First Fin whale caught in Iceland this season...

First Fin Whale Caught in Iceland

The first fin whale to be hunted in Iceland this season was killed by the crew of whaling vessel Hvalur 8 yesterday evening. The vessel, which set out yesterday along with Hvalur 9, is expected to unload the catch today.

http://www.icelandreview.com/icelandreview/daily_news/First_Fin_Whale_Caught_in_Iceland_0_400888.news.aspx

Related articles

• Iceland resumes whale hunting, endangered Fin Whale killed
• Stop Whaling Now!: Thank You - Take Action!: NRDC's Save BioGems
• Iceland resumes controversial fin whale hunt
• Stop Whaling Now ~ Help End Iceland's Illegal Whale Hunt!
• Iceland resumes controversial whale hunt
• Iceland to resume disputed fin whale hunt in June
• Dog snacks containing fin whale meat pulled from shelves by Japanese company
• Iceland to resume disputed whale hunt
• Whale hunting to resume in Iceland's waters
• Iceland to resume disputed fin whale hunt

The Solar Timeline...

Reduce Footprints:

Guest Post - The Solar Timeline

Solar Energy has been touted as the clean sustainable answer to many of our energy problems. As recently as February this year Ofgem announced that between 2015 - 2018 we will be dangerously close to a crisis that will push up energy prices further, a worrying proposition.

This may not come as a surprise to you, but you may be surprised to know that Solar energy has long been heralded the answer to our energy issues, as far back as 1905 when Einsteins paper, that later won the noble prize engaged the Photoelectric effect we celebrated using the Sun to power our world! So it struck us that sometimes that new technology that you hear about, maybe took longer than you thought. This timeline takes you through some of the landmark solar events on our journey to harness the power of the sun. We hope you enjoy it!

http://reducefootprints.blogspot.co.nz/2013/06/guest-post-solar-timeline.html

Related articles

• Source: http://911disclosure.blogspot.com/2013/06/proof-of-bilderberg-conspiracy-100.html#ixzz2WXC6NCAD Proof of the Bilderberg Conspiracy - 100+ Actual Documents, Now Public (Photos)
• The Solar Energy Timeline
• Sun-Harnessing Cups - The 'Solar Glass' Absorbs the Sun to Keep Your Drink Warm (TrendHunter.com)
• Solar Panel Basics - What Solar Panels Are Made Of
• !In The Swim 16 Mil Ultra Clear Pool Solar Cover 20 x 40 Rectangle
• Solar Jobs: We Need a Genius to Solve These Two Solar Hang-ups
• Magnetic Love
• Photoelectric Effect, Photomultipliers and Resolution - AS Physics Revision

Mt Cook, in the Southern Alps, South Island, New Zealand

The Hermitage, Mt Cook

Ecospree

Forest and Bird think they can stop Denniston Plateau mining...

Royal Forest and Bird Protection Society of New Zealand (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Forest and Bird think they have a good chance of stopping a coal mining plan in its tracks.

The High Court has released its decision on an appeal against the Environment Court's interim decision on Bathurst Resources plans to create a mine on Buller's Denniston Plateau.

The appeal relates to whether mitigation considerations relating to adverse effects on the environment are enough to be considered a biodiversity offset.

Justice John Fogarty finds that the Environment Court will have to keep the considerations separate, meaning Forest & Bird has been partially successful in its appeal.

Top of the South field officer Debs Martin says winning this point was critical to the 'finely balanced' case and she hopes it will shift the judge's balance in favour of protecting the area.

The case will be back before the Environment Court next week.

Acknowledgements:  Newstalk ZB

 http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10889224

Related articles

• Forest and Bird believe it can stop mine
• Appeal lost but fight going on over mine
• Bathurst mine a step closer
• Forest and Bird appeals mine decision

Antarctic ice loss less severe than previous IPCC estimates: research claims...

