Blogpost by LisaV -
May 4, 2010 at
6:56 PM 2 comments
A report from the European Seafood Exposition
in Brussels last week - by Willie Mackenzie,
Greenpeace UK oceans campaigner.
In the shadow of the
improbably-shaped Atomium, thousands of
people gather to buy and sell seafood. Five
vast halls in an impossibly imposing building,
crammed for three days with every sort of
seafood you can imagine, as well as quite
a few you hadn’t yet dreamt up. The scale
of this takes your breath away. This is
the world’s largest seafood fair, and quite
literally it’s the place the big-money deals
are done to trade away our ocean life.
Greenpeace has been
here before, of course, and as a result
of our visit in 2008, the last time I was
here, there are some notable changes. The
word ‘sustainable’, or a logo implying it,
is on many more posters and hoardings for
a start, and they are also a little more
strict on security. But the big thing I
notice is the general lack of bluefin tuna.
In 2008 chunks of bluefin were happily on
display in freezer cabinets, and a few stalls
even had whole bluefin draped across their
displays like some sort of hunter’s trophy.
There are still stomach-churning displays
of ocean life, everywhere you look – sea
urchins, lobsters, octopus, tuna, eels,
caviar, salmon, tuna… and even shark fins.
Then there were the ubiquitous monkfish,
invariably displayed with something else
wedged between their fearsome jaws. But
the bluefin has pretty much disappeared
from the Exposition, and with it, the stalls
of many of the key bluefin traders: No Azzopardi,
no Ricardo Fuentes, and no Mitsubishi.
Those of us who’ve been
campaigning on fishy issues can take a little
pride in the fact that sustainability is
something traders at least know they have
to be able to spell, and that flagrantly
flaunting endangered species is no longer
the done thing. But the overwhelming feeling
amidst this orgy of oceanic destruction,
is that there is still so much to do.
In the course of a few
meetings we’ve had here it’s become apparent
that there are concerns from the guys who
are trying to change the other end of the
tuna industry, the tinned tuna, for the
better. In the UK, and subsequently in Italy,
and Australia, Greenpeace has taken retailers
to task over their tinned tuna. High amongst
the concerns are laughable labelling, and
fishing methods that kill lots of unwanted
species as bycatch. In Europe and in the
UK in particular, responsible retailers
have been quick to seek to improve their
sourcing. Led by Sainsbury’s, Marks &
Spencer, Waitrose, and Prêt a Manger
have switched to 100% pole-and-line caught
skipjack tuna. Other supermarkets have also
increased the amount they source from this
fishing method. So much so that the UK now
consumes the majority of the world’s pole-and-line
caught skipjack from the idyllic waters
of the Maldives.
Slap-bang in the middle
of the Indian Ocean, the Maldives is next
door to the Chagos Archipelago, now the
world’s largest Marine Reserve. It’s also
right in the midst of frenetic purse-seining
for tuna throughout the Indian Ocean, a
large part of which ends up on the European
supermarket shelves. The Maldives have successfully
excluded other fishing fleets from their
waters, but they know that tuna don’t respect
national boundaries, that purse-seining
in adjacent waters is at excessive levels,
and there’s rampant illegal fishing happening
too. For an economy dependent on fishing,
and facing the impacts of destructive climate
change before everyone else, it’s a depressing
outlook.
We need to support the
Maldivian pole-and-line fishery. We need
to develop similar operations elsewhere
too. Many of the Pacific Island Countries
are in prime position to limit foreign fishing
operations and develop locally owned and
operated sustainable pole and line fisheries
instead. And we need to clean up purse-seining,
and support those who are leading the charge
on that, too. Illegal fishing needs to be
totally stamped out, and bycatch needs to
be eliminated. With the UK’s evident appetite
for guilt-free fish, it’s clear that these
are things we care about.
But do we care enough?
And what exactly has all this got to do
with the price of fish?
How much does your tin
of tuna cost? And does what you pay for
it reflect the value of what’s inside, or
how it got there?
