The Online Magazine for Sustainable
Seas
May, 2001 Vol. 4 No.5
May, 2001 Vol. 4 No.5
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The Online Magazine for Sustainable
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May, 2001 Vol. 4 No.5 |
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Coastal Alert |
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Philippines World CRMP News
Agriculture Secretary Leonardo Montemayor said the orders are meant to strengthen the implementation of the Philippine Fisheries Code of 1998 in enhancing the development of the Philippine aquaculture and fisheries industry. Montemayor, a former congressman who co-authored the Fisheries Code, said the orders stemmed from in-depth consultations with fishers organizations, local government units, and the Fisheries and Aquatic Resource Management Councils (FARMCs). They cover the disposal of seized items in major fishing violations; procedures for pre-processing and processing plants, the Sanitation Standards Operating Procedures (SSOP), regulations on the exportation of fish, among others. The FAOs also focus on the establishment of BFAR’s quality control laboratories and collection of fees for examination services; the prohibition on the importation of prawns; and guidelines on the implementation of hazard analysis critical control point system. R. Ynion, Philippine Star, 05.20.01 Fish prices soar because of BSE scare “I can’t understand why fish cost so much these days when we’re a fishing town,” complains Marcelina Hebrado, 51, who lives in Quezon, Alabat Island, some14 kms from the Quezon mainland. A kilo of alumahan (mackerels), which used to cost Php40, now sells for Php110, almost as much as it would cost in Manila’s wet markets, observes Hebrado. Fancy fishes like grouper, red snapper and salmon have become a rarity on this island, and have been replaced by smaller common varieties like galunggong (scads) and hasa-hasa (mackerels). Quezon Municipal Agricultural Officer Benjie Villaflor sees market forces as the new player in the shrinking supply of fish in their locality. “There’s a strong demand for fish from as near as Lucena and Gumaca, so fish sellers can dictate higher prices,” he says. Manila, too, want more fish varieties, so the better varieties are automatically shipped out of the island. “That leaves the barangay (village) with the relatively cheaper fish classified as pangkain lang (ordinary everyday fare).” Barangay Captain (village chief) Efren Hebrado, who heard about the mad cow disease over the radio and on TV, says tangigue (Spanish mackerel), grouper and dilawan (salmon) still find their way to local markets “at much lower prices” but only as leftovers from commercial fishing vessels.” Ironically, the higher demand for fish hardly affects small fishers, he adds, as big-time fish concessionaires and middlemen corner most of the profits. He says this is largely because of the eating habits of the islanders. “People here expect fresh fish all the time, so they only buy enough for a day’s meal,” Hebrado notes. Fishers thus limit their catch so they do not end up with unsold fish. The ordinary fisher would usually call it a day after netting two or three kilos, which he sells, depending on the variety of his catch, at Php40-80 a kilo. P. Azarcon-Dela Cruz, Philippine Daily Inquirer, 05.06.01 Nation celebrates Month of the Ocean, Farmers
and Fishers’ Month Various groups, meanwhile, celebrated the Month of the Ocean by organizing coastal clean-ups in different areas around the country. RP carrageenan exports earn US$40 million Carrageenan is a hydrocolloid, an agricultural byproduct derived from seaweeds, which serves as an emulsion, stabilizer, suspending and gelling agent, and fat replacer. In the food industry, it is the third most widely used hydrocolloid, after starches and gelatins. Seaweed exporters said exports have risen since the mad cow scare swept many parts of the world and boosted demand for semi-refined carrageenan, which is now increasingly being used as bonding material for various products, which was traditionally made from cow’s bones and skin. The Philippines currently supplies about 10% of the world market for dried seaweed, a sector dominated by China, South Korea and Japan. The island-region of Mindanao, particularly Western kMindanao and the island-provinces of Sulu, Basilan and Tawi-Tawi, produces more than 70 percent of the country’s total output. Other major production areas are Southern Tagalog, which includes Palawan and Mindanao, and the islands of Cebu and Bohol in Central Visayas. GEM Program, Philippine Star, 05.18.01; JBN in Sun.Star Cebu, 05.14.01 DA pushes drive vs illegal fishing The program, dubbed “Bantay Dagat Hotline”, has organized a team in Alaminos, Pangasinan to monitor, and to receive and respond to reports of, illegal fishing in the rich waters of Lingayen Gulf. A hotline number, (072) 242 7187, has been installed for complaints and information about illegal fishing. The program has provided the team a patrol boat equipped with a global positioning system. Similar boats will be distributed to the other coastal municipalities of Pangasinan, such as San Fabian, Dagupan City, Binmaley, Lingayen, Labrador, Sual, Alaminos City, Bani, Anda, Bolinao and Agno. The DA plans to set up similar Bantay Dagat operations in other coastal areas around the country. MTV, Manila Bulletin, 05.20.01 DA-BFAR plans aquaculture biotech lab Negotiations are underway for the installation of modern biotechnology
equipment and machineries at the Southeast Asian Fisheries Development
Center Aquaculture Department (SEAFDEC-AQD) in Tigbauan, Iloilo. Under
the plan, planned, SEAFDEC-AQD’s biotechnology facility will eventually
house four laboratories:
