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Posted by Enviroadmin
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Friday, 22 April 2011 15:08 |
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 Tomorrow, April 22nd is Earth Day!
This year, Earth Day's theme is themed after A Billion Acts of Green: our people-powered campaign to generate a billion acts of environmental service and advocacy before Rio +20.
How can you get involved in Earth Day 2011?
Pledge an Act of Green
Start your Own Earth Day Event
Attend a Local Event
For more info on events around Earth Day 2011 visit Earth Day Network
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Posted by Enviroadmin
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Tuesday, 15 March 2011 11:14 |
Compiled by the Government Communication and Information System
Date: 14 Mar 2011
Title: SA joins Japan relief efforts
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Pretoria - A team of about 50 specialists including doctors, paramedics and rescue dogs is expected to leave for earthquake ravaged Japan this evening.
The South Africa team will also be carrying about 16 tons of food, specialised equipment and camping gear, as they make their way to Japan try assist in the search for survivors of a massive earthquake and tsunami that hit the country's east coast.
Rescue SA spokesperson Ian Scher told BuaNews on Monday the team has started assembling and is now waiting for aircraft clearances.
Scher said they need about R7 million for the operation and at the moment they, standing at R4 million.
"We're still short of R3 million ... its quite an expensive operation to mount, to take so many people half way across the world to go and give assistance," he said.
The team has to have its own camp, food, rescue equipment, medication and doctors to avoid them becoming a burden on Japan's resources.
Scher said they have received funding from government, NGOs and the private sector, including Netcare, Discovery, Econet Wireless, MTN and Core Group.
Other organisations such as ER24 and Medhold were sponsoring medication and warehouses, Scher said.
Rescue SA falls under the International Search and Rescue Advisory Group (INSARAG), who coordinate rescue operations. Teams from different countries will report back on a daily basis on progress made.
A massive 9.0-magnitude earthquake and ensuing tsunami hit Japan last Friday, causing widespread destruction and leaving more than 10 000 people dead and thousands missing.
As the nation struggled with the devastation wrought by the twin disasters of a shattered land and a surging sea, tales of terror, death and miraculous survival also emerged.
There is still the threat of a nuclear meltdown, and the first in a series of planned blackouts to conserve power has begun, a third reactor at a nuclear power plant lost its cooling capacity, raising fears of a meltdown.
The stock market plunged over the likelihood of huge losses by Japanese industries including big names such as Toyota and Honda. - BuaNews-Xinhua
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Posted by Enviroadmin
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Tuesday, 15 March 2011 11:12 |
Compiled by the Government Communication and Information System
Date: 14 Mar 2011
Title: Too early to tell Japan quake's full impact
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Johannesburg - It was too early to tell what effect last week's earthquake in Japan will have on the South African economy, Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan said on Monday.
"It will have some impact. It is too early to assess," he said of Friday's tragedy that saw thousands being killed and just as many nationals missing, in the world's third largest economy.
A day after the 9.0 magnitude earthquake and tsunami, an explosion occurred at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant, destroying the roof and walls of the building of the No. 1 reactor's outer container.
An explosion also occurred at the Cosmo Oil refinery in Chiba Prefecture following the massive quake. On Monday, there was an explosion at the plant's No. 3 reactor.
Crippled by Friday's massive earthquake and tsunami, workers have been battling to stave off multiple reactor meltdowns at the Fukushima plant. Over 180 000 people have been evacuated from the area, and up to 160 may have been exposed to radiation, latest figures show.
"Right now, it is important to extend our solidarity to the people of Japan. Perhaps in a couple of weeks we will know the extent thereof," said Gordhan, who was addressing students at the Investment Forum of the Association of Black Securities and Investment Professionals Student Chapter (ABSIP) at Wits University.
Meanwhile, a team of about 50 specialists including doctors, paramedics and rescue dogs is expected to leave for Japan this evening. The South African team will carry about 16 tons of food, specialised equipment and camping gear, as they make their way to Japan to try and assist in the search for survivors.
The Japanese stock market has plunged over the likelihood of huge losses that would be incurred, including work stoppages by big names such as Toyota and Honda. - BuaNews
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Posted by Enviroadmin
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Monday, 24 May 2010 00:43 |
In 2009 hundreds of millions of people around the world showed their support by turning off their lights for one hour.
Earth Hour 2010 will continue to be a global call to action to every individual, every business and every community. A call to stand up, to show leadership and be responsible for our future.
Pledge your support here and turn off your lights for one hour, Earth Hour, 8.30pm, Saturday 27th March 2010.
