Indonesia: Logging Ban Extension a Step in Right Direction -- Activists

Jakarta Globe 15 May 13;

Environmentalists have lauded the Indonesian government’s decision to extend a logging ban aimed at protecting rainforests despite fierce industry pressure, but some say there are more steps to take.

“WWF supports this moratorium extension and we applaud the president’s policy to improve the forests and peat lands management to reduce the [carbon] emissions and deforestation,” the chief of the Indonesian chapter of the World Wild Fund, Efransjah, said on Wednesday.

Efransjah said it was more important for the government to complete the integrated map of deforestation in Indonesia and to review the regulations at the regional level, which are often counterproductive to the policies set up by the central government.

Greenpeace forest campaigner Yuyun Indradi said that while the moratorium extension was a step forward, it would not be enough to save the country from rampant illegal logging that would destroy the forest and creatures living in it.

“While it’s good news however, the president did not strengthen the moratorium to cover all forests and peatland. That is what’s really needed if we want to save Indonesia’s remaining tigers and orangutans, which are under threat from relentless palm oil, and pulp and paper expansion,” Yuyun said.

“The government must review existing concessions, increase transparency in the way licences are granted, establish a credible database of low carbon land and undertake clear spatial and land use planning,” he added.

On Wednesday, the government confirmed Yudhoyono had signed a two-year extension on the logging ban, as had been widely expected, and the moratorium would remain in its original form.

“The extension on the moratorium of new permits will be in place for two years from when the presidential instruction is issued,” said a statement from the cabinet secretariat, which deals with presidential decrees.

Yudhoyono signed the extension on Monday, it said.

Under a $1-billion conservation deal with Norway, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono two years ago signed the moratorium, which bans new logging permits for primary, or virgin, forest, defined as forest not logged in recent history.

JG, AFP

Indonesia extends logging ban to protect rainforest
Olivia Rondonuwu (AFP) Google News 15 May 13

JAKARTA — Indonesia has extended a logging ban to protect rainforests despite fierce industry pressure, the government said Wednesday, but green campaigners slammed the move as inadequate.

Vast tracts of the sprawling Indonesian archipelago are covered in trees, including some of the world's most biodiverse tropical rainforest that is home to endangered animals such as orangutans, tigers and elephants.

But huge swathes have been chopped down by palm oil, mining and timber companies in Southeast Asia's top economy, which has become the world's third-biggest carbon emitter as a result.

Under a $1 billion conservation deal with Norway, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono two years ago signed the moratorium, which bans new logging permits for primary, or virgin, forest -- defined as forest not logged in recent history.

On Wednesday the government confirmed Yudhoyono had signed a two-year extension and the moratorium would remain in its original form.

"The extension on the moratorium of new permits will be in place for two years from when the presidential instruction is issued," said a statement from the cabinet secretariat.

Yudhoyono signed the extension on Monday, it said.

The ban applies to new permits for primary forest and peatland with the exception of projects already approved by the forestry minister and others considered vital, such as for power production, it said.

But Greenpeace criticised the government for not taking the opportunity to strengthen the ban.

"That is what's really needed if we want to save Indonesia's remaining tigers and orangutans, which are under threat from relentless palm oil and pulp and paper expansion," said the group's forests campaigner Yuyun Indradi.

Indonesia, the world's top producer of palm oil that is used in many everyday items from soap to biscuits, has faced fierce industry pressure over the ban.

"The moratorium has already had negative effects on the economy, not just in the palm oil industry but the timber industry as well," said Fadhil Hasan, from the Indonesian Palm Oil Association.

The government says the moratorium has drastically reduced logging in a country with the world's third largest amount of tropical forest.

Senior forestry ministry official Hadi Daryanto said that between 2000 and 2010, Indonesia lost around 1.125 million hectares (2.8 million acres) of forest each year.

But he said that at the end of 2011 this figure had been reduced to the equivalent of 450,000 hectares annually.

However, green groups say local authorities are using a murky web of local laws to open up new areas for exploitation despite the national ban, and much logging has continued illegally.

A glaring example is a plan in the province of Aceh on Sumatra island, supported by Jakarta, which activists say could open up a million hectares of protected forest for exploitation despite the moratorium.

The plan, which is likely to be approved soon, is possible because it hinges on Aceh's decision to overturn its own deforestation ban at the local level.

"Countries like mine have a right to develop, but not at the expense of our priceless natural patrimony," said Rudi Putra, an activist who started a petition against the Aceh plan that has gathered almost one million signatures.

Indonesia extends forest-clearing ban for 2 years
Associated Press Yahoo News 16 May 13;

JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Indonesia has approved a two-year extension to a landmark ban on clearing primary rainforests and peatlands, officials said Thursday. Environmentalists praised the move but said the government must do more to curb the nation's burgeoning production of greenhouse gases.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono signed the decree on Monday to continue the 2011 moratorium, which barred new logging and palm oil plantation permits under a $1 billion deal with Norway, said his environment adviser, Pungki Agus Purnomo.

He said the ban will preserve 64 million hectares (158 million acres) until 2015. It will not affect areas where concessions were granted before the moratorium.

Environmentalists hailed the extension while also urging leaders to better enforce the law. They say some protected areas continue to be exploited because of corruption and illegal fires and logging.

Indonesia's largest environmental group, Walhi, said the government must also work to stop logging permits from being issued at the local level.

"It is just like a presidential instruction to his subordinates ... it has no power to sanction against violators," said Walhi environmentalist Berry Nahdian Furqan, who added that the ban should be made permanent.

Indonesia is one of the world's biggest greenhouse gas emitters, largely because many of the palm oil plantations on the islands of Borneo and Sumatra are planted on carbon-rich peatland that must be drained first, releasing vast amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere each year.

Rapid deforestation has occurred in recent years in Indonesia as it feeds the world's hunger for palm oil, pulp and paper. The destruction has caused damage ranging from deadly flash floods and landslides to a loss of habitat for endangered species such as orangutans, elephants, tigers and rhinos.

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Climate research nearly unanimous on human causes, survey finds

Suzanne Goldenberg guardian.co.uk 16 May 13;

A survey of thousands of peer-reviewed papers in scientific journals has found 97.1% agreed that climate change is caused by human activity.

Authors of the survey, published on Thursday in the journal Environmental Research Letters, said the finding of near unanimity provided a powerful rebuttal to climate contrarians who insist the science of climate change remains unsettled.

