Best of our wild blogs: 29 Sep 12

Call of the Pin-striped Tit-babbler
from Bird Ecology Study Group

New articles on Nature in Singapore website
from Raffles Museum News

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Extend Singapore laws to haze culprits

Geh Min and Ivan Png for Straits Times 29 Sep 12;

INCE the mid-1990s, the haze seems to have become an annual but unhappy ritual for Singaporeans. Planters in Sumatra set fires to clear their land. South-west and south winds blow the noxious particles towards Singapore.

Singapore ministers intercede with the government of Indonesia. Meanwhile, the National Environment Agency (NEA) carefully monitors wind directions and posts hourly updates of the Pollutant Standards Index.

Earlier this week, Asean environment ministers met in Bangkok. As they have many times before, they discussed the issue of haze.

The Asean Specialised Meteorological Centre reported that this year, the number of hot spots in Sumatra has reached a new high, exceeding the levels in 2006.

As usual, the ministers turned attention to the Asean Agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution. Since Asean members signed the agreement in 2002, all except Indonesia have ratified it.

In principle, a multinational agreement should resolve the haze problem. For instance, in 1991, Canada and the United States signed a bilateral Air Quality Agreement, committing to reduce emissions of sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxides. The two chemicals cause acid rain. Between 1990 and 2008, Canada had reduced sulphur dioxide emissions by 63 per cent. Over the same period, the United States reduced its emissions by 56 per cent.

So, the Asean environment ministers urged Indonesia to complete the ratification of the agreement. But, even if Indonesia did ratify the agreement, we might still have to hold our breath.

Open burning is already illegal under Indonesian law but, as Mr Sudarsono, of the Bogor Institute of Agriculture, remarked: "(We) don't hear anything about regulations being enforced... So as long as they're never enforced, people will keep on burning the forests."

Singapore should not just wait for a change in wind direction or for the Indonesian government to rise to the occasion. There are two ways in which we could move forward.

One is to hold the perpetrators of the haze accountable. If a factory in Jurong emitted smoke or chemicals, it would violate Singapore's Environmental Pollution Control Act. And the NEA would vigorously prosecute the offender and stop the emissions.

Why should our law be any different for an Indonesian plantation? Whether the emissions come from Jurong or Jambi, the harm to our health, especially to that of children and older people, is the same. The harm to our economy - as tourists switch to other destinations and businesses choose other locations - is the same.
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Singapore's laws should apply to all polluters, wherever they may be located. In the early years of the haze, the open burning was blamed on small farmers, who ostensibly lacked the resources to clear their land in a less harmful way.

Now, Asean ministers have squarely placed the blame on big business. Unlike smallholders, corporate wrongdoers should be relatively easier to identify and, with their business and financial connections to Singapore, easier to prosecute.

If necessary, the Environmental Pollution Control Act should be amended accordingly. Lest some worry that Singapore is extending the reach of its national laws, it is worth recalling an obvious precedent. In 2007, Parliament amended the Penal Code to make sex with young people in other countries a criminal offence in Singapore.

The other way forward is to engage with Indonesian people on the ground. A good example is the Harapan Rainforest Initiative. An international consortium of non-governmental organisations including BirdLife International, Burung Indonesia, and the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds has secured a 100-year licence to conserve and protect 100,000ha of lowland forest in the provinces of Jambi and South Sumatra.

Singapore Airlines is a financial sponsor of the Harapan Rainforest Initiative. The initiative directly protects the forest and the wildlife from cutting and burning. In addition, it provides local people with employment, and hence a stake in conservation.

More Singapore businesses should engage in efforts to provide meaningful economic opportunities to the people of rural Sumatra.

They and their families would be much better off (financially and physically) working on environmentally sustainable activities than clearing forests through open burning. The result could be a win-win for both Indonesia and Singapore.

Geh Min is a consultant ophthalmologist and past president of the Nature Society. Ivan Png is Lim Kim San Professor at the NUS Business School and professor of economics and information systems, National University of Singapore.

