Faster than global warming, pollution kills reefs

Reuters reports that global warming is affecting ecosystems that in turn could kill off ocean coral in 100 years, but man made pollution is speeding up the process.

A few of the detrimental problems facing ocean ecosystems are sewage, pesticide runoff, and overfishing; all factors are contributing to the fast decline of native coral.

"Across the Caribbean, the amount of reef surface covered by live coral has fallen about 80 percent in the last three decades, the Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network says."

Read the full story: Pollution killing world's coral reefs

Airlines group to use biofuel in commercial flights

Environmental News Network reports that aviation industry leaders Boeing and Virgin will join eight other airlines to "speed up the development of sustainable, second-generation biofuels for use in the commercial aviation industry."

"Billy Glover, managing director of environmental strategy for Boeing, said the effort will allow airlines to take control of their future fuel supply while curbing the industry's impact on the environment. 'The number one priority going forward is to complete thorough assessments of sustainable plant sources, harvesting and economic impacts, and processing technologies that can help achieve that goal,' he said in a statement."

Read the full story: Boeing, Virgin join group committed to biofuel for commercial jets

CA to boost economy by combating global warming

The Sacramento Bee reports on the recently released study that shows California will actually get a boost to their economy by combating global warming.

The state analysis predicts that the Golden State's mandate to cut vehicle and industry greenhouse gas emissions by one-third in the next 12 years will increase the economy, even though the measures are costly:

"The study, generated from computer models, shows that the bulk of the economic benefits will come from investments in costlier but more efficient vehicles, appliances and industrial equipment that more than pay for themselves by 2020, the deadline for meeting the targeted reductions."

Read the full story: Global warming fight will boost California economy, study says

Whale calls heard for first time off NYC

U.S. News & World Report reports on the first recorded whale calls heard off of New York City's harbor area.

Scientists installed recording equipment 13 miles off of New York Harbor and Fire Island and were rewarded with the sounds of three different whale species; fin, humpback and North Atlantic right whales.

"'With data generated by acoustic monitoring, we can better understand New York's role in the life history of these endangered whales and make more informed conservation decisions,' said James Gilmore, chief of the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation's Bureau of Marine Resources. 'This is especially important for the survival of right whales.'"

Whales (like the right whale pictured above) are vulnerable to being killed by shipping vessels. Being better able to monitor the migration patterns of whales will enable shipping lines to avoid colliding and killing the endangered mammals.

Read the full story: Whales heard near New York City

Wind turbines, low-flush toilets at nation's airports

USA Today reports on the eco-friendly measures some airports are adopting.

Boston Logan International (picture right) installed 20 wind turbines in July, that are expected to generate 100,000 kilowatt hours each year - about 3 percent of the airport's electrical needs.

"U.S. airlines emitted about 418 billion pounds of carbon dioxide in 2007, according to the Air Transport Association, the airline industry trade group.

But like many other industries, airports are embracing the green zeitgeist, triggered partly by better social awareness and improving technology, and made more urgent by rising fuel prices. 'If you're watching oil prices, it gives you more incentive for somebody like us to look at pilot programs for energy savings,' says Sam Sleiman, Boston Logan's director of capital programs and environmental affairs. 'The perception is that airports are pollutants, and we wanted to change the perception.'"

Read the full story: Airports go for green with eco-friendly efforts

Adventure fall foliage

MSNBC reports on alternative and adventurous ways to enjoy the fall foliage this Autumn.

Most of these include nature-appreciating activities such as hiking, rafting, kayaking, and rock climbing.

Zip-lining through the tree tops in Colorado is represented in the picture above.

Read the full story: Alternative Autumn: foliage for active travelers

LA ports clean-trucks program delayed by Feds

The Los Angeles Times updates the story about the L.A. and Long Beach ports adoption of clean-trucks - which now is under a federal inquiry that could push back its October 1 launch.

A nine-page request for information issued by the Federal Maritime Commission questions the ports' landmark clean-truck program, scheduled to start next month:

"The agency could go to federal court to block implementation if it doesn't like the answers.

At issue is the first effort by a major U.S. seaport to reduce diesel truck emissions by banning the oldest trucks that move cargo to and from the docks. The Port of Los Angeles program would require the creation of trucking companies or concessions to hire drivers who now operate as independent owner operators."