Fisher’s son tops Philippine bar exams Zuńiga, 25 and the youngest of the three siblings, recalled his parents, being poor fishers, worked hard to provide him and his sisters a comfortable life. He said his parents’ industry paid off when they later acquired a small fishpond in their village and when they all finished school. “When I was between 5 and 7 years old, it was very seldom that my father would join us for meals, particularly supper, because he was in the river fishing so that we could have our meals and school allowance the next day,” Zuńiga said. “But they were patient and determined to give us a good life, and they succeeded.” C. Reyes, Philippine Daily Inquirer, 05.06.01 Dynamite maker injured by own explosives The victim, who makes dynamite for a living, was reportedly hurt
in a blast caused by his mishandling of the explosives. Ironically, reports say the victim, a fisher, never engaged in dynamite fishing. L.L. Villanueva, Cebu Daily News, 05.12.01 Number of Donsol whale shark watchers up Tourists flocked to the area after tourism officials reported than more than 40 whale sharks were spotted in the area. The presence of the friendly and gentle whale sharks in Donsol has become a major attraction for the normally sleepy town facing Burias Pass in Bicol. Whale sharks have also been sighted in the waters of Pilar, Castilla, and Magallanes in Sorsogon and Pio Duran and Legazpi City in Albay. Donsol has been declared a sanctuary of the world’s biggest fish. R. Nasol, Philippine Daily Inquirer, 05.10.01
The decision, the first time the Commission has addressed the links between the environment and human rights, was made at its annual meeting which ended today in Geneva. Mary Robinson, the High Commissioner for Human Rights, and Klaus Toepfer, the Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme, have been invited to organize an international seminar to explore how environmental and human rights principles can be strengthened. Toepfer welcomed the historic move saying: "Many of the fundamental rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights have significant environmental dimensions". "Environmental conditions clearly help to determine the extent to which people enjoy their basic rights to life, health, adequate food and housing, and traditional livelihood and culture. It is time to recognize that those who pollute or destroy the natural environment are not just committing a crime against nature, but are violating human rights as well," he said. "Human rights cannot be secured in a degraded or polluted environment," said Toepfer. "The fundamental right to life is threatened by soil degradation and deforestation and by exposures to toxic chemicals, hazardous wastes, and contaminated drinking water." "For this reason, we believe that the successful implementation of environmental treaties on biodiversity, climate change, desertification and chemicals can make a major contribution to protecting human rights. We would welcome the Commission's continued work on the environmental dimensions of human rights, including enforcement and compliance," he said. Protect the high seas before its too late, governments
urged The report, The Status of Natural Resources on the High Seas, says that the deep sea, and the creatures that live within it, are threatened by unregulated fishing and oil exploration, CO2 dumping, biotechnology, and the exploitation of gas hydrates and hydrothermal vent heat. Particularly threatened are deep-sea corals in the Atlantic, which have been damaged by industrialized fishing trawlers that drag heavy chains over reefs; the orange roughy (Hoplostethus atlanticus) fish in the South Pacific and Indian Ocean; whales; dolphins; and porpoises. The report calls for international agreements to be put in place to regulate the management, protection and exploitation of high seas beyond the 200 nautical-mile limits of the exclusive economic zones (EEZ) of coastal states. ''Increasing levels of fishing and oil exploration are harming the fragile biodiversity of the deep seas,'' said Dr. Simon Cripps, Head of WWF's Marine Programme. ''Being open to unregulated access has made the high seas increasingly susceptible to over-exploitation. The enhanced capacity and reach of fishing fleets, and advanced technologies that can enable oil drilling to take place up to depths of at least 2,000 meters, put the sensitive marine life of the high seas at great risk.'' About half of the Earth's surface is covered by high seas that are outside national jurisdiction. Within them exists marine life that is rich in diversity as well as scientific and geologically significant deep-sea coral reefs, seamounts, deep-sea trenches and fish stocks. The WWF/IUCN report, written by specialists from the Southampton Oceanography Centre in the United Kingdom and Dr. Charlotte de Fontaubert, calls on states to assess the magnitude of these resources, the threats to them, their potential for sustainable use and action to protect biodiversity. Governments give green light to phase-out of
