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Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Help us recruit Daryl Hanna as MAPs spokesperson for the Mangroves!
Please Save the Endangered Bimini Island Boa
Edgar Fortune, President and CEO of GICS has entered into a partnership with Dr. Samuel Gruber, Lead Scientist and Owner of the Bimini Biological Field Station (BBFS) to conduct a field based research project aimed at benefiting the endangered Bimini Boa (Epicrates striatus fosteri). The planned date for the project is 2010.
The destruction of the native mangrove forests and sea grass in the name of development has catastrophic potential for the future of many species of animals; sharks, shell fish, birds, reptiles etc. that rely on these forests (both above and below the water) for their survival and very existence. A short film documenting the threats to the sawfish, native to the waters off of Bimini does an excellent job of summing up the impacts and threats to this ecosystem - we encourage you to watch it at:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XOptwatDWQ0
Before we can help a species like the Bimini Boa we must first do our best to understand them; know their habitat, range, population numbers, sensitivities, adaptability and susceptibilities.
Only through sound research can we give such a species an effective voice in the face of progress. One that will speak confidently, eloquently, and accurately to the impacts further development will have on their species survival. Animals are being counted, populations estimated, individuals are weighed, measured and fitted with transponders to better understand their range and territories.
Snakes in general present a unique challenge to researchers in that they do not feed daily like most other animals and reptiles. A snake can go weeks and in some cases months in-between feedings making it very difficult to conduct a census and making radio telemetry studies on those that you do find all that much more important.
In partnering with BBFS, GICS offers extensive expertise in working with snakes and hopes to help further this research and help in the efforts to save this and other species threatened by the ever expanding foot print of man.
We are asking for donations that will benefit the Bimini Island Boa through conservation related activities that include:
1. Surveying the population to assess their
threatened status
2. Comparing sub-adult and adult behaviors
via radio telemetry
3. Permanently marking individuals with
Passive Integrated Transponders (PIT tags)
4. Documenting habitat preferences and
behaviors
5. Conducting a conservation education
program for the local community
Your contribution will help support our efforts in raising $12,000 to fund this project. Without donations the Bimini Boa will most likely fall to extinction without so much as a footnote in history. All donations are appreciated.
If you would like to make a donation or more information about the Endangered Bimini Island Boa please contact Edgar Fortune at edgarfortune@islandecosystems.org.
Thursday, April 15, 2010
Urgent Appeal For Halt to Mangrove Destruction at Bimini!
This is a follow up letter to one i sent earlier urging him to take a stand to protect Bimini's shores.
Farmers Urged to ban Saline Water Shrimp Cultivation in Coastal Region of Bangladesh
Speakers in a Human Chain and Procession in Khulna stressed for an order from Government to prohibit saline water intrusion in the agricultural land for shrimp farming towards longevity of the coastal embankments and sustainable agriculture in Coastal Zone of Bangladesh. They also demanded to undertake Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Programme to foster country's development with equity and justice. Humanitywatch along with other more than 29 organizations including Saline Water Protesting Committee, Association of Landless People and Dacope Citizens' Committee organized the program under Campaign for Sustainable Rural Livelihoods (CSRL) on 1st April 2010 in front of Khulna District Council. Hundreds of landless farmer, agricultural labour, political leaders, civil society representatives, non-government organization leaders and professional association leaders participated in the program. The human chain chaired by educationalist Professor Jafar Imam and conducted by humanitywatch chief executive Hasan Mehedi.
Humanitywatch along with members from Ganges Floodplain Agroecological zone AOSED, CDP, Dhrupad, EFADF, Ideal, IDF, Jago Nari, JJS, Khalifa Foundation, Ledars, Locos, Muktir Alo, NSS, PGUS, Prodipan, Progoti, Rupayan, Saco, SPS, Sodesh, Uddom and Campaign lead Uttaran organized the Human Chain and Submission of Memorandum with active support from BELA, Nijera Kori, Dacope Nagorik Parishad, Lobonjol Protirodh Committee and Bhumihin Sangathan.
The speakers said, the agriculture and livestock of coastal zone already have declined due to excessive saline water intrusion by cutting the embankments for brackish water shrimp cultivation. Situation of poverty has reduced in all of the regions of Bangladesh except the southwest coastal zone due to shrimp cultivation. Some people become rich with the shrimp, but millions of people become poorer from the poor. The largest mangrove forest, Sundarbans, also destroyed due to denuding its buffer zone and adjacent agroforestry trends.
The farmers said, the embankments weakened before cyclone Aila because the shrimp farm owners cut embankments in more than hundred places, installed more than 3 hundred illegal sluice gates, and more than 3 thousand 7 hundred pipes in the embankments. So, they are solely responsible for collapsing the embankments in cyclone Aila. With collaboration of Bangladesh Water Development Board (BWDB) the shrimp farm owners are still trying to stop rehabilitation of the embankments, they complained.
According to the Integrated Coastal Zone Management Plan (ICZMP) and Manual of BWDB, brackish water shrimp cultivation is totally prohibited in some polders. Moreover, the Supreme Court has ordered the government to protect cultivable land from saline water in its judgement on 15 February 2010. But the shrimp farm owners ignored all laws and regulations, the civil society leaders said.
The speakers urged the government to implement 8 point demand including implementing Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP), banning industrial shrimp cultivation in agricultural land, dismantling all illegal sluice gates, pipes and cuts, punishment of responsible persons for damaging embankments, compensation from shrimp farm owners for social and environmental loss, distributing Khasland and common water bodies to the landless common people, amendment of Embankment and Drainage Act 1952, adoption of a new Embankment Management Policy with options of participation, tidal river management (TRM) and joint management etc.
Among others Jalal Uddin of Nijera Kori, Mahfuzur Rahman Mukul of BELA, Agriculturist Tayyebur Rahman of EFADF, Alamgir Islam Lablu of SPS, Deb Prosad Roy of Locos, Abu Hasan Bakul of Muktir Alo, Khalid Hossain of Rupayan, SM Solayman of IDF, Swapon Kumar Das of Dalit, Habibur Rahman Kabir of NEEDS, Mamunur Rashid of Juba Nagorik Samaj, Farmers' Leader Abdul Jalil, Kader Mollah and Arnika Dhali, Amiya Das, Atiar Rahman and Jahanara Begum of Labonjol Protirodh Committee, Chitta Goldar and SA Rashid of Communist Party of Bangladesh, Rafiqul Huq Khokon of Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal, Manirul Huq Bacchu of Biplobi Communist Party, Dr. Samaresh Mondal of Workers Party, Shariful Islam Salim of Humanitywatch and Hasan Mehedi of Aila Durgoto Sanghati Mancho addressed the participants.
National electronic media Ekushe Television and Banglavision telecasted the program in their news. Local daily newspapers daily Purbanchal, daily Janmabhumi, daily Probaho, daily Probartan, daily Anirban and daily Tathya along with National daily newspapers such as Daily Sangbad, Daily Kaler Kantho, Daily Jaijaidin, Daily Samakal, Daily Jugantor and Daily Newage published the news of the program
Please click on the links to see the news.
Daily Sangbad: http://sangbad.com.
Daily Kaler Kantho: http://www.
Daily Jaijaidin: http://www.
Daily Samakal: http://www.samakal.
See the more photos: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/emr_group/attachments/folder/858720623/item/1638803653/view
Thank you all
hwforg@yahoo.com
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