Coral bleaching in the Andamans

Reef rip-off in Andaman
Tapa Chakraborty The Telegraph Calcutta 31 Oct 10;

Oct. 31: An unusually hot summer and a delayed monsoon have combined to play havoc with one of the Andamans’ biggest tourist attractions: the multi-coloured coral reefs.

Some 80 per cent of the reefs up to a depth of 5-10 feet — the part visible from the shores and tourist boats — have decayed beyond recovery, a study by the Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) and the National Coral Reef Research Institute have found.

The reason is “bleaching” of the reefs by overheated seawater this summer — a process worsened by the rains’ late arrival.

Bleaching is a process in which reefs turn white or pale because the zooxanthellae — the symbiotic algae living within the corals’ tissues that give them their colour — are expelled owing to stress caused by a hostile environment.

Bleached coral can often recover over time, as the Andamans’ reefs themselves had recovered after a period of bleaching in 1998.

“But this time, between 60 per cent and 88 per cent of the coral reefs under five to ten feet of water are all gone. There is no chance of their revival now,” senior ZSI marine biologist C. Raghunathan told The Telegraph over the phone from Port Blair.

The Andamans are among the few spots that offer tourists both a tropical rainforest and coral reefs.

The reefs, often just 10-20 metres from the beach, are clearly visible from land, provide a habitat for thousands of marine species, and also protect the coast.

Their combined length around the islands in the region is about 14,700km, according to a United Nations estimate.

With the reefs bleached and dying, the colourful fishes swirling around them will be gone too. The healthier parts of the reefs are now under 15 feet of water — too far down for the tourists to see unless they dive in with scuba apparatus.

“The corals have lost their lustre and turned off-white and pale brownish. You can’t bear to look at them now,” said Raghunathan, who had been part of the survey by 20 ZSI scientists, conducted from August this year.

“Of the total 446 species of coral reefs in the Andamans, 120 have perished. Unfortunately, the largest reef formations in the Andaman Sea belong to these 120 species; they formed the largest segment.”

Scientists rued that the reefs, one of the richest marine ecosystems in South Asia, had survived the December 2004 tsunami only to fall prey to global warming.

Coral reefs survive well in a marine water temperature of 22 to 28 degrees Celsius. This summer, the temperatures had risen above 33 degrees and this had continued till June.

Growing water temperatures have been bleaching and threatening coral reefs at many places in the world, especially the region between the Andamans and northwestern Indonesia, for several years.

In May this year, P.M. Mohan, head of Pondicherry University’s department of ocean studies and marine biology, had sounded the alert about the coral bleaching in the Andaman Sea.

“We had initially thought the monsoon would halt the process of decay, but a delayed monsoon compounded the reefs’ plight,” Mohan said over the phone.

“The damage to the reefs under five-foot-deep water is there for everyone to see. The reefs look ghostly. If you go deeper, the gradations of decay is relatively less,” he added.

“All we can do is pray that the summer is not this blistering next year and that the monsoon arrives on time.”

The reefs have been affected across the Andaman Sea, those worst hit being located in northern Andaman and southern Nicobar, Mohan said. Reefs have been damaged also near the smaller islands such as Tarmugli, Jolly Buoy, Neil and Havlock Island and Red Skin Island, which form part of the Mahatma Gandhi Marine National Park and the Rani Jhansi Marine National Park.

Scientists now fear for the thousands of fish and other marine creatures that live in and around the coral reefs, using them as habitat and a place for hiding, feeding and reproduction.

Andrew Baird, an Australian reef expert from James Cook University, has noticed widespread coral decay in Thailand, Myanmar and Indonesia this summer.

Referring to this, Stuart Campbell, director of the Wildlife Conservation Society’s Indonesia Marine Program, recently wrote: “It’s a disappointing development, particularly... (because) these same corals proved resilient to other disruptions to this ecosystem, including the Indian Ocean Tsunami of 2004.”
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Toxic dispersants allegedly used in Timor Sea oil spill

Australia contaminates Indonesia sea with toxic chemicals
Antara 31 Oct 10;

Kupang, E Nusa Tenggara (ANTARA News) - The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) has sprayed the Timor Sea with dispersants containing highly toxic chemicals to sink the oil spill from the Montara oil field, a non-governmental organization said.

Ferdi Tanoni, director of the Kupang-based West Timor Care Foundation said on Sunday information on the matter came from reports of a meeting between the
Australian Senate and AMSA held in Canberra last week.

The chemicals that had been sprayed was said to be one of the world`s most dangerous chemicals, Tanoni added, and actually had already been banned.

After the incident, Tanoni said, the foundation has received reports on the death of eight people and 30 poisonous cases after the consumption of fish in the waters around the contaminated areas.

The foundation was the only Indonesian NGO that has filed a legal action with the Australian independent investigation commission after the oil spill caused by the explosion on the Montara oil rig in the West Atlas block that has contaminated the Timor Sea on August 21, 2009.

Tanoni said that the Australian Senate had asked the organization for comments on the use of the toxic dispersant for discussion in Canberra. The Green party of Australia had sent him a 20-page letter asking for comments on the incident.

"We have quickly answered the letter by sending evidence via electronic mail on Friday (Oct. 22) to the office of Green party in Canberra," he said.

Tanoni also hoped President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono will raise the issue in his meeting with Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard who is scheduled to visit Indonesia on November 1 and 2.

