Wrapping up at the Northern Expedition Day 17
from Mega Marine Survey of Singapore
The magic waterholes
from Bird Ecology Study Group
Tide watcher
from The annotated budak
Special update: Good news from the Kenyir Wildlife Corridor
from Rimba
Agency to step up monitoring of canals, improve drainage as flash floods struck yesterday
Woo Sian Boon Today Online 1 Nov 12;
SINGAPORE - As heavy rains yesterday afternoon triggered flash floods in several areas, national water agency PUB said it will step up monitoring of canals while replacing scupper holes to improve drainage in preparation for the coming rainy season.
Flash floods were reported at five locations yesterday - near the Alexandra Road exit of the Ayer Rajah Expressway (AYE), at Thomson Road towards Kampong Java after the junction of Moulmein Road, along Dunearn Road (junction of Kheam Hock Road), Dunearn Road (near Hillcrest Road), and the Cambridge Road and Tiong Bahru Road junction with Lower Delta Road. Traffic was not affected and the flash floods subsided in about 15 to 20 minutes, a PUB spokesperson said.
Along Balestier Road, interior designer Derrick Tan reported that one of the three road's lanes was impassable to traffic. "For 20 minutes, the water level just kept rising and cars couldn't drive in the extreme left lane," said the 31-year-old.
Over the next three months, PUB said short-duration moderate to heavy thundery showers and occasional gusty winds can be expected due to the start of the North-east monsoon. On average, there are 19 rainy days in November and December, and 15 rainy days in January.
In preparation for the monsoon, PUB has distributed flood advisories to almost 500 residential units and shop-houses in the low-lying areas of Singapore's central, western and eastern regions. Precautionary measures they could take to protect their belongings have also been issued.
A series of reinforcements will also be taken to minimise flash flooding during this period. To improve drainage, PUB will be replacing 6,000 scupper holes - semi-circular holes located on the side of roads - and drain inlets in flood-prone areas with modified drop inlet chambers to better channel storm water into drains.
Installation of the drop inlet chambers are expected to be completed in September next year.
Inspections at major construction work sites will also be stepped up to check for drainage obstructions and to ensure there will be no discharge of silt water.
To monitor surface drains and ensure smooth flow of water, CCTV cameras will be installed at 56 new locations by the end of the year.
Is this the start of the flash-floods season again?
Several areas hit yesterday; waters subsided within 20min, says PUB
Feng Zengkun And Goh Shi Ting Straits Times 1 Nov 12;
FLASH floods hit several parts of Singapore yesterday, even as government agencies geared up for heavy rain during the annual north-east monsoon season.
The first floods hit the Ayer Rajah Expressway after the Alexandra exit at around noon, according to Facebook updates from the national water agency PUB.
Other areas affected included Thomson, Dunearn, Cambridge and Tiong Bahru roads.
The PUB said that in all these areas, traffic was not affected and the flash floods subsided within about 15 to 20 minutes, but some motorists reported stalled cars at Novena and a traffic jam from there to Marymount.
The recent heavy showers may continue in the next few weeks as Singapore is in the inter-monsoon season, which normally lasts until late November, said the National Environment Agency (NEA).
During the next few weeks, short and thundery showers are expected mainly in the afternoon, NEA said. After that, the north-east monsoon season is expected to begin, it said. This usually lasts till early March.
During the monsoon season, short and moderate to heavy rain is expected in the afternoon and evening, and about two to four "monsoon surges" are also expected in this period, said the PUB.
These surges refer to stronger winds blowing from the South China Sea, and usually lead to bouts of moderate to heavy rain here, lasting between two and five days.
The PUB said it has geared up efforts to alert residents about possible flash floods. It will install 56 more closed- circuit television (CCTV) cameras around the island by the end of the year, to monitor drains. It has already installed 66 CCTV cameras.
Images from some cameras in flood-prone areas such as Sixth Avenue in Bukit Timah and Orchard Road are available at the PUB website and are updated every five minutes.
The PUB has also distributed flood advisories to about 500 residential units and shophouses in low-lying areas in the central, western and eastern regions. These include details of high tides from this month until February next year. High tides increase the risk of flash floods.
The advisory has tips on installing flood barriers, for example, by using boards shored up with sandbags.
