Rich countries to pay energy giants to build new coal-fired power plants

UN's Clean Development Mechanism to use European carbon offset credits to subsidise 20 'efficient' coal plants in India and China
John Vidal, guardian.co.uk 14 Jul 10;

The UN is set to channel billions of pounds of public money from rich countries to giant energy companies to build 20 heavily polluting coal-fired power plants on the basis that they will emit less carbon dioxide than older ones.

Data seen by the Guardian shows that 12 companies have applied to the UN for hundreds of millions of emission reduction credits to subsidise "efficient" coal-fired power stations in China and India. Many of the plants would be paid for with carbon offsets bought by British and European companies in lieu of cutting their own emissions.

If, as expected, the power company applications are approved by the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), they will earn around £3.5bn at current carbon market prices. This would make the UN body set up to promote clean energy and reduce global climate emissions one of the world's largest provider of funds for new coal burning.

The rush by companies to take advantage of the UN's Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) subsidies follows the successful application for credits by the Indian Adani coal group for two large power stations at Mundra in Gujarat, India. Adani will earn around £25m a year for the lifetime of its power stations in return for using "super-critical" technology, which burns the coal at lower temperatures and emits up to 30% less carbon dioxide than conventional power plants.

An Adani company spokesman said that its application had been approved by the UN only after a "complex and gruelling" evaluation process by national government, independent inspectors and a UN committee.

Others companies are now examining if they qualify. Eskom, the giant South African coal mining company controversially loaned £3.75bn by the World Bank in April to build what one of the largest coal-fired power stations in the world, has said it will apply for emission reduction credits. If built, the Medupi plant will emit nearly 25m tonnes of CO2 a year, more than the national output of 115 individual countries.

If Medupi is allowed to sell carbon offsets to Britain and other rich countries, it will be able to discount 6.5m tonnes of CO2 every year for 10 years, earning it tens of millions of pounds. It would be able offset all the emissions from a major new coal power station in the UK, effectively allowing the British government to meet its carbon-reduction targets by subsidising a plant in South Africa that would have been built anyway.

Eva Filzmoser, director of CDM-watch said: "It's completely unacceptable for the UN to keep issuing an inflated number of bogus credits that create vast profits for carbon trading groups and chemical companies. If the UN wishes to avoid irreparable damage to its reputation and show that is truly serious about climate mitigation, it must put the current methodology on hold with immediate effect and halt issuing credits until the methodology is revised."

David Abbass, a Unfccc spokesman, said the CDM has features that prevent projects supported by the scheme from inadvertently prolonging fossil fuel use or competing against renewable energy sources. "Fossil fuel will be a part of the energy mix for many years to come. It makes sense that the CDM should be used to reduce the emissions associated with that fossil fuel use."

"The methodology has a phase-out feature that limits the number of certified emission reduction credits that can be earned. As well, the number of projects eligible in a given country is limited, based on a percentage of the fossil fuel, covered by the project, used in the country."

The news comes at the same time as a report into the EU Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) by the campaign group Sandbag. In 2009, European companies bought €860m of international offsets to comply with caps imposed by the ETS, but the report found that companies were directly subsidising competing industries in developing countries. Sandbag says this undermines claims by these companies that caps on their emissions force business to countries outside the EU and so lead to "carbon leakage". The largest purchaser of offsets, for example - Salzgitter's Glock Satzgitter steel production plant - bought 40,000 offsets from an Indian steel project.

"Frustratingly, it seems that EU installations seem to have a greater incentive to fund abatement projects amongst their competitors rather than invest in these improvements themselves," said Sandbag founder and director, Bryony Worthington, "While it is perfectly legal and on one level economically rational to do this, it begs the question of why companies would choose to send a direct subsidy to their international competitors if fears of carbon leakage were so pronounced."

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UN eyes private donors to meet climate aid

Business Times 15 Jul 10;

Panel explores ways to set up fund with target of US$100b a year by 2020

(UNITED NATIONS) A pledge by rich nations in Copenhagen to provide as much as US$100 billion a year of climate-related aid to developing countries by 2020 may depend in part on the generosity of private donors and other non-governmental sources.

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said on Tuesday that his panel of advisers - seeking ways to fulfil a UN climate summit's pledge in the Danish capital last December - was considering private sources to deliver some of the aid promised to help developing countries deal with rising sea levels, drought and other effects of rising temperatures.

The panel chaired by prime ministers Meles Zenawi of Ethiopia and Jens Stoltenberg of Norway have been meeting this week to devise ways to set up a US$30 billion annual fund by 2012 that would increase to US$100 billion a year by 2020.

The panel also includes billionaire George Soros, White House economic adviser Lawrence Summers, the president of Guyana and ministers from Britain, France, Mexico, Singapore and South Africa.

'The challenges will be great,' Mr Ban told reporters. 'They have to first of all identify the sources of resource - whether it comes from public funding or private funding. I suspect that to generate US$100 billion, both private and public funds would be necessary.'

He did not specify, however, what sort of private funds might be sought - individual, corporate or other sources. Mr Ban's advisory panel on climate financing said it plans to submit a final report in October on how to set up the fund.

Separately, Chris Huhne, Britain's energy and climate secretary, told reporters that private finance would be 'absolutely key, because so much of the mitigation agenda is about what is effectively a new industrial revolution in all of our countries, in the developing world and the developed world.'

