Studies of Indonesian Tuna Fisheries [2]

CHANGES IN YELLOWFIN ABUNDANCE IN THE GULF OF TOMINI AND NORTH SULAWESI

C.P. Mathews, D. Monintja, Nurzali Naamin

ABSTRACT

Yellowfin tuna are taken on four Tomini Gulf (North Sulawesi) fishing grounds around "rakit"(small shallow-water fish aggregating devices) targeted towards scads and small yellowfin and around "rumpon" (larger deep-water fish aggregating devices) targeted towards medium-sized yellowfin. In Gorontalo, yellowfin landings increased from 1988 to a peak of more than 1,500 mt in 1990; the landings then declined steadily until 1995. Landings in Tilamuta, Paguat and Marisa fluctuated, but tended to peak between 100 and 200 mt around 1990. The CPUE at Gorontalo peaked in 1990 and fell markedly from 1990 onwards in all four fisheries; in 1995 the CPUE fell to about 30% of 1990 level in Gorontalo and to less than 10% of the 1990 levels at Tilamuta, Paguat, and Marisa. The sharp decline in CPUEs coincided with the extension of intensive offshore fishing by tuna longliners (mostly from Taiwan) and with the introduction of large-scale offshore industrial purse seining (which targets skipjack but also takes substantial amounts of yellowfin) by Philippine boats around North Sulawesi in 1990. The marked decline in yellowfin abundance suggests that offshore fishing impacted the Tomini Gulf fisheries.(fulltext ..>>)

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Environmental Changes on the Coasts of Indonesia [2]

THE CHANGING COASTLINES OF INDONESIA


Eric C. F. Bird and Otto S. R. Ongkosongo

Although there has been geomorphological research on several parts of the Indonesian coastline, the coastal features of Indonesia have not Yet been well documented. The following account-based on studies of maps and charts, air photographs (including satellite photographs), reviews of the published literature, and our own traverses during recent years-is a necessary basis for dealing with environmental changes on the coasts of Indonesia. Coastal features will be described in a counter-clockwise sequence around Sumatra, Java, Kalimantan, Sulawesi, Bali and the eastern islands, and Irian Jaya. Inevitably, the account is more detailed for the coasts of Java and Sumatra, which are better mapped and have been more thoroughly documented than other parts of Indonesia. In the course of description, reference is made to evidence of changes that have taken place, or are still in progress.

Measurements of shoreline advance or retreat have been recorded by various authors, summarized and tabulated by Tjia et al. (1968). Particular attention has been given to changes on deltaic coasts, especially in northern Java (e.g, Hollerwoger 1964), but there is very little information on rates of recession of cliffed coasts. Measurements are generally reported in terms of linear advance or retreat at selected localities, either over stated periods of time or as annual averages, but these can be misleading because of lateral variations along the coast and because of fluctuations in the extent of change from year to year.

Our preference is for areal measurements of land gained or lost or, better still, sequential maps showing the patterns of coastal change over specified periods. We have collected and collated sequential maps of selected sites and brought them up-to-date where possible.

Coastal changes can be measured with reference to the alignments of earlier shoreline features, such as beach ridges or old cliff lines stranded inland behind coastal plains. In Sumatra, beach ridges are found up to 150 kilometres inland. The longest time scale of practical value is the past 6,000 years, the period since the Holocene marine transgression brought the sea up to its present level. Radiocarbon dating can establish the age of shoreline features that developed within this period, and changes during the past few centuries can be traced from historical evidence on maps and nautical charts of various dates.

These have become increasingly reliable over the past century, and can be supplemented by outlines shown on air photographs taken at various times since 1940. Some sectors have shown a consistent advance, and others a consistent retreat; some have alternated. A shoreline sector should only be termed "advancing" if there is evidence of continuing gains by deposition and/or emergence, and "retreating" if erosion and/or submergence are still demonstrably in progress.

Coastal changes may be natural, or they may be due, at least in part, to the direct or indirect effects of Man's activities in the coastal zone and in the hinterland. Direct effects include the building of sea walls, groynes, and breakwaters, the advancement of the shoreline artificially by land reclamation, and the removal of beach material or coral from the coastline. Indirect effects include changes in water and sediment yield from river systems following the clearance of vegetation or a modification of land use within the catchments, or the construction of dams to impound reservoirs that intercept some of the sediment flow. There are many examples of such man-induced changes on the coasts of Indonesia.

Reference will also be made to ecological changes that accompany gains or losses of coastal terrain, and to some associated features that result from man's responses to changes in the coastal environment. (full text)

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Studies of Indonesian Tuna Fisheries [1]

INTERACTIONS BETWEEN COASTAL AND OFFSHORE TUNA FISHERIES
IN MANADO AND BITUNG, NORTH SULAWESI

Nurzali Naamin, C.P. Mathews, D. Monintja


ABSTRACT

Since 1990 an important offshore industrial tuna fishery has been established in northern Indonesian waters. This fishery is theoretically confined to the EEZ, but in practice it occupies large areas of territorial and archipelagic waters. Fishing is carried out by "sets" or groups of boats based on a single purse seiner, supported by carrier and smaller patrol boats. These groups fish around rumpon (FADs) deployed in waters from 200-4,000 m deep, and take substantial catches, most of which is landed directly into General Santos City and other southern Philippine ports. The offshore fishery lands more than 50,00 mt per year from waters around North Sulawesi and northern Irian Jaya. Coastal fishing is carried out for skipjack by two kinds of small pole-and-line vessels ("funai": 5-15 GT; "huhate": 20-30 GT) in North Sulawesi. The coastal fishery landed less than 9,000 mt of skipjack in 1989, the last year before large scale offshore fishing commenced. Data for Manado and Bitung (North Sulawesi) were analysed to determine the effects of the offshore fishery on the skipjack and yellowfin fisheries based in these cities. Skipjack CPUE fell in Manado (from 50-70 mt/boat/year in 1980 to less than 20 mt/boat/year in 1992) and Bitung (from more than 100 mt/boat/year in 1980 to about 60 mt/boat/year in 1990). Effort on skipjack in Bitung rose slowly from approximately 40 boats in 1986 to more than 100 boats in 1991, and then fell to under 35 boats in 1995; the decline was probably due to competition with the industrial fishery. Industrial CPUE fell from 0.69 mt of tuna/GT of effort/year in 1993 to 0.37 mt/GT in 1995. Available data are insufficient for a complete analysis of offshore-onshore tuna fishery interactions. Nevertheless it is likely that industrial, offshore tuna fishing impacted the coastal fisheries in Manado and Bitung by reducing the amount of skipjack and yellowfin available to the coastal fishery.(full text)

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Environmental Changes on the Coasts of Indonesia [1]

THE INDONESIAN COASTAL ENVIRONMENT

Eric C. F. Bird and Otto S. R. Ongkosongo

Indonesia consists of about 13,700 islands, with an intricate coastline whose length has been estimated as just over 60,000 kilometres by Soegiarto (1976). The islands show considerable diversity of coastal features, related partly to contrasts in the geology and geomorphology of the hinterland and the bordering sea floors, and partly to variations in adjacent marine environments. In terms of global tectonics the Indonesian archipelago occupies the collision zone between the Indo-Australian, Pacific, and Eurasian plates. It is a region of continuing instability, marked by frequent earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. Its mountain ranges are areas of Cainozoic uplift, augmented by large volcanic constructions, and its bordering seas are underlain by unstable shelf areas, especially towards the Java Trench, the subduction zone that lies to the south of the Indonesian island-arc.

