Natural Environment Blog

Future infrastructure projects in Asia could cause conflict between humans and elephants. Photo: Steve Evans, Bangalore, India.

A new report released today by WWF and the World Bank warns that future large-scale infrastructure projects in southern Asia will increase human-elephant conflict.

The projects, which are often internationally funded, are likely to push elephants out of their natural habitat. Elephants are then likely to raid crop fields and break down houses to get at stored crops.

About The Report

The report, entitled Review of Human-Elephant Conflict Mitigation Measures Practised in South Asia, was compiled by WWF-Nepal, the Centre for Conservation and Research Sri Lanka (CCR) and the Nature Conservation Foundation.

It looks at the current methods used by humans to keep elephants away from their homes and farms in the southern parts of Asia. The report also looks at the positives and negatives of these methods.  

The report found that some methods, such as making loud noises, are only effective to a certain extent. Elephants typically learn that these loud humans are nothing to be afraid of and therefore continue to raid their homes and crops. 

New Strategy Urgently Needed

Because of the limited effectiveness of the many current approaches to elephant conflict, WWF says that a strategy that explains the most effective ways to mitigate the conflict is urgently needed.

“Most mitigation measures currently being used are just akin to bandaging the wounds and not treating the root cause,” said Prithiviraj Fernando, chairman of CCR-Sri Lanka. “Good land-use planning that takes both people and elephant needs into account is the only long-term solution.” 

Human-Elephant Conflict Is Expensive

WWF says that human-elephant conflict also costs money. In some countries the damage bill could be many millions per year. WWF urges investors to consider this issue when planning new developments.

“Billions of dollars lined up for regional and national level infrastructural investments such as the Trans-Asian highway project and various hydro-power and irrigation projects are going to significantly increase human-elephant conflict across Asia,” said Christy Williams, Coordinator of WWF’s Asian elephant and rhino conservation program.

“Banks and investors need to show leadership when it comes to human-elephant conflict by adding mitigation options into their large infrastructure plans in places where elephants are found from the beginning.”

Full Report [PDF, 1.69 MB]

Do you remember my post about the website that enables you to donate to charity for free - simply by clicking your mouse?

Or maybe you remember that Tripadvisor was running a million dollar promotion allowing visitors to choose which charities would receive the most money. 

The great thing about these promotions is that it’s so easy for you to have your say. You could help your preferred charity within minutes, and without having to save up and spend your own money to do it.

Hotels Combined is another company wanting to donate money to charity. And similar to the aforementioned promotions, it’s totally free - you choose the charity, they donate the money!

In order to spread the word about the company, Hotels Combined are currently donating money to one of three charities when you mention them on your blog or become a fan on Facebook.

How You Can Help

So, here’s how you can help charity of your choice.

Mention them on your blog and Hotels Combined will donate $20 USD to your chosen charity (just email them with the URL and your chosen charity)

OR

Become a fan on Facebook and Hotels Combined will donate $5 USD to your chosen charity (simply sign into Facebook, become a fan, then post a comment on their Facebook profile indicating your choice)

Donating to charity couldn’t get much simpler (or cheaper) than that!

The Charities

Hotels Combined are currently donating to the following worthwhile charities:

• WWF - the global conservation charity dedicated to stopping the degradation of the planet’s natural environment and building a future in which humans live in harmony with nature.
• World Vision - Christian humanitarian organization dedicated to working with children, families, and their communities worldwide to reach their full potential by tackling the causes of poverty and injustice 
• Make a Wish Foundation - Granting the wishes of children with life-threatening medical conditions.

About Hotels Combined

Hotels Combined is a search engine that searches over 900,000 hotel deals worldwide for the best price possible.

The hotel deals are retrieved from multiple hotel reservation websites around the world, enabling you to compare prices and availability across all major acommodation providers on a single screen.

This company says that they are always looking for ethical and environmentally friendly ways of doing business. 

The aim of this promotion is to help spread the word about the company in an ethical and environmentally friendly way.

A million tonnes of fish and other marine life caught in the North Sea is thrown overboard every year, according to a new study by WWF-Germany.

The resulting report, entitled “Sea Creatures Are Not Rubbish”, says that one-third of all North Sea catch ends up back in the sea. In other words, for every tonne that ends up at the fishmonger, two tonnes were thrown back into the ocean. 