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Singapore population up at 5.31 million, 82% residents live in HDB flats

Channel NewsAsia 28 Sep 12;

SINGAPORE: Singapore's population has increased, due to growth of both the resident and non-resident populations.

The Department of Statistics (DOS), in its Population Trends 2012 report released on Friday, said the country's total population stood at 5.31 million as at end June 2012, up 2.5 per cent from a year ago.

It said there were 3.29 million Singapore citizens and 0.53 million permanent residents, and the rest were non-residents.

The number of Singapore citizens grew by 0.9 per cent, comparable to the growths in the last couple of years, while the number of permanent residents increased marginally by 0.2 per cent.

Growth in the number of non-residents was at 7.2 per cent, slightly higher than last year's 6.9 per cent. But DOS said it was significantly lower than the double digit percentage increases of 14.9 per cent seen in 2007 and 19.0 per cent in 2008.

An estimated 3.14 million Singapore residents were living in HDB flats this year, accounting for 82 per cent of Singapore residents, said the report.

It said there were 10 planning areas where at least 90 per cent of Singapore residents were staying in HDB flats. The proportion of HDB dwellers was the highest in Punggol, followed by Woodlands.

There were five planning areas with more than 200,000 Singapore residents, with Bedok, Jurong West and Tampines each having over 250,000 residents. Bedok had the highest number of residents at 295,200. The other two planning areas with more than 200,000 Singapore residents in 2012 were Woodlands (247,800) and Hougang (217,400).

The proportion of elderly aged 65 years and over was generally higher among Singapore residents staying in older estates. In 2012, the proportion of elderly was the highest in Outram, Downtown Core, Rochor, Queenstown, Bukit Merah, Toa Payoh and Kallang.

In contrast, the proportion of children aged below 5 years was generally higher among Singapore residents staying in relatively newer estates.

In 2011, HDB 4-room flats remained as the most common type of dwelling among resident households, at 32 per cent.

The next common type was HDB 5-room & executive flats (25 per cent), followed by HDB 3-room (20 per cent).

Those staying in condominiums and private flats formed another 11 per cent.

Reflecting the ageing population, the report said the median age of the resident population went up further to 38.4 years in 2012, compared to 38.0 in 2011 and 37.4 in 2010.

The proportion of Singapore residents aged 65 years and above rose to 9.9 per cent from 9.3 per cent last year.

This resulted in the ratio of residents aged 20-64 years to elderly residents aged 65 years and above trending downwards. The report said there were 6.7 residents aged 20-64 years to each elderly resident, compared to 7.2 last year.

Female residents outnumbered their male counterparts in Singapore. The sex ratio was 970 males per 1,000 females, down from 972 in 2011.

Turning to marriages, the report said a total of 27,258 marriages were registered in 2011, which was 12 per cent higher than the 24,363 registered in 2010. This was a rebound after a dip in 2010.

In 2011, 75 per cent or 20,315 marriages were first marriages where neither party had previously been married.

As for the fertility rate in Singapore, DOS said total live-births rebounded and increased by 4.4 per cent to 39,654 last year, from 37,967 in 2010.

Singapore's resident total fertility rate rose slightly from 1.15 in 2010 to 1.2 in 2011.

The department also noted the increase in the proportion with no children among married women in their thirties.

The proportion who was childless grew from 15 per cent in 2001 to 21 per cent last year among married resident women aged 30-39 years.

As for educational profiles, the population report said the educational levels of the resident population continued to improve over the years.

The share of university graduates also increased significantly from 14 per cent in 2001 to 25 per cent in 2011.

The population report was the eighth edition of an annual series that puts together different aspects of demographic statistics in one volume.

It comprises five sections, namely, "Population", "Households and Housing", "Family Formation and Dissolution", "Fertility" and "Mortality".

The report can be accessed online at the DOS website.

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Indonesia's Aceh revokes palm permit after legal challenge

Reuters 28 Sep 12;

(Reuters) - Indonesia's Aceh province has revoked a controversial permit issued to a palm oil firm accused of breaching a ban on forest clearing, a spokesman said on Friday, in a rare climbdown following a legal challenge by environmental groups.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has set a goal of cutting greenhouse gas emissions by saving Indonesia's dwindling tropical rainforests, the world's third-largest, a pledge that won the promise of $1 billion from Norway should he succeed.

