Last week's news in brief
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Oysters threatened
Bluff oyster fisheries in the Foveaux Strait, Otago coastal algae, open ocean plankton and cold, deep water corals may all be threatened by ocean acidification, says research by the Royal Society of New Zealand.
Ocean acidification is caused by climate change and results from increased absorption of carbon dioxide into the ocean which increases the acidity of the water. This affects calcium carbonate, which is the key component of coral reefs, and the shells covering our crustaceans and shellfish. It is a problem that not only affects New Zealand, but marine ecosystems around the world. Read more here .... and here ...
Sunspot theory dies
The controversial “sunspot” theory of climate change has finally been laid to rest by scientists in Canada. The theory, which posited that the sun played a major role in global warming, has been proved wrong by a model developed at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Canada.
The model tested the hypothesis that increased solar activity reduces the amount of clouds present, therefore letting more sunlight in and warming the earth. However, the research showed that the changes in the concentration of particles that affect clouds are 100 times too small to have an effect on the climate. Read more ...
Clean energy Stifled in US
Obama’s ‘cap and trade’ legislation has been hit by a US$45 million PR campaign from oil, gas and coal lobby groups.
These groups wants to stifle Obama’s attempt to create a clean energy economy in the United States and lobby against the legislation that would see limits placed on greenhouse gas emissions.
The PR campaign has involved television, print and radio advertising and large donations to influential congress members. It looks set to delay proceedings that would finally see the world’s biggest polluter per capita take some responsibility for its greenhouse gases emissions. Read more ...
Disappearing coral
According to a World Wildlife Fund report, the Coral Triangle, an area half the size of the United States which stretches across south-east Asia, could disappear by the end of this century.
Pollution, deforestation, over-fishing and coastal reclamation have destroyed about 40 percent of reefs in this area, and if these practices continue, the rest of the Coral Triangle looks set to disappear.
The Coral Triangle covers Indonesia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, Solomon Islands and Timor-Leste and is home to 3,000 fish species, more than 30 percent of the world’s corals and 35 percent of coral-reef fish. Read more ...
Aboriginal justice
Climate change looks set to further margainalise Aboriginal groups in Australia, forcing them from their homelands and affecting their access to water.
The Aboriginal culture is intrinsically linked with the land where they have hunted and gathered, lived, danced and performed rituals for around 40,000 years.
The Human Rights Commission’s Social Justice and Native Title reports, launched this week, recommend the Australian government establish a partnership with aboriginal groups to create relevant climate change policy and planning, as well as recognising Aboriginal rights to water and for positive, practical changes to be made to the native land title system against the looming threat of compulsory acquisition of indigenous lands. Read more ...
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