US-Asia climate pact unveiled

July 29, 2005 on Straits Times Interactive

US-Asia climate pact unveiled

Six-nation agreement calls on technology, not emission cuts, to fight global warming

By Bhagyashree Garekar

VIENTIANE - A NEW United States-led pact was unveiled here yesterday that calls for the use of technology instead of cutbacks in greenhouse gas emissions to combat global warming.

The agreement was negotiated on the quiet by the US and five Asia-Pacific countries.
The six countries - Australia, China, India, Japan, South Korea and the US - account for about a half of the world's population, energy needs and emissions of the climate-changing greenhouse gases. Forest-shrouded Laos, with its agrarian economy and hardly any manufacturing activity, provided the backdrop for the group to declare themselves wedded to discovering a technology-centred way to keep the planet clean.

Although the initiative was an American one, it was announced at a news conference that stuck to Asean's customary preference for an alphabetical way of doing things. It was introduced by Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer, who described it as a 'new path for global agreements to emerge based on clean technology development and deployment'.

The treaty is not binding and does not have enforcement standards. 'The key here is to maintain the flexibility,' Deputy US Secretary of State Robert Zoellick said.

The US and Australia have refused to be party to the main convention on global warming, the 1997 Kyoto Treaty. They say it is unfair as it does not require cuts in emissions from developing nations such as China and India, which are major pollution offenders.

The new pact, which Beijing and New Delhi have both signed, seemed to overcome that hurdle.
Singapore was among the first to see its potential.

'Singapore welcomes the newly-formed six-nation Asia-Pacific Partnership on Clean Development and Climate,' Foreign Minister George Yeo said yesterday.

'Any effective effort to ameliorate the problem of global climate change must involve the United States. We see US leadership in this initiative as a positive development.'

That argument seemed to have won over India too.

'The new pact includes America and that was a vital consideration for us,' India's Vice-Foreign Minister Rao Inderjeet Singh told The Straits Times.

Mr Zoellick and Mr Downwer answered immediate concerns that the new pact would supplant existing international climate agreements like the Kyoto treaty. They said the pact was consistent with a United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.

Details of the pact will be worked out at a meeting in Adelaide, Australia in November.

States Aim to Attract Ecotourists

July 19, 2005 — By Tara Tuckwiller, The Charleston Gazette

When customers arrive at Natural Seasons Bed and Breakfast, they're often just looking for a convenient place to stay in Weston. Period.

They might not be expecting the organic garden. Or the $5 discount for arriving in a carpool or a fuel-efficient car. They might not notice that the fluffy guest towels, when they aren't so fluffy anymore, get reused as cleaning rags -- and when the towels' natural fibers break down enough, they join the compost pile.

Natural Seasons is part of West Virginia's growing ecotourism industry.

"There are shades of 'green' in the tourism industry," said John Williams, owner of Natural Seasons and president of the state ecotourism association. "I focus on the darkest green I can achieve."

Ecotourism's popularity is exploding, with 20 percent to 30 percent growth per year, according to several estimates -- much faster than regular tourism. True ecotourism not only protects the environment, but also benefits the local culture and economy.

More and more tourists are demanding such an experience. Almost three-fourths of the United States' most well-heeled, frequent travelers -- more than 55 million Americans -- favor such responsible tourism, according to a 2003 survey by National Geographic Traveler and the Travel Industry Association of America. Their group clout translates into roughly half of all travel spending.

But those travelers have a hard time finding what they're looking for. Ecotourism is well developed in exotic locales such as Costa Rica and the Galapagos Islands. But it is still in its infancy in the United States. Until very recently, travelers who wanted socially and environmentally responsible nature vacations had to do a lot of blind digging to unearth the small, scattered U.S. outfitters and lodgings that fit the bill.

Kentucky, Maine, Vermont, Oregon, Hawaii and other states are working on a more customer-friendly approach, as is West Virginia.

This year, West Virginia's ecotourism association has hired an "ecotours coordinator," who fields calls from interested tourists and helps them assemble a custom vacation.

Now, ecotourism outfitters in nearby cities such as Pittsburgh and Washington, D.C., who traditionally have sent customers on ecotours in foreign countries, are beginning to steer clients toward West Virginia instead.

"A large majority of our market -- D.C. metro-area folks -- are looking for this kind of tourism," said Ben Isenberg, vice president and chief operating officer of Solimar Marketing. Historically, the D.C.-based company has specialized in responsible ecotours to Costa Rica.

Often, though, the client's budget "is for a weekend getaway," Isenberg said. "They don't really have the funds to do a one-time, once-a-year trip to Costa Rica.

"We've definitely decided West Virginia is a perfect opportunity."

At first glance, it seems as if most West Virginia tourism would be ecotourism. Whitewater rafting, in and of itself, doesn't hurt the environment. Neither does hiking, biking, rock climbing ...

But today's ecotourists want to know more. For example, will the picnic soda cans discarded by a rafting group be recycled?

And then there's the human dimension: Is a hotel owned and staffed by local people, or will the money spent there wind up in a faraway corporate headquarters?

Before 2001, there was no central ecotourism group in West Virginia to answer such questions and attract those tourists. John Williams of Natural Seasons joined with others who already were practicing ecotourism in the Mountain State to form the ecotourism association.

"We follow what are called the 'Eight Principles of Ecotourism,'" Williams said. "We have Poll ID members does not exist. survey their facilities: What are you doing to conserve energy, water, flora and fauna around your facility?"

The "Eight Principles" are fairly strict, agreed upon by The International Ecotourism Society and others. Environmental friendliness is just one part; the principles also demand that a tourism business benefit the local society, while helping tourists understand and appreciate that society.

Big hotel corporations have adopted some eco-friendly ideas, attracting customers and saving money. The Boston Park Plaza famously raked in more than $1 million in new bookings shortly after it announced in the early 1990s that it had installed energy-efficient windows, dimmers on the chandeliers, low-flow showerheads, and wall dispensers for luxury shampoos.

Ecotourism groups applaud such environmental efforts, but caution that the local community must be kept in mind.

A "Green Living" book published this summer by "E, the Environmental Magazine" puts it this way: "A beachfront hotel tower built of imported materials with absentee owners and no local employees is not an eco-resort, even if it does offer its guests the option of not washing their towels."

There exists no "seal of approval" to tell a traveler for sure if a company truly practices good ecotourism. So tourists often rely on companies such as Solimar to book them environmentally and socially responsible vacations.

Isenberg, of Solimar, believes West Virginia has what it takes to attract ecotourists.

"A lot of the same people coming to our office, looking for an international escape, would love the opportunity to do some ecotourism close by," he said. The state offers many of the same ecotourism activities as Costa Rica: "Whitewater rafting, birding, camping, ecolodges," Isenberg said. "And the culture and history is pretty rich in both places."

Popular belief, and early research, held that ecotourists wanted to explore tropical, foreign countries. But a more recent Canadian government study found that two-thirds of recent U.S. and Canadian travelers interested in ecotourism would prefer to stay in North America for their next trip.

West Virginia has the nature activities down pat. All of the top 10 nature activities preferred by U.S. tourists, as identified by a 1998 tourism industry survey, are available in West Virginia: visiting parks, hiking, exploring preserved areas, viewing wildlife, walking nature trails in ecosystems, visiting unique natural places such as sinkholes, environmental education, bird watching, biking and freshwater fishing.

Organizations like Williams' want to make sure ecotourists are satisfied with the other aspects of their stay. An Eastern Panhandle group, the Ecology Coalition of Morgan County, includes ecotourism lodging operators and others who set up packages such as this spring's "Redbud Weekend" and "Birdwatchers' Weekend," making it easy for tourists.

Nature tourists have a reputation for not spending much money. But several studies indicate that ecotourists actually spend more than regular tourists.

"There are a couple of stereotypes that go around with ecotourism," Carol Patterson, author of "The Business of Ecotourism," told West Virginia tourism operators at a conference in Flatwoods.

"I think it's one of those things that accounts for the slow start of ecotourism. A lot of people have this idea that ecotourists are kind of granola-ey, tree-hugging, wool sock-wearing, cheap tourists ... That's not the case. We've actually found that they spend quite a bit of money."

Ecotourists, experts say, are willing to pay people to provide them with nature experiences -- whitewater rafting, mountain climbing, observing rare wild animals -- that they don't have the equipment or expertise to experience on their own.

Besides those experiences, West Virginia offers something that is very simple, but hard to find in the populous Eastern United States, Patterson said.

Solitude.

"We often overlook those sorts of features when we're putting together our ecotourism ...You can offer that solitude, that return to nature that these other people can't."

To see more of The Charleston Gazette, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.wvgazette.com.

Source: Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News

Laotians Thatch Roof to Buffer Conference Venue from Earsplitting Rain

July 25, 2005 — By Associated Press

VIENTIANE, Laos — Planners in impoverished Laos needed a fix for the cacophony of rain pelting the metal roof of their conference venue. So they thatched it with local grass.

The building in the Laotian capital looks like a converted airplane hanger with corrugated roofing panels that sizzle like Niagara Falls when the rain pours hard.

To allow VIPs at a six-day Asian security conference through Friday to hear one another, organizers at the Lao ITECC building put clumps of grass on corners of the roof that extend over key meeting rooms -- though they've left the rest unthatched.

'Even if there is a downpour now, it will not disturb the meeting because we have grass covering the roof. The rain will hit the grass, not the roof,' said Yong Chanthalangsy, the conference spokesman.

Organizers spent 60 million kip (US$6,000; euro4,941.12) on the long indigenous grass, applying an additional layer Sunday, Yong said.

