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Rampal power plant: A project of deception and mass destruction BANGLADESH - Thousands of people, young and old, women and men, recently embarked on a 400 km 5 days long march from Dhaka, the capital city, to Digraj a place in Rampal, the extended Sundarbans area, in South west Bangladesh. The march took place on the 24th of September, 2013. Organised by the ‘National Committee to Protect Oil Gas Mineral Resources Port and Power’, the main demand for this long march is to cancel ‘Rampal coal fired power plant’ and stop all activities that would destroy the Sundarban. Officials of the march say if implemented, the power plant would destroy the largest mangrove forest in the world. Sign The Petition to Stop This Project SIGN HERE Why are people around the country so sensitive, and why they are coming forward to resist this? The name Sundarbans সুন্দরবন is a combination of two Bangla words, Sundar and Bans. Sundar means beautiful and Bans means forests. So, in English, Sundarbans means the beautiful forests. Yes, it is. Not only beautiful in all senses, it is extraordinarily rich in biodiversity, single largest mangrove forest in the world. UNESCO declared it as world heritage site. This has also been a huge natural safeguard against frequent cyclone, storm and other natural disasters in the country. Sidr, Aila, Mohasen were recent ones. Our living memory shows that in every natural disaster, the Sundarban saves lives of hundreds of thousands human beings, their properties, and other non-human lives READ MORE AFRICA Mangroves bring wildlife back to Senegal coast SENEGAL – Crabs scuttle among mangrove roots in a dense riverbank forest in southern Senegal, where a major reforestation project is reviving wildlife and boosting the west African country's lukewarm economy. "Everything you see here has been replanted. Before 2006, there wasn't a single tree," said Senegalese environmental activist and government minister Haidar El Ali in Tobor, a village near Ziguinchor, the main city of the Casamance region. He gestured toward mangroves tied to stilts bordering the Casamance river, planted by his Oceanium environmental organisation to boost an area that experts said was severely depleted by deforestation, drought and increased salt levels in the water. Alongside the road leading to the neighbouring Marsassoum valley, and around the paddy fields used in the centuries-old activity of rice cultivation, various mangrove species are abundant. READ MORE Mangrove ecosystem course for the Western Indian Ocean region KENYA – Registration is now open. We invite applications for a new training course on Mangrove Ecosystems for the countries of the the Western Indian Ocean (WIO) Region. In an effort to expand the geographical reach of the successful UNU-INWEH supported training course on mangrove ecosystems held in India every year since 2004, the course is now being piloted in Kenya this fall to ~20 participants from the Western Indian Ocean (WIO) Region. Together with partners from Kenya, UNU-INWEH has succeeded in securing a grant from the Western Indian Ocean Marine Sciences Association (WIOMSA) through its Marine Science for Management (MASMA) programme to conduct this 11 day regional training course at the University of Nairobi field research facility in Diani, Kenya (2-12 December 2013). Please go to the website to apply. Wetlands International Embarks On Mangrove Replanting in Kiang West GAMBIA - Wetlands International Africa recently planted mangroves in Sandeng and Bondali Tenda in Kiang West, Lower River Region. The initiative was meant to restore ecosystems, fight against encroachment of the river and increase livelihoods of populations. The two-day intensive mangrove planting exercise, held at the river boundary sides of the villages, was actively participated in by youth in the villages. The Canary Current Land Marine Ecosystem (CCLME) project was funded by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and implemented by Wetlands International Africa and International Union for Conservation of Nature. Speaking at the exercise, Pape Diomaye Thiare, Wetlands International Africa's communication officer and media coordinator, thanked the communities of both villages for their active participation in the exercise. READ MORE Governing Africa's Mangroves - a Sustainable Future SOUTH AFRICA - Despite their widely recognised socioeconomic and ecological value, mangroves are among the world's most threatened vegetation types. More than a fifth of the world's mangroves have been lost over the past 30 years alone, and many surviving forests are degraded. Safeguarding them will require urgent interventions aimed at ensuring that their vital ecosystem services and non-market benefits are adequately incorporated in policy and development choices. Given Africa's extractive boom, countries need to fully understand the consequences of natural resource exploitation for their fragile ecosystems, in order to minimise negative impacts and avoid poor trade-offs. Policy-makers and planners must realise that mangroves need to be restored, protected, and managed. This will require more effective management tools and interventions, as well as mechanisms for minimising the tensions between extractive development and the conservation of mangrove forests. VIEW SOURCE Bodo Community Rejects Shell's N7.5 Billion Compensation Offer NIGERIA - About 11,000 fishermen and others from Bodo community, Gokana Local