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Archive for March, 2011
Possible implications of REDD on land and forest tenure – exemplified by the Indonesian case
Posted by Capacity 4dev: Kruse Thorben on March 14th, 2011
Capacity 4dev: Past experiences with (forest) conservation projects and Payments for Environmental Services (PES) have shown that without addressing tenure, efforts are likely to be ineffective. People without or with weak tenure were not involved, conflicts arose and sustainable natural resource management and protection was difficult to achieve. Large-scale projects on forest lands were often conducted at the expense of local communities when tenure was not clear, recognised and secured. The new policy to reduce...
Posted in Water Conservation 
Comments Off on Possible implications of REDD on land and forest tenure – exemplified by the Indonesian caseThe Threat of Indonesia’s Palm Oil Rush
Posted by Jakarta Globe: None Given on March 14th, 2011
Jakarta Globe: For those not familiar with images of a tropical forest being depleted, it is difficult to imagine the level of desperation faced by indigenous populations who have retained their customary rights to live and depend on the forest’s environment according to their traditional ways. Many of these people of the forest live by traditional hunting and gathering, relying on their environmental knowledge to secure food resources.
Yet among these ancient tropical forests, many do not resemble what they...
Taxonomy: The naming crisis
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on March 14th, 2011
Independent: It was under the last rock of the day, that scientists finally came face to antennae with the giant crayfish of Shoal Creek. Twice as big as its competitors, the hairy crayfish, which can grow to lobster proportions, was a new species not previously seen.
Scientists had begun the search for the creature, now named Barbicambarus simmonsi, after anecdotal reports and sightings in creeks around Tennessee. "It was the end of the day and we saw this big flat boulder underneath a bridge and so we said,...
Oil Spills Mean Air Pollution Too
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on March 13th, 2011
Scientific American: Crude oil. It’s really a stew of various hydrocarbons. And when the oil started spewing into the Gulf of Mexico last year, some stew ingredients were able to take to the air—in two distinct groupings. That’s according to research published in the journal Science. Evidence for the atmospheric incursions was captured by NOAA's hurricane hunter airplane on two flights last June. The first oil trail was a three-kilometer wide downwind plume made up of the crude’s lightest hydrocarbons. They evaporated...
Analysis: Nuclear power growth at risk if Japan plant leaks
Posted by Reuters: Gerard Wynn and Bernie Woodall on March 13th, 2011
Reuters: The growing risk of a significant radiation leak at two Japanese nuclear power plants following Friday's earthquake and tsunami threatens to hurt an industry that has enjoyed a rebirth since the Three Mile Island accident in 1979 and the Chernobyl disaster in 1986.
On Friday, nuclear power advocates and environmentalists staked out familiar ground over the incident. But a wider public debate may be ignited if a major radiation leak occurs in Japan, said Paul Patterson, an energy analyst with consultants...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Analysis: Nuclear power growth at risk if Japan plant leaksCosta Rica a picture-perfect paradise
Posted by Herald Times Reporter: None Given on March 13th, 2011
Herald Times Reporter: Costa Rica has endless beauty and friendly people, and it's one of the happiest places on Earth.
In January, four friends and I visited this small, tropical country in Central America. We experienced a range of ecosystems: rainforests, cloud forests, dry Pacific forests, mangroves and coral reefs.
On our first day, we traveled northwest of the capital of San Jos? and peered over the bubbling and steaming main crater at Po?s Volcano National Park. This active volcano vividly called to mind the...
Colombian Amazon village bans prying tourists
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on March 13th, 2011
AFP: Just off the Amazon River, lies the village of Nazareth. But don't think about dropping by. Tired of being a curiosity to the outside world, the indigenous people have banned tourists.
Thousands of adventurous, backpacking tourists flock to southern Colombia every year, drawn by eco-tourism and the hope of interacting with the peoples who live and commune with the Amazon jungle following age-old traditions.
The Colombian Amazon, a peninsula sandwiched between Brazil and Peru, is famed for its...
US scientists recruit crocodiles to save wetlands
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on March 12th, 2011
Independent: US scientists in the Florida Everglades are recruiting crocodiles and alligators in their fight to preserve the fragile wetlands by implanting satellite chips in their necks for the first time.
As the animals make their way through different parts of the sprawling national park they beam back information on changes in the ecosystem and its impact on their size and movement patterns.
"They are giving us important data... They are working for us," says Frank Mazzotti, an ecologist and expert...
Is That a Banana in Your Water?
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on March 11th, 2011
National Geographic: Banana peels are no longer just for composting or comedy shows: New science shows they can pull heavy metal contamination from river water.
Metals such as lead and copper are introduced to waterways from a variety of sources, including agricultural runoff and industrial wastes. Once there, heavy metals can contaminate soils and pose health risks to humans and other species. Lead is known to affect the brain and nervous system.
Traditionally, water quality engineers have used silica, cellulose,...
France extends shale oil, gas exploration ban to June
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on March 11th, 2011
Reuters: French Prime Minister Francois Fillon extended a moratorium on research and drilling for shale oil and gas until mid-June, pending reports commissioned by the government to establish their impact on the environment.
France has large oil and gas shale reserves, but projects have sparked controversy due to the possible impact on the environment caused by drilling techniques used on such deposits.
The hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, technique involves injecting water, sand and chemicals into...