The building also served -- without noise pollution -- for an Association of Southeast Asian Nations summit last November. But this week's ASEAN Regional Forum comes during the rainy season, when tropical Vientiane turns from brick-red and dusty to verdant and lush.

The cavernous main hall where journalists, lower-level officials and Laotian organizers roam was as loud as ever during an afternoon deluge Sunday.

'It's very noisy,' said Kadama Katsushiro, reporter for Japanese broadcaster TBS. 'This is my first time coming to Laos, and the building is better than I expected, but the noise is terrible.'

Source: Associated Press

Geologist Maps Underseas Terrain in Massachusetts

July 25, 2005 — By Jay Lindsay, Associated Press

BOSTON — When geologist Page Valentine steams out for a trip off the state's picturesque coastline, he's far more interested in what he can't see. Valentine has been using sophisticated sonar to map 1,400 square miles of ocean floor off the Massachusetts coast for 11 years.

He's discovered networks of underwater ridges and valleys, the remains of long-forgotten shipwrecks and underwater gouges left by ancient icebergs.

Valentine sees the maps as a basic tool for government regulators who must manage the miles of hidden land. The maps can also point fishermen toward productive areas, direct more efficient placement of underwater cables and give researchers the location of vulnerable or changing ocean habitats.

'These submerged lands off our shores are a huge area about which we know very little. ... You need a map,' said Valentine, a researcher with the U.S. Geological Survey in Woods Hole.

The project to map the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary and the area around it began in 1994, shortly after it was created. The 840 square mile sanctuary is a busy shipping and fishing area about 21 miles east of Boston where marine life and habitats are under federal protection.

The first phase mapped the general topography of the sea floor. The second captured photographic images of the bottom. The third set, to be completed in about 2008, will map plant and animal life and habitats.

The ocean floor is mapped by equipment that sends 60 to 120 sonar beams bouncing off the bottom as a boat sweeps the surface. The sonar can measure the varying depths, as well as how hard the floor is in certain spots, with a weaker signal indicating a softer surface, such as mud.

Researchers are also using a sophisticated camera system which floats centimeters above the seabed, filming and taking pictures to help map the bottom's biology and geology.

The years of study have uncovered gouges in the floor, kilometers long, left from icebergs that grounded in the shallow waters of Stellwagen Bank 10,000 years ago and melted.

More than 50 shipwrecks have also been found, Valentine said, though identifying specific ships is difficult because the resolution of the mapping isn't fine enough -- the wrecks simply appear as unusual shapes on the bottom.

The maps helped workers take a southern route around a rough-bottomed area off Jeffreys Ledge, just off Cape Ann, and lay a fiber-optic cable connecting Europe to Massachusetts.

The mapping has also better defined the boundaries of underwater ledges, as well as areas of hard and soft bottom, of which fishermen have had general knowledge for centuries. More precise mapping helps fishermen better approach the margins of rough terrain, where fish often congregate, without snagging their gear. Or, it can help them avoid rough areas altogether, said Bob Reid, chief of coastal ecology at the Northeast Fisheries Science Center.

The mapping can give clues about where commercially valuable species can be found. Certain fish, such as yellowtail flounder, find food near sandy-bottomed areas. Cod often prefer hard gravel bottoms. All fish are dependent on the ocean floor, and managers want to determine which areas most need protection.

'Some habitat types are more vulnerable than others and we want to know that,' Reid said

Besides scientists, Valentine has given the maps to commercial and recreational fisherman and whale watch operators interested in showing customers the lay of the land they're floating over. Valentine said the enthusiasm that greets the maps can be explained as excitement over a look at what's always has been hidden.

'It's like solving a mystery,' he said.

Source: Associated Press

Scientists Say Many More Right Whales May Be Dying than Previously Thought

July 25, 2005 — By Jay Lindsay, Associated Press

BOSTON — More than eight in 10 right whale deaths may be going undiscovered, according to marine scientists who called for emergency action to help prevent humans from accidentally killing the rare animal.

In an article published in the journal Science, researchers estimated that deaths of North Atlantic right whales may be underreported by as much as 83 percent annually. At least eight whales have died in the last 16 months, and only 350 of the animals are believed to exist.

There isn't time for proposed protections to slog through the federal rule-making process, Amy Knowlton, a New England Aquarium researcher and one of the article's 18 co-authors, said Friday.

'We can't wait to deal with a bureaucratic maze,' Knowlton said.

Federal regulators say emergency rules could be put in place six months earlier than the normal 18- to 24-month process but would not be permanent and would not save much time since the final rules are close to completion. Rules also could do more harm than good without proper review and public comment, officials say.

The estimate of unreported whale deaths is based on a population model that considers the known death rates of male, female and juvenile right whales. Scientists don't presume a whale dead until it hasn't been seen for six years.

The Science article, citing the Endangered Species Act, called for emergency rules to protect against ship strikes and fishing gear entanglements, the two primary ways that humans kill right whales.

Proposed rules include slowing down ships in whale-heavy areas and reducing the amount of floating fishing line in the water. Gear and voluntary speed restrictions are already in place, but the new rules would significantly broaden requirements and improve their effectiveness, advocates say.

'We really do have tangible solutions in hand,' Knowlton said.

Teri Frady, spokeswoman for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries Service, said final rules to protect whales from fishing gear entanglements should be in force by the end of the year and the ship strike rules should be in place by spring of 2006.

'It's not that doing something dramatic isn't possible,' Frady said. 'It's figuring out what it's going to be and whether it's going to work.'

The proposed rules have been questioned by fishermen, who worry new whale-safe gear requirements would be too expensive, and the shipping industry, which says it would lose money and compromise safety by slowing down or altering routes to avoid the animals.

The North Atlantic right whale was nearly hunted out of existence in the late 18th century and has struggled since. Scientists said the eight recent deaths were particularly devastating because four were females just starting to bear calves.

Source: Associated Press

Greenpeace Wants Halt to Deep Seas Bottom-Trawling

July 26, 2005 — By David Ljunggren, Reuters

OTTAWA — Greenpeace issued a fresh call Monday to stop the practice of bottom-trawling, saying the international organizations that manage fish stocks were doing nothing to stop the destruction of ocean beds.

The conservation group says trawlers hunting for fish such as the orange roughy let their nets drag along the seabed at depths of up to 2 km (1.2 miles), destroying everything in their wake.

'We have documented an enormous range of the deep sea life that's coming up in these nets, including 500-year-old pieces of coral that are just ripped out of the seabed and (then) tossed back over the side,' said Bunny McDiarmid of Greenpeace.

Last year a group of international scientists blamed around a dozen nations for the practice, including Russia, Japan, New Zealand, Iceland and Norway.

World fish stocks are managed by a number of regional international bodies and last year the United Nations General Assembly asked these groupings to look into bottom-trawling.

But Greenpeace said Monday that the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization (NAFO), which covers Canadian waters, and other such groups were very poor on protecting species.

A Greenpeace statement said an estimated 60 percent of bottom-trawling took place in the northwest Atlantic, most of it in the NAFO area.

'They've done an incredibly bad job of managing the fish for the last 25 years ... NAFO has an appalling record,' said McDiarmid, co-author of a critical report on NAFO released by Greenpeace Monday.

McDiarmid said the regional organizations only cover 25 percent of the high seas and are focused on fish stocks rather than preservation.

She called for 'a time-out' on bottom-trawling until proper rules can be worked out and criticized the Canadian government for not supporting a moratorium on bottom trawling.

Fisheries Minister Geoff Regan said that while he agreed regional fisheries bodies needed to become more efficient, the idea of a blanket ban on bottom trawling was unrealistic.

'It's clear to us that there are certainly types of (sea) bottoms where bottom-trawling doesn't do significant damage,' he told Reuters in a telephone interview.

'Saying (we should) ... ban all of it is really a blanket broad brush approach that isn't going to be successful and isn't going to target the key problem,' he said.


Source: Reuters

Scientists Lead Sea Expedition from Land

July 26, 2005 — By Richard C. Lewis, Associated Press

PROVIDENCE, R.I. — The ship with all the gadgets and underwater rovers is in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, but for the first time, the team of scientists directing the expedition is not on board. They're sitting inside a room thousands of miles away.

The scientists and technicians are at universities in Rhode Island, Washington and New Hampshire, watching 52-inch plasma television screens as an unmanned submersible pokes around the Lost City hydrothermal vents -- a forest of limestone chimneys on the ocean floor.

Wearing headsets, the expedition's leaders stationed at the University of Washington tell engineers on the ship where to send the robotic vehicle and its high-definition video cameras, and what to explore next.

'We're treated like the chief scientist on the ship that makes the decision about it. It's just that we're not there,' said Deborah Kelley, a geology professor at the University of Washington and one of the expedition's leaders.

The technology that's allowing this to happen is the brainchild of Robert Ballard, the undersea explorer who found the Titanic and is director of an archaeological oceanography program at the University of Rhode Island.

Through fiber-optic cables, satellite feeds, and a special, high-speed Internet connection, images transmitted by the roving submersible's cameras about a half-mile underwater at Lost City are being transmitted within 1.5 seconds -- essentially live -- to the three 'control' rooms.

The underwater probes operate around the clock, to maximize the amount of research on the trip, scheduled to last until Aug. 1. The scientists in Seattle are working in six-hour shifts to keep a constant lookout for any finds.

The entire expedition is being shown live at 24 museums, science centers and aquariums and at 50 Boys and Girls Clubs nationwide.