Read the full story: Federal inquiry could delay clean-trucks program

MTV crew destroys Panamanian rain forest

Tree Climber's Coalition reports on the destruction that an MTV reality show crew did to a Panamanian rain forest site.

Entertainment productions always disturb normal ways of life. In New York City, there is always some sort of production every week with crews setting up their stuff all over the place and closing off streets.

But in this instance MTV - who has a so-called "green crusade" - did not abide by their own self-proclaimed eco-ness.

The TCC has a first-hand account of the disturbance the "Real World/Road Rules Challenge" did to the normally quiet Panamanian beach area they filmed in.

When MTV left TCC noticed that MTV left trash, created new roads, and clear-cut the rain forest - all for their production.

Read the full story: "Reality" TV gets real trashy

Fly to Stockholm, overnight in plane hostel

CNN reports on the old 747 plane that has been turned into a novel hostel at Stockholm's Arlanda airport.

Swedish hostel developer, Oscar Dios, created the Jumbo Hostel (picture above) from an old Transjet Airways Boeing 747:

"'We were looking to expand the [hostel] business but it was more or less impossible to find reasonably priced housing at the airport. And you cannot build a new house and run a hostel because it is too expensive,' he said."

Jumbo hostel will have space for 85 guests (the original configuration had 350 seats) priced from 110 Euros ($150) for a three-person suite to 500 Euros ($700) for the cockpit suite, and is scheduled to open in December 2008.

Read the full story: Airplane hostel prepares for lift-off

Asia bird-watching is some of the best in the world

The Wall Street Journal weekend's Steve Mollman reports from Southeast Asia on the growing popularity of bird-watching in that part of the world.

His first-hand account starts off bad; he woke up late for the beginning of his Bali, Indonesia birding tour and runs to meet his group - (probably making a big ruckus and actually scaring the birds the group wants to see).

Most of the people who go on bird-watching tours in Asia are westerners, but the sport is slowly catching on with Asians:

"In fact, birders are spoiled for choice in Asia, with great sites from Malaysia to China to Taiwan. Indonesia's Sulawesi island 'is becoming increasingly popular,' thanks in part to better roads and more inter-island flights, says James Eaton, a 26-year-old British birding enthusiast who runs U.K.-based Birdtour Asia.

And then there is India. 'Everywhere you go, there's birds,' says Mr. Eaton. Even in Delhi's city center, he says he finds species ranging from eagles to wild green parakeets."

Read the full story: Flight time: bird-watching takes off in Asia

Mollman mentions the bird-watching tours in Cambodia run by the Sam Veasna Center, where Ecotravel News traveled to last year. For more on this click here to read my print report and click here to watch my video report.

Rare okapi spotted in African park

The BBC reports on sightings of the rare wild okapi in the Democratic Republic of Congo's (DRC) Virunga National Park.

The shy animals - that mythical unicorns have been based on - are "under threat from the bush meat trade."

The Zoological Society of London (ZSL) set up hidden camera triggers through out VNP and captured photos of the okapi:

"The latest pictures were taken by traps set by ZSL in conjunction with the Congolese Institute for Nature Conservation (ICCN).

Thierry Lusenge, a member of ZSL's DRC survey team, said: 'We have already identified three individuals, and further survey work will enable us to estimate population numbers and distribution in and around the Virunga Park, which is a critical first step in targeting conservation efforts.'"

Read the full story: Rare African okapi seen in wild

For previously reported stories from Ecotravel News on wildlife protection in the DRC's Virunga NP:
click here to read about elephant poaching
click here to read about conservationists attacked

Refuel electric car at plug-in station

Reuters video reports on electric car plug-in stations in Germany.

Car maker Daimler, who has unveiled an electric version of the popular Smart car, has partnered with electric company RWE, who will provide 500 "refueling stations" around the country.

Watch the video below:

Large numbers of endangered Cambodian monkey

U.S. News and World Report reports that large numbers of two endangered monkeys in Cambodia have been recorded.

There were 42,000 black-shanked douc langurs (pic right) and 2,500 yellow-cheeked crested gibbons tallied in Cambodia by the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS); some of the largest numbers of these threatened species.

"'Despite this good news in Cambodia, the [Seima Biodiversity Conservation Area] still remains at risk from conversion to agro-industrial plantations for crops, including biofuels, and commercial mining,' said Tom Clements, lead author of the WCS report."