The survey considered the work of some 29,000 scientists published in 11,994 academic papers. Of the 4,000-plus papers that took a position on the causes of climate change only 0.7% or 83 of those thousands of academic articles, disputed the scientific consensus that climate change is the result of human activity, with the view of the remaining 2.2% unclear.

The study described the dissent as a "vanishingly small proportion" of published research.

"Our findings prove that there is a strong scientific agreement about the cause of climate change, despite public perceptions to the contrary," said John Cook of the University of Queensland, who led the survey.

Public opinion continues to lag behind the science. Though a majority of Americans accept the climate is changing, just 42% believed human activity was the main driver, in a poll conducted by the Pew Research Centre last October.

"There is a gaping chasm between the actual consensus and the public perception," Cook said in a statement.

The study blamed strenuous lobbying efforts by industry to undermine the science behind climate change for the gap in perception. The resulting confusion has blocked efforts to act on climate change.

The survey was the most ambitious effort to date to demonstrate the broad agreement on the causes of climate change, covering 20 years of academic publications from 1991-2011.

In 2004, Naomi Oreskes, an historian at the University of California, San Diego,surveyed published literature, releasing her results in the journal Science. She too came up with a similar finding that 97% of climate scientists agreed on the causes of climate change.

She wrote of the new survey in an email: "It is a nice, independent confirmation, using a somewhat different methodology than I used, that comes to the same result. It also refutes the claim, sometimes made by contrarians, that the consensus has broken down, much less 'shattered'."

The Cook survey was broader in its scope, deploying volunteers from the SkepticalScience.com website to review scientific abstracts. The volunteers also asked authors to rate their own views on the causes of climate change, in another departure from Oreskes's methods.

The authors said the findings could help close the gap between scientific opinion and the public on the causes of climate change, or anthropogenic global warming, and so create favourable conditions for political action on climate.

"The public perception of a scientific consensus on AGW [anthropogenic, ie man-made, global warming] is a necessary element in public support for climate policy," the study said.

However, Prof Robert Brulle, a sociologist at Drexel University who studies the forces underlying attitudes towards climate change, disputed the idea that educating the public about the broad scientific agreement on the causes of climate change would have an effect on public opinion - or on the political conditions for climate action.

He said he was doubtful that convincing the public of a scientific consensus on climate change would help advance the prospects for political action. Having elite leaders call for climate action would be far more powerful, he said.

"I don't think people really want to come around to grips with the fact that climate change is a highly ideological issue and it is not amenable to the information deficit model," he said.

"The information deficit model, this idea that if you just pile on more information people will get convinced, is just completely inadequate, he said. "It strengthens the people who actually read and pay attention but it is certainly not going to change or shift the opinions of others."

Scientists say united on global warming, at odds with public view
Alister Doyle PlanetArk 16 May 13;

Ninety-seven percent of scientists say global warming is mainly man-made but a wide public belief that experts are divided is making it harder to gain support for policies to curb climate change, an international study showed on Thursday.

The report found an overwhelming view among scientists that human activity, led by the use of fossil fuels, was the main cause of rising temperatures in recent decades.

"There is a strong scientific agreement about the cause of climate change, despite public perceptions to the contrary," said John Cook of the University of Queensland in Australia, who led the study in the journal Environmental Research Letters.

"There is a gaping chasm between the actual consensus and the public perception," he said in a statement. "When people understand that scientists agree on global warming, they're more likely to support policies that take action on it."

Global average surface temperatures have risen by 0.8 degree Celsius (1.4F) since the Industrial Revolution.

Experts in Australia, the United States, Britain and Canada studied 4,000 summaries of peer-reviewed papers in journals giving a view about climate change since the early 1990s and found that 97 percent said it was mainly caused by humans.

They also asked authors for their views and found a 97 percent conviction from replies covering 2,000 papers. The data will be released at (www.skepticalscience.com).

The report said it was the biggest review so far of scientific opinion on climate change.

"If people disagree with what we've found we want to know," said Mark Richardson of the University of Reading in England, one of the authors of the study that looked at English-language studies by authors in more than 90 nations.

Another co-author, Dana Nuccitelli of Skeptical Science, said she was encouraging scientists to stress the consensus "at every opportunity, particularly in media interviews".

Opinion polls in some countries show widespread belief that scientists disagree about whether climate change is caused by human activities or is part of natural swings such as in the sun's output.

A survey by the U.S. Pew Research Center published in October last year found 45 percent of Americans said "Yes" when asked: "Do scientists agree Earth is getting warmer because of human activity?" Forty-three percent said "No".

Rising concentrations of carbon dioxide, the main greenhouse gas, hit 400 parts per million in the atmosphere last week, the highest in perhaps 3 million years.

Governments have agreed to work out, by the end of 2015, a deal to slow climate change that a U.N. panel of experts says will cause more floods, droughts and rising sea levels.

(Reporting By Alister Doyle; Editing by Janet Lawrence)

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Best of our wild blogs: 15 May 13

Sat 08 Jun 2013: 7.00pm @ Yishun Public Library - Tony O'Dempsey on the "Environmental & Cultural History of Yishun" from Habitatnews

Tanah Merah's artificial shores are alive!
from wild shores of singapore

Breeding of Masked Lapwing in Singapore
from Bird Ecology Study Group

Random Gallery - Colonel
from Butterflies of Singapore

Paper giant APRIL to restore peat forest in Sumatra, but green groups say it continues to deforest from Mongabay.com news by Rhett Butler

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Joining the Arctic queue

The overseeing body known as the Arctic Council holds a special meeting today. Singapore will know if it gets to become a permanent observer. Our writer finds out why an island almost on the Equator wants to join this Arctic club. The other story explains why cooperation has been the body's hallmark.
M. Nirmala Straits Times 15 May 13;

SINGAPORE'S application for permanent observer status on the Arctic Council has raised eyebrows.

"Sometimes even a small event gives you a mental whiplash," wrote The Economist, referring to Singapore's 2011 application.

Whether Singapore is in or out will be announced today at the Arctic Council's ministerial meeting in Sweden.

The council was set up in 1996 to govern the ice-cap region and the eight permanent member countries that ring the North Pole: the United States, Canada, Russia, Iceland, Sweden, Finland, Norway and Denmark.