The technology means ships can go out longer and do more exploring of the oceans, since the scientists no longer need to be on board. Ballard said he sees research vessels on the ocean for most of the year -- mapping, probing and yielding more discoveries that could hasten knowledge of the oceans, which cover about 70 percent of Earth but which scientists concede they still know little about.

'No scientist will sit on (a ship) for that long, reading a book and eating popcorn for the whole time, no way,' Ballard said.

While the expedition's leaders are in Seattle, the University of Rhode Island is producing the shows, and the University of New Hampshire is taking data from the ship and producing topographical maps of the sea floor, Ballard said.

Other scientists can keep tabs on the expedition through a link on the Internet2 network. That's important, the Lost City leaders said, because it means they can call upon specialists on a moment's notice to comment on something that has just been discovered.

'So, I'm able to network experts on demand, when I need them,' Ballard said.

Lost City is located at the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, a north-south underwater mountain chain that splits nearly the entire Atlantic Ocean. The site yields dramatic video because some of its limestone chimneys created by crystallized fluids are 200 feet tall.

Hydrothermal vents were first discovered by Ballard in 1977 near the Galapagos Islands in the Pacific. Lost City, discovered five years ago, shows that small animals, such as the tiny, translucent snails found around the chimneys, can survive in the extreme environment of the ocean floor.

Life is sustained there by the heat and gases emitted by the vents -- a process that scientists believe is similar to what happened on Earth in its earliest days. That's one reason they're now exploring and mapping the site in such detail.

'That's one reason we think this could happen on other planets,' said Jeffrey Karson, a geology professor at Duke University. 'It's that simple.'

Source: Associated Press

Now Streaming Live: Pacific Walruses

July 26, 2005 — By Timothy Inklebarger, Associated Press

JUNEAU, Alaska — Wallowing and snorting as they jockey for position on the rocks, the two-ton walruses may not be the prettiest of Internet reality show stars. But two cameras installed at the Walrus Islands State Game Sanctuary off Alaska's southwest coast are giving scientists and Web surfers alike the chance to follow the drama of the Bering Sea mammals' everyday lives.

The Alaska Department of Fish & Game has installed the 'walrus cams' on Round Island in the Bering Sea, giving online viewers a chance to see the walruses in their natural habitat on the Web page for the Alaska SeaLife Center in Seward.

Joe Meehan, a Fish & Game lands and refuges coordinator, said the walrus cams provide an essential research tool for wildlife biologists and entertainment for wildlife enthusiasts.

'Monitoring walrus populations is a difficult and expensive task that requires observers at each remote location,' Meehan said.

The department has staff on the island counting walruses every day, and the cameras will help the effort.

'Web cameras may ultimately allow for more accurate and economical walrus counts,' Meehan said.

For the more casual observer, Jason Wettstein of the Alaska SeaLife Center said the center is providing the bandwidth necessary for Internet users to view the live shots.

'We've already gotten a lot of hits,' he said.

A terminal and monitor installed at the Alaska SeaLife Center will give visitors a chance to switch between three preset camera angles for viewing the walruses. Mike Pendergast, a computer scientist for the center's research department, said the big screen is expected to be operational within the next few days.

What Web surfers will see is a live stream from the cameras set a quarter of a mile apart above the shore. The cameras look down on the rocky beach and catch all the action of a half-dozen or more Pacific walruses at a time while they are at rest or at play in their natural environment.

Meehan said the walrus counts on the islands vary significantly from year to year. In 2000, about 8,500 were counted on the island. This year the highest count so far is 2,300.

The lower numbers are probably not a sign of a declining population, but many have likely relocated to abandoned haulouts in Bristol Bay that were used through the mid-1900s until commercial harvesting drove the walruses away, he said.

The project cost about $40,000 and is a joint effort by Fish & Game, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, the Pacific Walrus Conservation Fund, the National Parks Service and the Alaska SeaLife Center.

Meehan said the main focus of the project is to educate and promote conservation. Along with the walruses, the islands are home to sea lions and about a quarter of a million sea birds.

Source: Associated Press

Queen Elizabeth to Use Water to Help Power Windsor Castle

July 26, 2005 — By Associated Press

LONDON — Queen Elizabeth II plans to use water from the River Thames to help power Windsor Castle in the Royal family's latest environmental project, Buckingham Palace announced Monday.

The 1 million pound (US$1.7 million; euro1.4 million) project, to be completed by the end of 2006, will power nearly one-third of Windsor Castle -- the largest occupied castle in the world. Buckingham Palace said it was pleased that approval had been granted to power the residence.

Queen Elizabeth, Prince Charles and other members of the Royal household have long embraced environmental causes and projects. The Queen's husband, Prince Phillip, uses a taxi powered by natural gas when he is driven around London. Previously he used an electrically driven minibus.

'We're constantly looking at ways of saving energy. We use energy efficient light bulbs at Buckingham Palace,' an announcement said.

The project will generate 200 kilowatts of electricity from four turbines that will be submerged in an existing weir, or dam system, near the castle. According to the palace, the underwater turbines will be virtually invisible and silent.

This project should also contribute to an effort by the government to produce 10 percent of the country's power from renewable sources by 2010 and 15 percent by 2015. The targets are part of an effort to help combat global warming.

Environmental groups say that small scale electricity production, using solar, wind or water systems could help Britain meet those targets.

'We're delighted that the queen is taking a lead in the use of green electricity to help tackle global warming,' said Tony Juniper, director of the environmental group Friends of the Earth. 'Most homes wouldn't use hydroelectricity, but they could install solar panels or small wind turbines instead.'

Source: Associated Press

Canon Unveils Recycling Program to Consumers

July 27, 2005 — By ENN

LAKE SUCCESS, N.Y. — Imaging and copy giant Canon has announced a recycling program for its products. The recycling of used and obsolete electronic products is becoming an issue throughout the consumer and office electronics products industry.

'We want to work with our customers to ensure appropriate recycling of certain Canon consumer products to help the environment and local communities,' said Mario Rufino, of the environmental management and product safety department, corporate planning division at Canon U.S.A., Inc, a subsidiary of Canon Inc. (NYSE: CAJ). 'We are pleased to announce our Consumer Products Recycling Program to assist Canon customers in the United States in recycling end-of-life Canon products.'

To recycle eligible Canon products, consumers can log on to http://estore.usa.canon.com/recycle/recycle.asp and for a nominal fee, order a UPS shipping label by clicking the 'Recycle Now' button. The shipping label will be sent via e-mail. If the printer being used does not print labels, customers can call 1.800.385.2155 to order over the phone and receive a shipping label by mail.

Pricing covers the cost of shipment and recycling. The fee structure is based on product category and includes:

-- $6, plus applicable sales tax - Binoculars, Camcorders, Cameras, Compact Photo Printers, Film, Scanners and Video Equipment
-- $12, plus applicable sales tax - Flatbed Scanners (CanoScan) and Bubble Jet Products: printers, multifunction all-in-ones and fax machines
-- $36, plus applicable sales tax - ImageCLASS Products, Laser Fax Machines and PC Copiers

Consumers will need to provide the Canon model name and product serial number to place the order. Once the product is packed and ready for shipment, take the box to a UPS-designated drop-off facility anywhere in the United States. UPS drop sites can be located by visiting www.ups.com or by calling 1.800.CALL.UPS. Upon receipt, the product will be recycled through a licensed recycling facility in an environmentally sound manner.

For a list of eligible consumer recycling products, log on to http://estore.usa.canon.com/recycle/recycle.asp. For a list of frequently asked questions or for further questions regarding the program, contact Canon by email at recyclesupport@cits.canon.com, or by phone at 1-800-385-2155.

About Canon U.S.A., Inc.

Canon U.S.A., Inc. provides imaging and copy machines and services. Its parent company Canon Inc. (NYSE:CAJ) in 2004 had global revenues of $33.3 billion. For more information, visit www.usa.canon.com.

Source: Business Wire, Canon U.S.A.

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Researcher Trying to Breed Tropical Fish

July 27, 2005 — By Associated Press

BIDDEFORD, Maine — A University of New England researcher is working to breed a tropical aquarium fish in captivity in an effort to take pressure off fragile ecosystems in Southeast Asia that are being damaged by unsustainable harvesting of exotic fish species.

Jeri Fox is raising a pair of foxface rabbitfish in a tank in a basement lab at the university. The fish are distinctive with bright yellow fins, bulging eyes and puckered lips.

Trading in tropical aquarium fish began in the 1930s in Sri Lanka. The modern industry, estimated to be worth at least $200 million annually, still relies heavily on poor coastal communities in southeast Asia.

While the trade can provide good jobs in depressed areas and can contribute to the conservation of coral reefs, many harvesting practices are thought to be unsustainable, according to a 2003 United Nations report.

The report cites problems such as overfishing, the collection of live rock, and the use of sodium cyanide to stun and catch fish. Also troubling is the destruction of coral reefs, which support one-third of the planet's marine fish species, the report says.

'The aquarium trade will continue. It's not going to stop,' Fox said. 'So we want to supply it with fish that are raised, not destructively removed from the wild.'

Efforts are under way to change how the fish are caught. In 2001, the Marine Aquarium Council, a nonprofit organization based in Honolulu, introduced certification standards for shippers and importers. It also is working with fishermen in Indonesia and the Philippines to develop fishery management plans.

At the same time, some scientists are successfully breeding certain aquarium fish in captivity. In Terre Haute, Ind., Dan Denker raises clownfish, seahorses and coral.