Government Area of Rivers, who lost incomes when a pipeline belonging to shell burst in 2008 have rejected a £30 million (about N7.5 billion) or around £1,100 compensation offer for each person affected by the oil spill. Martyn Day, a partner with the UK law firm Leigh Day who represented the Bodo people during the negotiation, told British newspaper, The Guardian that Shell's offer was rejected unanimously at a large public meeting in Bodo. "The amount offered for most claimants equated to two to three years' net lost earnings whereas the Bodo creek has already been out of action for five years and it may well be another 20-25 before it is up and running properly again. I was not at all surprised to see the community walked out of the talks once they heard what Shell were offering." READ MORE ASIA Malaysia aquaculture sector struggles for land MALAYSIA – Expansion of Malaysian aquaculture continues to be crimped by demand for land for palm oil and rubber production, according to a senior fisheries officer in Kuala Lumpur. “Malaysia wants to increase domestic shrimp output and also increase the value-add of our aquatic products,” said Ahmad Iskandar, senior marketing officer at the Fisheries Development Authority of Malaysia. “But pond space is really at a premium given the continued growth of the palm oil industry.” The palm industry is also competing for an increasingly scarce supply of cheap labor from Thailand and Indonesia (drying up as migrants have more opportunities nearer to home) according to Iskandar. READ MORE Urgent Clarity Needed as 4-Year Thailand Migrant NV Deadline Expires THAILAND - There are an estimated 3 million foreign migrant workers in Thailand, over 80% originating from Myanmar. Since the late 1980s, these workers have irregularly crossed borders to work in mostly dirty, dangerous and demanding jobs in Thailand thereby significantly contributing to Thailand’s economy and providing billions of dollars in remittances to support relatives in origin countries. These workers continue to face significant exploitation and confusing piecemeal government migration policies. According to the 2003 Memorandum of Undrestanding signed between Thailand and Myanmar, after migrants from Myanmar have remained in Thailand for 4 years they must return home for 3 years before becoming eligible to return to Thailand. This policy has never been realistic both for workers, employers and Thai and Myanmar governments and their respective economies. Workers need to remain in Thailand to support their families in Myanmar; employers don’t want to lose their trained workers at times of labour shortage; and Myanmar is not ready to receive back migrants to develop its opening economy. READ MORE EJF issues new human rights abuses report THAILAND – The nonprofit advocacy group Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF) has issued a new report on human rights abuses in the Thai seafood industry, this time focusing on workers in shrimp processing. The EJF made headlines in May, when it released a report, “Sold to the Sea,” http://www.seafoodsource.com/newsarticledetail.aspx?id=20832 detailing human trafficking, forced labor, imprisonment and murder of workers on Thai fishing vessels. Now, the group has introduced a new report, “The Hidden Cost: Human Rights Abuses in Thailand’s Shrimp Industry,” which looks at the shrimp processing industry. The report alleges human trafficking of migrant workers, withholding of pay, forced detention, bonded labor and other abuses. The report includes interviews with five former workers at a pre-processing factory owned by a captain in the Royal Thai Police. The workers described being forced into 16-hour shifts, with many workers, including children, peeling shrimp and extracting excrement until 8 p.m. daily. READ MORE Shrimp industry hit by EMS disease MALAYSIA - Local shrimp farmers are being adversely affected by large-scale losses of their products due to a disease called “Early Mortality Syndrome” (EMS), says an industry expert. The disease has caused high mortality rates of cultivated shrimp in China, Vietnam and Thailand for the past two years. The problem has also affected Malaysia, said the industry expert Shamar Kamarudin. He said EMS or Acute Hepatopancreatic Necrosis Syndrome (AHPNS) comes from bacteria and delays shrimp growth that prevents it from reaching maturity. “It simply means the shrimp will be undersized and eventually they cannot be harvested. “The disease can infect shrimp through virus carriers such as wild shrimps, crabs and the shrimp seeds itself,” he said in an interview here yesterday. In the latest case, he said an EMS case was detected in July in Johor, where 100% of all shrimps in seven ponds died due to infection. READ MORE Vietnam shrimp exports continue growth trend VIETNAM – According to Vietnam Customs, in the first 8 months of 2013, Vietnam shrimp exports reached USD 1.73 billion (EUR 1.3 billion), up 22 percent from the same period in 2012. Since the second quarter of 2013, shrimp exports have recovered and reported continuous growth on par with that of the same month of last year. In August this year, value of shrimp exports reached USD 335 million (EUR 348 m illion), marking the sharpest growth of 65.5 percent. Shipment of whiteleg shrimp increased three-fold compared to the same month of 2012. Through August, whiteleg shrimp exports rose by 71 percent compared to the same time last year while exports of black tiger shrimp increased 2.7 percent. So far this