The Nature Conservancy announced this week the purchase of six trawling permits and four trawling vessels from commercial fishermen in Morro Bay as part of a cooperative agreement with the fishing industry to protect a vast swath of ocean off the coast of central California. The precedent-setting acquisitions represent the nation’s first private buy out of Pacific fishing vessels and permits for conservation purposes and to help reform a troubled fishery. . .
3.8 million Acres of California Ocean Floor Protected
London Birdwatchers Awed as Avocet Hatches in City Wetlands
LONDON — With its striking black and white plumage and elegant upturned bill, the avocet is one of the most distinctive birds. It’s also a great conservation success story for Britain’s Royal Society for the Protection of Birds.
Their Web site explains, “Avocets used to breed along the coast from Sussex to Yorkshire, but regular taking of adults and eggs for food, egg collecting and taxidermy eventually led to their disappearance as a British breeding bird in 1842. But, thanks to the work of the RSPB, in 50 years avocets have gone from a handful to several hundred pairs.”
Honda to Build Zero Waste Plant in Indiana
Honda just announced the construction of a $550 million automobile plant in Decatur County, Indiana, to build fuel-efficient vehicles and employ 2,000 Hoosiers.
With a vision of sustainability, Honda wants to create a "zero waste-to-landfill" factory. They say their goal is for the plant in Indiana to have "the smallest environmental footprint of any Honda auto plant in North America." . . .
Mouse Rides Frog’s Back in Flood
This amazing and touching Reuters Photo shows a mouse riding on the back of a frog in floodwaters in the northern Indian city of Lucknow on June 30.
Pa. Workers Rescue Puppy From Sewer Pipe
AP reports that a Penn Hills, Pennsylvania, landscaper loaned police a backhoe so they could dig an 8-foot hole to rescue a cute seven-week-old puppy who’d spent the morning stuck deep inside a sewer pipe. (photo and story)
India Offers Free Anti-AIDS Drugs
Indian officials announced that 100,000 Indians with HIV will be provided free anti-retroviral drugs by early 2007 as part of a program which began in 2004 and has already treated 35,000 people. "By August the drug will be made available to another 50,000 affected people and a further 15,000 by the beginning of 2007, officials say." (BBC)
US Presbyterians Urge Medicinal Use of Marijuana
The Presbyterian Church (USA) has become the seventh major religious organization in the United States to support the use of medical marijuana, an issue expected to come before the US House of Representatives during the week. "It is unconscionable that seriously ill patients can be arrested for making an earnest attempt at healing by using medical marijuana with their doctors’ approval," said the Rev. Lynn Bledsoe, a Presbyterian minister from Alabama who works as a hospice chaplain, in a statement issued by the Interfaith Drug Policy Initiative. . .
HERO Youth Ambassadors to Serve African Orphans, Schools Hit by AIDS
The HERO campaign is enhancing the lives of children who have been orphaned or made vulnerable by HIV/AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa. Today it launched its HERO Youth Ambassador Program by bringing 12 teens to Namibia and South Africa to make a difference in HIV/AIDS-affected communities. The Youth Ambassadors will spend a month with their peers working in schools and communities that have been hit hard by the health crisis.
The American students will be building new classrooms, installing kitchens for in-schools feeding programs, and painting existing structures. Cross-cultural sharing of art, music, and sports will start breaking down barriers, dispelling stereotypes and developing understanding for each other.
“The desire to educate one’s child is a commonality that parents from around the world share,” says HERO Special Programs Ambassador Andrea Kerzner. Her two children will participate in the pilot program this summer. “As a South African, it is important to me to give back to the country I was raised in, as well as to instill in my own children the notion of global, social responsibility at an early age. This pilot program is an excellent vehicle to expose teens to the problems facing Africa in a very real way. By working in schools and communities that have been hit hard by the HIV/AIDS crisis, these teens will hopefully form a lifelong bond to the people and nations they are helping.”
Participating students will take on the role of HERO Youth Ambassadors by organizing fundraisers within their schools and communities. Prior to traveling, each of the 12 students will become immersed in Namibian and South African culture, history and current affairs. This includes a scheduled group meeting with officials at the Namibian and South African Missions to the United Nations as well as an introductory Zulu language class. (UNA-USA)
Dell Offers Free PC Recycling
Dell Computer became the superstar of electronics recycling by announcing Wednesday it will provide everyone in the world with free recycling for old Dell PCs. It will even provide free collection service right to your doorstep.
Lighting the Key to Energy Savings for Homes, Businesses
A global switch to efficient lighting systems would trim the world’s electricity bill by nearly one-tenth. —New Study from the International Energy Agency (IEA) For the individual, the most obvious switch to make is from incandescent bulbs to compact fluorescent systems (CFLs), marketed in many countries as "energy-saving bulbs". . .
Historic Election Invites Kuwaiti Women and Candidates
Kuwaitis are voting in parliamentary elections which, for the first time, allow women to cast ballots and stand as candidates. “It feels like a wedding day,” said one Kuwaiti women on her way to the poll. Women make up 28 of the 252 candidates. . .
Kuwaiti women are involved in most other elements of their society, particularly business and education. The country has the longest standing tradition of parliamentary democracy in the region, so it is anachronistic that it is one of the last Gulf states to give women their voice at the ballot box. (-BBC)
UPDATE: JUNE 30- BBC reports that women candidates failed to win any seats.