Denker said that growing coral outside the ocean helps marine ecosystems because it reduces the demand for naturally occurring coral, which supports a host of underwater species.

'It does take stress off the oceans,' he said.

But only a small percentage of the roughly 1,500 tropical fish species traded worldwide have been bred successfully in captivity, and the foxface rabbitfish is not among them.

A key reason is the fish's small size, only about two millimeters at spawning. The fish's mouth is no more than half a millimeter wide, making it difficult to provide appropriate food.

Breeding tropical fish involves reproducing the species' spawning conditions as closely as possible. That can mean analyzing the protein content of the fish's eggs to try to replicate its diet, and using lights to simulate the lunar cycle.

The process can be painstaking, and some scientists have been trying to breed the same species for 15 years, said Fox.

The foxface rabbitfish is not being taken from the ocean in a conscientious way, she said, which makes it a good candidate for captive breeding.

Source: Associated Press

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News Review for Week of July 11, 2005

"A true conservationist is a man who knows that the world is not given by his fathers but borrowed from his children."
- Audobon

Shark Week More 'Must-Sea' Than Usual
July 17, 2005 (AP - By LYNN ELBER)
Discovery Channel's Shark Week has been must-sea TV since it began in 1988, but the timing this year — following two shark attacks off the coast of Florida — makes it especially compelling.
In the lineup that includes four new programs, Discovery attempts to set the record straight on questions including whether sharks are attracted by certain bright colors or are aware of even a drop of blood in the ocean.
An online companion site at discovery.com includes interactive puzzles and games, video, photo galleries and maps charting shark attacks on humans over the past five years.
The action starts with the two-hour "Mythbusters: Jaws Special," 9 p.m. EDT Sunday. Scientists Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman visit shark-filled waters of the Bahamas and California's Farallon Islands to investigate whether the shark behavior depicted in the thriller "Jaws" is accurate, including whether a punch in the nose can be a deterrent and if a scuba tank can serve as an anti-shark explosive device.
"Sharkbite! Surviving Great Whites," 9 p.m. Monday, relates tales of people who survived encounters with the awesome creatures, while "American Shark," 9 p.m. Tuesday, focuses on the sharks that prowl America's coasts.
"Shark Hunter: Chasing the Great White," 9 p.m. Thursday, concludes the week. The special profiles Frank Mundus, who served as a model for the character of Capt. Quint in "Jaws." Mundus made a record-setting rod-and-reel catch of a 3,000-pound-plus great white before shifting from shark hunter to conservationist.
[read more]

Record fall salmon run begins on Sacramento River
July 16, 2005 (AP - By DON THOMPSON)
SACRAMENTO -- Nearly a million salmon are returning up the Sacramento River, luring eager fishermen as the fishing season began Saturday.
"It's a great river for salmon and this is supposed to be a record year," said Mike Cottrell of Marysville, fishing with his wife and another couple among a dozen boats near the confluence of the Sacramento and American rivers Saturday morning. "We've seen a lot of guys taking them ... probably a dozen since we went out about daybreak."
Environmental groups hailed the record return as a conservation success story, while fisheries managers said high water and prime ocean conditions also contributed.
They all contrast it with the troubled Klamath River to the north. A small projected salmon return there is sharply limiting commercial salmon fishing in the ocean because fishermen can't distinguish between the plentiful Sacramento and the scarce Klamath salmon.
"We've taken a huge economic loss because of the (commercial ocean fisheries) closure. The fishermen aren't happy about it, but they understand. Because they can't take fish, (salmon) are coming back to the Sacramento by the carload," said Bill Kier, a private fisheries scientist who works closely with commercial fishermen.
[read more]

Fake Shark Skin Could Make Navy Fleet Faster
15 July 2005 (LiveScience - By Robert Roy Britt)
Few creatures spawn more fear than sharks. But these complex fish also have provided inspiration for several useful technologies. One new idea has captured the interest of the U.S. Navy.
Shark skin has been used by many cultures as sandpaper. It's kept shipmates safe in slippery-when-wet conditions. Swimsuits modeled on shark skin are said by Speedo to reduce drag by up to 4 percent.
Now, research by two separate groups could lead to synthetic shark skin that would make ships and submarines faster and less expensive to operate.
If the research pans out, submarines -- already stealthy and shark-like -- could become even more so.
[read more]

Wind farms could meet energy needs
July 15, 2005 (CNN)
Wind power could generate more than enough sustainable electricity to meet global energy needs, according to new research.
Scientists at Stanford University have produced a world map that plots wind power potential for the first time.
They say that harnessing even 20 percent of that energy would produce eight times more electricity than the world consumed in 2000.
"The main implication of this study is that wind, for low-cost wind energy, is more widely available than was previously recognized," said Cristina Archer, formerly of Stanford's Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering.
Archer and colleague Mark Jacobsen collected wind-speed measurements from 7,500 surface stations and 500 balloon-launch stations to determine wind speeds at 80 meters (300 feet) -- the height of modern turbines.
They found average wind speeds capable of generating power -- upwards of 6.9 meters per second, or 15 miles an hour -- in 13 percent of the stations and in all regions of the globe.
[read more]

Beaver Dams Inspire Fish-Friendly Hydropower Design
July 15, 2005 (National Geographic News – by John Roach)
Hydropower—electricity produced by flowing water—is an efficient form of renewable energy, but it often comes at a high cost to the environment and society. Now a technology inspired by beaver dams and airplanes may help eliminate these drawbacks.
Engineers with NatEl America, a Grapevine, Texas-based renewable energy company, have developed a new way to generate electricity using the dimensions of a beaver dam and the physics of fixed-wing aircraft.
"We need to figure out how to live with the acceleration [of water] due to gravity in a fashion which is comparable to how beavers have done that," said NatEl America's president, Daniel Schneider.
Beaver dams usually stand no more than ten feet (three meters) tall and integrate a series of steps into the slope. This is a height and design surmountable by migrating fish, Schneider said. The dams are also a natural part of the environment in many parts of the world.
In contrast, conventional hydropower technologies often rely on the construction of tall dams that flood the area behind them. This displaces animals and people, and it degrades the surrounding ecosystem, said Abe Schneider, Daniel's son and the company's vice president of engineering.
[read more]

Lobster Soup to Debut at Hong Kong Disney
July 15, 2005 (AP)
HONG KONG, China -- Lobster soup and seafood bouillon will replace the controversial shark fin soup at Hong Kong Disneyland wedding banquets, a Disney spokeswoman said Friday.
Last month, Disney decided to scrap shark fin soup, a symbol of prestige in Chinese banquets, after environmentalists protested and threatened to stage boycotts of the park when it opens Sept. 12. The activists say that the shark fin industry is decimating the shark population.
The dish will be replaced by lobster soup and a dish with sea whelk, a bouillon with bamboo fungus and crab roe, Disney spokeswoman Irene Chan said.
"We are confident the change will not affect the attractiveness of our weddings," Chan said. "The dishes are specially designed, and these menu alternatives can reflect respect for Chinese culture."
[read more]

Glacial Cover-Up Won't Stop Global Warming, But It Keeps Skiers Happy
July 15, 2005 (AP — By George Jahn)
EISGRAT, Austria — It gets so cold up at this Alpine skiing station that the locals call it Eisgrat -- "Icy Spine." But Eisgrat's spine is melting.
A sign on a sheer cliff wall nearby points to a mountain hut. It should have been at visitors' eye level but is more than 20 meters (60 feet) above their heads. That's how much of the glacier has shrunk since the sign went up 35 years ago.
"It's not a good feeling," says Alois Ranalter, a maintenance worker who spends his summers focused on stopping the melt. "The glacier is our life."
Most of Austria's 925 glaciers have been receding under decades of global warming, prompting researchers and ski-lift operators to seek novel solutions. Here, in the Tyrol region of western Austria, they're fighting the melt by covering the weak spots with blankets of white plastic or foil that keep the cold in and the heat out.
They can't save whole glaciers, only slow the shrinkage.
[read more]

Scientists Raise Alarm About Ocean Health
July 14, 2005 (AP)
SEATTLE — With a record number of dead seabirds washing up on West Coast beaches from Central California to British Columbia, marine biologists are raising the alarm about rising ocean temperatures and dwindling plankton populations.
"Something big is going on out there," said Julia Parrish, an associate professor in the School of Aquatic Fisheries and Sciences at the University of Washington. "I'm left with no obvious smoking gun, but birds are a good signal because they feed high up on the food chain."
Coastal ocean temperatures are 2 to 5 degrees above normal, which may be related to a lack of updwelling, in which cold, nutrient-rich water is brought to the surface.
Updwelling is fueled by northerly winds that sweep out near-shore waters and bring cold water to the surface. The process starts the marine food chain, fueling algae and shrimplike krill populations that feed small fish, which then provide a source of food for a variety of sea life from salmon to sea birds and marine mammals.
On Washington beaches, bird surveyors in May typically find an average of one dead Brandt's cormorant every 34 miles of beach. This year, cormorant deaths averaged one every eight-tenths of a mile, according to data gathered by volunteers with the Coastal Observation and Seabird Survey Team, which Parrish has directed since 2000.
[read more]

