'Total Defence' for the environment

Adapt defence strategy for clean and green movement, says PM
Rachel Lin Straits Times 7 Nov 10;

A Total Defence concept - but for the Clean and Green movement?

That is what Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong would like to see here: the adaptation of Singapore's comprehensive defence strategy - which stresses the role of every citizen in protecting the nation - to the environment.

'Taking care of the environment is something which concerns all of us,' he said yesterday. 'Singaporeans understand that national defence is critical to our survival and cannot be left to the Singapore Armed Forces alone and each citizen has a part to play.

'Similarly, we cannot succeed in making Singapore clean and green unless we get corporations and individuals to play their part alongside the Government.'

Mr Lee was speaking at the launch of the Clean and Green Singapore 2011 campaign. The annual campaign, now in its third year, aims to inspire Singaporeans to care for the environment. The theme this year is Promoting Environmental Ownership, and it was launched with a carnival that includes a bazaar selling eco-friendly products. It is sited in Sengkang where it will remain for two days.

In his speech, PM Lee noted that 'Singaporeans are feeling a growing environmental consciousness, especially young Singaporeans'.

However, individuals could do more to take ownership of the environment, even in 'little things in our daily lives', he added. Examples include watching closely the use of water and electricity, keeping Singapore dengue-free and taking care of plants and animals.

Organisations, meanwhile, can also support green initiatives - for instance, electronics company Sony Singapore has adopted Pandan Reservoir.

For its part, the Government 'has to set the right conditions', he acknowledged.

It has to provide a conducive living environment and a 'good mix of green and blue' across the island with park connectors and clean waters. It also has to maintain environmental standards by curbing pollution with stringent regulations and keeping common spaces clean.

And looking forward, 'we have to prepare for the future' by keeping abreast of new technology that can bring 'better, cleaner, more efficient infrastructure and tools', he pledged.

Adding some heft to PM Lee's call for the community to play its part, a $85,000 fund was set up yesterday for individuals and organisations to tap if they launch programmes promoting green causes.

Mr Teo Ser Luck, mayor of North East District, announced a Green Fund for his community development council (CDC). It supplements an existing $85,000 the National Environment Agency (NEA) gives to support the district's green efforts.

To Mr Teo's knowledge, his is the first such fund at a CDC level.

He said: 'Instead of putting money into one big bang event, I'd rather put it into programmes. It's more sustainable.'

Schemes that could be funded include anti-littering campaigns or art projects that spread green ideas, he said. Those interested can approach their grassroots bodies, such as residents' committees, for funding.

Some constituencies have already rolled out such initiatives as part of last year's Clean and Green campaign. Yesterday, their efforts were rewarded with awards from the NEA.

Aljunied-Hougang division received a Best Constituency (Ownership) Award. Young people there designed portable ashtrays and approached smokers in coffee shops to use them. They also knocked on doors to encourage residents not to litter.

Hong Kah North division got the same award for its 'Cash For Trash' scheme, which lets residents exchange their recyclable waste for groceries.

More firms taking up the green cause
Melissa Kok Straits Times 7 Nov 10;

From tree planting to conserving Pulau Semakau's shores, more corporations are making the greening of Singapore their pet cause.

Such corporate-level efforts and initiatives to green the country are increasingly popular, said Professor Leo Tan, chairman of the Garden City Fund, a registered charity of the National Parks Board (NParks).

More companies are practising green corporate social responsibility (CSR) not just for altruistic reasons, but also because they realise that there are economic benefits in going green, such as improving their public image and generating more long-term business, he added.

Yesterday, three corporations and an individual sponsor were honoured by NParks for their contributions to the greening effort, by having a heritage tree dedicated to each of them.

The Garden City Fund - to promote greater community involvement in Singapore's greening - was set up seven years ago with a key goal in mind: to raise $20 million by 2013.

That target has been surpassed this year, with more individuals and corporate sponsors coming on board the programme. When the fund was set up, there were only 40 individual and corporate sponsors; there are nearly 500 now.

The money raised goes towards supporting initiatives such as public education programmes and the conservation of heritage trees.

Prof Tan said he noticed the trend starting three years ago, around the same time NParks launched its Plant-A-Tree programme. Under this scheme, one can not only donate the cost of a young tree, but also plant it as well.

About 9,000 trees have since been pledged and planted, including 2,008 trees planted by ST Engineering, and 1,000 trees sponsored by Citibank.

Companies contacted said the national greening effort is now a popular sponsorship choice.

Ms Esther An, City Developments' head of CSR, said increased eco-education and public awareness, coupled with strong support from industry players, government agencies and research institutions, have translated into greater corporate support. Examples of such companies include HSBC, Kikkoman and Keppel Group.

For instance, HSBC recently collaborated with the Raffles Museum of Biodiversity Research for Project Semakau, a three-year volunteer-driven project to promote and conserve the island's intertidal shores.

In 2007, Keppel Group sponsored $250,000 for a coral nursery project to conserve the coral cover in Singapore, and got its volunteer divers to help restore the coral reefs along the coast of Pulau Semakau.

Other companies such as United Engineers Limited adopted part of the Singapore River under the PUB's Active, Beautiful, Clean Waters programme, to be the 'caretaker' of the waterway located next to the firm's offices at UE Square.

The job includes alerting the authorities to any litter found floating in the river or any inappropriate activities that could pollute the water.

Heritage trees in Singapore
Straits Times 7 Nov 10;

There are 178 heritage trees in Singapore maintained by the National Parks Board (NParks).

Such trees - earmarked for conservation by NParks - are nominated by the public, and evaluated by a 10-member Heritage Trees Panel comprising NParks officials and representatives from educational institutions.

The panel, in selecting a tree to come under NParks' Heritage Trees Scheme, will look at criteria such as its girth, rarity, historical significance, and cultural, social and educational value.