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Posted by Enviroadmin
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Monday, 24 May 2010 00:42 |
Source: http://www.ens-newswire.com/
DOHA, Qatar, March 23, 2010 (ENS) - There will be no sales of stockpiled elephant ivory for at least the next three years, decided government delegates from 175 countries at the ongoing triennial meeting of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species, CITES, in Doha.
Zambia withdrew its request to sell legal government stockpiles of ivory during the debate Monday over its proposal to allow a one-time sale.
Still, Zambia tried to win support for downlisting its population of African elephants from CITES Appendix I, which bans all commercial sales, to Appendix II, which allows sales under a permit system. The downlisting proposal was rejected in a vote of 55 in favor, 36 against, 40 abstentions.
Delegates also voted to continue protection for Tanzanian elephants by rejecting a request for a one-time sale of 89 tonnes of stockpiled ivory to China and Japan and retaining their listing on CITES Appendix I.
In a final effort to win votes, Tanzania separated its proposal for a one-time sale from its request to downlist Tanzanian elephants from their current Appendix I listing to Appendix II to allow for trade in elephant trophies, live animals, and noncommercial elephant products.
Tanzania failed to achieve the two-thirds majority needed to downlist its elephants by a vote of 57 in favor, 45 opposed, and 32 abstentions.
Delegates were persuaded to reject Tanzania's proposals by evidence presented during the meeting that challenged Tanzania's elephant management and law enforcement capabilities to control elephant poaching and illegal ivory trade.
In fact, much of the more than more than 20 tonnes of elephant ivory seized by law enforcement officials in 2009 originated in Tanzania, according to forensic analysis of the confiscated contraband.
"The Parties have made it quite clear that there should be no trade in elephant ivory," said Will Travers, CEO of the Born Free Foundation and president of the Species Survival Network. "Any legal trade in elephant ivory incentivizes elephant poaching and illegal ivory sales. Intelligent elephant management dictates that the species be protected from trade in tusks. It's just that simple."
"Downlisting would have sent a horrible message to poachers and criminal syndicates Africa," Travers said. "I am relieved that Zambia's revised proposal did not succeed, and this view is shared by the majority of African elephant range states."
"While the issue of whether sales should be allowed to proceed or not has dominated much of the discussions here in Qatar, WWF and TRAFFIC believe the key driving force behind the ongoing elephant poaching is the continued existence of illegal domestic ivory markets across parts of Africa and Asia," said Steven Broad, executive director of TRAFFIC, the wildlife trade monitoring network of WWF and International Union for Conservation of Nature, IUCN.
Conservationists have long argued that permitting legal sales of elephant ivory masks and encourages poaching and illegal sales. After nearly a decade without any legal ivory sales, CITES permitted four auctions in 2008 during which Namibia, Zimbabwe, South Africa and Botswana sold a total of about 116 tons of ivory.
As a result, conservationists say the world now is in the throes of an elephant poaching crisis.
They base this conclusion on a new analysis of 14,364 elephant product seizure records from 85 countries or territories since 1989 contained in the Elephant Trade Information System, the world's largest collection of elephant product seizure records.
Presented to CITES delegates in Doha last week, the analysis shows that the illegal trade in ivory, which has been increasing in volume since 2004, moved sharply upward in 2009.
Increasing threats from organized crime and the presence of unregulated markets have resulted in a "highly significant correlation" between large-scale domestic ivory markets in Asia and Africa and poor law enforcement, the report suggests.
"Poaching and illegal ivory markets in central and western Africa must be effectively suppressed before any further ivory sales take place," said Elisabeth McLellan, species program manager with WWF International.
New data released Monday from park rangers and WWF field staff on the ground in Cameroon, documents a recent increase in poaching and use of high-caliber weapons.
In February, two unarmed game guards and 14 elephants were gunned down in Bouba Ndjidda National Park in northern Cameroon. During the past few months at least 40 elephants in and around protected areas were killed for their ivory and it is estimated that about 400 elephants have been killed within the last four years in three national parks in Cameroon alone, WWF says.
"The grim situation in Central Africa will not be addressed until domestic markets in that region are brought under control," WWF said.
The sight of ivory openly on sale in many cities of Central and Western Africa sends a potent signal to poachers, smugglers and consumers that it is legal to buy and sell unregulated ivory, WWF warns.
The new analysis of the Elephant Trade Information System data was made by region rather than by country. It was carried out to align the data with that of another CITES tool, MIKE, which stands for Monitoring the Illegal Killing of Elephants.
Both databases show that the Central African region is losing the most elephants.
