deeper than Bras Brasah, the deepest station in the train network. Tunnels measuring 9km provide access to the caverns, and there are five of them, with a total capacity of 1.47 million cubic metres - a storage capacity equivalent to 600 Olympic-sized swimming pools..

Building this infrastructure underground was challenging, but worthwhile, said Mr Lee: "It costs more than doing it above ground, about 30 per cent more, in order to build the infrastructure to store oil and condensate underground, compared to reclaiming land, on a per unit of crude or condensate basis. This endeavour also involved immense challenges and significant risks. But we pursued it because it was worthwhile."

The caverns freed up 60 hectares of surface land for higher-value facilities, he noted, "and 60 hectares is enough to house up to six petrochemical plants. But more importantly, it opened up, for us, further possibilities for development, with the expertise and the confidence that we gained building these Caverns."

Mr Lee highlighted the importance of the petrochemical industry to Singapore: "We will develop the petrochemical industry, because the industry provides good jobs for Singaporeans, because it contributes significantly to our economy. In fact, the chemicals industry is one-third of our manufacturing output. And also, because we are determined to find all ways to make a living for ourselves in the world."

STILL BUILDING

Two of the caverns were completed this March and are already being used by Jurong Aromatics Corporation to store feedstock for its aromatics plant, which is currently being developed. The three remaining caverns are expected to be ready by end 2016.

Said Mr Loo Choon Yong, Chairman of JTC Corporation: "We also had to consider the commercial viability of the project. We worked with various stakeholders at the onset, to ensure that the JRC would match manufacturers' requirements so that we could market it successfully."

JTC says an extension, or a second phase, could be developed if there is industry demand. JTC also says that the 3.5 million cubic metres of rock excavated for this project will be used in land reclamation, and for paving roads.

- CNA/xk/xy


PM Lee opens S$950 million Jurong Rock Caverns
LEE YEN NEE Today Online 2 Sep 14;

SINGAPORE — South-east Asia’s first commercial underground liquid hydrocarbon storage facility was officially opened by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong today (Sept 2).

Located 150m beneath Jurong Island, the Jurong Rock Caverns were conceptualised to overcome land constraints in Singapore. This follows years of providing industrial land and space through reclaiming land and building high-rise infrastructure.

JTC Corporation, the developer of the S$950 million project, said the building of the five caverns translates to a saving of 60 hectares of land that can be used for higher value-added activities such as petrochemicals manufacturing. This underground facility also ensures security of the products in storage.

JTC chairman Loo Choon Yong said: “As a small city state, we are constantly pushing boundaries in our quest to overcome our scarce land resource. The Jurong Rock Caverns required us to venture into unfamiliar grounds and surmount engineering challenges never encountered before. Its success attests to our resolve to persevere and diligently deliver innovative and sustainable infrastructure solutions for Singapore.”


Image: JTC Corporation

Construction of the five caverns started in 2007. Their combined capacity of 1.47 million cubic metres is equivalent to 600 Olympic-sized swimming pools. Two of them, completed in March, have been leased to Jurong Aromatics Corporation who will store condensate, a feedstock for its aromatics plant.

The remaining three caverns are scheduled for completion by end 2016.

Singapore digs deep to realise oil storage dream
Chia Yan Min The Straits Times AsiaOne 3 Sep 14;


SINGAPORE yesterday unveiled its latest engineering feat to overcome the constraints of land - an underground commercial storage facility for oil products.

The ambitious Jurong Rock Caverns took six years of planning and a further eight of construction at a cost of $950 million, with about 1,700 workers employed.

Declaring it officially open, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong told a ceremony on Jurong Island that the endeavour was challenging, risky and expensive, but will ultimately prove rewarding.

Mr Lee noted that the Jurong Rock Caverns was "born out of this same spirit of innovation and determination" behind Jurong Island, another ambitious project that involved amalgamating seven southern islands.

He cited the benefits the caverns bring - they free up 60ha of land, or 70 football fields, above ground - but noted also that they demonstrate how Singapore can "create new space for (itself) both physically and metaphorically".

The facility also signals Singapore's determination to develop its petrochemical industry, which makes up about a third of the country's manufacturing output and provides "good jobs for Singaporeans", he added.

Mr Lee noted that Singapore has become a world-class petrochemical hub despite its land constraints and the fact that it produces no crude oil or feedstock.

The caverns, which are also a first in South-east Asia, sit 150m below the Jurong Island energy and chemicals hub - or four times further underground than Singapore's deepest MRT station. They are Singapore's deepest underground public works endeavour to date.

Adding to the complexity was the challenge of having to construct the caverns 130m beneath the seabed. Industrial landlord JTC also had to build 9km of tunnels.

The five nine-storey-high caverns will be used to store 1.47 million cubic metres of liquid hydrocarbons such as crude oil and condensate - equivalent to 600 Olympic- sized swimming pools. Liquid hydrocarbons are usually stored in large tanks above ground.

Two of the five caverns have already been leased to Jurong Aromatics Corporation to store feedstock for its upcoming aromatics plant on Jurong Island. The other three are expected to be operational by 2016.

Dr Loo Choon Yong, chairman of JTC, told the ceremony that the project planning process, which included numerous study missions abroad and extensive soil and rock investigations, was "rigorous and intense".

The project was riskier and more complex than above-ground facilities, he added.

It was also expensive: It costs about 30 per cent more to build storage infrastructure underground than to reclaim land, but the space above ground can be used for higher value-added activities such as petrochemical plants.

With Jurong Rock Caverns behind it, JTC is now exploring other subterranean projects, said Dr Loo, adding: "Land will always be scarce in Singapore, but with human creativity and ingenuity, we continue to find ways to do more with less."