The foundation proposes the setting up of an independent investigation team to verify the case, Tanoni said.

The case was said to be serious both financially and physically to the people living close to the contaminated areas as many fish have disappeared while the remaining are poisonous.(*)

Australia See Eye-to-Eye on Timor Spill
Eras Poke, Fidelis E Satriastanti & Ismira Lutfia Jakarta Globe 3 Nov 10;

Jakarta. Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa said on Tuesday that Indonesia and Australia shared the same position on the Timor Sea oil spill because both countries were claiming compensation from the operator of the oil well in question.

The spill was the result of a blowout at the Montara wellhead platform in the Timor Sea, off the northern coast of Australia, in August 2009.

The leak was plugged 74 days later and created a large oil slick that polluted Indonesian waters.

The well, located 690 kilometers west of Darwin, is operated by PTTEP Australasia, a subsidiary of Thailand’s PTT Exploration & Production.

The Indonesian government said the spill affected 78,000 square kilometers of Indonesian waters and was seeking Rp 22 trillion ($2.44 billion) in compensation from PTTEP.

Activists have also accused the operator of using highly toxic chemicals as dispersants to clear the oil.

Marty said that while the government was aware of the dispersants’ use, it had not been formally discussed during Tuesday’s meeting between President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard.

“However, during our informal talks, the Australian delegation reiterated that the dispersant met national standards and would not create new problems,” Marty said on the sidelines of a reception for the Australian leader.

He added that the Australian delegation was prepared to explain that the dispersants used would not pose a health or environmental risk.

Yudhoyono did not address the toxicity issue, saying only that his administration had pressed for greater cooperation on preventing environmental damage as a result of the spill and ensuring that compensation was awarded to “those entitled to it.”

Meanwhile, activists said the dispersants were highly toxic and had left eight people dead and at least 30 ill.

Ferdi Tanoni, director of the West Timor Care Foundation (YTPB), said a hearing between the Australian Senate and the Australian Maritime Safety Authority had revealed that the dispersants used on the spill were among “the world’s most dangerous chemicals.”

He said the AMSA acknowledged using 184,113 liters of chemicals dispersants, including Corexit, a known fetal toxin that breaks down blood cells and causes blood and kidney disorders.

This dispersant has already been banned by some nations, including the United Kingdom.

“This is a very serious human issue because since AMSA sprayed the oil with the dispersant, people consuming fish caught in the Timor Sea off East Nusa Tenggara have been falling sick, even dying,” Ferdi said on Sunday.

“Within 95 hours of spraying, fish died in large numbers.”

Separately, Masnellyarti Hilman, head of the government’s advocacy team seeking compensation, said they had already included the effects from the dispersant in their official claim to PTTEP.

“We’ve noted that their use of these chemicals has caused pollution and environmental destruction,” she said.

“We also have reports of dead fish in the area. However, we haven’t studied any fish samples [to prove they were poisoned by dispersants] or how it affects humans or causes deaths.”

She also said the team had not received reports from the local administration about deaths linked to the dispersants. “If there were, we’ll certainly follow up on the matter,” Masnellyarti said.

She added the two variants of Corexit used — Corexit EC9500 and Corexit EC9527A — were listed as dangerous chemicals by the US Environmental Protection Agency.

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Sustainable growth formula eludes many China cities

Reuters AlertNet 31 Oct 10;

BEIJING, Oct 31 (Reuters) - Some Chinese cities are failing to meet the challenge of sustainable development, posing a risk to Beijing's strategy of relying on mass urbanisation to drive economic growth, according to a study released on Sunday.

Sustaining urban growth without exhausting an already degraded environment is critical for China. More than 1 billion people are likely to be living in cities by 2030, compared with 600 million in 2008 and 380 million in 1990.

The Urban China Institute, a new think tank, found that a number of cities are making rapid progress in the right direction, but others are in serious danger of falling behind.

"Without strenuous efforts to improve performance, this gap will only grow, with serious implications for the country's overall living standards and the environment," its report said.

The institute examined data between 2004 and 2008 from 112 cities to assess their progress toward sustainable development according to 18 criteria, such as access to safe water, waste recycling and efficiency in using resources.

China's cities have made strides, especially in providing basic needs such as healthcare and education. But they are still well behind the developed world in areas where the tradeoffs between income and environment are starker.

The report described the cleanliness of China's environment as woefully behind the West's. Air pollution and sulphur dioxide emissions are far from meeting World Health Organisation norms.

Part of the policy conundrum is that economic history offers few models of sustainable development during the early and middle stages of urbanisation, according to the think tank.

The sheer pressure and pace of urban development make the task even harder in the case of China, said Jonathan Woetzel, a director at consultants McKinsey & Co in Shanghai.

"Each and every year there is a need to accommodate a new set of migrants and to demonstrate rapid economic progress," he said.

McKinsey is a founder of the Urban China Institute along with Columbia University's Global Center for East Asia and Tsinghua University's School of Public Policy, which are both in Beijing.

Planners, especially in smaller cities, often simply do not have the skills and resources to ensure sustainable development, Woetzel told Reuters.

On the positive side of the ledger, Chinese cities are relatively dense, which makes it more attractive for governments to invest in better public transport and smart grid technologies.

The study also found that three-quarters of the cities examined spent more on environmental protection from 2005-2008.

"The logic, which is well understood by government, is that it's a lot cheaper to fix these problems now than to deal with them later," Woetzel said.