The analysis indicates that coordinated enforcement in Central and West Africa and Southeast Asia is crucial to addressing the illicit ivory trade.
Source: http://www.ens-newswire.com/
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Posted by Enviroadmin
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Monday, 24 May 2010 00:41 |
Source: http://www.ens-newswire.com/
NEW YORK, New York, March 22, 2010 (ENS) - Unsafe water kills more people than war plus all other forms of violence combined, said United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in a message to the world today, designated as World Water Day.
The 2010 World Water Day theme is Clean Water for a Healthy World, but every day two million tons of sewage, industrial and agricultural wastes enter the Earth's waters, while every 20 seconds a child under the age of five dies from water-related diseases.
The World Health Organization reports that unsafe water, sanitation and hygiene claim the lives of an estimated 1.5 million children under the age of five each year.
"These deaths are an affront to our common humanity, and undermine the efforts of many countries to achieve their development potential," Secretary-General Ban said today.
"Our growing population's need for water for food, raw materials and energy is increasingly competing with nature's own demands for water to sustain already imperiled ecosystems and the services on which we depend," he said.
"Day after day, we pour millions of tons of untreated sewage and industrial and agricultural waste into the world's water systems. Clean water has become scarce and will become even scarcer with the onset of climate change," warned Ban.
The UN General Assembly designated the first World Water Day in 1993, and on March 22 every year since, the focus has been on a different aspect of freshwater sustainability, including sanitation and water scarcity.
The 192-member body today is holding an interactive dialogue on water and the "Water for Life" International Decade 2005-2015, featuring three panel discussions on climate change, peace and security, and the Millenium Development Goals, an agenda for poverty reduction agreed by world leaders in 2000 that includes clean water and sanitation.
"Access to clean water and adequate sanitation are a prerequisite for lifting people out of poverty," UN Deputy Secretary-General Asha-Rose Migiro said at the event in New York.
Currently, seven out of 10 people without improved sanitation live in rural areas, but the number of people without adequate sanitation is set to soar as urban populations grow, she said.
Unclean drinking water leads to the spread of diseases such as cholera, typhoid and childhood diarrhea, one of the leading causes of death in children.
A new joint report from the World Health Organization and the UN Childrens Fund shows that 87 percent of the world's population, about 5.9 billion people, are now using safe drinking water sources, so the world is on track to meet or even exceed the drinking water target of the Millennium Development Goals.
But with almost 39 percent of the world's population, or over 2.6 billion people, living without improved sanitation facilities, the report estimates that the international community will miss the sanitation Millenium Development Goal by almost one billion people by 2015 - the date when the goals are intended to be accomplished.
"The good news is that open defecation, the riskiest sanitation practice of all, is on the decline worldwide, with a global decrease from 25 percent in 1990 to 17 percent in 2008, representing a decrease of 168 million people practicing open defecation since 1990," the WHO/UNICEF report finds.
However, this practice is still widely spread in Southern Asia, where an estimated 44 percent of the population defecate in the open.
"We all recognize the vital importance of water and sanitation to human health and well-being and their role as an engine of development," said Dr. Maria Neira, WHO's director for the Department of Public Health and Environment. "The question now lies in how to accelerate progress towards achieving the Millenium Development Goal targets and most importantly how to leap a step further to ultimately achieve the vision of universal access."
Lack of access to water, sanitation and hygiene affects the health, security, livelihood and quality of life for children, impacting women and girls first and most. They are much more likely than men and boys to be the ones burdened with collecting drinking-water.
"With almost 884 million people living without access to safe drinking-water and approximately three times that number lacking basic sanitation we must act now as one global community to ensure water and sanitation for all," said Clarissa Brocklehurst, UNICEF chief of Water, Sanitation and Hygiene.
When the UN General Assembly opens a new session in September the UN will host a high-level thematic debate on water and sanitation. Secretary-General Ban has called on member states to approve and incorporate an accelerated action plan during the summit, saying an inability to meet the MDGs would be an "unacceptable failure, moral and practical."
In a new report, "Clearing the Waters: A focus on Water Quality Solutions," UNEP shows that an investment of $20 million in low-cost water technologies, such as drip irrigation and treadle pumps, could potentially lift 100 million poor farming families out of extreme poverty.
In some poorer nations, more than half of treated water is lost to leaks, but saving just half of the water by repairing leaky water and sewage networks could benefit 90 million people without additional investment, the report shows.
In another report also launched today, UNEP shows that that many substances that make wastewater a pollutant, such as nitrogen and phosphorus, can be used as fertilizers for agriculture and can generate gases to fuel power stations and for cooking.