The discarded creatures are usually referred to as “bycatch”. Bycatch is any species caught in a fishery that wasn’t supposed to be - often because it’s the wrong species or it’s too small. 

The main problem with bycatch is that, most creatures are dead or close to death by the time they’re thrown back into the ocean. This represents a huge threat to marine life all over the world. Each year, millions of turtles, whales, dolphins, sharks, and seabirds, right through to juvenile fish, corals, crabs and starfish etc are killed and tossed back into the ocean.

And it’s not just a conservation problem. It’s also a problem for the fishers themselves.

“Bycatch costs fishers time and money,” says Amanda Nickson, Head of WWF’s Bycatch Initiative. “It contributes to the already critical problem of over-fishing, it jeopardizes future revenue, jobs and long-term food security.”

“It is also a major killer of marine wildlife. How many more reasons do you need to change the way we fish?” she adds.

Different target species result in different degrees of bycatch. For example, the report says that for every kilogram of Dover sole (Solea solea) that found its way to the fishmonger, six kilograms of bycatch had been thrown overboard. The study also found that every kilogram of Norwegian lobster or scampi results in five kilograms of bycatch.

WWF says that every year several million sharks and up to 250,000 sea turtles are killed in fishing operations designed to catch other species.

“Bycatch is an incredible waste and one of the largest threats to many sea creatures,” said Karoline Schacht, Fisheries Policy Officer, WWF-Germany. “The drama happens far away at sea but this unseen wastefulness must come to an end.”

WWF has been working on the bycatch issue arround the world, and currently has 70 bycatch projects in over 40 countries.

Here’s the full report (written in German): Sea Creatures Are Not Rubbish [PDF, 1.03 MB]

WWF, the global conservation organization, has just released the 2008 version of their Living Planet Report (as I was anticipating), and things are not looking good for planet Earth - or those of us who reside here.

The report, prduced in conjunction with  the Zoological Society of London (ZSL) and the Global Footprint Network (GFN), is released every two years and is recognized as probably the most authoritative report on the state of the world’s ecosystems. It could be viewed as biennial bank statement for natural resources. 

According to the report, our global footprint now exceeds the world’s capacity to regenerate by about 30 per cent. This has increased from 25% in the 2006 report.

Furthermore, our global footprint is expected to keep increasing unless we do something about it. The report says that if our demands on the planet continue at the same rate, by the mid-2030s we will need the equivalent of two planets to maintain our lifestyles.

WWF International Director-General James Leape said “Most of us are propping up our current lifestyles, and our economic growth, by drawing - and increasingly overdrawing - on the ecological capital of other parts of the world,”

“If our demands on the planet continue to increase at the same rate, by the mid-2030s we would need the equivalent of two planets to maintain our lifestyles” he continued.

World Economical Crisis vs World Ecological Crisis

The 2008 report draws comparisons between the world economic crisis and the “world ecological crisis”.

It says:

The recent downturn in the global economy is a stark reminder of the consequences of living beyond our means. But the current  financial recession pales in comparison to the looming ecological credit crunch.

Whether we live on the edge of the forest or in the heart of the city, our livelihoods and indeed our lives depend on the services provided by the Earth’s natural systems.

The report continues to say that we are consuming the resources that underpin those services much too fast – faster than they can be replenished.

Just as reckless spending is causing recession, so reckless consumption is depleting the world’s natural capital to a point where we are endangering our future prosperity.

ZSL co-editor Jonathan Loh said “We are acting ecologically in the same way as financial institutions have been behaving economically - seeking immediate gratification without due regard for the consequences,”

“The consequences of a global ecological crisis are even graver than the current economic meltdown.”

The report also says that in the past 35 years, Earth’s wildlife populations have declined by a third”

5 Countries with the Highest Footprints

The five countries with the highest footprints per person were:

• United Arab Emirates
• the United States of America
• Kuwait
• Denmark
• Australia 

5 Countries with the Lowest Footprints

These countries were found to have the lowest footprints per person:

• Bangladesh
• Congo
• Haiti
• Afghanistan
• Malawi

Reckless Lifestyles at the Expense of Others

The report says that more than three quarters of the world’s population live in nations that have outstripped their country’s biocapacity. It says:

Most of us are propping up our current lifestyles, and our economic growth, by drawing (and increasingly overdrawing) upon the ecological capital of other parts of the world.

