The sound of music in a disused Singapore quarry

Lin Yangchen, The Straits Times AsiaOne 14 Apr 17;

Every weekend, the sweet notes of Chinese flute music rise above the quarry lake in Bukit Batok Nature Park and waft into the listening air.

The player of those dulcet sounds is not exactly what one expects.

Wearing tattered sports attire and a crew cut, 67-year-old retiree Tan Eng Bee played water polo in the 1960s and still swims more than 15km a week.

But almost 60 years of flute practice shows when he whips out the three flutes in his bag and starts playing music at the water's edge.

The primary school dropout taught himself to play as a child, inspired by the music he heard on the radio.

"Exercise has helped me play better... You must be fit and be able to control your breath. Especially when the phrases are long, and when the last note is very long," said Mr Tan.

He is as much a part of Bukit Batok as the quarry itself, having lived in the neighbourhood from the days it was a laid-back kampung and seen the beginnings of the nature park in 1988.

Mr Tan's flute music finds an audience in former fishery wholesaler Michael Ong and his wife Phyllis Peh, who live across the road from the park, and visit the place to walk every morning.

Said Madam Peh, 54, who is a housewife: "Because of the granite, there's this echo. It's very different from listening to a CD at home. Every time he finishes a tune we'll clap and he'll feel very motivated."

Mr Ong, 58, who visited the park for the first time only last year, after being diagnosed with Stage 4 colon cancer, said: "I didn't know there was nature and fresh air so close to home."

Despite undergoing chemotherapy, he is active and in good spirits, helped by the fresh air and long walks.

Mr Ong used to pull 16-hour workdays. Nowadays, he takes time to listen to the bubbly song of the Straw-headed Bulbul, which is found in the park and very few other places in Singapore.

Sometimes they are greeted by raucous troops of white-crested laughing thrushes with their funky white-crested heads and black eye bands.

The granite quarries of Singapore - there are at least 18 dispersed across Bukit Timah and Pulau Ubin - fuelled the country's development from the 19th century.

Along with sand quarries in Bedok and Tampines, they supplied construction material for everything from roads and Housing Board flats to landmarks like Fort Canning and St Andrew's Cathedral, and even the lighthouse on Pedra Branca.

It almost never crosses the mind, but granite is an essential part of everyday life.

It is everywhere - in the walls of homes and offices, in the Pan-Island Expressway that crosses the country.

You could say it is the bedrock of Singapore's bustling economy, and much of it came from the hills in Bukit Timah and Pulau Ubin.

Granite is now imported from other countries. Although only a small fraction - perhaps less than 10 per cent by area - of Singapore's granite had been extracted, the quarried areas were difficult to reclaim for economic use, said Mr Michael Lee, a former geologist with the Public Works Department from 1972 until the last quarry closed in 1999.

The granite workers and their machinery are long gone, but their legacy lives on in the scenic beauty of the cliffs and lakes they left behind.

Mr Wong Tuan Wah, group director of conservation at the National Parks Board (NParks), said quarrying affected Singapore's biodiversity as natural habitats were destroyed or fragmented.

However, the agency has resurrected some quarries as nature parks with shelters and basic amenities and enhanced the habitat, such as by installing floating wetlands.

The agency also manages former quarries on Pulau Ubin for sports like kayaking and mountain biking.

In 2005, Red Bull World Cliff Diving Championship 2002 winner Joey Zuber even dove off a cliff at Kekek Quarry on Pulau Ubin to promote the sport in the region.

Quarry scenes were very different years ago, when mining activities were at their height.

Every piece of granite was born out of a "big bang" as explosives blasted them out of the rock face.

Mr Lee remembers having to deal with incidents of "flying rocks" in the course of his job to ensure that safety regulations were observed in the country's granite quarries.

The danger zone is hard to gauge but it is on the order of a few hundred metres, he said.

But the heavy granite was worth its weight.

Singapore has two slightly different types, called Bukit Timah Granite and Gombak Norite.

The latter is harder and darker, with a higher proportion of minerals containing iron and magnesium, while the former has a higher proportion of silica.

Mr Lee said both are very durable and serve as excellent material for construction, compared with inferior materials like limestone or sandstone.