The study paints a mixed picture, but he said it was encouraging that 33 out of the 112 cities had managed to grow faster than their peers while doing better on sustainability.

The report singled out Shenyang, Tianjin, Nanning and, especially, the eastern port city of Qingdao for diversifying their economies away from urban industry towards services, increasing energy and resource efficiency in the process.

"There will be companies and investors who choose to base themselves in those locations because of their superior quality of life," Woetzel said. (Reporting by Alan Wheatley, Global Economics Correspondent; Editing by Sanjeev Miglani)

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Best of our wild blogs: 31 Oct 10

Why We Should Have The Green Corridor
from AsiaIsGreen

Macro Photography Workshop @ SBG 显微摄影
from PurpleMangrove

Nothing New Along A Forest Trail
from Beauty of Fauna and Flora in Nature

Trigger happy in my neighbourhood
from Urban Forest

Dragoflies @ LT
from Beauty of Fauna and Flora in Nature

Life History of the Malayan Lascar
from Butterflies of Singapore

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PUB tests for estrogen in water sources

Contamination unlikely, but the agency is playing it safe
Grace Chua Straits Times 31 Oct 10;

Estrogen contamination in the water sources here may be unlikely, but Singapore's national water agency is not taking any chances.

Earlier this month, the PUB called a tender to test for estrogen compounds in water samples taken from reservoirs, canals, sewage and other inland water bodies. It previously monitored the chemical here every month - one of about 200 other organic chemicals it tests for - when the reclaimed Newater was introduced in 2003.

A few years ago, after finding no estrogen in drinking water, Newater or desalinated water, it dropped the monitoring frequency to twice yearly.

Organic chemicals, such as estrogen, are passed out in human and animal waste from natural and artificial sources.

Keeping these chemicals out of the water supply is vital as high levels of exposure can interfere with the body's natural hormones, and have been linked to reproductive defects in animals.

In Singapore, the use of estrogen medications is low because people here do not generally take to hormone-containing drugs, explained obstetrician- gynaecologist Christopher Ng of the GynaeMD Women's and Rejuvenation Clinic.

A mere 3 per cent to 5 per cent of women of child-bearing age use hormonal contraceptives, such as the Pill, while probably even fewer menopausal women use hormone replacement therapy, he reckoned.

But use of such medications is expected to rise in a generation or two, as people become more aware of and educated about them, he said.

But academics and PUB experts say leaks into the water sources here are not a big risk. While wastewater sometimes contains low levels of estrogens, it is not discharged into reservoirs.

Instead, wastewater flows through Singapore's deep tunnel sewage system to treatment plants, where it is treated and discharged into the sea.

Professor Ng Wun Jern, executive director of Nanyang Technological University's Nanyang Environment and Water Research Institute, explained that hormone concentrations in wastewater treatment effluent are typically low - from a few nanograms per litre to micrograms per litre. He added that drinking-water treatment processes, such as the reverse-osmosis membranes used in Newater and desalination, are able to filter them out.

But National University of Singapore environmental toxicologist Barry Kelly noted that endocrine-disrupting chemicals can leach into water from old sewage pipes and landfill sites. Some, such as flame retardants, are found in everyday household items and may also be present in air and dust.

'Some of these compounds may end up in reservoirs via atmospheric deposition and through run-off following rain,' he said.

Besides estrogen compounds, the PUB tests for certain persistent organic pollutants which do not break down easily and stay in the environment for a long time.

Dr Kelly explained that there is probably not much cause for alarm.

'Ultimately, it is the dose that makes the poison. Thus, while residues of these chemicals are undoubtedly present at low levels in our homes and in the environment, the question remains whether these levels are high enough to cause effects in people.'

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Singapore road test for 'electric' Prius

Modified car can be charged from socket, and run fully on electricity
Chong Zi Liang Straits Times 31 Oct 10;

The Toyota Prius may already be a petrol saver, but a team of researchers hopes to squeeze even more fuel efficiency out of the hybrid car.

GP Batteries is collaborating with the National University of Singapore (NUS) to road-test a Prius modified in Hong Kong that can be charged from an electric socket and run fully on electricity.

That would save about 3 litres of petrol or about $5 a day for a typical motorist whose daily commute to and from work makes up the bulk of his travelling. The conversion cost? About $16,300.

The team's aim is to study the plug-in hybrid electric vehicle's performance in Singapore's climate and driving conditions. GP Batteries' director of special projects Wong Kin Pun explained that batteries are sensitive to temperature and Singapore's tropical climate can affect the performance of the battery, which was originally designed in the US.

City driving, with frequent starts and stops, is also vastly different from cross-country driving. There is therefore a need to collect data from the vehicle to re-calibrate the battery.

So far, the converted Prius can travel about 30km purely on electricity. It takes four to six hours to fully charge the car and juicing up the battery will add $1.20 to your utility bill. But Mr Wong said that it is still early days yet and the modification of Priuses on Singapore roads will take time.

For one thing, the study will conclude only in March next year. Secondly, Singapore still lacks widely available charging stations to make plug-in conversion an attractive option for consumers.

But Mr Wong has his eye on companies with fleets of the hybrid car. He has contacted Prime Taxi, which owns about 40 Prius taxis, and the company has expressed interest in the technology.