Indonesian coastlines show the effects of past and present tectonic instability, volcanic eruptions, and changes of sea level. There have been upward and downward movements of the land, often accompanied by tilting or faulting; outpourings of volcanic lava and ash have influenced coastal features both directly and indirectly; and vertical movements of sea level have resulted in complicated sequences of emergence and submergence of island coastlines. Many characteristics of Indonesian coastal landforms are related to their development under tropical -especially humid tropical-conditions, and it will be useful first to consider these features briefly.

Climate

Although much of Indonesia lies within the humid tropical zone, some parts have sub-humid and even semi-arid climates. Climatic characteristics are determined largely by the position of the Intertropical Convergence zone (ITC), a zone of unstable air and heavy rainfall which migrates north and south over Indonesia, crossing the equator in May and November each year, and reaching latitudes of about 15 south in January. Indonesian climatic stations generally show a more pronounced wet season when the Intertropical Zone of Convergence is to the south, when westerly winds prevail; the dry season occurring after it migrates away to the north, and winds move around to the south-east. Generally the southern part of the archipelago has a smaller mean annual rainfall than the rest of the country, partly because of a reduction in the water content of westerly winds as air masses move to the east, and partly because of the influence of drier air brought in from the Australian region by winds from the southeast during the dry season. In additon, afternoon showers caused by local intensive heating are common, and may occur even in the dry season. The pattern of rainfall is influenced by the orographic factor, notably where moist air is forced upwards as it moves eastwards across mountain ranges, particularly in Sumatra, Java, and Irian Jaya. The wettest coastal areas are thus found to the west of the ranges, and the relatively dry areas in the "rain shadows" to the east (Sukanto 1969).

Winds are generally light to moderate, the most vigorous being the south-easterlies in the dry season. The cyclones of northern Australia and the typhoons of the South China Sea do not reach Indonesia, although waves generated by these disturbances are occasionally transmitted into Indonesian coastal waters.

In terms of Koppen's classification, most Indonesian coastal regions are in Category A, with mean temperatures in the coolest month of at least 18°C., but a few sectors have a sufficiently long and dry winter season to be placed in the semi-arid category BS. Truly humid tropical coasts (Af), with a mean rainfall of at least 60 millimetres in the driest month, are extensive around Sumatra and Kalimantan, in southern Java, much of Sulawesi, and the islands to the east. They give place to monsoonal lam) climates, with a short dry season compensated by a large annual rainfall, along the north coast of Java (Jakarta, Semarang, Bangkalan) and in several minor sectors around Sulawesi, including Ujung Pandang; and to somewhat drier savanna (Aw) climates in the rain shadow areas of northeastern Java (Surabaya, Pasuran) and the islands to the east, and around Timor (Dill, Kupang), which is much influenced by dry air masses arriving from Australia. Sectors dry enough to warrant semiarid (BS) classification are limited, but occur on the north coasts of Lombok and Sumba. Much more information from coastal stations is necessary before climatic sectors around the Indonesian archipelago can be delimited accurately.

The interior uplands record substantially higher rainfall than most coastal regions, so that river systems carry a very large runoff from the high hinterlands.

General Geomorphology

Landscapes in humid tropical environments are subject to the intense chemical and associated biological weathering of rock formations that proceeds under perennially warm and wet conditions. This has led to the formation of deep mantles of decomposed rock material, mainly silt and clay, and in places these are up to 30 metres thick. Away from coastal cliff exposures, natural rock outcrops are rare: they are found locally on resistant sandstones, some limestones, and recently formed lava flows.

The natural vegetation cover is tropical rain forest, with a dense canopy and a thick organic litter that protects the ground from the direct erosive effects of heavy rainfall. A subsurface network of roots also binds and stabilizes the upper part of the weathered mantle. This luxuriant vegetation tends to hold the weathered mantle in place, but on steep slopes the rapid runoff that occurs during heavy rain may wash away surface material even where the vegetation is dense, and landslides and mudflows frequently scar the forested hillsides.

Fluvial Sediments

Runoff is thus typically laden with fine-grained sediment, silt and clay produced by weathering, but in steep areas the streams incise their valleys and derive sand, or even gravel, from the less-weathered underlying rock formations. Coarser sediment is also derived from the lava and ash produced by volcanic eruptions. On steep volcanic slopes lahars are formed, when torrential rainfall saturates and mobilizes masses of pyroclastic debris, which flow down into the valleys. Streams also derive sand and gravel when previously constructed volcanic structures are dissected by runoff.

The combination of steep elevated hinterlands of deeply weathered rock, recurrently active volcanoes, and frequent heavy rainfall produces large river systems that carry substantial quantities of sediment down to the coast. Deposition of this material has built extensive deltas and broad coastal plains, especially in Java, Sumatra, Kalimantan, and Irian Jaya. The lithology of outcrops within each catchment determines the nature of the weathered mantles and strongly influences the composition of sediment loads carried downstream by the rivers. As Meijerink (19771 has shown, the sediment volumes per square kilometre per year from catchments dominated by sedimentary formations are much greater than those from volcanic catchments (Table 11. Where sandy material is carried down to the coast it is reworked by waves and deposited as beach formations along shorelines adjacent to river mouths: the most extensive of these are on the south coast of Java. Silts and clays are incorporated in tidal mudflats and coastal swamps, and deposited in lowlyingareas on and around river deltas. (full text)

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Data Source Identification on Indonesian Coastal Cities

DATA SOURCE IDENTIFICATION ON INDONESIAN COASTAL CITIES FOR QUANTITATIVE EVALUATION OF GLOBAL WARMING STUDY

Puthut Samyahardja

Research Institute For Settlements Technology Ministry of Settlement and Regional Infrastructure Jalan Panyaungan Cileunyi Wetan, Bandung, 40393 PO BOX : 812 Bandung, 40008 INDONESIA E-mail : puthut@indo.net.id, kapuskim@bdg.centrin.net.id


ABSTRACT

As an archipelago area, Indonesia has numbers of cities identified as coastal areas. It is the fact that some cities, especially in Java Island, have more developed than cities in other areas. However, since the administration of data base system is similar for the cities, the availability has slight different. The difficulties and processes of data collection are not comparable for each data sources. A special data arrangement is needed for getting the suitable information. Secondary data collection techniques will be presented for the purpose of coastal cities studies in Indonesia.

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Coastal Management in Indonesia

DECENTRALIZED COASTAL ZONE MANAGEMENT IN MALAYSIA AND INDONESIA: A COMPARATIVE PERSPECTIVE

Hendra Yusran Siry

Agency for Marine and Fisheries Research (AMFR) Ministry of
Marine Affairs and Fisheries (MMAF) Jakarta, Indonesia

Transferring decision-making process from central to local government and enhancing the role of local communities in managing coastal zones is an increasing commitment by governments in Southeast Asia. This article analyzes decentralized coastal zone management in two neighboring countries, Malaysia and Indonesia. The Federal system in Malaysia is argued to be able to influence more decentralized coastal zone management and to promote community-based management approaches. Meanwhile, the large diversity of coastal resources and communities combined with a still as yet tested decentralization policy in Indonesia is argued to bring more challenges in implementing the decentralization and community-based approaches in coastal zones.

The lessons learned in this study provide insight in how far decentralized coastal zone management has taken place in Malaysia and Indonesia. The significant differences in the pattern of coastal zone management in these two countries are discussed in detail.

This study recognizes that co-management and community-based approaches can be appropriate in dealing with coastal zone management. This comparative perspective is important to the development of a bigger picture of sustainable coastal zone management processes and cross-regional knowledge-sharing in Southeast Asia.

Keywords coastal, co-management, community-based, decentralization, Indonesia, Malaysia

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Coral Reef Death ..