But the effort is being hampered by soaring global demand for palm oil, used in everything from biscuits to biofuel. Indonesia is the world's top producer of the edible oil, whose exports earn the country $20 billion a year.

Last year, the governor of Aceh breached a two-year ban on issuing permits to log and convert forests by giving permission for PT Kallista Alam develop 1,605 hectares (4,000 acres) of swamp, which includes protected peatlands.

The Aceh governor's move prompted legal action from environmental groups and probes by the police and government bodies, which led to the permit being revoked this week.

A spokesman for the Aceh province said the permit had been revoked on Thursday, and notification sent to Kallista Alam.

"It is important that there is rule of law in business and investing in Aceh, which provides benefits to the community," Muhammad Zulfikar, director of the Aceh chapter of the Indonesian Forum for the Environment (WALHI), said in a statement.

Officials of PT Kallista Alam could not immediately be reached for comment.

Former Aceh governor Irwandi Yusuf issued the permit to open 1,605 hectares of land for palm oil in the Tripa peatland area in August last year.

In the last few years, Indonesia has seen rapid growth in production of palm oil, with output this year expected to be between 23 million and 25 million metric tons (27.6 million tons), with around 18 million metric tons exported.

(Reporting by Reza Munawir in Aceh; Writing by Michael Taylor; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)

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Large Seagrass Find Along Sarawak's Turtle Island Waters Due To Reef Balls

Bernama 28 Sep 12;

KUCHING, Sept 28 (Bernama) -- The recent discovery of large seagrass acreage along the coast of Pulau Talang-Talang Besar near here indicates the success of the Sarawak Forestry Corporation's (SFC) reef ball project to prevent trawlers from encroaching into the waters off the turtle island.

SFC managing director/chief executive officer Datuk Ali Yusop said it would also promote the growth of seagrass found at a depth of between 30 and 40 feet, which was the main diet of the green turtle (Chelonia mydas) and dugong, besides being a habitat for many marine animals.

"Sarawak has long been a model state in environmental protection, with laws and legislative framework established to complement the efforts of the federal government, where several national parks, namely Tanjung Datu, Talang Satang, Similajau and Miri Sibuti, were gazetted for the purpose of marine conservation," he said.

Ali, who is also Controller of Wildlife, said this today, following SFC's successful reef cleaning and reef ball monitoring exercise, in conjunction with the month-long Malaysia Day celebrations along the coast of the island.

Assisted by 27 volunteer divers from here, including students from Uninversiti Malaysia Sarawak (Unimas), it is aimed at inculcating awareness on the importance of reef and marine life, as well as to promote constructive partnership between SFC and the general public in the protection and conservation of marine creatures.

-- BERNAMA

Seagrass find 'a boon for turtles'
New Straits Times 30 Sep 12;

KUCHING: A "huge seagrass" patch has been discovered at a depth of between 9.1m to 12.2m off Pulau Talang Talang Besar near Sematan.

The patch was found during a reef cleaning and reef ball monitoring exercise carried out jointly by the Sarawak Forestry Corporation and Universiti Malaysia Sarawak students and volunteer divers two weeks ago.

The discovery is a significant find in the conservation of the endangered turtles as seagrass is an important diet of sea turtles.

The managing director and chief executive officer of the Sarawak Forestry Corporation Datuk Ali Yusop said the discovery was a good indication that the reef ball project, that was started in 1998, had successfully prevented trawlers from encroaching the waters off the island.

Talang Talang Besar is an important turtle nesting island in the state.

Ali said the reef cleaning and reef ball monitoring had promoted the growth of the seagrass, the main diet of Green Turtles (Chelonia mydas) and dugongs (dugong dugon).

The cleaning and monitoring of the reef balls, aimed at inculcating awareness on the importance of reef and marine life as well as to promote collaboration and constructive partnership between corporation and the public in the protection and conservation of marine creatures, was held in conjunction with Malaysia Day celebrations.

This is the third consecutive year this exercise was organised.

