Dear Friends,

This is the 242nd Edition of the Mangrove Action Project News, July 24, 2010.

July 26 is International Mangrove Action Day and we look forward to reporting on the many world-wide events scheduled to mark this day. While we see many new efforts and rising awareness about the need to conserve and restore tropical coastal forests, the destruction of mangroves continues to be a reality. As you’ll read in this issue’s featured story, mangrove destruction outpaces all other deforestation losses 4 to 1. I hope you will continue to support MAP’s ongoing efforts.
Cheers,

Alfredo Quarto
Mangrove Action Project

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MAP's Mission

Partnering with mangrove forest communities, grassroots NGOs, researchers and local governments to conserve and restore mangrove forests and related coastal ecosystems, while promoting community-based, sustainable management of coastal resources.

All news items and notices published in the MAP News can also be accessed directly from our home page www.mangroveactionproject.org, with links to the full story and the original source. New items are posted daily and are available as an RSS feed!

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SHRIMP LESS, THINK MORE campaign has changed it's name to QUESTION YOUR SHRIMP:
Learn more about the affects of the shrimp industry on mangroves by visiting our blog.
Join MAP on Facebook
Sign the Consumer's Pledge to avoid imported shrimp

Action Alerts:

SAVE THE MANGROVE COCKLE! and the mangrove ecosystem.
This year  for the celebration of the 26th of July, International Mangrove Action Day we have launched the campaign "SAVE THE MANGROVE BLACK COCKLE". One of the activities of this campaign is an online cockle photo exposition at http://www.ccondem.org.ec/26dejulio/new

Papua New Guinea - Don’t Dump Poisons into the Sea!
The government of Papua New Guinea doesn't want to hear from us. It has authorized a Chinese mining company to dump toxic waste into the sea, and it is determined to stifle dissent from every quarter.

Sign Petition to Protect India’s Coastline
The Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) notification was issued in 1991 to protect India's coasts. In the 19 years since then, it has been progressively weakened to suit industrial and political interests, and most violations have never been punished.

Stop Offshore Drilling and Demand a Clean Energy Future.
Let's put an end to offshore drilling. It’s been over a month since the Deepwater Horizon oil rig exploded in the Gulf of Mexico. Eleven people were killed in the explosion and millions of gallons of oil have been dumped into the Gulf of Mexico in what has become the largest oil spill in U.S. history.

Please call Taco Bell's Customer Service at 1-800-TACO-BELL to make your request that they do not serve imported shrimp in their tacos, but serve only shrimp produced in N. America! READ MORE

Draft Daryl Hannah as Mangroves Spokesperson
This is a petition needing your supportive signature to 'draft' Daryl Hannah into being the voice of the mangroves! Ms. Hannah as the mermaid from the movie "Splash" has that coastal wetland connection making her the ideal candidate to speak for the mangroves.

JAMAICA'S FONT HILL Save Font Hill Nature Preserve from development. Please Sign our Petition

STOP MEXICO'S DEVELOPMENT OF CRITICAL TURTLE HABITAT Sign Letter Here

BIMINI'S MARINE PROTECTED AREA
In December of 2008, the Honorable Dr. Earl Deveaux proclaimed that Bimini's long-awaited Marine Protected Area had been made official. Local Biminites, as well as legions of people around the globe who care about Bimini, were elated with the news.

MANGROVE ACTION DAY IS JULY 26TH
Join MAP in celebrating Mangrove Action Day on July 26th.

MAP ISSUES 

Marvellous Mangroves – A Curriculum-Based Teachers Guide
By Martin A. Keeley, Education Director, Mangrove Action Project
Read this 10 page history of the development of MAP’s educational curriculum VIEW DOCUMENT

Ocean in Focus Conservation Photo Contest
Submit your photos that best feature the need for biodiversity and to protect species and ecosystems in peril. DETAILS

Mangrove Atlas available at discount

World Atlas of Mangroves has just been published by Earthscan through a joint initiative. Visit Earthscan at http://www.earthscan.co.uk/isbn/9781844076574  (20% discount voucher code:  AF20).

