Here's something interesting about how we're impacting our world.
Watch this video.
Showing posts with label environment. Show all posts
Showing posts with label environment. Show all posts
Thursday, November 12, 2009
Thursday, July 30, 2009
ICU
I regret to announce that this blog is currently under sedation in the intensive care unit for treatment of inactivititis. Recovery is expected to take a while. In the meantime, a Loyal Commission of Inquiry will be established to determine how this blog deteriorated to its current moribund state. A full and impartial investigation will be launched, leaving no stone unturned. I hope the same will happen with the investigation into the late Teoh Beng Hock's death. It's sad to see that one critical thing that the government needs now is what it lacks: credibility.
On another note, I was in Tioman three weeks ago, and I saw more impressive sea creatures while snorkelling than while diving*. I was pleasantly surprised that the house reef just off the beach at the southern end of Salang bay hosted bumphead parrotfish, a moray eel and some razorfish, which are creatures we normally see only when diving at less accessible sites. There was a turtle too, but I was most pleased to see the small school of five bumphead parrotfish, each about one metre long. They hung around the reef in usually in the late afternoon and allowed us close encounters. We went snorkelling on Monday afternoon, Tuesday afternoon and Wednesday morning, and all three times we saw the bumphead parrotfish. The only other times I've ever seen bumphead parrotfish were while diving at Perhentian and Sipadan. I guess I'll have to change my impression of Tioman. I previously assumed that since Tioman was getting very developed and well-visited, the nearshore marine environment would have deteriorated and become rather lifeless. So I was proven wrong, apparently.
*[ We dived at Chebeh and Malang Rock. Chebeh had nice swim-through passages under the boulders, plus colourful sea fans and nudibranchs. I caught a glimpse of a blacktip shark at Malang Rock but the visibility was too poor for us to spot any whale sharks. :P ]
But, I must still say, the conditions on land are not very appealing. The little river flowing to the sea at Salang is filled with untreated or minimally treated wastewater from restaurant kitchens and chalet bathrooms. The river bed is mucky with an awful black colour, and there's a foul odour at certain times. It's only because of the incoming and outgoing tides flushing the river mouth that the river doesn't become more dirty. At high tide the river stops flowing and the icky water acculumates. Then at low tide, the river drains out to the sea, taking with it all the dirty water. The next high tide brings in (relatively) clear sea water. But that just means that the yucky river water is being diluted into the sea. Well, the river condition is not THAT bad (not like the Klang River), but it's certainly not befitting of a tropical marine park island. It gets worse during weekends and peak tourist seasons when more visitors result in more dinner plates washed and toilets flushed.
In the bigger picture, there's some sort of trade-off. If visitors want cheap accommodation and food, then I suppose the operators won't be able to afford the investment in proper wastewater treatment systems. But I'm not sure if the chalet operators are earning lucrative incomes or scraping by with the minimum. Some visitors would say that they are already paying so much for their spartan chalet and restaurant food on the island. Well, price is relative, but is value relative too? Would you be willing to pay more for your visit if you knew that the money is used to take care of the wastes that you generate? There's no free lunch, and no free toilet flush either.
Indah Water is planning to build a proper extended aeration activated sludge centralized sewage treatment plant at Salang and Tekek. The EIA was approved in July 2008, but I'm not sure when the project will start and be completed. Let's hope that the project will do good and not cause more damage, or become a white elephant (new species on the island). Indah Water will probably be charging the chalet and restaurant operators for sewerage fees... and I wonder if the operators will pay the fees or even connect their sewerage pipes to the treatment plant in the first place. Do you pay your Indah Water bills?
On another note, I was in Tioman three weeks ago, and I saw more impressive sea creatures while snorkelling than while diving*. I was pleasantly surprised that the house reef just off the beach at the southern end of Salang bay hosted bumphead parrotfish, a moray eel and some razorfish, which are creatures we normally see only when diving at less accessible sites. There was a turtle too, but I was most pleased to see the small school of five bumphead parrotfish, each about one metre long. They hung around the reef in usually in the late afternoon and allowed us close encounters. We went snorkelling on Monday afternoon, Tuesday afternoon and Wednesday morning, and all three times we saw the bumphead parrotfish. The only other times I've ever seen bumphead parrotfish were while diving at Perhentian and Sipadan. I guess I'll have to change my impression of Tioman. I previously assumed that since Tioman was getting very developed and well-visited, the nearshore marine environment would have deteriorated and become rather lifeless. So I was proven wrong, apparently.
