Haribon News
Caraga mining concerns cited
Vol. XXII, No. 163
Friday, March 20, 2009
The Economy
MINING stakeholders in northeastern Mindanao are pushing for faster action on applications for permits, as well as harmonious ties with the church and host communities.
In a consultation meeting with the Chamber of Mines of the Philippines and the Mines and Geosciences Bureau, officials of the Chamber of Mines Caraga, Inc. (CMCI) cited as key concerns the need for faster action on permits, lack of skilled manpower, difficulty in securing financing amid tightening credit, and economic sustainability of host mining communities.
CMCI President Dulmar M. Raagas asked the "Environment Secretary to issue an order that will expedite the processing of applications."
To date, there are 125 exploration permits under processing in the region; 16 have already been approved while 19 were denied.
Friday, March 20, 2009
The Economy
MINING stakeholders in northeastern Mindanao are pushing for faster action on applications for permits, as well as harmonious ties with the church and host communities.
In a consultation meeting with the Chamber of Mines of the Philippines and the Mines and Geosciences Bureau, officials of the Chamber of Mines Caraga, Inc. (CMCI) cited as key concerns the need for faster action on permits, lack of skilled manpower, difficulty in securing financing amid tightening credit, and economic sustainability of host mining communities.
CMCI President Dulmar M. Raagas asked the "Environment Secretary to issue an order that will expedite the processing of applications."
To date, there are 125 exploration permits under processing in the region; 16 have already been approved while 19 were denied.
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Villagers feel heat for stand vs pollution
March 18, 2009
Nestor P. Burgos Jr.
Visayas Bureau
ILOILO CITY– Residents of Semirara Island in Antique are allegedly being pressured to withdraw their petition against alleged pollution coming from coal mining on the island.
Roland Lavega, barangay captain of Alegria, said in a telephone interview on Monday that residents of his barangay fear for their safety after several village watchmen of the neighbouring Barangay Semirara went to their houses “pressuring” them to sign a document that says they were unaware of the contents of the petition that they signed against alleged pollution caused by coal mining.
Juniper Barroquillo, Semirara Mining Co. (SMC) administrative manager said the firm, which operates one of the biggest coal mines in Asia in Semirara, has nothing to do with the signature gathering campaign.
Nestor P. Burgos Jr.
Visayas Bureau
ILOILO CITY– Residents of Semirara Island in Antique are allegedly being pressured to withdraw their petition against alleged pollution coming from coal mining on the island.
Roland Lavega, barangay captain of Alegria, said in a telephone interview on Monday that residents of his barangay fear for their safety after several village watchmen of the neighbouring Barangay Semirara went to their houses “pressuring” them to sign a document that says they were unaware of the contents of the petition that they signed against alleged pollution caused by coal mining.
Juniper Barroquillo, Semirara Mining Co. (SMC) administrative manager said the firm, which operates one of the biggest coal mines in Asia in Semirara, has nothing to do with the signature gathering campaign.
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Masbate bishop backs farmers, fisherfolk vs mining in Aroroy town
LEGAZPI CITY, March 17, 2009—Masbate Bishop Joel Baylon has expressed concern over the outpouring sentiments of farmers and fisher folk staging a series of mass rally against the operations of Filminera Mining Corporation (FMC), an Australian-Canadian based mining firm that scheduled a full blast open pit mining in Aroroy town on March 20, 2009.
In a press statement released to the media yesterday, the Social Action Foundation of the Diocese of Masbate consider that it is the Church duty and responsibility to vigorously oppose the open pit mining in the town of Aroroy “as sign of our faith and understanding that we are stewards of God’s creation and are accountable to Him who created everything in our world to be good”.
The church’s response, represented by Fr. Leo Casas of the Social Action Centre, came amidst fear from Association of Concerned Residents of Aroroy (ACRA) and Alyansa Tigil Mina (ATM) that a battalion of soldiers flown in to said mining town might ignite the volatile situation where affected residents of the mining areas have staged a series of mass rally since March 14, 2009, to continuously air their opposition to the operations of FMC.