NParks introduced the scheme nine years ago to conserve mature trees like angsana, kapok and rain trees that are considered part of the natural heritage of Singapore.

The trees are thoroughly inspected every 12 months, and are installed with metal conductors to protect them from lightning strikes.

NParks also puts up educational signs to share interesting information about the trees with the public.

Examples of heritage trees here include a more than 80 years old umbrella-shaped rain tree (Samanea saman) at Fort Canning Park, and a more than 70 years old kapok tree (Ceiba pentandra), known for its large straight trunk and buttresses, at the Botanic Gardens.

Green message taking root among youths
Hoe Yeen Nie Channel NewsAsia 6 Nov 10;

SINGAPORE: It seems the green message is taking root among Singapore's youths.

In a recent survey by the National Environment Agency (NEA), four in five believed that they can make a difference.

The growing involvement of youths was highlighted by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong at the launch of the Clean and Green Singapore 2011 campaign.

Everyone, he said, has a part to play.

"Taking care of the environment is something which concerns all of us. We don't all have to take on global causes, but each of us can contribute locally by keeping Singapore our island clean and green," said Prime Minister Lee.

Many say it is important to get kids started on the green movement from young.

At Punggol Primary School, students have turned old bottles into flower pots, showing that you can easily reduce, reuse and recycle so long as you put some creativity into it.

At Jurong Primary School, students have created bottle gardens, the idea coming from teacher, Mrs Wendy Looi. On Saturday, she received an award for sharing her love for recycling and gardening with her students.

Mrs Looi said: "We've got children who love insects, and they enjoy catching caterpillars. We also have those who are so nervous at the sight of an earthworm they'll scream. So, as teachers, we'll tell them, these are the harmless ones, those are the garden helpers. In fact we take them to gardens so they can see the beautiful flowers, and we remind them of all the beautiful creatures that are the garden helpers that help in the growth of the plants."

Mrs Looi is one of six Community In Bloom Ambassadors recognised by NParks this year for going the extra mile to spread the gardening bug.

Another award winner is 51-year-old Anjalai Ammal, a senior horticulturist with Tampines Town Council, who helped create 36 community gardens in the housing estate.

And to get more people to explore Singapore's biodiversity, NParks has created four new trail guides. You can just print them off the website, and you're good to go on your exploration.

NParks' director of Streetscape, Simon Longman, said: "They will come to appreciate how sustainable it is, and how we help to sustain the biodiversity."

Guides are available for Botanic Gardens, Changi, Pulau Ubin and Fort Canning.

Read more!

Along came a spider (collection)

Museum gets diplomat's gift of 12,000 specimens that can be used to study if any Asian species has gone extinct over last 40 years
Lin Yang Straits Times 7 Nov 10;

His job is that of Singapore's High Commissioner to Brunei. But what really makes Mr Joseph Koh tick is: playing with spiders.

So passionate is he about these creepy crawlies that his close friends and colleagues nicknamed him 'Spiderman'. It has been a love affair that has spanned 40 years, and made the diplomat - who has amassed more than 12,000 specimens of spiders - an expert in the field.


Singapore's High Commissioner to Brunei Joseph Koh has donated his collection of spiders, including more than 500 species from Singapore and South-east Asia, to the museum. PHOTOS: LEONG TZI MING

Now, the 62-year-old will donate his entire collection to the Raffles Museum for Biodiversity Research, more than doubling the museum's current holding of 5,000 specimens.

His collection includes more than 500 species from Singapore and South-east Asia and represents a historical catalogue which can help scientists determine whether any arachnid species have become extinct over the last 40 years.

This donation comes as the museum looks to expand. So far, it has raised $46 million to build a new building by 2014 and increase its exhibition and collection space by 10 times the current size. It needs $9 million more.

'It will be morally wrong, if not downright criminal, if such a large collection is left at home to collect dust when it should be studied by other scientists,' Mr Koh told The Sunday Times about his decision to gift his collection.

Besides, there are too many specimens for him to study within his lifetime, he said.

The collection grew, thanks to Mr Koh's active hunting for specimens in the wild, often taking colleagues on the prowl. One of them, Ms Ria Tan, 50, credits him for inspiring her to become a conservationist. She founded Wild Singapore, a website devoted to local environmental news. Mr Koh was her supervisor in the civil service 25 years ago.

'He organised these leisure trips on the weekends, where we would go hunting for spiders in the jungles of Singapore,' recalled Ms Tan.

Mr Koh taught her and other colleagues how to find spiders, take photos, and finally, to trap them inside plastic pill boxes.

At the end of each excursion, he would take the spiders home to study, preserve, and catalogue them. 'He's got this Darwinian persona of a kind, patient teacher. My passion for nature all started with him.'

Mr Koh has a long-established relationship with the museum. Along with some previous specimen donations, he also published an authoritative guide to spiders in Singapore in 1989; a guide that staff at the museum regularly use.

The Raffles Museum bestowed on him the title of Honorary Research Associate in 2004 for his contributions to science.

Professor Leo Tan, 66, who is leading the museum's fund-raising effort for the new building, was also Mr Koh's tutor during their undergraduate years.

Prof Tan remembers Mr Koh as a professor's dream student; one who did not study science for the purpose of making money, but for the pursuit of knowledge itself. 'He has this innate passion for insects, and it was unfortunate he had to enter the civil service due to lack of opportunities in life sciences at the time.'

Still, Mr Koh lived his passion in his spare time, and found the diversity of arachnid species fascinating. 'I am 'turned on' by the discovery of new patterns of similarities amid the variations,' he said.

Since the fund-raising drive started last December, the museum has received other interesting donations. An American, who was returning to his native home, bequeathed a bull and an elk head.