The PUB has also begun to inspect 100 major construction sites to check their drains and make sure they do not discharge silt, which could clog the drainage network. This is in addition to routine checks on each site every five to six months.
Flash flood updates are available via the PUB's social media channels on Facebook and Twitter.
People can go to www.pub.gov.sg/ managingflashfloods to sign up for heavy rain and flash-flood warning SMS alerts. To report incidents or to check the flood situation, call the PUB's 24-hour call centre on 1800-284- 6600.
Alvin Foo Straits Times 1 Nov 12;
THE fast-rising demand for palm oil globally makes it crucial to address the environmental and social problems created in its production, said Deputy Prime Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam yesterday.
A "virtuous cycle" of demand and supply involving producers, intermediaries and consumers must be created to ensure sustainable palm oil.
He was speaking at the 10th Annual Roundtable Meeting on Sustainable Palm Oil at Resorts World Sentosa.
Mr Tharman cited trade publication Oil World, which forecast that world demand for palm oil will be 40.4 billion kg in 2020, almost double the amount produced in 2001.
He said: "This rapid future growth makes it all the more important that we address the environmental and social problems created in the course of palm oil production."
The main issue relates to the potential role of palm oil plantations in deforestation, he said. The clearing of forests for land to grow palm oil has been the main source of deforestation in South-east Asia.
He said: "There is also a real risk that we will reach tipping points in forest conversion where critical biophysical functions are disrupted, leaving the region increasingly vulnerable to droughts, fires and floods."
Another major issue is haze pollution. The total number of hot spots recorded in Sumatra was 12,750 as of September, a little higher than that seen during the previous peak year of 2006.
Mr Tharman, who is also Finance Minister, said: "We have to do more, through joint efforts by the public and the private sectors, to resolve this problem."
Eliminating palm oil production is not viable, he said. "It will simply divert the demand to alternative edible oil crops which are of lower yield, and likely cause more harm to the environment in the long run."
Instead, Mr Tharman called for the creation of a "virtuous cycle of consumers, intermediaries and producers across the value chain with an interest in ensuring sustainable palm oil".
He urged the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) to intensify its work with buyers and consumers so that they better recognise the value of sustainable palm oil.
RSPO is a global not-for-profit body with more than 1,000 members from the industry, including producers, processors, manufacturers, retailers, banks and investors. It aims to develop and implement global standards for palm oil.
He said: "RSPO remains the most suitable platform for all stakeholders to work together to tackle the environmental and social challenges surrounding palm oil production."
He also highlighted the role of non-governmental organisations such as the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) in promoting sustainability. For instance, WWF uses satellite technology to help identify firms burning forests.
Ambassador-at-Large Tommy Koh said in his keynote address that Singapore has a stake in RSPO even though there are no palm oil plantations here. That is because the Republic is a major centre of oil trading, including vegetable oils trading, and will gain if all palm oil plantations in Indonesia, Malaysia and elsewhere meet the RSPO standards.
Palm oil plantation owners responsible for sustainable production: stakeholders
Thomas Cho, Dylan Loh Channel NewsAsia 31 Oct 12;
SINGAPORE: Changes to the European Food Information Regulations will mean labels have to identify the specific types of vegetable oils that have been used.
Businesses are already starting to implement the change, and it will be mandatory on all food products from 13 December 2014.
Palm oil growers should ensure that its products are cultivated in a socially responsible manner, as buyers are increasingly insisting that palm oil products come from sustainable sources.
This was the call made at a gathering of stakeholders across the palm oil sector in Singapore.
Some 800 delegates attended the 10th Annual Roundtable Meeting on Sustainable Palm Oil in Singapore to shift their business model towards sustainable palm oil production.
Palm oil is widely used in food and cleaning products, including confectionery, cosmetics and cleaning agents.
Global demand for palm oil has been on the increase due to the declining supplies of soybeans, grapeseed and sunflower seed.
Each hectare of palm oil plantation can, on average, produce four tonnes of oil more than any other crops.
But palm oil plantations can create environmental problems such as deforestation, which lead to carbon dioxide emission and pollution from haze.
As at September 2012, the total number of hotspots that are recorded in Sumatra stood at 12,750 - higher than the previous peak year of 2006, according to data released at an ASEAN conference in Bangkok held on 26 September.
Some plantation owners have raised concerns that converting to higher-cost sustainable palm oil production may hurt their profitability.