"Human activity over the past 50 years is responsible for unprecedented pollution, and the quality of the world's water resources is increasingly challenged," said UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner.
"It may seem like an overwhelming challenge," Steiner said, "but there are enough solutions where human ingenuity allied to technology and investments in nature's purification systems, such as wetlands, forests and mangroves, can deliver clean water for a healthy world."
Source: http://www.ens-newswire.com/
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Posted by Enviroadmin
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Monday, 24 May 2010 00:41 |
Source: http://www.ens-newswire.com/
DOHA, Qatar, March 15, 2010 (ENS) - The future of the world's remaining tigers, elephants, rhinos, and polar bears, bluefin tuna, sharks, and coral as well as rosewood, mahogany, and holywood will be decided over the next 10 days by delegates from 175 countries meeting in Doha.
The delegates represent countries that are Parties to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species, CITES. They meet only once every three years to decide trade rules for animals and plants at risk of extinction due commercial trade.
The CITES treaty offers varying degrees of protection to some 34,000 species of animals and plants in trade, through a system of permits and certificates.
Species are included in one of three lists - Appendix I allows no commercial trade, Appendix II allows trade by permit, and Appendix III lists species that are protected in at least one country, which has asked other CITES Parties for help in controlling the trade.
The year 2010 marks the International Year of Biodiversity and the role of CITES in regulating the global trade in plant and animal species is viewed as central to promoting the dual goals of conservation and sustainable use.
In his welcoming remarks to CITES delegates, Qatar's Environment Minister Abdullah bin Aaboud al-Midhad, highlighted the success story of the Arabian oryx, which was extinct in the wild by the early 1970s.
"Qatar has had a great role in keeping some creatures that are endangered to be extinct, including the Arabian oryx," said al-Midhad. "It was resettled in natural reserves, and now it is deemed to be the biggest oryx herd in the Arab world." More than 1,300 oryx are now in existence, he said, and Qatar has given animals from this herd to "neighboring and friendly countries."
After May 1, CITES will have a new leader. After 10 years in the job, Secretary-General Willem Wijnstekers will retire to be replaced by John Scanlon, a top advisor at the United Nations Environment Programme. An Australian national, Scanlon has served in environmental law, policy and management at national and international levels.
In his opening remarks to the delegates, Wijnstekers pointed out that the CITES budget of $5 to $6 million is not enough to cover the increasing number of activities and results that Parties and others expect from CITES.
"In the absence of necessary core funding," Wijnstekers said, "CITES will not be able to fully exploit its great potential and we seriously risk to let down not only the many animal and plant species we appear to attach such great importance to, but we also risk to let down the developing world in its struggle to conserve wildlife from the many threats it faces."
In Doha, more than 42 proposals are on the table, indicating a high level of international concern about the accelerating destruction of the world's biological diversity and the potential impacts of climate change on the biological resources of the planet.
The perilous situation of the world's 3,200 remaining wild tigers is in the spotlight as 2010 is the Year of the Tiger in the Chinese lunar calendar.
The CITES Secretariat and the international policing agency, INTERPOL, are asking countries to submit information about crimes against tigers, so that they can be analyzed and effective anti-poaching strategies developed.
In the early 1900s, tigers were found throughout Asia and numbered over 100,000. In the 1970s, the world woke up to the fact that wild tigers were disappearing. Between the 1970s and 2010, governments and conservationists spent tens of millions of dollars trying to save tigers in the wild and millions continue to be spent. But wild tigers are still falling to poachers.
"If we use tiger numbers as a performance indicator," says CITES Secretary-General Willem Wijnstekers, "then we must admit that we have failed miserably and that we are continuing to fail. How have we let this happen?"
"Although the tiger has been prized throughout history, and is a symbol of incredible importance in many cultures and religions, it is now literally on the verge of extinction," Wijnstekers said. "2010 is the Chinese Year of the Tiger and the International Year of Biodiversity; this must be the year in which we reverse the trend. If we don't, it will be to our everlasting shame."
Tigers are today primarily poached for their skins but almost every part of a tiger's body can be used for decorative or traditional medicinal purposes. Most tigers are now restricted to small pockets of habitat, with several geographical populations teetering on the brink of extinction.
At a symposium in Beijing on Friday, the World Federation of Chinese Medicine Societies, WFCMS, issued a statement urging its members not to use tiger bone or any other parts from endangered wildlife.
"Tiger conservation has become a political issue in the world. Therefore, it's necessary for the traditional Chinese medicine industry to support the conservation of endangered species, including tigers," said Huang Jianyin, the federation's deputy secretary.
