Ecos articles from February 1 2009

Ecos archives from February 1 2009

Fast forwarding solutions.(Editorial)(Editorial)(Brief article)
February 1, 2009... In putting together this issue's Focus on options for rapid global C[O.sub.2] drawdown (page 14), it became obvious that what would once have seemed an outlandish topic was now pertinent. Given the support the topic received, it struck me...

White Paper response: 'timely start, but we could do better'.
February 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Since the federal government released its White Paper outlining a carbon pollution reduction scheme (CPRS) for Australia in December, the response from environmental and public policy experts has been...

'Cash crops' at risk from pollinator decline?(Brief article)
February 1, 2009... An international study of long-term trends in crop pollination has concluded that an increasing reliance of developing countries on pollinator-dependent crops, such as coffee, could reduce these nations' crop harvests if pollinator numbers...

Greywater gets standard treatment.(Brief article)
February 1, 2009... Researchers have developed a simple laboratory protocol for testing greywater treatment technologies to determine if they meet national recycled water standards, a breakthrough that could boost efforts to conserve national water resources. ...

Unprecedented slowdown in coral growth.(Brief article)
February 1, 2009... The rate at which Great Barrier Reef corals absorb calcium from seawater to calcify their hard skeletons has declined sharply in the past 20 years, slowing coral growth, according to a paper published by Australian researchers in the journal...

Freight company on track to slow emissions.(Power Docs and Freight )(Brief article)
February 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Sydney-based Power Docs & Freight claims it has become Australia's first carbon-neutral freight company, after having undergone a carbon audit in 2008 that resulted in a plan to neutralise its carbon footprint. ...

Save water, save energy: message to cities.
February 1, 2009... A new report by CSIRO and the Water Services Association of Australia (WSAA)--'Energy use in the provision and consumption of urban water in Australia and New Zealand'--shows a strong nexus between water and energy. 'Ensuring a reliable...

Atlas overlays biodiversity and carbon-sink hotspots.(Brief article)
February 1, 2009... The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) has created a carbon sink/biodiversity demonstration arias showing how the world's forests-natural carbon sinks--overlap biodiversity 'hotspots'. With almost 20 per cent of greenhouse gas...

Private sector initiatives boost conservation reserves.(Myer Foundation and Sidney Myer Fund donated to Bush Heritage Australia )(Brief article)
February 1, 2009... The Myer Foundation and Sidney Myer Fund recently donated $2 million to Bush Heritage Australia to support a project that will protect the Tasmanian Midlands' mixed grasslands, woodlands and wedands, a wildlife habitat type poorly represented...

Need for 'more honest' environmental accounting.
February 1, 2009... Only through balanced reporting of both negative and positive outcomes of conservation policy can we hope to properly manage dwindling environmental resources, according to Australian research recently published in Science. 'The current...

Local seed not the best for revegetation.(Brief article)
February 1, 2009... Successful revegetation of native flora lies in sourcing genetically diverse seed, not necessarily relying on seed sourced from remnant local native vegetation, according to a recent study. 'It has been presumed that local seed is adapted...

Lessons from Cyclone Larry.(Progress)
February 1, 2009... Nearly three years after Cyclone Larry cut a swathe through the town of Innisfail and the tropical rainforests of Far North Queensland, the landscape is recovering. But what lessons have been learnt for future management? Severe Tropical...

Guardians of the electric reef: in Bali's idyllic north-west corner, a unique community-driven marine conservation project is using electricity to rapidly regrow damaged coral reef and restore local livelihoods. Might this technology and its profound success be a route to helping save the Earth's vital coral gardens?
February 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] At Pemuteran, five hours driving northwest of Denpasar's action, the silhouettes of lava's massive volcanoes set the dramatic backdrop to a proud fishing community, its traditionally painted luggers pulled up on the...

The dingo's role revitalised.(Progress)
February 1, 2009... The dingo has had a bad rap in Australia, but new research on its benefits for native ecosystems may give the dingo something to howl about. Ninian Stewart-Moore and his wife, Ann, run Dunluce, a 46 500 hectare sheep and cattle station in...

Our options for global C[O.sub.2] drawdown: if rates of global C[O.sub.2] emissions continue to climb, ways to rapidly withdraw the gas from the atmosphere may be needed. Do we have them?(FOCUS)
February 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Despite plans and initiatives to reduce the amount of carbon dioxide being pumped into Earth's atmosphere, C[O.sub.2] emissions actually increased by 3 per cent each year from 2000 to 2007, a finding that shocked...