Animal Rights Group Sues Over Sea Lions
July 14, 2005 (AP — By Jeannette J. Lee)
ANCHORAGE, Alaska — An animal rights group filed a lawsuit Wednesday accusing the federal government of violating several environmental protection acts by allowing the use of certain research techniques on threatened and endangered Steller sea lions.
The Humane Society of the United States says the National Marine Fisheries Service has approved permits for "invasive" research activities, including the annual capture, hot branding and tissue sampling of more than 3,000 Steller sea lions in both eastern and western stocks.
Humane Society officials said the research practices violate the Marine Mammal Protection Act, the National Environmental Policy Act and the Endangered Species Act.
"The obligation of scientists and the government to do no harm while conducting research is greatest when dealing with endangered species," said Dr. John Grandy, senior vice president for wildlife and habitat protection for the Washington, D.C.-based society.
The steep decline in Steller sea lion populations from the late 1970s through 2000 continues to confound scientists and resource managers.
The Steller sea lion habitat roughly follows the rim of the North Pacific Ocean from northern Japan to the south coast of Alaska. The animals also live on California's Channel Islands.
The number of Steller sea lions in the western stock dropped from about 200,000 originally to 35,000 animals in 2002, federal fisheries scientists estimate. Scientists do not know the original population level of the genetically distinct eastern group, but as of 2002 there were 31,000 animals, with numbers on the rise.
[read more]

Scientists Wary of Red Tide Recurrence
July 14, 2005 (AP - By JAY LINDSAY)
BOSTON — The red tide that shut down shellfish beds from Maine to Buzzards Bay is fading, but scientists are worried that the toxic tide could return to coastal waters as soon as this fall.
The red tide algae drops armored cysts on the ocean floor which act like seeds, bringing the tide back as many as 10 years later. But the cyst can also germinate in just a few months, said Don Anderson, a red tide expert from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution on Cape Cod.
"One of the things we're worried about is that we might see a fall surge of these cells," he said Thursday.
The toxic algae is absorbed by shellfish, making them unsafe to eat. Officials emphasize that the shellfish on the market are safe, given the extensive safeguards in place.
About half the 1.2 million acres of shellfish beds that Massachusetts shut down beginning in mid-May remained closed on Thursday. The tide has cost shellfishermen about $2.7 million in lost income, though the number could rise as high as $7 million, Lt. Gov. Kerry Healey said.
[read more]

Sea birds fly pollution to the Arctic
Bird guano makes for hotspots of toxins.
14 July, 2005 (Nature – by Andreas von Bubnoff)
Pollution is swept to pristine areas of the Arctic by wind and sea. But now researchers have pinned down an important mode of transport that creates local toxic hotspots: sea birds.
Canadian researchers have found that lakes in the Arctic that are frequented by northern fulmars (Fulmarus glacialis) can harbour 10-60 times more pollutants than neighbouring, birdless lakes. These pollutants include persistent, toxic compounds such as mercury, DDT and hexachlorobenzene (HCB), which were once common ingredients in pesticides and fungicides.
Jules Blais of the University of Ottawa, Ontario, and colleagues looked at freshwater ponds that sit below the cliffs at Cape Vera on northern Devon Island in the Canadian Arctic. During the summer months, these cliffs harbour the nests of about 20,000 of the migratory fulmars. Pollutants enter the ponds through the birds' excrement, the researchers say.
The key to the study was finding an area with several lakes that differed only in the number of birds living above them. By comparing 11 lakes that hosted different bird colonies, the researchers weeded out exactly how much impact the birds and their guano have on the environment. In some of the more contaminated lakes, they found that mercury concentrations approach or exceed the Canadian guidelines for protecting wildlife, Blais says. They report their results in Science (Blais J., et al. Science, 309. 445 (2005)).
[read more]

Seabirds Fly Pollutants to Arctic Coast, Study Says
July 14, 2005 (National Geographic News – by James Owen)
With rising levels of toxins in the Arctic threatening wildlife and humans alike, scientists are on the hunt for what's behind the pollution boom. Wind currents carrying pollutants from industrialized countries are known to be largely responsible for toxins in the Arctic seas. But on the coasts birds are the key culprits, a new study says.
Researchers who studied a large seabird colony in the Canadian Arctic found that ponds below the birds' breeding cliffs are laced with persistent organic pollutants, or POPs.
The birds, it seems, are eating carrion, squid, and other marine animals from POP-contaminated seas. The flyers then return to their coastal home and deposit their contaminated prey—in the form of excrement—in local ponds, which see their POP levels skyrocket as a result.
Experts say the study adds to concerns over the impact of toxic substances on the health of the Arctic's wildlife and people.
"What's unique about this study is that it identifies a new method of bio-transmission that's potentially causing contamination to the local environment," said Russel Shearer. Shearer is the manager of the Canadian government's Northern Contaminants Program, based in Hull, Quebec. The program investigates the risks and impacts of chemical pollutants to remote communities in northern Canada.
"Such contamination should be taken more seriously," Shearer added.
[read more]

Old vessel launches new career in coral seas
Scientists aboard gear up to study decline of reefs
July 14, 2005 (SF Chronicle - by Jim Doyle)
The White Holly, which served in World War II as a Navy yard freighter on San Francisco Bay, is beginning a new life -- as an oceanographic research vessel for a scientific expedition that seeks to discover how and why so many of the Earth's coral reefs are dying.
The ship is scheduled to embark tonight from Oakland on an extraordinary voyage: a 7,000-mile roundtrip cruise to explore the mysteries of the world's most pristine coral reefs, and at least one uncharted atoll, halfway across the Pacific.
"This is research that can affect mankind," said Capt. Vincent Backen, the White Holly's skipper, who has piloted deep sea oil tankers into San Francisco Bay as well as foreign ports from Saipan to Aruba, Guam and Papua New Guinea. "That's the main reason I took the project on."
The 10-week voyage, led by the Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego, will take the 133-foot White Holly to the Line Islands archipelago in the central Pacific, about 1,300 miles south of Honolulu, and explore some of the least-disturbed coral reefs in the world.
[read more]

MTV Damaged Sea Turtle Beach in Tobago
Endangered Sea Turtles Forced to Run "Gauntlet" to Nest
July 13, 2005 (Sea Turtle Restoration Project)
FOREST KNOLLS, CA — MTV's shooting of its reality TV show The Gauntlet on Turtle Beach in Tobago (of Trinidad & Tobago), caused massive damage to a critical nesting beach for critically endangered leatherback sea turtles. The shoot, which wrapped up earlier this month, continued with little concern for the nesting sea turtles despite requests by from a local conservation group to relocate.
Heavy equipment, the presence of about 90 film crew and the removal of sand blocked numerous turtles from nesting and destroyed an estimated 8 nests containing approximately 400 eggs. Numerous other eggs are now buried beneath densely compacted sand without any hope for escape for the hatchlings. The leatherback is considered critically endangered in the Atlantic by the World Conservation Union, which publishes the Red List of endangered species.
"Our input was sought only after the site had already been chosen by MTV and set assembly had already begun", said SOS Turtles Tobago vice president, Tanya Clovis.
The set was only later moved back a few feet but it still disrupted turtle nesting.
[read more]

Hurricane fixes artificial reef by righting ship
USS Spiegel Grove was on its side, but Dennis flipped it to perfect position
July 13, 2005 (MSNBC)
KEY LARGO, Fla. - What humans were unable to do, Hurricane Dennis handled nicely.
The former USS Spiegel Grove, serving as artificial reef on the bottom in 130 feet of water off Key Largo, flipped upright as the core of the storm passed some 200 miles to the west, kicking up 20-foot waves.
“Waves that high in close proximity to the reef can produce unusually strong currents with tremendous force,” said National Weather Service meteorologist Matt Strahan.
The upright position is what project organizers had wanted since the retired 510-foot ship prematurely sank and rolled over May 17, 2002, leaving its upside-down bow protruding from the water and creating a navigation hazard.
Salvage crews later used giant airbags and steel cables to nudge it over onto its starboard side, where it was safe from passing vessels but slightly disorienting for divers to swim through.
The Spiegel Grove is the most popular artificial wreck in the Florida Keys, home at least 166 different fish species, said Lad Akins of the Reef Environmental Education Foundation.
But its realignment will make it a better platform for sports divers.
[read more]

Officials probe young pelican deaths
July 13, 2005 (AP)
BISMARCK, North Dakota -- The Fish and Wildlife Service is investigating the deaths of thousands of young white pelicans at a wildlife refuge in central North Dakota, a year after thousands of adult birds abruptly left the same location.
At least 8,000 chicks may have died over the past two months, said Ken Torkelson, a spokesman for the Chase Lake National Wildlife Refuge.
"The difference is, last year the adults left first," he said. "This year, the young have died and the adults have no reason to stick around."
Severe storms or a disease outbreak may have caused the mass die-off, said Marsha Sovada, a biologist at the U.S. Geological Survey's Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center in Jamestown.
The Fish and Wildlife Service said an inspection of the refuge last week indicated only about 500 chicks left from a nesting period that could have produced as many as 9,000 of them. All but about 2,000 adults had left, from a population estimated at 18,850 in late May.
[read more]

Bush administration asking court to block dam spills
July 13, 2005 (AP - By DAVID KRAVETS)
Seattle -- The Bush administration wants a federal appeals court to stop water from being purposely spilled over five Northwest hydroelectric dams despite a lower court's unprecedented order that it was necessary to help young salmon migrating to the Pacific.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers was forced to allow substantial flows to bypass energy generating turbines following a June 20 order by U.S. District Judge James Redden of Portland. Redden ruled that the salmon were imperiled when swimming through those dams' turbines as they headed to the sea hundreds of miles away.
A three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals was set to hear the administration's demands to overturn Redden on Wednesday in Seattle.
At the request of salmon advocates, fishermen and Indian tribes, Redden ruled that "As currently operated, I find that the dams strongly contributed to the endangerment of the listed species and irreparable injury will result if changes are not made." His order began being carried out June 20, and is to last through Aug. 31.
[read more]