MAP 2011 CALENDAR NEEDS ARTISTS
READ MORE

FEATURED STORY

World's mangroves retreating at alarming rate-study

 
Photo Credit Reinhard Krause

ABIDJAN, July 14 (Reuters) - The world's mangroves are being destroyed up to four times faster than other forests, costing millions of dollars in losses in areas such as fisheries and storm protection, a report said recently. The study commissioned by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and The Nature Conservancy said a fifth of mangroves had been lost since 1980 and that they continued to be destroyed at a rate of around 0.7 percent a year by activities such as coastal construction and shrimp farming. READ MORE

ASIA

Volunteers for Peace Vietnam(VPV) to celebrate Mangrove Action Day 2010
VIETNAM– Vietnamese NGO VPV, promotes community development through the activities of International and Vietnamese volunteers. One of the projects they are involved in is the promotion of ecotourism in Giao Xuan, a village in north-eastern Vietnam. Giao Xuan borders GiaoThuyNational Park, an area of mangroves which provides an important staging and wintering area for migrating birds many of which are endangered species. Local communities have exploited the national park for resources and have cleared areas for shrimp aquaculture causing a reduction in area of 71% in the past 12 years. VPV is working with community groups and other NGOs to promote ecotourism as an alternative source of income for residents, and work to restore and protect the national park whenever possible. For Mangrove Action Day 2010, VPV will host a weekend workcamp with International and Vietnamese volunteers. The series of activities includes replanting mangrove trees in an area to extend the national park, and educational workshop for the local community. This will be followed by a cultural performance as a celebration of mangroves and the ecosystems they provide. CONTACT VPV

Indian Ocean Sea Level Rise Threatens Millions

 
Photo Credit Feisal Omar

SINGAPORE- Sea levels are rising unevenly in the Indian Ocean, placing millions at risk along low-lying coastlines in Bangladesh, Indonesiaand Sri Lanka, scientists say in a study. Researchers from the Universityof Coloradoand the NationalCenterfor Atmospheric Research say the rising sea levels are caused in part by climate change and are triggered by warming seas and changes to atmospheric circulation patterns. READ MORE

Iloiloartists paint to save mangroves
PHILIPPINES- THE IMAGES ARE poignant, angry and enchanting. Giant and century-old mangroves in acrylic on canvas and in various hues stare at mall goers passing by the rare art exhibit.  “They hit you right in the gut. In many ways, it tells our message in a better and more effective manner,” says retired scientist and environmentalist Jurgenne Primavera. READ MORE

Kanti miffed over mangrove felling
INDIA- Deforestation of mangroves at Shankijahan in Kultali, Sunderbans, has led to a major debate. Unhappy with the deforestation exercise, Sunderbans affairs minister Kanti Ganguly has questioned the role played by the forest department. READ MORE

Solution for ecosystem restoration

Photo Credit Van Luu

VIETNAM- Thi Nai Lagoon is a “breeding-ground” for various kinds of aquatic species and has been benefiting thousands of local residents living around it. Yet, its ecosystem has deteriorated. The sub-project “Mangrove forestation at Thi Nai Lagoon” will aid not only the ecosystem restoration but the capacity building for climate change adaptation. READ MORE

Greenpeace names, shames companies over Indonesia paper
INDONESIA- Greenpeace accused foreign firms like Walmart, Carrefour and Tesco of contributing to forest destruction and species loss in Indonesiaby buying from paper and palm oil giant Sinar Mas. READ MORE

NORTH AMERICA

The GulfCoast joins an oil-soiled planet

USA- If you live on the GulfCoast, welcome to the real world of oil -- and just know that you're not alone. In the Niger Delta and the Ecuadorian Amazon, among other places, your emerging hell has been the living hell of local populations for decades. READ MORE