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Punggol jetty comes back to life

The Straits Times AsiaOne 2 Sep 14;

Ponggol Hock Kee Seafood restaurant, next to the Punggol Jetty, used to be a hot dining spot in the 1970s.

Now, the restaurant is back, 50m from its former location, in a new two-storey building called The Punggol Settlement.

The original restaurant moved out in 1994 after the land was acquired by the Government.

But after property developer Fragrance Group bought the site following a public tender in 2012, it invited Ponggol Hock Kee to move in again. The iconic seafood restaurant returned two months ago.

Tenants, including bistros, a bicycle rental store, an ice-cream parlour and other seafood restaurants, have also moved in since the building's completion in April this year. Only one of the 28 units is not occupied.

It was their fond memories of the place that brought the family behind Ponggol Hock Kee back.

The restaurant was started by Mr Ting Choon Teng, a former taxi driver who often drove past the area and thought it would make a good location for a seafood restaurant.

Mr Ting, 84, is now retired and the business is managed by four of his eight children - sons Anthony, 54, and Cheng Ping, 51, and daughters Cecilia, 55, and Teresa, 53.

Recalls Mr Anthony Ting: "The original restaurant had a kampung feel. It had a zinc roof and was next to a sandy beach."

On weekends, more than 600 customers would turn up for dinner and tables had to be set up by the roadside to accommodate them.

Adds his brother, Mr Ting Cheng Ping: "When the buses No. 82 and 83 - they no longer come here - did a three-point turn at the end of Punggol Road, they'd come within 1m of the tables.

"But our customers didn't mind. They just wanted to enjoy their meal under the stars."

After the land was acquired by the Government in 1994, the restaurant moved out and set up shop in various locations. Last year, it was operating at the Marina Country Club when Fragrance's marketing agents invited it to move back.

The Ting family agreed to move - lock, stock and barrel.

Says Mr Anthony Ting: "This place has so many memories for us. Coming back also lets us reconnect with many long-time customers."

Indeed, clerk Lily Meow, 52, who patronised the restaurant once every few months in the 1980s, quickly showed up as soon as she heard that it was back at Punggol.

She says: "I love their classic dishes such as chilli crab and mee goreng, and also their new dishes such as salted egg prawns.

Mrs Meow, who has taken her 20-year-old daughter to try the food, adds: "I hope she can experience the simple joys I had when I was her age."

Indeed, when SundayLife! was there last week, a number of the patrons said they used to be regulars.

Says engineer Daniel Ng, 53: "Coming back reminds me of old times, with delicious food and a pleasant atmosphere by the sea.

"This area was dead after the Government acquired it. It's great to finally see it come alive again."

Fragrance declined to reveal the building's construction cost. According to previous reports, it paid $11.4 million for the 11,606 sq m site last year.

But the nostalgia is not confined to just the Ting family and their customers. Almost all the new business owners at The Punggol Settlement have a personal connection to the place.

For example, the director of Jing Long Seafood, Mr Loh Siong Way, used to fish at the jetty twice a week when he was a teenager.

Recalls the 47-year-old: "I was then a kitchen hand at a coffee shop zi char stall. I'd come with a colleague in a taxi at 10pm and stay until 6am, when the first bus came.

"It was peaceful and quiet. I'd fish for catfish, grouper and flower crabs, all the while chatting with my colleague."

Mr Francis Ng, 42, chief executive of House Of Seafood, remembers eating at the seafood restaurants there with his family in the 1980s when he was a child.

"My cousins and I would run up and down the jetty while the adults ate. After peeling the prawns, we'd throw the empty shells into the sea to feed the fishes."

Adds Mr Francis Tan, 40, owner of Thai restaurant Trunk At Bay: "We'd come in my dad's pick-up truck. The ride was long and bumpy, but it was worth it for the fantastic seafood amid the salty sea air.

"There used to be rubbish floating in the sea. The area is so much cleaner now."

Some tenants - such as the owners of European bistro Just The Place, Mr Kenneth Sia, 29, and Madam Teresa Tay, 26 - are just starting to build their own memories of the place.

Apart from setting up shop in Punggol, the married couple bought a four-room HDB flat in the estate earlier this year.

Madam Tay says: "We came here because it looks like a good place for a business. But from all the nice things people have said about Punggol, it sounds like a good place to settle down - for our business and our personal lives."
- See more at: http://news.asiaone.com/news/soshiok/punggol-jetty-comes-back-life#sthash.3yIiT19H.dpuf

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Malaysia: Tighter tourism rules at wildlife sanctuary

The Star 3 Sep 14;

KOTA KINABALU: Tourism activities will be more regulated at the renowned Lower Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary starting next year.

For a start, tour operators and their guides will be required to obtain special permits from the State Wildlife Department to operate in the area.

Department director Datuk Dr Laurentius Ambu said action would be taken against those found breaching the regulations.

He said tour operators wanting to operate in the sanctuary must apply for a Wildlife Tourism Operator permit.

“Offenders will be liable to a fine of RM20,000 or two years imprisonment or both,” he said after opening a seminar on Eco-Tourism Operational Procedures in the Lower Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary in Sandakan yesterday.

Tourism activities have boomed in recent years at the Lower Kinabatangan, where wildlife such as orang utan, proboscis monkeys and Bornean elephants can be spotted along the nation’s second longest waterway and its tributaries.

However, its popularity had also resulted in problems such as overcrowding at certain spots along the Sungai Kinabatangan or smaller rivers.

“There have also been reports of guides allowing visitors to alight from tour boats to take pictures of wildlife such as elephants along the river banks,” he said.

He said there was no excuse for guides to allow tourists out of the boats and risk their lives while causing stress to the elephants.

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Ebola response lethally inadequate, says MSF

James Gallagher BBC News website 1 Sep 14;

A global military intervention is needed to curb the largest ever Ebola outbreak, according to the medical charity Medecins Sans Frontieres.

