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Archive for April 14th, 2011
Pro-deforestation group calls for weakening of U.S. law against illegal logging
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on April 14th, 2011
Mongabay: Pro-deforestation group calls for weakening of U.S. law against illegal logging A group that lobbies on behalf of forestry conglomerates in Indonesia and Malaysia is calling on the U.S. to roll back legislation intended to fight illegal logging.
World Growth International, a Washington D.C.-based group that sometimes portrays itself as a humanitarian organization, yet consistently pushes policies that favor industrial forestry interests over those of rural communities, has submitted formal comments...
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Seasonal climate forecasts possible in Africa but not helping yet – study
Posted by AlertNet: Laurie Goering on April 14th, 2011
AlertNet: For African farmers struggling to cope with increasingly erratic conditions linked to climate change, there's good -- and bad - news.
The good news is that in parts of sub-Saharan Africa, scientists can now issue reasonably reliable seasonal climate forecasts a month or more in advance of the planting season, giving growers a chance to opt for different kinds of crops or other measures to adapt to upcoming conditions.
That has the potential to improve food security in many climate-vulnerable...
Vietnam creates reserve for newly-discovered, nearly-extinct mammal, the saola
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on April 14th, 2011
Mongabay: Vietnam creates reserve for newly-discovered, nearly-extinct mammal, the saola
The Vietnam government and local people have approved a Saola Natural Reserve to protect one of the world's most endangered--and most elusive--mammals. Only discovered by the outside world in 1992, the saola (Pseudoryx nghetinhensis) inhabits the lush forests of the Annamite Mountains. No one knows how many saola remain, but it has been classified as Critically Endangered as it is likely very few. Recently, conservationist...
From the Serengeti to Lake Natron: is the Tanzanian government aiming to destroy its wildlife and lands?
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on April 14th, 2011
Mongabay: From the Serengeti to Lake Natron: is the Tanzanian government aiming to destroy its wildlife and lands?
Thousands of lesser flamingoes (Phoenicopterus minor) crowd in Lake Bogoria in Kenya. Nearly all of these flamingoes will breed in Tanzania's Lake Natron, now a proposed site for soda ash mining. Photo by: Steve Garvie.
What's happening in Tanzania? This is a question making the rounds in conservation and environmental circles. Why is a nation that has so much invested in its wild lands...
World Atlas of Mangroves: A Book Review
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on April 14th, 2011
Mongabay: Because recent research has shown that it is often the case that mangroves store more carbon than tropical forests--from 90 tons to 588 tons carbon from above-ground and below-ground biomass combined with net primary productivity of 7 to 25 tons carbon annually(1)--while providing an estimated ecosystem services value of up to US$ 9270 per hectare per year (2), the timely publication of the World Atlas of Mangroves is an excellent reference for those of us working to protect mangroves globally. With...
U.S. poised to lift federal protections for wolves
Posted by Reuters: Laura Zuckerman on April 14th, 2011
Reuters: The gray wolf would become the first creature ever removed from the U.S. endangered species list by an act of Congress under a provision in the budget deal set to be passed by U.S. lawmakers this week.
The measure would lift federal safeguards for some 1,200 wolves in the western U.S. states of Montana and Idaho, placing them back under state control and allowing licensed hunting of the animals. It also would bar judicial review of the decision to rescind federal protections.
The provision...
Drought grows more dire in Southwest, farms hit
Posted by Reuters: Carey Gillam on April 14th, 2011
Reuters: - Conditions for crops and livestock are growing more dire by the day in the U.S. Southwest as drought continues to grip the region.
Texas is a tinderbox, pastureland for hungry cattle is drying up, and prospects are deteriorating rapidly for wheat, corn, cotton and other crops.
"Conditions are just deplorable right now. One hundred percent of the state is currently in some form of drought," Texas Agriculture Commissioner Todd Staples told Reuters.
The threat to cattle and crop production...
African farmers ‘need more relevant climate predictions’
Posted by SciDev.Net: Gozde Zorlu on April 14th, 2011
SciDev.Net: Seasonal climate predictions have been limited in their ability to meet the needs of rural farmers in Sub-Saharan Africa, according to a study. Uncertain rainfall and climate affect 70 per cent of Sub-Saharan Africa's population, hampering efforts to promote agricultural production, improve food security and reduce poverty, according to a paper published in Experimental Agriculture this month (5 April). Farmers could use seasonal weather predictions in many ways to boost food production, said the...
United Kingdom: Summer drought looms following ‘driest March for 60 years’
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on April 14th, 2011
Guardian: Water shortages may become a reality in England and Wales following an exceptionally dry March. Photograph: Ian Nicholson/PA
England and Wales had their driest March in more than 60 years, with some parts of Cambridgeshire having less than 2mm – less than is normally recorded in the Sahara desert at this time of year – according to figures released by the government's centre for hydrology and ecology (CEH).
Experts warned that the next few weeks could be critical for water companies, farmers...
‘Red’ sky worries Iran as sandstorms wreak havoc
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on April 14th, 2011
Agence France-Presse: Iranians are worried by crippling air pollution as "unprecedented" sandstorms mostly originating from neighbouring Iraq hit 20 provinces, forcing the shutdown of schools and government offices.
The blinding sandstorms hit western, central and southern provinces on Wednesday due to winds blowing at high speed, considerably reducing visibility to as low as 50 metres (yards) in some cities.
"Unprecedented sandstorms which entered from west are the most violent storms that have ever reached Iran,"...