More trees planted will boost NZ falcon's chances of survival

The threatened native falcon, one of the world's fastest flying birds, should prosper if the new Government holds to its promise to boost forest planting.

Under new Forestry Minister Shane Jones, the Government has set a target of an additional 50,000ha  of planting a year, mostly radiata pine.

With a population of between 5000-8000, the karearea has thrived in pine forests, provided it has the right mix of mature trees from where it can see to hunt prey, and open spaces where it can nest.

Chifuyu Horikoshi, who has just completed a PhD in falcon behaviour and non-breeding ecology in Kaingaroa Forest in the central North Island last breeding season, welcomed the promise of more trees, saying the more the better for the raptor, one of New Zealand's few birds of prey.

"It's undoubtedly much better to plant more forest because that's a more suitable breeding habitat for falcons than farmland, and in the central North Island a lot of small areas of forest have been converted to farms."

She also worked in Otago forests on karearea. The two regions were in striking contrast. Kaingaroa, managed by Timberlands, is one of the largest plantation forests in the world, whereas Otago features many small forest blocks among farmland.

https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/farming/99040870/more-trees-planted-will-boost-falcons-chances-of-survival

More big earthquakes in 2018 as Earth slows slightly, theory suggests

Two US scientists have come up with a theory that suggests a big increase in devastating earthquakes, particularly near the Equator, in 2018 following a tiny slowing in the Earth's rotation.

"The correlation between Earth's rotation and earthquake activity is strong and suggests there is going to be an increase in numbers of intense earthquakes next year," Roger Bilham of the University of Colorado told The Observer.

Bilham and Rebecca Bendick of the University of Montana presented a paper on the link between seismic activity and the Earth's rotation speed at the annual meeting of the Geological Society of America.

The slowdown in Earth's rotation is tiny - a millisecond a day sometimes - which can be measured by atomic clocks.

Bilham and Bendick found that periods when the number of intense earthquakes had increased followed periods of about five years when the Earth's rotation slowed slightly.

Earth's rotation began one of the periodic slowdowns more than four years ago.

"Next year we should see a significant increase in numbers of severe earthquakes," Bilham said. "We have had it easy this year. So far we have only had about six severe earthquakes. We could easily have 20 a year starting in 2018."

The link between the Earth's rotation and the number of big earthquakes was unclear, but slight changes in the behaviour of the Earth's core could be causing both effects.

https://www.stuff.co.nz/science/99038436/more-big-earthquakes-in-2018-as-earth-slows-slightly-theory-suggests

Trump to reverse ban on elephant trophies from Africa

The Trump administration plans to allow hunters to import trophies of elephants they killed in Zimbabwe and Zambia back to the United States, reversing a ban put in place by the Obama administration in 2014, a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service official confirmed to ABC News today.

Even though elephants are listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act, a provision in the act allows the government to give permits to import these trophies if there is evidence that the hunting actually benefits conservation for that species. The official said they have new information from officials in Zimbabwe and Zambia to support reversing the ban to allow trophy hunting permits.

"Legal, well-regulated sport hunting as part of a sound management program can benefit the conservation of certain species by providing incentives to local communities to conserve the species and by putting much-needed revenue back into conservation," a Fish and Wildlife spokesperson said in a statement.

This change only applies to elephants in those two countries but questions about using game hunting to generate money for conservation efforts also came up during the controversy after Cecil the lion was killed in Zimbabwe in 2015.

The government has not actually announced this policy change yet but it was reportedly announced at a wildlife forum in South Africa this week, according to Safari Club International, which filed a lawsuit to block the 2014 ban.

http://abcnews.go.com/US/trump-admin-reverse-ban-elephant-trophies-africa/story?id=51178663

As disasters surge, nations must slash emissions faster, climate experts urge

The Trump administration has formally released a report that details the growing threats of climate change.

With hurricanes, floods and other impacts of climate change becoming increasingly destructive, countries urgently need to step up their ambitions to cut emissions if they are to keep global warming within safe limits, experts said ahead of UN climate talks starting in Germany on Monday.

About 163 countries have submitted plans on how they will contribute to meeting the Paris climate agreement goal to limit global warming to well below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.

 

But put together, the plans are likely to lead to a 3 degree temperature rise this century, according to the United Nations.

Out-of-control wildfire tore through parts of California, US, in October.