Man gets prison term for killing walruses
July 13, 2005 (AP)
ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- An Alaska Native was sentenced to a harsh seven years in federal prison for killing six walruses, removing the heads to sell the ivory and sinking the carcasses.
Herman A. Oyagak was on probation for felony assault when he participated in what prosecutors declared a wasteful killing of walruses in 2003. That, plus his criminal history, led to the harsh sentence, Assistant U.S. Attorney James Goeke said Tuesday.
Under federal law, Alaska Natives are allowed to hunt walruses for subsistence but they must use a substantial portion of the animal. In this case, the walruses were being killed for the ivory and bodies were abandoned, Goeke said.
A co-defendant in the case, Samuel Akpik, also of Barrow, previously was sentenced to two months in federal prison, two months of home confinement and a $500 fine.
Frequently, such illegal items end up at Anchorage gift shops, said Steve Oberholtzer, assistant special agent in charge of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in Alaska. A bull walrus head mount -- just the tusks and nose plate mounted on a piece of wood -- can sell for $3,000 or more, he said.
[read more]

Last Journey for the Leatherback? to Be Broadcast on Free Speech TV
July 12, 2005 (Sea Turtle Restoration Project)
FOREST KNOLLS, CALIF. — The nonprofit Sea Turtle Restoration Project has released the new documentary, Last Journey for the Leatherback?, by the Emmy award-winning documentary filmmaker Stan Minasian (The Last Days of the Dolphins?), The Free Willy Story: Keiko's Journey Home). Last Journey for the Leatherback? will be broadcast nationwide on Free Speech TV which is carried by the Dish Network channel 9415 on Friday, July 15, 2005 at 4:14 a.m., 10:14 a.m., 2:44 p.m., 5:44 p.m., and 10:14 p.m. EST.
“Sea turtles are really symbolic of what’s happening to the oceans as a whole. As go sea turtles, so go, will go, the ocean,” explains Dr. Earle, a National Geographic explorer-in-residence, in the stunning natural duotone opening sequence of the film as dozens of newly hatched leatherback sea turtles crawl to the water under the moonlight.
Scientists predict that the giant Pacific leatherback sea turtle, which has survived unchanged for over 100 million years, could vanish in the next 5 to 30 years if current threats from wasteful industrial long-line fishing are not curtailed. The female nesting population of leatherback sea turtles in the Pacific Ocean has collapsed by 95 percent in the past 20 years. The leatherback is the largest sea turtle, measuring nine feet from head to tail with the largest ever recorded tipping the scales at 2,000 lbs.
[read more]

Ancient Mariners Phone Home
July 12, 2005 (Caribbean Conservation Corporation)
CHIRIQUI BEACH, PANAMA — Caribbean Conservation Corporation (CCC) and partner scientists this week completed the first-ever deployment of satellite transmitters on five critically endangered leatherback turtles at remote Chiriquí Beach on Panama’s Caribbean coast. Lightweight telemetry harnesses were attached to the five huge leatherbacks after they had come ashore and successfully nested. With nests dug, eggs laid, and sporting high-tech backpacks, Shelldon, Idun, Cristina, Fermina and Romana headed back to the open water, each equipped to “phone home.”
When these ancient mariners “phone home” it’s not just scientists who are picking up the call. Through CCC’s internet-based Sea Turtle Migration-Tracking Education Program (www.cccturtle.org), anyone with Internet access can follow the travels of the Chiriquí Beach leatherbacks. And as part of CCC’s Adopt-a-Turtle Program, enthusiasts can show their support by adopting one of as many as ten sea turtles being tracked right now.
“We got lucky,” says Dan Evans, field programs coordinator for CCC. “We had lots of turtles nesting the first two nights, then nothing. But the last two nights, we had multiple turtles come ashore that allowed us to deploy the final two transmitters in one night.”
The telemetry devices, which transmit signals to orbiting satellites each time a turtle comes to the surface to breathe, allow scientists to monitor the migratory movements and diving behavior of sea turtles, including the five leatherbacks tagged at Chiriquí Beach.
[read more]

Sea life in peril -- plankton vanishing
Usual seasonal influx of cold water isn't happening
July 12, 2005 (SF Chronicle – by Glen Martin)
Oceanic plankton have largely disappeared from the waters off Northern California, Oregon and Washington, mystifying scientists, stressing fisheries and causing widespread seabird mortality.
The phenomenon could have long-term implications if it continues: a general decline in near-shore oceanic life, with far fewer fish, birds and marine mammals. No one is certain how long the condition will last. But even a short duration could severely affect seabird populations because of drastically reduced nesting success, scientists say.
The plankton disappearance is caused by a slackening of what is known as "upwelling:" the seasonal movement of cold, nutrient-rich offshore water into areas near shore.
This cold water sustains vast quantities of phytoplankton and zooplankton, which are the basis of the marine food web. During periods of vigorous upwelling and consequent plankton "blooms," everything from salmon to blue whales fattens and thrives on the continental shelf of the West Coast.
[read more]

Working to Bring Back the Coaster Brook Trout
July 11, 2005 (AP — By John Flesher)
PICTURED ROCKS NATIONAL LAKESHORE, Mich. — Barely noticeable beneath a wooden foot bridge, the wire antenna stretched across the gurgling Mosquito River is on the lookout for one of the Great Lakes' most mysterious fish: the coaster brook trout.
A century and a half ago, portions of the Lake Superior shoreline teemed with coasters -- brook trout that, for reasons still unknown, migrate into the big lake instead of remaining in tributary streams with other members of their species.
But word of Superior's bountiful trout fishery spread, eventually drawing hordes of anglers. People were particularly dazzled by the coasters' large size, tasty flesh and distinctive orange-reddish or yellowish undersides.
By the turn of the century, overfishing and habitat degradation sent the coaster into a tailspin from which it has yet to recover. Today, only scattered pockets remain in Lake Superior. Occasional sightings are reported in northern sections of Lake Huron and Lake Michigan, although scientists say they're unconfirmed.
But more than two dozen government agencies, conservation groups and Indian tribes in the United States and Canada are working to bring back the coaster brook trout.
[read more]

Tribes, fishermen, conservationists returning to Scotland to argue against dams
July 11, 2005 (AP - By JEFF BARNARD)
Grants Pass, Ore. -- Representatives of Indian tribes, commercial fishermen and conservationists are returning to Scotland to try to build pressure on PacifiCorp's parent company to give salmon a way over dams on the Klamath River before selling the utility.
A delegation of about 20 people representing the Yurok, Hoopa, Karuk and Klamath tribes, the Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen's Associations and Friends of the River will reach out to stockholders, investment groups and executives of Scottish Power at the company's annual meeting July 22 in Glasgow, Scotland. They made a similar trek to the annual meeting last year in Edinburgh.
Scottish Power has agreed to sell PacifiCorp to MidAmerican Energy, a utility controlled by Warren Buffett through his investment company Berkshire Hathaway, for $5.1 billion, plus the assumption of $4.3 billion in debt.
PacifiCorp's application for a new operating license for the four dams, which produce about 150 kilowatts of power, does not include any provision for salmon passage, which has been blocked since construction began in 1908.
[read more]

Humming fish solves noisy clash
Turning down ear sensitivity could help humans retain their hearing.
11 July, 2005 (Nature – by Andreas von Bubnoff)
A strange kind of humming fish has evolved a clever way to avoid deafening itself with its own noise, researchers have found. They say the same mechanism could be at work in other animals, including humans, helping to tone down the senses and avoid overpowering them with self-generated signals.
Andrew Bass, a neuroscientist with a name amply suited to studying both fish and acoustics, looked at the male plainfin midshipman fish (Porichthys notatus) to study this effect. These 25-centimetre-long fish live off the west coast of the United States from California to Alaska. During summer nights, they hum to attract females and encourage them to lay their eggs. The hum, described by some as similar to the chanting of monks, is so loud that houseboat owners near San Francisco have sometimes complained of their homes vibrating at night.
Bass and his fellow authors have shown that the brains of these fish regulate their hearing so that they are not deafened and can hear predators or incoming females even while humming.
The fish control both sound and hearing through nerve impulses from the same part of the brain. Some impulses signal to muscles around the swim bladder, which is the fish's buoyancy organ, making it generate sound by vibrating. The same area of the brain sends signals to inhibit the sensitivity of the ear's hair cells, which translate sound into electrical signals that the brain can understand.
[read more]

Iceland Tells Japan Cooperation on Commercial Whaling Possible
July 11, 2005 (AP)
TOKYO — Iceland told fellow pro-whaling ally Japan Monday that it might be possible to cooperate on commercial whaling, officials said.
At present, Japan and Iceland kill a limited number of whales annually for research purposes despite staunch opposition from anti-whaling nations like the United States and Australia, which call such hunts unnecessary and a threat to conservation efforts. "If we begin commercial whaling in the future, I think there will be ways to cooperate with Japan," Icelandic Prime Minister Halldor Asgrimsson told his Japanese counterpart Junichiro Koizumi Monday.
Asgrimsson did not elaborate on what kind of cooperation he envisioned, a Japanese Foreign Ministry spokesman said.
Koizumi told Asgrimsson that "it is encouraging that Japan and Iceland are cooperating internationally on whaling."
Japan and Iceland had unsuccessfully pushed to overturn a 1986 ban on commercial whale hunts during the International Whaling Commission's annual meeting last month in South Korea.
Japan announced at the meeting that it plans to more than double its annual research hunts. It currently catches 440 minke whales in the Antarctic Ocean and 210 others in coastal waters in the northwestern Pacific.
[read more]