In a damning criticism of world leaders, it says the global response has so far been "lethally inadequate".

The charity said countries were turning their back on West Africa and merely reducing the risk of Ebola arriving on their shores.

More than 1,550 people have died in the outbreak which started in Guinea.

At least 3,000 people have been infected with the virus, but the World Health Organization (WHO) has warned that more than 20,000 people are likely to be infected.

'Coalition of inaction'

In a speech to the United Nations, the international president of MSF, Dr Joanne Liu, said repeated calls for help had been ignored.

She said: "Six months into the worst Ebola epidemic in history, the world is losing the battle to contain it.

"Leaders are failing to come to grips with this transnational threat.

"The WHO announcement on August 8 that the epidemic constituted a 'public health emergency of international concern' has not led to decisive action, and states have essentially joined a global coalition of inaction."

MSF said military and civilian teams capable of dealing with a biological disaster were needed immediately as the spread of Ebola "will not be prevented without a massive deployment".

It is calling for more field hospitals with isolation wards to be set up, trained healthcare workers to be sent to the region and air support to move patients and medics across West Africa.

Dr Liu added: "States with the required capacity have a political and humanitarian responsibility to come forward and offer a desperately needed, concrete response to the disaster unfolding in front of the world's eyes.

"Rather than limit their response to the potential arrival of an infected patient in their countries, they should take the unique opportunity to actually save lives where immediately needed, in West Africa."

The charity said that at one site in Monrovia, in Liberia, it had been able to set up an isolation facility with 160 beds, but said they were "overwhelmed" with growing queues and needed an additional 800 beds.

In other developments:
=31 people have now died from a separate Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo, says the World Health Organization (WHO)
=The UN's Food and Agriculture Organization has warned outbreak is putting food harvests in West Africa "at serious risk".
=Nurses in Liberia's largest hospital are on strike, refusing to return to work until they are issued with protective equipment
=After a Guinean student with Ebola escaped from a clinic in his homeland and took Ebola to Dakar, Senegal's president said if the student were not sick "he would be before the courts"
=Ivory Coast's government allows Sierra Leone's football team to play an Africa Nations Cup qualifier in Abidjan despite the travel ban imposed over the Ebola outbreak

The MSF criticism echoes earlier remarks from the president of the World Bank, Jim Yong Kim.

In a newspaper column he said the outbreak would have been easily contained if it had hit a major Western city.

He said the crisis in West Africa was down to a "disastrously inadequate response" from countries with the resources to help.

"We need international organisations and wealthy countries that possess the required resources and knowledge to step forward and partner with West African governments to mount a serious, co-ordinated response," he said.

Also speaking the the United Nations, the director-general of the World Health Organisation Dr Margaret Chan said: "Ebola has become a global threat which requires urgent global efforts in solidarity with the affected countries.

"The outbreak will get worse before it gets better and it requires a well-coordinated big surge and huge scale-up of outbreak response urgently."
line

Ebola virus disease (EVD)
=Symptoms include high fever, bleeding and central nervous system damage
=Spread by body fluids, such as blood and saliva
=Fatality rate can reach 90% - but current outbreak has mortality rate of about 55%
=Incubation period is two to 21 days
=There is no vaccine or cure
=Supportive care such as rehydrating patients who have diarrhoea and vomiting can help recovery
=Fruit bats, a delicacy for some West Africans, are considered to be virus's natural host

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Australia: Abbot Point port developers to ditch Great Barrier Reef seabed dumping plan

Developers are set to submit a new proposal in which dredged sediment is disposed of on land rather than at sea
Oliver Milman theguardian.com 2 Sep 14;

A plan to dump 5m tonnes of seabed sediment into the Great Barrier Reef marine park is set to be ditched following an outcry from environmentalists and some scientists.

The developers of the Abbot Point port, near the Queensland town of Bowen, are about to submit a new proposal which will mean the dredged seabed is disposed of on land rather than at sea, according to the Australian Financial Review.

It’s understood that the proponents, North Queensland Bulk Ports, GVK Hancock and Adani Group, will forward the plan within the next two weeks to Greg Hunt, the federal environment minister. Hunt’s office said the minister hadn’t yet seen the alternate proposal.

Hunt has already approved a plan to dredge 3m cubic metres, equivalent to 5m tonnes, of seabed in order to expand Abbot Point for an increase in coal exports.

A proposal to dump the sediment within the reef’s marine park has also been approved by Hunt, although an exact site has yet to be identified.

Environmentalists have fiercely opposed the dumping, claiming it will damage the fragile coral and seagrass ecosystem. It has emerged that scientists at the Great Barrier Reef marine park authority warned against dumping in the marine park, only to be overruled.

A recent study suggests that coral disease is doubled when dredging occurs near reefs, although supporters of the dredging insist it can be done safely and that the Abbot Point sediment will be dumped around 40km from the nearest reef.

Hunt has pointed to a raft of conditions on the dumping to illustrate its viability, although he has promised a “line in the sand” to prevent future dumping within the reef’s marine park.

It’s understood that the port’s developers have been mulling over a land-based disposal for some time and have identified a new site that was previously not available. It’s unclear, however, where this site is located.

Last week, Coalition MP George Christensen took out an advert in two Whitsunday newspapers to admit that he “got it wrong” in his support for dumping within the marine park. Christensen said he would work with developers to identify a land-based option.

A spokesman for Adani, which will also be creating the enormous Carmichael mine in central Queensland to provide coal for export, said: “We’ve long said that disposal options will adhere to the best practice and the best science, based on advice from technical experts and approving authorities.

“We are committed to ensuring the best options are in place to ensure this project is achieved, together with the best possible environmental outcomes.”

Greens senator Larissa Waters said dumping near the reef must be “outlawed once and for all.”