CORAL REEF DEATH LINKED TO TROPICAL
WILDFIRES IN INDONESIA DURING THE 1997
INDIAN OCEAN DIPOLE

N.J. Abram (1), M.K. Gagan (1), J. Chappell (1),
M.T. McCulloch (1), W.S. Hantoro (2)

The coral reefs of the Mentawai Islands, Indonesia, experienced catastrophic mortality of close to 100% of the coral and the fish during the 1997 Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) upwelling event. The link between elevated sea surface temperatures (SST) and coral death is now well known, however the unanticipated Mentawai reef mortality coincided with anomalously cool SSTs and a giant red tide. Ocean productivity in the Indonesian region is generally proportional to the strength of upwelling; therefore the severity of the 1997 Mentawai reef death raises the question of whether the magnitude of the IOD upwelling and red tide during 1997 was unprecedented. Here we examine the tolerance of Mentawai corals to IOD upwelling events over the past 6,300 years using coral skeletal growth and palaeothermometry. High-resolution coral Sr/Ca and 18O reconstructions of SST reveal pre-historic IOD cold anomalies of up to 5.8C.

The magnitudes of these events exceed the strong 1997 IOD upwelling by as much as 1.9C, yet we find no evidence of past coral mortality. From these results it seems that the intensity of the 1997 Mentawai red tide was much greater than expected based on the magnitude of IOD upwelling alone. This implies that an additional source of nutrients must have supported the catastrophic red tide and we propose that these nutrients were provided by the 1997 Indonesian wildfires. These fires were the worst in south-east Asian history and were the combined results of land clearing, past forest disturbance and intense drought driven by the 1997 El Niño-Southern Oscillation and Indian Ocean Dipole events. Using mass balance calculations we show that ironfertilisation of the upwelled nutrient-enriched water by atmospheric fallout from the 1997 wildfires was sufficient to produce the extraordinary red tide, ultimately leading to the unprecedented death of the Mentawai reefs. These findings highlight the escalating phenomenon of tropical wildfire as a potential new threat to coastal marine ecosystems.

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(1) Research School of Earth Sciences, The Australian National University, Canberra ACT 0200, Australia, (2) Research and Development Center for Geotechnology, Indonesian Institute of Sciences, Bandung 40135, Indonesia.

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The Return of EL Niño

Will Warm Water Wreak Havoc When Winds Won’t Blow?

Well, it looks like the next El Niño is coming. Right now many scientists are observing warming over the Tropical Pacific, and this has led to predictions of the next El Niño. El Niño is known to scientists as the El Niño-Southern Oscillation, or ENSO, and is a complicated chain of events that begins in the Pacific Ocean and then spreads to affect the weather around the entire world. What is the El-Niño Southern Oscillation, you ask? The El-Niño Southern Oscillation is the result of a cyclic warming and cooling of the surface ocean of the central and eastern Pacific.

In normal, non-El Niño conditions the central and eastern Pacific region of the ocean is normally colder than its equatorial location would suggest. This condition exists because of the influence of trade winds blowing to the west, a cold ocean current flowing up the coast of Chile, and upwelling of cold deep water off the coast of Peru. The trade winds blow toward the west across the tropical Pacific and these winds pile up warm surface water in the west Pacific. The sea-surface temperatures are much colder near South America because of an upwelling of cold water from deeper levels. This cold water is extremely nutrient rich, leading to high levels of primary productivity, a rich ecosystem, and major fisheries off the coast of Peru.

During an El Niño event, the trade winds weaken in the central and western Pacific for unknown reasons. This weakening causes western Pacific waters to cool, and a warming in the eastern Pacific. The warm, still surface waters in the east Pacific reduce the efficiency of the cold nutrient-rich upwelling, which results in an even larger increase in sea surface temperatures and a dramatic decline in productivity that severely impacts marine life and commercial fisheries in this area. The warming waters in the east Pacific cause huge thunderstorms and floods in the Peru area, while the cooler water temperatures in the west Pacific cause problems such as droughts in Indonesia and Australia.

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The Indonesian Throughflow .....

The Indonesian Throughflow and the Global Climate System

Niklas Schneider

Climate Research Division, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California,
San Diego, La Jolla, California

ABSTRACT

The role of the Indonesian Throughflow in the global climate system is investigated with a coupled ocean–atmosphere model by contrasting simulations with realistic throughflow and closed Indonesian passages.

The Indonesian Throughflow affects the oceanic circulation and thermocline depth around Australia and in the Indian Ocean as described in previous studies and explained by Sverdrup transports. An open throughflow thereby increases surface temperatures in the eastern Indian ocean, reduces temperatures in the equatorial Pacific, and shifts the warm pool and centers of deep convection in the atmosphere to the west. This control on sea surface temperature and deep convection affects atmospheric pressure in the entire Tropics and, via atmospheric teleconnections, in the midlatitudes. As a result, surface wind stress in the entire Tropics changes and meridional and zonal gradients of the tropical thermocline and associated currents increase in the Pacific and decrease in the Indian Ocean. The response includes an acceleration of the equatorial undercurrent in the Pacific, and a deceleration in the Indian Ocean. Thus the Indonesian Throughflow exerts significant control over the global climate in general and the tropical climate in particular.

Changes of surface fluxes in the Pacific warm pool region are consistent with the notion that shading by clouds, rather than increases of evaporation, limit highest surface temperatures in the open ocean of the western Pacific. In the marginal seas of the Pacific and in the Indian Ocean no such relationship is found. The feedback of the throughflow transport and its wind forcing is negative and suggests that this interplay cannot excite growing solution or lead to self-sustained oscillations of the ocean–atmosphere system. (full text)

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The Geostrophic Transport ....

Geostrophic transport of the Pacific-Indian Oceans throughflow : Pacific low-latitude western boundary currents and the Indonesian Throughflow

FIEUX M. (1) ; MOLCARD R. (1) ; ILAHUDE A. G.

Laboratoire d'Océanographie Dynamique et de Climatologie, CNRS/ORSTOM/UPMC,
Paris, FRANCE

Abstract

For the dynamic balance of the world ocean circulation, the flow through the Indonesian archipelago needs to be quantified. Part of the Java Australia Dynamic Experiment program was to occupy hydrographic sections during the two opposite seasons. Here we present and discuss the February 1992 geostrophic estimate of the throughflow. The appearance of the east flowing Java Current, flowing in the 80 km off the Indonesian coast, led to a net total transport of a few 106 m3 s-1 eastward, opposite to the expected sense of net transport. Uncertainty in this transport, estimated from the repeated casts, reaches 9 106 m3 s-1. This large error could be attributable to internal wave motions. Estimates of the transport from the conductivity-temperature-depth data and from the temperature profile associated to the Levitus [1982] data set have been compared. Comparison with August 1989 results shows that the main westward current, corresponding to the South Equatorial Current, is located north of the hydrological front in both seasons. The largest transport variation between the two cruises is located along the Indonesian coast, with the reversal of the Java Current. The mesoscale current variability is enhanced in the southern part of the section in February 1992. These transport evaluations, made in the two opposite seasons and in two different years, 18 ± 7 106 m s-1 westward in August 1989 and 2.6 ± 9 106 m3 s-1 eastward in February 1992, give an extreme range of the net throughflow. (source ..>>)

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Raja Ampat Islands Contain World's Richest Coral Reefs

Some of the most experienced marine scientists tropical, led by The Nature Conservancy, conducted a three-week expedition to the Indonesian islands of Raja Ampat, where they confirmed that the region contains the richest coral reefs the world.

The Raja Ampat islands west of Sorong, on the northwestern tip of the island of New Guinea in the province of Papua in Indonesia. The four main islands - Waigeo, Batanta, Salawati and Misool - and their thousands of satellite islands cover an area of some 23,630 square kilometers (61200 square kilometers).


