The Environment Chronicle

Extremes heat wave are likely to be seen much more often in the near future. This is projected to double by 2020 and quadruple by 2040, according to a study by scientists of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) and the Universidad Complutense de Madrid (UCM). The scientists focus on heat waves that exceed the usual natural variability of summer month temperatures in a given region by a large margin, namely so called 3-sigma events. These are periods of several weeks that are three standard deviations warmer than the normal local climate – often resulting in harvest losses, forest fires, and additional deaths in heat-struck cities. Such heat extremes might cover 85 percent of the global land area in summer by 2100, if CO2 continues to be emitted as it is today, the study shows. In addition to this, even hotter extremes that are virtually non-existent today would affect 60 percent of the global land area. Published 21 August 2013

On 20 August 2013, Ecuador's President Raffael Correa canceled Germany's special programme for the Yasuní biosphere reserve. President Correa said his government would unilaterally terminate the environmental agreement with Germany, following German criticism Ecuador's decision to exploit oil in the Yasuni National Park. The German gov­ern­ment had agreed with Ecuador in 2012 on an extensive programme of support. The aim of the programme is to preserve the bio­di­ver­sity and the forests in the Yasuní Biosphere Reserve, and to empower the indigenous popu­la­tion living there.

August 20 is Earth Overshoot Day 2013, marking the date when humanity exhausted nature’s budget for the year.

On 20 August 2013, the European Commission adopted a package of measures to address the continued unsustainable fishing of herring by the Faroe Islands. The measures include the ban of imports of herring and mackerel from the Atlanto-Scandian stocks that has been caught under the control of the Faroe Islands as well as fishery products containing or made of such fish. The measures also include restrictions on the use of EU ports by vessels fishing for the herring and mackerel stocks under the control of the Faroe Islands. This means that some Faroese vessels will not be allowed to dock in EU ports, except in cases of emergency. The Atlanto-Scandian herring stock was until 2013 managed jointly by Norway, Russia, Iceland, the Faroe Islands and the EU through an agreed long-term management plan and pre-established shares of the Total Allowable Catch (TAC). However, in 2013 the Faroe Islands unilaterally decided to break out of this agreement and established an autonomous quota which more than trebled their previously agreed share.

Twelve Dongria villages have voted against Vedanta's plan to mine bauxite in the Niyamgiri Hills during consultations ordered by India’s Supreme Court in April 2013, because their religious, cultural and social rights would be jeopardized if mining were to go ahead.

Antarctic sea ice extent for 19 August 2013 was 18.70 million square kilometers (7.22 million square miles), a record or near-record high level (August 19, 2010 was similarly high), led by unusually extensive ice in the Bellingshausen, Amundsen, and Ross seas, and in the western Indian Ocean sector.

On 16 August 2013, MV St. Thomas Aquinas a Philippine-registered passenger ferry collided with a cargo ship named MV Sulpicio Express Siete near the central city of Cebu, Philippines. The ferry was carrying 120,000 litres of bunker fuel, 20,000 litres of diesel fuel, and 20,000 litres of lube oil. The collision resulted to oil sillage which affected the Municipality of Cordova and Cities of Lapu-Lapa and Talisay, all in the Province of Cebu.

At an announcement on 15 August 2013, in Washington, D.C., Kristofer Helgen, curator of mammals at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, presented anatomical and DNA evidence that establish the olinguito (pronounced oh-lin-GHEE-toe) as a living species distinct from other known olingos, carnivorous tree-dwelling mammals native to Central and South America. His team’s work, also published on 15 August 2013, in the journal ZooKeys, represents the first discovery of a new carnivorous mammal species in the American continents in more than three decades.

On 14 August 2013, a White House official confirmed to the Washington Post that installation of solar panels began this week on the White House roof. The plan to use solar energy was first revealed in October 2010, but was not put into effect until now.