A local chef contributed his personal collection of fossils. And the owner of a local tannery donated a large collection of 50- to 60-year-old animal skins, including tiger skins; such a gift is impossible to acquire legally today.

Not everyone close to Mr Koh shared his enthusiasm for spiders. When he proposed to his wife 36 years ago, she agreed to marry him only if he removed all of his spiders from the bedroom.

But as the collection grew, the specimens made their way gradually back to our 'love nest', he said.

Read more!

Ban helps increase wildlife population in Johor

Moh Farhaan Shah The Star 7 Nov 10;

JOHOR BARU: The royal ban on wildlife hunting in Johor has helped to steadily increase wildlife population in the state.

Johor National Parks Corporation director Abu Bakar Mohamed Salleh said the wildlife population, especially that of tigers, had seen an increase and he attributed this to the ban that was decreed by Sultan Ibrahim ibni Almarhum Sultan Iskandar in April last year.

“Previously, we recorded 11 tigers at our national park. Since the ban was imposed, we have sighted four more tigers, including three cubs."

“We are happy that the number of tigers in the state has increased,” he said, adding that the population of their prey had also increased.

“We have noticed that animals that used to be targets of hunters such as rusa (deer), kijang (barking deer) and kancil (mousedeer) had also increased,” he said.

Abu Bakar added that heightened surveillance of the national park had also helped the wildlife population to grow.

“We are working closely with our counterparts in (neighbouring) Pahang to ensure poachers do not hunt in our forests,” he said.

Abu Bakar, however, said poaching had not been eradicated.

“We still have hunters breaching our borders. Hopefully, with the help of the public and increased surveillance, we will be able to stop them,” he said.

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Scientists find damage to coral near BP well

Cain Burdeau, Associated Press Yahoo News 5 Nov 10;

NEW ORLEANS – For the first time, federal scientists have found damage to deep sea coral and other marine life on the ocean floor several miles from the blown-out BP well — a strong indication that damage from the spill could be significantly greater than officials had previously acknowledged.

Tests are needed to verify that the coral died from oil that spewed into the Gulf of Mexico after the Deepwater Horizon rig explosion, but the chief scientist who led the government-funded expedition said Friday he was convinced it was related.

"What we have at this point is the smoking gun," said Charles Fisher, a biologist with Penn State University who led the expedition aboard the Ronald Brown, a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration research vessel.

"There is an abundance of circumstantial data that suggests that what happened is related to the recent oil spill," Fisher said.

For the government, the findings were a departure from earlier statements. Until now, federal teams have painted relatively rosy pictures about the spill's effect on the sea and its ecosystem, saying they had not found any damage on the ocean floor.

In early August, a federal report said that nearly 70 percent of the 170 million gallons of oil that gushed from the well into the sea had dissolved naturally, or was burned, skimmed, dispersed or captured, with almost nothing left to see — at least on top of the water. The report was blasted by scientists.

Most of the Gulf's bottom is muddy, but coral colonies that pop up every once in a while are vital oases for marine life in the chilly ocean depths.

Coral is essential to the Gulf because it provides a habitat for fish and other organisms such as snails and crabs, making any large-scale death of coral a problem for many species. It might need years, or even decades, to grow back.

"It's cold on the bottom, and things don't grow as quickly," said Paul Montagna, a marine scientist at the Harte Research Institute for Gulf of Mexico Studies at Texas A&M University in Corpus Christi. He was not on the expedition.

Montagna said the affected area is so large, and scientists' ability to explore it with underwater robots so limited that "we'll never be able to see everything that happened down there."

Using a robot called Jason II, researchers found the dead coral in an area measuring up to 130 feet by 50 feet, about 4,600 feet under the surface.

"These kinds of coral are normally beautiful, brightly colored," Fisher said. "What you saw was a field of brown corals with exposed skeleton — white, brittle stars tightly wound around the skeleton, not waving their arms like they usually do."

Fisher described the soft and hard coral they found seven miles southwest of the well as an underwater graveyard. He said oil probably passed over the coral and killed it.

The coral has "been dying for months," he said. "What we are looking at is a combination of dead gooey tissues and sediment. Gunk is a good word for what it is."

Eric Cordes, a Temple University marine scientist on the expedition, said his colleagues have identified about 25 other sites in the vicinity of the well where similar damage may have occurred. An expedition is planned for next month to explore those sites.

When coral is threatened, its first reaction is to release large amounts of mucus, "and anything drifting by in the water column would get bound up in this mucus," Cordes said. "And that is what this (brown) substance would be: A variety of things bound up in the mucus."

About 90 percent of the large coral was damaged, Fisher said.

The expedition was funded by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The mission was part of a four-year study of the Gulf's depths, but it was expanded this year to look at oil spill damage.

In a statement released Thursday night, NOAA Administrator Jane Lubchenco said the expedition underscored that the damage to marine life from the oil spill is "not easily seen." She added that more research was needed to gain a "comprehensive understanding of impacts to the Gulf."

"Given the toxic nature of oil, and the unprecedented amount of oil spilled, it would be surprising if we did not find damage," she said.

NOAA did not provide any officials or scientists of its own who went on the expedition. The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management said its researcher on the expedition was unavailable.

Cordes said that the expedition did not find dramatic visual evidence of coral damage in other sites north of the well. But he said it was premature to say coral elsewhere in the Gulf was not damaged.

The new findings, though, could mean long-term trouble for the coral southwest of the well, where computer models and research cruises mapped much of the deepwater oil.

Referring to one type of coral known as "gorgonians," Cordes said he had never seen them "come back from having lost so much tissue. It would have to be re-colonization from scratch."