News Review for Week July 4, 2005

“To me a lush carpet of pine needles or spongy grass is more welcome than the most luxurious Persian rug.”
- Helen Keller

Pack ice melting earlier, imperiling polar bear, panel says
Population expected to drop 30 percent in 35 to 50 years
July 8, 2005 (Washington Post – by Blaine Harden)
Seattle -- As the pack ice that is the bedrock of their existence melts because of global warming, polar bears are facing unprecedented environmental stress that will cause their numbers to plummet, according to a report by a panel of the world's leading experts on the species.
In a closed meeting here late last month, 40 members of the polar bear specialist group of the World Conservation Union concluded that the imposing white carnivores -- the world's largest bear -- should now be classified as a "vulnerable" species based on a likely 30 percent decline in their worldwide population over the next 35 to 50 years. There are now 20,000 to 25, 000 polar bears across the Arctic.
"The principal cause of this decline is climatic warming and its consequent negative effects on the sea ice habitat of polar bears," according to a statement released after the meeting. Scientists from five countries, including the United States, attended the meeting.
[read more]

North Atlantic Ocean Temps Hit Record High
July 8, 2005 (AP)
ST. JOHN'S, Newfoundland -- Ocean temperatures in the North Atlantic hit an all-time high last year, raising concerns about the effects of global warming on one of the most sensitive and productive ecosystems in the world.
Sea ice off the coast of Newfoundland and Labrador was below normal for the tenth consecutive year and the water temperature outside St. John's Harbor was the highest on record in 2004, according to a report released Wednesday by the federal Fisheries Department.
The ocean surface off St. John's averaged almost two degrees Fahrenheit above normal, the highest in the 59 years the department has been compiling records.
And bottom temperatures were also one degree higher than normal, according the report.
"A two-degree temperature anomaly on the Grand Banks is pretty significant in the bottom areas, where temperatures only range a couple of degrees throughout the year," said Eugene Colbourne, an oceanographer with the Fisheries Department.
[read more]

Lake Washington Sockeye Salmon Go MIA
July 8, 2005 (AP)
SEATTLE -- Last year, about 200,000 thousand Lake Washington sockeye salmon, about half the run, vanished between the Ballard Locks and their spawning grounds.
This year it's even worse. Scientists say they'll be lucky if 100,000 sockeye make it to the locks from a run previously estimated at 398,000 fish.
"We should be getting 10,000, 20,000 fish a day, and we're getting 1,000 to 2,000," said Mike Mahovlich, a fish biologist with the Muckleshoot Tribe. "We've lost 90 percent of our fish in the marine area."
A return of 100,000 fish would be the lowest ocean survival rate ever recorded for Lake Washington sockeye, said Jim Ames, sockeye program manager for the state Fish and Wildlife Department.
The poor return means no sockeye season on the lake this year. The Muckleshoots, one of three tribes with rights to the fish, are even forgoing their usual catch of about a thousand sockeye for ceremonial events and needy tribal members, "a huge sacrifice for the tribe," Mahovlich said.
Scientists believe unusually warm water in the Lake Washington Ship Canal above the locks contributed to last year's decline.
[read more]

