PARIS (AFP) ― The West Antarctic Ice Sheet, whose melt may be responsible for 10 percent of the sea-level rise caused by climate change, is warming twice as quickly as previously thought, a study said Sunday.A re-analysis of temperature records from 1958 to 2010 revealed an increase of 2.4 degrees Celsius over the period ― three times the average global rise.The increase was nearly double what previous research had suggested, and meant this was one of the fastest-warming regions on Earth, accord

Dec. 27, 2012

HANOI (AFP) ― From a devilish-looking bat to a frog that sings like a bird, scientists have identified 126 new species in the Greater Mekong area, the World Wildlife Fund for Nature said Tuesday in a new report detailing discoveries in 2011.But from forest loss to the construction of major hydropower projects on the Mekong River, existing threats to the region’s biodiversity mean many of the new species are already struggling to survive, the conservation group warned.“The good news is new discov

Dec. 20, 2012

Korea will train government officials from under-developed and developing countries to help them embrace green ideas in policymaking, a senior Seoul official said. The state-run Korea Environmental Industry and Technology Institute is currently in talks with the United Nations Environmental Program for the launch of the program, Yoon Seung-joon, chief of the state-run KEITI, said. “A memorandum of understanding is likely to be inked (between the KEITI and the UNEP) in January, regarding that mat

Dec. 13, 2012

The Korea Herald, in collaboration with the Korea Environmental Industry and Technology Institute, published a series of articles featuring Korean small- and medium-sized environmental companies under the theme of “Green Innovators” between August and November, aimed at promoting their technology and global efforts.The following are excerpts from a roundtable discussion of business leaders, the KEITI President Yoon Seung-joon and Korea Herald national desk editor Hwang Jang-jin on the hopes and

Dec. 13, 2012

With less than two weeks to go before the presidential election, environmentalists are desperate to thrust their agenda into the race, lamenting the disappearance of the environment as a campaign issue in this election. A coalition of civic groups encompassing environmental, religious, animal rights groups and farmers’ cooperatives launched the “Vote for Green” campaign last month, asking voters to look into candidates’ green credentials in making their decision on who should lead Korea for the

Dec. 6, 2012

More than 4,300 species of plants, with a total of 30,000 specimens, have been planted at a giant ecological park to open next February, the Ministry of Environment said. Brought from all over the world, including desert and polar areas, the plants are assets of the National Institute of Ecology located in Seocheon, South Chungcheong Province, it added. Among the plants to find a new home at the NIE site are some 1,000 internationally endangered species, including Agave parviflora. Many of them

Dec. 6, 2012

DOHA, Qatar (AP) ― Hassan al-Kubaisi considers it a gift from above that drivers in oil- and gas-rich Qatar only have to pay $1 per gallon at the pump. “Thank God that our country is an oil producer and the price of gasoline is one of the lowest,” al-Kubaisi said, filling up his Toyota Land Cruiser at a gas station in Doha. “God has given us a blessing.” To those looking for a global response to climate change, it’s more like a curse. Qatar ― the host of U.N. climate talks that entered their fin

Dec. 6, 2012

Every winter, millions of migratory birds visit Korea, offering a treat to birdwatchers and wildlife photographers. The winged guests mostly come from Northeast Asia, Russia and Siberia, on their way to remote places in Australia and New Zealand. Although we know surprisingly little about their arduous journey and the troubles they run into along the flyway, one thing is becoming increasingly clear here ― the population of migratory birds is shrinking. Yubudo, a tiny island off Seocheon, Chungch

Nov. 29, 2012

Ecotourism is booming in Korea, with over 200 towns, cities and provinces promoting themselves as nature-lovers’ paradises. Many, however, lack strategies to succeed in the intensifying competition, experts say, offering run-of-the-mill programs that focus on walking trails and local food. “Almost all provincial governments in Korea have jumped on the ecotourism bandwagon,” the state-run Korea Environment Institute said in a recent report. “Of them, perhaps 20 to 30 percent have the potential fo

Nov. 22, 2012

The Korea Herald, in collaboration with the Korea Environmental Industry & Technology Institute, is presenting a series of articles introducing small but promising environmental tech firms. This is the tenth and last installment. ― Ed.Landfilling has been the most common method of urban waste disposal. But it has become a major source of headache as cities are running out of new land for dumping and public awareness is growing of its potential environmental hazards. The problem is acute especial

Nov. 15, 2012

QUITO, Ecuador (AP) ― The unique bird and reptile species that make the Galapagos Islands a treasure for scientists and tourists must be preserved, Ecuadorean authorities say ― and that means the rats must die, hundreds of millions of them. A helicopter is to begin dropping nearly 22 tons of specially designed poison bait on an island Thursday, launching the second phase of a campaign to clear out by 2020 non-native rodents from the archipelago that helped inspire Charles Darwin’s theory of evol

Nov. 15, 2012

The Korea Herald, in collaboration with the Korea Environmental Industry & Technology Institute, is presenting a series of articles introducing small but promising environmental tech firms. This is the ninth installment. ― Ed“This thing here has changed my life,” said Lee Myung-hoon, CEO of KC Rivertech Co., pointing at a half-cut coconut lying on a corner of his desk. For the past two decades, the exotic, tropical fruit has been his and his company’s best asset and weapon on the quest to bring

Nov. 8, 2012

The Korea Herald, in collaboration with the Korea Environmental Industry & Technology Institute, is presenting a series of articles introducing small but promising environmental tech firms. This is the eighth installment. ― Ed.Waste handling is a chronic headache for cities around the world. While growing public environmental awareness has led to difficulty in clearing new land for landfills, there is no drastic reduction in the amount of waste that people throw away. Park Nae-joon, CEO of Shen-

Nov. 1, 2012

MEXICO CITY (AP) ― Mexico is putting up wind power turbines at a breakneck pace and the expansion is pitting energy companies against the Indians who live in one of the windiest spots in the world.The country is posting one of the world’s highest growth rates in wind energy, and almost all of it is concentrated in the narrow waist of Mexico known as the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, where winds from the Pacific meet winds from the Gulf of Mexico, spawning places so wind-blown that one town’s formal na

Nov. 1, 2012