State media reports a high turnout in the election, in which Kuwaiti reformists campaigning on an anti-corruption platform, some of them Islamists, made strong gains. A push for reform in the new 50-seat parliament may help women candidates at the next election, the BBC’s Julia Wheeler says. (details)
U.S. Automakers to Double Production of Flexible-Fuel Vehicles
In a letter to Congress yesterday, the leaders of the big three U.S. automakers pledged to double production of flexible-fuel vehicles by 2010. They hope with this commitment to provide incentive to fuel providers to produce ethanol and other biofuels and install pumps to distribute them. They’ve produced 5 million flexible-fuel vehicles so far, which can run on gasoline or fuel blends of up to 85 percent ethanol. They project an additional 1 million vehicles this year and 2 million annually by 2010. (AP)
Extinct Quail Sighted in India
The Manipur Bush-Quail is known to be shy. It is also believed to have been extinct for nearly 80 years. A prominent ornithologist has made history by sighting this shy little bird in the north-eastern Indian state of Assam. (BBC)
Over 6 Million Acres of New Protected Areas Established in the Amazon
On June 6, 2006, the Brazilian government announced the creation of protected areas of the Amazon rainforest totaling 6.2 million acres, including The Juruena National Park, now the third-largest park in Brazil.
The Amazon is the world’s largest river basin and the source of one-fifth of the earth’s fresh water. It has the world’s highest diversity of birds and freshwater fish, as well as the planet’s largest rainforest, which is home to more than one third of all species.
The Amazon’s ecosystem currently is threatened by illegal logging, slash-and-burn agriculture and other human activities, and forests are being destroyed at an alarming rate.
Brazil’s decree was a big step in the ARPA plan. It established The Juruena National Park, the third-largest park in Brazil (4.7 million acres) and the Rio Iriri Extractive Reserve, an additional 1 million acres adjacent to Terra do Meio.
US Senate Passes DoD Renewable Energy Amendment
The US Defense Department has made great strides toward increasing its usage of renewable energy sources. In 2005, DOD generated over 8% of its electricity from renewable sources, and issued an internal memo urging pursuit of the goal of generating or acquiring 25% of its electricity from renewable sources by 2025.
The US Senate passed a new amendment last week that would make this goal law. The measure, sponsored by Sen. Robert Menendez (D-NJ) and co-sponsored by Senator Jeff Bingaman (D-NM), is an amendment to the Department of Defense Authorization bill and was passed Tuesday with unanimous consent. . .
Study Shows Laughter Reducing Heart Disease Risk
In March 2005, Researchers at the University of Maryland School of Medicine in Baltimore presented results for the first time that showed laughter is linked to healthy function of blood vessels. The magnitude of benefit observed was similar to that produced by aerobic activity.
"Given the results of our study, it is conceivable that laughing may be important to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease," says principal investigator Michael Miller, M.D., director of preventive cardiology at the University of Maryland Medical Center and associate professor of medicine at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. "At the very least, laughter offsets the impact of mental stress." . . .
Humble Grocer Quietly Gave Away Millions
Waldemar Kaminski, who quietly ran a food stand in Broadway Market for more than 50 years, has been revealed to be a self-made millionaire and philanthropist who anonymously gave millions to Buffalo charities and neighbors in need… He made his hidden fortune in the stock market, carefully investing his hard-earned money over the course of his lifetime. (6/23/06) Buffalo News
States Demand Clean Air, Adopt California’s Greenhouse Gas Limits
More states are saying the EPA doesn’t go far enough in forcing the car makers to raise emission standards in their new models. State politicians want cleaner air and are trying to force carmakers to provide it.
On Friday, Massachusetts joined Oregon, Connecticut and five other states in adopting California’s tough greenhouse gas rules, which limit the amount of carbon dioxide and other gases that can be emitted from vehicle tailpipes. These new rules would supplement federal exhaust pollutant standards. Two other states are in the process of adopting the rules.
The Washington Post reports that the status quo reaction from the Bush administration favors automakers, important because federal waivers would be needed before states can impose new rules.
NYC Courtesy Tops the World, Survey Says
Readers Digest conducted a survey in big cities to see if courtesy was dead. Are people really more rude than they were 20 years ago? The Digest sent reporters into retail establishments to see how many would hold the door, would help them pick up papers dropped by accident, would say ‘thank you’ at the register. They’ve ranked 35 cities around the world in a sort of kindness index.
The verdict was unexpected but delightful… NEW YORK City topped them all!
In the end, four out of every five people they encountered passed the Readers Digest courtesy test — making New York the most courteous city in the world. Imagine that. (All the courtesy reported here.)
First Whooping Cranes Hatch in Midwest in Over 100 Years
Last week wildlife officials in Wisconsin celebrated the birth of two whooping crane chicks marking the first time in over 100 years that a whooping crane has hatched in the wild in the Midwest.
“With the hatching of the first two wild chicks from the migratory whooping crane reintroduction, another chapter in wildlife history has been made. The journey took six long years of dedication, vision and believing it could happen — as well as the blood, sweat and occasional tears of the many partners that worked on the project. This is truly the start of a new generation of wild things…and a symbol for restoring our wild places,” said John Christian, co-chair of the Whooping Crane Eastern Partnership.