In a press statement released to the media yesterday, the Social Action Foundation of the Diocese of Masbate consider that it is the Church duty and responsibility to vigorously oppose the open pit mining in the town of Aroroy “as sign of our faith and understanding that we are stewards of God’s creation and are accountable to Him who created everything in our world to be good”.
The church’s response, represented by Fr. Leo Casas of the Social Action Centre, came amidst fear from Association of Concerned Residents of Aroroy (ACRA) and Alyansa Tigil Mina (ATM) that a battalion of soldiers flown in to said mining town might ignite the volatile situation where affected residents of the mining areas have staged a series of mass rally since March 14, 2009, to continuously air their opposition to the operations of FMC.
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Firm says typhoon caused siltation
by Nestor P. Burgos Jr.
Inquirer Visayas | Philippine Daily Inquirer | March 1, 2009
SEMIRARA ISLAND, Antique—The Semirara Mining Company (SMC) has denied allegations of residents that wastes coming from its mining operations on this island have caused siltation that contaminated and damaged mangrove trees and other coastal resources.
The company instead blamed typhoon “Frank” last year and previous storms for the siltation and the death of mangroves along the Suja Creek in Barangay Semirara, one of the three villages of the island.
“It was the storm that damaged the mangroves and they have already been replanted,” SMC administrative manager Juniper Barroquillo told the Philippine Daily Inquirer on Wednesday.
Barroquillo said that the heavy rains brought by the typhoon triggered a run-off from the 10-meter-old coal stockpile near the creek.
Inquirer Visayas | Philippine Daily Inquirer | March 1, 2009
SEMIRARA ISLAND, Antique—The Semirara Mining Company (SMC) has denied allegations of residents that wastes coming from its mining operations on this island have caused siltation that contaminated and damaged mangrove trees and other coastal resources.
The company instead blamed typhoon “Frank” last year and previous storms for the siltation and the death of mangroves along the Suja Creek in Barangay Semirara, one of the three villages of the island.
“It was the storm that damaged the mangroves and they have already been replanted,” SMC administrative manager Juniper Barroquillo told the Philippine Daily Inquirer on Wednesday.
Barroquillo said that the heavy rains brought by the typhoon triggered a run-off from the 10-meter-old coal stockpile near the creek.
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San Miguel subsidiary eyes Laiban Dam project
02/09/2009 | 02:24 PM
GMA News TV
MANILA, Philippines- San Miguel Corp., Southeast Asia's largest food and
beverage conglomerate, is seeking to partner with the government for the
development of a dam project seen to supply future water needs of Metro
Manila.
In a statement, San Miguel said wholly-owned subsidiary San Miguel Bulk
Water Co. Inc. (SMBWCI) it has submitted an unsolicited proposal for a
joint venture project to the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System
for the development of Laiban Dam.
San Miguel added SMBWCI and its foreign partner will enter into a
cooperative joint venture with MWSS to secure financing, construct,
operate and maintain the project.
The plan for project will include the construction of the dam and
headworks, raw water conveyance facilities, water treatment plant,
GMA News TV
MANILA, Philippines- San Miguel Corp., Southeast Asia's largest food and
beverage conglomerate, is seeking to partner with the government for the
development of a dam project seen to supply future water needs of Metro
Manila.
In a statement, San Miguel said wholly-owned subsidiary San Miguel Bulk
Water Co. Inc. (SMBWCI) it has submitted an unsolicited proposal for a
joint venture project to the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System
for the development of Laiban Dam.
San Miguel added SMBWCI and its foreign partner will enter into a
cooperative joint venture with MWSS to secure financing, construct,
operate and maintain the project.
The plan for project will include the construction of the dam and
headworks, raw water conveyance facilities, water treatment plant,
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Mining firm backed group acquires water rights in Vizcaya town
Floro Taguinod, GMANews.TV
January 24, 2009
BAYOMBONG, Philippines – Water has become a highly precious resource. There are some places where a barrel of water costs more than a barrel of oil. In this landlocked province, it can cost more than life.