But there are others who remain committed.
Palm oil produced from sustainable methods trades at 20 ringgit, or US$7 more than ordinary crude palm oil.
Khairudin Hashim, group head of sustainability and quality management at Sime Darby Berhad said: "We have been practising sustainability since we were involved in the plantation industry. Looking into sustainability, you are providing a reasonable income to the growers, you are looking after the environment and naturally the profit will come."
There are 20 Singapore-based firms that are involved in palm oil trading activities.
Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam, Singapore's deputy prime minister and finance minister said: "Our role is basically in the palm oil trade; we have the infrastructure and we (are located) next to the world's largest palm oil producers and that makes us a convenient venue, convenient base for the major resource companies and commodity trading companies."
Meanwhile, some planters have called for banks to help finance projects to promote sustainability.
"Singapore stakeholders like bankers, financiers and investors need to get involved," said Edi Suhardi, director of sustainability at PT Agro Harapan Lestari.
"They have to promote investments to the companies who are actually producing the CSPO (certified sustainable palm oil)."
Separately, environment ministers from Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand agreed that plantation companies and land owners should be held responsible and accountable for much of the pollution from haze.
The ministers met in Bali, Indonesia on Wednesday.
They noted there are technologies that can improve hotspot monitoring.
They support the idea of forming a technical task force to develop a platform to monitor fires in the region.
They acknowledged that greater transparency is needed so that plantation companies and land owners responsible for the haze can be held accountable.
They noted the ASEAN Specialised Meteorological Centre's expectation of more rain as the traditional dry season in the southern ASEAN region ends in mid-October, and that would lessen hotspot activities.
But the countries agreed to maintain vigilance and continue the sub-region's commitment to tackle land and forest fires, and minimise the spread of transboundary smoke.
Global exports of palm oil is projected to rise to 42.6 million tons this year, the highest in at least five years, according to WorldOil.
Despite the increase in supply, analysts say the demand for palm oil is unlikely to wane soon, given the wide variety of the crop's usage.
- CNA/xq
AMLive interview and basket star at the Northern Expedition Day 16 from Mega Marine Survey of Singapore
Filefish Feeding
from Pulau Hantu and Slipper Lobster
Talks at National Junior College High
from Pulau Hantu
Sing Geok Shan Channel NewsAsia 30 Oct 12;
SINGAPORE: Starting next year, a new National Parks Boards (NParks) initiative will help companies and schools do good while reaping the benefits of nature.
The Nature Cares programme will match corporate staff and student volunteers with welfare organisations and to create activities that can help protect the environment.
President Tony Tan Keng Yam launched the programme on Tuesday at St Theresa's Home in Upper Thomson.
As the residents of the home for elders are less mobile, volunteers brought a little nature indoors.
Keppel Group employees and students from Queenstown Primary School showed the senior citizens how plants can be grown on driftwood.
NParks said activities will be tailored to match the needs of beneficiaries.
For instance, if volunteering organisations are paired with a children's home, suggested activities could be guided nature walks or rollerblading in the parks.
As with gardening, the programme is a long-term commitment.
Organisations which are joining the programme will have to pledge at least a year's support so that the interaction with the beneficiaries can be sustained.
Calling the initiative a "very worthwhile effort", President Tan hopes that more can volunteer and contribute based on their strengths and interests.
He said: "What is important is to let people know that working for the community doesn't only mean giving money, which is important, or making a donation, but also giving of your time, your energy, your special skills and in that way, everybody can make a contribution in their own area of interest."
Volunteers also picked up new knowledge from their stint.
"I found it very interesting because it's my first time planting air plants (plants which do not root in soil)," said Benjamin Seet, a Primary 5 student volunteer from Queenstown Primary School.
"I like to help the elderly with what they are doing. It helps to make them more active and it will help to bring a smile to their faces."
- CNA/ck/xq
NParks makes volunteering a walk in the park
Pearl Lee Straits Times 31 Oct 12;
TAKING a walk in the park with the elderly may not sound like a typical student-volunteer activity, but that is one of the options available under the new Nature Cares programme of the National Parks Board (NParks).
The programme partners staff from corporations with student volunteers to reach out to community groups, such as the elderly or children with special needs, through nature-related events.