year, shrimp exports accounted for 41.6 percent of Vietnam’s total seafood export value thanks to higher global price and shorter shrimp supply. In January to August of 2013, the increase in shrimp exports compensated for the decrease in other seafood exports including pangasius and tuna, and contributed to push the total seafood exports to reach USD 4.16 billion (EUR 3 billion), an 4.3 percent increase over last year READ MORE MAP's newest volunteer intern "digging the life" of an environmentalist THAILAND -Mid-dig in an abandoned shrimp pond, I would not normally have answered the phone. Number blocked. As it turned out, it was a friend of mine from the UK wishing me a happy birthday. I had completely forgotten. Kind of her to think of me, and we chatted for a while about the stresses of a London existence and running her business, mad traffic, the price of shoes and the flattening UK weather. ‘You're really living the life!’ she concluded. In order to avoid my phone being filled with rain, I'd been bent double and twisted over to shelter it. The rain was stinging me so hard I used a shovel as an umbrella. The wind had picked up making me shiver involuntarily as I was sodden from sweat and rain. Mercifully, that day's two hour digging session was being drawn to a close by the evening call to prayer from Bang Lang Da's mosque and the gloaming. I was shattered - hands, back and shoulders aching - and still had 26k to scooter home in the hard rain, along the side of a two-lane intercity speedway. Living the life, indeed. READ MORE AMERICAS Group calls for global awareness of wetland destruction of RAMSAR protected site HONDURAS - Several days ago landowners near the Honduran Cuyamel National Park, seemingly with the complicity and support of local authorities and high ranking government officials, have destroyed a large area of some 800 hectares of National Park and RAMSAR site number 2133 , recently declared February 2, World Wetlands Day 2013. This devastation was carried out in order to implement planned oil palm and biofuel projects within the National Park. The National Park status is one of the strictest environmental laws in Honduras, yet these projects continue. Fishermen and residents of the area also report logging of various mangrove species in RAMSAR site on the shores of Lake Chachaguala. The destruction has taken place within National Park boundaries in the Chachaguala lagoon, a flooded forest, lagoon systems, and mangrove ecosystem. The degradation and destruction of ecosystems to plant monocultures directly affects the Cuyamel river, which has even been diverted. Also impacted are the wetland systems of Motagua River, an area that borders the Wildlife Refuge Manabique , another Ramsar site protected area in neighboring Guatemala , which is a binational impact ecological degradation. The most significant impacts have been given Cuyamel river channelization and its negative effects on drainage and sedimentation of its lagoon systems, deforestation and loss of forest cover and the destruction of ecosystems such as mangroves, loss of biodiversity and strategic habitat for flagship species and the destruction of livelihoods of local communities. READ MORE (en Espanol) US professor builds new shrimp-farming system USA - A University of Missouri (MU) professor has invented a shrimp-farming system that not only grows shrimp quickly but also produces zero waste. “No one in the U.S. has yet been able to demonstrate profitability with shrimp. Ninety percent of our shrimp [consumed in the U.S.] comes from Asia,” David Brune, professor of agricultural systems management at the University of Missouri, told SeafoodSource. Over the long-term, Asian shrimp farming methods are unsustainable and harm the environment, according to Brune. “Most shrimp are grown in China, Indonesia and Thailand, where producers feed wild-caught fish meal and are discharging waste from their ponds into Asian coastal waters. Eventually, these practices will stop and everyone is going to have to go to a limited discharge or zero discharge system,” he said. READ MORE EDITORS NOTE - Here is another strong statement against further conversion of mangroves to shrimp farms or other uses: Carbon stocks of intact mangroves and carbon emissions arising from their conversion in the Dominican Republic DOMINICAN REPUBLIC - Mangroves are recognized to possess a variety of ecosystem services including high rates of carbon sequestration and storage. Deforestation and conversion of these ecosystems continue to be high and have been predicted to result in significant carbon emissions to the atmosphere. Yet few studies have quantified the carbon stocks or losses associated with conversion of these ecosystems. In this study we quantified the ecosystem carbon stocks of three common mangrove types of the Caribbean as well as that of abandoned shrimp ponds in areas formerly occupied by mangrove; a common land use conversion of mangroves in the world. In the mangroves of the Montecristi Province in Northwest Dominican Republic, we found C stocks ranged from 706 to 1131 Mg/ha. The medium statured mangroves (3-10m ht) had the highest C stocks while the tall (>10 m ht)) mangroves had the lowest ecosystem carbon storage. Carbon stocks of the low mangrove (shrub) type (<3m ht) were relatively high due to the presence of carbon-rich soils as deep as 2 m. Carbon stocks of abandoned shrimp ponds was 95 Mg/ha or about 11% of that of the mangroves. Using a stock-change approach, the