After paying their dues to the government for the use of water to irrigate their farmlands, an irrigators association in one of Nueva Vizcaya's mining towns is now in limbo due to lack of education and not having the capacity to pay a lawyer after another association, with the backing of a mining firm seeking for water rights in the same town, seemed to have beaten them to a draw.
Servillano Germono, leader of a farmers group in sitio Dipilipig, Runruno, Quezon, Nueva Vizcaya claimed that they already applied for water permit and have been paying their dues to the National Irrigation Administration (NIA) for the use of irrigation canals and its facilities as evidenced by receipts issued by the same agency dating back to the 1980's.
January 24, 2009
BAYOMBONG, Philippines – Water has become a highly precious resource. There are some places where a barrel of water costs more than a barrel of oil. In this landlocked province, it can cost more than life.
After paying their dues to the government for the use of water to irrigate their farmlands, an irrigators association in one of Nueva Vizcaya's mining towns is now in limbo due to lack of education and not having the capacity to pay a lawyer after another association, with the backing of a mining firm seeking for water rights in the same town, seemed to have beaten them to a draw.
Servillano Germono, leader of a farmers group in sitio Dipilipig, Runruno, Quezon, Nueva Vizcaya claimed that they already applied for water permit and have been paying their dues to the National Irrigation Administration (NIA) for the use of irrigation canals and its facilities as evidenced by receipts issued by the same agency dating back to the 1980's.
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ANOTHER ILLEGALLY CUT LUMBERS, CONFISCATED
January 10, 2009
San Roque, Northern Samar – following the mandate as deputized implementor of anti-illegal logging operations in the area, another bulk of illegally cut lumbers was confiscated by the Army's 63rd Infantry Division at Brgy. Malobago, San Roque, Northern Samar at around 5 p.m., Friday, January 9.
The confiscation took place when the combined elements of Headquarters and Alpha companies of this battalion lead by 2nd Lt. Richard Kadil while conducting recruitment of CAFGU's at the aforesaid barangay sighted the said lumbers within the vicinity waiting to be hauled.
The illegally cut lumbers counted about 80 pieces of 1x12x3 with a total of 800 board feet were taken cared of by the certain Gil Morillo and Linggoy Baluyot, both residents of this municipality.
When asked by the troops regarding the legality of the said illegal lumbers, the duo pointed their fingers to the mayor of San Roque, Hon. Andre Abalon to be the owner of the said illegally cut lumbers.
San Roque, Northern Samar – following the mandate as deputized implementor of anti-illegal logging operations in the area, another bulk of illegally cut lumbers was confiscated by the Army's 63rd Infantry Division at Brgy. Malobago, San Roque, Northern Samar at around 5 p.m., Friday, January 9.
The confiscation took place when the combined elements of Headquarters and Alpha companies of this battalion lead by 2nd Lt. Richard Kadil while conducting recruitment of CAFGU's at the aforesaid barangay sighted the said lumbers within the vicinity waiting to be hauled.
The illegally cut lumbers counted about 80 pieces of 1x12x3 with a total of 800 board feet were taken cared of by the certain Gil Morillo and Linggoy Baluyot, both residents of this municipality.
When asked by the troops regarding the legality of the said illegal lumbers, the duo pointed their fingers to the mayor of San Roque, Hon. Andre Abalon to be the owner of the said illegally cut lumbers.
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Fish digestions help keep the oceans healthy
by Michael Kahn
Jan. 15, 2009
LONDON (Reuters)
The digestive systems of fish play a vital role in maintaining the health of the oceans and moderating climate change, researchers said on Thursday.
Computer models showed how bony fish produced a large portion of the inorganic carbon that helps maintain the oceans' acidity balance and was vital for marine life, they said.
The world's bony fish population, estimated at between 812 million and 2 billion tons, helped to limit the consequences of climate change through its effect on the carbon cycle, University of British Columbia researchers reported in the journal Science.
