2 Jun 2019 - Balik Chek Jawa
Adventures with the Naked Hermit Crabs
Festival of Biodiversity 2019!
Butterflies of Singapore
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Best of our wild blogs: 27 May 19
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Malaysia: UK plastic waste found near Ipoh
Teoh Pei Ying New Straits Times 27 May 19;
KUALA LUMPUR: Plastic waste from Britain intended for recycling had been found dumped at a wasteland near Ipoh.
A British daily quoted a report by BBC, which featured British TV presenter Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall discovering a 6m-high mound of plastic waste deep in the jungle of Perak.
Daily Mail Online reported that the environmental catastrophe “has the fingerprints of British supermarkets and council recycling departments” all over it.
“It’s like some dystopian nightmare… a plastic planet,” Fearnley-Whittingstall, who is also a celebrity chef, was quoted as saying.
According to the same report, Fearnley-Whittingstall also spotted British local authority-branded recycling bags, which suggested that householders dutifully filling their green bins in the belief they were helping the environment had been lied to.
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Malaysia: More water treatment plants planned under 12th Malaysia Plan
The Star 26 May 19;
IPOH (Bernama): The Water, Land and Natural Resources Ministry plans to build more water treatment plants in order to further improve the water supply system in the country, says minister Dr A. Xavier Jayakumar.
He said the matter would be included in the 12th Malaysia Plan (2021-2025) and is expected to be realised fully within the next 10 or 15 years.
He also acknowledged that this entailed considerable expenditure.
"For example, Kuala Kangsar and Larut often face water shortage due to lack of adequate water to meet demand during festive seasons," he told reporters after attending a breaking of fast event organised by the Perak PKR here Saturday (May 25) night.
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Malaysia: Penang metal poisoning - Root of the problem still unknown
r. sekaran The Star 27 May 19;
GEORGE TOWN: Metal poisoning along the coastal areas of Teluk Bahang looks to be worsening while the root cause remains unknown.Operators of fish farms along the coast are worried for the survival of marine resources such as sea algae and other plant life, should the content of heavy metal spike further.
Centre for Marine and Coastal Studies (Cemacs) director Prof Datuk Dr Aileen Tan said that two weeks ago, the heavy metal nickel was found to be 944% higher than natural off Penang National Park in Teluk Bahang.
“Now, the level of nickel detected is 1,038% more than natural in the seas near the National Park and 982% at the fish farms in Teluk Bahang.
“It is imperative that the source of the pollution is found immediately as it affects the livelihood of fishermen and is a threat to marine life in the area,” she said in an interview yesterday.
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Malaysia: Sabah going all out to step up wildlife protection efforts
stephanie lee The Star 26 May 19;
KOTA KINABALU: Sabah is getting all parties including villagers and wildlife rangers to be part of wildlife protection efforts following the failed attempt to prevent the Sumatran rhino from going extinct in Malaysia.
Sabah Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister Datuk Christina Liew (pic) said she was not sure what happened to the rhinos over the past decade but now was not the time to dwell on it but to move forward.
"We will do our best to protect the other remaining wildlife in Sabah, including endangered species such as the banteng (wild buffalo) and pygmy elephants, as well as protected species such as the orang utan, proboscis monkeys and sun bears," she said.
She said it was the government's policies to have villagers and local communities partner with wildlife rangers and the Wildlife Department to prevent the killing of protected species in Sabah.
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Malaysia: Native market in Sarikei found selling protected wildlife
stephen then The Star 26 May 19;
MIRI: The native market in Sarikei town in central Sarawak has been found to be a venue for selling live tarsier and slaughtered pangolin.
Sarawak Society for Prevention of Animal (SSPCA) president Datin Dona Wee said they received an alert from the public on this.
"A trader inside the Sarikei Tamu building was found selling live tarsier inside a small cage.
"Inside a plastic bag nearby was the meat of a pangolin.
Tarsier is a protected primate species.
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India: Coral bleaching intensifies in Gulf of Mannar
THOOTHUKUDI The Hindu 26 May 19;
The intensity of coral bleaching has increased in the Gulf of Mannar and Palk Bay in May. However, no mortality has been witnessed so far.
While the prevalence of bleaching was less than 3% during April in the Gulf of Mannar, it has increased significantly in May.