"Coral reefs conservation is vital for the wellbeing of marine life.

"In Malaysia, the Federal Government has taken the initiative in conserving coral reefs by gazetting the majority of them as marine parks."

He added that compared with past years, not much rubbish was collected during the exercise this year.

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Four Leopards a week enter India’s illegal wildlife trade

TRAFFIC 28 Sep 12;

At least 4 Leopards a week are entering the illegal wildlife trade in India © TRAFFIC New Delhi, India, 28th September 2012—At least four Leopards have been poached and their body parts entered into illegal wildlife trade every week for at least 10 years in India, according to TRAFFIC’s latest study “Illuminating the Blind Spot: A study on illegal trade in Leopard parts in India” launched today by Dr Divyabhanusinh Chavda, President, WWF-India.

The study documents a total of 420 seizures of Leopard skins, bones and other body parts reported from 209 localities in 21 out of 35 territories in India during 2001–2010.

Statistical analysis is used to estimate the additional levels of “undetected trade” and concludes that around 2294 Leopards were trafficked in India during the period—an average of four animals per week over the 10 year period.

Leopards Panthera pardus are fully protected under India’s domestic legislation, and commercial international trade is banned under CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora).

“TRAFFIC’s objective analysis has cast new light onto the sheer scale of the illicit trade in Leopard parts in India, which has hitherto been overshadowed by the trade in another of the country’s national icons, the Tiger,” said Dr Chavda at the launch of the report.

“Without an effective strategy to assess and tackle the threats posed by illegal trade, the danger is that Leopard numbers may decline rapidly as happened previously to the Tiger,” he further added.

Density map showing seizure "hotspots" Click to enlarge Uttarakhand emerged as a major source of Leopard parts in trade, while Delhi was found to be a major epicentre of the illegal trade, along with adjacent areas of Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh and Haryana.

Dr Rashid Raza, Coordinator with TRAFFIC in India and the lead author of the study said: “Even though reports of illegal trade in Leopard body parts are disturbingly frequent, the level of threat to Leopards in the country has previously been unrecognized, and has fallen into our collective ‘blind spot’.”

Close to 90% of reported Leopard part seizures in India comprised solely of skins, making them the dominant body part found in illegal trade during the 10 year period. Other body parts, particularly bones, are known to be prescribed as substitutes for Tiger parts in traditional Asian medicine.

It is believed most Leopard parts are smuggled out of India to other countries in Asia, often via the porous border with neighbouring Nepal. Earlier investigations indicated many of the Leopard parts found for sale in northern Myanmar, northern Laos and the ethnic Tibetan regions of China originated from India.

The report recommends the establishment of a Task Force to tackle illegal trade in the areas identified as having the highest levels of Leopard-related crime, as well as better regional co-operation between source, transit and market countries through initiatives such as the South Asia Wildlife Enforcement Network (SAWEN).

An official database along the lines of “Tigernet”, used for Tiger conservation in India, would also help monitor the illegal Leopard part trade. Studies are also needed to assess the levels of threat from human-Leopard conflict in the country, according to the report.

Ravi Singh, Secretary General & CEO, WWF-India said: “The Leopard is among the most charismatic large animals in the world, and plays an important ecological role in the forests it inhabits.”

“Any increase in external market demand could easily lead to a decimation of Leopard numbers in India, but I am hopeful this latest analysis will provide the impetus to catalyse effective conservation action; particularly increased effectiveness of law enforcement initiatives to curtail the illegal trade in Leopard body parts.”

TRAFFIC’s work on the Leopard trade in India is supported by WWF-India and WWF-UK.

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Best of our wild blogs: 28 Sep 12

Red guards
from The annotated budak

raptor mobbed @ balang padifields - Sept2012
from sgbeachbum

IUCN to kick-off Green List for 'fully conserved' species
from Mongabay.com news by Jeremy Hance

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Let the land be, please

Pang Kong Eng Today Online 20 Sep 12;

Mr M Lukshumayeh thought that the land next to Whampoa Community Club is "unsafe for recreation", has been "unused for almost 40 years" and suggested that "work" be done to "Put this land to safer, more effective use" (Aug 29, online).