"This study is really the first glimpse of the huge impact fish have on our carbon cycle -- and why we need them in the ocean," researcher Villy Christensen and colleagues wrote.
Jan. 15, 2009
LONDON (Reuters)
The digestive systems of fish play a vital role in maintaining the health of the oceans and moderating climate change, researchers said on Thursday.
Computer models showed how bony fish produced a large portion of the inorganic carbon that helps maintain the oceans' acidity balance and was vital for marine life, they said.
The world's bony fish population, estimated at between 812 million and 2 billion tons, helped to limit the consequences of climate change through its effect on the carbon cycle, University of British Columbia researchers reported in the journal Science.
"This study is really the first glimpse of the huge impact fish have on our carbon cycle -- and why we need them in the ocean," researcher Villy Christensen and colleagues wrote.
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National confab on wetlands, climate change and biodiversity conservation in Dumaguete, the Philippines
Philippines News Agency
January 12, 2009
Monday
Some 100 participants from government agencies, non-government organizations, the academe and the private sector are gathered in Dumaguete to attend the three-day National Conference on Wetlands, Climate Change Adaptation and Bio-diversity Conservation. The conference, which reeled off Monday at Silliman University here, aims to set the stage for a national police framework on wetlands.
Undersecretary Manuel Gerochi of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) explained that the activity will also look into the country’s current actions and policies on wetlands and how these relate to climate change and bio-diversity. “Wetlands are basically a rich resource in terms of bio-diversity and ultimately, at the end of the day, loss of bio-diversity is the firm reason of climate change, he said. The Philippines has plenty of wetlands, such as marshlands, lakes, rivers, and coral reefs, that are taken for granted, Gerochi lamented.
January 12, 2009
Monday
Some 100 participants from government agencies, non-government organizations, the academe and the private sector are gathered in Dumaguete to attend the three-day National Conference on Wetlands, Climate Change Adaptation and Bio-diversity Conservation. The conference, which reeled off Monday at Silliman University here, aims to set the stage for a national police framework on wetlands.
Undersecretary Manuel Gerochi of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) explained that the activity will also look into the country’s current actions and policies on wetlands and how these relate to climate change and bio-diversity. “Wetlands are basically a rich resource in terms of bio-diversity and ultimately, at the end of the day, loss of bio-diversity is the firm reason of climate change, he said. The Philippines has plenty of wetlands, such as marshlands, lakes, rivers, and coral reefs, that are taken for granted, Gerochi lamented.
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Check tree poisoning in Subic
SubicBay.Ph
January 18, 2009
Sunday
The Environment Management Bureau has obtained soil samples from a two-hectare tract of land leased to a Korean casino and hotel project at the Subic Bay Freeport to verify reports about the alleged poisoning of more than 300 trees there, Environment Secretary Lito Atienza said on Saturday.
"We found no trees being cut, and as far as allegations that the soil has been poisoned, we instructed our people in the field, the EMB director himself, to test the soil samples we got," Atienza told the Inquirer on the sidelines of the 2009 Asian Waterbird Census here.
Alerts about the poisoning reached the Inquirer through several text messages, some from unregistered senders.
Hefty amounts of salt, the senders said, have been poured on the ground where the trees stood.
January 18, 2009
Sunday
The Environment Management Bureau has obtained soil samples from a two-hectare tract of land leased to a Korean casino and hotel project at the Subic Bay Freeport to verify reports about the alleged poisoning of more than 300 trees there, Environment Secretary Lito Atienza said on Saturday.
"We found no trees being cut, and as far as allegations that the soil has been poisoned, we instructed our people in the field, the EMB director himself, to test the soil samples we got," Atienza told the Inquirer on the sidelines of the 2009 Asian Waterbird Census here.
Alerts about the poisoning reached the Inquirer through several text messages, some from unregistered senders.
Hefty amounts of salt, the senders said, have been poured on the ground where the trees stood.
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DENR: Reports on tree-cutting exaggerated
Friday, January 16, 2009
SUBIC BAY FREEPORT—Reports on the cutting of trees in this free port are exaggerated.