___

On The Web:

Photos of the dead coral: http://www.science.psu.edu/alert/photos/research-photos/biology/fisher-photos/

More about the NOAA expedition: http://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/explorations/10lophelia/welcome.html

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Mexico, UN see some progress in climate talks

Reuters ALertNet 6 Nov 10;
* No big breakthrough expected at next month's summit
* Progress on issue of funding for developing nations

MEXICO CITY, Nov 5 (Reuters) - Talks over new accords to fight climate change have made progress on some issues ahead of a global summit in Cancun, Mexico, later this month but organizers downplayed on Friday the chances of a breakthrough.

Hosts Mexico and the United Nations offered few details on the progress after two days of meetings in Mexico City but said they were optimistic a package of agreements to drive forward the process would be reached in Cancun.

"Governments have become aware there is no magic solution, there is no ultimate agreement that will solve everything but that this is a gradual process that has to be done step by step," Christiana Figueres, the United Nations' top climate official, said at a news conference.

Figueres and Mexican officials said progress had been made on setting up funding for developing nations to cope with the effects of climate change and fund clean development as well as the thorny issue of measuring and verifying countries emissions of greenhouse gases but that a deal to replace the Kyoto Protocol was farther off.

Prospects for the Cancun summit have dimmed in recent months amid a near-deadlock in the 194-nation talks ahead of the meeting.

The Kyoto Protocol, the United Nations' main tool for curbing greenhouse gas emissions, expires at the end of 2012. Talks in Copenhagen last year foundered in part over wide disagreements between over how deeply and how fast rich countries should cut their own emissions beyond 2012.

More than 120 nations agreed in Copenhagen to find a way to limit the rise in average global temperatures to less than 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit) but significant differences remain over how to achieve that goal.

Losses by President Barak Obama's Democratic Party in the U.S. congressional elections this week has further dented expectations of significant accords in Cancun.

A lack of U.S. legislation to cut greenhouse gas emissions may hit plans to raise a promised $100 billion a year by 2020 to help poor nations cope with climate change. That plan partly hinges on curbs on emissions to push up carbon prices.

Mexican officials have tried to remain optimistic, however, pointing to renewed trust between negotiators after the acrimonious end to the last climate summit in Copenhagen.

The slow pace of the U.N. talks has prompted speculation that smaller groups, such as the Group of 20 or the U.S.-led Major Economies Forum (MEF) may emerge as possible avenues to agree climate action, a move opposed by the United Nations as well as many small countries that stand to be the worst hit by climate change. (Reporting by Robert Campbell; Editing by Eric Beech)

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Best of our wild blogs: 6 Nov 10

Morning Walk @ Pulau Ubin And A Passing Of One Of Her Pioneers
from colourful clouds

Last of our Pioneers
from Pulau Ubin Stories

Things that you should not teach your children to do
from Life's Indulgences

DIY walking guides issued by NParks
from Celebrating Singapore's BioDiversity!

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Singapore fish farms to set up cooperative

Farms cash in on fish and chips
Planned cooperative is bringing new technology to an age-old profession
Neo Chai Chin Today Online 6 Nov 10;

From a distance, the handful of quaint wooden kelongs off Pasir Ris Beach look more a throwback to a rustic past than part of a modern revolution. But that they are.

Nearly a year after losing an estimated $4.5 million to plankton bloom off Pasir and Pulau Ubin, some fish farmers in Singapore have banded together to set up a cooperative. On their minds: A renaissance for local fisheries, of which consumers could be a part.

Plans afoot include tagging fish with groundbreaking radio frequency identification technology (RFID) to ensure quality, an early-warning system to monitor water conditions, and the search for land to build a state-of-the-art hatchery, storage and research facility.

What this means for consumers: An assurance of safety and quality, and competitive fish prices kept low when farmers buy in bulk the fry and equipment.

City-weary folks could also have a new weekend getaway - if plans to develop the farms to be more tourist-friendly bear fruit.

Led by E Marine Bay director Phillip Lim, the 18 founding members of the proposed Singapore Marine Aquaculture Cooperative (SMAC) submitted their application to the Registry of Cooperative Societies in June and are awaiting the green light.

By uniting, the 14 fish farm and their four partners (including an insurer and RFID technology provider ST LogiTrack) hope to support their peers who may have lost confidence after the plankton-bloom blow, fight for better operating conditions, and do research to grow know-how of fish-rearing technology.

"Fisheries should change - the attitude of farmers, design of farms. The concept of rearing fish should change," said Mr Lim, 47, a former diver who has been running his farm for five years.



'MAGIC' TECH TOOLS

There are 109 coastal fish farms in Singapore, mostly off the shores of Pasir Ris, Changi and Lim Chu Kang, which provide about 4 per cent of fish supply here. The industry's economic potential is far from realised, said Mr Lim, the SMAC's protem chief executive.

With traditional rearing methods, for instance, farmers can harvest fish only once or twice a year. With improved technology, monthly harvests are possible.

For instance, Mr Lim began using RFID three months ago on his farm, where he rears golden trevally, seabass, tiger grouper and red snapper. The rice-sized chips are implanted in fish when they are three to four months old.

With the chips, which cost "just under $5" each, information on each fish - how much it is fed, what it eats, how it has grown, the level of dissolved oxygen in the water when the fish was harvested (which affects quality) - can be tracked online. RFID can also help if the farmers export their fish overseas, by assuring food safety and traceability.

Light is also a magic tool the farmers will employ. "If you turn on the light, the fish will be active. They treat it as 'daytime', and you can feed them (more)," said Mr Lim. A fish that might otherwise take nine months to harvest, could now take six or seven months.

Then, there is the early warning system to track water quality and hopefully prevent a repeat of last December's losses to the plankton bloom.

Mr Lim tested the system he developed earlier this year, and said the group hopes for Government funding to roll it out.

