Deforestation, Poaching and the Wildlife Trade in Indonesia The rainforests of Indonesia once covered 84% of the countries 17,508 islands (CIA World Factbook Statistic), providing a safe haven for thousands of different species. At the turn of the 20th century, 170 million hectares of dense primary rainforest covered the archipelago but in present day, there are less than 98 million hectares remaining. Rivaling Brazil in terms of biodiversity, Indonesia is home to 1,531 species of bird, 515 species of mammal, 270 species of amphibian, 35 species of primate and 38,000 species of plant. 31.1 % of all species in Indonesia are endemic with 9.9% of the total number of species threatened by poaching, logging and agricultural development. The sheer scale of diversity makes Indonesia’s rainforests one of the most important ecosystems in our world today. Logging, conducted both legally and illegally, is accounting for a huge decrease in forest cover, particularly primary forest, across the archipelago.
Sciene Podcasts, The World Each week, The World’s Rhitu Chatterjee brings you the latest and greatest science news from all four corners of the globe. You can subscribe via iTunes, RSS or email. Also, check out our Science Forum page. Tweets and Germs, Science of Autobiographical Memory Podcast 161: The promise and challenge of monitoring infectious diseases online. Kids Improve Lives in Kolkata Slums, Mummies with Heart Disease Podcast 160: CT Scans of mummies from around the world show they had heart disease. The Science of Predicting Earthquakes, My Favorite 2012 Stories Podcast 159: A conversation with British seismologist Roger Musson about his new book on the science of predicting earthquakes. Origins of the Turkey, Restoring India’s Riverbanks, Clever Dog Lab Podcast 158: Your thanksgiving turkey is not as American as you may think. The Threat of Zoonotic Diseases, Boosting Kids’ Brainpower Podcast 157: David Quammen on his new book, Spillover:Animal Infections and Human Pandemics.
Occupy’s next frontier: Foreclosed homes Occupy Wall Street is promising a “big day of action” Dec. 6 that will focus on the foreclosure crisis and protest “fraudulent lending practices,” “corrupt securitization,” and illegal evictions by banks. The day will mark the beginning of an Occupy Our Homes campaign that organizers hope will energize the movement as it moves indoors as well as bring the injustices of the economic crisis into sharp relief. Many of the details aren’t yet public, but protesters in 20 cities are expected to take part in the day of action next Tuesday. We’ve already seen eviction defenses at foreclosed properties around the country as well as takeovers of vacant properties for homeless families. Occupy Our Homes organizer Abby Clark tells me protesters are planning to “mic-check” (i.e., disrupt) foreclosure auctions as well as launch some new home occupations. “This is a shift from protesting Wall Street fraud to taking action on behalf of people who were harmed by it.
Bloggingheads.tv Deforestation campaigning led to my deportation from Indonesia | Andy Tait | Environment Last week, I was in Indonesia. I'd travelled there to work with colleagues in Jakarta and Sumatra on our continuing campaign to end the devastation of the country's magnificent rainforests. But after an extremely intense few days, I left the country prematurely on Wednesday evening. I had been due to stay longer and had a business visa to allow me to do so, but we were receiving advice that if I stayed it was likely to bring more risk to my colleagues working there. I feel very sad about leaving, not least because the last parting gesture from a group of officials at the airport was to place a large red deportation stamp in my passport. So, why was I deported? Our work against APP has focused upon asking it to follow GAR's lead on sustainability, something that it is resisting ever more strongly. And then things became a little surreal. These are areas the company claims are degraded and therefore suitable for clearing and replacing with plantations.
'Occupy Our Homes' Campaign Brings Protests to Foreclosed Homes A subset of Occupy Wall Street protesters across the country are bringing their fight indoors with plans to stay in foreclosed homes for months. The group launched a national campaign on Tuesday called Occupy Our Homes -- literally living in the homes of foreclosed homeowners, giving temporary reprieve from the bitter cold. Nick Espinosa, one of the organizers of Occupy Minneapolis, which officially launched Oct. 7, said Minnesota's cold makes it difficult for people to spend the winter outdoors, where the temperature is forecasted to reach a low of two degrees on Thursday just as Hennepin County authorities removed unattended tarps and chairs at the plaza outside the Minneapolis government center, the Associated Press reported. The numbers at the plaza fluctuate, but they are "dwindling," Espinosa said. "It makes sense to be indoors but really this is a larger issue," he said. Peter Leeman/Kyle Kehrwald Postal Service Could Eliminate 1-Day Delivery Watch Video "They haven't said much.