FDA nears approval of genetically engineered salmon
USA- Food and Drug Administration nears approval of genetically engineered salmon. They may not be the 500-pound "Frankenfish" that some researchers were talking about 10 years ago, but a Massachusetts company says it's on the verge of receiving federal approval to market a quick-growing Atlantic salmon that's been genetically modified with help from a Pacific Chinook salmon. READ MORE

Silent Summer - Gulf of MexicoOil Disaster Impacts
USA- Residents from the Gulf of Mexicoreport that schools of fish, manta rays, sharks, dolphins and sea turtles are fleeing the plumes of oil and solvents to the shallow waters off of the coasts of Alabama and Florida. Marine biologists from Duke University state that that the animals sense the change in water chemistry and try to escape the contaminated water dead zones by swimming toward the oxygen rich shallows. Here, they could be trapped between the approaching plumes of oil and the shoreline. Scientists warn of a mass die off. READ MORE

Conservation can be a weapon against poverty
MEXICO The Sierra Gorda Biosphere Reserve in Mexico shows how local people can be paid for protecting their environment, says Daniela Pastrana. The revenue is earmarked to finance Sustainable Forest projects, but the aim is to use the money to pay local communities for protecting the area. READ MORE

Prozac Pollution Making Shrimp Reckless
There's no happy ending for shrimp exposed to the mood-booster Prozac, according to a new study. Remnants of antidepressant drugs flushed into waterways worldwide are altering shrimp behavior and making them easier prey, experts say. READ MORE

AFRICA

How one scientist is battling deforestation in Madagascar

Photo Credit Roberto Schmidt

MADAGASCAR- Patricia Wright has devoted most of her professional life to working on Madagascar, home to a remarkable collection of plants and animals, more than 80 percent of which are endemic to the island nation. For more than two decades, Wright has managed to combine her research — among other things, she discovered two new species of lemurs on Madagascar— with efforts to preserve the country's beleaguered forests and the many species of flora and fauna they harbor. READ MORE

EUROPE

Editors Note: MAP’s Jim Enright was recently interviewed for this article recently published in Germany about the benefits mangroves play and the cost of their destruction.
Battling the weather with branches and roots

GERMANY- A new book about the state of the world's mangroves urges governments to protect their saline trees and shrubs or live to regret it. Jim Enright of the Asia branch of Mangrove Action Plan (MAP) underscored the depth of the problem for local people generally used to getting everything they need from the saline shrubs and trees that grow in their midst. READ MORE

Could things for biodiversity go from bad to worse?
Current efforts to protect the world's biodiversity run the risk of doing more harm than good, warns Krystyna Swiderska. In this week's Green Room, she says the role of indigenous and local communities in protecting the planet's genetic resources are being overlooked or even ignored. “There is an urgent need to protect this collective bio-cultural heritage in order to protect global food security and to enable people to adapt to climate change.” READ MORE

Stranded shrimp consignment from Bangladesh start making way to EU
The European Union (EU) has started allowing the entry of Bangladeshi shrimp consignment blocked under its new health regulation, after exporters secured a key quality certification, a trade official said Monday. The official said the Commerce Ministry issued more than 100 quality certificates over the last few days to help shrimp exporters meet the stringent food safety requirement in the 500 million consumer strong EU market. READ MORE

New UN body to put value on planet
The world relies on a range of services nature provides -- water filtration by forests, pollination by bees and a supply of wild plant genes for new food crops or medicines. If nature charged for these, how much would it cost? Most such values are excluded from measures of national economies and from prices and markets which would force businesses and governments to recognise them, and the result has been a bias towards development over conservation. United Nations States have proposed a new body, the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), to advise on valuing nature and conservation targets. READ MORE

Please pass these news alerts/ action alerts on to your own lists and contacts. Help us spread the word and further generate letters of concern, as this can make a big difference in helping to halt a wrongdoing or encourage correct action.