Then there are six countries with permanent observer status, which allows them to attend and contribute to council discussions. They are Britain, Germany, France, the Netherlands, Poland and Spain. In the queue along with Singapore to join the latter group are China, India, Japan, South Korea, Italy and the European Union.

Even if Singapore does not get permanent observer status, it and the other applicants could be given ad hoc observer status. Here, it needs to seek approval to attend each council meeting.

Away from the glare of publicity, Singapore's Arctic policy has been steadily taking shape.

For the past few years, Singapore has been deepening its understanding of the Arctic and marketing its expertise in shipping, coastal management and maritime governance - all very relevant to the council's work.

It appointed veteran diplomat Kemal Siddique as its Special Envoy for Arctic Affairs.

Adopting a boots-on-the- ground strategy, he visited all eight permanent council member countries, as well as several Arctic indigenous communities, such as the Saami and the Inuit.

Singapore has clearly taken note of a comment by the Swedish Arctic Ambassador Gustaf Lind at one council meeting: "The Arctic is hot."

The Arctic now holds 30 per cent of the world's undiscovered gas and 13 per cent of oil. Home to one-fifth of the world's fisheries, it includes the Barents and Norwegian seas - areas rich in seafood.

New shipping route

WHY does Singapore want to join the Arctic Council?

As a permanent observer, Singapore will get to attend working group sessions, giving it an insight into the significant changes in the region that will have an impact on the country. For instance, Singapore is concerned about fast melting polar ice, which can erode the island-state's position as one of the world's busiest ports.

Scientists expect the Arctic Ocean to be relatively ice-free between 2020 and 2050. As the ice recedes, a new route via the North Pole region is appearing, cutting the time taken by ships in Europe to reach the East by half.

Last year, 46 ships sailed through this new route which has the potential to divert shipping that all this while has gone via the Suez Canal and Singapore.

But Singapore is not too flustered; while there could be a dip in its shipping business, it needs to adapt and find new opportunities. It did just that in 2008, when Keppel Singmarine pulled off a brilliant strategy by building Asia's first two ice breakers for a Russian company, Lukoil.

Named Toboy and Varandey, the vessels - designed to operate in freezing temperatures as low as minus 45 deg C - can cut through ice blocks over 1.7m thick or about the length of a bathtub.

Keppel is now working on the world's first Arctic ice-worthy and green jack-up floating oil rig and other drilling rigs.

Singapore is also developing the next generation of vessels, including Arctic life boats.

The Republic also has broad expertise in running major port facilities and can help develop new Northern port infrastructure.

Norway's Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide is confident that the new route will not badly affect Singapore's shipping business.

For now, the Arctic route, he said, can be used only to ship goods, such as iron ore, that do not need urgent delivery. It is also passable to ships only during summer with the help of ice breakers.

"If you run a company based on stability, you may want to take a warm route in order to avoid any hiccups," he said.

Coastal management

THERE is another problem caused by the melting Arctic ice.

As a low-lying island, Singapore is vulnerable as rising sea levels can wipe out its existence.

To prepare for the rise in sea levels, Singapore has raised the minimum level required for coastal reclamation areas. Previously, building owners had to make sure that the height of the reclaimed level had to be 1.25m above the highest recorded tide levels.

This level has been now set higher, at an additional 1m.

Singapore's experience in coastal management will increase in value as experts say that half of the world's population, or 3.4 billion people, live in coastal areas. This figure is expected to balloon to six billion by 2025.

Maritime stakeholder

SINGAPORE also brings to the Arctic table its expertise in cleaning oil spills, important to the ecologically vulnerable Arctic region.

The island nation also has experience in getting international shipping groups to use the ocean routes in a responsible way.

For example, the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore is investing up to $100 million to provide incentives to owners of Singapore-flagged vessels that can create energy efficient and environment-friendly ship designs.

Oceanic research - on topics such as doing oil explorations in the harsh Arctic climate - is being done at the Centre for Offshore Research and Engineering at the National University of Singapore and the Agency for Science, Technology and Research.

Birds and the bees

THE protection of flora and fauna is a big item on the Arctic Council's agenda.

The feather in Singapore's cap that could convince the council members to admit Singapore is the way the island has rolled out its welcome mat each year to Arctic birds, such as the Pacific Golden Plover and Sanderling.

Leaving their freezing Arctic homes in the winter months for the warmer climate in the South, these birds stop over at Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve and the Seletar dam areas. They rest and refuel on seafood before resuming their epic journey.

At one Arctic meeting, Mr Sam Tan, Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Foreign Affairs and an avid bird watcher, raised the excitement levels of his audience as he regaled them with accounts of how Singapore respects and gives refuge to birds.

If Singapore gets a toehold in the council today, there will be good reason to pop the bubbly.

Hands across the melting ice
The overseeing body known as the Arctic Council holds a special meeting today. Singapore will know if it gets to become a permanent observer. Our writer finds out why an island almost on the Equator wants to join this Arctic club. The other story explains why cooperation has been the body's hallmark.

James F. Collins, Ross A. Virginia And Kenneth S. Yalowitz Straits Times 15 May 13;

WITH global warming rapidly melting Arctic sea ice and glaciers making valuable stores of energy and minerals more accessible, voices of doom are warning of inevitable competition and potential conflict - a new "Great Game" among the five Arctic coastal nations.

In fact, Arctic states from North America, Europe and Russia, working with indigenous peoples and a number of non-Arctic states, already have taken steps to ensure just the opposite: that the Arctic remains a zone of cooperation, peace, and stable, sustainable development.

The Arctic Council - the intergovernmental organisation for the eight Arctic states comprising Canada, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Russia, Sweden and the United States - has created a forum for cooperation and momentum towards a responsible approach to the region's issues.

Today, a ministerial meeting of the council in Sweden will face urgent issues dealing with the environment, shipping and governance.

In anticipation of this meeting, more than 40 leading Arctic scholars, government officials, industry leaders and representatives for indigenous peoples met in Washington in February under the auspices of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, Dartmouth College, the University of Alaska Fairbanks and the University of the Arctic to examine issues facing the region - energy, health, shipping, security and governance - and to make recommendations for action to the Arctic Council.

Arctic energy and mineral riches eventually will be developed, but harsh weather conditions will persist and fluctuating world prices will make the timing of development uncertain.

