June 8 is designated to be the World Oceans Day and the event started in 2007 with over 50 countries spread over 5 continents participating. Various marine conservation groups have been part of the celebrations which aims to heighten the awareness of the problems our seas are facing as well as the creatures big and small who live in them. We humans are the most destructive beings to ever walk this earth due to the huge amount of destruction we have brought about in our short history as the dominant species on the face of the earth. There are millions of animal and plant species the world over but none has been so to blame for the extinction of the most animals and plants. Deforestation, dumping garbage into the land and sea are just some of the destructive acts we have committed against mother earth and the event aims to educate more and more people as to what we can do to lessen the impact we have on our environment.
This planet of ours has 70% of its total area as bodies of waters and of that 70% not much is known of vast oceans of the world. To this day, scientists are still finding formerly unknown species of plant and animal life from the seas, many of which hold unique and interesting properties that can prove solutions to some of our most pressing problems. The WorldOceanNetwork.org is one of the many organizing bodies which coordinates and provides materials of the scheduled events with organizations such as the Marine Conservation Society of the UK, UNESCO, TheOceanProject.Org, Nature Conservancy and many others taking part in helping our seas get the respect they deserve for theirs and our survival.
Categories: Activities, Campaigns, Environmental, News, Programs, Wildlife | Tags: conservation, Creatures_of_the_Sea, Preserving_our_seas, Sea
The Chinese government has almost given up hope of finding any more survivors under the rubbles a couple of weeks after the devastating earthquake hit the country. “We are moving into reconstruction and rehabilitation” one Chinese official says, but the danger is far from over. Since the initial tremor several powerful aftershocks have ravaged the areas damaging more structures and unnerving more of the already traumatized residents. The government has announced that the hardest hit areas may not be rebuilt due to such massive destruction on infrastructure. Most buildings were leveled (sadly mostly schools) which claimed most lives along with landslides and other damaged structures.
The country is receiving aid from all over the world but danger form blocked waterways that were plugged when millions of tons of rock and earth fell from mountains is growing. Recent rains have prompted several low lying areas to be evacuated due to fears of massive flooding as heavy rains come. The military has stepped up efforts in dislodging the blockaded streams and rivers, sometimes even using dynamite to clear debris to allow them to drain. Once enough water has drained, they would resort to heavy machinery to remove and restore the previous size of these waterways to ensure that flooding is controlled.
The many charitable institutions in China fear most are the many bodies still left under the rubble that used to be homes and schools which have the potential of causing disease and other health risks. Indeed some cases of waterborne and insect borne diseases have been reported but the Chinese say they have it all under control. The most urgent need is for temporary shelter for as the rains come and eventually winter, shelter is the most important need. Questions from furious parents are arising and they say they will continue to pursue answers to questions as to why schools were the ones most damaged by the quake and often times the only ones that completely collapsed with surrounding buildings only suffering minor damages. The world has taken the call and is sending all they can to the affected areas. Recovery operations are underway but with so much destruction, not all of the missing would surely be found. For any donations please contact the International Committee of the Red Cross or the Red Crescent so you get to help the suffering people of China as they try to get back on the road do recovery.
Categories: Analysis, Environmental, News | Tags: China Earthquake, China's Recovery, Sichuan
The term denotes the slow influx of aid and donations form countries that used to be generous enough to send billions of dollars to countries that have been devastated by disasters like the recent catastrophes in Myanmar and China. The government has sent aid but for most of the private individuals who used to give a buck or two to help people rebuild their lives, donations are relatively small compared to other disasters on record. Maybe its the recent financial crunch that has many either fearing the loss of their jobs in the coming months or maybe just that they are quite fed up with the situation as in Myanmar with the government committing crimes against humanity by refusing to help their own residents. They initially refused to accept aid from Western nations saying they had the capacity to do it on their own, but as the obvious became apparent and they finally let some aid in the officials of the Military Junta began to stockpile imported aid for their own sending rotten stores to their citizens.
This is a sad yet true story for even the most generous people do have to deal with their own financial woes. China, which has spent billions of dollars in developing and constructing new structures (airport, athletic venues and other such Olympic aimed infrastructures), has appealed for aid from the outside world countering their previous denial for aid. Myanmar which showcases everything as normal even with the rest of the world saying and knowing it isn’t is truly hypocrisy in the highest levels. With thousands of corpses lining rivers and villages, and with no immediate sanitary way of dealing with them the threat of epidemics is high and possible.