So declared Environment Secretary Lito Atienza when he visited the controversial site of the proposed Ocean 9 hotel-casino project here on Wednesday.
Inspecting the trees at the 2-hectare project site here with officials of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA), officials of project proponent Grand Utopia Inc. and members of the media, Atienza noted that contrary to some published reports, the trees at the project site had remained intact all along.
“We should stick to the truth,” Atienza said.
“They said trees have been cut here, so where are those cut trees?” Atienza wondered aloud during the inspection.
“A lot of reports that came out in the newspapers now turn out to be inaccurate and exaggerated,” he also told the media.
Atienza inspected the project site exactly a week after announcing that the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) would now control the issuance of environmental permits in this free port—a task previously delegated to the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) under a memorandum of agreement between the two agencies.
SUBIC BAY FREEPORT—Reports on the cutting of trees in this free port are exaggerated.
So declared Environment Secretary Lito Atienza when he visited the controversial site of the proposed Ocean 9 hotel-casino project here on Wednesday.
Inspecting the trees at the 2-hectare project site here with officials of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA), officials of project proponent Grand Utopia Inc. and members of the media, Atienza noted that contrary to some published reports, the trees at the project site had remained intact all along.
“We should stick to the truth,” Atienza said.
“They said trees have been cut here, so where are those cut trees?” Atienza wondered aloud during the inspection.
“A lot of reports that came out in the newspapers now turn out to be inaccurate and exaggerated,” he also told the media.
Atienza inspected the project site exactly a week after announcing that the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) would now control the issuance of environmental permits in this free port—a task previously delegated to the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) under a memorandum of agreement between the two agencies.
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DOJ dismisses case against mining firm officials
Friday, January 09, 2009, The Manila Times
By William B. Depasupil
THE Department of Justice has dismissed with finality the criminal charges for alleged mineral theft filed by a member of the Palawan provincial board against officials of a mining firm and a businesswoman.
In a three page-resolution, Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez cleared businesswoman Caroline Tanchay, along with Fernando Esguerra, Amor Dionisio, Bernardo Ventura and Abraham Constante Gomez Espejo, all officials of Oriental Peninsula. Resources Group Inc., of alleged illegal quarrying activities in the village of Punang, Sofronio Espanola, Palawan.
The resolution, dated December 15, 2008, dismissed the petition for review by the complainant and upheld the Department of Justice’s August 2008 ruling.
“We carefully examined the petition and its attachments and found no such error to warrant the reversal of the assailed resolution which is duly supported by the evidence adduced and relevant jurisprudence,” Gonzalez said.
By William B. Depasupil
THE Department of Justice has dismissed with finality the criminal charges for alleged mineral theft filed by a member of the Palawan provincial board against officials of a mining firm and a businesswoman.
In a three page-resolution, Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez cleared businesswoman Caroline Tanchay, along with Fernando Esguerra, Amor Dionisio, Bernardo Ventura and Abraham Constante Gomez Espejo, all officials of Oriental Peninsula. Resources Group Inc., of alleged illegal quarrying activities in the village of Punang, Sofronio Espanola, Palawan.
The resolution, dated December 15, 2008, dismissed the petition for review by the complainant and upheld the Department of Justice’s August 2008 ruling.
“We carefully examined the petition and its attachments and found no such error to warrant the reversal of the assailed resolution which is duly supported by the evidence adduced and relevant jurisprudence,” Gonzalez said.
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DENR: No tree cutting in Subic
Friday, January 09, 2009
By Alcuin Papa - Philippine Daily Inquirer
MANILA, Philippines – No trees will be cut for any project inside the Subic Freeport, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) said Thursday.
In a press conference, Environment Secretary Joselito Atienza also said his agency is taking control of environment concerns in Subic.
“There will be no tree cutting in Subic. We need environmental accountability there and we are committed to protecting the trees,” Atienza said.