potential emissions from the conversion of mangroves to shrimp ponds ranged from 2244 to 3799 Mg CO2e/ha. This is among the largest measured C emissions from land use in the tropics. READ MORE Sustainable Shrimp Farming USA - The United States imports over a billion pounds of shrimp annually. Most of it arrives frozen from environmentally destructive tropical farms. Now U.S. shrimp farmers are using environmentally friendly techniques to produce a fresh, delicious product with a much gentler environmental footprint. Living on Earth’s Naomi Arenberg reports. “Virtually all the shrimp we eat is problematic - it's mostly imported frozen from Asia, and raised in environmentally damaging conditions. But now indoor shrimp farmers could turn shrimp into a “perfect protein,” delicious and sustainable”, Naomi Arenberg reports from Stoughton, Massachusetts. READ MORE Bahamas National Trust president visits proposed terminal site in Bimini BAHAMAS – Last week, Neil McKinney, President of the Bahamas National Trust (BNT) and Eric Carey, Executive Director of BNT visited Bimini on a fact-finding mission. They had two objectives - firstly to determine if residents were aware of the details of the proposed cruise ship terminal to be placed off the western shore of Bimini and secondly the BNT wanted to dive on the areas that could possibly be impacted by the development. Both McKinney and Carey went through the community, speaking to local Biminites about their knowledge of the proposed cruise ship terminal. As anticipated, many of the individuals were appreciative of the positive economic impact of Bimini Bay, however, many complained about the huge toll the development has taken on the island. On the other hand, when it comes to the cruise terminal, most Biminites said that no one really knew what the plans were, and to date there has been little to no information shared about the project with locals. READ MORE Save The Bays strongly urges release of Genting Group’s environmental impact assessment BAHAMAS - After a thorough tour of marine habitats in Bimini to observe the results of ongoing development, rapidly-growing environmental movement Save The Bays is strongly urging the government and Genting Group to make public the findings of the hotel and casino developer’s environmental impact assessment (EIA). The request comes days after executives of the Bahamas National Trust (BNT) also toured the island on a fact-finding mission, discovering a mass sense of uncertainty from residents and a withholding of information from those who have the answers. “Even the BNT has not had the opportunity to view the EIA, so a lack of transparency while having no environmental protection act in place makes this matter worse,” said Save The Bays Director Joe Darville. “The excavation work is being carried out substantially by non-Bahamians, so there is no vested interest in their psyche to have a sense of preservation for our environment. I call upon the government to do so something about this, because it is desecrating our natural heritage in Bimini.” READ MORE ITC stops shrimp duties USA - Warren Connelly, the attorney representing Ecuador’s National Chamber of Aquaculture, was in the room in Washington Friday morning when the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) voted 4-2 that trade subsidies from seven nations, including Ecuador, do not harm the domestic shrimp industry enough to warrant countervailing action. “Joy,” Connelly said when asked for his reaction. “What else? It’s hard to win these cases.” The vote, according to the ITC, showed it had made “negative determinations in its final phase countervailing duty investigations” and setting duties on shrimp imported from China, Vietnam, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Ecuador. The battle started when the Coalition of Gulf Shrimp Industries filed a petition on behalf of its 28 member companies. The petition accused the seven countries of subsidizing their shrimp industries, making imported shrimp from those countries cheaper than domestic shrimp. If regulators found in favor of the coalition, those seven nations could have faced heavy countervailing duties on shrimp exports. READ MORE EUROPE Start-up promises to revolutionize shrimp farming U.K. - A UK start-up says it has developed a low-cost, ecological alternative to traditional shrimp farming by using bacteria as both a water filter and food for its shrimp. IKEA-like portable units using microbes and solar power to cheaply grow shrimp indoors could transform the booming aquaculture sector and prevent further environmental degradation, according to its inventors. If made available to farmers in developing countries, the technology could help tackle malnourishment while reducing environmental degradation, and all at a lower cost than current shrimp production, they say. Founded by biochemical engineering students from University College London, the start-up Marizca is producing whiteleg shrimp in central London in its first trial operations. READ MORE LAST WORD Editor's note - below is an excerpt of a letter we received In a time when the basis of civilization, the so called modernism is challenged, in a time when Bolivia is passing the Law of the Rights of Mother Earth, Bangladesh is resuscitating a Dinosaur couple – an open pit coal mining in Phulbari and a thermal power plant in Rampal, Sunderban. As a concerned global citizen, we feel the urge to stand by the struggle of the people in Bangladesh fighting this couple.