You need to pay more
for your tuna. There, I’ve said it. It’s
an unspoken truth in the developed world
that we have cheapened food as a commodity,
and seem to have no idea how much it should
be worth. Fish is a prime example. Unlike
millions of people in the developing world,
most of us in Europe don’t depend on fish
as a source of protein. And we also don’t
pay a fair price for it. ‘Half-price’ cod
fillets at your local supermarket? Buy one
get one free on packets of fish fingers?
5 Euros for a ring of king prawns? A tin
of tuna for 80 cents?
If we want responsibly-sourced
fish we need to pay for it. As it stands,
by not properly supporting the guys who
are trying to make a difference, we let
the others (from the cheaper, who-cares-what-we-do
end of the spectrum) out-compete them, and
steal their fish too. We distributed a leafelt
in the Brussels Seafood Exposition to demonstrate
that many well-known tinned tuna brands
are providing cheap tuna, at a high environmental
and social cost, and taking no action to
change this. some of the companies and tinned
tuna brands who by the use of intensive
and destructive fishing method provide cheap
tuna for high environmental and social cost
- and are no action to to change this.
If the fish are to survive,
and the fishing communities that depend
on them, we need to show a bit of respect
to the oceans, and expect to pay a fair
price for the fish we eat. That probably
means eating fish less frequently, but making
sure what you eat is responsibly-sourced.
If we don’t want that,
and just want cheap fish, to hell with the
cost… then best get eating it up as quickly
as you can. Because stocks won’t last.
+ More
Nuclear News: Protests
over re-opening of Japanese nuclear reactor
Blogpost by jmckeati
- May 7, 2010 at 12:17 PM Add comment Today's
big stories from the nuclear industry:
Protests over re-opening of Japanese nuclear
reactor ‘(Buddhika Weerasinghe-Japan) Japanese
peace and human right activists together
protest against to Japan's Atomic Energy
Agency (JAEA)has reactive controversial
"fast-breeder" Monju nuclear reactor14
years after the plant was shut down following
a liquid of sodium leaked and fire in 1995.
That fast breeder Monju nuclear reactor
suspended four months after start-up in
August 1995 and today morning 10.30 restarted
to operation. Two organizations of right
activists separate time morning and afternoon
protest against to restarted "fast-breeder"
Monju nuclear reactor. Fukui Kenmin Kagi
joint right organization about 30 activists
held protest rally and march to entrance
of Monju then later hand over the petition
and appeal suspend the operation of Monju.
Shrasaka Kzyhe, activist of "No more
Hiroshima, No more Nagasaki Action"
organization said, "Why they use 98%
plutonium? We think they try to make nuclear
bomb power of their politics. Five of members
of their organization come from Tokyo and
Toyama protest and strongly condemned of
Japan Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama and
reactive Monju.
San Onofre Nuclear Generating
Station gets another three years without
cooling towers ‘It will take another three
years for state water officials to determine
whether nuclear power plants like the San
Onofre Nuclear Generating Station are required
to install dozens of cooling towers so as
to avoid using ocean water for cooling.
Following an all-day hearing Tuesday, board
members with the state Water Quality Control
Board unanimously passed new regulations
for the state's 19 coastal power plants.
The regulations require plants using ocean
water for cooling to reduce their intake
by more than 90 percent in order to dramatically
reduce the amount of fish and fish eggs
that are taken from the Pacific Ocean and
killed in the process of generating electricity.
However, reducing water intake requires
the use of evaporative cooling towers that
expose hot water to cool air in a continuous
loop. Closed cooling tower systems are estimated
to use only about 5 percent as much water
at the "once through" systems
currently used by most plants.’