world's most hazardous chemicals Klaus Toepfer, the Executive Director of UNEP under whose auspices the treaty was negotiated, said: "Persistent organic pollutants threaten the health and well-being of humans and wildlife in every region of the world. It is therefore vital that, after adopting and signing the Convention in Stockholm, governments follow up quickly by ratifying the treaty so it can enter into force by 2004 at the latest," he said. Fifty ratifications are required to make the agreement legally binding. The agreement, covering a dozen persistent organic pollutants (POPs), has been welcomed by the indigenous people of the Arctic. The pollutants concerned, which include pesticides, industrial chemicals and hazardous by-products of combustion, are known to become concentrated in the fats of Arctic animals and to build up in the breast milk of nursing mothers. The 12 initial POPs are aldrin, chlordane, DDT, dieldrin, endrin, heptachlor, mirex, toxaphene, polychlorinated biphenols (PCBs), hexachlorobenzene, dioxins and furans. Of all the pollutants released into the environment every year by human activity, POPs are among the most dangerous. They are highly toxic, causing an array of adverse effects, notably death, disease, and birth defects, among humans and animals. Specific effects can include cancer, allergies and hypersensitivity, damage to the central and peripheral nervous systems, reproductive disorders, and disruption of the immune system. These highly stable compounds can last for years or decades before breaking down. They circulate globally through a process known as the "grasshopper effect". POPs released in one part of the world can, through a repeated (and often seasonal) process of evaporation, deposit, evaporation, deposit, be transported through the atmosphere to regions far away from the original source. In addition, POPs concentrate in living organisms through
another process called bioaccumulation. Though not
soluble in water, POPs are readily absorbed in
fatty tissue, where concentrations can become magnified by up to 70,000
times the background levels. Fish, predatory birds, mammals, and humans are high up the food chain and so absorb the greatest
concentrations. When they travel, the POPs travel with them. As a
result of these two processes, POPs can
be found in people and animals living in regions such
as the Arctic, thousands of kilometers from any major
POPs source While the control measures will apply to an initial list of 12 chemicals, a POPs Review Committee will consider additional candidates for the POPs list on a regular basis. This will ensure that the treaty remains dynamic and responsive to new scientific findings. Most of the 12 chemicals are subject to an immediate ban. However, a health-related exemption has been granted for DDT, which is still needed in many countries to control malarial mosquitoes. This will permit governments to protect their citizens from malaria -- a major killer in many tropical regions -- until they are able to replace DDT with chemical and non-chemical alternatives that are cost-effective and environmentally friendly. IMO agrees on timetable for phase-out of single-hull
tankers Double-hull tankers offer greater protection of the environment from pollution in certain types of accident. All new oil tankers built since 1996 are required to have double hulls. The new phase-out timetable, which will be enshrined in a revised regulation 13G of the MARPOL Convention on the prevention of marine pollution, is one of a range of post-Erika measures tabled by IMO. The new regulation will enter into force in September 2002, the earliest possible time permitted under the MARPOL Convention. Further information: IMO:
http://www.imo.org. Coastal
Guide News, 05.18.01 CITES calls on airlines to reconsider boycotts
of wildlife shipments Reacting to last month’s announcement by Lufthansa
that it will no longer transport animals captured
in the wild for commercial purposes,
Wijnstekers pointed out that the economies and rural
communities of many developing countries are highly dependent
on natural resources, including wildlife. According to Wijnstekers, a trend toward bans would undermine both animal welfare and conservation efforts by pushing shipments onto second-tier airlines and charters, where conditions may be worse and flight times longer. When trade is conducted by quality commercial airlines, the Live Animal Regulations set down by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) specifying ventilation, space, packing, feeding and other conditions minimize the animals' discomfort. Where these guidelines are not implemented or are proven to be insufficient, IATA and CITES are required to take steps to improve the situation. However, as studies in a number of European countries have shown, air transport mortality rates are in fact low. CITES was adopted in 1973 in response to concerns about the overexploitation of many vulnerable species as a result of unregulated international trade. The Convention gives producer and consumer countries joint responsibility for managing wildlife sustainably and preventing illegal trade. CITES prohibits commercial international trade (and regulates non-commercial trade) in plant and animal species that are threatened with extinction and are or may be affected by trade. These species are listed in Appendix I, which includes the snow leopard, the tiger, and other big cats; many rare primates such as the chimpanzee and the gorilla; almost all large parrots; most crocodiles; all sea turtles; slipper orchids and many cacti – in total about 800 species. The Convention uses a system of permits to ensure that international trade is sustainable for many species that are not threatened with extinction but could become so if trade were not strictly regulated. These species are listed in Appendix II, which includes all other big cats, primates, cetaceans, parrots, crocodiles, cacti and orchids, plus several carnivorous plants -- in total, about 30,000 species. To obtain the necessary permits for export, it must be shown that trade is not detrimental to the long-term survival of the species. A third Appendix includes species subject to regulation within a particular country and for which the cooperation of other member countries is sought to help regulate trade. International conference rejects ocean dumping