*[ We dived at Chebeh and Malang Rock. Chebeh had nice swim-through passages under the boulders, plus colourful sea fans and nudibranchs. I caught a glimpse of a blacktip shark at Malang Rock but the visibility was too poor for us to spot any whale sharks. :P ]
But, I must still say, the conditions on land are not very appealing. The little river flowing to the sea at Salang is filled with untreated or minimally treated wastewater from restaurant kitchens and chalet bathrooms. The river bed is mucky with an awful black colour, and there's a foul odour at certain times. It's only because of the incoming and outgoing tides flushing the river mouth that the river doesn't become more dirty. At high tide the river stops flowing and the icky water acculumates. Then at low tide, the river drains out to the sea, taking with it all the dirty water. The next high tide brings in (relatively) clear sea water. But that just means that the yucky river water is being diluted into the sea. Well, the river condition is not THAT bad (not like the Klang River), but it's certainly not befitting of a tropical marine park island. It gets worse during weekends and peak tourist seasons when more visitors result in more dinner plates washed and toilets flushed.
In the bigger picture, there's some sort of trade-off. If visitors want cheap accommodation and food, then I suppose the operators won't be able to afford the investment in proper wastewater treatment systems. But I'm not sure if the chalet operators are earning lucrative incomes or scraping by with the minimum. Some visitors would say that they are already paying so much for their spartan chalet and restaurant food on the island. Well, price is relative, but is value relative too? Would you be willing to pay more for your visit if you knew that the money is used to take care of the wastes that you generate? There's no free lunch, and no free toilet flush either.
Indah Water is planning to build a proper extended aeration activated sludge centralized sewage treatment plant at Salang and Tekek. The EIA was approved in July 2008, but I'm not sure when the project will start and be completed. Let's hope that the project will do good and not cause more damage, or become a white elephant (new species on the island). Indah Water will probably be charging the chalet and restaurant operators for sewerage fees... and I wonder if the operators will pay the fees or even connect their sewerage pipes to the treatment plant in the first place. Do you pay your Indah Water bills?
Saturday, May 23, 2009
Tuesday, March 03, 2009
Eco-Assembly
I read with incredulity that the Perak state assembly Speaker V. Sivakumar convened a state assembly meeting under a rain tree (Samanea saman) in the state secretariat car park. Whatever the outcome of this current debacle, I must say that today's meeting will go down in modern history as the most eco-friendly state assembly meeting ever. Outdoor, under a tree, natural lighting, natural ventilation.
Hmmm, perhaps they should do that once in a while for Parliament sessions too. Conserve energy. And even if it rains it won't make much difference.
OK, I must remember to take a picture with that tree the next time I visit Ipoh.
Perak Boleh!
Hmmm, perhaps they should do that once in a while for Parliament sessions too. Conserve energy. And even if it rains it won't make much difference.
OK, I must remember to take a picture with that tree the next time I visit Ipoh.
Perak Boleh!
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Climate change
In a recent survey of more than 3,000 scientists in the US, 97 percent of climatologists believed that humans play a role in climate change. However, only 47 percent of petroleum geologists and 64 percent of meteorologists believe humans contributed to climate change. It figures. Petroleum geologists look at things on a geologic timescale and are probably biased to the oil and gas industry, while meteorologists study short-term weather and not long-term climate.
Al Gore is pushing the US to do more to combat climate change. He says the US needs to join international talks on a climate change treaty. He says we will soon reach a point of irreversible damage to the climate if we don't do anything now. It might already be too late anyway. The global climate is going bonkers just like the financial system.
I just drove to Ipoh and back for the CNY celebration and burned over 30 litres of petrol for the return trip. I haven't calculated how many kilos of carbon dioxide I generated. Oh well, family time takes precedence over saving the planet, no? Besides, our dependence on fossil fuels is simply all-pervasive. What do you expect me to do? Cycle to Ipoh?
Don't buy any property near sea level unless you want a waterfront. Imagine, places like Penang, Klang, Melaka, Johor Baru, Kota Baru and even Shah Alam could be underwater if the sea level rises.
Al Gore is pushing the US to do more to combat climate change. He says the US needs to join international talks on a climate change treaty. He says we will soon reach a point of irreversible damage to the climate if we don't do anything now. It might already be too late anyway. The global climate is going bonkers just like the financial system.
I just drove to Ipoh and back for the CNY celebration and burned over 30 litres of petrol for the return trip. I haven't calculated how many kilos of carbon dioxide I generated. Oh well, family time takes precedence over saving the planet, no? Besides, our dependence on fossil fuels is simply all-pervasive. What do you expect me to do? Cycle to Ipoh?
Don't buy any property near sea level unless you want a waterfront. Imagine, places like Penang, Klang, Melaka, Johor Baru, Kota Baru and even Shah Alam could be underwater if the sea level rises.
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