Nicholas Nuttall, spokesman for the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, said the national plans delivered in advance of Paris, "were well known at the time to fall short of the Paris Agreement's long-term goals".

But the agreement also calls for countries to take stock of international progress on climate action and ratchet up the ambition of their national plans accordingly.

https://www.stuff.co.nz/environment/98580790/as-disasters-surge-nations-must-slash-emissions-faster-climate-experts-urge

China's recyclers eye looming electric vehicle battery mountain

While electric car makers are technically liable for recycling batteries, in practice they sign deals with suppliers to recycle batteries on their behalf.

After years of dismantling discarded televisions and laptops, a Shanghai recycling plant is readying itself for a new wave of waste: piles of exhausted batteries from the surge of electric vehicles hitting China's streets.

The plant has secured licences and is undergoing upgrades to handle a fast-growing mountain of battery waste, said Li Yingzhe, a manager at the facility, run by the state-owned Shanghai Jinqiao Group.

"We believe there will be so much growth in the number of electric vehicles in the future," he said.

Shanghai Jinqiao will be entering a market that includes Chinese companies like Jiangxi Ganfeng Lithium and GEM, whose share prices have risen as they invest in battery recycling facilities of their own. That confidence comes even as companies face considerable hurdles launching battery recycling businesses, including high operating costs.

The growth of China's electric vehicle industry - and the ambitions of recycling companies - is underpinned by a government drive to eventually phase out gasoline-burning cars, part of a broader effort to improve urban air quality and ease a reliance on overseas oil.

Led by companies like BYD and Geely, sales of electric vehicles in China reached 507,000 in 2016, up 53 per cent over the previous year. The government is targeting sales of 2 million a year by 2020 and 7 million five years later, amounting to a fifth of total car production by 2025.

According to the International Energy Agency, China accounted for more than 40 per cent of global electric car sales in 2016, followed by the European Union and the United States. It also overtook the United States as the market with the greatest number of electric vehicles.

Production in China of the lithium batteries that power those cars has also soared. In the first eight months of 2017, Chinese manufacturers produced 6.7 billion batteries, up 51 per cent from the year-earlier period, according to industry ministry data.

All that activity could put China in pole position for dominating the global electric car industry, as well as related businesses like batteries and recycling.

https://www.stuff.co.nz/motoring/news/98484757/chinas-recyclers-eye-looming-electric-vehicle-battery-mountainf

Government considering experimental climate change visa

An experimental visa for people from the Pacific displaced by climate change is to be investigated by the Government.

Climate Change Minister and Greens leader James Shaw said the intention was to work with the Pacific Islands in the coming months and years on an experimental humanitarian visa category for people from the Pacific displaced by rising seas caused by climate change.

At the same time, he did not want to send a message that the Government was giving up on the top priority, which was to "try to prevent catastrophic climate change and therefore have there be no need for people to be displaced", Shaw told Radio NZ.

The goal of New Zealand becoming carbon neutral by 2050 was consistent with the ambitions of the Pacific Islands.

The big question was whether there would be changes to the 2030 target, which the Greens had criticised as inadequate while they were in opposition, Shaw said.

 

"Of course when you have a new target of becoming carbon neutral by 2050, then the existing 2030 target starts to look inconsistent with that. So we are looking at reviewing that next year."

https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/98429364/government-considering-experimental-climate-change-visa

Climate change predicted to take big toll on Kiwis' mental and physical health

Our changing climate is expected to see some plants release eight-times more pollen by 2100, worsening hayfever symptoms.

Allergies will become more prevalent and their symptoms worse, drinking water will be less reliable, and poisonous pests may find a new home in New Zealand's warmer climate.

These are just a few of the effects climate change is expected to have on human health, according to a newly-released Royal Society report.

Kiwis may have to contend with more intense heat waves and extreme weather events, including flooding and fires, which would take a toll on mental health.

The invasive Australian redback spider has already appeared in Otago. But as our country gets warmer, it may spread to other places.

The Royal New Zealand College of General Practitioners said the stresses on children would compare to those growing up under the threat of nuclear war.

Royal Society president Richard Bedford said higher concentrations of CO2, increased temperatures and changes in rainfall were expected to extend growing seasons.

https://www.stuff.co.nz/environment/98161110/climate-change-predicted-to-take-big-toll-on-kiwis-mental-and-physical-health