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| October 10, 2013 |
 Forests most likely to continue shrinking Guelph, Canada (SPX) Oct 11, 2013 - Forest cover around the world will continue a slow shrinking before stabilizing at a lower level, according to a new study from the University of Guelph. Researchers analyzed forest trends from around the world and developed a mathematical model to show future land use changes. They found the most likely model shows forests will decline from 30 per cent of Earth's land mass today to 22 per ... more |  |
 Terrestrial ecosystems at risk of major shifts as temperatures increase Brussels, Belgium (SPX) Oct 11, 2013 - Over 80% of the world's ice-free land is at risk of profound ecosystem transformation by 2100, a new study reveals. "Essentially, we would be leaving the world as we know it," says Sebastian Ostberg of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, Germany. Ostberg and collaborators studied the critical impacts of climate change on landscapes and have now published their results in Earth Sys ... more |  |
 McGill discovery should save wheat farmers millions of dollars Montreal, Canada (SPX) Oct 11, 2013 - The global wheat industry sometimes loses as much as $1 billion a year because prolonged rainfall and high humidity contribute to grains germinating before they are fully mature. The result is both a lower yield of wheat and grains of inferior quality. This phenomenon, known as pre-harvest sprouting or PHS, has such important economic repercussions for farmers around the world that scienti ... more |  |
WCS reduces fish bycatch with escape gaps in Africa Nairobi, Kenya (SPX) Oct 11, 2013 - Scientists from the Wildlife Conservation Society and the Kenyan Marine and Fisheries Research Institute have achieved a milestone in Africa: they've helped build a better fish trap, one that keeps valuable fish in while letting undersized juvenile fish and non-target species out. By modifying conventional African basket traps with escape gaps, the marine researchers have proven that the n ... more |  |
 More than 500 million people might face increasing water scarcity Potsdam, Germany (SPX) Oct 11, 2013 - This is shown by complementary studies now published by scientists of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK). "We managed to quantify a number of crucial impacts of climate change on the global land area," says Dieter Gerten, lead-author of one of the studies. Mean global warming of 2 degrees, the target set by the international community, is projected to expose an additio ... more |  |
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Historic trends predict future global reforestation unlikely London, UK (SPX) Oct 11, 2013 - Feeding a growing global population while also slowing or reversing global deforestation may only be possible if agricultural yields rise and/or per capita food consumption declines over the next century, according to historic global food consumption and land use trends. Published in the open-access journal PLOS ONE by Chris Pagnutti, Chris Bauch, and Madhur Anand from the University of Gu ... more |  |
Study in Nature reveals urgent new time frame for climate change Hononlulu HI (SPX) Oct 11, 2013 - Ecological and societal disruptions by modern climate change are critically determined by the time frame over which climates shift. Camilo Mora and colleagues in the College of Social Sciences' Department of Geography at the University of Hawaii, Manoa have developed one such time frame. The study, entitled "The projected timing of climate departure from recent variability," will be publis ... more |  |
 Longer life for humans linked to further loss of endangered species Davis CA (SPX) Oct 11, 2013 - As human life expectancy increases, so does the percentage of invasive and endangered birds and mammals, according to a new study by the University of California, Davis. The study, published in the September issue of Ecology and Society, examined a combination of 15 social and ecological variables - from tourism and per capita gross domestic product to water stress and political stability ... more |  |
New potential for nutrient-rich prairie fruits Saskatoon, Canada (SPX) Oct 11, 2013 - Researchers working at the University of Saskatchewan have discovered new potential in prairie fruits, in particular, buffaloberry, chokecherry and sea buckthorn, according to a new study published in the Canadian Journal of Plant Science. Findings showed that these fruits were nutrient-rich and that the potential food value is high. This is good news for fruit growers in Saskatchewan as t ... more |  |
 Ants more closely related to bees than to most wasps Davis CA (SPX) Oct 11, 2013 - Ants and bees are surprisingly more genetically related to each other than they are to social wasps such as yellow jackets and paper wasps, a team of University of California, Davis, scientists has discovered. The groundbreaking research is available online and will be published Oct. 21 in the print version of the journal Current Biology. Using state-of-the-art genome sequencing and bioinf ... more |  |