The WFCMS is an international academic organization based in Beijing, with 195 member organizations in 57 nations where traditional Chinese medicine is used.
In its statement, the federation said some of the claimed medicinal benefits of tiger bone have no basis. The use of tiger bones was removed from the traditional Chinese medicine pharmacopeia in 1993, when China first introduced a domestic ban on tiger trade. China is among the 175 countries that are Parties to the CITES treaty.
As an international traditional Chinese academic organization, the WFCMS said it has a duty to research the conservation of endangered species, including tigers. "We will ask our members not to use endangered wildlife in traditional Chinese medicine, and reduce the misunderstanding and bias of the international community," said Huang.
"CITES governments should be encouraged by this statement and use the opportunity they have at this meeting to pass measures, that if properly enforced, can help put an end to tiger trade," said Dr. Colman O'Criodain, wildlife trade analyst, WWF International.
"The societies' public declaration is a clear signal that the traditional Chinese medicinal community is now backing efforts to secure a future for wild tigers," said Professor Xu Hongfa, head of the wildlife monitoring network TRAFFIC in China.
WWF and TRAFFIC are calling for a permanent ban on all trade in tiger parts and products, and for a curtailment of commercial captive breeding operations.
Delegates to the CITES meeting also will review progress in the conservation of the great apes, Asian big cats, and the Tibetan antelope.
The escalation of rhino poaching and strategies for fighting criminal networks trading in their horns in parts of Africa and Asia is also on the CITES agenda.
In the 1990s, rhino numbers grew in many of its range states, but in the mid-2000s, rumors emerged that rhinoceros horn could stave off cancer or halt its spread. The CITES Secretariat says that rhinos in India, South Africa, Nepal and Zimbabwe now appear to be killed by organized crime groups that control the smuggling of rhino horns to the Asian Far East, where they are sold on the black market for thousands of dollars.
"The 'shoot to kill' policy adopted by some governments in Africa does not seem to be deterring poachers and one national park store was even robbed at gunpoint, so that horns removed by park staff from rhinos that had died naturally could be stolen," the Secretariat said.
Elephant poaching and the ivory trade will occupy the delegates once again. At the last CITES conference in 2007, Parties agreed to a nine-year moratorium on any further trade in ivory. Yet proposals have been submitted from Tanzania and Zambia seeking permission for a one-time sale of 112 tons of ivory.
With or without permission, these two countries are hoping to open the door for future ivory trade by 'down-listing' their elephant populations from Appendix I to Appendix II.
At the same time, says the International Fund for Animal Welfare, there has been an escalation in seizures of illegal ivory since the last meeting, and an increase in poaching of elephants in central and eastern Africa.
"To permit any step towards further trade in ivory makes no sense whatsoever," said IFAW's Jason Bell-Leask. "It flies in the face of every basic conservation principle and is contrary to the agreement made at the last meeting."
The African Elephant Coalition of 23 African elephant range countries opposes the proposals for the one-time sales. This group insists that the nine-year ivory trade moratorium agreed in 2007 provides all African range states the opportunity to cooperatively secure elephants in their habitats and assess the impacts of the previous legal sales.
Marine species are also high on the CITES agenda this year.
"CITES will address a number of critical issues relating to the international trade of species, but many will focus on marine issues," says Simon Stuart, chair of International Union for the Conservation of Nature, IUCN, Species Survival Commission. "The number of marine species affected by illegal, unmanaged and unreported fishing, as well as bycatch, is contributing to many species such as sharks and commercial fish becoming threatened."
Delegates will discuss whether or not to place a ban on international trade in the commercially valuable Atlantic bluefin tuna. The large fish is valued in the lucrative sushi trade, one was sold in January for over $120,000, but overfishing is threatening the species.
All 27 European Union member states agreed last week to support a ban on the bluefin tuna trade by placing the species on CITES Appendix I. The EU countries join a growing list of supporter, including the United States, but not Japan, where more than 80 percent of all bluefin tuna is consumed.
Other species to be discussed include the spiny dogfish, which appears on fish and chips menus in the UK, and is threatened with over-exploitation. The fate of the porbeagle shark, again under threat from overfishing, will also be decided at CITES.
"CITES COP15 will address a number of critical issues relating to the international trade of species, but many will focus on marine issues," says Simon Stuart, chair of IUCN's Species Survival Commission. "The number of marine species affected by illegal, unmanaged and unreported fishing, as well as bycatch, is contributing to many species such as sharks and commercial fish becoming threatened."