"Geology has bestowed on Singapore two resources side by side. The granite and sand industry played a significant role in building Singapore," he said.

And as icing on the cake, the quarries can still be enjoyed by thousands today.

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Malaysia: 11 new orchid species found in Sabah

The Star 16 Apr 17;

KOTA KINABALU: Sabah’s reputation as a biodiversity hotspot is again reaffirmed with the discovery of 11 new orchid species.

Naturalist and Sabah-based publisher Datuk C.L. Chan said the new species were described by Peter O’ Byrne, a world authority on Borneo orchids, during his ongoing research.

“These species were found in various parts of Sabah, including Kinabalu Park,” he said.

The new species, which are from the Dipodium family, were described and reported in the Malesian Orchid Journal published by Chan once every two years.

One of the new species, Dipodium chanii, was named after Chan himself while another, Dipodium lambii, was named after Datuk Anthony Lamb.

Lamb, a British botanist, began working in Sabah 54 years ago and was instrumental in setting up the renowned Tenom Agriculture Centre.

“The continuous discoveries of new species of orchids as well as insects indicate the wealth of our biodiversity and why preserving it should be a priority,” said Chan.

He said it was also recently found that of the 41 species of the Malestoma family found in Sabah – a kind of shrub – 31 were new to science.

“There is so much more yet to be discovered,” he said.

“Imagine if a forest that contains a plant which is unique to that location and with cancer-curing properties is cleared. That would be a loss to humanity,” he added.

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Indonesia: Gunungkidul selected to pilot climate change mitigation efforts

Bambang Muryanto The Jakarta Post 15 Apr 17;

Tens of thousands of tree seedlings of various species have been planted in karst and critical areas, which cover 3,293 hectares of land, in Gunungkidul, Yogyakarta, as part of climate change mitigation efforts.

“We have planted 66,800 tree seedlings. In the 10th year of this program, it is expected that the areas can absorb around 64,797 tons of carbon dioxide,” conservation group Javlec Indonesia Foundation director Rohni Sanyoto told The Jakarta Post on Wednesday.

Javlec Indonesia Foundation has received Rp 3.4 billion (US$255,851.02) from the Indonesia Climate Change Trust Fund (ICCTF) to implement a climate impact mitigation program through replanting activities in karst areas, critical land near river basins and conservation areas in 20 villages across Gunungkidul.

Gunungkidul Deputy Regent Imawan Wahyudi officially launched the tree planting and management activities in Watu Payung, a nature tourist destination in Girisuko village, Panggang, Gunungkidul, on April 6. One-meter-high tree seedlings of various species, such as acacia and beech, were planted there.

Rohni said Watu Payung and locations in 19 other villages were selected because their carbon dioxide absorption rate was not ideal, reaching only 31.04 tons per ha per year. Ideally, absorbed carbon dioxide was 35 to 100 tons per ha per year.

“This program aims to help the Indonesian government reduce greenhouse gas emissions and reach a low carbon economy,” said Rohni.

The Environment Ministry estimated in 2009 that Indonesia would produce 1.72 gigatons carbon dioxide in 2000, which would increase to 2.95 gigatons by 2020.

USAID-ICCTF team leader Sudaryanto said the program was a pilot program in climate change mitigation efforts at the national level. (ebf)

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Australia: Erosion threatens weakened mangrove ecosystem in Gulf of Carpentaria

Lucy Murray ABC News 16 Apr 17;

Mangrove ecologists and Indigenous rangers have expressed dire concern a second surge of mangrove dieback could further damage ecosystems in the northern Australia's Gulf of Carpentaria.

There are already more than 7,000 hectares of dead mangroves in the Gulf of Carpentaria.

For locals like ranger Robert Logan, this grey landscape was a shock to the system.

"[I] grew up in this country all my life and it's always been green and in a few months 'bang' it's all gone," Mr Logan said.
As the trees rot, researchers warn of a second surge of dieback.

Norm Duke, the head of James Cook University's Mangrove Hub, said an erosion event was likely to occur.

He said the excess soil released by the dead mangroves would choke some of the surviving trees.