Considering the need of the hour, we invite all concerned global citizens to exercise their right and join the protest initiative on fighting this Dinosaur couple. Please make your voice heard by signing the petition to stop the destruction (Click Here) Btw, it is 4570 signatures now.
Thanks and Regards, Indranil Saha Mobile +91 9674242004 Read the entire letter HERE ~ WE WELOCME YOUR LETTERS - If you’d like to have the last word on this or any other mangrove related topic, please send us your submission for upcoming newsletters. We’ll choose one per issue to have “the last word”. While we can’t promise to publish everyone’s letter, we do encourage anyone to post comments on our Blog at www. mangroveactionproject.blogspot.com BACK TO TOP Not yet a subscriber? Click here to subscribe.
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Saturday, September 28, 2013
MAP News Issue 324, Sept 28, 2013
Friday, September 27, 2013
World Citizen Concern for Rampal and Phulbari
Resuscitating a Dinosaur couple
In a time when the basis of civilization, the so called modernism is challenged, in a time when Bolivia is passing the Law of the Rights of Mother Earth, Bangladesh is resuscitating a Dinosaur couple – an open pit coal mining in Phulbari and a thermal power plant in Rampal, Sunderban. As a concerned global citizen, we feel the urge to stand by the struggle of the people in BD fighting this couple.The Phulbari Project
The Phulbari Coal Project would excavate an immense open pit coalmine in the Phulbari region of northwest Bangladesh. The project threatens to destroy the homes, lands, and water sources of as many as 220,000 people, and forcibly evict tens of thousands of people. The families whose farmlands would be destroyed are at risk of being made destitute, as the project would not provide replacement land to those who are displaced. The project has faced widespread opposition in Bangladesh, with massive protests involving tens of thousands of people beginning in 2006 and continuing through today.Project Details
Location: Dinajpur district of northwest Bangladesh, just six miles from the Indian border
Land acquired for the project: 14,660 acres, 80% of which is fertile farmland
Projected lifespan of the mine: 36+ years
Total coal extraction: 572 million tons; 16 million tons annually at peak production
Use: investment agreement allows for export of all coal; estimated one-fifth to be used for domestic energy consumption in Bangladesh with the remainder earmarked for export.
Coal-fired power plants: at least one 500 MW plant in the port city of Khulna
Revenues & taxes to Bangladesh: 6% fixed sales royalty; no export duties; and a nine-year tax holidayThe Rampal Project
Bangladesh Power Development Board and the National Thermal Power Corporation of India signed a contract to build, under joint venture, the 1320MW Rampal Coal Fired Power Plant near Sundaban. This is an invitation to a developmental disaster, one which can help destroy one of the world’s natural wildlife wonders.Please find the attachments for further details.An Appeal – it is time to speak out
Considering the need of the hour, we invite all concerned global citizens to exercise their right and join the protest initiative on fighting this Dinosaur couple. Please make your voice heard by signing the petition to stop the destruction (Click Here) Btw, it is 4570 signatures now.--
Thanks and Regards,
Indranil Saha
Mobile +91 9674242004
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Digging, Dibbling and Living the Life
Letter of Deep Concern About Grave Threats To Sundarbans from Rampal power plant
Prime Minister of Bangladesh
Saturday, September 14, 2013
MAP News Issue 323, September 14, 2013
Partnering with mangrove forest communities, grassroots NGOs, researchers and local governments to conserve and restore mangrove forests and related coastal ecosystems, while promoting community-based, sustainable management of coastal resources. |
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Sunderbans women turn crusaders to save mangrove BANGLADESH – Their husbands had once cleared these mangroves for firewood but now they realise that only the mangroves can act as sentinels against floods and cyclonic storms, the intensity and frequency of which has increased due to climate change. In Patharpratima block’s West Surendranagar village 30-year-old Anindita Das, who leads a women self-help group, finishes her household chores quickly in the morning and starts planting mangrove saplings bordering the banks of the river which had played havoc during the 2009 cyclonic storm Aila. Along with eight such self-help groups and funding from international NGO Save the Children, around 90 women in this village began by growing mangrove saplings in small nurseries close to their huts. “In a span of three-four months we prepared around 170,000 saplings which are being planted along the banks over 14 hectare land,” Das told PTI in an interview. READ MORE AFRICA Grand Kenya port plan faces headwinds despite oil finds KENYA - Initial work has started on a mangrove coast near the ancient Arab trading post of Lamu that could in a few years be a bustling container port and crude terminal, creating an export hub for fast-growing east African states and their oil. But Kenya must shore up regional commitment for the $25.5 billion Lamu Port-South Sudan-Ethiopia Transport (LAPSSET) plan that by 2030 envisages a port, new