[Environment] from [guardian.co.uk]
[Insects]
Invading ladybirds breed up ecological storm for UK species
A voracious predator, the Asian harlequin ladybird has spread across the UK since its arrival from continental Europe in 2004
David Adam, environment correspondent
guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 30 June 2009 00.05 BST
Article history
Millions of very hungry ladybirds are poised to create ecological havoc for hundreds of Britain's native species, scientists warn today.
Experts said the anticipated warm summer would provide the perfect conditions for the Asian harlequin ladybird to breed and prepare for a springtime assault. "They are creating a huge genetic stock ready for next year," said Helen Roy, a scientist with the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology.
The insect, a voracious predator, has spread across the UK since its arrival from continental Europe in 2004. The bugs have been spotted as far north as Orkney, though they remain strongest in south-east England, where they have overrun many of London's parks.
"We believe that the negative impacts of the harlequin on Britain will be far-reaching and disruptive, with the potential to affect over a thousand of our native species," she said. "It's a big and voracious predator, it will eat lots of different insects, soft fruit and all kinds of things."
Unlike British ladybirds, such as the most common seven-spot, the harlequin does not need a cold winter for adults to reach sexual maturity, and so be able to breed. "That gives them a massive advantage," Roy said.
The ladybird, originally from Asia, was introduced to Holland and other European countries to control aphids on crops. From there, it crossed the English Channel on the wind, or hidden on fruit and flowers.
A public survey launched in 2005 has tracked its progress using some 30,000 online records. Roy said the results revealed a "staggering expansion". Scientists fear the harlequins will push out natural rivals through competition for food. They can munch through more than 12,000 aphids a year, as well as feed on other species such as lacewing larvae. The harlequin has even been recorded eating the large caterpillar of a brimstone butterfly.
Scientists from five organisations will present the latest findings on the spread of the harlequin this week at the Royal Society summer exhibition, and warn its arrival will mean "one winner, 1,000 losers".
Scientists are exploring whether harlequin numbers could be controlled using their few native enemies, such as fungal disease, male-killing bacteria and parasitic wasps and flies. One idea is to encourage the transmission of a sexually transmitted mite that makes some ladybirds infertile.
The researchers said people should not take matters into their own hands. Vigilante action against the harlequin invaders would make no difference to the overall population and could inadvertently kill similar-looking native species.
[Internet, Phones & Broadband]
Mobile manufacturers agree to universal charger
Move follows request from European commission to harmonise chargers in a bid to reduce waste
Hilary Osborne and agencies
guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 30 June 2009 09.26 BST
Article history
The days of drawers full of chargers for mobile phones you no longer use could soon be over after manufacturers agreed to use a universal model.
Ten companies including Apple, LG, Motorola, Nokia and Sony Ericsson have signed up to offer the charger, which will be based on a Micro-USB connector. Currently, when consumers buy a mobile phone they are provided with a new charger even if the old one still works.
The European commission had asked companies to work on harmonising chargers in the EU in a bid to cut down on waste. It said unused chargers amounted to thousands of tonnes of electronic waste a year and was threatening legislation unless a voluntary deal was reached.
The EU industry commissioner, Günter Verheugen, said he was pleased with the agreement, which would make life much simpler for consumers.
"They will be able to charge mobile phones anywhere from the new common charger. This also means considerably less electronic waste because people will no longer have to throw away chargers when buying new phones," he said.
Talks between the phone firms and commission officials produced a "Memorandum of Understanding" indicating that the first generation of "inter-chargeable" mobile phones will reach the EU market from 2010.
The agreement says that in future harmonised chargers will improve energy efficiency and reduce energy consumption. They should also give mobile users an "easier life", cutting costs by removing the likelihood of needing a new charger to go with a new mobile phone, and by foregoing the need to hunt all over the house for the correct charger.
Audrey Gallacher, customer relations expert for the UK consumer watchdog Consumer Focus, welcomed the move. "Industry has chosen to do the right thing for their customers by introducing a common phone charger," she said.
"This is a sensible solution to an everyday gripe for mobile phone users, which will reduce frustration and confusion for consumers as well as cutting down on waste products."
Conservative MEP Malcolm Harbour said common sense had prevailed. "This agreement will also encourage more chargers to be recycled, preventing electronic waste. Mobile phone companies should consider whether a new charger is now needed with every handset if there is a possibility that an old one can be recycled.