On 13 August 2013 the research ship MYA II was handed over to science at the Alfred Wegner Institute at a ceremony in List on Sylt. Ten percent of the 4.5 million euro development and construction costs for the MYA II were met by the State of Schleswig-Holstein, and 90 percent from federal funds. The research vessel is extremely modern and ideally equipped for coastal research. It has a particulate filter as well as a waste gas purification system, which removes nitrogen oxide (NOx) from engine exhaust fumes. Moreover an environmentally friendly ship coating was used and an impressed current system was installed to prevent corrosion on the hull as a substitute for toxic zinc anodes. Neither wastewater nor oily bilge water from the engine room get into the sea, but are disposed of in port. The “Blue Angel” eco label for the environmentally friendly ship design was revealed during the celebration on 13 August 2013.

The world's biggest river research expedition started on the Danube on 13 August 2013. The Joint Danube Survey 3 (JDS3) catalyzed international cooperation from all 14 of the main Danube Basin countries and the European Commission. For six weeks between 13 August and 26 September, the JDS3 ships traveled 2,375 km downstream the Danube River, through 10 countries, to the Danube Delta. The JDS3 was coordinated by the International Commission for the Protection of the Danube River (ICPDR). An international Core Team of 20 scientists was responsible for sampling, sample processing, on-board analyses and all survey activities. The Joint Danube Survey 3 was officially launched by the State Secretary at the Federal Environment Ministry, and the Bavarian Minister of the Environment in Regensburg on 14 August 2014.

The German Aerospace Center (Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt; DLR) is working on a satellite-based system for substantially improving ship navigation in ice-affected waters. The Earth observation satellites TerraSAR-X and TanDEM-X provide the high-resolution images needed to make this possible. Scientists from the Alfred Wegener Institute (AWI) – the Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research based in Bremerhaven – are currently on their way to Antarctica on board the research vessel 'Polarstern' to test the practicality of this technique.

On 29 July 2013, Nepal’s government announced its tiger population has increased by 63 percent since the last survey in 2009—putting the number of tigers at an estimated 198 with a range between 163-235. The first-ever joint tiger survey between Nepal and India in the transboundary Terai Arc Landscape began in January. In Nepal, this massive wildlife survey included over 260 trained staff, camera traps covering 1,870 square miles of tiger habitat and 7,699 tiger images. This was funded by WWF UK, WWF Australia, WWF US, the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation, the Hariyo Ban Program (funded by USAID), and US Fish and Wildlife Service. WWF also played a major role from planning and implementation to the final data analysis.

The act governing the selection of a repository site for high-level radioactive waste (Standortauswahlgesetz) entered into force on 27 July 2013.

Roughly 50,000 litres of crude oil spilled into the Gulf of Thailand on 27 july 2013, about 20 kilometres (12 miles) off the coast of the eastern province of Rayong, operator PTT Global Chemical said.

The European Investment Bank has adopted new guidelines to reinforce support for investment in renewable energy, energy efficiency and energy grids. The EIB will introduce a new Emissions Performance Standard to be applied to all fossil fuel generation projects to screen out investments whose carbon emissions exceed a threshold level. This threshold reflects existing EU and national commitments to limit carbon emissions. The board agreed that the Emissions Performance Standard would be kept under review and that more restrictive commitments could be considered in the future.

On 23 July 2013 the Hercules 265 offshore natural gas drilling rig caught fire.

A shipment of 130 tonnes of fin whale meat from whales killed four years ago has been sent back to Iceland and got unloaded in Reykjavik on 21 July 2013. On 5 July 2013 the whale meat arrived at the harbour of Hamburg on the cargo ship, Cosco Pride. Greenpeace activists met the ship at the federal state boundary waving protest banners. They escorted the ship on its way to the harbour, then informed the administrative bodies.

On 16 July 2013, a Commission proposal to restrict the use of Fipronil, an insecticide which has recently been identified as posing an acute risk to Europe’s honey bee population, was backed by Member State experts meeting today in the Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health. This proposal follows a scientific risk assessment carried out by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) that was published on 27 May 2013 which identified that seeds treated with pesticides containing Fipronil pose an acute risk to Europe’s honey bee population. The measures: Restrict the crops where Fipronil can be used as a seed treatment; Authorisations may be granted for the treatment of seeds that will only be sown in greenhouses. However, this exception does not apply to leeks, shallots, onions and brassica vegetables (such as Brussel sprouts, cauliflower or broccoli), where treated seeds can also be sown in the field, as the harvest of these crops takes place before flowering; The treatment of maize and sunflower seeds will no longer be authorised; Foresee that the Commission will initiate a review of the restrictions within 2 years. The restriction will apply from 31 December 2013.