The Agri-food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) said it is still testing early warning systems at waters off Pasir Ris, Changi and Lim Chu Kang, and "seasonal fluctuations and variations in water conditions" should be taken into account.

The AVA has also linked farmers up with reputable fish fry suppliers to facilitate bulk buys, and provided technical advice among other things.



TRAINED FARMHANDS

The co-op hopes to secure a two-hectare plot behind Changi Sailing Club to build its hatchery, storage and research facility. The five-storey hatchery Mr Lim designed to produce fingerlings (young fish the length of a finger) could be the first of its kind in Asia, he said.

The SMAC - which has pumped in about $2 million in capital - hopes to offer credit to help farmers get started. It can supply the bulk-bought fingerlings for the farmer to rear, lending him their expertise and advice. Once the fish are harvested, the dividends, minus the cost of the fingerlings and management fee, will be shared with the farmer.

Manpower can also be trained and streamlined with the SMAC in place, said Ms Tang Kwai Leng, general manager of ST LogiTrack. "Farmhands to feed fish, clean nets, do manual work - all that can be centrally supplied and managed by the co-op," she said.

It's not just the industry and consumers who could benefit from SMAC's initiatives. It also intends to impart expertise to underprivileged youth, said fellow founding member Pastor Andrew Choo.

The co-op is finalising details of a marine biology programme, and the girls from the Andrew and Grace Home - which Pastor Choo founded - are set to be its pioneer beneficiaries. "Once the programme is finalised, we will invite other homes. We want to avail our expertise to underprivileged kids in Singapore," he said.

Rearing fish is 'more stressful than caring for a child'
by Neo Chai Chin
"Watch him 'sayang' the fish," Ms Tang Kwai Leng, general manager of ST LogiTrack, told this reporter on a recent visit to Mr Philip Lim's farm.

It is clear that rearing fish is about more than just a way to make profits for Mr Lim, who began running E Marine Bay five years ago after 25 years as a professional diver.

The 48-year-old was demonstrating how a radio frequency identification chip - supplied by ST LogiTrack - was implanted in a seabass.

As Mr Lim stroked the fish, which thrashed furiously inside the styrofoam box, it calmed under his seasoned touch. It didn't flinch when Mr Lim lifted it and flipped it on its side on a dry table to insert the chip, before returning it to the submerged net.

"That's why I can't live on the farm," joked Mr Lim. "It would be like having thousands of lives in my hands. It's even more stressful than caring for a child."

Incidentally, Mr Lim happens to keep an 80-kg "pet" grouper on the farm.

Running a fish farm does not come cheap - and returns take over a year to materialise.

For instance, a farm that aims to harvest 40 tonnes of fish would have to sink in about $3 million in start-up capital - and should the fish die from an event like plankton bloom, the losses could hit $7 million, according to Mr Lim.

It's no wonder it takes a certain hardy breed of person to run one of the fish farms off the shores of Pasir Ris, Changi and Lim Chu Kang, far away from the city bustle.

"When you live on the sea, you've got to help yourself," Mr Lim said.

Unfortunately, this sense of independence is also why some stick staunchly to traditional rearing methods.

Asked why only a fraction of the 109 fish farms have opted to join the proposed cooperative, Mr Lim said the hope is that more will come on board when they see the benefits it can offer.

Read more!

The 'attack' of exotic flora and fauna in Singapore

Some are concerned that alien species may threaten native species
Victoria Vaughan Straits Times 6 Nov 10;

ALIENS are among us, curling their tendrils around the edges of our forests, peering out of ponds and skittering up trees.

But they are not from outer space. They are plants and animals from across the world that have become permanent residents in Singapore.

Alien species refer to plants and animals which are non-native or exotic to a country.

And their numbers are growing, according to a recent study, Introduced Species In Singapore: An Overview, by Assistant Professor Darren Yeo of the National University of Singapore and Ms Cheryl Chia of National Parks Board (NParks).

The study recorded 142 alien species here - an 84 per cent jump from a previous study in 2003. However, this seemingly huge increase is likely to reflect the fact that little attention has been paid to these visitors until now.

Prof Yeo, 39, said: 'Concern about alien species has been growing worldwide and we are catching up now.'

More than 60 per cent of these 'aliens' are from Asia and 19 per cent are from Central and South America. More than 70 per cent have made Singapore home, the study found.

But not all alien species are considered invasive.

Invasive species - a major cause of the loss of biodiversity - are defined by experts as those which become self-sustaining in an ecosystem, changing it and threatening native plant and animal life.

Singapore has no species which are considered invasive.

Still, scientists say alien species could have an adverse impact on native species, as they compete for food and space or make prey out of local species.

Among the 'aliens' here, 117 are vertebrate species and 25 are invertebrate, according to the study. Freshwater fish and reptiles make up the bulk of the non-native species known here so far.

The pet and live food trade is one route of their introduction; the release of unwanted pets or mercy releases especially around Vesak Day, a Buddhist festival, is another.

Some alien species hitch a ride in the ballast tanks of container ships which take on water at foreign ports to balance the weight of the ship and then dump it in other ports.

The majority of the 'aliens' here are found in man-made habitats such as parks, gardens, wasteland, canals, reclaimed land and ponds.

Many of the non-native fish find their way into reservoirs and drains as they prefer the water there which is less acidic than natural forest streams.

According to the study, there are also 34 potentially invasive plant species that were brought here as ornamental plants.

While some of the alien species are not yet established in Singapore, they have a history of being invasive and posing a threat to the local species and ecosystems elsewhere.

There are eight such species here and they should be monitored closely because there can be a delay before an alien species becomes established and/or turns invasive, says Prof Yeo.

These species include the snakewood plant found at the edge of forests, as well as the red claw tropical freshwater crayfish from Australia and New Guinea which has established itself in reservoirs near Nee Soon Swamp Forest - an important refuge for native biodiversity.