Nuke plant not in Klang
Valley ‘PETALING JAYA: Malaysia's first
nuclear power plant should not be built
in the Klang Valley which has a high population
of seven million people, said the atomic
energy regulator. Atomic Energy Licensing
Board director-general Raja Datuk Abdul
Aziz Raja Adnan said the plant and its buffer
zone needed to be constructed on at least
2.6sq-km of land, equal to about 314 football
pitches. Abdul Aziz, who claimed he was
neither for nor against nuclear energy,
said the plant would need a base of solid
rock with little or no seismic movement,
more than 10m elevation to be safe from
disasters like tsunamis and hurricanes,
and located near a large body of water for
cooling purposes. "It needs to be near
the electricity grid in order to 'hook'
onto it and on the least populated area
with no other land use. "So, the Klang
Valley is expected to be out," he said
in an interview yesterday. Abdul Aziz was
commenting on a statement by Energy, Green
Technology and Water Minister Datuk Seri
Peter Chin Fah Kui that his ministry was
currently conducting a study into constructing
Malaysia's first plant, estimated to cost
RM20bil.’
EDF agrees nuclear partnership
with China ‘EDF has signed agreements with
China National Nuclear Corporation and China
Guangdong Nuclear Power Holding Company
(CGNPC) to become a partner in China's nuclear
programme. The agreement is intended to
strengthen the engineering collaboration
between the companies, which started with
the construction of the nuclear plants of
Daya Bay and Ling Ao in Guangdong Province.
This agreement will see increased liaison
between the two groups, particularly in
the fields of training, project management
and R&D. The partnership with CGNPC
complements the joint-venture agreement,
concluded with EDF in 2008, for the construction
and operation of two EPR nuclear reactors
at Taishan. It provides a broader framework
for co-operation between the two groups,
particularly in the fields of engineering,
purchasing and R&D. It is also a reminder
of the determination of EDF and CGNPC to
identify the opportunities for joint development
projects, both within China and internationally.’
Final acceptance of
initial Tianwan units ‘The final acceptance
documents for the initial phase of the Tianwan
nuclear power plant in China have been signed
by general contractor AtomStroyExport (ASE)
of Russia and the plant owner, Jiangsu Nuclear
Power Corporation (JNPC). The documents
were signed by Alexander Nechaev, first
vice-president of ASE, and Jiang Ghoyuan,
general manager of JNPC. JNPC was established
in December 1997, primarily to be responsible
for the construction and operation of Tianwan
plant. The corporation consists of three
shareholders: China National Nuclear Corporation
(50%), China Power Investment Corporation
(30%) and Jiangsu Guoxin Group (20%). Tianwan
Phase I at Lianyungang city in Jiangsu province
was constructed under a 1992 cooperation
agreement between China and Russia. The
cost of the project - comprising two 1060
MWe Russian AES-91 type VVER pressurized
water reactors - is reported to be $3.2
billion, with China contributing $1.8 billion
of this. The reactors incorporate Finnish
safety features and Siemens-Areva instrumentation
and control systems. Russia's Energoatom
has been responsible for maintenance from
2009. First concrete at the Tianwan site
was poured in October 1999.’
Another major investor
for Kalahari ‘Hong Kong-listed trading company
APAC Resources Limited is to buy up to 7.1%
of Kalahari Minerals, giving it a major
investment in the mining company which is
looking to develop Namibian uranium interests.
London-based Kalahari announced that it
has agreed to sell up to 16 million ordinary
shares at a price of £1.85 ($2.79)
each, equivalent to a total of £29.6
million ($44.6 million). The shares will
be sold in two tranches, with the first
tranche of 4.8 million shares to be acquired
by APAC on 7 May and the second tranche
of at least 7.4 million and up to 11.2 million
shares on or by 10 June. Kalahari executive
chairman Mark Hohnen welcomed APAC as a
shareholder register, noting that the development
gave further support to the company's "already
strong institutional backing" - APAC
joins Japanese trading house Itochu, which
agreed to take a 15% share of the company
in March 2010. According to Hohnen, APAC's"
invaluable relationships and contacts in
the Chinese commodities market" will
further strengthens Kalahari's exposure
to the Asian resource sector. APAC is a
natural resources and investment trading
group with a focus on base metals.