On 16 Juli 2013, a tanker spilled more than 100 tonnes of fuel oil near the coastline in northern Cyprus. The spillage was the result of refuelling accident. Oil was being offloaded from an oil tanker to the electricity generating plant Kalecik when pressure built up in a pipe which subsequently burst. The oil spill covered a radius of seven kilometres on the southern side of the Karpas peninsula.

At the Special Meeting of the Commission held in Bremerhaven, Germany, on 15 and16 July 2013, two marine protected area (MPA) proposals were submitted to the Commission by CCAMLR Members: one for the Ross Sea Region by New Zealand and the United States, and one for the establishment of a representative system of MPAs in East Antarctica by Australia, France and the European Union. The talks ended with no result. The Russian delegation supported by neighboring Ukraine blocked the initiative.

On 11 Juli 2013, six Greenpeace activists climbed Europe's tallest building in a protest against oil and gas drilling the Arctic. A statement from Greenpeace said the action was part of their campaign against oil and gas drilling in the Arctic and that the activists carried out a safety assessment beforehand. The women were able to access the Shard from the roof of nearby London Bridge station, after months of planning and training. The campaigners said they chose the Shard because of its proximity to oil company Shell's three London offices. Greenpeace are streaming live video of the attempt from a camera worn by one of the climbers.

On 11 July 2013, the European Parliament Environment Committee voted on legislation to limit the quantities of 'food based' biofuels in renewable energy transport targets for Europe.

On 11 July 2013, the European Commission adopted a proposal to strengthen inspections on waste shipments through an amendment of the Waste Shipment Regulation. The Commission proposed stronger legislation on national inspections of waste shipments to ensure that all Member States have similar levels of control. Around 25 % of waste shipments sent from the EU to developing countries in Africa and Asia are thought to contravene international regulations. When it arrives, that waste is often dumped or mismanaged, causing serious negative impacts on human health and the environment.

On 8 July 2013, a huge area of the ice shelf broke away from the Pine Island glacier, the longest and fastest flowing glacier in the Antarctic, and is now floating in the Amundsen Sea in the form of a very large iceberg. Scientists from the American space agency NASA discovered the first crack in the glacier tongue on 14 October 2011 when flying over the area. At that time it was some 24 kilometres long and 50 metres wide. ”As a result of these cracks, one giant iceberg broke away from the glacier tongue. It measures 720 square kilometres and is therefore almost as large as the city of Hamburg“, reports Prof. Angelika Humbert, ice researcher at the Alfred Wegener Institute.

On the 6th July 2013 a freight train comprised of 5 locomotives and 72 tank wagons carrying crude oil from North Dakota, USA to the Saint John Refinery in New Brunswick, Canada derailed in the town centre of Lac-Mégantic, Quebec. Following the tragedy, some of the crude oil cargo leaked into the sewer system towards Lake Mégantic and the Chaudière River. The Environment Minister who was on site for the first days after the accident, declared that the environmental disaster was of an unprecedented magnitude. The Ministry estimated that 100,000 to 120,000 litres of crude oil had been released into the Chaudière River and had spread over 120 km.

A protest by Greenpeace activists in Hamburg harbour on 5 July 2013 called attention to the trans-shipment of fin whale meat by the vessel "Cosco Pride". Ten activists in inflatable boats met the ship in the port of Hamburg Cosco with the banner message: "Stop the trade in whale meat". The containers in question were unloaded for an inspection by customs authorities. Several whale meat consignments from Iceland and Norway have been transited via German harbours to Japan. On 9 July 2013, Federal Environment Minister Peter Altmaier asked German port operators to refrain on a voluntary basis from allowing the transit of whale meat via their harbours.

On 4 July 2013, DONG Energy, E.ON and Masdar officially opened the world’s largest offshore wind farm, London Array, at a ceremony attended by Prime Minister David Cameron, alongside other dignitaries. London Array, the 630MW offshore wind farm located in the Outer Thames Estuary, first started generating power in October 2012. The 175th turbine was bought online in March 2013 and London Array is now celebrating the completion and full operation of the site, which could supply around 500,000 UK homes with electricity each year.