"It is particularly welcome that the commission was able to reach agreement with the industry without introducing new regulation."
The new charger will only work with data enabled phones but the commission said it expected most phones bought from 2010 will be compatible.
[China]
Droughts and floods threaten China's economic growth, forecaster warns
Cost of crop failure soars as weather disasters become more frequent and severe
Tania Branigan in Beijing
guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 30 June 2009 13.22 BST
Article history
China faces an increase in weather disasters which will threaten crops and economic growth, the country's most senior forecaster has warned.
He Lifu, of the National Meteorological Centre, told the China Daily newspaper that events such as droughts, floods and storms had become more frequent and severe since the 1990s and the trend was likely to continue.
"Extreme weather will be more frequent in the future due to the instability of the atmosphere, and global warming might be the indirect cause," the forecaster told the English-language paper. He said his agency responded to 16 emergencies last year, the most since its foundation in 1949.
The annual economic cost of extreme weather has soared from 176.2bn yuan (£15.6bn) on average in the 1990s to 244bn yuan (£21.5bn) between 2004 and last year, according to ministry of civil affairs figures cited by the paper.
Farmers are resorting to their own measures to avoid losses. Wheat producers in Henan, Shandong and Hebei fired chemical pellets into the clouds this month to prevent hail and heavy rain from damaging their harvest.
The State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters has also warned that drought has become more frequent since the 1990s, causing more crop failures.
According to the China Daily, the headquarters figures show that annual grain loss caused by drought has averaged 37.3m tonnes since 2000 – almost twice the level in the 1980s – while the annual average proportion of damaged crops has risen to 59.3%, compared with 48% in the 1990s.
Sun Jisong, the chief forecaster at the Beijing Meteorological Bureau, cautioned that part of the apparent increase in extreme weather might be due to more advanced observation techniques and improved recording.
He added that dealing with the rise would require reduced consumption of energy and resources to tackle the causes and improve forecasting and defences.
Last month, the annual Red Cross report said that a rise in weather-related disasters worldwide over the last decade – from around 200 a year in the 1990s to around 350 – was continuing. Its secretary general, Bekele Geleta, warned that extreme-weather events would become more frequent and more severe.
[Insects]
Invading ladybirds breed up ecological storm for UK species
A voracious predator, the Asian harlequin ladybird has spread across the UK since its arrival from continental Europe in 2004
David Adam, environment correspondent
guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 30 June 2009 00.05 BST
Article history
Millions of very hungry ladybirds are poised to create ecological havoc for hundreds of Britain's native species, scientists warn today.
Experts said the anticipated warm summer would provide the perfect conditions for the Asian harlequin ladybird to breed and prepare for a springtime assault. "They are creating a huge genetic stock ready for next year," said Helen Roy, a scientist with the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology.
The insect, a voracious predator, has spread across the UK since its arrival from continental Europe in 2004. The bugs have been spotted as far north as Orkney, though they remain strongest in south-east England, where they have overrun many of London's parks.
"We believe that the negative impacts of the harlequin on Britain will be far-reaching and disruptive, with the potential to affect over a thousand of our native species," she said. "It's a big and voracious predator, it will eat lots of different insects, soft fruit and all kinds of things."
Unlike British ladybirds, such as the most common seven-spot, the harlequin does not need a cold winter for adults to reach sexual maturity, and so be able to breed. "That gives them a massive advantage," Roy said.
The ladybird, originally from Asia, was introduced to Holland and other European countries to control aphids on crops. From there, it crossed the English Channel on the wind, or hidden on fruit and flowers.
A public survey launched in 2005 has tracked its progress using some 30,000 online records. Roy said the results revealed a "staggering expansion". Scientists fear the harlequins will push out natural rivals through competition for food. They can munch through more than 12,000 aphids a year, as well as feed on other species such as lacewing larvae. The harlequin has even been recorded eating the large caterpillar of a brimstone butterfly.
Scientists from five organisations will present the latest findings on the spread of the harlequin this week at the Royal Society summer exhibition, and warn its arrival will mean "one winner, 1,000 losers".
Scientists are exploring whether harlequin numbers could be controlled using their few native enemies, such as fungal disease, male-killing bacteria and parasitic wasps and flies. One idea is to encourage the transmission of a sexually transmitted mite that makes some ladybirds infertile.