“Onshore disposal would be a far better option environmentally and for the tourism and fishing industries, however the problems of increased shipping and export of coal to exacerbate climate change remain,” she said.

“History will look back on the decision to build the world’s largest coal port in the Great Barrier Reef as an act of climate criminality.”

Felicity Wishart, chief campaigner at the Australian Marine Conservation Society, said she’d like to see the Abbot Point developers surrendering their dumping licence.

“The reef is in dire straits and we need to stop all dumping in its waters,” she said.

A recent report by the Great Barrier Reef marine park authority warned that the reef was in poor condition and was likely to deteriorate, with climate change and pollution cited as the key threats.

Australia to scrap plan for dumping near Great Barrier Reef: AFR
James Regan PlanetArk 2 Sep 14;

Australia will abandon plans to dump 3 million cubic meters of dredged sand into the Great Barrier Reef area in its effort to create the world's biggest coal port, the Australian Financial Review reported on Tuesday.

The fragile reef, which stretches 2,300 km (1,430 miles) along Australia's east coast, and sprawls over an area half the size of Texas, was the centerpiece of a campaign by green groups and tour operators opposing the plan.

They feared that dumping soil 25 km (15 miles) from the reef would harm delicate corals and seagrasses and potentially double ship traffic through the area.

The Abbot Point port is being expanded to accommodate $16 billion worth of coal projects planned in the inland Galilee Basin by two Indian firms, Adani Enterprises and GVK, and Australian billionaire Gina Rinehart.

On Tuesday, the paper said North Queensland Bulk Ports, Adani Group and GVK would re-submit a proposal as early as this week to Environment Minister Greg Hunt offering alternative dumping sites on land.

The change is designed to defuse controversy over potential damage to the reef and avoid a court case launched by the North Queensland Conservation Council, it added.

"If the reports are true, the cheapest, most destructive option for expanding Abbot Point may have been taken off the table," said Adam Walters, head of research for environmental group Greenpeace.

A spokesman for Hunt declined to confirm the newspaper's report, saying no new proposals had been received yet.

"There was no option available at the time of the decision," Hunt told Australian Broadcasting Corp radio on Tuesday. "There may well be one opening up. It's up to the proponents to submit it. We haven't seen any documentation."

A spokesman for Adani said the company was open to viable alternatives to the dredging plan.

"We are committed to ensuring the best options are in place to ensure this project is achieved, together with the best possible environmental outcomes," he said.

In January, the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority granted a permit for North Queensland Bulk Ports Corp to dump the dredged material in the park, to deepen Abbot Point for two terminals planned by Adani and GVK-Hancock.

Adani and GVK have long-term plans to ship a total of 120 million tonnes of coal through the port each year.

Last June, UNESCO's world heritage panel deferred until next year a decision on whether to designate the 300,000-sq-km reef as a site in danger.

The reef has the world's largest collection of coral reefs, with 400 types of coral, 1,500 species of fish, 4,000 types of mollusc, and is home to threatened species, including the dugong and large green turtle, the World Heritage list says.

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation is concerned over the proposed coastal developments, and has asked Australia for an updated report on the state of conservation of the reef by next February 1.

(Reporting by James Regan; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)

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Best of our wild blogs: 2 Sep 14

6 Sep (Sat) evening: Free guided walk at the Pasir Ris mangroves
from Adventures with the Naked Hermit Crabs

Sun 28 Sept’14: Battlefield Tour by Jon Cooper
from a.t.Bukit Brown. Heritage. Habitat. History.

Lotus Flowers @ Pulau Ubin
from Beauty of Fauna and Flora in Nature

Bats in my porch: 11. Figs
from Bird Ecology Study Group

Butterflies Galore! : Painted Jezebel
from Butterflies of Singapore

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Advocacy awards for 10 groups, individuals

Priscilla Goy The Straits Times AsiaOne 2 Sep 14;

One went public about her personal struggle with schizophrenia in a book. Another worked to place Bukit Brown on a global list of heritage sites at risk of being lost.

Freelance writer Chan Lishan and All Things Bukit Brown were among the 10 individuals and groups recognised at the first Singapore Advocacy Awards yesterday.

The awards honour those who made major contributions to the growth of civil society here in the last three years.

They were organised by The Working Committee 3 (TWC3), an informal group of civil activists chaired by Mrs Constance Singam, former president of the Association of Women for Action and Research, or Aware.

Said arts educator T. Sasitharan, head of the eight-member judging panel: "If civil society in Singapore is to grow and mature, then it is crucial that good advocacy work that makes an impact on society, that is engaged with the community and that empowers people, be properly recognised."

The winners, selected out of 18 nominations from the public, each received a certificate and $1,000 towards their cause at the ceremony at The Arts House.

Five of them received special trophies for their outstanding achievements. The trophies - shaped in the form of the awards logo which is an inverted "A" - were made by members of civil society, including people from the Down Syndrome Association Singapore and Humanitarian Organisation for Migration Economics.

One of those who won the trophy was Ms Braema Mathi, president of human rights group Maruah. She was named Advocate of the Year.

She told The Sunday Times that she "struggled" with winning the award.

"There are many people who have done plenty of work before the past three years, just that there was no award for them then... I'm building on the work of others and this work will continue through others."

The Animal Concerns Research and Education Society (Acres) had a double win - the animal welfare group was one of the winners in the honours list, and its founder Louis Ng was named Advocate of the Year.

Asked what keeps him going, he told The Sunday Times: "I'm glad to see more people joining the animal welfare movement, and we see more student volunteers too."

He was also lauded in the citation for confronting "iconic tourism industry institutions, shaming them over unethical practices".

While the citation did not go into specifics, his group has been campaigning since 2011 to secure freedom for dolphins kept at Resorts World Sentosa.