A little-known Iranian salamander could become the first species protected by CITES because of e-commerce, a new threat to endangered wildlife.
The Kaiser's spotted newt, found only in the Zagros Mountains of Iran, is considered Critically Endangered and is believed to number fewer than 1,000 mature wild individuals. Iran is proposing the amphibian for an Appendix I listing.
The newt is sought as a pet by collectors and numbers have dwindled by more than 80 percent in recent years. In 2006, an investigation by TRAFFIC into the sale of Kaiser's spotted newts revealed 10 websites claiming to stock the species. One Ukrainian company claimed to have sold more than 200 wild-caught specimens in one year.
"The Internet itself isn't the threat, but it's another way to market the product," said Ernie Cooper of TRAFFIC Canada. "The Kaiser's spotted newt, for example, is expensive and most people are not willing to pay US$300 for a salamander. But through the power of the Internet, tapping into the global market, you can find buyers."
WWF and TRAFFIC are concerned about online trade in elephant ivory, and precious corals, including overharvested red and pink coral, currently proposed for listing on CITES Appendix II. All 31 species of red coral are vulnerable or endangered.
Delegates to the CITES meeting will consider whether to take a more proactive approach to regulating the online trade in endangered species. This may include the creation of an international database of the trade, scientific research to gauge the correlation between wildlife loss and online trade, and closer collaboration with INTERPOL.
Source: http://www.ens-newswire.com/
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Posted by Enviroadmin
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Monday, 24 May 2010 00:40 |
Source: http://www.ens-newswire.com/
DAMASCUS, Syria, March 8, 2010 (ENS) - Up to 60 percent of Syria's land and over one million people are gripped by the worst drought in 40 years, but a deep funding shortfall for emergency assistance has left the United Nations aid agencies at a loss.
The humanitarian arm of the United Nations is being forced to review its response plan for the Syrian population suffering under the three-year dry spell, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, OCHA, warned today.
The ongoing drought in northeastern Syria has destroyed the agricultural livelihoods of more than one million people, driving hundreds of thousands to urban areas where they face difficult living conditions, according to OCHA.
UN assistance has centered on providing a food aid and agricultural packages to farmers and herders in a bid to keep them on their land and re-start agricultural work, particularly with the promise of rainfall during the winter months. But little rain has fallen.
The UN's $43.6 million drought response plan is intended to complement government efforts already in place, but only 29 percent of this funding was in place at the end of February.
In addition, food prices have risen at a rate that has outstripped household incomes and the purchasing power of the general population, especially in the drought-stricken areas.
In January, UN Assistant Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Catherine Bragg met in Cairo with representatives of the League of Arab States. She asked the League to take a "proactive role in promoting international humanitarian coordination and funding for the various humanitarian appeals and response plans in the region."
Meanwhile, vegetable and fruit growers in dry northern Syria are using polluted river water to irrigate their crops, causing outbreaks of food poisoning among consumers, say environmental and medical experts.
The experts say the problem stems from sewage and chemicals being allowed to reach rivers in rural areas near Aleppo, Latakia and Rakka.
Studies carried out by the High Centre for Environmental Research, at the public Tishreen University in Latakia, have shown since 2007 that the Sanawbar river running through this coastal part of Syria was contaminated and therefore unsuitable for irrigation.
Soil samples taken from areas near the river where vegetables are grown proved to contain significant levels of contaminants and bacteria like salmonella, which are characteristic of polluted water, said Amina Nasser, an expert at the environmental research centre.
Other tests have shown that the Quweik river in Aleppo and tributaries of the Euphrates in the Rakka area also contained high levels of pollutants because garbage is regularly dumped nearby and industrial waste and sewage are poured into them.
Some experts say that the consumption of crops grown near the rivers, like lettuce, parsley, and spinach, which are sold on local markets and eaten raw, has been the cause of much of the food poisoning reported in the region.
But the effect on human beings of contaminants could be more dangerous and appear many years later, Ahmad Ibrahim said, the head of the chronic disease department at the health directorate in Aleppo.
He added that consuming contaminated crops could eventually lead to chronic rashes, inflammatory diseases or even cancer.
Meanwhile, farmers say that they know river water is polluted but they have no other way to irrigate their crops.
"I hear that this water is polluted but nobody has prevented me from using it, so I continue to water my crops with it," said Abu Jaafar, a grower from Basa, near Latakia, who cultivates oranges and vegetables.
The authorities stress that they send regular patrols to areas near polluted water sources and garbage dumps to make sure that no crops are grown in these locations.
An official at the environmental directorate of Latakia said that the number of crops grown in polluted areas has fallen significantly since 2005. Speaking on condition of anonymity, he said illegally grown crops are regularly destroyed.