Atienza said the controversies “have put into question the ability of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) to enforce environmental laws” inside the former US naval facility.
In a statement, SBMA chief Armand Arreza said he respects the DENR decision to take over environmental concerns at the freeport.
By Alcuin Papa - Philippine Daily Inquirer
MANILA, Philippines – No trees will be cut for any project inside the Subic Freeport, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) said Thursday.
In a press conference, Environment Secretary Joselito Atienza also said his agency is taking control of environment concerns in Subic.
“There will be no tree cutting in Subic. We need environmental accountability there and we are committed to protecting the trees,” Atienza said.
Atienza said the controversies “have put into question the ability of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) to enforce environmental laws” inside the former US naval facility.
In a statement, SBMA chief Armand Arreza said he respects the DENR decision to take over environmental concerns at the freeport.
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Is Arroyo being misled by SBMA?
Friday, January 09, 2009
By. Neal Cruz - Inquirer
Is President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo being misled by the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) on the mini-forest that a South Korean company wanted to cut to give way to a casino-hotel? When shown pictures of the forest showing big trees, Environment and Natural Resources Secretary Lito Atienza said the President had been told the trees were “small.” But pictures don’t lie. They showed some really big trees, with bulldozers and cranes standing nearby ready to massacre them.
“I will show this to the President,” Atienza said of the pictures. The other day, Atienza revoked the permits granted to the contractor of the Koreans to cut the trees. He also revoked the agreement with the SBMA giving the latter authority to issue clearances for tree cutting. Hallelujah!
The SBMA had said that the trees would be “balled” and transferred to another place. It also said that the Korean firm would plant tree seedlings on several hectares of denuded land. This is the usual ploy of people who want to remove trees to assuage the protests of environmentalists. But the survival rate of trees balled and replanted is very low, especially if the trees are already big. The trees die within a few weeks. The balling is usually only for show.
By. Neal Cruz - Inquirer
Is President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo being misled by the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) on the mini-forest that a South Korean company wanted to cut to give way to a casino-hotel? When shown pictures of the forest showing big trees, Environment and Natural Resources Secretary Lito Atienza said the President had been told the trees were “small.” But pictures don’t lie. They showed some really big trees, with bulldozers and cranes standing nearby ready to massacre them.
“I will show this to the President,” Atienza said of the pictures. The other day, Atienza revoked the permits granted to the contractor of the Koreans to cut the trees. He also revoked the agreement with the SBMA giving the latter authority to issue clearances for tree cutting. Hallelujah!
The SBMA had said that the trees would be “balled” and transferred to another place. It also said that the Korean firm would plant tree seedlings on several hectares of denuded land. This is the usual ploy of people who want to remove trees to assuage the protests of environmentalists. But the survival rate of trees balled and replanted is very low, especially if the trees are already big. The trees die within a few weeks. The balling is usually only for show.
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Half of the world's population could face a climate-induced food crisis by 2100
Thursday, January 8, 2009
www.sciencedaily.com
To compound matters, the population of this equatorial belt – from about 35 degrees north latitude to 35 degrees south latitude – is among the poorest on Earth and is growing faster than anywhere else.
"The stresses on global food production from temperature alone are going to be huge, and that doesn't take into account water supplies stressed by the higher temperatures," said David Battisti, a University of Washington atmospheric sciences professor.
Battisti is lead author of the study in the Jan. 9 edition of Science. He collaborated with Rosamond Naylor, director of Stanford University's Program on Food Security and the Environment, to examine the impact of climate change on the world's food security.
"This is a compelling reason for us to invest in adaptation, because it is clear that this is the direction we are going in terms of temperature and it will take decades to develop new food crop varieties that can better withstand a warmer climate," Naylor said.
www.sciencedaily.com
To compound matters, the population of this equatorial belt – from about 35 degrees north latitude to 35 degrees south latitude – is among the poorest on Earth and is growing faster than anywhere else.
"The stresses on global food production from temperature alone are going to be huge, and that doesn't take into account water supplies stressed by the higher temperatures," said David Battisti, a University of Washington atmospheric sciences professor.