Ms Chan won the Most Promising Advocate award. Diagnosed with schizophrenia at the age of 24 in 2008, she gave a first-hand account of her struggle with the illness in a book published in 2012.

"It's very rewarding to know that somehow I've helped people. I've had people come up to me to say that the book really opened their eyes to mental health issues."

Mr Ng and Ms Chan said they hope their wins will help raise even more awareness of their causes.
- See more at: http://news.asiaone.com/news/singapore/advocacy-awards-10-groups-individuals#sthash.r3RiW95m.dpuf

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Singapore’s third Green Building Masterplan launched

Monica Kotwani Channel NewsAsia 1 Sep 14;

SINGAPORE: National Development Minister Khaw Boon Wan on Monday (Sep 1) launched the third Green Building Masterplan to guide Singapore’s green building journey over the next five to 10 years.

The masterplan, developed by the Building and Construction Authority (BCA), was launched at the opening ceremony of the International Green Building Conference and the BEX Asia Expo. Both events are being held as part of the Singapore Green Building Week.

'TIMELY' FOCUS ON TENANTS

The masterplan will focus on tenants and occupiers which, together with building owners, will be able to tap on the S$50 million Green Mark Incentive Scheme to adopt more energy-efficient measures in their premises, Mr Khaw said.

The scheme will help to fund up to half of the retrofitting costs of energy-efficient improvements to buildings and premises – subject to a maximum of S$3 million for building owners and S$20,000 for occupants and tenants. This will help the stakeholders, since they have fewer resources to implement such improvements, the BCA said.

One developer said the masterplan's focus on tenants is a timely one. Mr Rod Leaver, CEO of Lend Lease, said: "There was a gap in creating green buildings. Unless you actually got tenants on board and got them to understand, and educated them on the importance of energy efficiency, you could take a very green building and take it into a grey building over the long term."

Mr Khaw noted that the first and second masterplans had previously focused on greening new buildings and existing buildings, but the third masterplan will take Singapore's greening efforts "beyond the building structures and hardware" and focus more on end-users, aiming to change behaviours and practices.

NEW INITIATIVES

New awards have also been introduced - the Green Mark Pearl and Pearl Prestige Awards - to recognise building owners and developers which have worked with their tenants to reduce energy consumption.

This could be through implementing a green clause in lease agreements and achieving Green Mark certification for at least half of the tenant spaces. The Green Mark is a rating system that assesses a building's environmental impact. The awards will be given out at the BCA Awards next year.

Lend Lease, which currently operates three malls, said all its tenants have signed leases which focus on saving energy and reducing electricity costs.

Dr John Keung, CEO of the Building and Construction Authority, said: "That is where the building owner and tenants have to work together. They have to look at those areas where they can do a lot more to achieve the kind of energy efficiency required. If you get the design right from day one, the payback period is quite short."

A S$52 million fund has also been set up for research in developing, testing and showcasing new solutions for green buildings in the tropics.

Mr Khaw said: "We need more opportunities to bring solutions from the lab to the real world - in actual buildings. We must make it easier and faster for these solutions to be adopted when we build or retrofit existing buildings."

Separately, new initiatives for the public sector will also be rolled out under the new masterplan. These include requiring existing public sector buildings with more than 5,000 square metres of gross floor area to be Green Mark certified.

BCA said about 400 public sector buildings, including community centres, schools, police stations and museums will, be affected by these requirements. Government events and functions would also need to be held at Green Mark-certified venues.

- CNA/cy/by


BCA to incentivise green practices
S$50 million incentive scheme to target SMEs
Siau Ming En Today Online 1 Sep 14;

SINGAPORE — Besides green buildings, the Building and Construction Authority (BCA) will also place greater emphasis on encouraging tenants and occupants to adopt green practices under the third Green Building Masterplan unveiled today (Sept 1).

S$50 million has also been set aside for a new Green Mark incentive scheme to encourage building owners and tenants with fewer resources to adopt energy efficiency improvements to their buildings and premises. In particular, this scheme will target building owners and tenants from small and medium enterprises.

Speaking at the opening ceremony of the International Green Building Conference today, Minister for National Development Khaw Boon Wan noted that the first and second masterplans had previously focused on greening new buildings and existing buildings respectively.

He added that the third masterplan will then take Singapore’s greening efforts “beyond the building structures and hardware” and focus more on end-users, aiming to change behaviors and practices.

BCA noted that besides improving the energy efficiency of buildings, it is also important to address how building occupants carry out their daily activities and operations within the buildings’ premises.

New awards — Green Mark Pearl and Pearl Prestige Awards — will recognise those that have performed well overall, which includes adopting green leases, achieving Green Mark certification for at least 50 per cent of tenant spaces, among other things.

Green leases are environmentally friendly leasing arrangements between landlords and tenants that can specify their commitments to, for instance, cut energy use.

Separately, new initiatives for the public sectors will also be rolled out under the new masterplan, which includes requiring office spaces to be leased from a high Green Mark-certified building upon lease renewal, among other things.

S$50m fund launched to make buildings ‘greener’
Siau Ming En Today Online 2 Sep 14;

To this end, the Building and Construction Authority’s (BCA) new incentive scheme will fund up to half of the retrofitting cost, totalling about S$3 million for owners of buildings and not more than S$20,000 for occupants and tenants.

In addition, new awards — the Green Mark Pearl and Pearl Prestige Awards — were also introduced to recognise buildings that have adopted green leases and where at least 50 per cent of tenant spaces have obtained a Green Mark certification.

Green leases are contracts that contain clauses on environmentally-friendly targets which building owners and tenants commit to achieve, for example, a specified reduction in energy consumption.