The conversion process can be completed in a day by taking out the original Toyota battery and putting in a bigger, more powerful GP one - installed in the space where the spare tyre is kept. Because of the new battery's weight, the vehicle's back suspension is reinforced to support the 100kg weight gain.

But the most visible change to the user is an added panel on the dashboard which displays the different options for powering the vehicle.

Choosing between the original hybrid system and 'true electric vehicle' mode, as the modifiers put it, is as simple as pressing the right button on the panel.

It even has a third option that allows users to indicate the estimated distance of their journey. The computer system will then decide the right mix of electrical and engine power to make sure the battery lasts the whole journey.

Testing of the vehicle began in March this year, when two NUS engineering students began their internships at GP Batteries.

When the project ends next year, the engineering faculty plans to allow more students to take part in similar studies.

This will be done by studying future transport systems under the design-centric curriculum of the faculty, which aims to bring in real-world projects through partnerships with industry.

Quiet and surreal ride
Straits Times 31 Oct 10;

Silence is golden, especially when driving an electric vehicle.

Refraining from conversation or turning on the radio was the only way to appreciate how quiet the plug-in hybrid was when running on full electric mode.

I was used to the silent start of the vehicle, having driven hybrid cars occasionally, but when the silence prevailed as I continued on my spin around the National University of Singapore (NUS) campus, my driving experience took on a surreal feel.

The usual reassurance of a roaring engine was missing, yet the vehicle was moving along just fine. It reminded me of the time I drove a golf buggy, only this time, I was not negotiating grass fairways but actual tarmac roads.

Mr Wong Kin Pun, GP Batteries' director of special projects, said the internal combustion engine of the Prius will come to life when the battery charge falls below 20 per cent, or when an extra 'oomph' that electricity alone cannot provide is needed.

Indeed, as I drove up a slope on the hilly NUS grounds, I tapped the accelerator more to carry the car up faster, only for the engine to kick in and spoil my quiet time.

But Mr Wong said the Prius still packs a punch. It is capable of reaching 110kmh while running purely on electricity.

Not too bad for a golf buggy.

Chong Zi Liang

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$6m green logistics hub in Jurong

Straits Times 30 Oct 10;

A NEW $6 million logistics hub equipped with the latest green technology has been opened by a French energy solutions firm in Penjuru Lane in Jurong.

Schneider Electric's new 14,000 sq m Hub Asia - one of only two Schneider global hubs - is able to handle more than 110,000 cubic m of cargo yearly from 50 suppliers in 17 countries.

Serving more than 170 customers in 31 countries, it is able to shave up to 30 per cent off its energy costs - or $68,000 a year- through the use of devices such as LED lights instead of conventional bulbs and sensors that switch off lighting when not in use.

Strong sea breezes mean that the facility does not need energy-guzzling industrial fans.

Mr Stuart Thorogood, president of Schneider Electric South-east Asia, said Singapore was chosen because of its strategic position, skilled workforce and strong state support.

'The Economic Development Board (EDB) was very helpful in assisting us with the setting up of Hub Asia,' said Mr Thorogood.

The company considered Hong Kong and Shanghai as possible sites, but Singapore won out mainly because of its central location in Asia-Pacific.

Mr Bruno Lesage, Hub Asia's director, said more workers will soon be taken on at the site, given that it is used as a springboard to reach emerging markets across the region.

'We started with about 90 staff. But we plan to have 190 by the end of this year,' he said.

The firm's international operations in Singapore date back to August 1993, when a logistics site, serving mainly South-east Asia, was opened. Schneider's presence in Singapore began in 1973, with a local distribution centre.

Mr Tan Choon Shian, EDB's deputy managing director and guest of honour at the opening ceremony this week, drew attention to the city state's growing role as a logistics centre.

'Recognising the strength of the talent pool available in Singapore, leading multinational companies such as Schneider Electric have made Singapore an important base for their regional and global operations,' he said.

DHEVARAJAN DEVADAS

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Indonesian government mulling relocation of people on small Sumatra islands

Antara 29 Oct 10;

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - Coordinating Minister for People`s Welfare Agung Laksono on Friday stated the government was considering to relocate people living on small islands in Sumatra to places where they would be safe from tsunamis.

The minister said so in relation to prediction that small islands in Sumatra are vulnerable to earthquakes and tsunamis as had happened in Mentawai island last Monday (Oct 25) where a tsunami wave struck the area 15 minutes after a 7.2 earthquake.

"President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has instructed me to draft a government regulation related to the relocation plan. We will discuss this matter soon after the emergency response period and rehabilitation of the impacted area are over," Agung said.

"The places to which they will relocated will probably not be too far from their original homes but we will make sure that the new housing complexes to be built for the displaced people will be located in safe areas such as near hills or on higher land," Agung said.

The minister added the government would review the discourse thoroughly before implementing it.

Indonesia is prone to seismic upheavals due to its location on the so-called Pacific "Ring of Fire", an arch of volcanoes and fault lines encircling the Pacific Basin.

Last 2009, a scary prediction was made by Kerry Sieh, director of the Earth Observatory of Singapore, who said that a colossal earthquake may hit Indonesia`s Sumatra island within 30 years, triggering a tsunami and making the September 2009 quake in West Sumatra that measured 8.2 on the Richter scale and had taken more than 1000 lives look tiny by comparison, AFP reported.