In fact, that land has been serving important needs effectively over that period and had gone unnoticed, almost. One need only be observant to notice the facts lying beyond the veil of grass.

First, let us reconsider the assumption that good use of land equates to being built-up or set upon by human traffic.

A 2006 study in the Netherlands showed that green spaces in an urban environment have a positive effect on health, well-being and social safety. Scientific and medical research elsewhere have drawn similar conclusions.

Singapore is land-scarce and our people are stressed, precisely why we need green spaces like the plot in question. This is even more so in the heartlands. The land is providing essential health and social benefits which we enjoy without setting foot on it.

Second, the piece of land has been a precious educational resource. It is undisturbed, because of its unevenness and potholes, and blessed with rich biodiversity, such as egrets, herons and kingfishers in the mornings and evenings.

Children get to listen to crickets, frogs and birds singing in the rays of the setting sun, right in their neighbourhood. Such is the fabric from which imagination and mental resilience are weaved. Any work done to "make it safer" may unwittingly sterilise it.

Thirty years ago, there was a similar field in front of the current kindergarten at Block 85 of the same neighbourhood. Before work was done to that field, it had a healthy population of toads, frogs and other flora and fauna.

After reading about tadpoles and guppies, we would go to field to look at the real thing. Now, children may read or sing a rhyme about toads croaking, but we have denied them that authentic learning experience.

I once asked a class of 40 pupils if they knew from where a chicken comes. "The supermarket," came their reply, sadly. The only form of chicken they know, other than pictures and videos, is usually cooked, most likely from a fast-food restaurant.

Gardening, qigong, t'ai chi, taekwondo and silat have their values. Yet, the learning and inspiration from the presence of nature is immeasurable. That land is more than useful as it is.

Put this land to safer, more effective use
M Lukshumayeh Today Online 29 Aug 12;

The Singapore Land Authority has allowed the State land next to Whampoa Community Club to be used for recreation, a good gesture with a downside: The plot of land is unsafe for recreation, as it has potholes and is uneven.

The irony is that the land has been unused for almost 40 years.

Work could have been undertaken to make it safer, whether for recreation or sports use, so that this fairly sizeable State land could be put to more effective use in land-scarce Singapore, especially in the heartlands, for more people.

It is not too late for imaginative ideas that would put the land to greater use, including for interest groups such as in gardening, qigong, t'ai chi, taekwondo or silat, since the limited area within the Community Club is overused.

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Underground, the next frontier for Singapore

Soil studies for long-term plan are in progress, says BCA chief
Lim Yan Liang Straits Times 28 Sep 12;

SINGAPOREANS may one day live, work and play below ground in vast, subterranean caverns that make today's underground malls look like home basements.

This is because the Government is keen to look at how to expand Singapore's limited space in unexplored ways, said Building and Construction Authority CEO John Keung in an interview with The Straits Times.

"Of course you can build up, but there is a limit, because we have airports. You can reclaim, but there is also a limit, as you need to keep fairways and anchorages for your port," said Dr Keung.

"The only thing left is to go underground."

Studying the feasibility of expanding Singapore's space by digging down started in 2010, when BCA set up the Singapore Geological Office to carry out soil studies.

Plans are also in the works to collaborate with local universities and the Earth Observatory of Singapore to study rock fractures and the composition of local soil.

"Of course, this is a longer-term thing: we are looking at 2050, 2100," said Dr Keung.

Since 2008, BCA has embarked on new areas of work, with longer timelines, far outside its traditional purview.

Another long-term project could see the Government usher in a sophisticated flood protection system for the island to deal with rising tides caused by global warming.

Since the Coastal and Project Management Department was formed within the BCA in 2008, the statutory board has led other government agencies in coastal protection efforts.

The six-person department has made working trips to study strategies adopted by other coastal countries such as Denmark, the Netherlands and Britain.

A three-year study initiated by BCA in 2010, on the impact of rising sea levels on Singapore's coast and possible economic implications, will conclude soon.

"We are also the coastal protection authority of Singapore," said Dr Keung.