Speaking at the opening ceremony of the Singapore Green Building Week yesterday, Minister for National Development Khaw Boon Wan noted that the new master plan will take Singapore’s greening efforts “beyond the building structures and hardware”.

He hopes the new incentive scheme will result in greater collaboration and engagement between government agencies, developers and building owners and tenants, who are the end-users. The BCA hopes at least 80 per cent of all buildings here will achieve a Green Mark certification by 2030.

The existing Green Mark rating system will also be reviewed to increase the focus on users, design considerations for the tropical climate and the indoor environmental quality, among others. More details on the new rating system will be revealed at the end of next year.

The need for building users to play their part in greening efforts was reflected in the findings of the inaugural BCA Building Energy Benchmarking Report released yesterday, which showed that tenant and occupant activities within a building account for up to 50 per cent of the total electricity consumption.

The report assesses green building efforts based on data gathered from the mandatory submission of energy consumption for commercial buildings.

CKE Manufacturing, an SME which manufactures oil and gas components, hopes to tap into the scheme as it plans to install integrated monitoring systems to monitor its energy consumption patterns.

Other financing schemes in the market require a minimum electricity bill. This makes it difficult for SMEs to qualify, said its enterprise development manager Kwan Li Feng. “With this BCA scheme, it should be able to cover a wider group of business owners of different sizes,” he added.

Developer Lend Lease, which operates 313@Somerset and several other malls, is one firm that has implemented green leases with regard to several of its tenants.

However, Mr Rod Leaver, its chief executive officer for Asia, noted that it could be a challenge for tenants if their leases were shorter than the payback period for retrofitting energy-efficient features.

Yesterday, Mr Khaw also announced that S$52 million will be set aside for the Green Buildings Innovation Cluster to develop and test new green building solutions that are applicable to the tropics.

Initiatives under the latest masterplan
Siau Ming En Today Online 2 Sep 14;

Office spaces are to be leased from a building of high Green Mark rating upon lease renewal.

Public sector offices need to be certified under the Green Mark for Office Interior scheme at the next lease or retrofit.

Government events and functions are to be held at Green Mark-certified venues.

The public sector should also promote the adoption of green leases.

More details of the new initiatives will be announced with the review of the Singapore Sustainable Blueprint at the end of this year.

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Malaysia: Unbearable slaughter

tan cheng li The Star 25 Aug 14;

Cute and cuddly they may be, but bears have not escaped the claws of poachers.

The illegal trade in bears and their body parts is rife across Asia, with as many as 2,801 bears either trapped or slaughtered over a 12-year period to feed demand.

Researchers at Traffic, the body which monitors trade in wildlife, arrived at that figure after analysing 694 bear-related seizures reported in 17 countries and territories between 2000 and 2011.

The seizures were mostly from Cambodia (190 cases), China (145), Vietnam (102), Russia (59), Malaysia (38), Thailand (29), Laos (29) and India (23).

The trade involved not only live bears – trapped to stock bear bile extraction farms and the pet or dancing bear trade – but also bear body parts and derivatives such as meat, skins, skulls, paws, bones, claws, teeth, gall bladders and bear bile, according to the report Bring To Bear: An Analysis Of Seizures Across Asia (2000–2011).

The authors Elizabeth A. Burgess, Sarah S. Stoner and Kaitlyn-Elizabeth Foley found all four species of bears in Asia being traded: Asiatic black bear (Ursus thibetanus), sun bear (Helarctos malayanus), sloth bear (Melursus ursinus), and brown bear (Ursus arctos).

Under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (Cites), all international commerce in bear parts and products is illegal.

Russia and China accounted for 69% of the trade volume – equating to the slaughter of an estimated 1,934 bears. High seizure volumes were also recorded in Vietnam (an estimated 279 bears), Cambodia (253), Malaysia (98), India (53) and Thailand (50).

“We’re shocked to see the trade is as widespread as it is. It is persisting and ‘healthy’ and poses a major threat to the existence of wild bears. The illicit nature of the trade also means that the volumes of trade reported in this study are likely to represent only a fraction of the actual number of bears and bear parts being trafficked around the world,” says Dr Chris R. Shepherd, regional director of Traffic in South-East Asia.

All chopped up

Bear paws were the most sought-after product. A staggering 6,624 paws were seized during the 12-year period. An estimated 1,657 bears, mostly from Russia, were believed to be killed for them. The bears were likely wild-caught since Russia has no bear breeding facilities. The paws were mostly seized at border towns between Russia and China, suggesting a prolific trade in bears between the two countries.

Live bears were the second-most commonly seized item after paws, with 434 bears confiscated during the period.

The bears were mostly caught in Cambodia (156 bears) and Vietnam (152), and said to be headed for bear farms where bile is extracted from caged bears.

Sale of bear bile has been banned in Vietnam and since 2005, it is illegal for bear farms there to acquire new bears. The reports says over 12,000 bears are held in bear farms in China, South Korea, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam.

Shepherd says the existence of bear farms increases the availability of bear bile and thus, raises consumer demand. The farms will then be pressured to stock more bears, which further drives the poaching of wild bears.

“There is no evidence supporting the claim that bear farming alleviates the pressure on wild bear populations since these farms are not breeding bears. Most rely on wild bears to maintain their stock since captive breeding of bears in bile extraction facilities is challenging.”

Live bears were also traded in India (35 bears were seized) and Nepal (14) for the dancing bear trade. But with efforts being made to stop this exploitation of bears, the number of dancing bears in India has dropped from 400 to 150 since 2005.

Also driving the illegal trade is the high demand in Asia for medicines containing bear bile. Over 19,100 products containing derivatives of bear bile were seized, mostly in China, Russia, Thailand, Singapore, Hong Kong and South Korea. Significant numbers of gall bladders (373) were also confiscated, mostly in China, Vietnam, Malaysia, Japan, Russia and India.