He said the financing options under consideration include grants and aid from rich nations, some forms of government, bank or private lending and new taxes on shipping or aviation.

The fund was a key part of the non-binding 'Copenhagen Accord,' an agreement brokered by US President Barack Obama with China and others that signalled a new start for rich-poor cooperation on climate change.

The accord urged deeper cuts in emissions of carbon dioxide and other gases blamed for global warming, but did nothing to demand them. The next hoped-for step, a legally binding international treaty requiring further emissions cuts by richer nations, remains an elusive goal of UN negotiations.

'Frankly, if we don't get the finance credibly right, if we don't come up with a set of packages or a package which the developing countries can clearly see is a real, effective, credible effort to meet the commitments that we've made, then I don't think that there is going to be a global deal,' Mr Huhne said.

One of most concrete actions was the pledge by richer nations to finance a US$10 billion-a-year, three-year programme to fund poorer nations' projects to deal with drought and other climate-change impacts, and to develop clean energy.

They also set a 'goal' of mobilising US$100 billion-a-year by 2020 for the same adaptation and mitigation purposes.

Among those most affected by rising temperatures, the 11 nations that make up the Pacific Small Island Developing States expressed frustration on Tuesday over the pace of progress in getting the promised climate aid.

The group said in a statement it fears the aid will get held up in 'bureaucratic red tape' or the promised 'new and additional' money from rich nations will wind up being existing development aid that is simply repackaged. -- AP

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Best of our wild blogs: 14 Jul 10

MediaCorp videoclips on nature issues now online
from wild shores of singapore

Cyrene in the dark again
from wild shores of singapore and colourful clouds

Checking Out Changi Shore
from colourful clouds

Dairy Farm Road
from Singapore Nature

七月华语导游 mandarin guide walk@SBWR IV
from PurpleMangrove

Barn Owl electrocuted
from Bird Ecology Study Group

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Waterway Terraces BTO project sees huge interest

Mustafa Shafawi Channel NewsAsia 13 Jul 10;

SINGAPORE: The HDB Build-to-Order (BTO) project in Punggol, Waterway Terraces, is proving a big draw for home buyers.

With hours to go before applications close, 5,465 home buyers have indicated their interest to own one of the five-room units available.

That's close to 18 times the number of such units on offer.

Demand was also high for the four-room units.

6,947 applications have been received so far, some 12 times the 588 units available.

Three-room flats were also popular with home buyers. 983 applications were received for the 178 units offered.

The project is Singapore's first public waterfront housing, consisting of 1,072 premium flats with eco-friendly designs and features such as rain gardens and solar power.

The development will be ready in the first quarter of 2015.

Two other BTO projects were launched in Sengkang - Rivervale Arc and Fernvale Foliage - at the same time.

These, however, were less well-received.

3,149 applications were received for the 1,624 two-, three-, four- and five-room flats available.

- CNA/ir

18 buyers vie for each 5-room flat at waterfront project
Joyce Teo Straits Times 14 Jul 10;

PREMIUM flats at the Housing Board's (HDB) upcoming Punggol waterfront estate has drawn strong interest, with as many as 18 buyers chasing each flat.

Applications for Waterway Terraces, which features premium flats, closed yesterday with a thumping 13,688 applications for just 1,072 homes.

Property experts said the project's waterfront location is the biggest draw.

The five-roomers were hugely popular, attracting 5,594 applicants for the 306 flats available, which makes them 18 times oversubscribed.

The 588 four-room flats in the build-to-order (BTO) project were hot as well with 7,084 applications lodged or 12 times oversubscribed.

Almost 50 per cent of the applicants have not applied for any BTO flats in the past 12 months, said HDB.

Indicative prices range from $374,000 to $458,000 for the five-room flats, $300,000 to $376,000 for four-roomers and $186,000 to $237,000 for three-room flats.

Waterway Terraces will be premium flats, which means they come with fittings such as timber strip flooring in the bedrooms.

The project also has roof gardens, a relatively rare feature in HDB projects, and direct lift access from all blocks to the basement carpark.

The HDB expected Waterway Terraces to be well received but the big turnout of buyers could not trump the HDB record holder, Telok Blangah Towers. Launched in October 2007, this drew 7,970 applications for 400 BTO flats - or nearly 20 times oversubscribed.

Buyers flocked to the Punggol flats as they are the first along the Punggol Waterway to be released.

They are also within walking distance of the Punggol MRT station and other amenities and boast an award-winning design with various premium and eco-features, the HDB said.

Waterway Terraces is being offered under HDB's latest and largest build-to-order flat exercise, which includes two standard BTO projects in Sengkang.

Under the BTO scheme, flats are built only when a certain level of demand for the project is met.

The Sengkang flats were mostly just two to three times oversubscribed but the two-roomers attracted only 200 applications for the 238 units.

The HDB said in a statement yesterday that the absolute number of applicants for the Sengkang projects is comparable with previous BTO launches in the area.

In all, the 2,696 flats in Punggol and Sengkang drew 16,944 applications as of 5pm yesterday. HDB will provide a final update at 2pm today.

'Waterway Terraces' main attraction is its waterfront location and its reasonable pricing,' said real estate firm ERA Asia-Pacific's associate director Eugene Lim.

Ngee Ann Polytechnic real estate lecturer Nicholas Mak said a key draw is the project's proximity to the MRT station and the future mall there as not all units will have a waterfront view.