of mine waste Scientists, NGO representatives, government officials and affected community members came together from the Asia-Pacific region, North America and the U.K. to discuss the ocean dumping of mine waste. Companies like US-based Newmont are not permitted to practice STD in their home countries. Instead they cynically exploit the people and resources of countries in the Asia-Pacific region which have less rigorous environmental regulations, said Shanna Langdon of Project Underground, a mining industry watchdog based in California, USA. The international conference discussed case studies from STD mines operating throughout the Asia-Pacific region. These revealed threats to marine resources, negative health impacts, devastation of coastal economies, and scientific inaccuracies. The mining industry does not have the science to back up its claims that STD is environmentally safe. In fact there is strong evidence to the contrary at STD mines in Indonesia and Papua New Guinea," said Igor O Neill of the Mineral Policy Institute, Australia. Tailings from the Misima mine in PNG have smothered the ocean floor over an area of approximately 20 km2. Satellite imagery of PNG s other STD mine on the island of Lihir shows a plume of mine waste which fills the bay, continued Mr O'Neill In Indonesia, two mining companies have already applied STD, Newmont Minahasa Raya and Newmont Nusa Tenggara. At both mines, STD has caused serious effects and suffering to the local communities, said Chalid Muhammad, Coordinator of JATAM, the Indonesian Mining Advocacy Network. Furthermore the tailings pipes at both mines have failed on several occasions and spilled their contents both on land and in the ocean. This fact shows that the STD method is not as safe as Newmont claims in its promotion after all. said Mr Muhammad. The conference concluded with a declaration, which calls for an international ban on STD, and demands that mining companies accept liability for the impacts of this environmentally and socially destructive technique on coastal communities. The mining industry is currently attempting to open dozens of STD
mines across the Asia Pacific Region. Mineral
Policy Institute. EC launches proposals on how to fight marine
pollution
The proposals can be downloaded at: http://www.europa.eu.int/eur-lex/en/oj/2001/ce12020010424en.html. Coastal Guide News, 05.09.01 CA longline fishers threaten endangered sea turtlesSan Francisco, CA, May 2, 2001 — Facing new restrictions in the waters of Hawai’i, a fleet of longline fishing vessels are relocating to California to avoid a federal judge's decision to enforce protections for the endangered leatherback sea turtle. In response, Turtle Island Restoration Network and the Center for Biological Diversity, represented by Earthjustice, filed suit in the US District Court here today asking the National Marine Fisheries Service to close this regulatory loophole and enforce the Endangered Species Act. The California-based pelagic longline fleet fishes primarily for tuna and swordfish using monofilament lines up to 30 miles long and carrying thousands of hooks. In addition to the fish they target, these longlines are known to ensnare the critically endangered leatherback turtle, as well as loggerhead, olive ridley, and green turtles. Each year the longliners also entangle seabirds and sharks. "The giant, Pacific leatherback is on the verge of extinction due to commercial fishing operations,” explained Todd Steiner, director, Turtle Island Restoration Network. “If we don't modify our fishing activities, the ancient leatherback, which out-survived the dinosaurs, may be the first of many species to disappear forever, including the many overfished species of fish on which we depend on for food.” Scientific data shows that the leatherback sea turtle is in imminent danger of extinction in the Pacific. A recent paper in Nature (June 2000) predicts the species will go extinct in 5-10 years without reductions in adult mortality from fishing activities. “The National Marine Fisheries Service must follow the law and consider the impacts of this fishery on protected species under the Endangered Species Act, ” said Deborah Sivas of Earthjustice. “The agency should also move quickly to come into compliance with the High Seas Fishing Compliance Act of 1995 which prohibits permitting of activity that ‘undermines the effectiveness of international conservation and management measures’.” In April 2001, Hawai`i federal district court Judge David A. Ezra, ordered the closure of the Hawai`i-based longline swordfish fleet and reduced fishing of the tuna fleet to reduce the longliners' impacts on threatened and endangered sea turtles. Judge Ezra had previously issued an injunction closing millions of miles of Pacific Ocean to longline fishing, noting, "the harm to the turtles is incalculable." "Rather than comply with the Hawaiian injunction, the longliners have chosen to move their operations to California, where the can operate free of environmental review," said Brendan Cummings, an attorney for the Center for Biological Diversity. "The time has come for the National Marine Fisheries Service to close this loophole and help save the leatherbacks from extinction." Leatherbacks nest in Mexico and Costa Rica in the eastern Pacific, and, in the western Pacific, in Malaysia and Irian Jaya. Although in 1980 it was estimated that there were 126,000 adult female leatherbacks in the eastern Pacific alone, scientists estimate that there are less than 3,000 leatherbacks of both genders left in the eastern Pacific. The western Pacific nesting populations have also been devastated, and are near extinction. Network seeks national standards to protect fish
