Malaysia: Penang dams take a critical dip

r. sekaran and n. trisha The Star 23 Mar 19;

GEORGE TOWN: With the current dry spell, the dams in the state have dipped to critical levels.

The Ayer Itam Dam capacity has fallen to 49.1% compared to 60.4% on March 8, while at the Teluk Bahang Dam, it has dipped to 70.7% from 75.6% during the same period.

Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow is expected to visit the Ayer Itam Dam tomorrow to attend a briefing on the water levels.

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Why kill these gentle giants of the oceans, nature lovers question 150kg stingray catch

stephen then The Star 22 Mar 19;

MIRI: Giant stingrays are being blatantly caught offshore northern Sarawak by local fishermen, and nature lovers are questioning whether there is a need to catch and kill these gentle giants of the ocean.

On Friday (March 22) morning, a local fishermen in Sibuti district, 60km south of Miri, publicly boasted about catching a stingray weighing 150kg in the South China Sea off the coast here.

He posted pictures of himself hauling up a huge stingray, measuring the height of an adult man.

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Malaysia: Most landfills in Johor at full capacity

venesa devi The Star 23 Mar 19;

JOHOR BARU: Most landfills in Johor are severely overloaded and could be shut down at any time, says Tan Hong Pin.

The Local Government, Science and Technology Committee chairman said currently, there were 16 sanitary landfills throughout the state.

“Some of them have reached their limit while several others are almost full.

“We are having a challenging time figuring out ways to resolve the issue, especially at areas in northern Johor as plans for the opening of a landfill in Bukit Payong, Parit Sulung, has been postponed,” he said when met after the SuteraFOLO Farm open day yesterday.

“We are in the process of identifying suitable areas for rubbish disposal and sanitary landfills, as well as other methods to safely dispose waste materials.

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Indonesia: S. Sumatra to likely face longer drought

Ujang Idrus, Rahmad Nasution Antara 22 Mar 19;

Palembang (ANTARA) - The South Sumatra Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD) has forecast that this year's drought may last longer than that of 2018, so necessary preventive measures should be taken against the threats of bush and forest fires.

No rain was received during the peak of this year's dry season. Hence, to halt bush and forest fires, preventive measures are necessary since South Sumatra has peatland areas, the agency's head, Iriansyah, stated in Palembang on Friday.

It was not easy to extinguish the wild fires in peatland areas, he stated, adding that the BPBD officials had mapped South Sumatra Province's fire-prone districts of Ogan Komering Ilir, Ogan Ilir, Banyuasin, Musi Banyuasin, and Muaraenim.

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Project promises to turn palm oil plantations back into rainforest in Borneo

Brooks Hays UPI 22 Mar 19;

An aerial photos shows the first 38 acres of palm oil plantation that will be turned back into rainforest on the island of Borneo. Photo by Robert Risch

March 22 (UPI) -- Across the island of Borneo, conservationists are preparing to rewild palm oil plantations. The project will see agricultural acreage turned back into near-natural rainforest.

The list of species threatened by deforestation as a result of palm oil production in Malaysia and Indonesia includes the orangutan, Sumatran elephant, Bornean pygmy elephant, Sumatran rhino and Sumatran tiger.

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Plastic pollution: can the ocean really be cleaned up?

While the ultimate goal is to stop plastics from entering the water in the first place, cleanup projects play an important role
Joanna Khan The Guardian 21 Mar 19;

Somewhere in Hilo, on Hawaii’s Big Island, a team of scientists and engineers are tending to The Ocean Cleanup’s 600-metre-long rubbish-herding device, after its maiden voyage to the Great Pacific garbage patch was cut short in December 2018, because it fractured into two pieces.

The project has had its fair share of problems since it was unveiled in May 2017 and has been criticised by marine scientists and environmental groups for its potential negative environmental impact. However, some still herald The Ocean Cleanup for having a positive effect on plastic pollution.