Scientists have found that the number of reef fish and coral species in the region is even greater than expected. At least 465 species of coral have been recorded, with at least 20 species to defy identification and study in others. This brings the total confirmed corals of the Raja Ampat islands to 505 species, an incredible 64% of all species of coral in the world (for the most recent estimates of numbers, see our report of the investigation in 2006 on the ).

During this trip, 828 species of fish have been recorded, adding an additional 95 (including four new to Indonesia) and increasing the total known to Raja Ampat to 1065 species - among the highest in diversity the world. A new personal record of 284 species of fish on one dive was set by Dr. Gerry Allen Kofiau to the island. When laboratory results on marine samples are completed, scientists expect to find species of fish and corals that are new to science.

"The waters around the Raja Ampat islands teeming with a diversity of corals and fish than anywhere else in the world," said Steve McCormick, president of The Nature Conservancy. "This place is at the heart of the heart of marine biodiversity, and every effort must be made to retain it."

"While we continue to see reports decimated and degraded marine ecosystems and in the west of central Indonesia, the survey clearly demonstrates that it is still a chance to retain important island of high quality and reef ecosystems in Indonesia, "said the conservation of Indonesia Country Director, Dr Ian Dutton. "Conservation is working in partnership with local communities and government, universities and industry partners to protect this wonderful region."

Raja Ampat has become an administrative region or kabupaten, and it is feared that the need to increase local revenue will allow the widespread extraction of natural resources. The results of this study marine and maps will be presented to local communities to raise awareness of the richness of biodiversity that the region has and solicit ideas on how best to keep it. It will help the local government establishes environmentally sensitive development plans, and contribute to the conservation and other conservation organizations to determine the best way to protect this remote tropical paradise.

"The customary ownership of resources and traditions of the region means that some reefs have escaped the ravages common to many other reefs of South-East Asia," said Dr. Rod Salm, director of the conservation of coastal marine conservation in the Asia-Pacific. "It's really an excellent opportunity to develop a conservation program with communities that have a strong personal and historic commitment to manage their resources sustainably."

Scientists have found many Raja Ampat coral reefs to be in good condition despite the rampant destruction reefs often seen in Southeast Asia. Parts of reefs damaged by the blast and cyanide fishing has shown a good recovery, and there was little evidence of the extensive coral bleaching that devastated reefs in many parts of the world following the 1998 El Niño. The fact that coral bleaching resisted confirms their resilience and value as a source of larvae to assist in the recovery of damaged reefs widely throughout Indonesia, Philippines, Papua New Guinea and Micronesia .

The team also noted a virtual absence of sharks during the trip - only three sharks were seen in 500 hours under water. Over fishing has caused a sharp drop in the Raja Ampat population of sharks. Shark fins are highly valued as a soup ingredient in Asia. There are about 200 shark-fishing boats operating in this area, and each is estimated catches of 240 per month. Once the fins are removed, the bodies are left to rot on the reefs. The removal of the ecosystem of predators is only one of the adverse effects of human activities on reefs - The buzz of chain saws, the crash of falling trees, and the bombing and cyanide fishing still widely practiced, and turtles are overexploited for each location they nest.

Ground crews have found many unique habitats in Raja Ampat, especially the broken-bottle limestone karst landscape, and rich mineral soil the northern islands. Around these islands in the extreme habitat has led to high levels of endemism - that diversity is low, most species of plants are found only in this particular habitat. Several potentially new species of plants were discovered, including a new species of flowering plant tropical Psychotria Kawe on the island.

Local communities are very concerned about damage to their environment on the whole, they depend on marine resources for their livelihood. Extractive industries such as logging and commercial fishing threaten to destroy the rich diversity of plant and animal life in these remote islands. Still, researchers on the socio-economic team was told by villagers that they feel powerless to counter the raiders outside resources that are more damage because they are often supported by powerful commercial and government interests.

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Endangered coral reef fish seized in Indonesia

Airport Indonesian authorities have seized 36 humphead wrasse, the third seizure of this endangered fish species in the country this year. Live fish, harvested in Indonesia, were destined for Hong Kong.

"Indonesia remains a major supplier of Hong Kong and other end-use markets, driving the demand for this valuable fish," said TRAFFIC Southeast Asia Regional Director James Compton.

Prisé as a delicacy and served in high-end restaurants, Napoleon may sell for more than U.S. $ 100 per kilogram on the market. Hong Kong is the largest consumer market for this species, although high-end restaurants in Malaysia, Singapore and mainland China are also known to offer servings of fish electric blue.

It is found among the coral reefs across Southeast Asia, Western Pacific and Indian Ocean, the humphead wrasse can reach more than two metres long, weigh up to 190 kg and live more than 30 years. The trade in this case, however, is selective, with smaller sizes people, including many young people preferred full-grown adults because the flesh is considered more tender. Small fish are better suited to the restoration which prefers to serve whole fish. The species is typically traded live.

Indonesia allows an annual catch of 8000 individual Napoleon - none for local consumption, all for export - and the fish harvest is allowed only in specific sectors, particularly in Papua, Maluku, Nusa Tenggara and East West Nusa Tenggara.

"The challenge for Indonesia is to develop a viable strategy for the monitoring of trade and improving law enforcement," Compton said, "otherwise the fishery can not be managed long-term local and national interests. "

Indonesian recently joined representatives from Hong Kong, China, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea and the Philippines to discuss the humphead wrasse trade. Participants at the workshop - co-organized by WWF, TRAFFIC and IUCN - have agreed to develop science-based guidelines for sustainable use of resources of the humphead wrasse, as well as promoting regional cooperation and awareness Increased trade between the fishing industry and consumers.

"Cooperation between countries and fisheries and management authorities in the countries of origin is the key to successful implementation of a CITES listing for the humphead wrasse," said Dr. Yvonne Sadovy of University of Hong Kong and chairman of IUCN Groupers and Wrasses Specialist Group.

The humphead wrasse (Cheilinus undulates) is included in Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). This means that international trade in species is possible only with valid CITES permit. The CITES Appendix II contributes to provide the list and consumer countries to ensure that trade in this species is both legal and sustainable.

At present, Hong Kong has not implemented Appendix II list of Napoleon and, therefore, the species of fish can be legally imported. New legislation, however, would require both import and possession permits in Hong Kong, in addition to the CITES permit to be issued by exporting countries.

"If the species is sustainably managed and exchanges, the situation is win-win," said Sadovy. "Operators can continue their activity, consumers can eat fish, fish populations and can again be in good health for everyone can enjoy."

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El Nino, who are you ...?

