The environment in the news t unep and the Executive Director in the News
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- General Environment News KK Calls for a Green Revolution in Africa
- Warming Threatens Key Water Sources Jim Lobe - WASHINGTON, Mar 2 (IPS)
- IFAW, Interpol team up to combat wildlife crime
- Kenya reviews wildlife conservation policy
- Senegal enforces environmental protection
- Nouakchott forum brainstorms on Sahel water
- Plantations Pollution Threatens Livelihood
- Forget Ecofriendly Unleaded -- Try Something Sweet in Your Tank
- Survival Depends On Action Taken At Local Level"
- Used Oil Causes Cancer, Infertility
ROA Media Update 7 March 2006UNEP in the news Uganda Set for UN Project New Vision (Kampala) - THE UN Environment Programme (UNEP) has included Uganda on a four-year project to increase developing countries' capacity to integrate environment and poverty into development strategies, is being undertaken. UNEP's Kane Mamadou, who was speaking at a meeting convened under the auspices of the African Network Environment Journalists (ANEJ) in Nouakchott, Mauritania, said poverty and environment were linked. However, the development processes, including poverty reduction strategies, have always left out environment and this is seen when it comes to allocation of funds. Mamadou said the destruction of nature had further created a precarious state for the poor communities as they have to walk long distances in search of water and firewood. Other countries where UNEP is to intervene include Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, Mozambique Mali and Mauritania in North Africa. The project is funded by Norway and Belgium. http://allafrica.com/stories/200603030700.html General Environment News KK Calls for a Green Revolution in Africa The Post (Lusaka): DR Kaunda has called for a green revolution in Africa to address the high levels of poverty and hunger. Addressing African Development Bank (ADB) board of directors and staff at separate meetings in Tunis, Tunisia, Dr Kaunda said the continent needed a green revolution to defeat poverty and hunger. ADB president Donald Kaberuka invited Dr Kaunda to address the bank's board and staff on HIV/AIDS. "One of our biggest problems in Africa is our inability to add value to our role materials which we produce in large quantities. Our continent is endowed with enormous natural resources which we send abroad for processing. This is unacceptable as we are not creating wealth for our countries and jobs for our people. We are instead, exporting jobs to the developed countries. There is need to address this matter urgently so that we can establish a vibrant manufacturing sector," Dr Kaunda said. He said with proper planning and sufficient budgetary allocations, the agriculture sector could serve as the mainstay of economies of most African countries. Dr Kaunda advised African governments to commit more resources to the health sectors in order to train more people to deal with diseases. "At their last summit in Scotland the G-8 committed themselves to give Africa's development needs a high priority. This promise must be put into practice in close consultation and cooperation with African Union's programme of action contained in the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD)," he said. Dr Kaunda said ADB was a valuable partner in Africa's development. Dr Kaunda said it would be incomplete to restrict the definition of development only to the materialistic concept, as human development was cardinal too. http://allafrica.com/stories/200603060884.html Warming Threatens Key Water Sources Jim Lobe - WASHINGTON, Mar 2 (IPS) - Some of these areas, particularly in southern Africa, already suffer periodic droughts, so further declines in rainfall could have "devastating implications" for people who depend on local water supplies, according to the two authors, Maarten de Wit and Jacek Stankiewicz of the Africa Earth Observatory Network (AEON) at the University of Capetown. Other particularly vulnerable areas include a narrow band of territory that stretches from Senegal eastward to Sudan and crosses several important water bodies that supply populations downriver, such as the Sudd swamps in the Nile Basin and the Niger River. They also include parts of East Africa south of Somalia. Because much of the rainwater is absorbed by soil and plants before it can reach streams and rivers, declines in rainfall in these areas translate into much steeper declines in the amount of water available for human use. A 10-percent drop in precipitation in regions that receive 600 millimeters (mms) of rainfall per year could result in a 50 percent drop in surface drainage. Altogether, the decline in rainfall and the resulting decrease in "perennial drainage" -- rivers, lakes and other bodies of water that hold or carry surface water throughout the year -- will "significantly affect" access to water across 25 percent of Africa by the end of the century, according to the study. The study, which is based on a number of different climate models that predict the impact of global warming on rainfall, comes