"Based on experience in other places, as the mangroves deteriorate, they are no longer able to hold the soil together," Dr Duke said.

"We expect that those sentiments will pile up somewhere else.

"They will take out plants that are recovering like seedlings and equally, the surviving mature trees are vulnerable to that type of erosion as well."

Mangroves died of thirst

The first wave of dieback occurred in late 2015.

The Gulf Country, like most of Queensland, has been drought declared.

There has been little rainfall and high temperatures over the past few years, so the mangroves were already stressed.

But the final straw was a lack of sea water.

Dr Duke said scientists thought it was due to moisture stress.

"Delivered as low rainfall and high temperatures, and at the corresponding worst possible time, at the end of the dry season, sea levels dropped for a month," he said.

He said it was believed the El-Nino weather event caused tides receded by 20 centimetres for more than a month.

"That is the hypothesis that will be tested and worked on in the years to come," Dr Duke said.

Monitoring mangroves from afar

When the first mass death of mangroves occurred, researchers did not find out about it until five months later.

Because of the remote location, the deaths were not immediately reported.

This meant scientists could not forensically test the soil.

"Without the evidence of what the condition of the site was at the time of the dieback, you miss out on information about the before scenario that changes quickly after the trees die," Dr Duke said.

"There may or may not have been something we could have done."

If there was to be another occurrence of dieback, Dr Duke said he wanted to be on the front foot. He has teamed up with local Indigenous rangers, who act as his eyes on the ground.

Two rangers sit on a boat, one is operating a camera, while the other steers the boat.
PHOTO: When a rangers spots an interesting landmark, they click the GPS tracker. (ABC North West Queensland: Lucy Murray)
The rangers from the Carpentaria Land Council steer a boat close to the shoreline of the Norman River filming the mangroves and marking important landmarks on GPS trackers.

"[On the camera] we're trying to get the water level, the mangroves and a bit of sky," ranger Freddy Pascoe said.

The footage is sent back to the researchers on the east coast, more than 1,000km away.

Mr Logan said the film was then sent to JCU.

"Those guys can analyse them and do what they have to do," Mr Logan said.

"Just looking after the country I guess, best we can."

Unanswered questions remain

The rangers said they were more than happy to help monitor the situation.

Supervising ranger Paul Richardson said the area where the mangroves died was an important ecosystem.

"It's heartbreaking, because mangroves are a habitat for a lot of ocean creatures, fish grabs prawns — it's basically a nursery for them," Mr Richardson said.
"It is important that we do monitoring it now, because where that particular dieback of mangrove is, that sits in our flyway, that is a big concern for us.

"Migratory shore birds use that coastal line for roosting sites, and for feeding sites — mangroves — they act as shade for shells and the things they eat, so if there aren't mangroves they're going to cook."

Both Dr Duke and Mr Richardson want to do more testing to make sure there is not another factor in the widespread deaths.

"We would also like to see by doing the monitoring, will these mangroves grow back, or will another species take over?" Mr Richardson said.

Some of the trees that died were more than 200 years old, so recovery would take some time.

But the rangers said they would be watching and doing what they can.

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EU Parliament votes to ban the use of palm oil in biofuels

MEPs say a ban, which needs approval from the European commission, is needed to avoid renewable targets contributing to deforestation
Arthur Neslen The Guardian 4 Apr 17;

MEPs have voted overwhelmingly to ban biofuels made from vegetable oils including palm oil by 2020, to prevent the EU’s renewable transport targets from inadvertently contributing to deforestation.

A new palm oil regulation, minimum sustainability criteria, customs duty reforms and anti-deforestation articles in future EU trade deals were also approved with a 640-18 majority.

The motion has stirred a diplomatic hornet’s nest, with seven countries – including Indonesia, Malaysia, Costa Rica and Ecuador – warning of a trade dispute if the ban is acted upon.

While the report is not binding, EU lawmakers are now drawing up amendments to EU legislation which would be legally enforceable if approved by the European commission and council.

The proposals could also be included in a palm oil assessment that the commission is expected to publish later this year.

“Today’s vote is just the beginning,” said Kateřina Konečná, the report’s rapporteur. “The European parliament has showed that it will no longer be silent on this issue, and we have asked the commission to act.”