Activities range from community gardening and nature walks to in-line skating and art and craft with plants. The programme calls for a minimum one-year commitment from both organisations and schools to their beneficiaries.
Dr Leong Chee Chiew, NPark's deputy CEO and commissioner of parks and recreation, said it wanted to "connect corporations, children and the community in a sustained and structured platform".
Speaking at the launch at St Theresa's Home in Upper Thomson yesterday, he said he hoped the programme would reap the benefits that nature can bring.
"Studies show that contact with nature confers health benefits," he said.
He also noted that while the rate of volunteerism has risen, young working adults form the lowest percentage of volunteers. This programme would change that in years to come, he believed.
President Tony Tan Keng Yam, who graced the event, commended NPark's efforts. He said the plan, which begins its pilot run in January, "not only introduces the residents of St Theresa's Home to a fun activity, but also gives them some companionship".
Already, it looks like it will be a success. Madam Bertha Hang, 64, a resident of the home since 2004, described the morning event with the students and volunteers as a "very nice and wonderful experience". She said: "I like nature, plants and animals. I like to admire the plants."
'Deliberate and extensive' 2-year process looked at range of technologies and risks
Grace Chua Straits Times 31 Oct 12;
A STUDY which ruled out Singapore's use of nuclear power for now took two years to complete because those involved had to understand the full range of technologies and evaluate the risks.
The main factor in deciding to forgo the nuclear option for now concerns the safety of Singaporeans, said one expert in the national nuclear pre-feasibility study, which started in 2010.
Another said newer, safer power- plant designs may one day be applicable to Singapore if they become proven technologies.
This month, Second Minister for Trade and Industry S. Iswaran said in Parliament that current nuclear-energy technologies were not suitable here and that the risks, given the country's size and dense population, outweigh benefits.
The study recommended that Singapore continue to monitor new technologies and develop capabilities in technology and emergency response.
A Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) spokesman said it was a "deliberate and extensive" two-year process that involved government agencies, external consultants and expert advisers.
Each of the three independent experts has more than 40 years of experience in nuclear energy.
Mr Konstantin Foskolos is former deputy head of nuclear energy and safety research at the Paul Scherrer Institute, a Swiss research institute.
The other two are Dr Gail Marcus, formerly of the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency, and Dr Dennis Berry, nuclear energy programmes director emeritus of the US' Sandia National Laboratories.
The study addressed aspects such as security and risk assessment, regulatory regimes, management of radioactive waste and emergency planning but did not generate specific figures for costs and risks.
Mr Foskolos said environmental impact did not affect significantly the decisions. "The main factor for the decision of the Government was the need to ensure the safety of the population."
There are no global standards that restrict populations around nuclear- power plants, the MTI noted. Some plants in the United States, Canada and Switzerland have towns within a 5km radius.
The study did not focus only on big costly reactors, said Mr Foskolos. It also included small modular reactors and reactors of various technologies, such as gas- and liquid metal-cooled reactors, which are still under development.
Said Dr Berry: "For nearly every country considering a new nuclear-power plant, today's designs are judged to be quite safe.
"But these designs have not been demonstrated and have not received regulatory scrutiny. Some of these 'futuristic' designs may some day be found acceptable to Singapore."
Dr Marcus noted that the performance claims of many new designs cannot be verified yet and not all are likely to be commercialised successfully.
"So it would be premature for Singapore to make decisions on such technologies at this time," she added.
The MTI spokesman also said that in the wake of the Fukushima Daiichi accident in March 2011, "we also took the opportunity to include preliminary lessons learnt from the accident".
Currently, about 80 per cent of electricity here is generated from natural gas, with the rest linked to fuel oil and other sources such as waste.
Regional countries poised for nuclear energy
Straits Times 31 Oct 12;
EVEN as some countries have scaled back nuclear-energy plans in the wake of the Fukushima Daiichi accident in Japan, others, especially in South-east Asia, are forging ahead.
Singapore's immediate neighbours Malaysia and Indonesia are keen to develop the sector.
Malaysia is studying the possibility of operating two 1-gigawatt nuclear reactors, with the first expected to be operational by 2021. A feasibility study, including the selection of potential sites and development of infrastructure plans, is now underway.
Indonesia has been building capabilities in nuclear energy since the 1960s. Its nuclear agency has its eye on two sites in Java - Muria and Banten - and one in Bangka off Sumatra.