'People are still expecting HDB prices to rise. They are thinking if I don't get it now, the future Punggol projects could be priced even higher,' added Mr Mak.

Indeed, Mr Lim said applicants have a first-mover advantage. 'It's the first waterfront project there. Future ones may be priced higher.

'Some people are thinking that they can resell after eight years for a big profit. It's also a lifestyle that you cannot find in any other HDB project.'

PropNex chief executive Mohamed Ismail said the response shows that 'a lot of people now value lifestyle more than just a basic roof over their heads'.

He said buyers are 'willing to pay a premium for (lifestyle) as they also realise that these projects with special features can appreciate in value far more than other standard HDB projects because of limited supply'.

Buyers can look forward to 7,200 more BTO flats this year, the HDB said.

Waterfront living a hit with buyers
S Mustafa Today Online 14 Jul 10;

SINGAPORE - The latest HDB Build-to-Order (BTO) project in Punggol, the Waterway Terraces, is proving to be a big draw for home buyers.

With hours to go before applications closed at midnight yesterday, about 5,600 home buyers had indicated their interest to own one of the five-room units available - more than 18 times the number of such units on offer. Demand was also high for the four-room units. More than 7,000 applications were received - about 12 times the 588 available units.

Three-room flats were also popular with buyers. About 1,000 applications were received for the 178 available units. In total, the application rate of 12.4 times for the project is the highest for a BTO in two years.

The project is Singapore's first public waterfront housing, consisting of 1,072 premium flats. It is located within walking distance of Punggol MRT station and boasts an eco-friendly award-winning design.

Mr Nicholas Mak, a real estate lecturer at Ngee Ann Polytechnic, said the strong demand for the project was not surprising.

"Residents recognise that future HDB BTO projects may not be located that near to the waterway or that near to the Punggol town centre. So, if they were to buy now, even at the current price, the present price may still be lower than future BTO projects," Mr Mak said. The development will be ready in the first quarter of 2015.

Two other BTO projects were launched in Sengkang - Rivervale Arc and Fernvale Foilage - at the same time. These, however, were less well-received. About 3,260 applications were received for the 1,624 flats available.

The HDB said that it "had expected strong interest for the Waterway Terraces flats". As for the two BTO projects in Sengkang, the HDB added: "The absolute number of applicants for Fernvale Foliage and Rivervale Arc in Sengkang are comparable with previous BTO launches in Sengkang. Flat buyers who are in an urgent need of a flat and have applied for the flats in Sengkang would have a higher chance of securing a flat given the lower application rate."

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AVA probes YouTube dog-beating video

Netizens, incensed by clip of woman beating a dog, alert SPCA, which refers matter to AVA
Jalelah Abu Baker Straits Times 14 Jul 10;

THE Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) is investigating an alleged case of pet abuse that was uploaded onto video sharing site YouTube.

Netizens who had seen the video of an anonymous woman beating a dog reported it to the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) on Sunday.

Yesterday, following the online uproar and an appeal for information by the SPCA, a man claiming to be the dog's owner contacted the society.

Ms Deirdre Moss, the SPCA's executive officer, said the information has been referred to AVA.

The authority said it is following up on the case and will carry out further investigations with the parties involved. A spokesman added that it will not hesitate in taking action against the owner or owners if there is sufficient evidence of cruelty.

The 51-second clip in question is shot inside a home similar to that of an HDB flat. A woman is seen punishing 'Butters', the small brown dog, for chewing a cushion.

Ms Moss said the dog is probably a poodle-terrier.

In the clip, the woman repeatedly hits the dog on the face with what looks like a broom and claims that the beating is not painful. The video also suggests that she has three dogs in total and that there is another dog she beats as well.

Since Sunday, outraged Netizens on the STOMP website, Facebook, online forums and YouTube have expressed disbelief and described the woman as a 'beast'.

One posting, under the name of 'minq', said: 'Deeply angered and sickened by this video.' And others like 'doglover' and 'koecarol' questioned the decision of the videographer to take the clip and then have the audacity to post it online.

The original video had been removed by Monday afternoon by the uploader. But SPCA staff managed to make a copy of it.

'We are very grateful to the public for their concern. The number of people who have spoken up against animal abuse is very encouraging,' said Ms Moss.

If convicted of animal cruelty, an offender can be fined up to $10,000 and/or be imprisoned for up to 12 months.



Animal lovers cry foul over beating
Owner contacts SPCA; AVA launches investigation
Esther Ng Today Online 14 Jun 10;

SINGAPORE - A video of a woman beating her dog with a bunch of sticks has made animal-lovers in Singapore see red and many have rallied on forums, YouTube and Facebook, calling for the dog to be rescued and its owner punished.

Yesterday, the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals told MediaCorp that its male owner had contacted the animal welfare group.

The Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) also said it will launch an investigation and will not hesitate to take action against the owners if there is sufficient evidence of cruelty. If convicted of animal cruelty, the offender can be fined $10,000 and/or imprisoned for 12 months.

In an apparent attempt to discipline the beige-coloured canine for biting cushions, the woman in the video rains sharp blows to the head of the dog, which yelps and cowers in a corner.

A man is heard telling her to stop but she continues for another 11 seconds.

But some animal lovers told MediaCorp that the cruelty pales in comparison with the abuse inflicted at puppy mills and that the woman in the video was ignorant.

"Rather than vilify her, we should reach out and let her and the dog attend obedience-training sessions," said Mr Daryl Ng, an accountant.