Prof Yeo suggests a broadening of the definition of invasive species to include nuisance or pest species such as the African giant land snail, the Javan mynah, the house crow and the American cockroach.

His paper also recommends studies on the alien species here and risk assessments to manage potentially invasive species.

Mr Alan Ow Yong, chairman of the bird group Nature Society of Singapore, pointed out that non-native birds, such as the Javan mynah and white-crested laughing thrush from Java, lineated barbet ranging from Nepal to northern peninsular Malaysia, and the house crow found across Asia, have caused problems for the local species.

The white-crested laughing thrush, which was brought in as a pet in 1925 and has since bred in the wild, has been competing with native species such as babblers, which also live and feed in the lower branches and on the ground.

'It obviously competes with native birds that are near the ground,' said Mr Ow Yong. 'But these birds are not as aggressive as the Javan and Indian mynahs which are not afraid of humans and push other birds away.'

NParks is also keeping a close watch on alien plant species.

Mr Wong Tuan Wah, director of conservation at NParks, said the authorities are mindful of the potential adverse impact of these species.

'Our urban environment comprises many introduced species. These species include trees and ornamental plants that make up our Garden City, such as the rain tree, originally from the tropical American region,' he said.

'For example, the Dioscorea sansibarensis (Zanzibar yam), a fast-growing climber, can potentially smother the forest canopy if allowed to invade and proliferate in our rainforests.'

NParks manages the situation by actively clearing certain introduced plant species from the nature reserves in Singapore. It has also introduced community outreach programmes to encourage the public not to release non-native animals here or take native flora and fauna out of the country.

The Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority of Singapore also has regulations on the import, export and transshipment of plants and animals.

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Conservation 101 guide to go online in Singapore and elsewhere

Victoria Vaughan Straits Times 6 Nov 10;

TOP conservation experts have come up with the world's first free online textbook on the subject, in the hope that greater public knowledge can help save plant and animal life.

Conservation Biology For All, a 101 guide, edited by Professor Navjot Sodhi of the National University of Singapore's Department of Biology, will go online in January.

It can then be accessed through Prof Sodhi's website www.dbs.nus.edu.sg/staff/sodhi.htm and through a link on the Oxford University Press website.

By launching the project, the authors hope to address complaints from conservationists in developing Asian countries, such as the Philippines, India and Thailand, about the lack of related information.

'We are in dire straits in terms of biodiversity. We have to give people basic knowledge on how to conserve, as most of the biodiversity is in poor countries,' said Prof Sodhi, 48. 'We wanted to bring the best knowledge, get the best guys in the field to contribute to this charitable project,' he said, adding that he hoped the big names involved in the project would generate interest.

The book has 16 chapters and is written by 75 leading scientists.

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Insect Scourge: Two New Species Invade U.S. Every Year

Rebecca Kessler livescience.com 5 Nov 10;

Less than an inch long with white spots on its back and antennae longer than its body, the Asian longhorn beetle would seem benign scuttling along the forest floor. But the plant-eating insect leaves behind a trail of woody carnage.

Every year, exotic insects like the Asian longhorn beetle and the emerald ash borer, aka the Green Menace, kill millions of trees across the United States. And every year inspectors intercept a few new would-be invaders at the nation's ports of entry - but they can't stop every single one.

Now researchers are trying to get a step ahead of the insect influx by quantifying the rate of invasion and pinpointing Los Angeles and New York area ports as insect entry hot spots. [Image Gallery: Invasive Species]

National number

Each year, about two exotic, forest-dwelling insect species take hold in the United States, according to a new paper published online Oct. 1 and to set appear in a forthcoming print issue of the journal Biological Invasions by Frank Koch of North Carolina State University and four co-authors. To calculate that number, the team developed a computer model that incorporated historical data on foreign trade, insect invasions and interceptions at U.S. ports.

Not every one of those incoming insects is likely to wreak havoc on U.S. forests, but taking a cue from the ecological literature the team assumed that one in 10 are. "You would expect to see a significant forest insect species [become established here] approximately every five to six years," Koch said, and that's right in line with the historical record. "We've seen four major forest insect pests over the past 25 years."

That rate may not seem especially high, but even a single species can be devastating. Take the emerald ash borer, a jewel-toned beetle native to Asia and Russia that was first identified in Michigan and Ontario in 2002. It has since spread to at least 15 U.S. states, including its latest conquest this summer - Tennessee. Feeding larvae have girdled and killed tens of millions of ash trees, and damages could top $20 billion, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Urban breakdown

To find out exactly where forest pests are likely to enter the United States, Koch's team examined data for more than 3,000 urban areas. Insects often arrive concealed in wood products or packing material, and the researchers accounted for the likelihood that various imported products harbor forest pests, their regions of origin, their points of entry into the country and their final destinations.

The team identified the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana region as the top point of entry, estimating that a new insect invader becomes established there every four or five years. New York-Newark was second, with a new invader settling in every eight or nine years, then Houston with one every 13 to 15 years. Most other urban areas had much lower rates.

Koch doesn't expect the flood of insects to slow down anytime soon, and hopes his results will help direct prevention resources where they can do the most good. West Coast ports have the biggest share of trade with Asia, which is predicted to boom, so Western authorities should be increasingly vigilant for insect hitchhikers. East Coast ports have more commerce with Europe, and the researchers expect new establishments there to remain roughly stable.

Another consideration is whether a major tool for preventing insects from entering the country is sufficiently effective. In 2006, the United States adopted international standards known as ISPM15 (International Standards for Phytosanitary Measures Guidelines for Regulating Wood Packaging Material in International Trade). The standards require all imported wood products and packing material to be fumigated or heat-treated.