"We expect it will be about a magnitude 8.8, plus or minus say 0.1," Sieh, an American professor, said at a presentation at the Nanyang Technological University.
Based on historical earthquake trends from geological analysis of coral specimens from the region, the 2009 quake was just a precursor, Sieh said.

Geologists from the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI) recently also conducted a study on the possibility of another earthquake happening in West Sumatra and came up with the conclusion that a major temblor could occur any time.

Based on the study`s results, the LIPI geologists team predicted that an earthquake measuring 8.9 on the Richter scale with its epicenter located beneath the Siberut and Sipora Islands could happen any time.(*)

In October alone, Indonesia hit by three natural disasters
Fardah Antara 31 Oct 10;
Jakarta (ANTARA News) - The Earth is getting older, judging by the increased frequency of natural disasters in the world lately, especially in Indonesia.

During this October alone, parts of the country have been seriously affected by three major disasters. The first one was a flash flood in Wasior, West Papua Province, on October 3.

The second was a magnitude-7.7 earthquake and a subsequent tsunami in Mentawai Island District, West Sumatra Province, on October 25.

And the third is still going on, namely the Mount Merapi eruption, a process which began on October 26 on the border between Central Java and Yogyakarta.

The Wasior flash flood killed 124 people, left 123 others missing, injured 185 others seriously, and 535 lightly.

Wasior is a town densely inhabited by around 7,000 people. The flood made around 4,000 people homeless. Some 1,955 displaced Wasior residents were evacuated to Nabire, 890 to Manokwari and some others to the Teluk Wondama area. A total of 12 school buildings and one hospital were damaged by the flash flood.

The flash flood was triggered by incessant heavy rains that had fallen in the region from Sunday to Monday (Oct 3 and 4). Those who died in the disaster were those who drowned after being carried away by the flood currents that also carried logs and rocks from a lake in the mountain.

The emergency response lasted until end October 2010, with priorities to search and evacuate victims, town cleaning up, house and school reconstruction.

Coordinating Minister for People`s Welfare Agung Laksono said the government was studying the possibility of relocating the flood victims.

"The government will find the best and most secure place for them," the minister said recently.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono visited flash flood-devastated Wasior to meet the victims and he ordered the setting up a trauma center and temporary shelters for them.

While the Indonesian people were still grieving about the devastation and fatalities caused by the flash flood in Wasior, a magnitude-7.7 earthquake and subsequent tsunami struck Mentawai Island District, West Sumatra Province, on October 25, 2010.

The earthquake and tsunami killed at least 408 people, caused 303 others to go missing, injured 270 badly and 142 lightly .

The disaster devastated 517 buildings and caused minor damage to 204 buildings. Around 23,000 people have been left homeless and forced to stay in refugee camps.
Ade Edwar of a local mitigation agency said the powerful earthquake and tsunami devastated 517 buildings and caused minor damage to 204 buildings, including four elementary school buildings, one junior high school building, four churches, 426 houses, and 10 bridges, while more than 200 houses suffered minor damage.

Around 22 aftershocks with magnitudes ranging from 5 to 6.2 on the Richter scale, had jolted the district up to Saturday (Oct 30).

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono was forced to leave the ASEAN Summit in Hanoi to visit Mentawai last Thursday (Oct 28). He asked the West Sumatra governor and Mentawai district head to coordinate efforts at relocating the tsunami victims.

Just one day after the Mentawai earthquake and tsunami, Mount Merapi, one of Indonesia`s most active volcano has started to erupted on October 26, 2010.
A total of 32 people, including Mbak Maridjan, "the spiritual caretaker" of the volcano, were killed, and tens of others were injured.

Mount Merapi erupted again several times early Saturday morning (Oct 30) causing residents living closest to the volcano to abandon their villages or settlements in panic.
Around 40,000 people have so far been evacuated to safer places following the eruption of Mt Merapi which is located in the border of Central Java and Yogyakarta and has erupted regularly since 1548.

Indonesia is one of the most disaster-prone countries in the world because it is located on the Pacific Ocean`s "ring of fire" of volcanoes and earthquakes.
One of the worst disasters hitting Indonesia was a 8.9 earthquake and a subsequent deadly tsunami which devastated Aceh Province (northern Sumatra) and Nias Island (North Sumatra Province) on December 26, 2004.

The gigantic tsunami killed at least 200,000 people and left around one million people homeless in Aceh and on Nias alone. The impacts of the tsunami had also affected badly other countries such as Sri Lanka, Thailand, and India.

In 2006, at least two major earthquakes rocked Java Island. In May 2006, Yogyakarta and its surrounding areas were shaken by 6.3 earthquake which killed over 5,700 people and injured at least 38,000 others. In July, a 6.8-earthquake and a subsequent tsunami affected southern coast of West Java and killed more than 650 people, while at least 65 others missing.

Another major earthquake was recorded on September 30, 2009, with a magnitude of 7.9 on the Richter scale which devastated Padang city and several other towns in the provincial capital of West Sumatra, killing at least 1,117 people.

A total of 1,214 people were suffering from serious injuries, and 1,688 others were lightly injured. However, unofficial estimates put the number of victims at thousands, as many were still buried under the ruins of the collapsed buildings.The earthquake also destroyed 101,653 houses, and caused damage to 97,995 others in West Sumatera.

In 1883, Krakatoa, a volcanic island in the Sunda Strait between the islands of Java and Sumatra, exploded and killed around 40,000 people.