Dog trainer and president of welfare group Action for Singapore Dogs, Mr Ricky Yeo, told MediaCorp that dogs develop certain habits from their formative years.

"Puppies chew because their gums are painful and itchy when teething. If they are not taught what not to chew, then they carry it into adulthood," said Mr Yeo. The solution is to catch the dog in the act and startle it with a stern "no", or isolate the dog in a darkened room until it calms down.

The next step is to focus the dog's chewing tendencies on "allowable objects" like chew toys, Mr Yeo added.

Dog trainer Harry Quek said changing its diet would help as a dog chews or bites out of boredom or nutritional deficiency.

Both AVA and SPCA said reports of animal abuse are on the rise due to greater public awareness. SPCA received 864 reports last year, a 13-per-cent increase compared to 2008, while AVA received 383 reports last year - six more than in 2008.

Last year, the AVA took action on four cases of animal cruelty and four more this year. Just last month, the AVA fined a rabbit owner $150 for keeping it "poorly".

In March, AVA's deputy director of risk communication Wong Hon Mun told MediaCorp it was difficult to prosecute animal abusers as those who report the cases do not provide enough evidence.

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ST Engineering considering environmental engineering as fifth arm under group

Ryan Huang Channel NewsAsia 13 Jul 10;

SINGAPORE: Mainboard-listed ST Engineering is considering the possibility of expanding its environmental engineering business as a key pillar of its growth strategy.

It's also looking to make further inroads into the US defence market.

ST Engineering recently applied for one of its American units to be certified to handle military projects which are classified top secret.

ST Engineering's CEO Tan Pheng Hock was speaking at the Asia Leadership Dialogues 2010 in Singapore.

Building waste management facilities is part of the work in environmental engineering, where ST Engineering has been seeing more business.

Just last month, it was part of a consortium that won a S$66.5 million deal to build a waste management plant in Brunei.

This is one of the larger contracts that has been won by its environmental arm, which is currently parked as a smaller unit under its marine division.

The company believes the environmental engineering segment has potential for huge growth.

So it's considering putting more resources to make it a standalone business arm under the group.

Tan Pheng Hock, president & CEO, ST Engineering, said: “If things were to grow, we may then put in more resources to grow that as a fifth arm, a possibility for a fifth arm. Like for example, recently the company announced a Brunei project that we secured. We also are doing some projects in China and in Qatar as well. So we're seeing fruits of success coming through, and I think we're hopeful there may well be an important element for us to grow.

“So if that's the case, then you're going to see us with more resources financially and people as well to grow as a possible fifth arm. But like we always do, we don't want to put the cart before the horse. Let's see first see how it develops.”

ST Engineering is also exploring new markets to grow its various business units which include aerospace, electronics, marine and land systems.

It is eyeing the Middle East, India, Africa, and Brazil.

It is also bullish about further developing current markets like China, Kazahkstan and Mexico.

Mr Tan said: "Our thinking has always been that we're prepared to invest in an office for two, three years to understand the market and to sense how business is done in the market.

“At the start, we may not get much business over two years. Better be prepared and understand what we are going in for. Then when the time comes, you are at least ready - you know what the surprise could be because every market has its own challenges such as cultural issues, business perspectives.”

ST Engineering said adapting to local markets is essential to success overseas.

For example, it said the appointment of a former US general as the chairman of its American unit has helped open doors.

ST Engineering is hoping to make further inroads into the US defence market by handling more sensitive military projects up to 'top secret' level.

Four of its other US subsidiaries currently only have certification to handle projects classified up to 'secret' level.

Mr Tan added: “We've already put in an application. So subject to the systems clearing and approving it, we think it will go through.

“By being able to do top secret means you are able to access a lot of projects for example through waiver of tender, non-competition, because not many companies do sell 'top secret' in certain areas."

ST Engineering said its involvement in the US defence market rules out doing any business with the Chinese military.

However, it will continue to focus on China's commercial urban development sector. - CNA/vm

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Construction of Changi Motorsports Hub to start in August

Patwant Singh Channel NewsAsia 13 Jul 10;

SINGAPORE: Construction will start in August for the Changi Motorsports Hub, and is on track to be completed by end 2011 says the company behind Singapore's first permanent motor racing track, SG Changi.

The 3.7 kilometre-long FIA Grade 2 Track will not be able to host F1 races, but other events that are being planned.

SG Changi says it is in talks with prospective race promoters and should have more details by June next year.

A racing academy will also be part of the project.

Up to 15 drivers will be recruited together with an equal number of engineers, to run the academy.

Fuminori Murahashi, executive chairman, SG Changi, says: "At this moment, we don't have any definite number of students we are going to take. This school will be a kind of open school where racing academies from Japan, Korea and China will come here and operate their classes."

Racing will not be the only activity as the Hub wants to be seen as a 24/7 lifestyle destination.

Among the attractions, F&B outlets and a museum.

Other highlights include a warehouse for 750 cars and even a hotel.

Fuminori Murahashi says: "We see (the hotel) as a phase two, it will not be together with this 2012, it will perhaps be another six months down the road."

"The development of the Changi Motorsports Hub will also present opportunities for the exchange of cultural elements between Singapore and Japan.