Farther afield, Vietnam may get South-east Asia's first nuclear power plant. It has awarded contracts for plants to be built by the 2020s and intends to build 10 nuclear reactors by 2030.
Singapore's nuclear pre-feasibility study recommended that it play an active role on issues of nuclear safety.
In 2010, Asean set up a nuclear-energy cooperation network.
Singapore is also part of the Asian Nuclear Safety Network and a member of the International Atomic Energy Agency, an inter-governmental group for cooperation on nuclear safety and security.
GRACE CHUA
An underground plant may be safer from attacks
Straits Times 31 Oct 12;
SITING a nuclear power plant underground may be the best option should Singapore decide to build one, said a National University of Singapore civil engineering professor who has done research on the topic.
Professor Andrew Clennel Palmer said an underground facility could be safer from terrorist and aircraft attacks than one on the surface, and that Singapore has experience building infrastructure below-ground - such as the MRT system and caverns for storing oil and munitions.
In a talk at the Asia Future Energy Forum last week, part of Singapore International Energy Week, he outlined the pros and cons of generating electricity from nuclear energy here.
Singapore, said the petroleum-engineering expert and Keppel Professor of civil engineering at NUS, is currently almost wholly dependent on fossil fuels. But nuclear energy produces no carbon-dioxide emissions and does not contribute to climate change. "Singapore is a strong and disciplined country, it could keep a nuclear power plant safe," he said.
But the country could also rely on natural gas, especially from unconventional sources, for a long time yet.
He has assessed 19 sites islandwide from Tuas to Pulau Tekong for suitability to house a nuclear power plant, based on factors from population density and proximity to neighbouring countries to risks of terrorism and tsunamis.
Together with colleagues, he is working on a book about the metropolitan siting of nuclear reactors, supported by a Ministry of Education research grant. It will be published next year.
GRACE CHUA
Dinda Btari Jakarta Post 30 Oct 12;
One lunchtime in Medan, Marjoko from the North Sumatra chapter of the Indonesian Environment Forum pointed to a flock of coastal birds now becoming “urban birds” on the city’s outskirts, Deli Serdang regency. “They shouldn’t be here. They’ve flown here only to find something to eat. Their mangrove habitat has been destroyed,” he said with deep concern.
Mangrove forests in Indonesia constitute 75 percent of Southeast Asia’s mangrove area, or 27 percent of that of the world’s. Indonesian mangroves, according to Marjoko, have the highest diversity in the world.
Mostly covering the coastal regions of Sumatra, Kalimantan and Papua, Indonesia has around 9.36 million hectares (ha) of mangrove forests, but 48% is categorized as “moderately damaged” and 23% as “badly damaged”.
In North Sumatra, one of the provinces with the largest mangrove areas, 77 percent are reported to be severely damaged, and 13 percent moderately damaged, leaving only a paltry 36,000 ha (10 percent) in good condition.
The decline shows a real degradation of mangrove forests, progressing annually at the rate of around 200,000 ha, due to conversion into fish ponds and oil palm estates, the charcoal industry and illegal logging. Weak law enforcement and graft has strengthened corporate control over mangrove swamps, resulting in environmental damage and the destruction of coastal communities.
The forests are shrinking in the eastern coastal region of Sumatra too, destroying potential resources and the diversity of mangrove forest vegetation, while obliterating the environmental protection aspects of the mangroves.
To restore the mangrove forests, the damage needs to be clearly measured. Local communities must join in conservation efforts. Mangrove land is vital in lessening global warming and climate change.
Indonesia ratified the international Convention on Wetlands by presidential decree in 1991, but conservation of mangrove forests hasn’t been properly implemented and their destruction through estate and pond expansion hasn’t been stopped or even slowed by law enforcement.
The law on environment protection and management was also introduced in 2009, including its enforcement. The 1999 Forestry Law prohibits tree felling within a certain distance from the shore. Today, mangrove wildlife reserve zones where some migratory birds stop over are also considerably damaged.
“Mangrove forest degradation on the eastern coast of North Sumatra is so serious and the rate of deforestation is so alarming that the habitat for wild birds is now gone. Such coastal birds as great-billed herons, purple herons, pied herons, striated herons, gray-crowned night herons, Malay herons, white-tailed kingfishers and little egrets are forced to move to safer urban areas to survive,” Marjoko raged.