On 3 July 2013, the European Parliament voted to back a European Commission's proposal to backload allowances in the European Union's emissions trading scheme (ETS).

The latest update of The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™ shows worrying declines for conifers – the world’s oldest and largest organisms – freshwater shrimps, cone snails and the Yangtze Finless Porpoise. The Santa Cruz Pupfish, a lizard known as the Cape Verde Giant Skink and a species of freshwater shrimp have been declared Extinct. With this update, 4,807 species have been added to The IUCN Red List bringing the total of assessed species to 70,294, of which 20,934 are threatened with extinction.

On 1 July 2013, US President Obama announced a series of new initiatives to combat spiking levels of international poaching and draft a new national plan on wildlife trafficking, an industry that has grown so significantly in recent years that the president now calls it an “international crisis”.

With effect from 1 July 2013 a new pesticide strategy has been implemented in Denmark. The aim is to reduce the use of pesticides, particularly those that have a high impact on the environment and human health. The most important change is the amended tax on pesticides. The tax will increase the cost of pesticides having a high potential impact on health and the environment. The intention is to motivate farmers and other pesticide users to reduce their use and the load of potentially harmful pesticides.

Under the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 (as amended), an Unusual Mortality Event (UME) has been declared for bottlenose dolphins in the Mid-Atlantic region from early July 2013 through the 20 August 2013. Elevated strandings of bottlenose dolphins have occurred in New York, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland and Virginia. Current bottlenose dolphin strandings are over seven times the historical average for the month of July for the Mid-Atlantic Region. All age classes of bottlenose dolphins are involved and strandings range from a few live animals to mostly dead animals with many very decomposed.

On 30 May 2013, the African Development Bank (AfDB) and WWF launched a joint global call for action and commitment from governments and other institutions to combat the rampant illicit wildlife trafficking scourge that is robbing Africa of precious natural resources and posing a major threat to stability and economies across the continent. During the event the African Development Bank launched the Marrakech Declaration highlighting the out-of-control nature of illicit wildlife trafficking and urging “countries and their citizens to act urgently to fight illicit wildlife trafficking in Africa and across the globe”.

On 1 July 2013, the DESERTEC Foundation announced the termination of its membership with Dii GmbH. This action has been agreed upon by all members of the Supervisory Board and the Board of Directors at an extraordinary board meeting which took place on 27th June 2013. In 2009, Dii GmbH had been founded as a cooperation between many renowned firms and DESERTEC Foundation to create appropriate conditions for the realisation of DESERTEC in Europe, North Africa and the Middle East.

On 27 June 2013, the German Parliament changed German patent law to prohibit patents on plants and animals derived from conventional breeding.

Sierra de Guadarrama National Park is a National Park in Spain. The law that regulates the recently approved national park was published in the BOE in June 26, 2013. The new National Park has a surface area of almost 34,000 hectares, spread between two autonomous communities: 21,740 in Madrid and 11,924 in Castile and Leon. While the administrative procedures started officially in 2001, the efforts to have the Sierra de Guadarrama’s landscape recognized for its scenic and environmental value started more than a century ago.

The International Court of Justice (ICJ), the principal judicial organ of the United Nations, hold public hearings in the case concerning Whaling in the Antarctic (Australia v. Japan: New Zealand intervening) from Wednesday 26 June to Tuesday 16 July 2013, at the Peace Palace in The Hague, the seat of the Court.

On 25 June 2013, President Barack Obama rolled out a major plan at Georgetown University in Washington to combat climate change by reducing greenhouse emissions and using renewable energy.

On 24 June 2013 Ireland’s Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government Phil Hogan T.D., welcomed an agreement between the European Parliament and the Council that will give effect to the year 2020 CO2 emissions target for new passenger cars by defining the “modalities” within which the car industry must operate to achieve this target. The new regulation will govern the means by which car manufacturers are allowed to meet the year 2020 target for CO2 emissions (95g/CO2/Km).