The organisers are considering introducing traditional sumo wrestling and Japan's Spring Festival for the enjoyment of Singaporeans and all visitors. - CNA/jm

Changi Motorsports Hub ready by 2012
It will host both local and international racing events
Nisha Ramchandani Business Times 14 Jul 10;

(SINGAPORE) The $330 million Changi Motorsports Hub (CMH) will be up and running by March 2012, in time for the year's racing season, said developer SG Changi at the ground-breaking ceremony yesterday.

The consortium, which pipped both Singapore Agro Agriculture and the Haw Par Corporation-backed Sports Services to operate the CMH for a 30-year period, consists of former Japan GT driver Genji Hashimoto, former Jurong Kart World owner Thia Yoke Kian, Singaporean lawyer Eddie Koh and Fuminori Murahashi, who has experience with events such as Formula Nippon and Super GT.

Located along Aviation Park Road, the 41 hectare sea-facing site will include a Federation Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) Grade-2 certified four kilometre (km) racetrack, a 1.2 km karting track, a drift track, a bonded warehouse and seating capacity for some 20,000 spectators plus a 10,000-seat temporary grandstand.

With the aim of promoting motorsports in the region, SG Changi is also setting up a racing academy at CMH to groom talent.

'I hope to see more Singaporean youth get involved in motorsports, undergoing proper coaching and training at high-level facilities. It would be an amazing achievement to see a home-grown Singaporean GT driver one day,' said SG Changi's executive chairman Mr Murahashi, speaking at the ground-breaking ceremony yesterday.

The racing academy - which will include programmes from junior kart racing to technical training - is to kick off April 2012, taking in students from countries and regions such as Europe, Korea, China and Japan, in addition to Singapore.

The first intake is likely to be in the region of 50-60 students.

And while SG Changi will only reveal its line-up of racing events in June next year, CMH will host both local and international racing events.

'We are still in the process of discussions,' said Mr Murahashi, though he added that the group will initiate talks to bring in MotoGP, the F1 of motorcycling. The proposed calendar of events includes the Super GT Series, Formula Nippon and the Japanese Formula 3 Series, as well as the Singapore National Championship and the Karting Championship.

At the same time, the consortium is also keen to cater to a wider audience beyond just race fans.

'The product offering has to be consumer-centric, it has to bring fun, excitement and lifestyle elements,' said Singapore Sports Council (SSC) chief executive officer Oon Jin Teik.

The round-the-clock facility will also feature a motor-themed entertainment complex, a motorsports museum, food & beverage and retail outlets as well as a hotel.

It is also likely to be the only 24/7 motorsports facility in the world, Mr Murahashi reckons.

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Could things for biodiversity go from bad to worse?

Krystyna Swiderska BBC Green Room 13 Jul 10;

Current efforts to protect the world's biodiversity run the risk of doing more harm than good, warns Krystyna Swiderska. In this week's Green Room, she says the role of indigenous and local communities in protecting the planet's genetic resources are being overlooked or even ignored.

In October, representatives from 193 governments will meet in Nagoya, Japan, to hopefully adopt a historic new international law that aims to ensure the world's biological resources are used in a fair and sustainable way.

It's about time.

The UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) estimates that a third of all genetic resources for food and agriculture have already been lost in the last 100 years.

This year — the UN's International Year of Biodiversity — we will also get official confirmation that an intergovernmental target to reduce the loss of biodiversity has been badly missed.

The deal struck in Nagoya could help to reverse that trend, but unless governments make some major progress at their final negotiating session next week, the agreement will be more likely to harm biodiversity and impoverish the people who depend on it most.

The new law is important for a number of reasons.

For millennia, communities around the world have nurtured the variety of life, including thousands of crops and medicinal plants that are vital for our agriculture, food security, health and nutrition.

These resources take on new importance today because they provide options that will enable people to adapt to climate change by switching to flood- or drought-resistant crop varieties, for instance.

The private sector and consumers worldwide have benefited greatly from these riches.

'Biopiracy'

Corporations increasingly seek out biological resources and associated local knowledge, and use them to develop, patent and sell new medicines, seeds, foodstuffs and industrial products.

But there is no system in place to ensure that the benefits from such products are shared fairly with the countries and communities from which they originated.

This had led to accusations of "biopiracy" and has removed incentives for poor developing nations and local communities to conserve their biological riches.

This is not new. Back in 1992, governments adopted the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), which required access to genetic resources to be accompanied by equitable benefit-sharing. Industrialised countries agreed to share the benefits from genetic resource use with poor developing countries.

This North/South deal lies at the heart of the CBD, but has yet to materialise.

Efforts to date have focused largely of conserving wildlife, as opposed to genetic resources which provide the basis for food and agriculture.

Since the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development, governments have been trying to negotiate an international, legally binding protocol under the CBD to ensure these challenges are addressed in practice. Their deadline is October 2010.

The protocol is also meant to promote equitable benefit-sharing from the use of the traditional knowledge of indigenous and local communities, and the development of community-led rules for accessing local biological resources.

Sharing the spoils

This week, governments are meeting in Montreal for the final negotiating session before October's meeting in Japan, where the deal is meant to be sealed.

But the way things look now, the negotiators will fail to ensure a positive outcome unless they can resolve a number of critical issues.

While the protocol will emphasise the sovereign rights of states over genetic resources, a number of countries do not want it to recognise the rights of indigenous and local communities over biological resources under customary use.

Nor do they want to recognise the rights of such communities to participate in decisions regarding access to these resources.

This would undermine the ability of communities to use biological resources according to their own customs, which have an important role in conservation and are vital for subsistence of millions of poor indigenous people.