Pete Ceglinski, the Australian co-founder and chief executive of the Seabin Project – plastic-cleaning devices deployed in harbours and marinas – is one. He credits Boyan Slat, the inventor behind The Ocean Cleanup, with increasing the global awareness of the ocean plastics issue over the past six years.

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Best of our wild blogs: 22 Mar 19

31 Mar (Sun): Dive clean up at Lazarus Island with Our Singapore Reefs
Celebrating Singapore Shores!

Dead sea turtle at Pulau Semakau (South)
wild shores of singapore

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2019 poised to be really hot year

Singapore has shifted to a new higher temperature, and it will continue to rise, says Dr Muhammad Eeqmal Looming possibility of El Nino could send mercury soaring to new heights, say experts
Chang Ai-Lien Straits Times 22 Mar 19;

Brace yourself for a sizzling 2019.

With the temperature-boosting El Nino weather phenomenon a looming possibility, this year could see temperatures soaring to new heights, say Singapore's climate experts. "We're noting a rising temperature trend in the Pacific, especially under the ocean, so we're poised for El Nino," Dr Muhammad Eeqmal Hassim, senior research scientist at the Centre for Climate Research Singapore, told The Straits Times.

"The signs are there. We just need a kick start, such as a westerly wind burst, for it to happen."

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These young engineers want to make recycling a breeze in Singapore

It’s not always easy to find a recycling or e-waste bin, prompting four GovTech employees to come up with a prototype tool to map all such bins in Singapore.
Kevin Kwang Channel NewsAsia 21 Mar 19;

SINGAPORE: “When I have something I want to recycle, what can I do?”

That was one of the main problem statements a group of four young engineers at the Government Technology Agency’s (GovTech) Data Science and Artificial Intelligence department were hoping to tackle when they developed their prototype tool - named Trashy – not too long ago.

Ms Laura Lee, an associate computational scientist, shared how her experience living in London provided the impetus for creating the prototype.

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Malaysia: 70 hotspots detected in Pahang since early March

Shahrinnahar Latib New Straits Times 21 Mar 19;

KUANTAN: A total of 70 hotspots have been detected in Pahang since early March, a massive increase compared to only 26 hotspots recorded the month before.

Pahang Department of Environment (DoE) director Rosli Zul said this is due to a combination of factors, namely the hot weather as well as uncontrolled open burning activities by irresponsible parties.

“Pekan has the most number of hotspots at 34, followed by Rompin at 21, Jerantut (5), Temerloh, Kuantan, Lipis and Temerloh at two each, as well as Bera and Bentong with one hotspot each,” he said, adding that this month saw a sharp increase in the number of hotspots, due to open burning in plantations and peat land.

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Malaysia: Pasir Gudang toxic spill clean-up to cost over RM10mil

mei mei chu, lo tern chern, and rena lim The Star 22 Mar 19;

KUALA LUMPUR: The operation to clean Sungai Kim Kim will cost the authorities more than RM10mil, says Yeo Bee Yin.

The Energy, Technology, Science, Climate Change and Environment Minister said the cost of removing the toxic pollution in the 1.5km stretch of the river cost RM6.4mil.

"It is RM6.4mil for the clean-up alone. This does not include the movement of the officials and all that," she said at a press conference at the inaugural Malaysian Industrial Development Berhad (MIDF) Green Conference yesterday.

It was previously reported that the clean-up operation for Sungai Kim Kim included 900 tonnes of soil and 1,500 tonnes of polluted water.

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Indonesians need to be aware of importance of protecting forests

Rahmad Nasution Antara 21 Mar 19;

Bogor, (ANTARA) - Indonesian Minister of Environment and Forestry Siti Nurbaya emphasized the importance of raising people's awareness over protecting forests in her statement to mark this year's International Day of Forests on Thursday.

"Forests are one of our important life support systems, so it is important for us to manage forests sustainably. Sustainable forest management can only be achieved through the better understanding of forests," she was quoted as saying by the FAO's press statement.

Education and training are necessary to raise awareness among forest users and the general public of forests and forestry, she said, adding that through education and training, qualified human resources to manage forests and the environment were created.

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