The researchers, however, often could not obtain information on the outcome of enforcement action, such as the fines or jail sentences imposed on offenders.

Of the 694 reported bear seizures, only 43 cases in four countries (China, Malaysia, Singapore and Vietnam) had details on fines (ranging from US$316 to US$6,320). This lack of information prevented a thorough assessment of the range of penalties meted out on offenders.

“The number of seizures are a credit to the enforcement agencies, but they undoubtedly only stop a fraction of the overall trafficking because bear products are still widely and easily available across Asia,” says Shepherd.

To curb the illegal trade, the researchers recommend that countries which are party to Cites implement the measures adopted by the treaty in 1997 which states that “the continued illegal trade in parts and derivatives of bear species undermines the effectiveness of the Convention.”

Under the treaty, parties are required to monitor illegal bear trade and submit information on administrative measures (fines, bans, suspensions) imposed for violations, seizures, prosecutions or other court actions and disposal of confiscated specimens.

Because of the cross-border nature of the illegal bear trade, Traffic recommends that a centralised database be developed to collate all related information. It says better understanding of the trade will enable parties to better deal with the illegal trade.

Vietnam, China, Myanmar, Laos and South Korea are also urged to close their bear bile farming facilities to conform to a International Union for Conservation of Nature recommendation calling for their closure. Public awareness campaigns are also needed to highlight the impact of consuming bears and their derivatives on wild bears.

Research should be conducted to identify substitutes for bear bile and to promote alternatives to consumers. Equally important are advocacy campaigns targeted at traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) practitioners to ensure that bears are included in their list of prohibited species that they are not permitted to work with.

In Malaysia, processed bear bile is openly sold. A 2010/2011 Traffic survey of 212 TCM shops revealed 163 (77%) to stock such products. Shepherd says from recent checks, some of these shops are still selling the banned products. “We need the TCM practitioners to not prescribe bear bile to their patients.”

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Malaysia: Wild about palms

tan cheng li The Star 25 Aug 14;

Delve into the world of palms and it is difficult not to be fascinated.

THERE is a garden of palms growing deep within the confines of the Forest Research Institute Malaysia (Frim) in Kepong, Kuala Lumpur. In this sanctuary for plants, palm trees of varied forms and sizes can be seen. There are palms which soar high above, some with leaves big enough to shield one from the sun and rain, some which climb and coil themselves around other trees, and some which are just a mass of longish leaves emerging from the ground.

The lush reserve known as the Kepong Botanic Gardens, housed within Frim, is a little-known place that was recently shared when wild palms expert Dr Saw Leng Guan led a walk there for a group of interested public. Some 100 species of palms have been cultivated in the botanical garden alongside other plants, to serve as a living collection of rare and endangered species. During the walk and the talk prior to it, Saw shed light on this group of plants which most of us know little of, though we’re surrounded by them.

Long before oil palms (Elaeis guineensis, which is not native to Malaysia but originates from West Africa) took over the Malaysian landscape, there were wild palms. They are a common feature of the tropical forest. In fact, Malaysia is a palm-rich country; it has one of the highest diversity of palm species in the world. Of the known 2,600 palm species, 443 (17%) are found here. The fact that we have named many of our states and towns after palms – Penang, Kedah, Salak South, Nibong Tebal, Bertam and Serdang are examples – is an indicator of our rich palm heritage.

Palm sanctuary

In the Frim botanical garden, palm seeds and wildings collected over the years by botanists such as Saw are cultivated as part of an ex-situ conservation measure. He points out that most people will know a palm when they see one because of its simple construction.

“They have well-defined architecture and leaf morphology. They are solitary or clustered and hardly branch, and have only a single living trunk. That’s why you should never prune your palm, you’ll kill it,” says the director of the forest biodiversity division at Frim.

His passion for palms is obvious as he shares insightful details about the plant. Many of us had no inkling that so many palm species exist here. And we certainly had no idea that they could all look so different. The most beautiful part of palms – which is what makes them so popular in horticulture – is their leaves. And boy, do the leaves come in unusual shapes. Aside from the familiar feathered leaves (like oil palm’s), some leaves are fan-like, fish-tail-like, and even slightly diamond-shaped.

Some leaves divide into two to resemble the wings of butterflies, like those of the Pinanga disticha. Drawing our attention to the mottled patterns on the leaves, Saw exclaimed, “Isn’t that beautiful?” That line was oft-repeated throughout the hour-long walk. Saw, 58, is clearly a man enamoured with palms.

In his 24 years of studying palms, he has described 49 new palm species, of which 18 were personally collected by him. His foray into the world of palms stemmed from a meeting with palm specialist Dr John Dransfield (former head of palm research at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew). He opted to research on palms (focusing on the genus Licuala) for his Masters and PhD degrees, and the interest kept growing from there.

“The greatest attraction came when I started collecting these plants in the wild for my research and when I analyse my research findings. They just added on. As I learn more, I discovered that I knew less. So there is an ever-increasing pull to study more of this interesting group of plants.”

As we trail closely behind Saw down a path in the botanical garden, and listen closely to his explanations, it is difficult not to be fascinated by palms, too. Wild palms are not just pretty to look at; they are of socio-economic importance, too. They are a source of rattan and rural communities depend on them for thatch, fibres and fruits. Their pretty leaves make them valuable as ornamental plants. Palms are most diverse in lowland and hill forests. There are fewer varieties in other habitats though some species are confined to certain areas such as peat swamps, limestone hills and highlands.

Rare and endangered

Their high endemism (peculiar to a specific place) makes palms an important flora in the world of plants. Of the 231 species found in Peninsular Malaysia, 118 (51%) are found nowhere else. In Sabah and Sarawak, 191 (70%) of the 272 species are confined there.