The explosion is still considered to be the loudest sound ever heard in modern history, with reports of it being heard nearly 3,000 miles from its point of origin. The shock wave from the explosion was recorded on barographs around the globe.

And the lists of possible disasters might add as currently besides Mt Merapi, some other volcanoes especially Mt Anak Krakatau on the Sunda Strait and Mt Dempo in Pagaralam district, South Sumatera, are also showing increaded activity.(*)

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Appeal for heavier sentence for Anson Wong: "He was cruel to animals"

Nurbaiti Hamdan The Star 30 Oct 10;

SHAH ALAM: Wildlife smuggler Anson Wong had been cruel to the animals he intended to export, the High Court heard.

Deputy public prosecutor Mohd Dusuki Mokhtar told the court that 95 boa constrictors were all forcibly stuffed inside a bag.

This, he added, contradicted a judgment by a Sessions Court judge that the animals were “safe and healthy.”

“The animals were indeed abused. This shows an inhumane act by the offender. We have to be loving towards animals,” Mohd Dusuki said in his submission at the hearing of an appeal for a heavier sentence against Wong here yesterday.

The appeal was filed by the Attorney-General’s Chambers on Sept 8 following the disappointment expressed by various conservation groups with the sentence. They said Malaysia should show its earnestness in tackling wildlife trafficking.

Wong, 52, whose full name is Wong Keng Liang, was caught at the KL International Airport on Aug 26 trying to smuggle the boa constrictors to Jakarta.

He was sentenced to six months’ jail and fined RM190,000 on Sept 6 by the Sepang Sessions Court for smuggling the snakes without a permit.

Mohd Dusuki contended that the sentence delivered by the Sessions Court judge did not reflect public interest and therefore the judge had erred in his judgment.

Wong’s defence counsel Datuk Shafee Abdullah, in his reply, said his client, who had imported the boa constrictors from Hungary did not abuse the reptiles.

“The only thing he did not do was apply for a permit to export them. He is an animal trader.

“It happens that it is in fashion now to have a boa constrictor in the house. He did not deplete Malaysia or the world of endangered animals,” he said.

He added that the maximum penalty of seven years imprisonment and RM1mil fine should only be given to offenders in extreme cases such as those who ate brains of live monkeys or killed tigers for their body parts.

Justice Mohtarudin Baki fixed Nov 4 for decision.

Snakes also have rights, court told
Rita Jong The New Straits Times 30 Oct 10;

SHAH ALAM: Stuffing 95 boa constrictors into a suitcase which resulted in them having breathing difficulties was an inhumane way to treat the snakes, the High Court heard yesterday.

Deputy public prosecutor Mohd Dusuki Mokhtar said the snakes, too, had their rights.

He was submitting at the appeal hearing of businessman Anson Wong Keng Liang who was sentenced to six months' jail and fined RM190,000 for illegally exporting the boa constrictors.


Wong was sentenced by the Sepang Sessions Court on Sept 6 after he pleaded guilty to exporting the endangered species without a permit at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) in Sepang at 8.50pm on Aug 26.

The prosecution subsequently filed an appeal for a heavier sentence following an outcry from non-governmental organisations and the public.

Wong, 52, an international wildlife trader, was in KLIA on transit from Penang to Jakarta when the snakes were discovered in his suitcase.


Yesterday, Dusuki submitted that the lower court had failed to address the issue of public interest and the sentence was inadequate.

"Although it only involved exporting of endangered species, public interest demands that such a case be dealt with severely.

"The lower court judge took a wrong approach in sentencing. The appellant pleading guilty does not qualify him to an automatic 'discount'."


He said that animals should be treated with love and care. Therefore, the sentence must reflect public outcry.

Judge Datuk Mokhtarudin Baki then asked Dusuki as to how Wong had managed to obtain a licence to trade wildlife from the Wildlife Department in the first place, to which Dusuki replied he could not comment on that.

Wong's lawyer Datuk Seri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah, however, argued that the charge against his client was technical in nature and he did not abuse the animals.

"It is trite law that the maximum sentence must be reserved for the most heinous crime such as eating the brains of a live monkey, or gunning down a tiger for the sake of getting its penis for so-called medicinal benefits.

"In this case, my client merely did not obtain a licence to export the animals."

He said Wong had imported the boa constrictors legally from Hungary and they were not from Malaysia. Hence, there was no issue of him depleting a Malaysian species.

"He was not making sushis out of the snakes, or cooking them in a pot. He was merely a pet trader," Shafee said, adding that Wong was just an animal trader.

"It so happens that people seem to think it is fashionable to have snakes, or lizards as pets."

He said Wong had paid enough for his offence as his farm in Penang had been closed down by the Wildlife Department as a result of this case.

Mokhtarudin then fixed Nov 4 for decision.

Under the International Trade of Endangered Species Act 2008, Wong is liable to a maximum fine of RM100,000 for each animal, but the total fine should not exceed RM1 million or up to seven years' jail, or both.

In 1998, Wong was arrested in Mexico City and was extradited to the United States three years later where he was sentenced to 71 months' jail.

He had pleaded guilty to 40 counts of smuggling, conspiracy, money laundering and violations of US wildlife protection law.

It was dubbed as one of the largest cases of illegal trade in wildlife ever prosecuted in the US.

Appeal for heavier sentence put off to Oct 29
Ong Han Sean The Star 9 Oct 10;

SHAH ALAM: The High Court here has postponed to Oct 29 an application for a heavier sentence against convicted wildlife trafficker Anson Wong.