When the 1997 Indonesian fires broke out in mid-May of that year, no one took too much notice, as it was the beginning of the dry season. When the monsoons that carried precious rain to douse the flames and for crop growing did not arrive, the fires soon burned out of control into firestorms. The burning was most severe in East Kalimantan, a section of Indonesian part of Borneo, and the island of Sumatra, where an estimated total of 10,000,000 hectares was either totally burned or badly ravaged by the fires. Haze and smoke from the fires spread across Indonesia and Southeast Asia. At its worst the haze spread halfway across the Indian Ocean to the Maldives, north to the Philippines and Thailand, east to Papua New Guinea, and across northern Australia (Appendix #1). The widespread haze caused numerous health problems, affecting approximately 70 million people and causing 20 million of them to become sick. When neighboring countries complained about the deadly haze, President Suharto made a rare public apology, referring to the poisonous haze from the fires as "an act of God."2 The latest estimate of the damages of the fires was about US$4.5 billion, although when added with the value of lost timber and crops, this total skyrocketed to almost $9 billion. As further analyses of the fire's damages are being conducted, this estimate might rise. But most of the costs were probably impossible to calculate, as the damage the fires and resulting haze had on the environment and ecosystem were priceless and irreplaceable. The new Environmental Minister Juwono Sudarsono under the new President B.J. Habibie estimated that it might cost $2 billion to effectively respond to the fires.3

an image of normal ocean temperature

an image of el nino

Global map of: 1) normal ocean temperature, 2) el nino

The normal fires and the haze from it were significantly enhanced by El Nino, a weather phenomenon where the abnormally warm sea surface temperatures cause global weather patterns to change, resulting in abnormal weather effects around the world. In Indonesia, El Nino caused a drought because the monsoon season was pushed back from September to mid-November, and a delayed and shortened monsoon season caused a second drought in Indonesia. Usually undisturbed rain forests are highly resistant to fire because of their moisture, but will burn in extreme droughts. Drought and millions of dead biomass on the forest floor from selective logging made entire forests extremely prone to fire. As a result, instead of the normal flames being doused by the monsoon rains, the flames were left to ignite whole forests into an inferno. In addition, regulated fires set by timber and agribusiness firms were left to burn to clear more land for profit. Taking advantage of the extra months of the dry season, peasants who burned small amounts of land each year for subsistence farming increased their plot to grow more food. When the delayed monsoon rains arrived in Indonesia in November 1997, an estimated 2 million hectares of lush rain forest, brush and grasslands were already decimated in Kalimantan and Sumatra alone, and when the inter-monsoon season began in January, fires were spotted again all across Sumatra and Kalimantan. The same deadly cycle of the 1997 fires arose again, with thick haze from the fires spreading throughout Indonesia, until this second round of conflagrations ended in late April when rains arrived, but Indonesian officials stated that the fires had been expunged because "there was nothing left to burn."4 In fact, El Nino and La Nina were predicted well before they had any effect on Indonesia, but many parties ignored the warning and continued their usual burning of the forest. (source ...>>)

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Ocean Wave Energy

Ocean wave energy is captured directly from surface waves or from pressure fluctuations below the surface.

Waves are caused by the wind blowing over the surface of the ocean. In many areas of the world, the wind blows with enough consistency and force to provide continuous waves. There is tremendous energy in the ocean waves. Wave power devices extract energy directly from the surface motion of ocean waves or from pressure fluctuations below the surface.

Wave power varies considerably in different parts of the world, and wave energy can't be harnessed effectively everywhere. Wave-power rich areas of the world include the western coasts of Scotland, northern Canada, southern Africa, Australia, and the northwestern coasts of the United States.

Ocean Wave Energy Technologies

A variety of technologies have been proposed to capture the energy from waves. Some of the more promising designs are undergoing demonstration testing at commercial scales.

Wave technologies have been designed to be installed in nearshore, offshore, and far offshore locations. The OCS Alternative Energy Programmatic EIS is concerned primarily with offshore and far offshore wave technologies. Offshore systems are situated in deep water, typically of more than 40 meters (131 feet).

While all wave energy technologies are intended to be installed at or near the water's surface,they differ in their orientation to the waves with which they are interacting and in the manner in which they convert the energy of the waves into other energy forms, usually electricity. The following wave technologies have been the target of recent development.

Terminator devices extend perpendicular to the direction of wave travel and capture or reflect the power of the wave. These devices are typically onshore or nearshore; however, floating versions have been designed for offshore applications. The oscillating water column is a form of terminator in which water enters through a subsurface opening into a chamber with air trapped above it. The wave action causes the captured water column to move up and down like a piston to force the air though an opening connected to a turbine.

A point absorber is a floating structure with components that move relative to each other due towave action (e.g., a floating buoy inside a fixed cylinder). The relative motion is used to drive electromechanical or hydraulic energy converters.

1) Rendition of a Wave Farm Made Up of Permanent Magnet Linear Generator Buoys; 2)Point Absorber Wave Energy Farm; 3); Animation of Point Absorber Operation

Attenuators are long multisegment floating structures oriented parallel to the direction of the waves. The differing heights of waves along the length of the device causes flexing where the segments connect, and this flexing is connected to hydraulic pumps or other converters.

Overtopping devices have reservoirs that are filled by incomingwaves o levels above the average surrounding ocean. The water is then released, and gravity causes it to fall back toward the ocean surface. The energy of the falling water is used to turn hydro turbines. Specially built seagoing vessels can also capture the energy of offshore waves. These floating platforms create electricity by funneling waves through internal turbines and then back into the sea.

Environmental Considerations

Potential environmental considerations for the development of wave energy include the following:

# Positive or negative impacts on marine habitat (depending on the nature of additional submerged surfaces, above-water platforms, and changes in the seafloor);

# Toxic releases from leaks or accidental spills of liquids used in those systems with working hydraulic fluids;

# Visual and noise impacts (device-specific, with considerable variability in visible freeboard height and noise generation above and below the water surface);

# Conflict with other sea space users, such as commercial shipping and recreational boating; (source ...>>)

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Mangrove in Australia ...[2]

Mangrove Zones

Different mangrove species have different requirements. Some are more tolerant of salt than others. They have different nutrition needs. The plants are affected by wave energy, soil oxygen levels, and drainage. When a species finds its preferred conditions, it becomes stronger and more plentiful than others. This has led to quite clear zones among mangroves.
The zones run parallel to the shore or to the banks of tidal creeks:

Along the sea side, there is generally an area of grey mangroves, best adapted to a wide range of soil conditions. It is a tough species, and is Australia's most common mangrove due to its ability to tolerate low temperatures and a variety of other intertidal conditions. It is generally the first to start growing on new mud banks, with its distinctive peg roots. The Mangrove apple often grows in this zone too.

The red mangrove, also known as the stilt or spider mangrove, is usually found behind this zone where its long prop roots anchor it in wind and waves.

The next zone is the part that is flooded only sometimes, at times of very high tides. The soil is firmer but saltier because of the irregular flooding: the water evaporates and leaves a coating of salt which does not get diluted until the next flooding. The yellow mangrove species are found in this zone. Conditions make it difficult for other species to survive here, other than saltmarshes or succulent plants.

Further zones can see the grey mangrove again, and in less salty soil there may be a thick forest of the orange mangrove species.

Local conditions dictate what is found on the land side. For example, in tropical areas there may be regular flooding and freshwater swamps with less salt tolerant plants. There may be a zone of paperbark swamps as vegetation merges into rainforest. In areas seasonal rainfall, evaporation could mean increased saltiness, so there may be a saltmarsh.

The richest mangrove communities are found in tropical and sub-tropical areas where the water temperature is over 24ºC in the warmest month, where the annual rainfall is more than 1250mm and high mountains are close to the coast, ensuring rainfall.

Mangroves need protection from high energy waves which erode the shore and prevent seedlings from becoming established.

Salt

Many mangroves stop much of the salt from entering their systems by filtering it out through their roots. Some species can keep out more than 90% of salt in sea water. Others quickly pass the salt out of their systems once it has entered. Their leaves have special salt glands which pass the salt out. You can see and taste the salt coating the leaves. Still others collect the salt in bark or in older leaves that are about to drop. Some mangroves use more than one of these methods.

Mangroves also have features that conserve water: thick waxy leaves, fleshy leaves, pores in the leaves that are sunken below the surface so that wind doesn't dry them out.

Do mangroves need salt?
Apparently not. Some species have been kept in pots where they have grown healthily and flowered regularly when given only fresh water. However, experiments have shown that the best growth occurs where the plants live in sea water diluted by about 50 per cent with fresh water.