Furthermore, the industrialised countries do not want the protocol to cover traditional knowledge that is already in the public domain.

This would enable companies to freely access this knowledge without the need for consent or sharing of benefits that arise from its use.

Although much traditional knowledge has already been documented and is publicly available, in most cases communities have not given their consent for it to be used commercially.

If the new protocol excludes publicly available traditional knowledge it will greatly limit the scope for benefit-sharing with indigenous and local communities. This would make it harder to generate incentives that encourage local people who live off biodiversity to conserve it.

Industrialised countries want the protocol to cover only genetic resources, while developing nations feel that it should also cover derivatives, meaning that the benefits from any products that are based on genetic resources should also be shared.

The protocol is potentially very important as, for the first time, it will legally bind industrialised countries where genetic resources are used, which are beyond the jurisdiction of national laws of provider countries.

But as it stands, it is likely to make little progress in preventing biopiracy or protecting biodiversity.

Industrialised countries such as Australia, Canada, Japan and the European Union are clearly putting the interest of private companies ahead of the interests of the global public good that is biodiversity.

What's more, a number of countries, including Canada, India and Indonesia, do not want to recognise the customary use rights of indigenous and local communities, despite their recognition in the CBD and the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

My own research with such communities in India, China, Peru, Panama and Kenya shows the critical role that traditional farmers and healers play in sustaining and enhancing genetic diversity.

There is an urgent need to protect this collective bio-cultural heritage in order to protect global food security and to enable people to adapt to climate change.

Krystyna Swiderska is a senior researcher in the Natural Resources Group at the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED), a UK-based think tank

The Green Room is a series of opinion articles on environmental topics running weekly on the BBC News website

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Chinese customs officials seize thousands of dead pangolins

Nearly eight tonnes of endangered anteaters found on ship were destined for the dinner table, authorities say
Jonathan Watts guardian.co.uk 13 Jul 10;

Chinese authorities have intercepted one of the biggest ever hauls of illegally smuggled pangolins, which were almost certainly destined for the dinner table.

Customs officials in Guangdong boarded a suspect fishing vessel and seized 2,090 frozen pangolin and 92 cases of the endangered anteater's scales on 5 June, according to the conservation group Traffic, who have commended authorities for their work.

Police have arrested the six crew members, including five Chinese nationals who reportedly said they were hired to collect the contraband from south-east Asia and ship it to Xiangzhou port in Guangdong.

The other Malaysian crew member was said to have received instructions by satellite phone on where to rendezvous at sea to pick up the cargo. The smugglers were intercepted as they prepared to offload the nearly eight tonnes of pangolin to another vessel off Gaolan island.

According to wildlife groups, China is the main market for illegally traded exotic species, which are eaten or used in traditional medicine.

Pangolin meat is considered a delicacy and their scales are thought locally to be beneficial to breast-feeding mothers.

As a result of demand, the pangolin populations of China, Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia have been virtually wiped out. With traders moving further and further south, the animal is declining even in its last habitats in Java, Sumatra and the Malaysian peninsula. It is a similar story for many species of turtle, tortoise, frog and snake.

China's customs officials have often been criticised for turning a blind eye to this trade, which supplies the demand for exotic food and traditional medicine, particularly in Guangdong.

The Guardian has twice exposed restaurants that illegally sell pangolin.

In recent years, however, there has emerged a small but growing conservation movement in the province.

In the latest case, the authorities have also won praise for a decisive intervention and for sharing intelligence with overseas enforcement agencies, including Interpol, the Asean Wildlife Enforcement Network and Cites officials.

"Guangdong customs are to be congratulated on this important action against wildlife smugglers operating between south-east Asia and China," said Professor Xu Hongfa, director of Traffic's China programme.

To encourage tighter enforcement, conservation groups say it is not enough to merely criticise lax regulation. The Wildlife Conservation Society held an awards ceremony earlier this year for Chinese officials who helped to expose the illegal wildlife trade.

In the far western region of Xinjiang, customs officers confiscated almost 8,000 horns of the Saiga antelope, an animal that is thought to have declined in the wild by more than 75% in the past 10 years. In the far northern Dalai Lake nature reserve, police were rewarded for confiscating 8,000 tonnes of aquatic products and 20 tonnes of medicinal herbs over the past nine years. In the southern, enormously biodiverse region of Yunnan, a forest police officer won an award for catching 7,110 criminals and rescuing five Asian elephants, 182 pangolins, 10 black bears and two pythons over six years.

But these reported successes are likely to be only a fraction of the illegal wildlife products that are killed and smuggled without detection across borders and inside China.

Huge pangolin seizure in China
TRAFFIC 13 Jul 10;

Beijing, China, 13 July 2010—Customs officers in Guangdong, China, have seized more than 7.8 tonnes of frozen pangolins and 1,800 kg of pangolin scales from a fishing vessel after it was stopped for inspection at Zhuhai's Gaolan Island.

International trade in Asian pangolin species is banned under CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora). Two of the four species are classified as Endangered by IUCN.

The suspect fishing vessel was sighted by a Guangdong Jiangmen Customs patrol boat in the Chuandao sea area late in the evening of 5th June and boarded in the early hours of the following morning when 2090 frozen pangolins each weighing between 1–10 kg and 92 cases of pangolin scales were found.