Justice Mohtarudin Baki set the new date after Wong’s new counsel Datuk Seri Muham­mad Shafee Abdullah requested for the postponement yesterday.

Muhammad Shafee said he had just received a copy of the appeal records in the morning and needed more time to study them.

“They are expecting me to argue it today. This is completely unjustified,” Muhammad Shafee told reporters outside the court.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Mohd Dusuki Mokhtar objected to the request for postponement, saying the case was of public interest. He said he had also received the records on Wednesday.

Wong, 52, whose full name is Wong Keng Liang, was arrested at the KLIA on Aug 26 trying to smuggle 95 boa constrictors to Jakarta.

Wong, who is from Penang, was sentenced to six month’s jail and fined RM190,000 on Sept 6 by the Sepang Sessions Court for smuggling the endangered snakes without a permit.

On Sept 8, the Attorney-General’s Chambers filed an appeal, asking for a heavier sentence.

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Tree huggers and loggers of the world, unite

Engaging businesses instead of being confrontational could help activists' cause
Jessica Cheam Straits Times 31 Oct 10;

Indonesia's forests make global headlines for all sorts of reasons. The recent forest fires in Sumatra which brought haze and air pollution to Singapore and Malaysia have again put the spotlight on the world's third-largest tropical rainforest - and the companies that own the land that has been burning.

A coalition of environmental non-governmental organisations (NGOs), called Eyes on the Forest, has identified the hot spots as pulpwood concessions, palm oil plantations, wasteland and forest.

The group - which comprises WWF Indonesia, Forest Rescue Network Riau and Friends of the Earth Indonesia - has even identified companies such as Indonesian giant Asia Pulp and Paper (APP) and Singapore-based Asia-Pacific Resources International as land owners of the hot spots.

Many would have forgotten that just two weeks ago, a different story dominated the headlines.

APP had surprised the community by announcing that it would set aside a large forest in Sumatra - about a quarter the size of Singapore - as a so-called 'carbon sink' dedicated to absorbing planet- warming carbon dioxide.

This forest in Riau had originally been earmarked as a plantation site, but APP was now leaving it alone to generate carbon credits. It pledged that the bulk of money received would go back to the local community.

NGOs were sceptical. Greenpeace spokesman Bustar Maitar said the project was welcomed, but expressed concern that, apart from setting aside this area, peat land was still being cleared in APP's concessions in other areas.

Two weeks later, fires were devouring forests across 200 hot spots, mostly in Riau province. If anything, the concerns from Greenpeace now seem to be vindicated.

The growing tension between businesses and activists is as palpable as the haze at PSI 100. On the one hand, NGOs are understandably frustrated by the lack of progress on what they view as a matter of the utmost importance: reversing the pace of deforestation in Indonesia - whose forests serve as a crucial lung for the planet.

On the other hand, businesses feel victimised, claiming it is virtually impossible to police the vast tracts of forests on their land concessions.

There is no way to control the smallholders who start the fires, or to control the direction in which the fire spreads, they say.

Put both groups together in one place and sparks are guaranteed to fly. I was at a local dialogue last week attended by leading local environmentalists, academics and private-sector leaders.

The exchange between one spokesman from a listed agribusiness firm and a left-wing environmentalist got heated within minutes, with the latter demanding that, instead of dishing out quarterly dividends from 'big profits' to shareholders, these companies should do the right thing by investing in resources to ensure their land does not burn. The counter was that the issue was not a straightforward one, and that sometimes businesses have no control over who sets fire to their land.

Then another environmentalist said: 'It's your land, so take responsibility and sort it out.'

Observing the exchange, I wondered if there was a middle ground to be struck between this perpetual war of values and ideologies between businesses and NGOs.

There are generally two types of activism NGOs engage in: The first is the 'stick' method of boycotting, putting pressure and lobbying against a company seen to be doing the 'wrong' thing but which has enough financial and political clout to change things.

Aggressive lobbying by Greenpeace against the Sinar Mas Group and Golden Agri-Resources, for example, has seen the firm lose major suppliers such as Nestle and Unilever. APP has similarly lost clients like retail giant Carrefour. It is effective - but to only a certain extent.

The other method is the 'carrot' approach which favours engagement with businesses. US- based NGO Conservation International (CI) is a firm believer in engaging rather than distancing. As its Singapore managing director Landy Eng puts it: 'We believe that engagement is an important part of the solution. Rather than ignore businesses and keep them on the outside, we should welcome their willingness to lead.'

CI has established a Climate Action Working Group, for example, that focuses solely on the haze issue. It is led by two businesses - Indonesian energy giant Medco Group and Singapore-listed agri-giant Wilmar International.

The working group holds regular meetings with stakeholders from Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore, and have identified both the drivers of and solutions to the haze problem.

It is now looking to test some ideas in certain areas to raise land productivity such as providing education to farmers on how to fertilise land without slashing and burning, and the opportunities of growing higher-yield crops, said Mr Eng.

Carbon Conservation (CC), headquartered in Singapore, is another believer in engagement. It persuades land owners to set aside forests to generate carbon credits and acts as the go-between for the land owners and buyers of the credit such as banks and funds.

It is also the company that helped APP with its 15,600ha carbon sink project in Riau, and will be leading the project's development and evaluation.