amid growing indications that warming is taking place even faster than scientists had expected. According to the BBC, a report to be issued later this month by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), a group of hundreds of scientists from around the world, will warn that given current projections of greenhouse gas emissions, global temperatures are likely to rise between two and 4.5 degrees Centigrade by the end of the century -- significantly higher than the IPCC's previous predictions. In a study released last year, Anthony Nyong, a scientist at Nigeria's Jos University, warned that, if current trends continue, rainfall in sub-Saharan Africa will drop by 10 percent by 2050, leading to major water shortages due to the even greater loss of drainage water. The new study builds on Nyong's work by using the latest computer models to determine how warming will affect rainfall and drainage systems in specific regions in Africa. The study divides the continent into three "regimes" -- "dry" areas that will receive less than 400 mms/year of rainfall and consequently have virtually no perennial drainage; "wet" areas that will receive more than 800 mms/year; and intermediate, or "unstable", areas that will receive 400-800 mms/year by the end of this century. IFAW, Interpol team up to combat wildlife crime Nairobi, Kenya (PANA) - The International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) and Interpol have formulated new strategies to combat international wildlife and environmental crime which has become a serious global concern, Kenyan Tourism and Wildlife Minister Morris Dzoro said. Dzoro said wildlife related crime was getting more sophisticated, going beyond Kenya's borders. Cross-border, regional and international linkages are therefore crucial in dealing with the problem, the minister told a workshop for investigation and intelligence officers involved in wildlife observation and management. The workshop has attracted 26 participants from Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS), the Kenya police force and officials from the Lusaka Agreement Task force, a regional body involved in the conservation of flora and fauna in the eastern and southern African region. http://www.panapress.com/newslat.asp?code=eng106833&dte=28/02/2006 Kenya reviews wildlife conservation policy Nyeri, Kenya (PANA) - Kenya is reviewing its wildlife conservation and management policy, to deal effectively with increasing human/wildlife conflict, Tourism and Wildlife Minister, Morris Dzoro, said Friday. The policy will address the contentious issue of compensation for deaths, injury or damage to property caused by animals on communities near wildlife conservation areas. Speaking at the central town of Nyeri during the branding of the Aberdares National Park, the Minister noted that while a permanent solution to the conflict would be difficult, government was committed to protecting people and animals at all times. Describing tourism as the country's highest income earner, Dzoro said that in the (2004/2005) financial year, the industry generated 50 billion Kenya shillings to the national economy. But increased poaching activities remained a serious threat to several endangered wildlife species such as elephants and rhinos, despite efforts by the Kenya Wildlife Service. He also regretted that public perception often focused on conflict, drought, famine and migration of animals and people, rather than addressing the root-causes of unsustainable use of natural resources. The Aberdares, one of Kenya's major forest conservation sites boasts a rich biodiversity with a record of 778 plant species, 44 mammal species and thousands of invertebrates. It is also a major water tower, supporting about 30 percent of the population, including over three million residents of Nairobi. The branding of Aberdares National Park is part of efforts to market and attract more visitors to the unique site. http://www.panapress.com/newslat.asp?code=eng107103&dte=03/03/2006 Senegal enforces environmental protection Dakar, Senegal (PANA) - As a means to secure their investments, the minister of Environment and Protection of the Nature Minister, Thierno Lo in Senegal, Thierno Lo warned heads of companies to conduct environmental impact studies before establishing their structures in Senegal. According to Lo, the environmental challenges Senegal is facing in order to ensure a sustainable management of Natural Resources and Environmental Management (GRNE) require a more coherent and pragmatic move backed by an essential goal of improving the living conditions of the population. "From now on we will make sure that the Environmental Code be applied as it should," the Minister emphasized. One of the effects of this failure to respect the environmental Code in Senegal is the coastal erosion due to illegal sand mining and the construction of buildings on beaches. Perpendicular works along the coast also hampers the sedimentary transits while the discharge of wastewater on beaches destroys the substratum. The director of the environment and classified establishments, Fatoumata Dia