roads, a railway and pipeline. It must also overcome environmental worries and make a clearer economic case to avoid creating one more African white elephant. The prize will be to bolster Kenya's primacy as east Africa's trade gateway and capitalize on a bonanza from one of the world's hottest undeveloped oil provinces, where exports from Uganda and Kenya alone could reach 500,000 barrels per day. READ MORE Reconciling Growth and Development With Ecological Integrity Along Africa's Coastline SOUTH AFRICA - The value of nature's 'services' and its non-market benefits need to be better understood and incorporated into the development choices that countries make. As resource-rich African countries are poised to receive an influx of new wealth from oil, coal and gas deposits, the need to motivate for coastal ecosystems to be prioritised, managed more effectively, protected and restored is becoming more urgent. In countries like Nigeria, Guinea Bissau and Mozambique, mangrove and coastal forests coincide with the physical location of fossil fuel discoveries and proposed port and infrastructure developments. The overlap of these human activities with fragile coastal ecosystems will have devastating consequences on the natural environment, as well as for the communities who depend on them. READ MORE ASIA Mangroves and Markets project VIETNAM - The International Collective in Support of Fishworkers (ICSF) published an article on the SNV Mangroves and Markets project (MAM) in its triannual journal SAMUDRA. The article is entitled "Depending on Mangroves: Integrated shrimp-mangrove farming systems offer a solution for protecting mangroves and improving livelihoods in Vietnam". The SNV Mangroves and Markets project is a BMU/IUCN funded inititative conducted in Ca Mau province, located in the Mekong Delta. READ MORE Thai Officials Play Down Effects of Oil Spill THAILAND - On July 26th, a burst pipeline sent tons of crude oil pouring into the sea near Koh Samet, a Thai resort island. Thai officials played down the environmental impact of what was the country’s third-largest oil spill. An executive of the oil company responsible, PTT, told reporters that “everything was restored to normal,” a day after the spill. As the once pristine coast filled with a thick black tide of oil, the same executive, Pornthep Butniphant, said the oil would decompose naturally and have “no effect on the environment.” For the past three weeks, military units have been attempting to decontaminate the bay. A leading marine biologist said it would be years before marine life returned to normal in the worst-affected area. The government’s own pollution control department has issued a report saying that the area is too polluted to swim, with potentially cancer-causing hydrocarbons present in the water that were nearly six times the permissible level. This spill once again highlights the controversy surrounding the construction of more pipelines. Accidents are bound to happen, and when they do, the damage has huge environmental and economic implications. READ MORE Global shrimp prices jump THAILAND - A new plague swimming through the shrimp farms of China and South-East Asia is making ripples in the United States and Europe, where prawn prices have jumped to record highs in recent months. Consumers had better get used to paying more for their tempura and wanton soup. "The shortage is going to last at least a couple of years, maybe longer," predicted Matthew Briggs, an aquaculture consultant for Ridley Aquafeed with more than a decade of experience in Southeast Asia's shrimp industry. Early Mortality Syndrome (EMS), the latest epidemic to hit Asia's booming shrimp industry, first raised its head on Chinese farms in 2009, and gradually spread to Malaysia, Vietnam and Thailand. The four countries accounted for about 70% of the world's shrimp exports in 2011, according to figures from the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO). Thailand, the world's leading shrimp exporter, started to get hit by EMS in late 2012. "My farm was affected in August last year, when we lost about 80% of our stock," said Prayoon Hongrat, president of Sureerath Farm in Chantaburi province, in eastern Thailand. READ MORE MAP Volunteer a long time environemtalist THAILAND - Mr. Niyom Thongmuean, (Nick) Project Field Officer Thailand, conducts field activities under the Ecological Mangrove Restoration (EMR) projects in Trang and other areas in Andaman Sea coast of Thailand. Nick has 4 years experience working with local NGOs. Before joining MAP, Nick had worked with the Andaman Organization for Participatory Restoration of Natural Resources (ARR), a southern NGO working on strengthening the local communities on Andaman coast on coastal community-based management and sustainable livelihoods for 2 years. Nick has strong skills working with local people and coordinating with stakeholders at the field level. VISIT MAP/ASIA President faces class-action lawsuit over ‘climate change effect INDONESIA - Environmental activists have submitted a class-action lawsuit against President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono over the claim he has failed to protect people in Riau province from the effects of climate change. The lawsuit was also aimed at Forestry Minister Zulkifli Hasan, Environment Minister Balthasar Kambuaya and Riau Governor Rusli Zainal, who is now detained by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) on