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Archive for September 26th, 2012
Study reveals coral reef decline rates are directly related to pollution
Posted by Environmental News Network: Mercy Adhiambo on September 26th, 2012
Environmental News Network: Human activities like agriculture and urbanisation can lead to the destruction of coral reefs and make their recovery and management difficult, according to research undertaken along the Kenyan coast.
These activities increase the rate at which microbes -- microscopic plants and animals such as bacteria, fungi, and algae, as well as some animals like sponges and worms -- erode the reefs.
Overfishing and drainage from land -- such as the one that occurs in Kenya's marine parks -- were significant...
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Caribbean Islands Brace for Challenges of Climate Change
Posted by Inter Press Service: Desmond Brown on September 26th, 2012
Inter Press Service: Prime Minister Dr. Denzil Douglas remembers how quiet -- even uneventful - this tiny twin-island federation was for the first four decades of his life.
But over the past 10 years, St. Kitts and Nevis, as well as the rest of the Caribbean, have seen radical climatic shifts. There is no question in Douglas`s mind that these changes are the direct results of climate change.
"Growing up, I knew nothing of hurricanes, (but) in the last decade St. Kitts and Nevis has felt the wrath of hurricanes...
Asia’s business leaders in partnership to reduce risks of disasters
Posted by AlertNet: Thin Lei Win on September 26th, 2012
AlertNet: Some of Asia's business leaders on Tuesday established the first regional partnership to safeguard their companies against disasters, at meeting in the Philippines' capital Manila, said the United Nations.
The Asian Private Sector Partnership on Risk Reduction is composed of more than 30 chief executives from companies across different sectors.
The executives are also adopting business continuity plans to minimise losses from disasters, said UNISDR, the U.N. agency on reducing disaster risks,...
100 million to die by 2030 if world fails to act on climate
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on September 26th, 2012
Reuters: More than 100 million people will die and global economic growth will be cut by 3.2 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) by 2030 if the world fails to tackle climate change, a report commissioned by 20 governments said on Wednesday. As global average temperatures rise due to greenhouse gas emissions, the effects on the planet, such as melting ice caps, extreme weather, drought and rising sea levels, will threaten populations and livelihoods, said the report conducted by humanitarian organization...
Climate change, carbon economy killing 5 million a year – study
Posted by AlertNet: Megan Rowling on September 26th, 2012
AlertNet: Climate change and the world's addiction to polluting fuels are costing nearly 5 million lives each year and lowering global output by some $1.2 trillion annually, demonstrating the need for swift action to stem mounting losses, a study said on Wednesday.
Climate change caused 400,000 deaths in 2010 from hunger and communicable diseases, including diarrhoea and malaria, hitting children in developing countries the hardest, according to the 2012 Climate Vulnerability Monitor. Carbon-intensive energy...