Unstable Ground

Apart from the salt, mangroves also have to cope with being water-logged, and with unstable soils that may be lacking in oxygen. Mangrove plants have come up with quite similar ways of dealing with these difficulties:

Roots
Roots support a plant and take in essential nutrients and oxygen. In unstable soil an extensive root system is necessary in order for the trees to remain standing. Most mangroves have more of the plant below the ground than above it. The main mass of roots, however, is generally within the top two metres of the soil, as the oxygen supply is in that layer. Cable roots and anchor roots provide support. Small roots come from these to collect nutients from the rich surface soil. Other roots collect oxygen from the soil.

Because little oxygen is in the mud, many mangroves raise part of their roots above the surface. These roots are covered in special breathing cells to draw in air. To avoid getting buried in the build up of soil sediment, the breathing roots can grow up vertically. Pollution is a problem : oil blocks the breathing cells and the plant can suffocate.

Red, stilt or spider, mangrove is subjected to high wave action and has stilt or prop roots. These spread far and wide, providing numerous anchors for the tree as well as a large surface area for the breathing cells. Extra stilts can grow from the branches or trunk, and develop many breathing cells as soon as they reach the mud.

Grey mangrove grows peg roots, which act like snorkels. Orange mangrove develops cable roots which have grown above the surface of the mud and then down into it again. Looking glass mangrove has buttress roots which are like flattened, blade-like stilt roots.

Spreading new plants
The fruits and seedlings of all mangrove plants can float, which is how the plant sends its seeds away to grow in another area. Generally the seeds float away and lodge in mud, where they begin to grow. Some kinds will only germinate when temperatures or salt levels are satisfactory. Some species do not drop their seeds, but begin to grow out of the base of the fruits to form long spear-shaped stems and roots that grow, attached to the parent tree, for one to three years. They reach lengths of up to a metre before breaking off the parent plant and falling into the sea. They float horizontally until they can lodge in mud in a less salty place, where they turn vertically , roots down and buds up. They then begin to grow rapidly.

The cannonball mangrove produces a large fruit, about 20cm in diameter containing up to 18 tightly packed seeds. When ripe, it explodes and scatters the seeds, which float away on the sea. The seed of the looking-glass mangrove has a prominent ridge on one side. This can act as a sail when the seed is in the water. (source ... >>)

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Mangrove in Australia ... [1]

Mangroves are plants that live between the sea and the land, where they are flooded by tides. This is called the 'intertidal zone'. The word 'mangrove' is given to either an individual species(kind) of plant or to a group of unrelated plants, living in areas that are flooded by tides. So a mangrove may be a tree, shrub, palm, fern, climber or grass - all of them able to live in salt water.

Mangroves exist in a constantly changing environment. The sea regularly floods the area with salty water, and at low tide, especially during periods of high rainfall, there may be floods of fresh water. This quickly alters the salt levels, and can alter temperatures as well.

Importance of Mangroves

Mangrove trees are an important habitat for birds, mammals, crustaceans and fish by providing a breeding place and by giving protection. Mangroves improve water quality by filtering pollutants, stabilising and improving the soil and protecting shorelines from erosion.

Mangroves are an important part of the food chain for a number of animal species. Mangrove plants produce a large amount of litter such as leaves, twigs. bark, fruit and flowers. Some of this immediately becomes food for creatures such as crabs, but most breaks down before being consumed by other creatures. Bacteria and fungi break down the litter, increasing its protein, making it into food for fish and prawns. They in turn produce waste which, along with the even smaller mangrove litter, is eaten by molluscs and small crustaceans. Even dissolved substances are consumed by plankton or, if they land on the mud surface, by animals such as crabs and mud whelks.Every time the tide goes out, it takes with it carries a great deal of food out to sea, as much as 12,500 tonnes each year. This is dropped over a huge area of the seabed, and feed bottom dwellers, prawns and fish.

Mangrove Uses

Mangroves are rich in resources. Fish, crabs,shellfish, prawns and edible snakes and worms are found there. The fruit and the nectar of some plants, including the Nypa palm, can be eaten after preparation. The best honey is considered to be that produced by bees feeding in mangroves, particularly the river mangrove.

Many traditional medicines are made from mangroves, including those for treating skin disorders, headaches, rheumatism, snake bite, ulcers and many more.The sap from the 'blind-your-eye mangrove' can be used to treat sores and marine stings, though it can cause blindness if it gets into the eyes. The sap is being tested for its medicinal properties. The leaves are crushed and floated on the water, and stunned fish float to the surface.

Some mangrove trees are prized for their hard wood, and were traditionally used by indigenous Australians for making tools such as spears, digging sticks and boomerangs. Nypa palm fronds are used for thatching and basket weaving. Some barks are used for tanning or fishing floats. The wood from yellow mangroves can apparently burn even when wet.

Competition

One advantage for mangroves is that in a salty environment there is less competition because so few plants are able to thrive in those conditions. Compare this with a tropical rainforest, where there are many kinds of plants all competing with each other. There are in Australia about 30 species (kinds) of mangroves.

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Blue Energy [2]

Blue Energy Market Driver

Global warming - Carbon Dioxide emissions are projected to grow by 70% by 2020 and to double by the year 2050 unless new policies are put in place to reduce them. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change reports this would result in an average global temperature increase of 3.5 degrees Centigrade by the middle of this century. A 60 to 80% cut in greenhouse gas emissions will ultimately be needed to stabilize atmospheric concentrations of the gasses and avert serious climate disruptions. This will require a massive global transition to renewable energy sources and large improvements in energy efficiency.


Transportation - Builders of large bridge infrastructure recognize the advantages of a sustainable transportation solution as the lucrative energy stream offsets the need for instituting onerous user tolls for new bridges. The tops of the machinery rooms are continuous and support a four lane roadbed for vehicular traffic, either along the top of the tidal fence, or stackable lanes within the structure.

Declining Demand for Nuclear Power - The public is evermore wary of nuclear weapons proliferation spawned from unregulated nuclear power programs. Chernobyl, Three Mile Island, and recent nuclear accidents in Japan have brought the world’s attention to the dangers of nuclear power. A widespread resolve is developing for the rapid phase out of nuclear facilities in western and central Europe and in North America. In the last decade, nuclear power has gone from being the world’s fastest-growing energy source to its second slowest.


Declining Coal Use - Coals share of world energy is down to 23%, roughly where it was in 1860. China has more than halved its coal subsidy rates singe 1984, a move which contributed to a 5.2% drop in domestic coal consumption in 1998. Belgium, France, Japan, Spain, and the United Kingdom have collectively halved coal use since slashing or ending coal supports over the last fifteen years. With growing legal liability and possibility of severe emissions penalties for coal production as outlined in Kyoto Protocol, the reign of “King Coal” may soon be brought to a timely end in the early part of the new millennium.

Dwindling Supply of Peak Oil Reserves - Approximately 80% of the oil produced today comes from fields discovered before 1973, most of which are in decline. A recent analysis of data on world oil resources estimates that roughly one trillion barrels of oil remain to be extracted from the earth. With an estimated 800 million barrels already extracted and present levels of consumption, this data suggests that world oil production could peak between 2000 and 2010, and then begin a decline throughout the remainder of the century, accompanied by increasingly higher prices.


Increased Opposition to Hydro Electric Dams - Hydroelectricity is well established in North America, but has limited potential for further development worldwide due to environmental impacts. Fifty percent of the natural gas burned today comes from wells drilled in the last three years. The relatively new phenomenon of breaching is gaining in popularity, as the ecological devastation of large scale dams is being felt in widespread extinction of fish species. The economic costs of renewing fish stocks or erecting fish ladders are often more costly than removing the dams altogether.