and fishermen in US The testimony was presented at the first hearing on S. 637, "The IFQ Act of 2001, before the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee's Subcommittee on Oceans and Fisheries." Presiding was Subcommittee Chair, Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-ME), who introduced the bill with Sen. John McCain (R-AZ). "The IFQ Act of 2001 is a good start," testified Lee Crockett, Executive Director of the Marine Fish Conservation Network. "The standards contained in this bill would go a long way toward protecting the public's interest, if an IFQ program were established in a fishery. However, if a national IFQ program is set up, then explicit legislative standards are necessary to protect the marine environment, fishermen and fishing communities." Crockett urged that the bill "be improved with language providing greater specificity and accountability." IFQ programs, such as those the IFQ Act would authorize, are controversial because they allow privatization of a public resource. They parcel out shares of a particular fishery, or exclusive privileges to fish there, to a limited number of individuals, including companies. Supporters promote IFQs as a way to address the growing number of overfished species by reducing the number of vessels fishing. "Reducing the number of fishing vessels has not historically led to a reduction in fish caught since the remaining vessels simply increase their catches," said Gerry Leape, Marine Program Director of the National Environmental Trust, a Network Member. "Without national mandatory conservation standards requiring greater protection of fish and their habitats, IFQ programs are more likely to impede conservation efforts, rather than enhance them." The bill contains language requiring that IFQ programs promote "sustainable management of the fishery," without defining what that means. The Network recommends IFQ programs be required both to meet all of the conservation requirements of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, the primary U.S. laws governing marine fisheries, and to provide additional conservation benefits to the fishery. Crockett said the bill should "guard against overfishing, buffer against scientific uncertainty, reduce bycatch, and protect essential fish habitat and the ecosystem. Additionally, an independent review of the program is necessary to insure conservation is enhanced." Fishermen in traditional, small-scale fisheries fear IFQs would allow big companies to squeeze them out of their livelihood or take their boats and employ them as hired hands, which has happened where IFQ programs have been tried without the safeguards the Network is advocating. The Network's seven proposed standards for IFQs are as follows:
Changes sought in US hatchery system The Council's recently released report, "Saving A System in Peril," was created by a 23-person steering committee comprised of fisheries professionals from organizations as diverse as BASS (Bass Anglers Sportsman Society), Pure Fishing, Trout Unlimited, American Sportfishing Association, Native American Fish and Wildlife Society, National Aquaculture Association and state and federal agencies. "Although there have been previous national efforts to coalesce
stakeholders' views about the National Fish Hatchery System, none
has been as inclusive nor as consensus-driven as this effort by the
Council," said FWS Acting Director Marshall Jones. "The
report is a critical document that will be used as the Service creates
a strategic plan for the system." In its report, the Council acknowledges the National Fish Hatchery System's roles in meeting federal mitigation obligations, restoring and maintaining native fisheries, and participating in the recovery of threatened and endangered aquatic species. The report also states that the system is uniquely positioned to influence and benefit state and tribal fishery programs, fulfill tribal trust responsibilities, and provide technical assistance to private aquaculture. The report notes that the overriding considerations for fisheries conservation and management are:
In addition, the report emphasizes the need for the Service to create a national strategy not only for the hatchery system but for its entire fisheries program. HP recycling program helps keep computer parts out of landfillsPalo Alto, Calif., May 21, 2001 -- Hewlett-Packard Company announced this month a service that allows consumers and businesses to conveniently recycle unwanted computers and equipment from any manufacturer without adding to landfills. The service is part of HP's Planet Partners Program, which includes a broad range of environmental and recycling initiatives. Accessed via the Web at www.hp.com/go/recycle, the service created by HP includes pickup, transportation, evaluation for reuse or donation, and environmentally sound recycling for products ranging from PCs and printers to servers and scanners. Pricing is based on the quantity and type of product to be returned. All computer equipment received will first be evaluated for reuse. Functioning products will be donated to charitable organizations that accept used equipment or will enter into other reuse channels. The remaining equipment will be recycled through a process designed to maximize product re-use and material recovery. According to the National Safety Council, the number of PCs that are deemed obsolete in 2002 will exceed the number of new PCs shipped. PCs are only one category of the vast quantity of computer products that are replaced or become obsolete every year, yet there are few environmentally sound options for consumers and businesses to recycle unneeded equipment. To address the issue, HP selected Micro Metallics Corporation, a
wholly owned subsidiary of Noranda Inc. (TSE:NOR), a Canadian mining
and metals company, to work with HP to develop a one-of-a-kind process
that evaluates in-coming equipment, redeploys working equipment, extracts
parts that can be re-used and recycles remaining products and components.