The researchers said people should not take matters into their own hands. Vigilante action against the harlequin invaders would make no difference to the overall population and could inadvertently kill similar-looking native species.
[Internet, Phones & Broadband]
Mobile manufacturers agree to universal charger
Move follows request from European commission to harmonise chargers in a bid to reduce waste
Hilary Osborne and agencies
guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 30 June 2009 09.26 BST
Article history
The days of drawers full of chargers for mobile phones you no longer use could soon be over after manufacturers agreed to use a universal model.
Ten companies including Apple, LG, Motorola, Nokia and Sony Ericsson have signed up to offer the charger, which will be based on a Micro-USB connector. Currently, when consumers buy a mobile phone they are provided with a new charger even if the old one still works.
The European commission had asked companies to work on harmonising chargers in the EU in a bid to cut down on waste. It said unused chargers amounted to thousands of tonnes of electronic waste a year and was threatening legislation unless a voluntary deal was reached.
The EU industry commissioner, Günter Verheugen, said he was pleased with the agreement, which would make life much simpler for consumers.
"They will be able to charge mobile phones anywhere from the new common charger. This also means considerably less electronic waste because people will no longer have to throw away chargers when buying new phones," he said.
Talks between the phone firms and commission officials produced a "Memorandum of Understanding" indicating that the first generation of "inter-chargeable" mobile phones will reach the EU market from 2010.
The agreement says that in future harmonised chargers will improve energy efficiency and reduce energy consumption. They should also give mobile users an "easier life", cutting costs by removing the likelihood of needing a new charger to go with a new mobile phone, and by foregoing the need to hunt all over the house for the correct charger.
Audrey Gallacher, customer relations expert for the UK consumer watchdog Consumer Focus, welcomed the move. "Industry has chosen to do the right thing for their customers by introducing a common phone charger," she said.
"This is a sensible solution to an everyday gripe for mobile phone users, which will reduce frustration and confusion for consumers as well as cutting down on waste products."
Conservative MEP Malcolm Harbour said common sense had prevailed. "This agreement will also encourage more chargers to be recycled, preventing electronic waste. Mobile phone companies should consider whether a new charger is now needed with every handset if there is a possibility that an old one can be recycled.
"It is particularly welcome that the commission was able to reach agreement with the industry without introducing new regulation."
The new charger will only work with data enabled phones but the commission said it expected most phones bought from 2010 will be compatible.
[China]
Droughts and floods threaten China's economic growth, forecaster warns
Cost of crop failure soars as weather disasters become more frequent and severe
Tania Branigan in Beijing
guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 30 June 2009 13.22 BST
Article history
China faces an increase in weather disasters which will threaten crops and economic growth, the country's most senior forecaster has warned.
He Lifu, of the National Meteorological Centre, told the China Daily newspaper that events such as droughts, floods and storms had become more frequent and severe since the 1990s and the trend was likely to continue.
"Extreme weather will be more frequent in the future due to the instability of the atmosphere, and global warming might be the indirect cause," the forecaster told the English-language paper. He said his agency responded to 16 emergencies last year, the most since its foundation in 1949.
The annual economic cost of extreme weather has soared from 176.2bn yuan (£15.6bn) on average in the 1990s to 244bn yuan (£21.5bn) between 2004 and last year, according to ministry of civil affairs figures cited by the paper.
Farmers are resorting to their own measures to avoid losses. Wheat producers in Henan, Shandong and Hebei fired chemical pellets into the clouds this month to prevent hail and heavy rain from damaging their harvest.
The State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters has also warned that drought has become more frequent since the 1990s, causing more crop failures.
According to the China Daily, the headquarters figures show that annual grain loss caused by drought has averaged 37.3m tonnes since 2000 – almost twice the level in the 1980s – while the annual average proportion of damaged crops has risen to 59.3%, compared with 48% in the 1990s.
Sun Jisong, the chief forecaster at the Beijing Meteorological Bureau, cautioned that part of the apparent increase in extreme weather might be due to more advanced observation techniques and improved recording.
He added that dealing with the rise would require reduced consumption of energy and resources to tackle the causes and improve forecasting and defences.
Last month, the annual Red Cross report said that a rise in weather-related disasters worldwide over the last decade – from around 200 a year in the 1990s to around 350 – was continuing. Its secretary general, Bekele Geleta, warned that extreme-weather events would become more frequent and more severe.
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