Increasing Demand for Renewable Energy Sources - To counter the effects of global warming from the combustion of fossil fuels, a rapid shift towards renewable energy development is now underway. Economic projections indicate that this trend will continue to accelerate rapidly. Wind and solar power developments have been leading the way with annual capacity increases of 25.7% and 16.8% respectively between 1990 and 1997, and are still growing markets today.


Deregulation of Energy Markets - For the first time in many decades energy consumers in countries around the world are being given a choice of who supplies their electric power and how that power is generated. Similar to the restructuring of the telecommunications industry in the mid- 1980's, the introduction of competition in power markets is giving customers more options, one of which is to purchase electricity from renewable sources.

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Earthquake, tsunami in the Solomon Islands

Earthquake, tsunami in the Solomon Islands

Description of Event

A magnitude 8.1 earthquake followed by a tsunami occurred close to the Solomon Islands at 07:40 local time on 2 April. Giso Island was very affected but accurate information was not immediately available concerning the situation in the other islands.
Media provisionally reported 18 dead and 20 wounded.

Images and/or Image Products Delivered under the Charter Tsunami in the Solomon Islands

SPOT-5 image, Ranongga Island, preliminary damage assessment
Source: Spot-5 (pan-sharpened), resolution 2.5m.
Acquired: 07/04/2007
Initial damage assessment, coast of Ranongga Island. Possible tsunami-affected settlement areas have been classified into 3 types: 1) Possible Severe Building Damage (symbolized in red); 2) Possible Building Damage (in yellow); and 3) Building Damage Unlikely (in blue). Cloud cover has been symbolized to help highlight areas along the coast that have not been assessed for damage. Credit: Copyright CNES 2007; GIS Data: GIST, USGS, CGIAR, NASA, GEBCO. Image processing, map created 13/04/2007 by UNOSAT


SPOT-5 image, Simbo Island Island, preliminary damage assessment
Source: Spot-5 (pan-sharpened), resolution 2.5m.
Acquired: 07/04/2007
Initial damage assessment, coast of Simbo Island. Possible tsunami-affected settlement areas have been classified into 3 types: 1) Possible Severe Building Damage (symbolized in red); 2) Possible Building Damage (in yellow); and 3) Building Damage Unlikely (in blue). Cloud cover has been symbolized to help highlight areas along the coast that have not been assessed for damage. Credit: Copyright CNES 2007; GIS Data: GIST, USGS, CGIAR, NASA, GEBCO. Image processing, map created 12/04/2007 by UNOSAT.

Formosat-2 image, Kolombangara IslandSource: Formosat-2 (pan-sharpened), resolution 2m.
Acquired: 06/04/2007
Potentially affected local settlements along a portion of the western coast of Kolombangara Island. Settlement areas have been classified into two groups: those close to the coast and less than 10m in elevation (marked in red), and those above 10m and/or more than 250m from the coast (marked in blue). Because of limitations of spatial resolution and relevant pre-disaster imagery, a preliminary damage assessment was not conducted for this area. Credit: Copyright NSPO 2007; GIS Data: GIST, USGS, CGIAR, NASA, GEBCO. Image processing, map created 11/04/2007 by UNOSAT.

Solomon Islands, , Quickbird, Ghizo Island Damage
Source: QuickBird (pan-sharpened), resolution 0.6m .
Acquired: 05/04/2007
Initial damage assessment, Ghizo Island using post-disaster QuickBird satellite imagery. 1) Building Damage (in red) for areas of likely damage to buildings and infrastructure; 2) Coastal Flooding (in yellow) for areas of identified as likely inundated and possibly eroded; and 3) Standing flood waters (in blue) for areas of visible water likely caused by the tsunami. Credit: Copyright: Digital Globe 2007; GIS Data: PDC, GIST, USGS, CGIAR, NASA. Image processing, map created 08/04/2007 by UNOSAT.

Solomon Islands, , Quickbird, Gizo Town Damage
Source: QuickBird (pan-sharpened), resolution 0.6m .
Acquired: 05/04/2007
Initial damage assessment, main town of Gizo (Ghizo Island) using post-disaster QuickBird satellite imagery. Tsunami-affected areas have been classified into 3 types: 1) Building Damage (in red) for areas of likely damage to buildings and infrastructure; 2) Coastal Flooding (in yellow) for areas of identified as likely inundated and possibly eroded; and 3) Standing flood waters (in blue) for areas of visible water likely caused by the tsunami. Credit: Copyright: Digital Globe 2007; GIS Data: PDC, GIST, USGS, CGIAR, NASA. Image processing, map created 07/04/2007 by UNOSAT.

Pre-Crisis imagery, Simbo Island Island
Source: Landsat-5, resolution 30m .
Acquired: 06/24/1989
Pre-crisis Landsat 7 image of Simbo Island as well as coastal areas 10 meters or less in elevation (marked in red) potentially affected by the tsunami (approximation; may not represent all low-lying coastal areas under this height). Credit: Credit: USGS 1989; GIS Data: GIST, USGS, CGIAR, NASA, GEBCO. Image processing, map created 06/04/2007 by UNOSAT.

Pre-Crisis imagery, Ghizo Island

Source: Landsat-5 (pan-sharpened), resolution 15m.
Acquired: 19/01/2001
Pre-crisis Landsat 7 image of Ghizo Island as well as coastal areas 10 meters or less in elevation (marked in red) potentially affected by the tsunami (approximation; may not represent all low-lying coastal areas under this height). Credit: Credit: USGS 2001; GIS Data: GIST, USGS, CGIAR, NASA, GEBCO. Image processing, map created 06/04/2007 by UNOSAT.

2004 Population Density, Solomon Islands, Islands; New
Source: SRTM dataset, resolution 90m.Acquired: 19/01/20012004 population density in earthquake and tsunami-affected areas of the Solomons, with two focus maps covering the New Georgia, Treasury and Shortland Island groups. Credit: Credits GIST, NGA, USGS, GEBCO 2004-2007. Image processing, map created 02/04/2007 by UNOSAT.


Potential Tsunami-AffectedAreas, Solomon Islands,Islands; New Georgia, Treasury and Shortland groups
Source: SRTM dataset; Landscan 2004, resolution 90m.
Acquired: Areas 10 meters and less in elevation potentially affected by the tsunami along the coast of the New Georgia and Treasury Islands, Solomon Islands. Credit: Credits GIST, NGA, USGS, GEBCO 2004-2007. Image processing, map created 02/04/2007 by UNOSAT.



2004 Population Density, Coastal Areas, Choiseul Island
Source: SRTM dataset; Landscan 2004 , resolution 90m (SRTM).
Acquired:
Top: areas 10 meters and less in elevation (marked in red) potentially affected by the tsunami along the coast of Choiseul Island. Bottom: estimated population density in people per square km. in 2004, Choiseul Island. Credit: Credits: GIS: GIST, NGA, USGS, GEBCO 2004-2007. Image processing, map created 03/04/2007 by UNOSAT.