During a rapid survey conducted from May 15-23 by the Suganthi Devadason Marine Research Institute, a total of nine reef areas including two reef areas in Thoothukudi group (Vaan, Koswari and Kariyachalli Islands), three in Mandapam Group (Shingle, Krusadai and Hare Islands), three others in Keelakarai group (Mulli, Valai and Thalaiyari Islands) and reefs in Palk Bay were surveyed.
In the Keelakarai group, which was the most affected, the prevalence of bleaching has increased significantly up to 35% (Mulli Island) from 3% in April. In the Mandapam group (Krusadai Island), the bleaching went up from 6% to 28% during the period. Twelve percent of corals have suffered bleaching in Palk Bay.
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New MRT line for northeast S’pore will benefit underserved areas: Analysts
DARYL CHOO Today Online 26 May 19;
SINGAPORE — A new rail line to connect Singapore’s northeast to its south would not only be possible but a step in the right direction, as it would plug gaps in underserved areas and maybe even rekindle talks about a third link to Johor, transport analysts said.
The Land Transport Authority (LTA) said in its Land Transport Master Plan 2040 on Saturday (May 25), that it is studying the feasibility of a new line that could serve residents in Woodlands, Sembawang, Sengkang, Serangoon North, Whampoa, Kallang and the upcoming Greater Southern Waterfront development.
Speaking to reporters at the launch event, Senior Minister of State for Transport Janil Puthucheary said that the master plan represents the Government's commitment “to deliver the idea of 20-minute towns and 45-minute cities”.
“The key thing that is going to allow us to do that is the expansion in our rail infrastructure,” he added.
If and when the new rail line is completed, it could serve more than 400,000 households, and commuters in the northern region would have their travel time to the city centre cut by 40 minutes, LTA said.
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40 species potentially new to Singapore discovered in Bukit Timah Nature Reserve survey
Channel NewsAsia 25 May 19;
SINGAPORE: More than 40 species potentially new to Singapore have been discovered during a comprehensive survey of the Bukit Timah Nature Reserve, according to a National Parks Board (NParks) media release on Saturday (May 25).
In total, around 200 species new to the nature reserve were listed during the survey.
Of these, more than 30 species of spider and 10 species of beetle are potentially new to Singapore. Some may also be new to science, said NParks.
These include two new types of armour-plated spiders - the Paculla bukittimahensis, named after Bukit Timah and a type of jumping spider with white and gold scales - as well as a species of stick insect.
Researchers also found records of more than 160 plant species not previously listed in the nature reserve.
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Clean meat - the next big thing in Singapore’s push towards agriculture?
Singapore’s new agri-food innovation park should focus on seizing new opportunities, say RSIS’ Paul Teng, Asia BioBusiness’ Andrew Powell and Beanstalk Agtech’s Rob Hulme
Channel NewsAsia 26 May 19;
SINGAPORE: Would you eat a burger that doesn’t use meat?
Not only are plant-based alternatives sprouting in restaurant menus in Singapore, there seems to be more demand for them.
Local burger chain, Fatboy, for example recently launched an “Impossible” menu made with Impossible Food’s plant-based meat to long queues and rave reviews online.
California-based Impossible Foods is just one of the many companies growing plant-based meat in labs. These foods, also known as “clean” or “cellular”, are increasingly popular, driven by concerns around the sustainability of current meat production systems, both in terms of animal ethics and environmental impact.
As the world becomes more environmentally conscious, these trends present huge opportunities for businesses keen to venture into the food industry.
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Small businesses bear the brunt in Malaysia’s war against single-use plastic
Fadza Ishak Channel NewsAsia 26 May 19;
KUALA LUMPUR: Visit any Ramadan bazaar during the fasting month in Malaysia and one will notice a common feature: food and drinks are all packed in single-use plastic.
Be it thirst quenching beverages or mouthwatering rendang, traders deftly shove the packed items into thin, flimsy plastic bags and hand them over to shoppers. It is easy and convenient.
In general, Malaysia has achieved some success in cutting down single-use plastic, especially in terms of how fewer plastic bags are now being used in supermarkets.
Penang was the first state to introduce the no free plastic bag campaign for all days at supermarkets in 2011. In fact, the state government is mulling over a blanket ban on all single-use plastic.
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