Industry associations representing some biofuels sectors welcomed the parliamentary vote, with some calling for MEPs to go further.

Emmanuel Desplechin, the secretary-general of the European renewable ethanol association, said: “We call on the European parliament to translate its position into binding requirements and limit the contribution of transport fuels from palm oil and its derivatives to the share of renewables in transport in the renewable energy directive until peatland drainage is halted.”

At issue is the role played by the EU’s target of sourcing 10% of transport fuels from renewables by 2020 in driving deforestation. The mandate’s introduction coincided with a five-fold increase in the use of palm oil for biodiesel, according to trade data.

Studies have found (pdf) that overseas demand for palm oil, soy, beef, wood and other agricultural products are key drivers of illegal forest clearances in Indonesia, Malaysia and other countries.

“The European commission must not lose more time in putting forward an EU action plan to make Europe a deforestation-free economy and turn the tide on global forest destruction,” said Greenpeace spokesperson Sebastien Risso.

Tropical forests now account for just 7% of the world’s vegetation but are under threat from a predicted doubling in palm oil demand by mid-century.

Palm plantations are already estimated to cover up to 27m hectares of land globally, a landmass the size of New Zealand, and even this may be an underestimate.

Analysis by the Zoological society of London last month found that nearly a million hectares of undisclosed land owned by the world’s major palm oil companies had gone missing from the inventories.

But trade associations aligned with vegetable oil-based crop holdings say that robust action could threaten the livelihoods of smallholders – 40% of palm oil producers – just as palm oil-producing-countries have begun taking steps to limit the damage done by unsustainable practices.

“Instead of cutting back, the EU should instead go further in its support,” said Anita Neville, a sustainability VP at Golden Agri-Resources, Indonesia’s largest grower of oil palm. “The EU can achieve much more by acting as a powerful incentive for sustainable development than by limiting ties.”

“A ban is not constructive,” agreed Jelmen Haaze, the co-chair of the European sustainable palm oil advocacy group. “It is an illusion to think we can take one commodity out of the economy and solve all our problems.”

Speaking at the Strasbourg plenary yesterday, Karmenu Vella, the EU’s environment commissioner, welcomed the study and pledged to report on the feasibility of new action to halt deforestation by mid-year.

“We also have to look, for example, at our own consumption of agricultural commodities that are often associated with deforestation, such as soy and palm oil, here in the EU,” he said.

Europe’s lobby of biofuels producers is one of the most powerful in Brussels, spending €14m a year and employing 400 lobbyists in total – more than the commission’s entire energy directorate, according to Oxfam.

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Best of our wild blogs: 14 Apr 17

Registration for Organisers opens for the 26th International Coastal Cleanup Singapore!
News from the International Coastal Cleanup Singapore

Wed 19 April 2017: 6:30 pm @ NLB – Peter Borschberg on “What could we learn from the 1603 sea battle off Changi?”
Otterman speaks

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Malaysia: Fresh logging at Ulu Muda water catchment area

SHARANPAL SINGH RANDHAWA, RUBEN SARIO, andGAN PEI LING
The Star 14 Apr 17;

SUNGAI PETANI: Almost a year after rampant logging near the Ulu Muda reserve that affected the water catchment area and dam there was exposed, a new trail for timber lorries has been found.

The new trail at the catchment area in the forest reserve near Sik, is believed to have been used by loggers since early this year.

The 5m wide trail is more than 15km long and it runs uphill along the Ulu Muda lake.

A check by The Star on Wednesday revealed hundreds of logs stacked at the base site. There was also heavy machinery parked there.

A signboard at the base site showed that a permit has been issued by the Kedah Tengah District forestry officer in Sungai Petani to a licence holder to carry out logging at secondary roads 112, 113, 114, 115, 116, 118 and 177.

The name of the contractor is also stated in the board. The permit is valid until May 1. It came into effect on Nov 2 last year.

There is another signboard which states that the licence holder is Perbadanan Menteri Besar Kedah. The area is listed as 200ha with the permit valid from July 3 to Oct 4, last year.