"There have been studies that have shown that compliant wood still can have live insects," Koch said. "The evidence is not there yet to show that these standards have made a big dent."

Just when or where the next devastating invader may strike, no one knows, but "the one that gives people the most shivers," according to Koch, is the Asian gypsy moth.

Since 1991, several small populations have been spotted and quickly snuffed out in the Pacific Northwest and North Carolina. Unlike European gypsy moths, which have been munching away at East Coast forests for more than a century, female Asian gypsy moths can fly. If the species gains a foothold in the United States, managers fear the pests could spread quickly and far, leaving millions of acres of defoliated and dead trees behind.

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Climate change hurting China's grain crop: report

Yahoo News 5 Nov 10;

BEIJING (AFP) – Climate change could trigger a 10 percent drop in China's grain harvest over the next 20 years, threatening the country's food security, a leading agriculture expert warned in comments published Friday.

Tang Huajun, deputy dean of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, warned crop production could fall by five to 10 percent by 2030 if climate change continues unchecked, in an interview with the official China Daily.

"The output of the country's three main foods -- rice, wheat and corn -- may suffer a 37 percent decline in the latter part of this century if the government fails to take effective measures to address the impact of climate change," Tang was quoted as saying.

China, which produced 530.8 million tonnes of grain in 2009, plans to increase output to 550 million tons by 2020 to ensure food security for the world's most populous country of more than 1.3 billion, the paper said.

The environmental watchdog Greenpeace said in a recent report that China's food supply would be insufficient by 2030 and its overall food production could fall by 23 percent by 2050.

Tang is the chief scientist for a government project launched in September to study the impact of climate change on China's grain production over the past 20 years at 11 research stations in the north and south of the country.

"Agriculture has been the worst hit by climate change and some negative effects have become more obvious due to rising temperatures and water shortages over the past 10 years," Tang said.

Drought is the biggest threat to China's grain harvest, causing an annual average loss of 15 to 25 million tonnes from 1995 to 2005, or four to eight percent of the country's annual output, Tang said.

Other weather-related natural disasters such as floods, hailstones and typhoons have also taken a toll on grain production, he added.

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UN told climate funding is 'feasible'

Money raised from banks, taxes, and carbon permit auctions could match the $100bn promised at Copenhagen, says report
John Vidal guardian.co.uk 5 Nov 10;

Seventeen finance ministers, leading economists and heads of state say that it is "challenging but feasible" to raise $100bn (£62bn) a year by 2020 to allow poor countries to adapt to the effects of climate change and reduce emissions. If their findings, contained in a major report handed to the UN secretary general, Ban Ki-moon, are politically acceptable, the chances of a new global climate agreement are substantially increased.

Money from banks, carbon taxes, carbon permit auctions and new transport taxes could raise the $100bn promised to developing countries at the Copenhagen summit last December, said the high-level advisory group which was chaired by the prime ministers of Norway and Ethiopia and included Lord Nicholas Stern, the financier George Soros, UK energy secretary, Chris Huhne, and South African, Indian and French politicians.

The authors suggested public money could be raised from carbon taxes ($30bn), possible aviation and shipping taxes ($10bn), the redirection of fossil fuel subsidies ($10bn), and by increasing the flows of money from multinational development banks such as the World Bank ($40bn). Private funding of between $30bn and $50bn could come from carbon offset markets and a further $100bn -$200bn could be generated from private sector flows. A possible "Tobin-type tax on all financial transactions was effectively ruled out by the high-level group which argued that it was complicated to implement because it would require global agreement.

"I do think it fits the bill. It's an agreed report and that is significant. A big chunk of the money, as much as $50bn, is public money," said Stern. "There was a lively discussion. You have some pretty strong people there, many of us have had direct responsibility for making public policy at a senior level. It's now for the political processes around the world to pick up. There is inertia in the international discussions, I hope this will help," he said.

Stern said that a higher price on carbon was needed. "A modest price on emissions, in the range of US$20-25 per tonne of CO2 would push incentives in the right direction and raise substantial revenues," he said.

Guaranteeing major new aid flows for developing countries has become a prerequisite for a new climate agreement, but many developing countries argue that the $100bn on offer from rich countries falls far short of the funding necessary to help 130 poor countries which face devastating climate change. Others want the money to be drawn wholly from public finance sources which they say is more predictable.

Developing countries declined to react until they had read the report in detail but non-governmental groups said that initial analysis suggested that all the money could be raised from public funds. Tracy Carty, Oxfam climate change policy adviser, said: "The $100bn committed to in the Copenhagen accord must come from public sources of funding rather than private to ensure it reaches communities desperately in need of money to help them adapt to climate change and develop in a low-carbon way. Private finance cannot meet the needs of developing countries for adaptation."

According to the high-level group, national governments would have options on how to raise some money but much of the money would depend on institutions such as the World Bank being strengthened. Members stressed that they had not been asked to advise how much individual countries should pay or the combination of revenue which could be adopted.

"So far, market responses to climate change have failed to meet the needs of the poorest people in developing countries, who are least responsible but worst affected by climate change," said Sol Oyuela, Christian Aid's senior adviser on climate change and poverty. "It is crucial that most if not all the $100bn comes from new sources of public funding, such as taxes on planes, ships and financial transactions.

"This report quite clearly sets out a system of climate financing and makes clear that concerted global action and a carbon price of at least $25 is required to achieve the necessary transformation in the global economy. But we acknowledge this isn't the end game and the real challenge lies ahead as developed and developing countries work together to ensure concrete proposals are delivered," said Huhne.

"The next steps should include the proposals on international transport being considered by the International Civil Aviation Organisation, the International Air Transport Association and the International Maritime Organisation, and the multilateral development banks working on proposals for new green funds and for enhanced collaboration with the private sector," said Stern.

