#transboundary — Public Fediverse posts on home.social

DoomsdaysCW @[email protected] · 2025-12-21 · 19:14 UTC

Protecting #Vietnam’s vast caves may have sparked a #wildlife comeback

by Joshua Zukas, 13 Nov 2025

Excerpt: "After 15 years of stringent #conservation efforts, both Thín and Limbert say that wildlife populations are rebounding. 'When we were surveying Sơn Đoòng, we rarely saw any primates,” Limbert says. 'Now, we see big groups of Hatinh langurs [Trachypithecus hatinhensis] on nearly every trip.'

"These charcoal-black monkeys with salt-and-pepper beards and messy mohawks were once hunted for their meat and purported medicinal properties. They’re endemic to Vietnam and Laos and are listed as endangered on the IUCN Red List. More elusive animals in the park include the saola (Pseudoryx nghetinhensis), an antelope-like bovine with straight sharp horns and a black-and-white patterned head. So rarely seen that it borders on legend, the saola is often referred to as the 'Asian unicorn.'

"National parks in Vietnam lack the resources to measure wildlife population numbers, but increased sightings of endemic species indicates a comeback, and Oxalis has begun incorporating this into some of its tours. In 2022, it launched the #HangBa Deep Jungle Expedition, which visits six caves over four days in one of the most remote corners in the national park. Instead of looking for wildlife, Limbert says, visitors study animal tracks and look at photos taken by camera traps. 'It’s more of an expedition than a tour, with a maximum of six tourists. We insist everyone is quiet, we ask them to wear darker clothing and we keep away from the animals.'

"Though not opposed to Oxalis positioning wildlife as part of the appeal of their tours, Đoàn maintains the measured critical thinking of an academic. 'It’s hard to know if it’s a good idea to include wildlife elements [in the tours] because we don’t know the full story … are these animals returning, or is it that the animals were always there and we weren’t aware?'

"Đoàn also points to #Laos, which he says has failed to make the same strides in combating poaching as Vietnam. Without good data, he says, how can we know that animals aren’t arriving in Vietnam after being driven away by hunters in Laos?

"Limbert echoes Đoàn’s concerns for what’s happening on the Laotian side of the border, but remains optimistic for the future. In 2025, UNESCO expanded its recognition area again to include both #PhongNhaKẻBàng National Park and #HinNamNo National Park in Laos, forming a #transboundary natural #WorldHeritageSite. Plans are already underway to increase conservation efforts in this remote part of Laos, and Limbert is mustering a team to help diffuse knowledge and experience across the border.

" 'I’m sure we will see the same kind of change as Vietnam,' Limbert says. 'It’s happened in Phong Nha, and I’m sure it will happen in Laos too.' "

#SolarPunkSunday #Rewilding #ProtectingNature #NatureBasedTourism #NatureBasedLearning #SoutheastAsia

#vietnam #wildlife #conservation #hangba #laos #phongnhakẻbang

DoomsdaysCW @[email protected] · 2024-08-25 · 00:14 UTC

[PDF] National Association of Marine Laboratories
Position Paper

Scientific opposition to Japan’s planned release of over 1.3 million tons of radioactively contaminated water from the #FukushimaDaiIchi #NuclearPowerPlant
disaster into the #PacificOcean.

December 2022

“The National Association of Marine Laboratories (#NAML), an organization of more than
100 member laboratories, opposes Japan’s plans to begin releasing over 1.3 million tons of radioactively contaminated water from the Fukushima-Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant into the Pacific Ocean commencing in 2023. This opposition is based on the fact that there is a lack of adequate and accurate scientific data supporting Japan’s assertion of safety.

"Furthermore, there is an abundance of data demonstrating serious concerns about releasing radioactively contaminated water.

“The Pacific Ocean is the largest continuous body of water on our planet, containing the greatest biomass of organisms of ecological, economic, and cultural value, including 70 percent of the world’s #fisheries. The health of all the world’s #OceanEcosystems is in documented decline due
to a variety of stressors, including climate change, over-exploitation of resources, and pollution.

"The proposed release of this #contaminated water is a #transboundary and #transgenerational issue of concern for the health of marine ecosystems and those whose lives and livelihoods depend on them. We are concerned about the absence of critical data on the radionuclide content of each tank, the Advanced Liquid Processing System, which is used to remove radionuclides, and the assumption that upon the release of the contaminated wastewater,
‘dilution is the solution to pollution.’

“The underlying rationale of #dilution ignores the reality of biological processes of #OrganicBinding,
#bioaccumulation, and #bioconcentration, as well as accumulation in local seafloor sediments. Many of the radionuclides contained in the accumulated waste cooling water have half-lives ranging from decades to centuries, and their deleterious effects range from #DNADamage and
#cellular stress to elevated #cancer risks in people who eat affected marine organisms, such as clams, oysters, crabs, lobster, shrimp, and fish.

"Additionally, the effectiveness of the Advanced Liquid Processing System in almost completely removing the over 60 different #radionuclides present in the affected wastewater—some of which have an affinity to target specific tissues, glands, organs, and metabolic pathways in #LivingOrganisms, including people—remains a
serious concern due to the absence of critical data.