The Ulu Muda forest reserve stretches from the Malaysian border with Thailand at Yala to Baling in the north of Perak and is about twice the size of Singapore. It is said to be a paradise for nature and wildlife lovers.

Although logging there seems to be legal, the question really is: Why is logging allowed at the crucial water catchment area?

Universiti Sains Malaysia water resources, hydrology and flood hazard management and climatology expert Prof Dr Chan Ngai Weng said the Kedah government should gazette the place as a water catchment area.

“Once that is done, there can be no logging there. We are very concerned about the impact of logging at the catchment area.

“Rain water does not go into the ground. The water runs off into the river and then, into the sea.”

“Logging will expose the land. Rain splash erosion and surface erosion will wash sediments into the rivers, causing water pollution and the shallowing of river beds.

“Consequently, rivers’ drainage capacities will be significantly reduced," Chan said, adding that the quality of the water supplied to the people in surrounding areas would also be affected.

He called on the state and Federal governments to take measures at the Ulu Muda reserve forests so that soil erosion, soil sediments and silt are stopped from getting into the water and river systems.

Meanwhile, Malaysia Nature Society Penang branch adviser D. Kanda Kumar said Kedah had been logging the forest for a long time.

He said water from the Sungai Muda river was used for agriculture and as supply for Kedah and Penang. “Water from the Muda Dam is pumped to the Pedu Dam and it is primarily used for the Muda irrigation scheme of about 97,000ha of padi.

“Intense logging there will determine how much top soil on the hills is washed into the river,” he said.

Last May, a check by The Star showed that at least five logging depots, with thousands of high-quality logs such as Meranti, Cengal and Merbau, were waiting to be transported out to their processing destinations.

The logging depots were about the size of 30 football fields and it is believed that there were more such depots deeper inside the forest.


Days of crystal clear water over for villagers
The Star 14 Apr 17;

SUNGAI PETANI: Crystal clear and chlorine-free spring water used to gush out of the taps in many homes of hinterland villages of Kedah. Not any more.

The villagers, who used to enjoy this simply by piping hilltop springs and streams directly to their homes, now get water that is stained yellow.

They believe deforestation upstream is what spoiled their once prized water. They have voiced their grievances to the village heads but nothing has been done.

Haniza Ya, 45, a housewife from Kampung Bukit Berangan, said the water gets especially “dirty” after a downpour.

“This has been the scenario since 2013. We do not get water from the Syarikat Air Darul Aman Sdn Bhd (Sada), so our main source is the hill’s springs and we channel the water into a small reservoir,” she said.

“During the rainy season, we even get sand with the water. So, we store water for drinking and cooking when it is not raining and boil it properly,” said the mother of four.

Others said the affected villages were Kampung Belantik, Kampung Surau, Kampung Charok Keladi, Kampung Kota Aur, Kampung Bukit Berangan, Kampung Bukit Batu, Kampung Kuala Betong, Kampung Kubang, Kampung Lentang and Kampung Pinang. There is an estimated 8,000 villagers there.

A fisherman, who only wanted to be known as Pak Abu from Kampung Belantik, was certain that intense logging deep in the hills polluted their rivers.

“It has also reduced the number of fish in the river. I travel upstream and feel angry when I see murky waters deep in the forest,” he said.

Another villager wanting to be known only as Ahmad said the once clean Sungai Sok was now dirty.

“So much dirtier now but what can we do? These companies have the licence to log here,” he complained.

The 2014 Auditor-Generals report said the state approved 6,252ha of forest for logging and 4,612ha in 2013.

Kedah received RM30.1mil in forestry premiums in 2014 and RM10.8mil in 2013.

Previous Auditor-General’s reports showed that in 2012, the state government approved 8,542ha for logging and received RM32.93mil in premiums, while 12,909ha were approved in 2011 with a premium of RM74.92mil.

In 2010, 7,856.11ha yielded RM48.54mil while in 2009, 6093.68ha were approved for RM33.05mil.


Stop issuing new logging licences, says exco man
The Star 14 Apr 17;

ALOR SETAR: The state government should stop issuing new logging licences immediately, says Kedah Environment Committee chairman Datuk Dr Leong Yong Kong.