"We are looking at the impact of sea-level rise on our shore line. We want to know, if it rises by half a metre, a metre or two metres, what happens?"

Even as BCA widens its long-term role, Dr Keung said one of the statutory board's more immediate goals is to overturn the perception that the construction industry is dirty, noisy and unglamorous, and to attract more Singaporeans to the sector.

To do that, BCA has been encouraging greater mechanisation of construction firms here.

It is doing that by subsidising up to 50 per cent of the cost of buying productivity-boosting hardware such as scissor lifts and automated wheel- washers, and software like Building Information Modelling (BIM) tools, which replace traditional two-dimensional plans and drawings.

Dr Keung said $67 million of the $250 million Construction Productivity and Capability Fund (CPCF) set up in 2010 by the Government has been disbursed to more than 1,600 companies here. Of this, more than $9 million has been used to subsidise BIM software to help local companies stay competitive not just here, but overseas as well.

From next year, BCA will also mandate that all architectural drawings submitted must use BIM, whether they are private or public projects. From 2014, this will include structural plans drawn up by engineers, and by 2015, all plans and drawings.

"Our architects know that if they want to compete for projects overseas, or in the region, they need to use BIM because the other consultants are using it."

The agency has also been making a big push for local firms to adopt prefabrication and precasting, which further reduces the need for manpower at worksites, in addition to reducing the levels of noise and pollution associated with traditional construction sites.

"If you look at our industry in the next three to five years, I am quite confident that there will be more on-site assembly rather than on-site construction," said Dr Keung.

In sum, BCA's goal is to remain the guardian of Singapore's built environment, said Dr Keung.

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Fond memories of sleepy, rural Punggol

Straits Times 28 Sep 12;

SLEEPY Punggol Point, once known for its rows of seafood eateries, may no longer be a place in the Singapore of today, but it still has a place in Mr Lee Hsien Loong's heart.

The Prime Minister can remember the first time he visited the area in 1967, when he was a 15-year-old boarding the ferry from Punggol Point to the Outward Bound School.

"Punggol was a very rural environment," he said, recalling how he would get "suddenly lost" on orienteering exercises in the kampung and secondary jungle areas.

"Today, you can't get lost in Punggol any more," he said with a tinge of nostalgia.

Mr Lee was responding to a question on whether he loved or missed any part of Singapore which has since been built over.

The importance of memories in defining the "soul of the nation" was a key theme of the Prime Minister's National Day Rally last month. In his speech, he reminisced about vanished places dear to him, and stressed the importance of memories of old places and friends in keeping Singapore the best home.

His memories of Punggol Point, however, were more recently sparked by a visit on Sunday to the "beautiful new town" of Punggol West. The area has undergone an extensive makeover over the years, from pig farms being resettled from the 1970s and bustling seafood restaurants moving out in 1994, to the building of new housing estates.

In 2007, Mr Lee unveiled plans for Punggol 21-Plus, setting the stage for the homes, parks and watersports facilities that have since sprung up there. The centrepiece is the 4.2km-long Punggol Waterway, which he opened last year.

And while he has fond memories of the old Punggol, the new Punggol is "better", said Mr Lee of the town, which will be almost as big as Ang Mo Kio.

"There's one 'Ang Mo Kio' coming up, south of the Punggol Waterway. And north of Punggol Waterway, another 'Ang Mo Kio' will rise one day, progressively."

At the same time, Mr Lee took comfort in the fact that a bit of the old Punggol has been retained.

Kelong Bridge, one of five footbridges along the waterway, looks like one of the old fishing villages which used to dot Punggol's shoreline. A stretch of Old Punggol Road, which used to lead to Punggol Point, and an old bus stop have also been conserved.

"I'm not sure if the bus still stops there any more, but they've kept the old bus stop," he quipped. "I think it's a nice microcosm of how Singapore has changed in one generation."

ANDREA ONG

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Flash floods hit some parts of Singapore

Ng Kai Ling Straits Times 28 Sep 12;

FLASH floods hit several parts of Singapore last night when heavy showers came down islandwide for about an hour.