Together, HP and Noranda manage and operate the state-of-the-art facility where this recycling process takes place. This facility, located in Roseville, Calif., currently processes up to 4 million pounds a month of used equipment from HP and other corporate customers' facilities. HP and Noranda are planning to open a similar facility in Nashville, Tenn., in July. A similar take-back service will be offered in major European countries beginning June 1 and in Canada later this year. Programs will also be developed in Latin America and Asia in response to customer needs. The new service complements other HP environmental programs. For example, the HP Planet Partners LaserJet supplies program, in operation since 1992, has helped customers recycle over 39 million HP LaserJet cartridges worldwide, which represents approximately 50,000 tons of material diverted from landfill. Report reveals: Israel's coast severely deteriorated Despite regulations designed to protect the coast, conflicts concerning jurisdiction between national and local authorities has led to continued degradation. The Minister for the Environment pledged to lobby in the Israel Knesset for additional legislature to protect the shoreline of the country. Further information from Dr. D'vora Ben Shaul, The Jerusalem Post,
Israel, e-mail dbs@actcom.co.il. Coastal
Guide News,
05.18.01 "We need a new kind of research organization-one that produces brief pieces that are designed for use by the media, can be read by busy policymakers, and can be easily distributed on the Internet,” said Brown. The Institute plans to have three primary products: a book entitled Eco-Economy: Building an Economy for the Earth, a series of four-page Earth Policy Alerts, and similarly brief Eco-Economy Updates that identify major milestones or setbacks in building an eco-economy. The purpose of Eco-Economy is to describe the new economy -- to provide a vision of what it will look like, how it will work, and how to build it. By definition, an eco-economy is designed to mesh with Earth's ecosystem instead of disrupting and destroying it. The book will contain detailed descriptions of the policy tools that can be used in this effort, such as a restructuring of the tax system that will simultaneously reduce income taxes and raise taxes on environmentally destructive activities. The Earth Policy Alerts will be short analyses of environmental issues to be disseminated to a worldwide list of editors and reporters. The monthly Eco-Economy Updates will deal with new initiatives that are affecting progress toward an eco-economy. Based on a worldwide monitoring system, they will include initiatives that contribute to building an eco-economy, such as a major commitment by a government to develop its wind energy resources or to stabilize population, as well as actions that detract from the effort, such as a governmental decision to allow clear-cutting of a forest. Brown challenges the communications media to assume responsibility for helping the world make the transition to an eco-economy. "It will take an enormous amount of information dissemination to guide the transition to an eco-economy," said Brown. "Editors may not relish this assignment, but the reality is that there is no other institution that has the capacity to disseminate quickly the information needed to guide the transition to a sustainable economy in the time that is available. Study identifies serious environmental damage
from netcage aquaculture The 150-page report, Impacts of Freshwater and Marine Aquaculture on the Environment: Knowledge and Gaps, examined over 200 Canadian and international studies, and was obtained by the David Suzuki Foundation through an access-to-information request, said Jim Fulton, the Foundation's executive director. "The information in this report is alarming, but what is equally alarming is the lack of scientific study by the Canadian government to assess the risks of netcage aquaculture on wild stocks and possibly on human health," Fulton said. "The report documents many published studies regarding drug residues found in wild fish and shellfish collected in the vicinity of marine fish farms, including levels that exceeded acceptable levels for human consumption. This means that fish and shellfish taken near these salmon farms posed a threat to the health of those who ate them. "But it also states unequivocally that not enough research is being conducted to quantify these effects on wild stocks," he added. The report by EVS Environment Consultants of North Vancouver says: "No studies were received that exclusively assessed the transfer of disease to wild salmon populations ... Canada does not have a structured disease surveillance program to assess the prevalence of disease in wild fish. Without such a program, it is difficult, if not impossible, to determine any relationship regarding the transmittance of disease between farmed and wild finfish. "In the Pacific region specifically, bacterial kidney disease [BKD] is known as one of the single biggest problems in sea-farmed salmon, especially for chinook salmon. In fact, in 1987, Margolis and Evelyn reported that most of the marine salmon farms on the coast of British Columbia were infected with this pathogen…a heavy infestation of BKD in farmed fish will also pose considerable infectious pressure on wild fish populations." The report notes that, while much research has been conducted on disease in aquaculture, mostly by industry, little work has been done to understand the ecological ramifications of diseases and the transfer to wild stocks. "The impacts of escaped cultured finfish in the natural environment are also not understood well. Further studies need to be conducted to advance understanding of salmonid behaviour upon escapement, in terms of migration and behaviour at spawning habitats. Australian oceans