Dr Leong said enough clearing had been done and any more of such activities would harm the environment.

“My duty is to protect the environment. Enough of what has been cleared. We have huge backlog of approved licences and we can’t go on approving more.

“The state will have to pay a hefty price in the future for this,” he said yesterday.

Dr Leong added that it was a reality that the state was facing water scarcity and logging activities near the water catchment areas should be stopped.

He added that if there was a real need, the whole Ulu Muda forest reserve would be gazetted as a water catchment area to ensure that there would be no more encroachment.

“Water resources will be destroyed. Dirty water becomes the norm, be it for domestic use or irrigation. We must put a stop to it,” he said, adding that a meeting would be held soon with the respective agencies, including the Kedah Forestry Department.

Meanwhile, Muda Agricultural Development Authority (Mada) general manager Datuk Fouzi Ali said that areas near the important Muda and Pedu dams should not be touched with no logging activity carried out there.

“It is important for water catchment areas to be protected. As for irrigation, the water capacity in Pedu dam is insufficient.

“This situation worsens during a drought. We normally rely on the dam’s water for the first season of padi cultivation and for the second season, we rely on rainfall.

“However, early this year the dam’s water was insufficient and we almost resorted to dry seeding. But we were lucky enough to get enough rain,” he added.

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Malaysia: Study reveals Kinabalu Park fast losing its buffer zone

The Star 14 Apr 17;

PETALING JAYA: Kinabalu Park, one of Malaysia’s two World Heritage Sites, has lost large proportions of forests in its buffer zones.

It has been named as one of the worst affected Natural World Heritage Sites, seeing 15,000ha of its forests (about the size of 30,000 football fields) cleared between 2000 and 2012.

This was stated in an international study led by University of Queensland.

“Some notable Natural World Heritage Sites which lost large proportions of forest in their buffer zones are the Australian Fossil Mammal Sites, the Discovery Coast Atlantic Forests in Brazil and Kinabalu Park in Malaysia,” the study published in the Biological Conservation journal in February noted.

The 75,370ha Kinabalu Park is one of two Unesco Natural World Heritage Sites in Malaysia. The other is Gunung Mulu National Park in Sarawak.

The study revealed that the 203 Natural World Heritage Sites were some of Earth’s most valuable natural assets but many were deteriorating due to urbanisation, agriculture and logging.

“Our findings clearly show that Natural World Heritage Sites are becoming increasingly isolated, which is a concern since their ecological integrity depend on links with the broader landscape,” the study said.

It added that past studies found that environmental degradation around a protected area could lead to similar degradation within its borders.

The Kinabalu Park, which was designated as a Unesco Natural World Heritage Site in 2000, is an epicentre of biodiversity.

Unesco said it was home to at least half of all Borneo’s plant species, birds, mammals, amphibian species and two-thirds of Borneo reptiles unique to the island.

Among the rare species that can only be found in the Kinabalu Park are the Rothschild Slipper orchid and the Rajah Brooke’s Pitcher plant.

Known as the gold of Kinabalu, the Rothschild Slipper orchid takes 15 years to grow. It is one of the world’s most expensive orchids in the black market.

The Rajah Brooke’s Pitcher plant is the world’s largest pitcher plant that can grow up to 41cm.

Sabah Parks director Dr Jamili Nais maintained that the Kinabalu Park and its biodiversity remained intact despite fears over a substantial reduction of its buffer areas.

There was no land clearing or forest damage within the park, which is about three times the size of Penang island, he said.

“The integrity of the park is constantly safeguarded,” he said.

Jamili said there was no designated buffer zone around the world renowned park.

“What happens outside of the park boundaries is beyond the scope of the World Heritage Site.

“Having said that, we should bear in mind that the land surrounding the park is occupied by the native Kadazandusun who have been cultivating crops there for generations,” he said.

Jamili said these people initially practised shifting cultivation but had since switched to permanent farming methods.

Sabah Parks, Jamili said, had initiated a community-based forest conservation known as tagal hutan with villages around the park.

He said Sabah Park was also working towards getting the area to be declared as a Geopark, another Unesco initiative.