“Seven out of 10 palm species in Malaysia are only found here. In terms of conservation, this is important. If we lose any of these endemic species, that means that species goes extinct,” explains Saw.

Examples of such rarities are Maxburettia graciles (found only in Pulau Langkawi) and Maxburettia rupicola (restricted to two limestone hills in Selangor, Bukit Takun and Batu Caves).

Of the 41 species of Licuala (palas palms) in Peninsular Malaysia, 33 are endemics. Of these, 19 are hyper-endemics – they are known only from a very restricted range. One hyper-endemic is Licuala cameronensis which Saw described in 1997. It has been found only in the lower montane forest of Cameron Highlands, Pahang.

“Based on its population size and range (confined to one population), the species is assessed as critically endangered. The population is safe only as long as the forest reserve remains and is not converted to other land use,” says Saw, who has 32 years’ experience in the taxonomy and ecology of plants and has contributed significantly towards documentation and conservation of Malaysian plants. Aside from palms, he has also described several other plants and has even had four plant species named after him – a begonia, a bamboo, an orchid and a monocot related to bananas.

We come by a towering palm. The leaves are big enough to shade Saw. The signboard underneath indicates its name – daun payung, Johannesteijsmannia magnifica. One of the world’s largest palms, its leaves can reach 3m long and 2m wide and are favoured by the orang asli for thatch. The Johannesteijsmannia genus has only four species worldwide, three of which are confined to Peninsular Malaysia, and even then, limited to small pockets of primary forest in several states.

If you are in Kedah, Saw advises that you look out for Corypha utan palms standing tall from paddy fields. If the timing is right, you might see long stems full of yellow blooms emanating from the tree-tops. These imposing palms flower only once in their lifetime, and die soon after their fruits mature. Saw explains that this happens because they have exhausted their carbohydrate store in that single flowering and fruiting event.

He also tells us about the Borassodendron machodonis, an endemic palm with huge fruits usually found in limestone areas. “You look at it and you wonder if nature has made a mistake. Who is going to disperse these big seeds? But nature is never wrong. A study has found that megafauna such as elephants, are a major disperser of these fruits,” says Saw.

Some species of the climbing palm Korthalsia (which produces rattan) live in mutualistic association with colonies of ants. The ants make their nests in little pockets that grow where the leaf bases join the stems. In return for the shelter, the ants protect the rattan from leaf-eating insets. When disturbed, the ants tap their bodies against the dry walls of the pockets and produce an eerie, rustling sound. When Saw first heard the sound, his first thought was of a ghostly encounter. “I had goose pimples the first time I heard it,” he says.

Stemming the loss

As forests disappear, so does our wild flora. Frim is currently conducting conservation assessment for the nation’s plants. Of the 1,132 species reviewed so far, 257 are under threat of extinction. “All these plants deserve attention. Palms, on the other hand, needs special attention because of their high endemism and because they are predominantly lowland forest plants. The lowland forest is the most threatened habitat in Malaysia due to conversion. If we don’t take steps now, we are likely to see some of these species go extinct. Even now some species are already critically endangered,” says Saw.

Frim has so far listed 34 palm species as critically endangered and 30, endangered – and that’s just a preliminary assessment, with many species yet to be reviewed. “In most cases, the reasons for their listing are due to their very restricted distribution and imminent threat by the loss of habitat,” explains Saw. So far, one palm species has been listed as extinct – Salacca lophospatha from Sabah. The species was described in 1942 and was never seen again.

Over the years of botany work, Saw has seen forests which harbour rare flora being destroyed by farms, plantations and development. “I am cautious about listing species as extinct until we have taken searches for the species and truly cannot locate populations anymore but I have seen changes that will indeed cause extinction. Licuala whitmorei and Pinanga johorensis in Johor, Licuala palas and Licuala sallehana in Terengganu (all critically endangered) are examples where the original areas where I collected these species from have been converted to oil palm plantations.”

Another threatened species is Livistona saribus – it grows in freshwater swamps which are often drained for development. “There used to be populations of this in Klang and Kuala Selangor but they are all gone.”

Take action

The findings of Frim on endangered plants have been passed on to the Natural Resources and Environment Ministry and the Forestry Department; what is needed now is follow-up action to deal with the threatened plants.

“We need to identify important plant areas and conserve them. Land must be managed based on these plants. For species that are going extinct, there must be recovery plans. We haven’t done much on this.”

Looking at the pattern of distribution of palms and where they are mostly found (in lowland areas), Saw says we need to do conservation at a more dispersed level.

“We cannot just save Taman Negara and Endau-Rompin and think that’s good enough. A high percentage of palms are in small areas in states, so we need each state to initiate palm conservation to capture these distributions. Some palm species are found in a single locality, so these sites should be totally protected. The priority states are Terengganu, Johor and Sarawak. These states contain some of the highest diversity of palms in the country. In Sarawak, the Kuching-Bau-Lundu area has the highest number of palm species in the world (within one site).”

The area around Kuching has 19 species of Licuala palms with 13 endemics, and is also the most developed part of the state. Fortunately, there are protected parks there which Saw hopes will help conserve the rare palms.

Many rare palms are found in production forests (where timber is harvested). As such, Saw cautions that logging practices must be sustainable and must include protection of threatened species. Continuing research work is crucial, he adds.

“Taxonomy is important as we need to know what we have. Conservation assessments will tell us what is threatened and what is not. It must be systematically done if we are to ensure that plant species do not go extinct. Assessment of threat must be accurate so that proper action plan can be put in place.”

In the meantime, ex-situ conservation is helping to conserve the rare flora. Aside from the Kepong Botanic Gardens, two other places currently grow palm species – Rimba Ilmu in Universiti Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, and Semengoh Botanical Garden, Sarawak. But of course, nothing can beat the presence of palms in the wild.

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