However, Hassan Baddour, an agriculture ministry official in Latakia, said there is no evidence that water pollution was affecting crops, "We don't have any data that proves that these products are polluted. We don't have specialised laboratories to test this kind of products."
On the other hand, environmental experts insist that Syrian rivers are polluted mainly by factories that continue to spew industrial waste in rivers without proper treatment in breach of regulations.
Nasser from the environmental research centre in Latakia said that river pollution is directly caused by the spillage of sewage and chemical waste. She said that to make matters worse, pollution is highest in September, which is when farmers often irrigate their crops.
Official data show that in the Quweik river flowing through Aleppo, concentrations of ammonia, heavy metals and other contaminants exceeded allowable limits because of discharge from sewers and industry.
According to the environment directorate of Aleppo, about 200 stone cutting mills and 90 tanneries in the area spill waste into the river that contains dangerously high levels of heavy metals like chromium and lead.
Untreated sewage also flows into the river because the capacity of sewage treatment plants is insufficient, said an official at the environment ministry in Aleppo.
Uwe Troeger, a German environmental expert, said during a conference on the environment in Aleppo in December that Syria lacks adequate treatment plants for sewage capable of generating water suitable for irrigation.
He said Syria could make better use of its available water resources by investing in clean technologies.
Water management faces many hurdles in Syria because of increasing pressure on water resources and dependency on neighboring countries for the flow of water in the rivers, experts say.
Source: http://www.ens-newswire.com/
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Posted by Enviroadmin
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Monday, 24 May 2010 00:39 |
Source: http://www.ens-newswire.com/
SAN FRANCISCO, California, March 9, 2010 (ENS) - Honorary Sierra Club President and Presidential Medal of Freedom winner, Dr. Edgar Wayburn died late Friday night at his home in San Francisco in the presence of his family. He was 103.
The environmental community is mourning the death of the five-term president of the Sierra Club who spearheaded the preservation of millions of acres of natural lands in California and Alaska.
Sierra Club Deputy Executive Director, Bruce Hamilton said, "Ed Wayburn was one of the towering figures on the national and world stage of conservation. He was the 20th Century John Muir."
"Ed would take a vision such as protecting 100 million acres of Alaska or protecting the Marin Headlands as a national park and run with it until he accomplished what seemed impossible," said Hamilton. "He enlisted the help of Presidents, Cabinet members, powerful members of Congress, mayors, and millions of Americans and would not take no for an answer."
"When you or your grandchildren marvel at the wilderness in Redwood National Park, Alaska, or the Marin Headlands you will be witnessing the living legacy of Ed Wayburn. It is his lasting gift to all of us."
Former Earthjustice Executive Director Buck Parker said, "We were privileged to work with Dr. Wayburn during his decades of leadership of the Sierra Club and of many national conservation campaigns to establish and protect national parks, wilderness areas, and the magnificent landscapes of Alaska."
"He was also a key supporter for creating Earthjustice, originally the Sierra Club Legal Defense Fund, and maintained a life-long interest in the organization and its work," said Parker. "The efforts of Ed and his late wife Peggy inspired the work of thousands of citizen activists, including many Earthjustice staff, board and supporters, in protecting our public lands and resources."
Edgar Arthur Wayburn was born September 17, 1906 in Macon, Georgia. He graduated from the University of Georgia in 1926 and from Harvard Medical School in 1930. He arrived in San Francisco by train in 1933.
He inspired the establishment of the nation's largest urban park, the Golden Gate National Recreation Area. Included in the park's 76,000 acre expanse are San Francisco's beaches, Alcatraz and the Presidio and open space in south and west Marin County.
Years of travel in the Alaskan backcountry with Peggy inspired his work to achieve passage of the 1980 Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act, which protected over 100 million acres of Alaskan wild lands and created 10 new national park units, doubling the size of America's National Park system.
He lobbied and worked for decades for the creation of Redwood National Park, and then the doubling of the park's size 10 years later.
He advocated increasing the area of California's Mount Tamalpais State Park from 870 to 6,300 acres. Mount Tamalpais is now among the state's 10 most-visited state parks.
He helped to establish the Point Reyes National Seashore, and to set aside wilderness areas throughout the American West.
"Ed Wayburn was never a full-time conservationist," wrote Pat Joseph, executive editor of "California" magazine, in a 2006 article honoring Dr. Wayburn's 100th birthday. "A practicing physician and a family man, he dedicated his spare hours and weekends to the health of the planet."