Geoparks are single, unified geographical areas where sites and landscapes of international geological significance are managed with a holistic concept of protection, education and sustainable development.

Sabah naturalist Datuk C.L. Chan said a reduction in the buffer area surrounding the Kinabalu Park had not affected the biodiversity within the World Heritage Site.

However, he said Unesco’s concern over the reduction of buffer areas around the park should not be taken lightly.

He said Kinabalu Park could end up as an island within a sea of agriculture and human settlements if the forested areas outside the boundaries continued to be cleared.

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Malaysia: Fish bombers chased out of Tunku Abdul Rahman Marine Park

The Star 13 Apr 17;

KOTA KINABALU: Marine police seized some 200kg of fish that were believed to have been caught using explosives in waters within the Tunku Abdul Rahman Marine Park.

Kota Kinabalu maritime director First Admiral Adam Aziz said the fish were seized from two pump boats that were abandoned by their skippers following a chase near Pulau Gaya at about 12.40am yesterday.

“Our men were doing the usual patrols when they saw the pump boats,” he said

“When they headed towards the boats, the skippers sped off and jumped into the sea before escaping into some mangrove areas and disappeared,” he said in a statement.

A check on the two pump boats led to the discovery of the various types of fish and items believed to be used for fish bombing.

Fish bombing, First Admiral Adam said, would not only endanger the lives of the fishermen and those nearby but also destroy the environment and marine ecosystem.

He warned fishermen not to resort to such tactics in their bid for an easy catch.

The Tunku Abdul Rahman Marine Park was gazetted in 1974 to protect its unique flora, fauna and marine eco-system. It covers an area of about 50sq km.

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Arabian Gulf: Dugong habitats shrink by a quarter

Daniel Bardsley The Nation 13 Apr 17;

Scientists warn that their numbers could fall further unless Gulf countries adopt a coordinated plan to safeguard dugongs and their feeding grounds after research shows only the UAE has legal protection plan in place.

Researchers have called for stronger international efforts to protect the Arabian Gulf’s dugongs after their work revealed that the areas where the creatures are found has shrunk by a quarter.

The scientists have highlighted that the UAE is the only Gulf nation to properly protect the seagrass-eating mammals, numbers of which they warned could fall further.

"It is crucial for countries in the Gulf to work together to implement a comprehensive transboundary plan," said Dalal Al Abdulrazzak, the study’s lead author.

Such a plan would include habitat protection, population monitoring and efforts to reduce inadvertent catching by fishing vessels, known as bycatch.

"At present there are no regional management plan to conserve dugong populations in the Gulf. Only the UAE has protection measures in place," said MsAl Abdulrazzak.

In the journal Zoology in the Middle East, Ms Al Abdulrazzak and Prof Daniel Pauly, both based at Vancouver’s University of British Columbia, said that their analysis of records of dugong distribution showed that dugongs were once found more widely in the Gulf than thought.

The scientists, who looked at papers dating back to the 1800s, found that dugongs once inhabited the seas off Kuwait and Iran. Dugongs recorded off Iran now are considered "vagrant".

By reconstructing past distributions, the researchers have calculated that the dugong range in the Gulf has shrunk by about 26 per cent, falling from a high of 41,236 square kilometres to 30,606 square kilometres.

This indicates that the Gulf population has shrunk more than thought.

Although the Gulf dugong population is the world’s second largest, estimated at about 7,300 individuals, the researchers said the density is much lower than for dugongs in some other areas.

The study highlights threats from dredging, trawling and land reclamation, all of which damage seagrass habitats, and bycatch and oil spills.

"As we gain a better understanding of the historical trajectories for dugongs in the Gulf, the need for improved management becomes clearer," said the authors.

The researchers stated that "dugongs in the Gulf are only offered protection in the waters of the United Arab Emirates", this coming from a federal law and an Emiri decree.

Lance Morgan, president and chief executive of the US-based Marine Conservation Institute, agreed that Gulf countries should work together to protect the mammal.

"For dugong populations to recover, it is crucially important that governments cooperate on regional plans for their conservation and management and to protect seagrass beds," he said.

A memorandum of understanding on the conservation and management of dugongs and their habitats was launched in Abu Dhabi in 2007 and is managed by the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS) office in Abu Dhabi.