Water Footprints

For the first time the Living Planet Report also includes new measures of global, national and individual water footprints.

It finds that globally, each person consumes about 1.24 million liters of water per year.

But the actual figures vary significantly between countries. The nation with the highest water consumption per capita was United States, with 2.48 million liters of water consumed per year (about the size of an Olympic swimming pool). The nation with the lowest water consumption was Yemen, with 619,000 liters per person. 

The Good News…

Despite the apparent gloom and doom, there is a light at the end of the tunnel.

WWF believes that it’s not too late for us to do something about the looming “ecological credit crunch”. 

In order to tackle climate change, the WWF refers to its own “WWF Climate Solutions Model” which outlines a model for achieving reductions in carbon emissions of 60 to 80 per cent by 2050.

The report offers some more advice for dealing with the issue:

Success requires that we manage resources on nature’s terms and at nature’s scale. This means that decisions in each sector, such as agriculture or fisheries, must be taken with an eye to broader ecological consequences. It also means that we must find ways to manage across our own boundaries – across property lines and political borders – to take care of the ecosystem as a whole

Download the Report

The report should be available on the Living Planet Report section of the WWF website very soon.

Alternatively, you can download the report here [PDF File 4.35 MB].

World Wildlife Fund (WWF) launched its first ever holiday gift catalog on Thursday, enabling us to choose gifts that will support WWF conservation projects around the world. 

The catalog, which is available online and in full color brochure, includes gifts such as:

• crafts
• apparel and accessories
• animal adoptions
• gift adoption cards  

All animal adoptions come with a formal adoption certificate, a color photo of the adopted animal and a species description card. In addition to these items, adoptions of $100 or more come with a soft animal plush representative of the species adopted, a WWF gift box and a custom frame which displays the adoption certificate and photo.

In addition to the gift package sent in the mail, all online donations of any amount come with a free online premium package, which includes a personalized electronic adoption certificate, screensavers, wallpaper and AIM icons all customized to the animal adopted

Prices for most gifts range from between $25 and $250. But if you’re feeling extra generous you could purchase an “extraordinary gift”… 

Extraordinary Gifts

Feeling generous? Extraordinary gifts range from between $1,000 and $3,500,000 (yes, that’s 3.5 million dollars!) 

Extraordinary gifts enable you to contribute directly to a WWF program or project. For example, you could choose to: 

• endow a long-term solution to protecting endangered tigers in key tiger protection areas around the world
• relocate bison or rhinos to a wildlife protected area 
• purchase a set of sea turtle or pygmy elephant tracking collars to monitor their populations 
• outfit anti-poaching patrols 
• provide turtle-friendly fishing gear
• help indigenous communities develop sustainable livelihoods
• and much more

Terry Macko, Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer of World Wildlife Fund said ”Supporting WWF this holiday season by giving the gift of nature conservation is a unique and meaningful way to demonstrate compassion and thoughtfulness into next year and for years to come,”

“WWF donations through the holiday gift program help address urgent conservation needs.”

By purchasing a gift from the WWF holiday catalog, you can help save some of the most endangered species from extinction.

You can access the WWF holiday catalog at www.worldwildlife.org/gifts

WWF, the global conservation organization, is expected to release the 2008 version of its “Living Planet Report” on Wednesday.

The Living Planet Report, released every couple of years by WWF, is an update of the state of the world’s ecosystems. The report is based on two indicators:

• the Living Planet Index, which reflects the health of the planet’s ecosystems; and 
• the Ecological Footprint, which shows the extent of human demand on these ecosystems. 

Previous reports have shown a bleak future for the planet. According to the 2006 report: 

Since the late 1980s we have been in overshoot – the Ecological Footprint has exceeded the Earth’s biocapacity – as of 2003 by about 25 per cent.

Earth’s regenerative capacity can no longer keep up with demand – people are turning resources into waste faster than nature can turn waste back into resources.

What this basically means is that, in 2003, it took around 1 year and 3 months for nature to produce the ecological resources that we used in that year. 

And the 2008 report is not expected to make things look any brighter - things are only going to get worse if we don’t do something to change this. 