"The supporting data provided by the Tokyo Electric Power Company and the #JapaneseGovernment are insufficient and, in some cases, incorrect, with flaws in sampling protocols, statistical design, sample analyses, and assumptions, which in turn lead to flaws in the
conclusion of safety and prevent a more thorough evaluation of better alternative approaches to disposal. A full range of approaches to addressing the problem of safely containing, storing, and disposing of the radioactive waste have not been adequately explored, and alternatives to ocean dumping should be examined in greater detail and with extensive scientific rigor.

“NAML calls on the Government of #Japan and International Atomic Energy Agency (#IAEA) scientists to more fully and adequately consider the options recommended by the #PacificIslandsForum’s Expert Panel. We believe public policy decisions, regulations, and actions must keep pace with and make use of relevant advancements in our scientific understanding of the #environment and human health. In this case, we believe policy makers have not fully availed themselves of the available science and should do so before making any final decisions on releasing this contaminated water into the Pacific. NAML members are unified in our concern about use of the oceans as a dumping ground for radioactively contaminated water and other #pollutants because such actions can negatively affect the long-term health and sustainability of
our planet.

“We urge the Government of Japan to stop pursuing their planned and precedent-setting release of the radioactively contaminated water into the Pacific Ocean and to work with the broader scientific community to pursue other approaches [like #ClosedLoop systems or binding radionuclides in concerete] that protect #OceanLife; human health; and
those communities who depend on ecologically, economically, and culturally valuable marine
resources. “

Adopted by the NAML Board of Directors, December 12, 2022

https://www.naml.org/policy/documents/2022-12-12%20Position%20Paper,%20Release%20of%20Radioactively%20Contaminated%20Water%20into%20the%20Ocean.pdf

#WaterIsLife #OceansAreLife
#IAEAHides #TEPCOLies
#FukushimaIsntOver #NoDumping #NuclearPowerPlants #RadioactiveWater #RethinkNotRestart #PacificOcean #DataFalsification #ALPSSystem

#fukushimadaiichi #nuclearpowerplant #pacificocean #naml #fisheries #oceanecosystems

DoomsdaysCW @[email protected] · 2024-04-07 · 20:52 UTC

U.S., Canada Agree to IJC Intervention on Transboundary Mining Pollution

Calling it 'an important first step' to solve mining pollution on the Elk-Kootenai River watershed, tribal and First Nation governments in Montana, Idaho and British Columbia cheered the long-awaited reference to the International Joint Commission

By Tristan Scott
March 11, 2024

"Federal governments in #Canada and the U.S. have agreed to ask the #InternationalJointCommission (#IJC) to study and take steps to mitigate the inflow of mining pollution to the #ElkRiver-#KootenaiRiver watershed through a joint reference, signaling a breakthrough in bilateral talks that have stalled for years, even as the company that owns the mines expands its footprint along the border with #Montana.

"The agreement was announced Monday by tribal and #FirstNation governments in Montana, #Idaho and #BritishColumbia (B.C.) who cheered the development after years of intensifying pressure on the #US and Canada. The reference means that an independent governance body representing both nations will convene to craft solutions to address the contaminants spilling into a watershed that crosses the international boundary at #LakeKoocanusa and spans #traditional #Aboriginal territory.

"The federal governments of both U.S. and Canada also confirmed the reference on Monday and issued a joint statement from the Ambassador of Canada to the United States, Kirsten Hillman, and the Ambassador of the United States to Canada, David L. Cohen. According to Pierre Cuguen, a spokesperson for Global Affairs Canada (#GAC), both countries 'have reached an Agreement-in-Principle (AIP) on next steps to further bilateral cooperation to reduce and mitigate the impacts of #WaterPollution” in the #transboundary #watershed.

"'The AIP provides a plan for Canada and the United States, with the assistance of the International Joint Commission, to take a holistic look at the watershed and build a shared understanding of the best available water quality data and science,' Cuguen said in an email, adding that both countries will work in concert 'with #IndigenousPeoples and #TribalNations and alongside provincial and state partners in the region.'

"'The Government of Canada is committed to safeguarding the transboundary #ElkKootenay watershed to protect the people and species that depend on this vital river system' according to Cuguen (the Canadian and First Nation spelling of Kootenai is “#Kootenay”).

"Meanwhile, tribal leaders on both sides of the border were triumphant after urging a reference for more than a decade, often with vague support from their federal counterparts.

"In Montana, Michael Dolson, chairman of the Confederated #Salish and #Kootenai Tribes (#CSKT), said the IJC reference is an essential first step in protecting fish and water quality in#LakeKoocanusa and the Kootenai River.

"'For too long, the U.S. and Canada have stood by while our waters suffered,' Dolson said in a prepared statement released Monday. “We are encouraged by the'federal governments’ change in direction and the progress that was achieved when we all worked together these past months. We will continue to work tirelessly to restore our rivers and the fish and wildlife that depend upon them. We’re at the beginning of what will likely be a long process, one that will require sustained effort from all governments involved.'"

#WaterIsLife #CoalMining
#Canada #FirstNations #WaterPollution #OpenPitMining #Environment