study brings the deep to life Using sophisticated echo-sounders and deep ocean video cameras, the research voyage was part of a study of marine resources that will underpin a new approach to ocean planning and management in southern Australian waters. The voyage made the deepest sampling trawls so far conducted in Australian waters and has given scientists the opportunity to evaluate and refine advanced underwater survey techniques. Novel sampling equipment including deepwater video was used to establish environmental conditions and the associated marine life, revealing fish and invertebrates new to science as well as reefs and unique canyons. The research was conducted during a seven-week, $2.7 million research program on board the CSIRO research vessel Southern Surveyor. The program was funded by CSIRO and the National Oceans Office as part of the latest investigation of marine life in waters off Tasmania, Victoria, New South Wales and South Australia. CSIRO marine ecologist and project leader Alan Butler says scientists aboard the Southern Surveyor used special acoustic mapping techniques to obtain images of seafloor topography never seen in detail before. "In the marine world, our knowledge is strongest at or near the 57,000 kilometre long coastline. Out on the continental shelf, and in the much deeper basins, technology, time and resources have been the impediment to building a profile of Australia's marine back yard - the physical conditions as well as life in the deep. At ocean depths below 1,500 metres - which is more than 70 per cent of the entire Australian marine jurisdiction - very little is known. There are considerable difficulties and limitations for scientists researching in these deep ocean environments," he explains, "but from this cruise alone, the way we can increase our knowledge of ocean conditions and marine life has jumped substantially." He says that under international obligations, Australia has until 2004 to build a basic understanding of its marine resources over the 16 million square kilometers of ocean for which it has responsibility. The research voyage was commissioned by the Hobart-based National Oceans Office (NOO) to help provide baseline data and prove scientific methods for deep ocean studies. It was funded by the NOO and CSIRO Marine Research, and the research work done by CSIRO in collaboration with the Australian Geological Survey Organisation (AGSO). Neale the white shark shows the way John Stevens and Barry Bruce tagged the juvenile male shark off Port Albert, Victoria on March 2. The shark was named after local commercial fisher Neale Blunden, who assisted in capturing the shark. Neale was captured in snapper fishing grounds under a permit issued by the Department of Natural Resources and Environment. He was brought aboard the vessel Sea Pride, fitted with a satellite tag and then released in a six minute operation. Barring damage to the 20cm long tag, or accidental capture of Neale, the scientists hope the project will enable them to follow Neale's daily and seasonal movement patterns for up to a year. "Applying satellite tags is a difficult process and tags are expensive, but this type of tracking is allowing us to build a picture of the movement and behaviour of white sharks in Australian waters," said Stevens. "For example, we hope to establish how closely the shark's movement patterns are aligned to those of the snapper schools where he has been feeding and how far he ranges when these schools disperse," he said. The project is being conducted by CSIRO Marine Research with assistance from the Melbourne Aquarium and Discovery Channel. The work is part of a larger study on white sharks in southern Australia funded under the Natural Heritage Trust through Environment Australia's Marine Species Protection Program. Twelve months ago, the same research team tagged a juvenile female shark they called Heather. Heather's tag transmitted for 46 days, when scientists believe she damaged the transmitter's aerial, and contact was lost. During that period she traveled approximately 800 km. Since Neale was tagged, the scientists have received signals every 2-3 days and during that time the shark has travelled more than 800 kilometres. Neale swam up and down a 75 km section of the Victorian coast at an average distance of 15 km from shore for the first seven weeks of the track, headed north along the Victorian coast on April 19 at an average speed of 3 km per hour and 5-6 km from shore before moving offshore and turning south, and then swam south, across Bass Strait, reaching northern Tasmanian waters on 26 April. The scientists hope the tracking project will also provide some insight into whether white shark populations in various parts of Australia are linked. Study finds wind, currents play key role where young fish settleCollege Station, TX, May 24, 2001 — Red drum larvae face a lot of challenges traveling from the Gulf of Mexico, where they are hatched, into the estuaries that serve as their nursery grounds. A recently completed Texas Sea Grant-funded study examined the role physical factors, such as winds, tides and currents, play in moving red drum larvae from the Gulf into the nursery grounds of Aransas and Corpus Christi bays. Doctoral student Cheryl Brown said the study found physical factors play a key role in explaining why red drum larvae only settle in certain parts of the bays. Instead of evenly distributing red drum larvae around the bays, the winds, tides and currents tend to concentrate the larvae in certain areas, she said. "There tends to be high settlement where sea grasses are in close proximity to the inlet when there is also a high supply of larvae," she said. Researchers say the results of this study can be applied to other marine animals -- such as Gulf shrimp -- that spawn in the Gulf but rely on estuaries as