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Blue Energy [2]

Blue Energy Market Driver Global warming - Carbon Dioxide emissions are projected to grow by 70% by 2020 and to double by the year 2050 unless new policies are put in place to reduce them. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change reports this would result in an average global temperature increase of 3.5 degrees Centigrade by the middle of this century. A 60 to 80% cut in greenhouse gas emissions will ultimately be needed to stabilize atmospheric concentrations of the gasses and avert serious climate disruptions. This will require a massive global transition to renewable energy sources and large improvements in energy efficiency.
Transportation - Builders of large bridge infrastructure recognize the advantages of a sustainable transportation solution as the lucrative energy stream offsets the need for instituting onerous user tolls for new bridges. The tops of the machinery rooms are continuous and support a four lane roadbed for vehicular traffic, either along the top of the tidal fence, or stackable lanes within the structure.
Declining Demand for Nuclear Power - The public is evermore wary of nuclear weapons proliferation spawned from unregulated nuclear power programs. Chernobyl, Three Mile Island, and recent nuclear accidents in Japan have brought the world’s attention to the dangers of nuclear power. A widespread resolve is developing for the rapid phase out of nuclear facilities in western and central Europe and in North America. In the last decade, nuclear power has gone from being the world’s fastest-growing energy source to its second slowest.
Declining Coal Use - Coals share of world energy is down to 23%, roughly where it was in 1860. China has more than halved its coal subsidy rates singe 1984, a move which contributed to a 5.2% drop in domestic coal consumption in 1998. Belgium, France, Japan, Spain, and the United Kingdom have collectively halved coal use since slashing or ending coal supports over the last fifteen years. With growing legal liability and possibility of severe emissions penalties for coal production as outlined in Kyoto Protocol, the reign of “King Coal” may soon be brought to a timely end in the early part of the new millennium.
Dwindling Supply of Peak Oil Reserves - Approximately 80% of the oil produced today comes from fields discovered before 1973, most of which are in decline. A recent analysis of data on world oil resources estimates that roughly one trillion barrels of oil remain to be extracted from the earth. With an estimated 800 million barrels already extracted and present levels of consumption, this data suggests that world oil production could peak between 2000 and 2010, and then begin a decline throughout the remainder of the century, accompanied by increasingly higher prices.
Increased Opposition to Hydro Electric Dams - Hydroelectricity is well established in North America, but has limited potential for further development worldwide due to environmental impacts. Fifty percent of the natural gas burned today comes from wells drilled in the last three years. The relatively new phenomenon of breaching is gaining in popularity, as the ecological devastation of large scale dams is being felt in widespread extinction of fish species. The economic costs of renewing fish stocks or erecting fish ladders are often more costly than removing the dams altogether.
Increasing Demand for Renewable Energy Sources - To counter the effects of global warming from the combustion of fossil fuels, a rapid shift towards renewable energy development is now underway. Economic projections indicate that this trend will continue to accelerate rapidly. Wind and solar power developments have been leading the way with annual capacity increases of 25.7% and 16.8% respectively between 1990 and 1997, and are still growing markets today.
Deregulation of Energy Markets - For the first time in many decades energy consumers in countries around the world are being given a choice of who supplies their electric power and how that power is generated. Similar to the restructuring of the telecommunications industry in the mid- 1980's, the introduction of competition in power markets is giving customers more options, one of which is to purchase electricity from renewable sources.

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Blue Energy [1]

Tidal Power

There are basically two methodologies for creating tidal power: the use of tidal dams or ocean currents. Dams are based on using a barrage at a bay or estuary with a large tidal range. Power is generated primarily at ebb tides as the barrage creates a significant head of water, much like a hydroelectric dam. This technology is very well established at La Rance, France where a 240MW plant has operated since 1966. A 20MW facility has also been present in Annapolis, Nova Scotia since 1984. However, estuaries are amongst the world’s most productive and sensitive ecosystems, and the flooding by these barrages causes a great disruption to their natural processes. In the context of ocean energy, barrage based tidal power is not considered a truly sustainable resource.

The sources of Blue Energy’s tidal power production are fast flowing tidal currents. The gravitational pull of the moon causes water to flow in from the ocean twice a day on the flood tides, and outward during ebb tides. Additional monthly and annual lunar cycles vary the strength of these currents. Narrow and shallow constrictions produce the fastest and most powerful movements of current, whose energy can be harnessed using the Blue Energy Ocean Turbine. This energy source is independent of weather and climate change and follows the predictable relationship of the lunar orbit that is known many years in advance.

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The Hawaian Reef Ecosistem : ...

Brian N. Tissot Kalakaua Marine Education Center University of Hawai’i at Hilo

Introduction

Coral reefs are unique among marine communities. In addition to being spectacular displays of nature's creativity, coral reefs are reservoirs of biological diversity and are truly the "tropical rain forests of the sea." Coral reefs are also one of the most productive and diverse assemblages on Earth and are important economic resources for many tropical regions of the world, especially islands. For example, in 1991 in Hawai’i, reefs supported over $200 million in revenues from commercial, recreational and subsistence fisheries and $50 million in marine-related tourism. (Hunter, 1995). In addition, reefs buffer shorelines from waves, hurricanes and tsunamis, and generate sediments which create beaches.

However, throughout the world, reefs are being threatened with a variety of human impacts and therefore are at risk of destruction (Richmond, 1993). In order to successfully protect our reefs we must first understand their history and ecology: how they develop and what factors influence their growth and development. Accordingly, this chapter will first survey the geologic history of reefs then move on to their ecology. I will conclude by examining human impacts on reef ecosystems and steps that are being taken to more effectively manage and conserve our reefs. (more information.......>>)

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Bermuda's Coral Reefs

Basic Coral Biology

Although many corals resemble plants, they are actually members of the animal phylum Cnidaria. Most corals are colonial, which means that each coral is made up of many individual polyps connected by living tissue (the coenosarc). Each polyp has a cup-like shape with a ring of tentacles around a central opening (pharynx) that functions as both mouth and anus. The tentacles are tipped with stinging cells called nematocysts. Corals use the nematocysts to defend themselves and to capture prey. The body wall consists of three cell layers: the outer or ectoderm, the middle or mesoderm, and the inner or endoderm. There is no skeleton inside the polyp itself. Instead, the polyps sit on top of an external skeleton that is made from the polyp's secretions.

Corals can be divided into two main types, the hard corals (stony corals, or scleractinians) and the soft corals (gorgonians or octocorals). As their names might suggest, these two types of corals have very different skeletal structures, but there are other differences too. The soft corals have a flexible skeleton, made of a protein called gorgonin. Their skeleton also contains calcium carbonate, but only in small clumps called spicules. The polyps of soft corals have eight tentacles (hence the name octocoral since the word octo means eight). There are 17 species of soft corals in Bermuda, including sea whips, sea fans, and sea feathers.

The stony corals are the major reef-building species because of their rigid calcium carbonate skeletons. Besides their skeleton, the stony corals are also distinguished by their tentacles, which occur in multiples of six. There are 21 species of stony corals in Bermuda, as compared to 70 Caribbean species and 400 Indo-Pacific species, probably because of the cold water temperature in Bermuda compared to the other regions. Hard corals have three types of morphologies, or growth forms: massive forms such as brain corals, encrusting forms like the star corals, and branching forms such as Madracis. The different growth forms represent adaptations to different environmental conditions. The massive and encrusting forms are wave-resistant. Branching forms are less wave-resistant, but they can survive higher sedimentation rates than many massive corals. These influences are also discussed on the reef formation page.

Corals use their tentacles to capture zooplankton (small animals that live in the water.) Most corals only extend their polyps and tentacles at night when zooplankton is most abundant, but some corals (especially soft corals) keep their polyps open throughout the day. Many corals have single-celled algae (called zooxanthellae) that live within the coral's innermost tissue layer. Both the corals and the zooxanthellae benefit from the arrangment. The algae uses the sun's energy to convert carbon dioxide from the seawater into energy-rich sugars and fats. Some of this "junk food" is given to the coral animal and helps the coral grow and produce its skeleton faster than a coral without the zooxanthellae. The zooxanthellae also gives the coral its color. In return, the algae have a safe place to live within the coral tissue and the algae uses the coral's waste nutrients for growth. This type of arrangement -- where both organisms live together and benefit from the relationship -- is called symbiosis and when both organisms benefit, it is a mutualistic symbiosis.

To learn more about how corals reproduce, click here to jump to the page on the life cycle of coral.. (source.....>>)

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