The Cemara Asri luxury housing complex on the fringes of Medan is an area that could become an alternative habitat for wild birds. The management has reserved a plot of 5 ha as a reserve for wild birds. The land, worth billions of rupiah, is now a luxury home for birds from the coast of Langkat and Deli Serdang.
“There’re at least 5,000 birds of many different species now in the new habitat at Cemara Asri. This location is also a tourist and student destination, with facilities for monitoring and research. This kind of thing should happen in every new development,” he said.
Istanto, head of the North Sumatra Natural Resources Conservation Center (BKSDA), admitted the loss of 30 percent of mangroves in Langkat, even in Karang Gading wildlife reserve, to oil palm estates and ponds. Istanto has promised to overcome the issue by arresting those involved, but so far nothing has been done.
The partial solution to some of the forest damage is replanting in ravaged areas, which according to Istanto has been carried out since 2010, with one million mangrove trees already planted. A model conservation village has been initiated in Tanjung Ibas, by providing seedlings and cattle. The community is now cooperating with local rangers for joint patrols in the wildlife reserve and mangroves.
Protected forest and conservation zone utilization coordinator of the provincial BKSDA, Ida Marni, said the destruction of mangroves had caused local people, particularly farmers, to lose their source of livelihood, besides the source of food for coastal birds.
“Oil palms pose a major threat. Similarly, coastal bird habitat has been occupied by men. Everybody should work together and share the vision of safeguarding nature — the source of income of coastal farmers and fishermen — against harm,” she added.
Fauzan, of the Mangrove Forest Management Center (BPHM) said his office had been training regional and national conservation groups while managing mangrove areas as resources for ecotourism, such as those in Hamlet II, Sei Nagalawan village, Deli Serdang.
Meanwhile, Conservation Mentality (Come), set up in 2008, has been drilling conservation ideas into students and the communities who face the impact of the destruction.
“Beginning with students, we are trying to teach people in Pakpak Bharat regency, which is a conservation zone, to respect and preserve nature, because it is for their own good. 85 percent of the area is forestland,” said Jenny RL Berutu, director of Come.
In North Sumatra, Come is replanting mangroves in Pantai Gading village, Sicanggang district, and Tanjung Ibus village.
Alister Doyle PlanetArk 31 Oct 12;
"Ocean grabbing" or aggressive industrial fishing by foreign fleets is a threat to food security in developing nations where governments should do more to promote local, small-scale fisheries, a study by a U.N. expert said on Tuesday.
The report said emerging nations should tighten rules for access to their waters by an industrial fleet that is rapidly growing and includes vessels from China, Russia, the European Union, the United States and Japan.
"Ocean-grabbing is taking place," Olivier de Schutter, the U.N. special rapporteur on the right to food and the report's author, told Reuters. "It's like land-grabbing, just less discussed and less visible."
The 47-page report on "Fisheries and the Right to Food", which said 15 percent of all animal protein consumed worldwide is from fish, will be presented to the U.N. General Assembly.
De Schutter said ocean grabbing involved "shady access agreements that harm small-scale fishers, unreported catch, incursions into protected waters, and the diversion of resources away from local populations."
The report cited the example of islands in the western and central Pacific that get only about 6 percent of the value of a $3 billion tuna fishery off their coasts. Foreign fishing fleets get the rest.
Equally, Guinea-Bissau nets less than 2 percent of the value of the fish caught off its coast under a deal with the EU. De Schutter said some countries where industrial fleets were based were already taking steps to tighten laws.
"What's getting worse is that the capacity of industrial fishing fleets is increasing," he said. Governments give an estimated $30-34 billion in subsidies to fishing each year.
That money is often spent on boat-building or fuel that skews competition.
"We need to do more to reduce the capacity of the industrial fishing fleets and to manage the fish stocks in a much more sustainable way," said de Schutter. Food security is also at risk from threats such as climate change and pollution, he said.
WASTEFUL
De Schutter said aquaculture was disproportionately concentrated in Asia which is responsible for 88 percent of all production. "Extremely little has been done in Africa and Latin America in particular. There is a huge potential there," he said.
Fisheries received less attention than farming, he suggested, partly because the sector employed only about 200 million people globally. By contrast, the world has 1.5 billion small-scale farmers, he said.