Read the full story: Threatened monkey populations surprisingly large

Where global warming is now: Alaska

The Christian Science Monitor reports on Alaska, where global warming and its consequences are being felt now.

Alaska's glaciers are melting at double the amounts just 10 years ago and melting ice is raising sea levels almost double to that of Greenland's.

Milder winters are also allowing insects such as the spruce bark beetle to survive and decimate native spruce trees.

Other problems include changing wetlands:

"Now shrubs and trees are encroaching on what has been a peat moss-dominated bog. Cores taken show no evidence of woody plants until the top, or recent decades. Their arrival implies a drying-out, [says Ed Berg, an ecologist with the US Department of Fish and Wildlife]."

Read the full story: Alaska: climate-change frontier

UK artificial reef to bring waves and marine life

Reuters video reports on the first artificial reef to be created in Europe.

The British coast near the city of Bournemouth is the recipient of the reef that will bring perfect waves for surfing and a haven for marine life.

Watch the report below:

Green-moons = environmentally friendly honeymoons

There are honeymoons, babymoons, and now green-moons; which are for those eco-conscious just-married folks who want to leave a small carbon footprint as they start their newlywed bliss.

Wedding planning website, weddingchannel.com via Kentucky's Lexington Herald-Leader reviews three eco-resorts that sound perfect for a green honeymoon.

Jean-Michel Cousteau, son of famed naturalist Jacques Cousteau, runs his self-named eco-resort (picture above) on Fiji:

"The 17-acre retreat is settled among a coconut plantation on the shores of Savusavu Bay. Cousteau is dedicated to natural living, and his resort is the only one in Fiji to have a full-time, on-site marine biologist. They also have an organic garden, edible landscaping, a wastewater system that uses coconuts and recycled bottles to produce clean water in the lagoons and daily lectures about Fiji's culture and environment."

Read the full story: Eco-honeymoons: top green resorts

Global warming's effects

Earth First has a poignant article detailing seven areas of the world that are being directly and direly affected by global warming.

As the global temperature increases, so does the severity of natural phenomena such as major storms like hurricanes and cyclones, insects are able to survive and prosper in climes that used to be too cold for them, and melting glaciers cause oceans to rise and create severe flooding.

Airline and car travel create greenhouse gas emissions that contribute greatly to the man-made problem of global warming.

Read the full story: 7 places global warming is smacking the crap out of the Earth right now

Bus deals D.C. to NYC

Now that gas is so expensive, more and more people are using public buses to get around.

There's always been Greyhound, but now between the busy Northeast corridor, the demand for cheaper and better rides give travelers more options to choose from.

The Washington Post has a review of six bus lines going to and from Washington D.C. to New York City.

Ecotravel News can vouch for the environmental-friendliness, cheapness, and convenience of the Chinatown buses as written in this previous post; as for safety, that's another issue.

Read the full story: D.C. to New York: The deals on the bus go round and round

Photo from Picassa website, click here to read the photographer's review of the Bolt Bus from D.C. to NYC.

Enjoy Fall in the NE with AMC deals

USA Today reports on the Fall outdoor deals from the Appalachian Mountain Club (AMC).

AMC has many new programs to help nature lovers enjoy the Northeast region:

"A series of themed, all-inclusive family weekends are planned throughout September and October at AMC's New Hampshire lodges. The programs will include guided nature walks, foliage hikes and naturalist programs, along with activities like visiting an apple orchard, pumpkin and leaf crafts, wildlife watching and haunted evening hikes."

Read the full story: Appalachian travel packages emphasize the outdoors

Riding the old railway line, on bikes

The Seattle Post-Intelligencer keeps the theme of the last post (upswing in bike vacations) alive with their report on the scenic bike trip through Iron Horse State Park trail in Washington State.

The 109-mile trail is built on the old railway bed that connected Chicago to the Pacific Northwest and shut down in 1980.

A shuttle service now takes bikers to both ends of the trail near North Bend and Snoqualmie Pass.

"'It's a very friendly ride. The scenery is beautiful and I think my favorite part is the railroad trestles, and looking down on the tops of the trees," said Cynthia McMath of Lynnwood, a friend [of reporter Greg Johnston]. 'I like that as you ride down the trail and approach the creeks, you can feel the temperature change, and you can listen to the creeks as you're passing. The wildflowers are pretty, too.'"

Read the full story: Rolling on the old Milwaukee rail line