10
Jul 2008 - Global warming is set to wreak
havoc in Russia and other ex-Soviet Union
states unless drastic action is taken, according
to a new report compiled by WWF-Russia and
the British charity Oxfam.
The 52-page report was
timed to coincide with the recent G8 summit
in Japan, where leaders of the world's richest
countries were criticized for the targets
they set on the reduction of harmful emissions.
“We must understand
that damage caused by climate change is
here and now rather than a problem in the
distant future, in distant lands. There’s
a lot at stake, including our health and
even our lives,” said Igor Chestin, WWF-Russia
CEO.
The report – ‘Russia
and neighbouring countries: environmental,
economic and social impacts of climate change’
– highlights key evidence linking climate
change to failing health.
According to the report,
climate change is considered to be one of
the most serious environmental threats to
people’s health, along with other risk factors
such as air and water pollution, smoking
and drug abuse.
Persistently higher
temperatures caused by global warming is
leading to a sharp increase in several serious
and potentially lethal illnesses such as
heart disease, intestinal diseases, tick
encephalitis, tick borelliosis (Lyme disease)
and malaria.
The report also focuses
on the economic consequences of climate
change for Russia, Central Asia, Mongolia
and northern China.
According to the report,
global energy problems are mainly affecting
the poorest groups of population.
“Climate change has
the capacity to generate a whole new category
of refugees, poor people forced to flee
their homes, regions and even countries
as a result of climate stress,” said Nicholas
Colloff, Country Director of Oxfam GB.
“Urgent action needs
to be taken to reduce the very real risk
of this potential crisis from arising.”
The report also recommends
solutions to the problems presented by climate
change – both measures to mitigate human-induced
climate change in the future, and ways to
adapt to irreversible changes.
+ More
Giant clams 'secure
for another generation' after Philippine
re-seeding
07 Jul 2008 - Re-seeding
programmes on over 50 reefs are securing
the survival of the giant clam for at least
another generation, according to WWF-Philippines.
The clams, the world’s
largest bivalve mollusks and the star of
lurid but mostly imaginary literary and
cinematic depictions of trapped divers,
can live for over a century. They have been
known to exceed 1.4 metres in length and
weigh in at over 260 kilograms.
Once common throughout
Philippine reefs, excessive hunting for
the food, pet and curio trade all but depleted
the wild giant clam population by the mid-1980s,
prompting the IUCN to classify them as vulnerable.
An attempt to restore
natural clam populations is now being spearheaded
by Dr. Suzanne Mingoa-Licuanan of the University
of the Philippines Marine Science Institute
in partnership with WWF-Philippines.
“Several species of
laboratory-raised giant clams have been
re-seeded in over 50 reefs nationwide, significantly
bolstering wild stocks and ensuring their
survival for at least another generation,”
said WWF Project Manager Paolo Pagaduan.
By way of example, a
fresh batch of 40 true giant clams (Tridacna
gigas) wrapped in watertight plastic bags
made the journey last month from rearing
laboratories in the west of the country
down the coast to their new homes in Batangas
province on Santelmo Reef, a prized snorkeling
site being restored with the help of WWF
and a nearby ecotourism development.
With an average length
of 36 centimetres and weighing almost 10
kilograms, each of the 40 clams was painstakingly
but successfully laid to rest – alive of
course – in
pre-designated nooks and crannies. Some
102 clams were planted in the same area
last November and another 35 are being grown
for transplanting in coming months.
“When we planted the
first batch last November, all clam mantles
were pale ochre. Now, each clam shows off
electric hues of blue and violet – an indicator
that the area is conducive to clam growth,”
said Pagaduan.
“It is hoped that baby
clam recruits will eventually appear to
seed outlying areas in Batangas.”
Giant clams are an integral
part of the reef, serving as nurseries for
a host of fish and invertebrate species
including damsels, gobies and tiny commensal
crustaceans such as shrimp.
Sedentary organisms
like sponges, tunicates, corals and algae
find giant clam shells perfect substrates
for attachment. Giant clams also act as
filter feeders, sifting planktonic debris
from the water for food thereby improving
overall water quality.