PHOTO: Antarctic ice loss less severe than previously thought, new research suggests. (Matt Low: AFP/Australian Antarctic Division)

MAP: Australia

 Research by a group of international scientists has found ice sheet loss in Antarctica is likely to be less extreme than previously thought.

The review - Ice-sheet mass balance and climate change, published in the journal Nature - confirms that Antarctica and Greenland are both losing ice and contributing to rising sea levels.

But it found that Greenland is losing twice as much ice as Antarctica, and that Antarctic ice loss is likely to be less extreme than previously suggested.

Ian Allison, an Honorary Research Professor at the University of Tasmania, says the review is an important update that still acknowledges the damaging impact of climate change.

"It's chopping off the extreme projections, it's brought the future contributions to sea level rise right down to the core results that the IPCC [Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change] last time produced, which is still a very great concern," he said.

Professor Allison says the study also looks at contributions from mountain glaciers.

"It's an important summary that's bringing together a lot of original work," he said.

"I think we're going to see similar results perhaps come out in the next IPCC assessment, but this is a very useful step alerting us to what's happening and what the present consensus is amongst the scientific community."

Professor Allison says the impacts of rising sea levels are some of the more major impacts coming out of climate change.

"It's not just a matter of sea level rising, so sea level going up, it's the impact of storm surges and extreme events, events that might happen once in a hundred years... they'll start occurring every 10 years to every couple of years," he said.

Ecospree

Related articles

• Antarctic ice loss less severe than previous IPCC estimates: research
• The Antarctic's Ice Paradox
• Ice Probes to Measure Melting Polar Ice, Rising Seas
• Smart science: Ice free past points to daunting future
• Current Wisdom: Hansen's Extreme Sea Level Rise Projections Drowning in Hubris
• Future sea level is ...
• Antarctica Revealed In All Its Naked, Iceless Glory [Video]

Australian Government must do more to protect World heritage site...

A scuba diver looking at a giant clam on the Great Barrier Reef (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Fish stocks have plummeted around the Great Barrier Reef. Photo / APN
More than 150 scientists have written to the Australian Government urging it to rein in development near the Great Barrier Reef.

Marine scientists from 33 institutions have signed a statement warning of the consequences of industrial developments planned for the Queensland coast.

They say construction of new ports, large-scale dredging and the increase in cargo ships will hasten the decline of the World Heritage-listed natural wonder.

Ecologist Hugh Possingham says that in the past 27 years, half of the reef's coral cover has been degraded.

"If half of Ayers Rock was being chipped away by random tourists in the last 27 years, first of all I would hope we would be trying to stop that and secondly we wouldn't be trying to add to that," the University of Queensland professor said.

Scientists from James Cook University, University of Hawaii, University of Melbourne, UTS and CSIRO are among the league of professionals calling for action.

The letter calls on the Australian and Queensland Governments not to construct new ports outside existing industrial port areas and develop a new strategy to better manage coastal development.

The World Heritage Committee meets in 12 days and will discuss whether the reef should be listed as a World Heritage site "in danger", as recommended by Unesco, the environmental arm of the United Nations.

A Unesco report last month found 43 development proposals in the vicinity of the reef were under assessment and that the federal and state Governments had failed to improve water quality in the area.

Letter's key points

* Water quality has significantly dropped.

* Coral cover has declined 50 per cent in 27 years.

* Fish stocks have plummeted.

* New ports should be restricted to already established port areas.

* Cargo ship movements should be better managed.

* Independent research should be used to develop a coastal development strategy.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10888654

http://huttriverofnz.blog.co.uk

Related articles

• Scientists tell Australia to save Great Barrier Reef
• Scientists demand urgent action on reef mine plans
• 150 marine scientists warn of port construction threat to Great Barrier Reef
• Great Barrier Reef in danger: UN
• UN warns Great Barrier Reef in danger
• UN plans to list reef as endangered
• These items caught my eye - 11 May 2013
• The Great Barrier Reef: Have we Really Lost Half of It? [Part 1: Water Quality]
• UNESCO issues fresh warning over reef's health