nursery grounds. Also, when combined with the results of other research, the findings suggest that variations in currents and winds may cause fluctuations in the size of fish populations along the entire Gulf coast. Using a computer model to simulate the exchange of water and fish larvae through Aransas Pass, researchers found that many of the "fish larvae" settled in an area of sea grasses just inside the pass. Successful larvae use pathways close to shore to enter the estuaries, Brown said. Researchers also found that 60 percent of the fish larvae make it into the inlet at some time. "This means that this accumulation of larvae next to the shore and their transport down the coast is an efficient way of getting them into the bays," Brown said. "We didn't expect that many to make it in. We were pretty surprised." Researchers were also surprised to find an abundance of "fish larvae" close to the coastline. "We found that we need to move inshore," she said. "We need to study the distribution of larvae in the surf zone. In addition, we think that this may be a common transport property for other inlets." Texas A&M University oceanographer George Jackson said the winds, tides and currents concentrate the larvae near inlet openings and then the larvae are slurped through the passes in pulses. The estuary acts as a big pump, taking water from close to shore, expelling it through the pass in a jet and then sucking the water back into the inlet, he said. Brown said this information could help fishery managers better identify essential fish habitats that are important to preserve. By knowing where tides and currents will carry fish larvae, managers can protect these areas as well as access to them. This study is part of an ongoing effort combining biological information and insights with ocean physics to further the understanding of variability in fish populations. The National Sea Grant College Program is a partnership of university, government and industry, focusing on marine research, education and advisory service. The Sea Grant Program is a practical, broad-based effort to promote better understanding and use of marine resources through research, education, extension and information transfer. Sunscreen chemicals cause health problems The substances, benzophenon, octylmethoxycinnamate and methylbenzilidene camphor can interfere with the normal functions of estrogen and have been linked to breast cancer in humans. Evidence that they are a health concern from sunscreens is still lacking, but, as a precaution, the Danish government has ordered the removal of many well-known sunscreen creams from the market including Elisabeth Arden, Biotherm and Nivea Sun. The Body shop has also decided to remove its own brand from the shelves. The Dutch Cosmetic Association is currently drawing up a list of all creams containing these substances. In Britain, the Cosmetic Toiletry & Perfumery Association, which represents sunscreen manufacturers, has done a study, not yet published, that shows no effect from these chemicals in rats. Although the Swiss researchers are not advising people to ditch sunscreens completely, they do suggest that sunblocks like zinc oxide might make a healthier alternative. Anyone worried about their own sunscreen should consult the contents on the side of packaging. For more information: Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology http://www.unizh.ch/phar/devtox/news.htm.
Coastal Guide News, 05.09.01
CLEAR-7 proposes environment desk in police stations CLEAR-7 is composed of government agencies, sector representatives (tourism, fisherfolk), and non-governmental organizations concerned with the effective enforcement of laws related to coastal resource management in Central Visayas, particularly in the waters between Bohol and Cebu. Mar Guidote, CLEAR-7 Coordinator of the Coastal Resource Management Project (CRMP), said that, currently, the police are not able to respond promptly to reports of environment-related crimes. This is probably because many policemen are not trained to enforce environmental laws, or are simply not aware of their role as enforcers of these laws, said Guidote. “Many policemen do not realize, for instance, that coral extraction is against the law,” he observed. “For them, a coral is just a rock, and there is nothing wrong about taking it from the sea.” Guidote noted further that environment-related cases usually land in the PNP’s general assignment section, which is often manned by rookies. The enforcement of environmental laws requires special training, he pointed out. “If an environment desk is established – at the local (municipal or city), regional and national levels – the enforcement of laws related to environmental protection would be more efficient.” LAP, SunStar Cebu, 05.11.01 Need for public consultation on marine sanctuaries
stressed Casimiro Mascardo, who is from Ginatilan, said the marine sanctuary would help conserve their fisheries, which have become depleted because of the intrusion of commercial fishing in their municipal waters. “It would probably take us from six months to one year to make other fishermen, especially those who have been at it longer than we have, understand,” he conceded. Ma. Paz Roble, municipal local government operations officer in Santander, underscored the need for public consultations. She said a proposed marine protected area in her town was met with opposition because local fishers did not see its benefits. With CRMP’s help, she recalled, the Santander government embarked early this year on an information campaign on coastal resource management, thus turning public opinion in favor of marine conservation. CRMP has conducted a series of workshops on coastal resource management in different areas in Cebu Province. LAP in Sun.Star Cebu, 04.29.01 |
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