The crew were arrested and included 5 Chinese and a Malaysian national, who claimed they had been hired to sail the vessel from Xiangzhou Port, Zhuhai, to South-East Asia to pick up the illicit cargo.

The Malaysian crew member was said to have received instructions by satellite phone on where to rendezvous at sea to pick up the contraband. The smugglers were intercepted before they could transfer the cargo to another vessel off Gaolan Island.

“The use of satellite phones and trans-shipment of cargo at sea are indicative of the increasingly sophisticated methods being used by the organized criminal gangs involved in wildlife crime,” said James Compton, TRAFFIC’s Asia Pacific co-ordinator.

The Chinese authorities have shared intelligence on the seizures with enforcement agencies operating in the region, including INTERPOL, World Customs Organization (WCO) and ASEAN-Wildlife Enforcement Network, plus CITES officials and are seeking co-operation with Malaysia’s Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment on a joint investigation.

“Guangdong Customs are to be congratulated on this important action against wildlife smugglers operating between South-East Asia and China,” said Professor Xu Hongfa, Director of TRAFFIC’s China Programme.

“TRAFFIC stands ready to support international co-operation between enforcement agencies that will ensure those who organize and mastermind such wildlife crimes, as well as those who carry them out, are made to face the consequences of their actions,” added Compton.

A China Customs official quoted by the State news agency, Xinhua, noted that between 2007 and the end of June 2010 a total of 292 cases involving the smuggling of endangered species had been investigated in China. In total, 38,599 animal parts had been seized, weighing a total of 26.63 tonnes plus more than 55 tonnes of 2,753 rare plant varieties. 

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Raid turns wild: Cops seize not only stolen cars but also endangered wildlife

Rashitha A. Hamid The Star 14 Jul 10;

KUALA LUMPUR: It was a case of killing two birds with one stone when a police raid on a warehouse to seize stolen cars also netted a huge array of endangered wild animals.

Maybe, “two birds” is an understatement. The raiding party claimed to have seized “thousands” of birds, along with various species of protected wildlife.

The prized seizure at the warehouse in Taman Wahyu was a pair of the rare Bird of Paradise, also known as Cenderawasih in Malay, which supposedly has the power to bring good fortune to its owner. The pair is said to be worth RM1mil on the wildlife black market.

Other rare birds seized in the 3am raid yesterday were the blue-crowned Hanging Parrot, the black-coloured Palm Cockatoo and the white rump Shama.

Among the caged animals found at the warehouse were leopard cats, albino pygmy monkeys and numerous domestic cats, believed to be kept by their captors to cross-breed with wild cats to produce exotic offspring.

The police also recovered 42 stolen vehicles, valued at more than RM1mil, at the warehouse. Two men, aged 40 and 23, were arrested.

Kuala Lumpur Wildlife Department deputy director Celescoriano Razond said over 20 species of the animals and birds found at the warehouse were listed as protected wildlife.

“We thank the police for rescuing the animals and will work closely with them to bring the criminals to justice,” he said.

City CID chief Senior Asst Comm II Datuk Ku Chin Wah said the police team went to the warehouse following a tip-off on the stolen cars.

“We arrested two men but believe they are only workers there,” he said.

SAC Ku said police believed a syndicate was behind the thefts, adding that they were looking for two men – Terry Tong, 49, and Kelvin Lim, 50 – to help in the investigations.

“The syndicate, under the guise of insurance agents, specialises in stealing cars from impounds.

“They claim they are helping their customers to recover the vehicles.

Most of the time, the owners or real insurance agents would have no knowledge of this, SAC Ku said, adding that as many as 20 cars found at the warehouse were reported stolen from various impound lots in the Klang Valley.

SAC Ku said some of the cars’ parts were cannibalised while others were sold after being fitted with false registrations.

“We are not ruling out more arrests,” he added.

SAC Ku said the raiding party was surprised to find a “mini zoo” at the warehouse apart from the stolen cars and spare parts.

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Plans to map the palm oil supply chain to the UK

We must reap the benefits of palm oil, but manage the environmental costs
From the margarine we eat to the wheels on our cars to the shampoo in our showers, palm oil is everywhere. That's why we must strive to make it sustainable, says Caroline Spelman, secretary of state for the environment
Caroline Spelman guardian.co.uk 13 Jul 10;

We all like to think we have the power to make our own ethical choices when we shop; that our personal decision to buy Fairtrade or free-range will make a difference. But what if we don't have that choice? What if, regardless of our best intentions, we are not given the option to choose sustainably?

Enter palm oil. It's ubiquitous. It's in the margarine we spread on our toast, the shampoo we washed our hair with and in the tyres of the transport that brought us to work.

Palm oil is perhaps the ultimate miracle product. It's high-yielding, versatile, good for our health and cholesterol-free. It is also powering many of the emerging economies of south-east Asia – in Indonesia alone it employs 2 million people.

But if it's a miracle, it's one with devastating side effects. Palm oil plantations are destroying forests and peat lands and playing havoc with ecosystems and biodiversity. Deforestation costs anything between $2-5tn dollars a year and causes 20% of global greenhouse gas emissions.

So while palm oil feeds economies, it's also irrevocably damaging them. As demand for it grows, in Europe and in the burgeoning economies of India, China and the rest of the world, we will all start paying the unaffordable environmental costs.

We need to find a way to reap the benefits of palm oil while managing the costs.

