Class Research Resources and Assignments
Week 10 - Lecture Video
Land Management and the Global Commons: Air, Oceans, Forests
For 19 November 2002 | Some resources are by nature fluid, and for that reason, they cannot be adequately understood as simply localized assets. Land management decisions in some specific regions affect the health of oceans and the composition of the global atmosphere upon which the whole world community depends for its well being. How should land management principles be crafted to preserve and protect the global commons of air, oceans, fisheries and forests? |
The Forest:
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Tropical Rain Forests - Lungs of the World: The Rainforests of Borneo |
Some Web Resources and Organizations:
Food and Agricultural Organization FAO -- FORESTRY POLICY AND PLANNING DIVISION (FON) |
NPR's Wendy Kaufman reports on the latest battle between Canadian and U.S. commerical salmon fishers. Canadian fishermen seized a tourist ferry near Prince Rupert, British Columbia and have vowed to hold onto it, despite a court order, until they can talk to Canada's fisheries minister. In the meantime, they have tied up up Alaska's equivalent of a six lane highway on the water. (3:30) NPR's John Nielsen reports on the suit filed by fishermen and environmentalists against the National Marine Fisheries Service, and the potential delay it could cause in the effort to protect fish populations. Today, the White House will unveil new ocean protection initiatives that will likely include plans to prevent over-fishing and offshore oil development. Vice President Gore will meet with fishermen, environmentalists, and marine scientists at the National Oceans Conference in Monterey, California. (3:29) GUESTS: Andy Rosenberg, Deputy Director, National Marine Fisheries Service, U.S. Commissioner to the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization U.S. Commissioner to the North Atlantic Salmon Conservation Organization; Dennis Nixon Professor of Marine Affairs at University of Rhode Island; Fisheries Attorney Author, Marine and Coastal Law [Praeger Press, 1994]; Vito Calomo, Third Generation Sea Captain. As summer winds down and people make their last pilgrimages to the shore, there are people who remain year-round. Generations of men have earned their living from the sea, but excess fishing threatens to drastically alter their lives. Over fishing has depleted hundreds of fish stocks while some species are near extinction. The U.S. government has placed tight restrictions on North American fishing, but some fishermen and their families feel they're being over regulated. GUESTS: Jeff Curtis Western Conservation Director, Trout Unlimited (Seattle, WA) Author, "Resolving the Pacific Salmon Treaty Stalemate" (issued jointly by Trout Unlimited U.S. and Trout Unlimited Canada, January, 1999) Deborah Lyon Commercial Fisher Troll Fishery fishing industry representative at treaty talks for the past 4 years Former member, State Board of Fisheries (1990-1994) The U.S. and Canada last week reached an agreement intended to end a long running dispute over catches in coastal waters. The feud resulted from over fishing of already depleted salmon stocks including coho, chinook, and sockeye. Last year, Canada sharply restricted salmon fishing off its coast, and the U.S. retaliated by listing nine salmon stocks as endangered species in the Pacific Northwest. Join Ray Suarez and guests for a look at efforts to restore salmon fisheries. An unusually high number of dolphins have died and washed up onto the Florida coast since August. The average is five to ten a year. But in the last four months, more than a hundred have been counted. Noah speaks with George Gray, President and Director of the Emerald Coast Wildlife Refuge on Okaloosa Island, Florida. (3:30) |
by Professor Jacquie McGlade The oceans are of significant economic and social importance to the UK, providing natural resources, determining our climate and generating a variety of commercial activities. But in contrast to many countries, the UK does not have a national ocean's policy into which all of this fits. Does this matter? A few facts and figures help to underline what is at stake. Global marine markets have been estimated at approximately œ800 billion, of which the UK's share is just over œ40 billion i.e. 3 - 4% of gross domestic product. In some markets, such as oil and gas exploration and unmanned underwater vehicles, the UK's share is more than 20%. So yes, we need an ocean's policy, because without one, future efforts to maintain our international presence will become fragmented. World fish stocks may take far longer to recover from being over fished than previously estimated, according to new research at Dalhousie University in Canada. A study, published in the journal Nature, found that popular species like cod and haddock may never recover after years of being heavily fished. Corinne Podger, of BBC Science, reports. In Europe and North America, fish like cod, sardines, haddock and flounder have been favourites for decades - and many of these species are now regarded as endangered. But some fishing experts believe that populations of these fish vary naturally from year to year, and their ability to rapidly reproduce will enable them to repopulate the oceans and save them from extinction. Dr Jeffrey Hutchings, who led the Dalhousie University research, says his findings suggest this perception is wrong.
AF Protein Inc. - Aqua Bounty Farms.
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BBC. London. Tuesday, 14 November, 2000, 16:18 GMT This week's United Nations meeting on climate change at The Hague will be crucial in determining whether the United States meets its future targets for reducing emissions, the leader of the country's delegation has said. BBC. 13 November 2000. BBC environment correspondent Tim Hirsch reports from Bolivia on how industrialised nations are helping to save rainforests, but at a price. "Carbon colonialism" 25 October 2000. (from "Equity Watch." ). At least two Norwegian companies are acquiring several thousand hectares of land in East Africa to plant fast growing trees like eucalyptus and pine. Tree Farms and Norwegian Afforestation Group expect to make profits from these plantations by selling timber and wood and in the future, through sale of carbon credits on basis of carbon dioxide storage in the plantations. A study, ‘CO2lonialism - Norwegian Tree Plantations, Carbon Credits and Land Conflicts in Uganda’ conducted by Harald Eraker for Norwatch, a Norwegian non-governmental organisation, documents that neither of the companies tried to hide the fact that carbon trading was an important motive behind their involvement in the region.
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The Question of the 'Global Commons'
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