Kim Tian Road, Tanjong Pagar Road and Marina South underpass were affected, although waters receded in less than an hour.

National water agency PUB said that flash floods were also reported in Jalan Bukit Merah, Mount Elizabeth Road, South Bridge Road and New Bridge Road, but there were no signs of flooding when it investigated.

Business owners along Trengganu Street told The Straits Times last night that the road flooded between 9.30pm and 10pm.

"The rain was very heavy and water just started flowing in from Temple Street. The water was about ankle-deep," said Mr Feng Shi Hua, who runs a souvenir shop at the corner of Temple Street and Trengganu Street.

He added that some of his goods were damaged but not severely.

Mr Lee Ah Soon, who runs a street stall along Trengganu Street, managed to save his mooncakes from being damaged.

He added: "When I saw the water rising, I quickly moved them to the table."

Last night the National Environment Agency (NEA) carried a heavy rain warning on its website.

Typically, this happens when there is rainfall with rates exceeding 50mm in an hour and affecting more than one-fifth of the island.

Weather forecast for the next two days is for cloudy skies, with late morning and early afternoon showers on Sunday.

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Malaysia: Protected song birds seized

New Straits Times 28 Sep 12;

JOHOR BARU: A boat carrying protected song birds worth about RM100,000, was detained by the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) in the waters off Teluk Ramunia in Pengerang, Johor on Wednesday.

The vessel was stopped by MMEA enforcement personnel at 11.25am and they found more than 150 protected white-rumped sharma (or commonly called burung murai batu) packed in plastic baskets.

MMEA southern region operation director, Maritime Captain Ibrahim Mohamed said a agency boat on routine patrol had spotted the boat which then sped off.

"We managed to stop the boat after a 10-minute chase at about 1.5 nautical miles south-east from Teluk Ramunia," he said yesterday.

On inspection, the agency's personnel found 16 plastic baskets filled with more than 150 protected song birds.

The white-rumped sharma is a protected bird species and it is an offence to be in possession without proper documentation.

The birds, which are prized as song birds in Malaysia, can fetch up to RM600 per bird depending on their size.

Ibrahim said investigations revealed that the boat from Pasir Gudang and en-route to Penggerang when it was intercepted by the MMEA patrol.

A local man, in his 40s, was detained. The suspect did not have any documents or permits for the birds.

He claimed that he was only told to deliver the birds to the location in Penggerang.

Ibrahim said the seized boat and suspect were sent to the Stulang Darat jetty. The case has been transferred to the Johor Baru Wildlife and National Parks Department (Perhilitan) for further action.

"The case is being investigated under Section 60(1)(a) of the Wildlife Conservation Act 2010 for having in possession protected animals without a licence which carries a maximum penalty of up to RM50,000 or jail term or both," he said.

Bird smuggling bid foiled
Desiree Tresa Gasper The Star 28 Sep 12;

JOHOR BARU: The Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) has successfully thwarted an attempt to smuggle 150 white-rumped Shama birds in Pengerang.

Maritime operations director Maritime Capt Ibrahim Mohamed said the protected species were in 16 plastic cages and believed to have been transported from Pasir Gudang here yesterday.

“Officials noticed a suspicious looking fibreglass boat at around 11.15am and when they approached for inspection, the driver suddenly steered away,” he said.

Capt Ibrahim said officials immediately gave chase and after 10 minutes they managed to detain the boat off Teluk Ramunia.

“We discovered a large stack of plastic cages filled with birds.

“We also arrested a local man in his 40s who was handling the boat,” he said.

Capt Ibrahim said the boat did not have any registration number.

“Investigations revealed that the man was trying to transport the birds from Pasir Gudang to Pengerang.

“The man, however, claimed he was only following instructions and did not know where the birds were from,” he said.

He added that the man also did not have documents to certify that he was allowed to transport the birds.

“The Shama has an estimated market value of between RM300 to RM600 each depending on size.

“The bird is protected and possessing or transporting it without proper documents is illegal,” he said.

Capt Ibrahim said the birds were handed over to the state Department of Wildlife and National Parks for further action.

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