Battisti is lead author of the study in the Jan. 9 edition of Science. He collaborated with Rosamond Naylor, director of Stanford University's Program on Food Security and the Environment, to examine the impact of climate change on the world's food security.
"This is a compelling reason for us to invest in adaptation, because it is clear that this is the direction we are going in terms of temperature and it will take decades to develop new food crop varieties that can better withstand a warmer climate," Naylor said.
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A monumental decision for the oceans
06 January 2009 | News - Press Release
World Conservation Union
President Bush today will formally designate three areas in the Pacific as Marine National Monuments. IUCN has been one of the major partners of the U.S. Government in the creation of these marine protected areas. The scientific and technical advice provided by IUCN to the President’s Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) has paid off, as it will result in the creation of the world’s largest ocean protected area covering 195,280 square miles.
The three new Marine National Monuments include two regions of the Line Islands that span the central Pacific and an area in the western Pacific which encompasses the northern Marianas chain and the Mariana Trench – the deepest ocean canyon in the world. Together these new protected areas boast enormous biodiversity both in terms of species and habitats.
World Conservation Union
President Bush today will formally designate three areas in the Pacific as Marine National Monuments. IUCN has been one of the major partners of the U.S. Government in the creation of these marine protected areas. The scientific and technical advice provided by IUCN to the President’s Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) has paid off, as it will result in the creation of the world’s largest ocean protected area covering 195,280 square miles.
The three new Marine National Monuments include two regions of the Line Islands that span the central Pacific and an area in the western Pacific which encompasses the northern Marianas chain and the Mariana Trench – the deepest ocean canyon in the world. Together these new protected areas boast enormous biodiversity both in terms of species and habitats.
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Pole-to-pole flights to measure greenhouse gases that have an impact on climate
Thursday, January 8, 2009
U.S National Science Foundation
HIAPER, one of the nation's most advanced research aircraft, is scheduled to embark on an historic mission spanning the globe from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Starting Jan. 7, 2008, the HIAPER Pole-to-Pole Observations (HIPPO) mission will cover more than 24,000 miles as an international team of scientists makes a series of five flights over the next three years sampling the atmosphere in some of the most inaccessible regions of the world. The goal of the mission is ambitious--the first-ever, global, real-time sampling of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gasses across a wide range of altitudes in the atmosphere, literally from pole-to-pole. To date, much of our understanding of global atmospheric greenhouse gasses has been acquired from distant satellites, balloon launches, or highly sophisticated supercomputer models. HIAPER's pole-to-pole mission will, for the first time, give scientists real-time global observation data to correlate with those climate models. HIAPER is short for the National Science Foundation's High-performance Instrumented Airborne Platfrom for Environmental Research. A modified Gulfstream V jet, it can fly at high altitudes for extended periods of time and can carry 5,600 pounds of sensing equipment, making it a premier aircraft for scientific discovery….
U.S National Science Foundation
HIAPER, one of the nation's most advanced research aircraft, is scheduled to embark on an historic mission spanning the globe from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Starting Jan. 7, 2008, the HIAPER Pole-to-Pole Observations (HIPPO) mission will cover more than 24,000 miles as an international team of scientists makes a series of five flights over the next three years sampling the atmosphere in some of the most inaccessible regions of the world. The goal of the mission is ambitious--the first-ever, global, real-time sampling of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gasses across a wide range of altitudes in the atmosphere, literally from pole-to-pole. To date, much of our understanding of global atmospheric greenhouse gasses has been acquired from distant satellites, balloon launches, or highly sophisticated supercomputer models. HIAPER's pole-to-pole mission will, for the first time, give scientists real-time global observation data to correlate with those climate models. HIAPER is short for the National Science Foundation's High-performance Instrumented Airborne Platfrom for Environmental Research. A modified Gulfstream V jet, it can fly at high altitudes for extended periods of time and can carry 5,600 pounds of sensing equipment, making it a premier aircraft for scientific discovery….
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