Category: Environment

PARIS, June 19, 2010 (AFP) – Pro- and anti-whaling nations face off next week in a battle over the 24-year-old ban on the commercial killing of whales. Gathering in Agadir, Morocco, the 88 countries of the International Whaling Commission (IWC) will tussle over controversial changes to a moratorium that has become an icon of green […]

June 15, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s western province, where the capital Colombo is located will crack down on the use of plastics and polythene, especially for promotional activity and decorations, officials said. The regional administration is drafting new laws to ban the use of polythene for promotional purposes and impose heavy fines on people. […]

June 11, 2010 (LBO) – The Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre has downgraded a watch bulletin taking Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Thailand and Malaysia off its list saying a local tsunami is likely to only affect India. Indian authorities have said waves of only 50 centimetres are likely and there is ‘nothing alarming. ‘ Sri Lanka’s authorities […]

NEW DELHI, June 12, 2010 (AFP) – India’s tsunami centre warned Sunday a major quake under the Indian Ocean would generate a 50-centimetre high (20-inch) surge in sea levels on the nearest islands, adding this was “nothing alarming. ” “This is nothing alarming but just a watch,” he added by telephone from the headquarters of […]

SYDNEY, June 12, 2010 (AFP) – A tiny heatproof capsule which scientists hope contains some of the oldest dust in the universe will streak back to Earth and land in the Australian desert Sunday, ending a historic space mission. Japan’s Hayabusa spacecraft is due to re-enter Earth’s atmosphere shortly before midnight (1400 GMT), completing a […]

June 13, 2010 (LBO) – Deepika Edirisinghe lives in the dry Kalpitiya area in the Sri Lanka northeast coastal district of Puttalam bordering a degraded coastal estuary which is now yielding a much lower fish catch than a decade ago. Her husband is a fisherman, whose catch from the lagoon has been dwindling over the […]

June 09, 2010 (LBO) – Increasing population pressure and human activity are threatening the rich biodiversity in Sri Lanka and a greater focus on habitat protection and conservation is needed, scientists said. Sri Lanka has been recognized as a global biodiversity ‘hotspot’ because of the high number of fauna and flora which are endemic or […]

May 29, 2010 (LBO) – Large swathes of abandoned shrimp farms in a coastal lagoon in Sri Lanka’s western coast could be returned to its former glory as a mangrove eco-systems if an ambitious plan by a conservation charity succeeds, officials said. “When people realized that this is a profitable activity they started, looking for […]

SINGAPORE, May 29, 2010 (AFP) – An oil slick from a damaged tanker has spread from beaches on Singapore’s southeastern coastline to a marine nature reserve and other beaches, environment officials said Saturday. “Definitely, where we’re talking about Changi Beach and Chek Jawa, these areas have a high level of biodiversity,” said Louis Ng, executive […]

SYDNEY, May 28, 2010 (AFP) – Australia will start legal action to stop Japan hunting whales next week, officials said on Friday, following years of tensions over the annual slaughter in waters near Antarctica. Documents will be submitted to the International Court of Justice in The Hague “early next week”, after repeated threats of proceedings […]

VENICE, May 23, 2010 (AFP) – Despite a massive cleanup effort, experts warn that only a tiny fraction of the oil spewing into the Gulf of Mexico from the wreckage of a BP-leased rig will ever be recovered. “The oil is out there and it’s out there to stay,” said Lisa Suatoni, a marine biologist […]

May 20, 2010 (LBO) – Floods in Sri Lanka are expected to get worse with the arrival of south-west monsoon rains over the weekend, and residents close to river banks in low lying areas are most at risk, a senior minister said Water levels in two rivers in the southern Ratnapura district are rising, A […]