Golden nectar gone green: last year was the year of the 'green' beer. Not the St Patrick's Day green, but the environmentally friendly, quench-your-conscience-while-you-quench-your-thirst kind of green. Wendy Pyper checked to see which earn their colours.
February 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Establishing a lead in the niche market for green beer were two of Australia's major beer producers, Lion Nathan and Foster's, who released the first Australian Government Greenhouse...

Getting street smart.(Profile)
February 1, 2009... A growing suburban conservation movement is rolling out across Australia, nurturing local community groups who are working to live sustainably and to save their particular patches of natural assets. That ecological sustainability needs to...

Protection not working for PNG's forests: Papua New Guinea's forests are not as pristine as previously thought and if current rates of destruction continue, by 2020 their area will be reduced by half, according to a recent analysis of 30 years' aerial and satellite imagery of the region. Disturbingly, much of the damage appears due to unsustainable practices by local communities, sometimes inside nominally protected areas.(Cover story)
February 1, 2009... Papua New Guinea (PNG) is one of the world's most forested countries. In 2002, 33 million hectares--71 per cent--of the country was covered in forests, ranging from rainforest to swamp forest, evergreen forest and mangroves. Over the last...

Drinking to success--wine for wetlands.(Banrock Station's aid to environmental protection)
February 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] If the adage 'you are what you eat--and drink' applies to wine, then the value that one wine brand places on conservation can help you bring visible benefits to the environment with every sip. Banrock Station...

Tracking bigger wave action.(Progress)
February 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Considering Australia is an island continent with a largely coastal population, little attention has so far been paid to how ocean and wave behaviour influenced by shifting and more intense storm systems under...

New tactics for the camel plague.(Progress)
February 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Camels have no Dreaming, say Aboriginal people; they don't belong in country. But more than a million camels roam through much of central Australia, and next year there will be 80 000 more as the population doubles...

Sustainability assessment: accounting for the triple bottom line.(Definition of Sustainability--8)
February 1, 2009... Sustainable development requires a broader approach to policy and new criteria to measure 'progress'. But how do you weigh up the economic value of relevant ecosystem goods and services against their environmental value, or the 'public good',...

Software for sharper estimates of carbon sinks.(CLIMATE CHANGE BULLETIN)(Brief article)
February 1, 2009... CSIRO recently licensed forest growth prediction software to CO2 Australia--manager of Australia's largest dedicated forest carbon sink operation--for more accurate estimates of carbon sequestration rates. The software package, CABALA,...

New satellite for precision mapping of C[O.sub.2].(CLIMATE CHANGE BULLETIN)(Brief article)
February 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] At the time of publication, NASA was due to launch an Orbiting Carbon Observatory (OCO), designed to accurately measure concentrations of C[O.sub.2] in the lower atmosphere so scientists can more reliably determine...

Carbon tax not trading, scientist advises Obama.(CLIMATE CHANGE BULLETIN)
February 1, 2009... High-profile US climate scientist, NASA's Dr James Hansen, wrote an open letter to Barack Obama prior to his inauguration calling for stronger action on climate change. Among other issues, Dr Hansen questioned the effectiveness of carbon...

Ten years of serving up sustainability on the streets.(Sustainable Living Festival )
February 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The annual Sustainable Living Festival is probably the only place in Australia where you'll find the Reverend Tim Costello rubbing shoulders with sustainable clothing fashionistas, or singer Paul Kelly on the same...

Celebrating river champions around the world.(River Journey)(Book review)
February 1, 2009... River Journey International Riverfoundation, Australia 2008, Hardback ISBN: 9780980554601--AU$39.95 + postage http://www.riverfoundstion.org.au [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] 'Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful...

Water: commodity or human right?(FLOW: For the Love of Water)(Video recording review)
February 1, 2009... FLOW: For the Love of Water DVD inc. film (84 min.) plus special features Australian distributor: Ovation Shop www.ovationshop.com.au/browse/details.asp?ProdID=126032 AU$29.95 + $3.50 postage [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] ...

Tech insight to Tasmania's roadkill hotspots.(Research)
February 1, 2009... Driving past an animal carcass on the road is a stark reminder of the impact humans have on the environment. Concern for wildlife deaths on our roads is high among many Australians, but what can we do to reduce this problem? In Tasmania,...

Seeing northern rivers through Indigenous eyes.(Research)
February 1, 2009... Through a new study set to transform the way catchments are managed, researchers are tapping into Indigenous knowledge to document the value of northern tropical rivers, estuaries and billabongs to traditional communities. Indigenous...

Events calendar.(Brief article)(Calendar)
February 1, 2009... 6th Australian Conference on Life Cycle Assessment Melbourne, 16-19 February www.conference.alcas.asn.au/ 29th Symposium on Sea Turtle Biology & Conservation Brisbane, 17-19 February www.turtlesbrisbane2009.org/ NSW &...