Touré, noted that coastal erosion is increasing in Senegal because" there is no integrated strategy for the protection of the littoral". She pledged that her department would in the next few months adjust their aim by implementing an integrated strategy that could serve as a canvas for all environmental actors. Coastal erosion in Senegal is noticed in nearly all cities along the coast such as Saint-Louis, Dakar, Rufisque, Joal and Ziguinchor. The country has a 700-km long-coastline occupied by over 50% of the national population. http://www.panapress.com/newslat.asp?code=eng107017&dte=02/03/2006 Nouakchott forum brainstorms on Sahel water Nouakchott, Mauritania (PANA) - Policymakers, private and public sector operators, civil society and development partners Tuesday continued deliberation here at a sub-regional forum on water and its impact on the fight against hunger. Organized by the Mauritanian government and the Inter-State Committee for Drought Control in Sahel (CILSS), the three-day meeting seeks to "mobilize all actors" of the sub-region and the international community to create a global coalition on availability of water in the Sahel to fight hunger. The Nouakchott forum is expected to galvanize the support of CILSS member states and partners to prioritize strategies in the field of water supply and control, and fund-raising. The participants would also develop a common position of Sahel countries on the issue of water in the region to be presented at the World Forum on Water scheduled for March 2006 in Mexico. The problem of water shortage has posed a major challenge to the development initiatives of the Sahel, according to the CILSS. The sub-regional organization suggests that the "Sahelian experiences in water control that were implemented at low scale" should be generalized. Meanwhile, the CILSS has adopted two major initiatives -- a regional support programme for small-scale irrigation in the Sahel (PRADPIS) and a regional programme on artificial rains. http://www.panapress.com/newslat.asp?code=eng106795&dte=28/02/2006 Plantations' Pollution Threatens Livelihood The NEWS (Monrovia): The Deputy United Nations Secretary General Special Representative in Liberia, Jordan Ryan says the issue of pollution by Rubber Plantations in the country threatens the sustainability of people's livelihoods. Mr. Ryan said the issue of pollution and harmful exploitation techniques at some of the plantations must be resolved. Although he did not name any plantation that is engaged in pollution activities, citizens of Owensgrove in Grand Bassa County over the years have complained the management of Firestone Rubber Plantation to the government of Liberia and human rights groups for allegedly polluting their environment including the Farmington River. Deputy SRSG spoke at the Mission's weekly press briefing in Sinkor when he and Liberia's Agriculture Minister, Dr. Christopher Toe commented on the establishment of a joint Government of Liberia and United Nations Rubber Plantations Task Force. He emphasized that the issue of pollution and harmful exploitation techniques at plantations are generating environmental hazards that threaten the sustainability of people's livelihoods. Mr. Ryan told newsmen that UN is concerned about the ongoing tensions and security incidents at several of the plantations adding, "Cases of child labor and physical abuse, lack of adherence to acceptance labor standards and poor living conditions of local populations have also been brought to our attention." He said it is important for the government of Liberia to assume effective control over these resources and protect its citizens from violence and abuse. http://allafrica.com/stories/200603030494.html Forget Ecofriendly Unleaded -- Try Something Sweet in Your Tank Business Day (Johannesburg): UNTIL about 40 years ago, motorists traveling through the Natal coast could top up their tanks with ethanol made from sugar cane. Union Spirit was first produced from surplus sugar by Natal Cane By-Products shortly after the First World War and was, for many years, sold in red pumps in the region's forecourts. Drivers mixed the ethanol with petrol primarily to boost its octane level, though in the petrol-scarce years directly after the Second World War, the fuel helped cushion the effects of rationing. Today, amid increasing demand for crude oil, which is trading near record highs, and growing concern about the environmental impact of burning fossil fuels for energy, there is a resurgence of interest in fuels derived from plants. SA faces growing power demands from its rapidly urbanizing population, notably for electricity and transport. There are already 6-million cars on our roads, and the number is expected to rise 50% within 10 years, says Manny Singh, GM of the Energy Development Corporation, a division of the Central Energy Fund (CEF). "Biofuels are clean-burning, renewable, reduce dependence on imported crude oil and create jobs. And we have land available to pursue this objective," he says. As a result, government's priorities in its development plans to boost economic growth to 6% by 2010 