"Neither was he well-known, even within the environmental movement, having never gained the wide recognition of such contemporaries as David Brower and Ansel Adams. The low profile suited him fine," wrote Joseph. "Dr. Wayburn preferred to do his work quietly, behind the scenes. He was a born facilitator and diplomat, someone who exuded the kind of authority and integrity that gets people - even powerful people - to listen."
When Dr. Wayburn was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1999, President Bill Clinton said of him, "He has saved more of our wilderness than any person alive."
In his 2004 memoir, "Your Land and Mine: Evolution of a Conservationist," Dr. Wayburn wrote, "It wasn't enough simply to add a few acres here and there; nature doesn't divide herself into measured plots. A watershed encompasses the chain of life; if any part is developed, the integrity of the whole ecosystem is threatened."
Source: http://www.ens-newswire.com/
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Posted by Enviroadmin
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Monday, 24 May 2010 00:38 |
Source: http://www.ens-newswire.com/
TOPEKA, Kansas, March 12, 2010 (ENS) - As of July 1, the only indoor places where tobacco smokers can light up in Kansas are within private homes and motor vehicles. In addition, the smoking of the herbal blend Spice or its components anywhere in Kansas will soon be a crime.
Kansas Governor Mark Parkinson today signed into law the Kansas Clean Indoor Air, which bans tobacco smoking in public indoor spaces. When the law takes effect, smoking will be prohibited in taxicabs and limousines; common areas in public and private buildings, condominiums and other multiple-residential facilities; access points of all building and facilities unless exempted by the bill; and any place of employment.
The governor said he supports the measure because it advances the fight against cancer and will improve the overall health of all Kansans.
"The journey of passing a statewide public smoking ban has been long and hard, but today we are able to cross the finish line knowing that we have built a better future for generations to come," said Parkinson. "With this legislation, our state takes the necessary steps to save Kansas lives by reducing cancer, tobacco-related diseases and teen smoking."
Joined by First Lady Stacy Parkinson, former State Senator David Wysong, Secretary of Health and Environment Rod Bremby, state legislators and health advocacy organizations, the governor held the signing in the South Wing of the Statehouse.
"I appreciate the vision of former-Senator Wysong, the bipartisan collaboration in the legislature and the continuous support of so many Kansans."
The bill, HB 2221, amends current law concerning cigarette or tobacco infractions and the taxation and unlawful use of cigarette and tobacco products.
The legislation makes it unlawful for any person who controls the use of the area where smoking is prohibited to fail to comply with any of the provisions set out in the bill or to allow smoking to occur where prohibited.
To date, 26 states have enacted statewide bans on smoking in all enclosed public places, including bars and restaurants. Seven states ban smoking in most enclosed public places, but permit adult venues such as bars and casinos, to allow smoking if they choose.
In Kansas, Governor Parkinson not only opposes smoking tobacco, he is also opposed to the smoking or ingestion of synthetic cannabinoids, chemicals that produce effects similar to marijuana, which is illegal across the country.
On Wednesday, the governor signed HB 2411, the nation's first ban on the chemical compounds HU-210, JWH-018, and JWH-073, considered synthetic cannabinoids. The chemicals are sold under a variety of names, including Spice and K2.
HU-210 is a synthetic cannabinoid that was first synthesized in 1988 at the Hebrew University. HU-210 is 100 to 800 times more potent than natural THC from cannabis and has an extended duration of action.
JWH-018, which produces effects like those of marijuana, also has been described as an efficient painkiller. JWH-073 is an analgesic chemical from the aminoalkylindole family, which also acts as a cannabinoid.
These chemicals are found as components of the herbal blend Spice, which has been sold as an incense in a number of countries around the world since 2002.
The bill also bans BZP and TFMPP, recreational drugs usually used in combination, that are reported to have euphoric, stimulant properties when ingested comparable to those produced by amphetamine.
The law makes it illegal to possess, use, or sell these chemicals.
"This legislation has received overwhelming support by Kansas law enforcement and the legislature," said Parkinson. "It will help improve our communities by better equipping law enforcement officers in addressing this issue and deterring Kansans from drug use."
Source: http://www.ens-newswire.com/
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The United States relies heavily on the oil industry for both residential and commercial heating purposes. Home heating oil (HHO) is a petroleum-based substance, classified as Number 2 fuel oil and used primarily to heat residential and commercial buildings. HHO is similar to diesel fuel used in some vehicles, but is subject to a different tax. All oil types (classified as one through six) are derived from crude oil, whether through distillation or another process. HHO is classified as a distillate based on the method used to extract it from crude oil.