The shale gas revolution is already delaying some Arctic energy projects. Arctic shipping, although increasing as seasonal sea ice declines, will remain largely regional, dedicated to the transport of Arctic energy and mineral resources and the supply of local populations and industry. Difficult sea ice conditions and the consequent unpredictability of shipping schedules will severely limit interest in developing trans-Arctic Ocean container shipping.

The Arctic states have addressed potentially divisive issues in an orderly manner, and the prospects for resolving issues in the region by force are at present slight. The most accessible Arctic oil and gas resources are located within state borders or the universally agreed-upon 200-nautical-mile (nm) Exclusive Economic Zone of the coastal states and thus not subject to dispute.

The Arctic coastal states are pursuing claims for territorial shelf extension beyond 200nm for exclusive access to additional oil and gas reserves, but they have agreed their differences will be settled under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and through diplomatic channels.

The Arctic Council is in a unique position to strengthen this trend. The United States can help greatly by ratifying the Law of the Sea Convention, giving more policy level attention to US interests in the Arctic and using the US chairmanship of the council, beginning in 2015, to build on the work the council has done.

A binding search-and-rescue accord was reached in 2011 by the Arctic Council. The upcoming ministerial meeting is an opportunity to strengthen the security and well-being of the region.

This can be accomplished by encouraging cooperation of the region's militaries and coast guards in emergency/disaster response, providing better situational awareness for Arctic Ocean shipping safety and prevention of illegal activities, and the establishment of a forum to share maritime information.

The ministerial meeting should also urge the International Maritime Organisation to adopt a mandatory polar code for ships operating in polar waters, and regulations for safe operations of cruise ships; establish an Arctic economic forum to promote public/private partnerships and help resolve issues such as environmental pollution; establish a clearing house for public and private data on oil spill preparedness, prevention and remediation; and provide more capacity for indigenous peoples and their organisations to research and develop a health care system consonant with their culture.

One key governance issue facing the ministerial council is the requests from several non-Arctic states and the European Union to become permanent Arctic Council observers. Bringing them in would open up council proceedings and underscore that many Arctic issues, such as environmental pollutants, are global ones.

At the same time, there would be little benefit to Arctic governance from making the council a formal international organisation; nor is there a perceived need for a comprehensive Arctic treaty.

Dangerous conflict in the region over valuable resources remains a remote possibility, but the council must take constructive steps to ensure that the Arctic continues to develop as a venue for cooperation among Russia and the Arctic states of Europe and North America.

INTERNATIONAL HERALD TRIBUNE

James F. Collins is director of the Russia and Eurasia programme at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and former US Ambassador to Russia. Ross A. Virginia is professor and director of the Institute of Arctic Studies at Dartmouth College. Kenneth S. Yalowitz is senior fellow at the Institute of Arctic Studies at Dartmouth and former US Ambassador to Belarus and Georgia.

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Ice melt, sea level rise, to be less severe than feared: study

Alister Doyle PlanetArk 15 May 13;

A melt of ice on Greenland and Antarctica is likely to be less severe than expected this century, limiting sea level rise to a maximum of 69 cm (27 inches), an international study said on Tuesday.

Even so, such a rise could dramatically change coastal environments in the lifetimes of people born today with ever more severe storm surges and erosion, according to the ice2sea project by 24, mostly European, scientific institutions.

Some scientific studies have projected sea level rise of up to 2 meters by 2100, a figure that U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has called a worst case that would swamp large tracts of land from Bangladesh to Florida.

Ice2sea, a four-year project to narrow down uncertainties of how melting ice will pour water into the oceans, found that sea levels would rise by between 16.5 and 69 cm under a scenario of moderate global warming this century.

"This is good news" for those who have feared sharper rises, David Vaughan, of the British Antarctic Survey who led the ice2sea project, told Reuters in a telephone interview.

"But 69 cm is a very real impact ... it changes the frequency of floods significantly," he said. And seas would keep rising for centuries beyond 2100, in a threat to coastal cities and low-lying islands such as the Maldives or Tuvalu.

Ice2sea said a thaw of Antarctica, Greenland and glaciers from the Alps to the Andes would contribute between 3.5 and 36.8 cm to sea level rise this century. The fact that water expands as it warms would add another 13 to 32 cm, Vaughan said.

Some other scientists disputed ice2sea's projections.

"I think the numbers are too low," Dorthe Dahl-Jensen, an ice expert and professor at the Niels Bohr Institute in Copenhagen, told Reuters. She said ice2sea wrongly assumed a slowdown in the rate of ice discharge from Greenland.

ANTARCTIC SNOW

Sea levels rose by 17 cm last century and the rate has accelerated to more than 3 mm a year. A third of the current rise is from Antarctica and Greenland - equivalent to emptying 138 million Olympic-sized pools into the sea every year.

One factor likely to offset sea level rise, ice2sea said, is that warmer temperatures will result in more snow, especially over Antarctica, locking in the moisture on land. It also played down worries of a runaway melt of Greenland, and of the breakup of major Antarctic ice shelves.

Governments want to know future sea levels to plan sea barriers and regulations for everything from vacation homes to nuclear power plants by the coast. And every extra centimeter means big costs.

A Dutch commission planning to bolster sea defenses, for instance, has advised spending more than 100 billion euros ($130 billion) by 2100 to strengthen dykes and other barriers for a worst case scenario of a 1.2 meter North Sea rise by 2100.

The ice2sea study also said that a survey of experts' opinions showed there was a less than one-in-20 risk that melting ice sheets would contribute more than 84 cm to sea level rise this century. Taken with thermal expansion, that would mean a sea level gain of just over a meter, Vaughan said.

Almost 200 governments have agreed to work out a U.N. deal, by the end of 2015, to combat global warming that would help limit temperature rises and rising seas.

A leaked report by a U.N. panel of climate scientists, due for release in September and drawing on ice2sea data, estimates sea level rise at between 29 and 82 cm by the late 21st century, above the estimates in its last report in 2007 of between 18 and 59 cm.

Many studies since 2007 have had higher upper numbers, including by the World Bank, the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and a report for the Arctic Council. NOAA put the upper limit at 2 meters.

(Editing by Alison Williams)

'Best estimate' for impact of melting ice on sea level rise
Matt McGrath BBC News 14 May 13;

Researchers have published their most advanced calculation for the likely impact of melting ice on global sea levels.

The EU funded team say the ice sheets and glaciers could add 36.8 centimetres to the oceans by 2100.

Adding in other factors, sea levels could rise by up to 69 centimetres, higher than previous predictions.