People will continue to give like they have always done in the human tragedies of past but world wide economic slowdown may make it more difficult for those who give and receive aid. People are also frustrated that even with the billions in aid being sent to areas and people in need, their government’s themselves fail to take up the cause of helping their own. The world is filled with compassionate and caring individuals that allow us to remain human, compassionate and ever helpful.
A reality that has to be accepted is that these people will have to do the healing by themselves and that is by far the only certainty in this disaster plagued world. The resilience of humans has amazed us in all of the world’s disasters from then till now, let us just hope we as a part of the human race continue to help each other in spite of political, ideological and other differences.
Categories: Analysis, Disaster Relief, Environmental, Events, News | Tags: aid, charity, China, Myanmar, natural-disasters
The death toll has reached 32,000 lives but this number is expected to go into the 50,000 mark for many are still missing in the collapsed rubble that used to be schools and buildings that have been found to have been made not to earthquake standards set by the government. The Chinese government has promised to look into the matters but they insist that the main priority today a week after the killer quake was still saving lives.
Rescue workers move from area to area searching through the rubble with family members wailing in the distance crying for their lost loved ones. As they fail to find anyone to rescue, they move on to the next location much to the discontent of the helpless parents and family members who continue to dig as they try to find the bodies of their loved ones whom they know are still deep in the ruins. Amidst warnings from the UN’s Health experts have had the government mobilize disinfection teams to the many affected areas to spray disinfectants all around the temporary housing areas due to fears of disease outbreaks. They have also advised the government to begin burying the dead for they are continuing to pile up in temporary morgues where they pose a serious health risk.
The government acted swiftly and the international community has taken the call for help but little can be done for the rescue efforts for the extreme length of time and aftershocks have further settled the already mangled buildings. The rescue effort is in the final stages and soon would be turned into a recovery operation to remove dead bodies for proper disposal which if left alone creates the perfect conditions for disease. The death toll is rising slowly as more and more bodies are being pulled. Last Saturday, 165 people were rescued alive including an elderly woman who raised the hopes of rescuers and citizens alike. But time is against any other survivor for the human body can only survive a few days without water and adding injuries to the mix, chances of survival are continuing to fade. The government has announced that the torch relay has been suspended for now and that an official three day mourning holiday is in effect to allow people to mourn for their lost loved ones.
Categories: Charities, Children, Disaster Relief, Environmental, News | Tags: Collapsed Buildings, Sichuan Earthquake
Many have died and there are still a lot of people missing in the deadly earthquake that struck on the 12th of May. The government has sent in their elite paratroopers into the most inaccessible areas that are still cut off from the rescue efforts in hopes of getting a better picture of the total devastation. The Chinese government has already asked for help with regards to rescue equipment and supplies, most of which have already been fielded in the many affected areas. With thousands of soldiers working frantically to free survivors still trapped beneath the many collapsed structures, questions are arising from these areas where some of the most heavily damaged structures are schools and government buildings. Days after the quake, rescuers are getting desperate for the first two days are the most critical and important to get people out. After that amount of time, only bodies would be found but soldiers and other rescuers are keeping hopes up as they work as fast as they can to get to people still trapped in the rubble. The country is beginning to receive aid from Western countries who early on have expressed their intent to help the Chinese government. With resources stretched to the limits, the aid is quickly being fielded to areas that need it most. For more information on how you can help the victims of the Chinese earthquakes you can contact the UN, and other aid agencies who have been working hard to send aid to the many who have suffered as a result of one of the most deadly quakes of recent times.
Categories: Children, Disaster Relief, Environmental | Tags: Collapsed Buildings, Sichuan Earthquake
June 8 is designated to be the World Oceans Day and the event started in 2007 with over 50 countries spread over 5 continents participating. Various marine conservation groups have been part of the celebrations which aims to heighten the awareness of the problems our seas are facing as well as the creatures big and small who live in them. We humans are the most destructive beings to ever walk this earth due to the huge amount of destruction we have brought about in our short history as the dominant species on the face of the earth. There are millions of animal and plant species the world over but none has been so to blame for the extinction of the most animals and plants. Deforestation, dumping garbage into the land and sea are just some of the destructive acts we have committed against mother earth and the event aims to educate more and more people as to what we can do to lessen the impact we have on our environment.