The report should be available from WWF’s Living Planet Report page.

According to the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), global warming is occuring much faster than previously thought.

The findings have been released in a new report, entitled Climate change: faster, stronger, sooner. 

This report has found that the Climate Change 2007 report - released by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) - underestimated the speed of climate change. The 2007 report consolidated research from nearly 4,000 scientists from more than 150 nations.

WWF says that, since the Climate Change 2007 report, the science of climate change has moved on. 

IPCC Vice Chair, Professor Jean-Pascal van Ypersele supports the report. He said ”It is clear that climate change is already having a greater impact than most scientists had anticipated, so it’s vital that international mitigation and adaptation responses become swifter and more ambitious,”

Key Findings

Here are some key findings from the report:

• The Arctic Ocean is losing sea ice up to 30 years ahead of IPCC predictions. It is now predicted that the summer sea ice could completely disappear between 2013 and 2040 - something that hasn’t occurred in more than a million years.
• Global sea level rise is expected to reach more than double the IPCC’s maximum estimate of 0.59m by the end of the century, putting vast coastal areas at risk.
• Natural carbon sinks - the areas that help to absorb CO₂ from the atmosphere - are losing their ability to soak up growing levels of emissions faster than expected.
• Rising temperatures have already led to a major reduction in global yields of wheat, maize and barley, resulting in losses of 40 million tonnes of grain per year.
• Marine ecosystems in the North and Baltic Sea are being exposed to the warmest temperatures measured since records began.
• The number and intensity of extreme cyclones over the British Isles and the North Sea are projected to increase, leading to increased wind speeds and storm-related losses over Western and Central Europe.

A Call to the European Union

WWF are looking to the European Union for more action. 

Dr. Tina Tin, Climate Scientist and author of the report says “If the European Union wants to be seen as leader at UN talks in Copenhagen next year, and to help secure a strong global deal to tackle climate change after 2012, then it must stop shirking its responsibilities and commit to real emissions cuts within Europe”.

In particular, the report calls on the European Union to:

• Immediately adopt an emission reduction target of at least 30% below 1990 levels by 2020 – to be delivered within the boundaries of the EU; and
• Commit – on top of its own reduction target – to provide additional substantial support and funding for investment in socially and environmentally robust adaptation and mitigation activities in developing countries.

Dr. Tina Tin continues, “Climate change is a major challenge to the future of mankind and the environment, and this sobering overview highlights just how critical it is that EU Environment Ministers discussing the EU legislations against climate change today commit to a strong climate and energy package, in order to ensure a low carbon future”.

The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) has been completely hammered over the announcement of their upcoming world tour in 2009.

The tour will enable 88 paying passengers the opportunity to visit, and learn about some of the 19 highest priority places that WWF operate in. Transport will be provided in the form of a private jet. Experts will present a series of lectures to passengers en route. 

News sites and blogs have accused the WWF of hypocrisy due to the amount of carbon the expedition will produce. According to Steven Milloy of the JunkScience website:

…the 36,800-mile trip in a Boeing 757 jet will burn about 100,000 gallons of jet fuel to produce roughly 1,231 tons of CO2 in 25 days

Here’s a collection of articles I’ve encountered slamming the WWF over this expedition:

• The Hypocrisy of the World Wildlife Fund’s Eco Tour (Wired.com blog)
• Five-Star Green Hypocrisy (JunkScience.com) (This article is also available on FoxNews)
• WWF lectures: don’t do as we do (Blog at News.com.au)
• WWF = Whee, We’re Flying (Deceiver.com)
• You too can be like Al Gore! (Gather.com)
• Neil Hrab: Waste emissions; see endangered species. Don’t tell Al Gore (NationalPost.com)
• All Around the World with the World Wildlife Fund For A Mere $65k (blogtalkradio.com)
• Private Jet Travel for Me, But Not for Thee (OpenMarket.org)
• WWF Full of Environmental Charlatans (Skepticsglobalwarming.com)

Um yeah… I think it’s fair to say that people aren’t happy!

A Different View

OK, at first glance, I couldn’t help but see the irony in the situation. WWF - an organization pleading with the world to lower its carbon emissions - coming up with a 25 day trip that will omit more carbon than an average household does in a year.