include developing a local biofuels industry. Sasol and the CEF are already considering building a facility to produce fuel from soy beans, and last month Sterling Waterford and Ethanol Africa announced plans to invest R5, 6bn in building SA's first of many maize-to-ethanol plants, the first of which is expected to start operating in Bothaville next year. The technology behind these biofuels is not new. The processes involved are relatively simple and the internet is full of ecologically minded websites promoting recipes for homemade biofuels. The study's authors suggest that SA has the potential to produce 1, 4-billion liters of bio-diesel a year. "We can probably make 5% of SA's fuel needs from these first-generation biofuels, but to really make an impact we need to look at new kinds of agriprocesses that will allow us to exploit parts of plants that we can't currently use, such as stems and leaves," says Von Blottnitz. http://allafrica.com/stories/200603030358.html 'Survival Depends On Action Taken At Local Level" BuaNews (Tshwane): More than 600 delegates from local governments all over the world - from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe - have gathered for a conference in Cape Town dealing with a wide array of questions relating to environmental sustainability. Titled, 'Out of Africa: Local Solutions for Global Challenges', the conference is stretched over the whole week but was put on hold yesterday to give South African delegates a chance to participate in the country's local government elections. It's the first time the Canada and Germany-based ICLEI - now called Local Governments for Sustainability - is holding a conference in the southern hemisphere. Its previous conference was held in Athens in 2003. Delivering a keynote speech to the conference on Monday, Minister of Environmental Affairs and Tourism, Marthinus van Schalkwyk, said local governments were now assuming more responsibility - in the second decade since the groundbreaking Rio Earth Summit of 2002 - for delivering progress towards a more sustainable world order. As he put it: "Halving poverty by 2015, changing patterns of consumption and production, and protecting our shared natural resources, is less and less about global commitments alone, and more and more about local action." The environment minister made the point that for communities in Africa in particular, it was poverty that remained "both the main cause and main consequence of environmental damage". The recent power cuts in the Western Cape, the minister told the delegates, had made it clear that "the challenges of sustainable development are both immediate and absolutely local - affecting every home, every business and every person". Mohammed Valli Moosa, chairman of the World Conservation Union also made it clear at the conference that a global rescue effort of life on Earth depended on local action. Citing the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment - the largest ever assessment of the health of Earth's ecosystems undertaken by 1360 experts from 95 countries - Mr. Valli Moosa said the picture was bleak, with the very essence of all life on Earth now under threat. "Over the past 50 years, humans have changed ecosystems more rapidly and extensively than in any comparable period of time in human history, largely to meet rapidly growing demands for food, fresh water, timber, fiber and fuel." "In short, life on Earth, and human society with it, is in trouble," he said. http://allafrica.com/stories/200603020794.html Used Oil Causes Cancer, Infertility Echo (Gaborone): With a new law on the way, owners of backyard garages will soon face the wrath of the law. The director of waste management and pollution control in the ministry of environment, wildlife and tourism, Enoch Naane said his department, in collaboration with the city council, is planning to crack down on the garages. Naane said they have warned owners on many occasions and have even educated them about inappropriately disposing used oil. "We have been discussing the issue for a long time. I want to warn the operators to be on a lookout because we would soon be closing them down. What they are doing is illegal. While we sympathize with them because of scarcity of space, used oil is dangerous," he said. According to Phatsimo Motlhabatau, the project officer of Tshole Trust, a waste oil Management Company, these backyard garages pose a great threat to human life as well as to the environment. Motlhabatau recommended that drastic measures be taken immediately to arrest the situation. Her observation is that most of the garage owners do not seem to be concerned about pollution, adding that used automobile oil can cause deadly diseases such as cancer if it comes into contact with the skin. In the past, Motlhabatau's organization organized workshops to sensitize garage owners about the dangers of improperly handling used, but the attendance has always been poor. http://allafrica.com/stories/200603020464.html ____________________________________________________________________________
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