graft charges. “We filed this lawsuit to press President SBY to take action against his two ministers, whom we see as having no willingness to protect the public, especially the people of Riau province, from the effects of climate change,” Civil Society Forum for Climate Justice coordinator Mida Saragih told The Jakarta Post after filing the lawsuit at the Central Jakarta District Court. READ MORE AMERICAS "If You Want to Conserve Biodiversity, Protect Latin America" CANADA - Panama, Costa Rica, Ecuador, northern Peru and the Caribbean islands are areas that need urgent protection in order to achieve the global biodiversity conservation targets set for 2020, a new study shows. A team of scientists who analyzed the richness of plant species around the world concluded that the ecosystems in need of immediate protection in order to meet the 2020 conservation goals set by the Convention on Biological Diversity are largely concentrated in Latin America. Humanity’s life support system, which provides our air, water and food, is powered by 8.7 million different kinds of plants, animals and other living species. But those species are going extinct at an accelerating rate, representing a major threat to future human survival. Recognizing this threat, nearly every country in the world has agreed under the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) to protect 17 percent of the planet’s land areas and conserve 60 percent of the world’s plant species by the year 2020. These twin goals, included in the 20 Aichi Targets, can only be achieved if far more land in the Caribbean, Central America and northern South America is properly protected, according to a new study published Sep. 6 in the journal Science. READ MORE Toward the Development of Haiti’s System of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) HAITI - Ecosystem services are the benefits people obtain either directly or indirectly from ecological systems and include fisheries production, shoreline stabilization, carbon sequestration, storm protection, nutrient cycling, tourism value, and medicinal products values among many others. The replacement costs of these systems are also often included. The process of identifying and quantifying ecosystem services is increasingly recognized as a valuable tool for the efficient allocation of environmental resources. By estimating and accounting for the economic value of ecosystem services, social costs or benefits that otherwise would remain hidden can potentially be revealed and vital information that might otherwise remain outside of the economic decision making calculus at local, national, and international scales can be internalized. However, achieving such an objective requires considerably better understanding of ecosystem services and the landscapes that provide them. Thanks to the increased ease of using Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and the public availability of high quality land cover data sets (in this case through Google Maps), bio-geographic entities such as forests, wetlands and beaches can now more easily be attributed with the ecosystem services they deliver on the ground. READ MORE BNT continues to advocate for the establishment of the Bimini MPA BAHAMAS - The Bimini Bay Development has remained an active issue of discussion for over thirteen years and its approvals and reconsiderations have spanned several government administrations. The most recent discussions focused around the proposed expansion of the development towards and beyond the sensitive mangrove area at the top of North Sound. The developer was proposing the construction of a golf course for the area. This sensitive area has been identified by scientists and experts at the Department of Marine Resources as the westernmost edge of the proposed Marine Protected Area. Scientists working in Bimini had objected and the BNT supported this position and recommended dialogue on the issue. READ MORE Shrimp shortage impacts Florida restaurants USA - A South Florida restaurant staple could soon be out of reach for some customers as the price of shrimp continues to skyrocket throughout global markets. The average price of the crustacean, according to the Urner Barry White Shrimp Index, was $6.10 on Tuesday. Three months prior, the price hovered just above $4.70 in June. The news is grim for shrimp lovers like Stan Komitor of Jupiter. "I love shrimp, especially in a pasta. That's why I ordered it," said Komitor while eating a shrimp dish at PB Catch in Palm Beach. Managers at PB Catch said they are closely watching. "We've heard of the problem, mainly in Asia that's affecting the shrimp with disease," said Sascha Bennemann, general manager of PB Catch. Bennemann points to a worldwide shortage brought on by diseased shrimp among populations in Asia. He said prices have yet to change at PB Catch, but the situation could change. READ MORE Ecuador stops the mangrove devastation caused by 40 years of shrimp farming Ecuador - Shrimp farms in the country have cut a wide mangrove area. The Ministry of the Environment (MAE) data shows that more than 53,000 hectares of mangroves have been deforested during nearly four (4) decades that this activity has existed in Ecuador. This is the outcome of the lack of environmental measures in previous Administrations which did little or nothing to stop and repair environmental damage; there was even a law – now repealed – that