The researchers say there is a very small chance that the seas around Britain could rise by a metre.

The last Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report was highly detailed about many aspects of Earth's changing climate in the coming decades,
Advanced models

While they estimated that sea levels could rise by 18-59 centimetres by 2100, they were very unsure about the role played by the melting of ice sheets and mountain glaciers.

To fill the void, the EU funded experts from 24 institutions in Europe and beyond to try and come up with more accurate figures on the melting of ice sheets and glaciers in Antarctica and Greenland and how this might swell the oceans.

Called Ice2sea, the group of scientists have made what they term the "best estimate" yet of the impact of melting based on a mid-range level of carbon emissions that would increase global temperatures by 3.5C by the end of this century.

"For that one scenario we have an ice sheet and glaciers contribution to sea level rise of between 3.5 and 36.8 cm by 2100," said Prof David Vaughan from the British Antarctic Survey who is the co-ordinator of the Ice2sea programme.

While the range is wide, the scientists say it is a relatively robust calculation and based on several advances in their modelling since the last IPCC report.

"In order to be able to model the ice sheet properly you need to be able to resolve things down to hundreds of metres," says Prof Tony Payne from the University of Bristol.

"That's quite a task when an ice sheet is a thousand kilometres or more in size, that's a very demanding computational task. What we found is that the Pine Island glacier, the poster child of sea level rise in the Antarctic, that will continue through to the end of the century and very little else happens."

Despite the improvements, there are still many factors that are difficult to include in models. To get around this, the leading researchers were asked to estimate the worst-case scenarios.

They concluded there was a one in 20 chance that the melting ice would drive up sea levels by more than 84 centimetres, essentially saying there's a 95% chance it wouldn't go above this figure.

While ice melt is a major contributor to the height of the seas, there are other important factors especially thermal expansion caused by the warming of the waters.

This is estimated to be raising sea levels by 3 millimetres every year. Taken together with the ice melt estimate, the scientists say the overall, maximum impact on the seas by 2100 will be a rise of 69 centimetres - just ten centimetres higher than the IPCC projection in 2007, termed AR4.

"What we are talking about is a reduction in uncertainty - we find we haven't changed the number enormously compared to AR4, we've added maybe another 10 centimetres but the level of certainty we have around that, is actually higher than it was in the AR4," said Prof Vaughan.

The researchers also included projections for sea level rise in Europe that includes the effects of thermal expansion, ice melt and storm surges. In these scenarios, the British Isles could face an increase of slightly over a metre by 2100. Enough to overwhelm the Thames Barrier and see London flooded once every ten years.

But the scientists stress that there's a 95% chance that these numbers will not be reached.

"The previous IPCC identified this gap in our knowledge, we've addressed that gap and what we've found is not scary," said Prof Payne.

"We're always talking about tens of centimetres, maybe a metre tops, none of the experiments are suggesting 2,3,4 metres and that's different to the literature that existed before Ice2sea."

However the scientists stressed that sea level rise in line with their projections could still make some islands in the Pacific uninhabitable. And if global emissions of carbon dioxide are not curtailed then the actual level of the sea by 2100 could be significantly higher than the Ice2Sea estimates.

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Australia: Seagrass on the decline

University of Queensland 15 May 13;

Seagrass along Moreton Bay will drastically decline as sea levels rise, a University of Queensland study has found.

The study, published in international journal Global Change Biology this week, reveals that unless water quality improves or human populations retreat from coastlines, seagrass will continue to decline, dropping by as much as 17 per cent by 2100.

Lead author Dr Megan Saunders from UQ's Global Change Institute said the findings showed a significant proportion of valuable seagrass habitats would be lost without action to offset the affects of climate change.

“Seagrass meadows not only help to slow climate change by sucking up a large portion of the world's plant-stored carbon, but they also benefit livelihoods, food security, fisheries, biodiversity, shoreline protection and other ecosystem services,” Dr Saunders said.

The study investigated what would happen if roads, houses and other developments along inundated coastlines retreated landwards with rising seas and found this scenario reduced the decline of seagrass to just five per cent over the same period.

It concluded the decline could be further offset by a 30 per cent improvement in water clarity, as seagrass needs relatively high levels of sunlight to survive.

Typical measures to improve water clarity – an important indicator of a water body's overall health, include better sewerage treatment, planting out and protecting riverbanks, and reducing run-off of harsh chemicals such as fertilisers.

The study was the work of an interdisciplinary group of scientists at the Global Change Institute, who are investigating effects of sea level rise in coastal areas.

Along with salt marshes and mangroves, seagrass meadows are a blue carbon ecosystem, a valuable system that is responsible for sucking up more than half of the world's plant-stored carbon.

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Rainforest plays critical role in hydropower generation

Matt McGrath BBC News 14 May 13;

Deforestation in the Amazon region could significantly reduce the amount of electricity produced from hydropower, says a new study.

Scientists say the rainforest is critical in generating the streams and rivers that ultimately turn turbines.

If trees continue to be felled, the energy produced by one of the world's biggest dams could be cut by a third.

The study is published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Many countries in tropical regions are turning to hydropower as an untapped source of energy. In Brazil around 45 new hydro plants are in the planning stage.

Rainforests, by their very name, are prime locations for the dams that are usually required to create the force of water needed to generate electric power.

Until now the presumption has been that cutting down the trees near a dam actually increased the amount of water flowing into the dams.
Trees of life

But in this new study the researchers took a broader look at the climate projections for the Amazon basin and not just at the rivers on which the dams were built.

They found that rainforests are more critical than previously thought as they produce the rain that fills the streams that ultimately drives the rivers and the turbines.

"Rainforests generate their own rainfall, " Dr Claudia Stickler, from the Amazon Environmental Research Institute International Programme (IPAM-IP), told BBC News.

"They pull water out of the soil on a daily basis, they stay green and dark. The main reason is they are always pumping moisture into the atmosphere which ultimately ends up being rainfall and that's what keeps these streams going too," she said.

The scientists found that thanks to current levels of deforestation in the region, rainfall is 6-7 percent lower than it would be with full forest cover. Predictions for 2050 suggest a 40% loss of forest, meaning significantly less rain and 35-40 less electric power.

They researchers looked closely at Brazil's highly controversial Belo Monte dam, said to be the world's third largest hydropower project. If deforestation continues the scientists say, the project will deliver 30% less power than currently estimated. That's equivalent to the energy used by 4 million Brazilians.