Bright lights lure prey in deep sea
Newfound species flashes red, then kills fish with tentacles
July 8, 2005 (SF Chronicle – by David Perlman)
MONTEREY - Marine biologists exploring the deep sea off the coast of Monterey Bay have discovered a curious species of invertebrates that lures its prey by flashing brilliant red lights at the ends of its twitching tentacles.
The wormlike members of a marine tribe known as siphonophores are a striking example of evolution having endowed an organism with a feature even its closest relatives don't possess: a set of genes for "bioluminescent" light, which in an immature animal flashes blue but switches to deep red as it matures.
Distantly related to jellyfish and corals, the animals are a newfound species of an obscure genus called Erenna -- whose other luminous members use their light only to defend themselves against larger predators, not to hunt and kill prey on their own, according to Steven D. Haddock of the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute.
"They're pretty amazing animals," Haddock said in an interview. "They may look like simple creatures, but they show an incredible level of detail in their development and their bioluminescence."
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Red Light-Flashing Jellyfish Lures Prey
July 8, 2005 (AP - By Randolph E. Schmid)
WASHINGTON — The first deep sea red-light district -- glowing appendages on a newly discovered jellyfish relative -- appear to flash their come-hither message to lure prey.
Jellyfish and other types of sea creatures are known to produce light, but this is the first deep ocean invertebrate known to use red fluorescent light, said Steven H. D. Haddock of the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute in Moss Landing, Calif.
Three of the animals were found by scientists using a remote controlled research vehicle at depths of between 5,200 feet and 7,500 feet off the coast of California. The discovery is reported in Friday's issue of the journal Science.
The new find is a previously unreported species in the genus Erenna, which is a member of the group that includes coral and jellyfish.
The animal, which has not yet been named, has tentacles with side branches that consist of stinging cells attached to a central stalk.
The researchers said that inside the stalk are spots that produce blue-green light when immature and red light when mature.
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Jellyfish capture prey with crimson bait
Unusual haul casts doubt on theory that fish can't see red.
July 7, 2005 (Nature - Tom Simonite)
Deep-sea fish are suckers for lures lit up in red, say California researchers, challenging a long-held belief of marine biologists. They claim that a deep-sea relative of jellyfish uses glowing tentacles to catch its supper.
Using a remotely operated submersible, up to 2,300 metres beneath the waves off the coast of California, Steven Haddock and colleagues collected three specimens of a new species of siphonophore, a group closely related to jellyfish and corals. Two of the three had the remains of fish in their guts. As fish are rare at those depths, this indicates that the species (which has not yet been named but is part of the genus Erenna) has a knack for angling.
In the 8 July issue of the journal Science1, Haddock, a bioluminescence expert from the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute, Moss Landing, and his team suggest the siphonophore uses red light as bait to capture its prey. The newly described species has glowing red spots inside its stinging tentacles, which it flicks rhythmically.
"The motion and shape of the lures is quite distinct and nearly identical to that of a copepod," says Haddock, suggesting that the siphonophore mimics the movements of plankton to catch the attention of fish. "To us, the accumulated evidence is hard to explain any other way," he adds.
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Corps Cites Seattle for Filling Wetlands
July 7, 2005 (The Seattle Times — By Jim Brunner)
Federal regulators have cited the city of Seattle for illegally filling wetlands and a portion of Hamm Creek in Southwest Seattle during a major construction project.
Responding to a complaint lodged on Earth Day, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers notified the city May 12 that its $26 million Joint Training Facility project had filled a half acre of wetlands without obtaining a Corps permit -- a violation of federal law, according to a letter signed by Col. Debra Lewis, head of the agency's Seattle district.
City officials said they are cooperating with the Corps and may suggest wetlands restoration at other sites to make up for the error.
"We are very concerned about the environmental issues, and we will appropriately address them," said Brenda Bauer, director of the city's Fleets and Facilities Department. However, she also said the city was researching whether the Corps had jurisdiction over the site and whether wetlands and a creek really exist there at all.
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Lawmakers push larger ocean sanctuaries
Bills would expand permanent ban on oil and gas drilling to waters off Sonoma Coast
July 6, 2005 (SF Chronicle – by Jim Doyle)
SAN FRANCISCO - Fearing the prospect of oil and gas drilling off the Northern California coast, U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer and Rep. Lynn Woolsey appeared Tuesday in San Francisco with marine scientists and conservationists to promote legislation that would expand the boundaries of two national marine sanctuaries.
The legislation -- authored by Woolsey, with a parallel measure that Boxer introduced in the Senate -- would increase the jurisdiction of the Gulf of the Farallones and Cordell Bank national marine sanctuaries to include all of the Sonoma Coast, thus extending the sanctuaries' permanent ban on oil and gas drilling to those areas.
"Our state is very clear: We don't want any more drilling," Boxer, a Greenbrae Democrat, said at a news conference at Crissy Field. "The Sonoma Coast is one of the world's most biologically diverse marine environments."
The legislation, which has not yet gone to committee hearings, was introduced at a time when other politicians and oil and gas lobbyists have taken steps to weaken or dismantle the long-standing federal moratorium on new offshore oil and gas leases in California and other coastal states.
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Indonesia to Charge One of Six Newmont Executives Accused of Polluting Bay
July 6, 2005 (AP — By Michael Casey)
JAKARTA, Indonesia — Indonesia will charge only one of six Newmont Mining Corp. executives accused of dumping toxic waste into a bay, prosecutors said Tuesday, in a legal victory for the U.S. gold mining giant.
Robert Ilat, the chief prosecutor in the case, said his office plans to pursue charges against Newmont's top official in Indonesia, American Richard Ness, and the Denver-based company itself.
A trial could start within weeks, he said.
It was not immediately clear what charges Ness faces. But Indonesian officials said in the past he could be charged with corporate crimes that carry a jail sentence of up to 15 years.
The company's Indonesian subsidiary, Newmont Minahasa Raya, has been accused of causing dozens of residents on the island of Sulawesi to develop skin diseases and tumors.
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Annual count of otters shows slight decrease
July 6, 2005 (SF Chronicle – by David Perlman)
CALIFORNIA - California's endangered population of southern sea otters declined slightly during the past year, but on average their numbers have been increasing for more than 20 years, observer teams conducting the annual otter census reported Tuesday.
The observers counted 2,735 otters along the coast between Half Moon Bay and Santa Barbara, a 3.2 percent decrease from the year before, according to Brian Hatfield, a biologist with the U.S. Geological Survey at San Simeon in San Luis Obispo County.
To monitor the population trend more realistically, however, observers maintain three-year averages of their count, and the running average for the past three years shows an 8 percent increase. Last year's count reached a record high of 2,825 animals. In 1983, when the annual spring census began, only 1,277 animals were counted.
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Pollution Experts Head to Grounded Ship
July 5, 2005 (AP - By AUDREY McAVOY)
Honolulu -- The U.S. Coast Guard said it was sending experts to assess and cope with any environmental damage to the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands marine reserve after a ship ran aground on a remote atoll there over the weekend.
A Coast Guard C-130 plane hovering above the Casitas ship spotted a light sheen extending about a half-mile from the vessel, but authorities haven't been able to determine whether the discolored area was an oil spill or something else.
The ship ran aground at the Pearl and Hermes Atoll near the western end of a coral reef reserve stretching 1,200 nautical miles from the main Hawaiian islands to Midway. The reserve is home to endangered monk seals and sea turtles.
The Coast Guard said National Strike Force experts scheduled to leave Oahu Tuesday morning will supply an assessment of the accident when they reach the scene.
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Officials Investigate Deaths of Sea Birds
July 5, 2005 (AP)
VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — Wildlife officials are trying to determine what is killing hundreds of sea birds that have washed ashore in Virginia Beach and other locations along the Atlantic coast in the past several weeks.
Most of the birds are greater shearwaters, which are now migrating north from their breeding grounds in the South Atlantic.
Since June 12, more than 500 dead sea birds have been reported from Maryland to Florida, said Emi Saito, a wildlife disease specialist with the U.S. Geological Survey's National Wildlife Health Center in Madison, Wis.
"It's unusual to see so many," Saito said.
Wildlife pathologists are examining the birds for exposure to toxins, pollutants and infections, she said.
Staffers at Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge in Virginia Beach recently found about a dozen dead greater shearwaters on the beach, said Dorie Stolley, a federal wildlife biologist at the refuge.
Similar reports have come from the Outer Banks of North Carolina, as well as Myrtle Beach and Hilton Head in South Carolina.
Almost 200 birds have washed up in South Carolina, said Diane Duncan, an ecologist with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in Charleston, S.C. "In 20 years here, I have never seen this kind of mortality event," Duncan said. "It certainly is a concern to us, and we'd like to know the cause."
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Boxer, Woolsey call for expanding protected Sonoma waters
July 5, 2005 (AP - By JUSTIN M. NORTON)
San Francisco -- Hoping to protect more of the California coast from oil drilling, two California legislators on Tuesday proposed expanding national marine sanctuaries in Sonoma County.
The legislation, by Sen. Barbara Boxer and Rep. Lynn Woolsey, D-Petaluma, would expand the boundaries of the Gulf of the Farallones and Cordell Bank National Marine Sanctuaries.
Both legislators said it is crucial to increase the amount of protected waters because the region is home to numerous endangered species and rich in biodiversity. The region is also important to the state's fishing industry, in particular salmon fishers.
"All of California's waters must be protected but we must protect the best of the best permanently," Woolsey said at a news conference at a site overlooking the San Francisco Bay and the Golden Gate Bridge.
The proposed bill would add 1,163 square miles to the Gulf of the Farallones and 314 square miles to the Cordell Bank sanctuary.
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New Dolphin Species Found in Australia
July 5, 2005 (AP)
SYDNEY, Australia -- Australian researchers said Tuesday they have identified a new species of dolphin living in the coastal waters of northern Australia.
The Australian Snubfin Dolphin, which is related to Irrawaddy dolphins found along the coasts and major rivers of Asia and northern Australia, was formally identified as a new species thanks to genetic research carried out in California, Queensland state researchers said in a statement.
"There are clear differences between the two populations that had not been previously recognized and these were confirmed by the studies on DNA," said Isabel Beasley, a doctoral student at James Cook University's School of Tropical Environmental Studies and Geography.
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Australia Scientists Find New Dolphin, the Snubfin
July 5, 2005 (Reuters — By Paul Tait)
SYDNEY — Australian researchers have identified a new species of dolphin which was once thought to have been the same as an extremely rare mammal predominantly found in Asian coastal waters and rivers.
The Australian Snubfin Dolphin has been declared a separate species to the Irrawaddy dolphins of Southeast Asia, one of the rarest sea mammals on the planet, researchers at James Cook University and the Museum of Tropical Queensland said on Tuesday.
Researcher Isabel Beasley said the newly identified Australian Snubfin Dolphins, or Orcaella heinsohni, live in shallow waters off northern Australia and possibly in neighbouring Papua New Guinea.
Beasley said it was impossible to estimate the population of these dolphins because not enough was known about them, but thought one group of about 200 of the dolphins lived off Townsville in the far north of Australia's Queensland state.
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The science of shark attacks
What provokes them, and what you can do to avoid them
July 5, 2005 (MSNBC - By Bjorn Carey)
Despite two highly publicized shark attacks last month along the U.S. coast, at least one scientist says it's safe to go back in the water.
In fact, he points out that you're actually in more danger on the way to the beach.
"There are millions of people in the water at any given moment of the day," said John McEachran of Texas A&M University. "When you consider all of the people in the water at the same time, the number of shark attacks is very, very remote."
Every year across the globe, nearly one million people die in automobile accidents. More than 42,000 of those deaths occur in the United States.
Shark attacks resulting in deaths occur much less frequently than car wrecks, but they get much more publicity.
"Shark attacks are like airplane crashes," said McEachran. "The vast majority of airplane trips are safe, but when a crash occurs, it gets big headlines."
According to the International Shark Attack File, in 2004 there were only seven shark related deaths worldwide. That number was even smaller in 2003 and 2002, when four and three deaths were recorded respectively.
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California sea otter population down after record-high count
July 5, 2005 (AP)
Los Angeles -- The number of California sea otters dropped 3.2 percent from last year's record high, officials said Tuesday.
Scientists counted 2,735 sea otters from May 6 to June 16, down from 2,825 in 2004, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
"Despite the dip in this year's tally, the latest three-year running average of the three most recent spring counts is up 8 percent over the previous average," said Brian Hatfield, a USGS biologist.
The information gathered from the surveys is used by federal and state wildlife agencies in making decisions about the management of otters, which are listed as a threatened species under federal law. The three-year average must reach 3,090 for three straight years for the California sea otter to no longer be considered "threatened" under the Endangered Species Act.
Environmental groups were disappointed about the survey results.
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Menacing the Land, but Promising to Rescue the Earth
July 4, 2005 (NYT - By ALAN COWELL)
SHAP, England - In his time, Sir Chris Bonington, one of Britain's best-known mountaineers, has scaled the icy walls and ridges of the Alps and conquered Mount Everest, among other great peaks in the Himalayas and elsewhere. Now, he has turned his attention to a hill just 1,545 feet high, a spongy, rounded, gusty lump of land that might otherwise have achieved little renown, except for a plan to crown it with windmills.
Lots of windmills. In fact, a chain of enormous, power-generating wind turbines across a bald ridgeline stretching southwest of here from a summit called Whinash.
Like other notable people here on the fringes of England's Lake District - titled people, writers and broadcasters, along with many influential rural advocacy groups - Mr. Bonington is trying to prevent a private company from creating a wind farm on Whinash comprising 27 turbines, each one of them more than 370 feet tall. That is roughly 70 feet higher from ground to the tip of a blade than the Statue of Liberty from a toe to the tip of the torch.
In the process he has joined a bigger battle that some see as decisive in balancing Britain's wilderness heritage against a self-imposed target in the struggle against global warming to derive 10 percent of its electrical power from renewable sources by 2010.
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Ship aground off Northwestern Hawaiian Islands
July 4, 2005 (AP)
HONOLULU, Hawaii -- A ship on a mission to clean out fishing nets and other debris from the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands ran aground in a marine reserve that is home to endangered monk seals, the U.S. Coast Guard said.
The Casitas deployed an oil containment boom Sunday after a 500-yard rainbow-colored sheen was spotted near the vessel, the U.S. Coast Guard said. Later reports indicated the sheen may have stopped after the crew transferred fuel to a different tank before evacuating the ship.
The vessel is loaded with an estimated 30,000 gallons of diesel fuel, 3,000 gallons of gasoline and 200 gallons of lubricating oil. There were seven crew members and 16 scientists aboard the 145-foot ship under contract to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
The Casitas sustained severe damage early Saturday from the accident at Pearl and Hermes Atoll in a marine reserve that is home to endangered monk seals, sea turtles and delicate coral reefs. The site is about 1,000 miles northwest of Honolulu.
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Carbon emissions threaten sea life
July 4, 2005 (CNN)
Excessive carbon in the atmosphere is already causing irreparable environmental damage to the Earth's oceans and drastic cuts in emissions are necessary to prevent further devastation, a panel of leading scientists has warned.
A report by the Royal Society, the UK's leading scientific academy, said that rising carbon levels caused by the burning of fossil fuels had dramatically increased the acidity of seawater, threatening the oceans' ecosystems.
Sea creatures such as coral, shell fish and star fish are likely to suffer because higher levels of acidity will make it harder for them to form shells and skeletons.
The report predicts that some types of plankton, a major food source for marine life, may be unable to make their calcium carbonate shells by the end of the 21st century.
Larger marine animals such as squid could face extinction as they find it harder to extract oxygen from sea water and their food supplies dwindle.
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