The report said that local fishing was more efficient and less wasteful than industrial fishing, urging measures to promote small-scale fishing such as the creation of "artisanal fishing zones".
"Small-scale fishers actually catch more fish per gallon of fuel than industrial fleets, and discard fewer fish," it said. It praised some measures which have already been taken to promote local fishing - such as in Cambodia's biggest lake or off the Maldives.
Estimates of the scale of illegal catches range from 10-28 million metric tons, while some 7.3 million metric tons, or almost 10 percent of global wild fish catches were discarded as unwanted by-catches every year, the report said.
It said industrial fishing was by far the most wasteful.
Total global fish production was about 143 million metric tons - 90 million from wild fish catches and 53 million from fish farming, the report said.
De Schutter said fish farming would have to expand to feed a rising world population, now just above 7 billion. Population growth would raise demand by a forecast 27 million metric tons over the next two decades, he said.
(Editing by Andrew Osborn)
Jonny Hogg PlanetArk 29 Oct 12;
Officials in Democratic Republic of Congo are colluding with foreign logging firms to support illegal logging, harming local communities and risking the destruction of the world's second largest forest, a report by a campaign group says.
Derelict ports in Congo's riverside capital Kinshasa are piled high with logs ready to be shipped out to China and Europe as part of the lucrative timber trade.
Much of the timber has been harvested using permits signed by the ministry of environment in direct contravention of Congolese law, advocacy group Global Witness said in the report.
Congo's forest is part of the Congo Basin that spans six countries in the central Africa region covering about 500 million hectares, over 130 million of which is in the Congo. It contains thousands of species and a quarter of the world's remaining tropical forest.
According to the report on Thursday so-called artisanal logging permits - meant only for small scale tree felling by Congolese nationals - are being awarded to foreign firms.
The companies then use industrial methods to cut and export large quantities of wood out of the country, while sidestepping the environmental and social obligations demanded of industrial logging operations.
Attempts to bring order to Congo's chaotic forestry sector have seen a ban on all new industrial logging licenses since 2002, but this has done little to improve the situation according to Colin Robertson, one of the report's authors.
"Basically this is a new system to get around the moratorium... Officials have been giving out artisanal permits to industrial loggers, and it's created a completely chaotic situation in the forests," he told Reuters.
Robertson said that licenses seen by Global Witness - many of them for Chinese or Lebanese companies - had been signed by a former environment minister.
"Wild West"
In the heavily forested province of Bandundu at least 146 artisanal logging permits have been issued in the last 2 years according to the report, which also shows evidence of some firms having cut far more than is allowed by artisanal licenses.
Local chiefs are paid off with anything from motor bikes or beer to allow the trees to be felled, while rural communities see no benefit at all, the report states.
Congolese conservationists say the situation is as bad if not worse elsewhere in the country, which is home to 86 million hectares of forest.
Victor Vundu, director of the ministry of environment's legal team said they were working on clarifying and tightening up legislation under a new minister.
"It's not surprising, in a post conflict country where the administration has been really weakened, that the state should be accused of not sufficiently controlling the application of the law," he said.
Industrial logging output from Congo has dropped in recent years and currently stands at around 350,000 m3 per year, as companies say that without far tighter regulation they cannot compete with the illegal market.
Congo signed a contract with Swiss company SGS in 2010 to introduce a traceability program for the logging trade, but they are still waiting for the green light from the government to go ahead, according to Lionel Nardon, head of the SGS project in Congo.
Nardon said they had already identified more than 100,000 m3 of illegal wood in Kinshasa's ports and described the sector as being like the "wild west" in which contraband timber is traded in the port before being transported out by lorries under the cover of darkness.
"The cost (to the Congo) is millions of dollars, and to the forests, it is incalculable," he said.
(Editing by Bate Felix and James Jukwey)
Tongue-eating isopod and otters (again) at the Northern Expedition Day 15 from Mega Marine Survey of Singapore
Introducing the Common Palm Civet Facebook Page!
from Life of a common palm civet in Singapore
Return of the Eight-Spotted Crab Spider
from Macro Photography in Singapore
Random Gallery - Cruiser
from Butterflies of Singapore
Chek Jawa (28 Oct 12)
from teamseagrass
Rima Jessamine M. Granali Philippine Daily Inquirer 30 Oct 12;
The Philippine Animal Welfare Society said any delay in the transport of the dolphins to Singapore would be good.