allowed cutting mangrove to build new pools. The goal was to foster that activity. On July 14, 2012 the Ministry of the Environment had to intervene in a farm (Santa Priscila) in Taura, province of Guayas, where 37 aquaculture pools were located. The estuary in this area was strongly affected by the illegal shrimp farm due to indiscriminate cutting. The scope of the damage was known, but not who was responsible. However, the scenery changed when the Executive branch started a process to legalize shrimp farms. At this time, it was able to ascertain with precision the damage caused and punish the parties. READ MORE Chinese firms secure shrimp supply in Ecuador ECUADOR – Chinese seafood firms are racing to invest in Ecuadorian shrimp breeding facilities in a bid to secure supplies and insulate themselves from soaring Ecuadorian shrimp prices, according to a leading company executive. “The prices in Ecuador are so high right now and even though China is able to afford these prices it’s necessary to secure stable access to supplies by investing in Ecuador,” explained Li Kun, sales manager at Beijing-based East China Seas. Li claims his firm has also invested in Venezuela and Panama, but declined to provide figures. “The prices being paid in India are very high for what is sometimes low quality…we need to secure quality,” he said. Ecuador’s shrimp exports to China have soared in recent years. Ecuadorian firm Omarsa, which has an office in Beijing, ships 45 percent of its exports to China, amounting to up to 100,000 metric tons (MT) per month, said company executive Francisco Vanoni, speaking at Seafood Expo Asia in Hong Kong. READ MORE EUROPE Huge holes in aquaculture certification UK – On the same day that the Aquaculture Stewardship Council issued a press release claiming to have made considerable progress in improving global aquaculture sustainability an article has been published in the journal Science arguing that such standards have severe limitations. Based partly on the experience of an EU-Framework 7 funded research project (Sustaining Ethical Aquaculture Trade: www.seatglobal.eu), the paper argues that aquaculture certification has limits as a means of governing sustainable production. Dr Francis Murray, who coordinates the SEAT project from Stirling's Institute of Aquaculture, observed that private certification has gained prominence because of a fear of under-regulation by Governments but is now blamed for being inflexible, divisive and restrictive.As the paper observes, only around 5% of global aquaculture production is currently certified and potential for further growth is limited by the concentration of demand for certified seafood in US and EU markets while the majority of seafood consumption occurs elsewhere, notably Asia where most fish and shrimp farming occurs. READ MORE NGO expresses concern about report on biodiversity offsetting BRUSSELS – The the UK Government recently published a long-awaited green paper on its proposed plans to implement biodiversity offsetting. The UK has been trialing biodiversity offsetting through a series of pilots since last year, but so far they have been an abject failure. No offsets were completed until August 2013 when a meadow was created on chalk escarpment in South Oxfordshire with the aim of offsetting the destruction caused by 98-home development by Tayor-Wimpey in nearby Southmoor. Hannah Mowat, FERN ecosystems trading campaigner, has been following biodiversity offsetting policy across Europe and said: “Offsetting Nature has been a disaster in the countries in which it has already been trialed. Case studies show it damages legislation that protects the environment, permitting yet more destruction of nature in exchange for a false promise.” READ MORE LAST WORD Biodiversity Offsetting in England This consultation accompanies ‘Biodiversity Offsetting in England’ a consultation document published on 5 September 2013. This document sets out options for the Government’s proposed biodiversity offsetting system and poses questions about how the system may best operate. This online survey is your chance to provide feedback on the document. England faces the twin challenges of growing its economy and improving its natural environment. We will not achieve these goals unless our planning system is fit-for-purpose. Our economy cannot afford expensive and inefficient planning processes that unnecessarily delay or block the housing and infrastructure our economy needs to grow. Our environment cannot afford development which continues to eat away at nature. So we must maintain and improve our ecosystems, air, water and soils as they underpin sustainable economic growth in the long-term. READ MORE Philip Beer (Policy Official) Biodiversity Offsetting 01173723650 bio.offsets@defra.gsi.gov.uk ~ WE WELOCME YOUR LETTERS - If you’d like to have the last word on this or any other mangrove related topic, please send us your submission for upcoming newsletters. We’ll choose one per issue to have “the last word”. While we can’t promise to publish everyone’s letter, we do encourage anyone to post comments on our Blog at www. mangroveactionproject.blogspot.com BACK TO TOP Not yet a subscriber? Click here to subscribe.
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MAP News Issue 593, March 9, 2024
MAP News Issue #593 - March 9, 2024 Nigeria has Commenced Large-Scale Mangrove Restoraion in Ogoniland Eastern Niger Delta NIGERIA - The...