A huge mass of icebergs continues to drift from Antarctica towards New
Zealand, according to a NZ Herald report. At least 20 icebergs have been spotted off the east and west coasts of Macquarie Island, ranging in
size from 50m to an estimated 2km long. Glaciologist Neil Young was reported saying that they could reach the country’s South Island.
Sixteen Chinese scientists will start a 20-day exploratory mission of the Mekong River this week, aiming to learn about the state
of the river’s current ecosystem, how it evolved, and the extent of its environmental impacts. According to a Xinhua report the
team includes experts from the Chinese Academy of Sciences’ Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources
Research, the Institute of Hydrobiology, and Kunming Institute of Botany. The team’s tour will start from Xishuangbanna in
Yunnan province and gradually move downstream.
The East Antarctic ice sheet has been losing mass for the last three years, according to an analysis of satellite data. The BBC reported that scientists have been surprised by the findings, as the giant East Antarctic sheet, unlike the west, has been relatively stable until now. The satellite has previously shown that the smaller West Antarctic and Greenland ice sheets are losing mass. The complete melting of the East Antarctic sheet would raise sea levels by over 50 meters.
With the House recently passing an energy bill that places large emphasis on forest carbon offsets, it is time for everyday citizens to learn facts about global warming. A new report by Rare Conservation outlines how the developing tropic zones and global deforestation are crucial to mitigating climate change.
Achim Steiner, Executive Director of the U.N. Environment Program is advocating a global ban on plastic bags because there is “zero justification for manufacturing them anymore, anywhere,” he says.
His comment came from a U.N. Environment Program report that identifies plastic as the most common form of ocean litter, along with cigarette butts, according to the results of the 2008 International Coastal Cleanup Day. “Plastic, the most prevalent component of marine debris, poses hazards because it persists so long in the ocean, degrading into tinier and tinier bits that can be consumed by the smallest marine life at the base of the food web,” the report says.
Currently, San Francisco is the only U.S. city that has completely banned plastic bags. China is also testing the same ban in which retailers distributing plastic bags can be fined up to $1,464.
For more information head to:
http://earth911.com/blog/2009/06/10/un-calls-for-global-ban-on-plastic-bags/
Minister of Tourism Milinda Moragoda took part in the third annual meeting in connection with the Borobudur Declaration, on the invitation of the Indonesian Minister of Culture and Tourism, Mr. Jero Wacik. The signatories of the Declaration: Indonesia, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam agreed in 2006 to cooperate on a 5-year plan of action to preserve and promote, through sustainable cultural tourism, a Trail of Civilization, which links prominent Buddhist heritage sites located in these six ASEAN countries. Left: Tourism Minister Milinda Moragoda looks on as Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and his wife leave the stage at the end of the cultural performance of The Trail of Civilisation at the Vesak celebrations held at Borobudur, Indonesia. Left: Tourism Minister Milinda Moragoda looks on as Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and his wife leave the stage at the end of the cultural performance of The Trail of Civilisation at the Vesak celebrations held at Borobudur, Indonesia. Sri Lanka, although not a signatory to the Declaration, was invited to participate at this event both at a ministerial and technical level. Vidya Jyothi Ashley De Vos, accomplished architect, archeologist and preservationist, assisted Minister Moragoda at the sessions. Through this process, Sri Lanka will seek to link up its prominent Buddhist heritage sites to the Trail of Civilisation initiative and thereby become a bridge between South and East Asia in the promotion of Buddhist cultural tourism and pilgrimages.
The UK Prime Minister says that the world faces a "catastrophe" of floods, droughts and killer Heat waves if leaders fail to agree a deal on climate change. Gordon Brown said negotiators had 50 days to save the world from global warming and break the "impasse". He told the Major Economies Forum in London, which brings together 17 of the world’s biggest greenhouse gas emitting Countries, there was "no plan B".
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