Saturday, March 24th, 2012
CIFOR scientists are helping to estimate the extent of deforestation that accompanies road paving in the Amazon — even before such roads have been built — which could allow state planners to better assess the costs and benefits of development projects in the region. “Road paving is a huge shock to any socio-ecological system and
Saturday, March 24th, 2012
Leaders of the aviation industry meeting in Geneva, today sent a reminder to governments of the vital role the sector plays in economic growth, providing jobs whilst taking its environmental responsibilities seriously. Chief Executives and Directors General from 16 global aviation companies and organisations signed the Aviation & Environment Summit’s Declaration as a joint message
Thursday, March 22nd, 2012
As the climate gets warmer, many forests are feeling the heat. Impacts range from increased forest fire hazards and tree mortality to detrimental beetle outbreaks and alterations to leaf abundance and bloom. When forest cover or composition changes, there are impacts to the availability of wood products, clean water, recreational opportunities, and habitats for many
Tuesday, March 20th, 2012
Western Australia’s Department of Fisheries has turned to cutting-edge Geographic Information System (GIS) technology to help manage the Abrolhos Islands: a key source of catch and breeding stock for Western Australia’s $400 million rock lobster industry. The 122 islands that make up the Abrolhos are also one of the Indian Ocean’s most important seabird breeding locations,
Monday, March 19th, 2012
The Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC) today released a major update of pollution data reported by industrial facilities in Canada, Mexico and the United States at the Globe 2012 conference on business and the environment. The CEC’s updated website—Taking Stock Online—allows companies, communities, and the public to track the release and transfer of pollutants across
Saturday, March 17th, 2012
Just days after the somber one-year anniversary of the March 11 earthquake and tsunami that killed nearly 16,000 people in 2011, Japan was struck by two new earthquakes.On Wednesday, a 6.8 magnitude quake hit Japan‘s northern Hokkaido Island. It was followed hours later by a 6.1 magnitude tremor in the Chiba Prefecture, which is directly south of Tokyo
Thursday, March 15th, 2012
The combined impacts of new infrastructure schemes and a warmer climate will cause extremely low water levels in the West Sahelian Niger River, impacting the millions downstream and the wider economy. Extremely low water levels in the Niger River are expected to become a regular phenomenon. Wetlands International will present the latest figures based on
Monday, March 12th, 2012
Seamounts are considered as hotspots of marine biodiversity but remain poorly known. Component of the Global Census of Marine Life on Seamounts, the SeamountsOnline gathers data on species that have been observed or collected from seamounts and makes them freely-available online. You may search either a given taxon (all metazoan species are considered) or a
Monday, March 12th, 2012
The International Maritime Organisation (IMO) has postponed until 2013 the development of environment protection guidelines to regulate shipping in polar waters. Environment groups have repeatedly expressed concern about the grave risks posed by increased shipping to the fragile ecosystems in the Arctic. Friends of the Earth US and the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society see
Friday, March 9th, 2012
The Network of European Regions Using Space Technologies (NEREUS) and the European Space Agency (ESA) are inviting contributions for their joint publication entitled “50 uses of GMES across European regions”. This publication will document the accelerating growth in the number and quality of applications of GMES in the European regions. Through this publication, the two organisations