"We now have very strong evidence that Brazil's ability to generate electricity depends on forest conservation," said co-author Dr Daniel Nepstad, executive director of IPAM-IP.

"These results aren't just important for Brazil - rainforest cover could affect energy production in wet tropical areas throughout the Amazon, and in Africa and South East Asia as well."

The researchers say their work shows that rainforests are not just important for biodiversity, for the storage of carbon but for the very tangible issue of energy production.

The authors praise the steps that Brazil has taken in recent years to curb deforestation, but they are concerned that the clearing of trees could now be on the rise once again.

"In the last year, Brazil has made tremendous progress towards ending deforestation, bringing clearing rates down to 24% of the historical average. But these numbers are starting to creep up again, and everyone should be concerned," said Dr Nepstad.

"Ending deforestation should be viewed as an issue of national energy security."

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Best of our wild blogs: 14 May 13

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Pinna, Porifera, and Pseudobiceros’ Penises
from Pulau Hantu

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Four killed, 62 injured by fallen trees over last 10 years: Khaw

Channel NewsAsia 14 May 13;

SINGAPORE: Four people have died and 62 injured by fallen trees over the last ten years.

In 2012, there were 1,050 cases of tree failures, most of which were broken branches and uprooted trees. As of April 2013, there were 438 cases of tree failures, which is five per cent lower compared to the same period last year.

In a written parliamentary reply to Non-Constituency MP Gerald Giam, National Development Minister Khaw Boon Wan said NParks has stepped up its inspection frequency of mature trees significantly since June 2012.

NParks manages over 1.4 million trees.

- CNA/ac

Measures in place to minimise tree falls
Straits Times Forum 14 My 13;

WE AGREE with Mr Daniel Chia that there is a need to ensure enough space for tree roots to grow ("Plant only deep-rooted trees along roads"; Forum Online, May 3). Most roads in Singapore have planting verges that are wide enough. For narrower verges, we are mindful to select smaller trees for planting.

But as Mr Heng Cho Choon pointed out, it is not possible to totally eliminate the risk of tree falls, as healthy trees can be affected by gusty winds and heavy rainfall ("Trees can be felled by natural forces beyond NParks' control"; Forum Online, May 6). Our records show that fallen branches and trees were mainly due to such adverse weather conditions.

We are aware of these concerns and assure the public that we are committed to minimising the number of falling trees and branches through enhanced training, continual review of tree management procedures and better use of technology.
Earn a world-class Master Business Degree in Singapore now!

Our staff are certified by the International Society of Arboriculture, and we are adopting its best management practices. Continuing education programmes are also conducted regularly for our staff to ensure that they keep up with the latest knowledge and skills in arboriculture.

We thank Mr Chia and Mr Heng for sharing their concerns with us. More information is available on our tree care page at www.nparks.gov.sg/treecare

Oh Cheow Sheng
Director, Streetscape
National Parks Board

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Without sustained transmission, low risk of virus outbreak: Gan

Singapore does not import live poultry, birds or frozen poultry from China. Photo: AP
Nh Jing Yng Today Online 14 May 13;

SINGAPORE — As long as there is no “sustained” human-to-human transmission of the H7N9 bird flu virus or the novel coronavirus, the risk of an outbreak in Singapore will remain low, said Health Minister Gan Kim Yong.

Mr Gan was speaking in Parliament yesterday, which saw five Members of Parliament (MP) flagging concerns about H7N9 and the novel coronavirus.

The most likely source of the H7N9 outbreak in China is from infected poultry and contaminated live poultry markets, while the source of the novel coronavirus — which has been reported in the Middle East and Europe — is still unclear.

In both cases, there have been no evidence of sustained person-to-person transmission so far, although there have been possible incidences of limited human-to-human transmission, Mr Gan said.

Also, Singapore does not import live poultry, birds or frozen poultry meat from China, he added. Still, the Government has stepped up on checks. The Agri-Food & Veterinary Authority, for instance, has increased surveillance testing on birds, including migratory birds.

The Ministry of Health (MOH) has also alerted all hospitals and doctors to look out for symptoms like fever and cough.

“To date, the MOH has been notified of 11 cases who have been investigated for H7N9, and 24 who were investigated for novel coronavirus,” Mr Gan said. “None have been positive”.

If a confirmed case is detected, the Government is prepared to undertake contact tracing and phone surveillance of close contacts, and ICU isolation beds are available to manage severely ill patients, he added.

Mr Gan urged Singaporeans travelling during the June school holidays to stay updated on global disease situations and the MOH’s travel advisories.

The minister also assured the House that the MOH has been working with other government agencies to prepare for potential infectious disease outbreaks. This includes ensuring an adequate supply of hospital beds and introducing control measures like quarantine, if necessary.

Member of Parliament (MP) Lam Pin Min (Sengkang West) pointed out that the novel coronavirus might be transmitted from an infected passenger to others during a seven-to-eight hour flight from the Middle East to Singapore and asked if surveillance measures are sufficient at points of entry. He also asked Mr Gan to explain the meaning of “sustained human-to-human” transmission.

Mr Gan responded that while the World Health Organization has yet to recommend travel restrictions, Singapore has put up notices to remind travellers to take precautions.

And “sustained transmission means that there is sustained transmission beyond the immediate contact”, he said.

Asked by Ms Foo Mee Har (West Coast Group Representation Constituency) about the country’s preparedness compared to previous outbreaks like Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome, Mr Gan said Singapore is much better prepared today. While every new disease brings new challenges, the local healthcare institutions are ready, he assured.

As for Nominated MP Nicholas Fang’s question about encouraging community-driven efforts to deal with infectious diseases, Mr Gan said the MOH will continue to work with agencies and organisations to raise awareness levels among residents and healthcare workers.


11 investigated for H7N9, 24 for novel coronavirus; none positive
Hetty Musfirah Abdul Khamid Channel NewsAsia 13 May 13;

SINGAPORE: Eleven people in Singapore have been investigated for the avian flu virus H7N9 and another 24 for novel coronavirus to date.

But none was positive.

Health Minister Gan Kim Yong, who revealed this in Parliament on Monday, said that so long as there is no sustained human-to-human transmission of the two diseases, the risk of an outbreak in Singapore will remain low.

Mr Gan said the H7 avian influenza virus has not been detected in tests on local and imported birds.