Rainforest Deforestation undefined Environmental and Cultural Implications of Rainforest Deforestation inSoutheast Asia Facts about RainforestsPlants and MedecinesAnimals Negative effects of deforestationSoil DepletionGreenhouse EffectBusiness turns to AsiaThe Positive SideHealth ProblemsWho's to BlameIndigenous PeopleProtecting Their LandsOn the Tide of ChangeEnvironmental ActionDomestic Environmental Action GroupsInternational Environmental Action GroupsEnvironmental LegislatureBeginning of LoggingTechnology vs. EnvironmentConclusionLinks to Related Sites Please note, this website was posted with 1997 statistics Rainforests are one of the world’s resources which produce many of the items we take for granted in our lives, such as food and medecines. Facts About Rainforests: Rainforests cover 2% of the earth’s surface and 7% of its land mass. Plants and medecines: Rainforests support 90,000 of the 250,000 identified plant species. Animals: Negative effects of deforestation: Soil Depletion Greenhouse Effect T.R.
Occupy Our Homes Faces Off With US Marshals in Washington Share Occupy Our Homes engaged in a dramatic faceoff this morning with US Marshals and local police in northeast Washington D.C., less than a mile from the US Capitol building. About thirty Occupiers arrived at the home of Dawn Butler around 8 am, in the 900 block of Maryland Ave NE, to block a looming eviction—and what followed left one Occupier and one US Marshal in the hospital. Butler doesn’t own the home, but has rented it since 2006. Her landlord fell behind on her mortgage payments while sick with cancer, and the property was foreclosed on—but D.C. law says tenants have the first right of purchase on a home where the landlord loses the title. An eviction notice came last night, and this morning the protesters showed up to help. Heavily armed US Marshals, however, made quick work of the protester’s blockade. Once the steps were cleared, the Marshals ripped down the milk crates and the front door of the house along with it, while simultaneously battling the protesters.
Deforestation in the Amazon While this is welcome news for Earth's largest rainforest, it is nonetheless important to understand why more than 580,000 square kilometers (224,000 square miles) of Amazon forest has destroyed in Brazil since 1980. Why has Brazil lost so much forest? What can be done to stop deforestation? In the past, Brazilian deforestation was strongly correlated to the economic health of the country: the decline in deforestation from 1988-1991 nicely matched the economic slowdown during the same period, while the rocketing rate of deforestation from 1993-1998 paralleled Brazil's period of rapid economic growth. But this has all changed since the mid-2000s, when the link between deforestation and the broader Brazilian economy began to wane. A Closer Look at Brazilian Deforestation (Update: Future threats to the Amazon) Like other places in the tropics, deforestation in Brazil is increasingly the result of urban consumption and trade rather than subsistence agriculture. Clearing for Cattle Pasture Fires
“The Chief of Police Stepped On Me and Then He Charged Me With Rioting”: Activists Face Jail Time for Defending Homes Police Chief Dolan steps on protesters on his way into the Cruz home. (Peter Leeman)Photo Credit: Peter Leeman August 21, 2012 | Like this article? Join our email list: Stay up to date with the latest headlines via email. The police came at four in the morning with a battering ram to the Cruz home in Minneapolis, Minnesota. “After we had been peacefully occupying this house for over a month without any incidents, then they come in with a battering ram and blame us for disturbing the peace,” said Nick Espinosa, one of the organizers with Occupy Homes Minnesota, which has taken the lead in saving local families from being put out on the street. The battering ram was just adding insult to injury—the Cruz family was being evicted through no fault of their own, because PNC bank had made a mistake in processing their payments. They face up to two years in prison. “The chief of police was there the night I was arrested. Evicted by Bank Error