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 Mongolia's 'eco-Nazis' target foreign miners Ulan Bator (AFP) Oct 10, 2013 - A silver swastika hanging around his neck, Boldbaatar Gombodorj points out his targets on a map of Mongolia like a World War II commander: little flags representing foreign mining firms that he and fellow "eco-Nazis" accuse of destroying their country. Mongolia's mining boom has brought the vast, sparsely populated country immense wealth but also inequality and ecological damage, and now fri ... more |  |
Minamata mercury treaty signed at UN conference Tokyo (AFP) Oct 10, 2013 - Delegates from some 140 countries and territories Thursday signed a United Nations treaty to control mercury near the site of Japan's worst industrial poisoning, after Tokyo pledged $2 billion to help poorer nations combat pollution. The delegates gathered in Minamata city to sign the world's first legally binding treaty on the highly toxic metal. The Minamata Convention on Mercury is na ... more |  |
 Industry alarm over worsening Thai floods Kabin Buri, Thailand (AFP) Oct 10, 2013 - Soldiers plucked stranded homeowners from chest-deep water and floods threatened major manufacturing plants in central Thailand as international firms raised alarm over authorities' ability to handle the inundations. Heavy rains have swept the kingdom in recent days, with the worst of the flooding concentrated in central and eastern provinces where international factories have been waterlo ... more |  |
Minamata: The dark side of Japan's industrialisation Tokyo (AFP) Oct 10, 2013 - Minamata was the site of Japan's worst ever industrial poisoning and is regarded as the dark side of Japan's rapid modernisation during the 20th Century. For decades, a synthetic resin factory run by chemical company Chisso Corp had been dumping methylmercury into the bay of the town on southwestern Kyushu island, poisoning the marine habitat. The methylmercury accumulated in shellfish a ... more |  |
 Mexican officials won't meet Dalai Lama: Tibetan group Mexico City (AFP) Oct 10, 2013 - Mexico leader Enrique Pena Nieto has no plans to meet the Dalai Lama when the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader begins a tour of the country on Friday. It is the first time in four visits that no representative of Mexico's government will meet with the Dalai Lama as the country aims to boost ties with China. "The President of Mexico (Enrique Pena Nieto) does not intend to meet the Dalai La ... more |  |
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 Brazil to start work on new Antarctic base next year Rio De Janeiro (AFP) Oct 10, 2013 - Brazil said Thursday it will start work early next year on a new Antarctic base to replace the one gutted by a 2012 fire. The new station would be modern, newer and built with more resistant material, Navy Admiral Julio Soares de Moura told reporters as he unveiled the $54 million project. Two military personnel died when a blaze ripped through the Comandante Ferraz base in Admiralty Bay ... more |  |
Asia's changing food needs mean export opportunities Canberra, Australia (UPI) Oct 10, 2013 - Asia represents a huge potential for food exports, particularly from Australia, a report indicates. In its study "'What Asia Wants: Long-term food consumption trends in Asia" released Thursday, the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences cites the region's rapid economic growth, population increase and urbanization as major factors contributing to fundament ... more |  |
 Merkel, Greens to sound out potential coalition Berlin (AFP) Oct 10, 2013 - German Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservatives will Thursday meet the Greens party for initial coalition talks, sounding out an alliance that is seen as unlikely but not impossible. The exploratory talks with the left-leaning ecologist party are part of Merkel's hunt for a governing partner after her conservatives won September 22 elections but fell short of a ruling majority. Merkel's ... more |  |
Google Street View is new arm against alien species Paris (AFP) Oct 10, 2013 - Google Street View can be a useful weapon in the costly and time-consuming fight against invasive species, French biologists said on Thursday. A team at France's French National Agency for Agricultural Research (INRA) used the online tool, which provides 360-degree images of streets filmed by specially-fitted cars, to gauge the spread of a tree-killing insect. The pine processionary moth ... more |  |
US report says little progress on China rights Washington (AFP) Oct 10, 2013 - A US government commission said Thursday that China's human rights record has not improved under the country's new leadership and raised concerns on issues from minority rights to forced abortion. In an annual report, the Congressional-Executive Commission on China cited initial "potentially hopeful signs" from the new leadership, which took power in March, but said it soon became clear it w ... more |  |
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