But I’m going to take a different view on this one. 

First of all, let’s look at who the WWF is targeting. It’s targeting people who can afford to pay $65,000 for a 25 day trip. People who can afford that amount are not likely to be short of cash, or influence.

It’s exactly people like this, that can help the WWF and its various causes. Wealthy people are in an excellent position to donate hundreds, thousands, or even millions of dollars to these causes. And, influential people are in a great position to inspire others to do something about a cause that they feel passionate about.

Here’s what Dr. Sybille Klenzendorf, WWF Species Conservation Program Director, says on the brochure for this expedition:

During a field research outing in Borneo two years ago, I made a rare sighting of pygmy elephants, the smallest and tamest elephant in the world. A herd of a half dozen of them was weaving through the thick rain forest along the Kinabatangan River.

Of course, such sightings are rare—even after many years working in wildlife conservation or protection, I’ve seen just a handful of the world’s species in the wild. But each time I do, I remember why I work in the remarkable field of conservation: To help save these animals and to inspire others to care deeply for the world’s wild places—and because moments such as that day in Borneo, no matter how fleeting, are the most memorable of my life. 

Contrary to what some cynics would try to have you believe, rich people can have a conscience too. Just imagine if more “high-flying executives” and the “business elite” had experiences like the one described by Dr. Klenzendorf. Think about the good they might do for the environment.

Out of the 88 wealthy, influential passengers that will be on that plane, don’t you think at least some of them will be moved by the experience like Dr. Klenzendorf was in Borneo? 

I expect that an experience like that would almost certainly inspire passengers to ask themselves; “What else can I do to help?”

Plus, I could think of a lot more environmentally-damaging ways to spend $65,000. If they don’t spend it with WWF, where will they spend it?

I think it’s a bit unfair to accuse WWF of hypocrisy on this one. I reckon the WWF would view this expedition as an investment in the environment. If the WWF were to eliminate all its carbon emissions, it would cease to exist. Do you really think that the WWF could operate as effectively as it does if it didn’t use modern technology to help spread the word about the environment?

I’m hoping this expedition is a way of burning a (relatively) small amount of carbon, in order to inspire others to take positive action - the results of which will dwarf any negative impact that this expedition might bring.

The largest natural feature on earth is so large, that it can be seen from space!

Earth’s largest natural feature is the Great Barrier Reef.

The Great Barrier Reef is a massive collection of coral reefs located along the north eastern side of Australia. It is the world’s most extensive coral reef system and is one of the world’s richest areas in terms of faunal diversity.

The reef is part of the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area, which at 35 million hectares, is the world’s largest World Heritage Area. About 98 percent of the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area is located in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park, which was declared in 1975 with the purpose of preserving the area’s outstanding biodiversity whilst providing for reasonable use.

Here are some interesting facts about the Great Barrier Reef:

• There are more than 2900 coral reefs
• 600 continental islands
• 71 coral islands
• 300 coral cays
• 1500 species of fish
• 4000 species of molluscs
• 500 species of seaweed
• 350 types of starfish and various echinoderms
• More than 215 species of birds
• 1.9 million tourists visit the Great Barrier Reef each year
• The Great Barrier Reef is over 12,000 years old
• The reef itself stretches more than 2300 km from the northern tip of Australia’s Queensland to just south of Bundaberg (also in the state of Queensland)
• The Great Barrier Marine Park covers 348,000 square kilometers - that’s larger than the whole of the UK and Ireland combined!

The Great Barrier Reef is Under Threat

Unfortunately, the Great Barrier Reef is under threat from overfishing, land-based pollution and coral bleaching. Coral bleaching is exacerbated by increased sea temperatures due to global warming. As a result of public campaigning and pressure from WWF, the Australian Government has committed to protecting 33% of the reef where it can (previously, only 4% had been protected).

Regarding the impact of global warming on the reef, it’s not just affecting the Great Barrier Reef. To date, 10% of all reefs around the world have been destroyed due to coral bleaching. At the current rate, 70% of the world’s reefs will be destroyed over the next 40 years.

As hopeless as this may sound, there are things we can do to help. By developing greener habits, we can all do our part in reducing global warming. For example, here are 5 ways to reduce greenhouse gases. And here are some simple steps you can take to live sustainably.