Among states bordering the Gulf, only the UAE and Saudi Arabia are signatories.

"It is very likely that the Gulf states share the same population of dugongs, so it is critical that all the Gulf range states (Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE) cooperate to protect dugongs and their seagrass meadows. The CMS dugong memorandum can help this cooperation," said Donna Kwan, CMS programme officer for dugongs.

She said one of the biggest challenges was not to enforce legal protection of dugongs but to identify why they are still at risk and find ways to reduce threats.

"We would absolutely encourage Gulf states to join the memorandum and commit to cooperate closely to protect dugongs and provide the necessary resources to make that work a success," said Matthew Collis, acting director for international environmental agreements at the International Fund for Animal Welfare.

For the dugong study, the researchers found 155 records, many in libraries overseas, although records also came from the UAE, including data collected by the Environment Agency - Abu Dhabi.

The International Union for the Conservation of Nature classes dugongs as "vulnerable" and estimates that, over the past 60 years, their numbers have fallen globally by 30 per cent.

Last month, 23 of the 40 countries with dugongs met in Abu Dhabi to discuss ways to protect them. Abu Dhabi also hosts the headquarters are for the Dugong and Seagrass Conservation project, an international effort to preserve dugongs and their habitats linked to the Mohammed bin Zayed Species Conservation Fund.

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Best of our wild blogs: 13 Apr 17

Singapore Bird Report-March 2017
Singapore Bird Group

Pesta Ubin 2017 Workshop
Pesta Ubin 2017

Friend's day out at St John's Island, Lazarus and Seringat-Kias
Offshore Singapore

Installation Art at Sungei Buloh
Art in Wetlands

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Singapore still most liveable city for Asian expats, but air quality waning: Survey

Today Online 13 Apr 17;

SINGAPORE — The gong of most-liveable city for Asian expats remains Singapore’s, for the 18th year, but the Republic’s lead has been narrowing because of worsening air pollution, an annual survey by consulting firm ECA International shows.

Singapore placed ahead of Australian cities Adelaide, Brisbane and Sydney in joint-second, with Osaka rounding up the top five, in the poll of over 470 locations worldwide to help companies set appropriate allowances for employees assigned abroad.

Hong Kong, which is traditionally seen as a rival to Singapore as a financial hub, slipped a spot in straight years to 29th globally.

The factors that saw Singapore edge out regional rivals were low crime rates, decent medical facilities and excellent infrastructure, said Mr Lee Quane, ECA’s regional director for Asia.

But there has been a “gradual decline” in Singapore’s overall quality of living in the past five years “due to the deteriorating air pollution situation here”, he added.

Between September and November 2015, Singapore experienced its worst haze episode, with the Pollutant Standards Index hitting hazardous levels.

Mr Quane noted that, while air pollution in Hong Kong has eased, there has been “worsening socio-political factors and curtailments to political freedom” in the territory over the past 12 months, leading to a widening gap between Hong Kong and Singapore in its rankings.

Meanwhile, along with Beijing, New Delhi has the worst score for air quality globally.

For Kuala Lumpur and Johor Baru, ECA attributed their lower rankings — they dropped two places to 27th and five places to 118th, respectively — to “an increased threat from terrorism in Malaysia”.

Mr Quane added: “While the Sabah region ... is considered particularly dangerous for foreigners, risks have also increased in Kuala Lumpur in recent years.

“The impact of the seasonal forest fires in neighbouring Indonesia has also increased in recent years.”

The Location Ratings system that ECA uses to calculate a city’s overall quality of living takes into account factors such as climate, availability of health services, housing and utilities; access to a social network and leisure facilities; infrastructure; personal safety; political tensions; as well as air quality.

Australian cities had a strong presence in ECA’s rankings. Apart from those three that were placed joint-second, Perth and Canberra took seventh and ninth spots in the global rankings.

Nagoya is the only other Japanese city in the global top 10, as Tokyo and Yokohama narrowly miss out at joint-11th position.

On the other end of the spectrum, Afghan cities Kandahar and Lashkar Gah are the hardest locations to adapt to living and working in, according to ECA.

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