MANILA, Philippines—A Quezon City court postponed on Monday the hearing on the motion for reconsideration to ban the export of 25 show dolphins to Singapore.
Judge Fernando Sagun, Jr. of the Quezon City Regional Trial Court Branch 78 rescheduled the hearing for November 12 at 1:30 p.m. because representatives of the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR), Department of Agriculture (DA) and Resorts World Sentosa said they have not yet received a copy of the motion.
The court gave them until November 5 to file a written comment or objection to the motion.
Anna Cabrera, head of the Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS), said any delay in the transport of the dolphins to Singapore would be good. “The whole point of this trial is to protect the interests of the wild,” she added.
Theresa Concepcion, Asia head of the animal rights group Earth Island Institute (EII) said she had mixed emotions on the postponement.
“It’s emotionally stressful and this is not even a human case,” Concepcion said. “It is not acceptable to me that the dolphins would be sacrificed for shallow entertainment and huge income.”
PAWS, EII, Compassion and Responsibility to Animals Welfare Philippines and other activist groups and individuals filed a motion for reconsideration on October 19 after Judge Evangeline Castillo-Marigomen of the Quezon City RTC 101 lifted the Temporary Environmental Protection Order barring the export of the 25 dolphins.
The dolphins from the Solomon Islands were supposed to be transported to Resorts World Sentosa, a giant casino resort in Singapore.
Alvina Soh Channel NewsAsia 29 Oct 12;
SINGAPORE: Shell Eastern Petroleum was fined $80,000 on Monday for safety lapses that caused a fire at Shell's Pulau Bukom oil refinery in September last year.
The oil giant was found guilty of one count under the Workplace Safety and Health Act.
On 28 September 2011, a fire broke out at a pump house at Shell's oil refinery, and spread rapidly with multiple explosions.
The Ministry of Manpower's investigations revealed that the fire was caused by lapses such as an accumulation of flammable vapours and static charges.
Shell used an open draining method during a process called de-oiling, which is used in pipeline maintenance.
This caused flammable vapours to be released into the air, which posed the risk of ignition.
The Ministry added that Shell did not deploy portable gas monitors, which would have alerted staff to dangerous levels of flammable gases.
The fire was fully extinguished the next day after 32 hours of fire-fighting.
Although there were no serious injuries, the pump house was badly damaged and the Bukom refinery had to be temporarily shut down.
In mitigation, Shell, which is represented by WongPartnership, said that it has since "worked closely with the authorities to implement enhanced safety systems", to prevent future incidences.
For failing to ensure the safety of its processes and the premises itself, Shell could be fined up to $500,000 if convicted under the Workplace Safety and Health Act.
- CNA/de
Shell fined $80k for work safety lapses
Straits Times 30 Oct 12;
OIL giant Shell was fined $80,000 yesterday for lapses in workplace safety that led to a 32-hour fire at the company's Pulau Bukom oil refinery in September last year.
Court papers stated that while draining a pipeline, its contractors had used a method that allowed flammable gases to accumulate in the air.
The pipeline was connected to a tank of naphtha, a volatile liquid, and passed through a pump house where petroleum products were mixed. The contractors had used metal trays to collect the naphtha flowing out of the tank.
Prosecutors from the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) said that the release of naphtha in this manner not only allowed volatile vapours to escape but also led to an accumulation of static charges, which might have produced a spark to ignite the naphtha vapours.
MOM said Shell had also failed to deploy sufficient portable gas monitors that would have detected the dangerous levels of flammable vapours.
However, prosecutors noted that Shell did conduct a total of five tests with portable gas monitors before the fire broke out at about 1pm on Sept 28. It was put out around 9pm the next day.
Shell had pleaded guilty earlier this month. Its lawyer Christopher de Souza had then argued that before the incident, there was no industry-wide MOM directive which indicated that the methods used by the contractors were unsafe in certain instances.
MOM said the fine of $80,000 is the highest meted out to a company involved in an accident without fatalities or injuries.
MOM is also reviewing the involvement of the two Shell contractors - Mun Siong Engineering and Weishen Industrial Services.
Shell, whose Bukom refinery is its largest worldwide, could have been fined up to $500,000.
KHUSHWANT SINGH
Posts
visitors since Nov 07