The Online Magazine for Sustainable
Seas
September, 2003, Vol.6 No. 9
September, 2003, Vol.6 No. 9
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The Online Magazine for Sustainable
Seas
September, 2003, Vol.6 No. 9 |
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Coastal Alert |
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Compiled by Liberty P. Alino
Philippines Philippines Toxic substances found in bay RP to resume aquaculture exports to EU The European Commission found as “adequate” the Philippine government’s monitoring on the safety of aquaculture export goods. The Philippine government recently bought equipment that detects harmful chemical residues in aquaculture products. Malcolm Sarmiento, executive director of the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR), said the Elisa equipment can detect toxic and hazardous chemicals like nitrofurans. Last July, the European Commission suspended imports of aquaculture products from the Philippines for the failure of the country to monitor the presence of harmful chemicals in the goods. Export revenues from aquaculture products to Europe last year amounted to US $10 million. --From Rocel C. Felix, The Philippine Star, 09.14.03 Tuna sector upbeat despite trade restrictionsGENERAL SANTOS—Despite international competition and growing concerns over resource sustainability, the Philippine tuna industry is optimistic about its growth potentials if government continues to support the sector. In the 5th National Tuna congress held this month, Trade Secretary Manuel Roxas said government is “doing all it can” to make the tuna industry more competitive despite international trade restrictions. A number of foreign firms have expressed interest in investing in the tuna industry in Mindanao, according to Mindanao Business Council. Among them are firms from China, Malaysia, New Guinea and Indonesia. Representatives of the firms attended the 5th National Tuna Congress in General Santos. He proposed that the tuna industry adopt a “cooperative marketing and procurement system” that will allow local export-oriented processing companies to collectively market their products as a single brand. The system will also enable companies to jointly purchase equipment abroad, resulting in more savings for the firms, he said. In the same meeting, Agriculture Secretary Luis Lorenzo reminded companies that tuna is a finite resource and requires effective management. –From Luis Mendoza Jr., Manila Bulletin, 09.14.03 Doughnuts for tilapiaPANGIL, LAGUNA — Tilapia raisers Efren Cahapisan and wife Teresa have realized they save more by using doughnuts instead of commercial feeds. Cahapisan said they spend about P3 to P4 per kilo of doughnuts compared to P400 they need to buy 25 kilos of commercial feeds for tilapia. The doughnuts, mostly stale or excess production, come from factories in Manila. Cahapisan dries the doughnuts to prevent spoilage and to facilitate pulverization to fish feeds. –From Romulo Ponte, Philippine Daily Inquirer, 09.14.03 World Seas, lakes in the world poorly protectedMore than 100,000 protected areas, about 90 percent listed over the past 40 years, have been established across the developed and developing world. But while crucial progress is being made in conserving the world’s habitats and wildlife, a reported released by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the IUCN-World Conservation Union revealed that less than 0.5 percent of the world’s seas and oceans are protected. The report lists an estimated 4,116 marine protected areas covering over 1.6 million square kilometers. One of these sites is the Great Barrier Reef in Australia. “We cannot pat ourselves in the backs if we end up with islands of well-protected wildlife habitats and ecosystems in a sea of environmental degradation,” said UNEP Executive Director Klaus Toepfer. Environmental degradation causes marine diseases The marine coastal environment is being subjected to increasing pressures from residential, recreational and commercial development. Spills, leaks and accidents associated with oil extraction and transport create additional disturbances. The combined impacts are altering coastal marine biology, while new stresses posed by a warming and more volatile climate are contributing to the emergence of diseases across a wide range of species. The environmentalists belong to the Harvard Medical School’s Center for Health and Global Environment, the Consortium for Conservation Medicine, the Wildlife Trust and the Environmental and Energy Study Institute. –ENN, 09.09.03 Disco lights cause death of baby turlesLAGANAS, GREECE – Disco lights are luring baby turtles to their deaths on the fringes of a Greek marine park in the Mediterranean sea. Environmentalists attending the World Parks Congress in South African port of Durban say rare loggerhead turtles scramble out at night from eggs in the sand on beaches in the west Greek island of Zakynthos and instinctively head for the brightest horizon – normally the white foam of waves under the stars. But neon lights from discos and cafes along the beach at Laganas are often fatally brighter. – ENN, 09.10.03 Tourism both boon and bane in threatened areasTourism has increased by more than 100 percent between 1990 and 2000 in the world’s biodiversity hotspots, according to a report released Sept. 12 by Conservation International and the United Nations Environment Programme. Over the past decade, tourism has increased by more than 2,000 percent in both Laos and Cambodia, nearly 500 percent in South Africa, over 300 percent in Brazil, Nicaragua and El Salvador, and 128 percent in the Dominican Republic. Tourism generates 11 percent of global gross domestic product, employs 200 million people and transports nearly 700 million international travelers per year. The figure is expected to double by 2020. While economically important, tourism can also prove to be volatile to local communities. Poorly planned tourism development in biodiversity hotspots has a range of negative impacts. These include removing pristine forests for infrastructure development, pollution, introduction of invasive species, water shortages and degradation of water supplies. “By linking tourism development