Environmental and development charities have been arguing the case for sustainable palm oil for years. Many businesses now have targets for when all of the palm oil they use will be sustainable – many, but by no means all. In this, the first ever International Year of Biodiversity, it's time to do something about it.

So today, in front of an international business audience, I'm announcing that, starting next month, we will begin the process of mapping the palm oil supply chain to the UK. Working with businesses and the public sector we aim to find out what we're using palm oil for, where we are getting it from and if it's sustainable.

What we find will help us work with industry and NGOs alike to produce a plan to help shift Britain's sourcing of palm oil to a sustainable footing. This is a milestone step in the right direction but commitments from other major international markets are still lacking – less than 4% of the global supply of palm oil is certified from sustainable sources.

Rather than frowning at emerging economies, we should offer them a helping hand. So this month we're also jointly funding a project with the Chinese Chamber of Commerce to create the business rationale for sustainable palm oil in China and suggestions for how to encourage that switch. It could prove to be a great model for other growing economies.

The prime minister has said he wants this to be the greenest government ever. The need to halt our planet's environmental destruction is becoming clearer every day. We have a responsibility to ourselves and future generations to take firm steps to turn the tide. Palm oil may be a miracle product but it is also nature's gift to us. It is time to respect the giver, as well as the gift.

• Caroline Spelman is secretary of the state for the environment

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Greenland Allowed To Hunt Humpback Whales Again

PlanetArk 14 Jul 10;

A worldwide moratorium on commercial whaling remains in place after talks to replace it with a controlled cull of some species collapsed at the IWC's annual meeting in the Moroccan port city of Agadir.

The moratorium has been in place for 24 years but Japan, Norway and Iceland have kept up whaling and some indigenous communities can also hunt for small numbers of whales.

Here are some facts about whales and whaling:

* THE BAN

-- Commercial whaling was prohibited under a 1986 moratorium but Japan culls whales for what it says is scientific research, while Norway and Iceland carry out full commercial whaling. Much of the whale meat ends up in restaurants and on dinner tables.

-- The three nations have been pushing for a formal end to the moratorium, saying stocks of some species have recovered. Their catches have strained diplomatic ties with many of their usual allies. Countries including the United States, members of the European Union, Australia and New Zealand oppose the hunts. -- Australia filed a complaint against Japan at the world court in The Hague in May to stop Southern Ocean scientific whaling. In the filing, Australia said Japan was violating the International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling by killing whales for research purposes.

* OVERALL PICTURE -- Blue whales of the Antarctic, the biggest creature ever to live on Earth, are at less than 1 percent of their original abundance despite 40 years of complete protection. Some populations of whales are recovering but some are not.

-- Whaling nations say that stocks of the small minke whale, the main species caught, are big enough to withstand their hunts.

-- The West Pacific grey whale population is the most endangered in the world. It hovers on the edge of extinction with just over 100 remaining.

-- According to the WWF, 31,984 whales have been killed by whaling between 1986 and 2008.

* SOME WHALE NUMBERS

-- Humpback whales currently number around 20,000.

-- Blue whales number up to 12,000. Before the era of industrial whaling, it was 200,000-300,000.

-- Fin whales are the second largest animal in the world after the blue whale, the fastest swimming of all the large whales. Their numbers are 85,000; pre-whaling -- 400,000.

-- Minke whales - There is no estimate of total global population size, but estimates from parts of the range in the Northern Hemisphere (totaling in excess of 100,000) show that it is well above the thresholds for a threatened category.

-- While declines have been detected or inferred in some areas, there is no indication that the global population has dwindled to an extent that would qualify for a threatened category.

* SOME IWC QUOTAS

-- Bering-Chukchi-Beaufort Seas stock of bowhead whales (taken by native people of Alaska and Chukotka) - a total of up to 280 bowhead whales can be landed in the period 2008-2012, with no more than 67 whales struck in any year.

-- Eastern North Pacific gray whales (taken by native people of Chukotka and Washington State ) - total catch of 620 whales is allowed for the years 2008-2012.

-- West Greenland fin whales (taken by Greenlanders) - total catch of 19 whales is allowed for 2008-2012.

-- West Greenland common minke whales - taken by Greenlanders. Total limit of 200 whales is allowed for the years 2008-2012 with an annual review by the Scientific Committee.

-- West Greenland bowhead whales - taken by Greenlanders. An annual strike limit of 2 whales is allowed for the years 2008-2012 with an annual review by the Scientific Committee.

-- East Greenland common minke whales (taken by Greenlanders) - total catch limit of 12 whales is allowed for the years 2008-2012.

-- Humpback whales taken by St Vincent and The Grenadines - For the seasons 2008-2012 the number of humpback whales to be taken shall not exceed 20.

NATIONAL QUOTAS

-- JAPANESE whalers caught about 500 whales in the Antarctic this season, little more than half the target of 900 after clashes with environmentalists. It says this is part of research which is needed to understand the life cycles of whales.

-- NORWAY - It has set a quota of 1,286 minke whales for the current summer season, the highest since Oslo resumed commercial hunts in 1993. But whalers only caught 484 whales in 2009, well below a quota of 885. Environmentalists say that demand has shrivelled.

-- ICELAND - Resumed commercial hunts in 2006 after a 20-year break. It set a quota of 100 minke whales and 150 fin whales for 2009.

Sources: Reuters/www.greenpeace.com/www.coolantarctica.com/iwc/ www.iucnredlist.org

(Editing by Mark Heinrich)

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