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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~MarinE~Wire~~~~~~~~~~~~~~10/8/98~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Contents:
Item #1-
WILL WE BE TO BLAME FOR WHY THE OTHER HALF STARVES?
GSA Press Release (Embargoed)
Item #2-
Backgrounder:
Norwegians wreak most havoc on ecology
WWK/Calgary Herald
..............................................................................
#1
PRESS RELEASE Oct. 8, 1998 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
WILL WE BE TO BLAME FOR WHY THE OTHER HALF STARVES?
-------------------------------
(Nanaimo, BC, 8 October 1998) - Renewable resources are the base of all
economies. People cannot live without them. Yet, according to a recent study
by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) some of the countries that see
themselves as the most "green" are actually wreaking the most havoc on the
world's environment. And the Georgia Strait Alliance (GSA) says the report
suggests a loud note of caution for the BC government in considering whether
or not to lift its moratorium on salmon farming.
GSA notes that two of the three countries ranked most "environmentally
destructive" are the two most important salmon farming countries in the
world. (Norway is ranked as #1, with Chile #3 in the WWF report.) And GSA
warns that if Canada tries to become the world's third largest farmed salmon
producer, then Canada may end up in the top three or four of environmental
destructiveness as well.
Norway was ranked #1 in the most destructive list because it puts four times
as much pressure on the environment as the average global citizen - with the
main reason being its consumption of fish. The country catches 250 kg of
fish per capita, more than 10 times the world average. But most of this
catch is not eaten directly by people - it's fed to salmon in fish farms.
"Poor countries are under pressure to fish for export to pay interest on
their foreign debts. As a result, South American fish that could be feeding
people there is instead going to create fishmeal for farmed salmon in the
rich countries," says Laurie MacBride, Executive Director of the Georgia
Strait Alliance. "The food that the poor are depending on is being gobbled
by farm salmon to become the food of the rich."
One billion people in developing countries depend on fish as their main
source of protein, and fish supplies two-fifths of all the protein consumed
in the Third World. Yet while the human population is expected to double
in the next century, fish stocks are rapidly declining for a number of
reasons - among them, says GSA, the increasing demand of the Norwegian,
Chilean, Scottish and Canadian salmon farming industry.
Farm salmon require high percentages of fish protein and oil to replicate
their wild cousins' diets. It is illegal to fish to produce fish meal in
Canada using fish which could be used for human consumption, so Canadian
fish farmers must go elsewhere to find fish protein. According to GSA, the
ratio of feed fish (from which dried feed is manufactured) to fresh salmon
product can be as high as 8 to 1. Of the total world catch of fish in 1994,
almost a third (31.6%) was reduced to fishmeal and oil.
"Multinational salmon farm corporations have no right to take more from
nature than be can replenished. We should not be using South American
mackerel, anchovies, smelt and other food fish so wastefully," says MacBride.
In addition to the high fish consumption, GSA says the fish farming industry
has a notorious environmental record. MacBride says that the Norwegian
industry has resulted in 40 of the country's rivers being infected with the
Gyrodactulus parasite and 74 with furunculosis (a fish disease), and that as
a result the Norwegian government has had to poison 24 rivers with rotenone
(a highly toxic pesticide) in order to stop the further spread to wild fish
stocks, which have been seriously decimated. "Norway is a great example of
why salmon farming should only be done in safe, closed loop containment
systems," says MacBride.
The federal government recently financed a study that concluded that BC's
salmon farming industry could increase to $1 billion annually if the
provincial moratorium on expansion was removed. According to GSA, this would
clearly place Canada as the world's third-ranking salmon producer - and
potentially one of the most environmentally-destructive countries on the
planet.
"Canada didn't make the "WWF Worst Three" list this time around. I certainly
hope we won't enter the next century as a major contributor to Third World
hunger and coastal environmental degradation because of salmon farming,"
concluded MacBride.
-30-
Information: Laurie MacBride, 250-753-3459 / 250-247-8670
Howard Breen, 250-247-7467, hbreen at island.net
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Item #2-
Backgrounder
Norwegians wreak most havoc on ecology
======================================
Norwegians, who pride themselves on their green attitudes, are the most
environmentally destructive people on Earth, a report by the World Wide
Fund for Nature said Thursday.
The study found that Norwegians place four times as much pressure on the
environment as the average global citizen and 50 per cent more than
Americans or Australians.
The reason is Norway's consumption of marine fish. The country catches
250 kg of fish per head, more than 10 times the world average. Much of it is
not eaten directly, but fed to salmon in fish farms.
The worst offenders after Norway, when it comes to consuming the world's
natural resources are Taiwan, Chile, Singapore and Denmark. The United
States, Australia, Kuwait and Canada also appear in the top 12. Britain
is 41st while the country with the lowest per-capita impact is Bangladesh.
The findings are based on a "living planet index'' -- which WWF hopes
will become the equivalent of the Dow Jones Index for the environment.
This shows that one-third of the Earth's natural wealth has been lost
over the past 25 years.
Researchers analysed human consumption of forests, freshwater and marine
species, emissions of carbon dioxide, the consumption of grain and use
of cement in 152 countries between 1970 and 1995.
The results did not prevent the report from winning an endorsement from
Gro Harlem Brundtland, former prime minister of Norway and author of the
pioneering 1987 UN report which established the internationally used
concept of sustainable development.
She said: "Instead of living on the interest provided by the Earth's
natural assets, we are using up the capital resources of future
generations."
The report finds that on average a consumer in the industrialized world
exerts 2 1/2 times more pressure on the natural environment as his
counterpart in the developing world.
Among the report's main findings are that freshwater ecosystems have
declined by 50 per cent between 1970 and 1995 as a result of pollution
and land deterioration. The use of freshwater, however, has doubled since
1960.
The world's natural forest cover declined by about 10 per cent, and from
1990 to 1995 by 0.5 per cent a year.
Marine ecosystems deteriorated by 30 per cent from 1970-1995, and at a
rate of about four per cent a year from 1990 to 1995. Fish consumption more
than doubled and most of the world's fish resources are either fully
exploited or in decline.
Carbon dioxide emissions have more than doubled since 1960 and are far
in excess of the planet's natural ability to reabsorb them. Wood and paper
consumption has increased by two-thirds worldwide.
The report also calculates what it calls consumption pressure. This
indicates that globally, consumption pressure is growing at about five
per cent a year and is likely to exceed the levels at which natural systems
can cope -- certainly for the consumption of fish and meat.
Jonathan Loh, one of the authors of the report by the WWF, said: "These
figures are a stark indication of the deteriorating health of natural
ecosystems. Most concerning of all is the decline of freshwater lakes,
rivers, and
wetlands."
FACTS
World's top 20 most environmentally damaging nations -- measured in
consumption pressure per country.
1. Norway
2. Taiwan
3. Chile
4. Singapore
5. Denmark
6. United States
7. Kuwait
8. United Arab Emirates
9. Australia
10. Estonia
11. Netherlands
12. Canada
13. Japan
14. South Korea
15. Belgium/Luxembourg
16. Finland
17. North Korea
18. Portugal
19. Spain
20. Malaysia
Source: WWF International
CALGARY HERALD
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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