Singapore also does not import live poultry, birds or frozen poultry meat from China.

A potential concern, however, is the transmission of H7N9 to Singapore via migratory birds carrying the virus.

So surveillance testing on such birds has been stepped up.

Mr Gan said Singapore still needs to be vigilant against the possibility of cases in travellers coming to Singapore.

Hospitals have been asked to look out for suspect cases of both H7N9 and novel coronavirus.

Mr Gan assured the House that plans are in place if there is a pandemic.

He said: "We have worked with hospitals and clinics to ensure that there is adequate surge capacity in healthcare infrastructure and beds.

"At the national level, we have sufficient personal protective equipment (PPE) and antiviral stockpiles (for influenza), which can be deployed should the need arises.

"Possible control measures include isolation of cases, quarantine of close contacts and social distancing measures to reduce community transmission, if necessary.

"With our experience in SARS, we are now much better prepared than 10 years ago.

"However with each new infectious disease, it will bring in new experiences, new challenges, new threats and therefore it is a continuing journey.

"So, our healthcare institutions are working together preparing for the possibility of the arrival of H7N9 or novel coronavirus patients in Singapore.

"I think our institutions are ready and will be able to manage them."


- CNA/ir

Singapore better prepared to deal with epidemics
It is much better equipped than during Sars crisis: Health Minister
Tracy Quek Straits Times 14 May 13;

SINGAPORE is much better prepared today than it was during the 2003 Sars epidemic to handle infectious disease outbreaks, including the H7N9 strain of bird flu and a deadly new Sars-like virus, Health Minister Gan Kim Yong said yesterday.

Still, the health authorities, government agencies, hospitals and doctors remain vigilant and are monitoring for the possibility of H7N9 or novel coronavirus (NCoV) cases in travellers to Singapore as well as transmission in the community, he added.

NCoV is from the same family as Sars, or severe acute respiratory syndrome, and its source remains unclear.

The risk of an H7N9 or NCoV outbreak in Singapore remains low currently, he said, as there has been no evidence of sustained human-to-human transmission of both diseases worldwide.

Mr Gan was replying to four MPs, including Ms Lee Bee Wah (Nee Soon GRC) and Ms Foo Mee Har (West Coast GRC).

"With each new infectious disease it will bring in new experiences, new challenges, new threats. Therefore it is a continuing journey of learning," he said.

"Our health-care professionals, our health-care institutions are working together preparing for the possibility of the arrival of H7N9 or NCoV in Singapore."

He added: "Our institutions are ready and will be able to manage them."

Since the first H7N9 infections were reported in China this March, there have been 130 confirmed cases, including 35 deaths. Infected poultry and contaminated live poultry markets are the most likely sources of infection.

The first NCoV infection was reported last September. Since then, there have been 34 confirmed cases worldwide, including in Jordan, Qatar and Saudi Arabia, with 18 deaths.

On whether there were enough hospital beds should the two viruses strike, Mr Gan said hospitals had been working with his ministry to expand capacity at short notice.

The extra beds could be freed up fast by deferring elective surgery operations and speeding up the discharge of medically stable patients, he added.

Hospitals are ready to respond to emergency cases, he said.

To deal with the possibility of infected travellers, the Health Ministry has alerted all hospitals and doctors to look out for suspect cases with such symptoms as fever, cough and signs of pneumonia, and previous travel to affected regions.

Suspect cases will be isolated and tested for H7N9 or NCoV, Mr Gan said.

So far, the Health Ministry has investigated 11 notified cases for H7N9 and 24 for NCoV. None was positive.

The Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority is also testing imported poultry, inspecting pet shops and monitoring birds in wetland reserves including migratory birds, Mr Gan said.

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Penalties for high-rise littering need to be significantly raised: Vivian Balakrishnan

Saifulbahri Ismail Channel NewsAsia 13 May 13;

SINGAPORE: Environment and Water Resources Minister Vivian Balakrishnan has said the penalties for high-rise littering will need to be significantly raised.

Speaking in Parliament on Monday, Dr Balakrishnan said there also needs to be a more effective way of identifying the culprits.

Close-circuit cameras started to be installed in HDB blocks in 2011 to address the problem of high-rise littering.

Giving an update, Dr Balakrishnan said the surveillance cameras have identified 12 suspects engaged in high-rise littering, and so far, five of them have been prosecuted.

The courts have imposed fines ranging from S$800 to S$1,500. But this may not be enough.

Dr Balakrishnan said more than 8,000 complaints of high-rise littering are received every year. But only 10 to 12 cases have been brought to court a year.

Dr Balakrishnan is less than satisfied with the numbers because the cameras have been installed to increase the probability of culprits being caught.

He acknowledged that it is not practical to have cameras in every HDB block, and it should only be used as a last resort.

His ministry will encourage the adoption of personal responsibility and cultivation of proper social norms within neighbourhoods.

In addition, Dr Balakrishnan said he will be reviewing the process of camera installation for greater deterrent effect.

He elaborated: "Because right now, I sometimes receive irate e-mails from complainants (saying), 'This is ridiculous. You put up a camera, you tell everybody exactly where and when you are putting it up. So, the person just naturally makes sure he does not litter at that point, and then he resumes after that.'

"So, yes, we will make some changes, but I still want to emphasise this cat-and-mouse game cannot be the real solution, and we need more effective assumption of personal responsibility, and we need local action on the ground by people who are actually living there and who know who the culprits are."

- CNA/ms


High-rise litterbugs may face tougher penalties
Ministry to review procedure for deployment of security cameras to catch offenders
Woo Sian Boon Today Online 14 My 13;

SINGAPORE — The penalties for high-rise littering “need to be significantly raised”, said Minister for the Environment and Water Resources Vivian Balakrishnan yesterday, adding that the standard operating procedure for the deployment of surveillance cameras to catch offenders is being reviewed.

Speaking in Parliament, Dr Balakrishan said since 2011, 12 suspects have been caught on camera, while five have been prosecuted in court after the National Environment Agency (NEA) piloted the installation of closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras at hot spots to deter high-rise littering.

In response to Nee Soon Group Representation Constituency (GRC) Member of Parliament (MP) Lim Wee Kiak’s questions, Dr Balakrishnan said that he was “not satisfied” with the situation.

The minister pointed out that while more than 8,000 complaints of high-rise littering are reported each year, only about 10 to 12 are taken to court.