with biodiversity conservation and the well-being of local communities, we can develop strategies that both conserve Earth’s most endangered ecosystems and help make a significant contribution to alleviating poverty,” said Costas Christ, senior director for ecotourism at Conservation International. More than 700 threatened species unprotectedJOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA – More than 700 endangered animal species live in unprotected habitats, according to a study released during the 5th World Parks Congress held early September in the city of Durban. Among the unprotected species are 233 birds, 140 mammals and 346 amphibians. Although around 12 percent of the world’s surface is officially protected, many reserves are so-called “paper parks” that offer few safeguards to resident flora and fauna. –ENN, 09.12.03 Conservationists seek ways to save sharksJOHANNESBURG – Conservationists gathered during the 5th World Parks Congress early September to find ways to save the shark, one of the most feared predators in the oceans. Experts say governments around Africa are under increasing pressure to open their waters to large, commercial fishing fleets, which are likely to put even greater strain on shark numbers. “Increasing demands for shark products…are driving local fisheries that are largely unregulated and unmonitored,” said the World Conservation Union. Among the globally threatened are great white shark, whale shark, spotted ragged-tooth shark and several species of rays. –ENN, 09.04.03 Scientists begin census of the seasScientists from 24 nations are wrapping up preliminary field studies that will serve as basis for the most extensive project of its kind: the Census of Marine Life. The census seeks a fundamental understanding of all life that relies on the largely unexplored seas covering most of the Earth, increasingly beleaguered by pollution, overfishing and climate change. The field guide to millions of species, which is supposed to be completed in 10 years, could cost about $1 billion, much of it funded by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation and governments. — Joseph B. Verrengia, Associated Press, 09.11.03 Imported sand on beaches may hurt environmentMillions of dollars are spent on importing sand to raise beaches hit by storms, shifting currents and a rise in sea levels spurred by global warming. Environmentalists want tighter regulation of sand dredged from the seabed to create beaches in previously rocky shores, believing artificial shorelines disrupt marine ecology. Environmentalists say plants whose roots help create sand dunes and bind the beach together are often a better defense than big walls along the back of a beach. Charles Peterson, a marine expert and professor at the University of North Carolina, said worms, clams, turtles and shorebirds find it hard to adapt to sand dumped on their habitats, especially when it is of a different type. – Alister Doyle, Reuters, 09.04.03 Pakistan seeks $1 billion in damages for oil spill Workers are stepping up efforts to clean the city’s beaches, which have been closed to the public. Many of the beaches are now littered with oil-soaked sand. –From Zarar Khan, Associated Press, 09-03.03 Fishing for photos of rare or unknown deep-sea
creatures The deep sea makes up about 78 percent of the planets inhabitable volume, but little is known about most of its inhabitants, more than half of which are capable of making their own light, or bioluminescence. This scientific deficiency stems from not only a lack of exploration and study of the oceans, but also from less than ideal traditional research methods. Deep-towed nets can shred animals like jellyfish. Manned submersibles and remotely operated vehicles can deliver humans to the depths in person or virtually to observe some animals in their natural environment. But typically their lights and motors scare animals away or frighten them into unnatural behavior. To get around such problems, Dr. Edith Widder of Harbor Branch created an innovative camera system, which can operate on the seafloor automatically and unnoticed by animals. The system can detect animals nearby when they give off bioluminescent light, trigger a video camera to record the light being produced, then trn on a red light out of the animals’ normal vision range to take illuminated footage. –From ENN, 09.02.03 Past whale populations in North Atlantic underestimated Joe Roman of Harvard University and Stephen Palumbi of Stanford University's Hopkins Marine Station, in a study published in the journal Science, noted that the International Whaling Commission (IWC) estimates historic whale population levels by extrapolating from whaling logbooks. The authors say whaling logbooks “may be incomplete, intentionally underreported or fail to consider hunting loss”. Roman and Palumbi used genetics rather than whaling records to confirm the number of whales that used to exist. IWC estimates today’s fin whale population at 56,000. But a genetic comparison by Roman and Palumbi revealed that actual pre-whaling population was probably about 360,000. They also estimated pre-hunting population of minke whales at around 265,000—twice the number believed to exist today. Dr. Boris Worm of the Institute of Marine Sciences at Kiel University in Germany said the study shows that despite recent population increases, conservation efforts are still very far from the goal to allow whales to recover from exploitation. –From SeaWeb Ocean Update, 09.03.03 *International Underwater Image Festival contest open to underwater video/cinema recorders, underwater photographers, video artists, film makers, plastic artists, multimedia, schools and producers. Deadline for registration and dispatch is Oct. 30, 2003. For more information visit, www.videosub.org. *International Conference—Scientific and Policy Challenges Towards an Effective Management of the Marine Environment in Support of Regional Sustainable Development, Oct. 13-18 in Varna, Bulgaria. Visit www.io-bas.bg/cesum-bs/indexconference.htm *MERIS Users Workshop – Earth Observation ESA ESRIN, Nov. 10-14 in Rome, Italy. Visit http://envisat.int/meris_workshop/meris_intro.html |
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