CC chief executive Dorjee Sun conceded that the firm had reservations initially about the project, but it decided it should 'walk with the big businesses that want to make a change to help educate them and guide them along the process'.

This especially struck a chord with me.

However tempting it is to throw bricks at seemingly irresponsible companies, such moves are counter-productive to solving the issues at hand.

At best, they will result in superficial gestures of change, and at worst, the companies could clam up, dig in their heels and get on with business as usual.

Seeing as of the world's 100 largest economies, 42 are companies, there is an imperative to engage businesses to be socially responsible, rather than to treat them as capitalist monsters.

APP's move to set aside part of its plantation may be regarded by some quarters as a public relations exercise in 'greenwashing', but it is nevertheless a good first step towards a possible solution: paying people to preserve forests.

A demonstration project like that could pave the way for more, and with firms like CC developing it, transparency issues can be ironed out and improved.

American writer H. Jackson Brown once wrote that 'in the confrontation between the stream and the rock, the stream always wins - not through strength but by perseverance'. Activists may find that a persevering spirit of engagement could be the best way to effect change in our modern world.

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'Bleaching' threatens dive spots in the Philippines

Manila Bulletin 30 Oct 10;

GENERAL SANTOS CITY – Sea corals found in some dive spots in Sarangani province have started to show signs of degradation due to a suspected phenomenon called “coral bleaching.”

American scuba diver John Heitz said about 20 percent of sea corals found off Barangay Kamanga in Maasim, Sarangani showed signs of color fading because of coral bleaching.

The area is considered as a world- class dive spot in this part of the country and is being visited by local and foreign divers all throughout the year.

Heitz said local divers have likewise noticed the fading color of the corals last month during a regular diving activity in the area.g

Coral bleaching is supposedly caused by global warming or the steady rise in the temperature of the earth’s atmosphere.

Barangay Kamanga in Maasim is considered a world-class dive spot, where one need not go far from the shore to experience the dazzling beauty beneath the waves.

Heitz said he recorded temperatures of 86 to 87 degrees Fahrenheit in one of his recent diving expeditions he conducted in the area. “That’s pretty warm as I usually get a temperature of 84 degrees (Fahrenheit),” he added.

He said some of those affected by the bleaching are the acropora table corals, soft corals, and pink hydroids. (Nonoy E. Lacson)

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Britain sets up the world's largest marine reserve

But biologists warn that international inaction is leaving oceans dangerously exposed to overfishing
Jonathan Owen The Independent 31 Oct 10;

At midnight tonight, the world's largest fully protected marine reserve will come into force in the British territorial waters of the Chagos Archipelago, in the Indian Ocean.

But this new sanctuary, designated as a "no-take" zone where commercial fishing will be banned, serves to underline how catastrophically the international community has fallen short of a goal set almost a decade ago to protect marine life.

In 2002, the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and the World Summit on Sustainable Development made a commitment to protect 10 per cent of the world's oceans by 2012. Today, with only 15 months to go, it is estimated that just 1.17 per cent of the world's oceans are under some form of protection, and a mere 0.08 per cent classified as "no-take" zones.

Yesterday, government representatives at a UN conference on biodiversity held in Nagoya, Japan, put the 2012 deadline back to 2020. Marine experts warned that it is scandalous that the original deadline will not be met, and said the 10 per cent target falls far short of what is needed. A third of ocean waters need protection to give species a fighting chance of survival, they said.

The shortfall between target and achievement was described as "massive" by Dr Heather Koldewey, manager of the Zoological Society of London's international marine and freshwater conservation programme. The failure to get anywhere near the original goal would result in "a massive loss of marine resources and, with that, an associated loss of people's livelihoods", she warned. "In terms of maintaining marine environments in some kind of operational form, science believes that actual protection should be in the region of 30 to 40 per cent," she added.

More no-take marine reserves are vital to maintain sufficient life in our oceans, according to the marine biologist Professor Charles Sheppard, from the University of Warwick. "Governments need to stand up to the fishing industry lobby before it is too late. We cannot afford to have any more delay by governments in honouring their commitments to protect areas of ocean." Failure to do this would result in "degradation of the habitat, followed swiftly by degradation of the people who would have been supported by the habitat", he added.

Alistair Gammell, director of the Pew Environment Group's Chagos campaign, said: "It is scandalous that governments are nowhere near the targets agreed to in 2002. The consequence of that failure is that fish and other species are declining in nearly every place you look."

The Chagos reserve covers an area of 544,000 square kilometres – twice the size of Britain. Its waters are home to the critically endangered hawksbill turtle, as well as green sea turtles, dolphins and one of the world's largest coral reefs – a habitat for more than 1,200 species of coral and fish.

Marine life in the waters of the Chagos Archipelago has been hit hard by overfishing. The Zoological Society of London estimates that, over the past five years, around 60,000 sharks, an equivalent number of rays and many other species have been caught there as "by-catch" – as an accidental adjunct to commercial fishing for tuna, for example.

In an attempt to prevent the reserve becoming little more than a park on paper, a fisheries patrol vessel will police the waters to ensure the fishing ban is not breached.

In a statement last night a Foreign Office spokesman said: "The Government believes that a Marine Protected Area (MPA) is the right way ahead for furthering the environmental protection of the British Indian Ocean Territory.

"As the world's largest MPA, the UK's example is encouraging others to do the same in other important and vulnerable areas."

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