Dr Balakrishnan added: “Given the fact that (culprits in) most recent cases were only fined between S$800 and S$1,500 ... we probably need to review the penalties ... I think the penalties need to be significantly raised.”

He said “a spectrum of penalties which makes it easier or less restrictive when agencies need to take action” against high-rise littering is necessary but did not say when the review of the penalties will be completed.

Currently, those convicted of high-rise littering for the first time can be fined up to S$1,000 and ordered to perform the Corrective Work Order (CWO) for up to 12 hours.

Second-time offenders can be fined up to S$2,000, while third and subsequent offenders can be fined a maximum of S$5,000.

They can also be ordered to perform the CWO for up to 12 hours.

As for high-rise surveillance using CCTV cameras, Dr Balakrishnan said his ministry is reviewing the standard operating procedure for “second and third deployments” of cameras so that residents will not be informed of when they will be installed for a “greater deterrent effect”.

He noted that the NEA currently sends letters to residents to inform them of when and where a camera will be installed.

This, however, has led to a “ridiculous” situation where littering is minimised when the camera is in operation, but the social nuisance rears its head when the camera is removed.

The NEA had previously said that more than 300 locations where residents have reported high-rise littering incidents have been placed under camera surveillance as of the end of February.

When asked by Nee Soon GRC MP Lee Bee Wah if other technology, such as DNA testing on sanitary pads, can be used to nab high-rise litterbugs, Dr Balakrishnan said this would “take intrusive surveillance to new heights” as a DNA database would need to be set up.

He also emphasised that the “more effective assumption of personal responsibility” should be the real solution to deter littering, instead of a “cat-and-mouse game” of trying to catch offenders in the act.

“Our primary line of defence must remain the adoption of personal responsibility and cultivation of appropriate social norms within our neighbourhoods,” said Dr Balakrishnan.

Slap litterbugs with harsher penalties, say HDB residents
But first, do more to nab culprits who are rarely caught and punished now
Lim Yi Han Straits Times 17 May 13;

RESIDENTS of Housing Board estates agree with a minister's assessment that high-rise littering persists because litterbugs are rarely caught and punished.

To do so, there need to be more enforcement officers on the ground and permanently-installed surveillance cameras, residents told The Straits Times.

Heavier penalties such as jail time should also be put in place, but the first step to improving the situation would be to nab more culprits, they added.

Environment and Water Resources Minister Vivian Balakrishnan told Parliament on Monday that penalties need to be "significantly raised", and there should be a more effective way of identifying the culprits.

First-time offenders can be fined up to $1,000 and be given a Corrective Work Order of up to 12 hours.

Dr Balakrishnan said thousands of complaints of high-rise littering are received every year, but only about 10 cases a year are brought to court.

A spokesman for the National Environment Agency (NEA) said 55 individuals have been caught from 2003 till last month.

This is despite the high number of complaints to the authorities, totalling 8,152 last year, and 5,232 in 2011. In the first three months of this year, 2,018 complaints were received.

The spokesman said the agency works with town councils to send letters where there are complaints urging residents to refrain from high-rise littering. NEA officers also visit households to talk to residents.

If the problem persists, officers conduct stakeouts and deploy cameras opposite the block.

Since last August, surveillance cameras have been placed at more than 300 locations where there were reported high-rise littering incidents. By April, the cameras had been removed in 60 per cent of these locations, as there were no more complaints from residents.

But most of the 90 residents in Toa Payoh, Bukit Batok, Woodlands and Sengkang, whom The Straits Times interviewed yesterday, felt that more can be done, including drastic measures such as repossessing the flats of offenders.

They also suggested forming neighbourhood watch groups, as well as having permanent surveillance cameras, and more checks to be conducted by NEA officers.

Three blocks - Block 52 Toa Payoh Lorong 6, Block 383 Bukit Batok West Avenue 5 and Block 769 Woodlands Drive - were recorded by NEA as having the greatest volume of high-rise litter feedback between the end of August last year and January this year.

National University of Singapore sociologist Paulin Straughan said that harsher penalties are necessary because "littering is poor social behaviour that compromises safety".

She added: "But higher penalties are deterrence that will bite only if you actually catch people. Having the rules is one thing, but policing it is another."

The residents listed laziness, convenience and getting away with it as common reasons for high- rise littering.

Housewife Tiou Cheow Tee, 49, who lives in Toa Payoh, said: "My clothes had holes because of cigarette butts. These litterbugs are really inconsiderate and there should be a heavier fine."

Madam Ramlah Yassin, 45, a chef, another resident in the area, added: "I live on the ground floor and the litter lands right outside my flat. The problem's got worse, and I have to sweep and throw away the rubbish myself. I don't let my grandchildren play outside anymore, as it's dangerous."

Additional reporting by Chan Huan Jun, Farah Mohd Ismail and Natalie Kuan

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Singapore has interest in the Arctic region

Esther Teo Straits Times 14 May 13;

SINGAPORE'S application for permanent observer status in the Arctic Council might seem like an obscure pitch for a country lying just a smidge north of the Equator.

But the Republic's interest in the icy northern region ranges from the risk of rising sea levels caused by melting polar ice to the possibility that its port might be bypassed should the Northern Sea Route running through the Arctic coast take off in a big way.

The council comprises eight Arctic states, including Canada, Russia and the United States.

Tomorrow's Arctic Council Ministerial Meeting, which takes place once every two years and will open in Kiruna in northern Sweden, is expected to decide on the applications. Singapore's special envoy for Arctic Affairs Kemal Siddique is in Sweden.

Singapore applied for permanent observer status, which is likely to allow a country to attend council meetings and take part in working groups, in December 2011. Others that have applied for similar status include China, the European Union, India, Japan, Italy and South Korea.

While Singapore has no territorial or resource claims, it does have various economic and political interests in the Arctic. As a major international port, it takes a keen interest in maritime affairs.

The emergence of new sea routes would reduce the distance between the North Atlantic and the North Pacific, causing shifts in shipping patterns a few months every year. The implications of these shifts could have far-reaching consequences for Singapore's economic viability and existence.

Rising sea levels caused by melting polar ice could threaten Singapore. Moreover, the island is on the migratory pathway of some Arctic species and the effects of climate change on Arctic flora and fauna would affect those here.

Singapore hopes to contribute its shipping-related expertise in areas such as oil spill prevention and maritime traffic management to the Arctic Council.

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