Climate money can be generated, political will needs to come from Cancun
WWF 5 Nov 10;

$100 billion in climate change funding by 2020 is achievable on the conservative estimates of the high level study for the UN, but funds will only flow from the reaching of a political agreement.

New York, USA: A high level analysis of climate finance submitted to the UN today has demonstrated the feasibility of putting up by 2020 US$100 billion a year in public funding to fight climate change.

According to WWF, this conservative analysis by the special High-level Advisory Group on Climate Change Finance (AGF) sets the stage for a finance agreement to come out of the UN climate summit starting late this month in Cancun, Mexico.

“The Secretary General’s high level group has come up with the financial mechanisms, now we look to governments to come up with the political mechanisms to get the finance actually flowing,” said Gordon Shepherd, leader of WWF’s Global Climate Initiative.

Financing, agreed in principle under the Copenhagen Accord from the last UN climate summit, is needed to support action in developing countries to halt the destruction of tropical forests, speed the transition away from high-emission models of development, and to help vulnerable countries adapt to climate change impacts.

“These public funds are critical to speed up the development and implementation of new technologies, as well as for adaptation and resilience building, new energy efficient infrastructure, and for construction. It will also be used to leverage private sector finance which will contribute much of the investments needed in clean energy technologies,” said Shepherd.

“Our experience is that public investment and initiatives play key roles in mobilising and directing private investment.”

The AGF report gives strong support for financing from carbon pricing mechanisms, with one of the most promising sectors being international aviation and maritime transport, whose emissions are as yet unregulated. “We expect decisive action in Cancun to put this finance source on a fast track to implementation”, said Shepherd.

Other promising sources were downplayed because of opposition from some individual group members, with the chief casualty being the financial transaction tax (FTT).

““Financial transaction taxes have been successfully implemented in more than a dozen countries and at this point we should be examining all potential sources of finance on their merits”, said Shepherd.

Although the assumptions used by the AGF to assess the scale of potential financing generated are extremely conservative, and some members placed undue emphasis on private sector investments in meeting the $100 billion per year financing milestone, the report provides a useful starting point for moving forward.

Parties in Cancun can build upon the AGF recommendation on the way to establishing a much needed new UN Climate Fund and could contribute to host country Mexico’s wish for progress on all elements of a “balanced” Cancun package.

The AGF was set up by United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in February, Co-chaired by Prime Minister Stoltenberg from Norway, and Prime Minister Zenawi from Ethiopia, to explore innovative financing sources and mobilize the financing promised for climate change during the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen last December.

UN climate panel calls for carbon and transport taxes
Tim Witcher Yahoo News 5 Nov 10;

UNITED NATIONS (AFP) – A top UN panel on Friday called for increased taxes on carbon emissions and air and sea transport to raise 100 billion dollars a year for poor nations to combat climate change.

The group led by the prime ministers of Norway and Ethiopia also proposed a tax on international financial transactions for a UN fund aiming to be ready by 2020.

The panel -- which also included finance ministers and financier George Soros -- was set up at last year's acrimonious Copenhagen climate summit and its proposals will get a first international airing at the UN climate conference in Cancun, Mexico starting at the end of the month.

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon called the proposals "financially feasible and politically viable." Environment pressure groups said governments are duty-bound to follow the proposals.

Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg of Norway and Prime Minister Meles Zenawi of Ethiopia said there carbon emission taxes must be used as a deterrent to producing the gases blamed for global warming and to raise revenue.

They proposed that carbon dioxide emissions should cost between 20 and 25 dollars a tonne. This, along with auctions of carbon emission allowances and new carbon taxes, could raise up to 30 billion dollars a year, they said.

The bulk of carbon emissions currently cost between 10 and 20 dollars, according to experts.

The group is also looking to raise 10 billion dollars a year from taxes on international transport, 10 billion dollars by switching subsidies from fossil fuels, 10 billion dollars from private capital flows linked to carbon trading and tens of billions of dollars from international financial institutions.

Stoltenberg said the International Maritime Organization was already working on a system to tax the carbon emissions of shipping. And he highlighted a system to be introduced by European nations in 2013 which will tax carbon emissions for air travel within Europe.

Jet fuel or passenger tickets could be taxed to raise money for the fund, they said.

"This is more realistic than many people believe," Stoltenberg said of the transport tax. "We need the political will to take the decisions and that is up to the governments."

The group also proposed a tax on financial transactions but admitted in their report: "diverging views will make it difficult to implement this universally." The United States has led nations opposed to a new financial tax.

The UN chief said the climate finance for poorer nations "is not about charity. It is about doing the right thing for those who are suffering most from a crisis that they did least to cause."

The UN chief said there was "a gap of trust between developed and developing countries, that is why the (climate) negotiations have not been going very well."

Stoltenberg called climate financing "a question of burden sharing, of balancing economic interests and responsibilities."

Zenawi said the pressure would now be on the leaders of the rich nations.

"As Africans we have contributed virtually nothing to the environmental mess that our planet is in. We will however suffer first and suffer most as a result of the climate changed caused by others."

Zenawi said that African nations consider climate finance "an issue of sanity and justice. The prospects for sanity and justice do not appear to be good. But I refuse to give up. I refuse to believe that our leaders lack the political will and foresight to do what is right."

Greenpeace International said that rich nations have no excuse for not meeting their financial commitments.

"Unless developed country governments keep their promise to provide long-term finance, a global agreement on climate action would be nearly impossible to reach," the group said in a statement.

Oxfam's climate change spokesperson, Tracy Carty, commented: "Money to tackle climate change and help poor communities adapt can be raised without dipping into taxpayers' pockets. The next step is for political leaders to lay out a clear roadmap for making this funding a reality."

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