by Ben Block on July 14, 2008

Source: Worldwatch Institute  

The trend of more frequent global natural disasters continues, due to an onslaught of weather-related crises in the first half of 2008.

The total number of disasters as of June 30, 2008 already exceeds the average number of disasters recorded at mid-year over the past decade. Although 2008 is not on pace to eclipse 2007 as registering the most natural disasters ever, an especially active Atlantic hurricane season is expected.

During the first half of each year between 1998 and 2007, the average number of disasters recorded was 380. So far in 2008, 400 disasters have been reported, according to data released last week by Munich Re, a German reinsurance group.

The data covers geological events, such as earthquakes and volcanoes, as well as weather-related disasters like storms, floods, and heat waves.

Based on the mid-year report, 2008 is following the steady rise in natural disasters that Munich Re has tracked since 1980. The average number of disasters throughout the 1980s was 400. It increased to 630 in the 1990s and to 730 in the past ten years. The highest recorded number of natural disasters, 960, occurred in 2007, Munich Re reported.

For the full article, please see: http://www.worldwatch.org/node/5825

From: Reuters
Source:  ENN
Published July 14, 2008 09:17 AM

LONDON (Reuters) - Booming demand for food, fuel and wood as the world's population surges from six to nine billion will put unprecedented and unsustainable demand on the world's remaining forests, two new reports said on Monday.

The reports from the U.S.-based Rights and Resources Initiative (RRI) said this massive potential leap in deforestation could add toglobalwarming and put pressure on indigenous forest dwellers that could lead to conflict.

"Arguably we are on the verge of the last great global land grab," said Andy White, co-author of "Seeing People Through the Trees," one of the two reports.

"Unless steps are taken, traditional forest owners, and the forests themselves, will be the big losers. It will mean more deforestation, more conflict, more carbon emissions, more climate change and less prosperity for everyone."

For the full article, please visit: http://www.enn.com/ecosystems/article/3764

http://www.irinnews.org/Report.aspx?ReportId=79252

 Tuesday 15 July 2008

JERUSALEM, 15 July 2008 (IRIN) - Herders in the West Bank are facing an "acute water shortage" and are on the "brink of an emergency", the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), has warned, saying it was stepping in to provide immediate assistance, although a long-term solution was needed to fix the problem.

The problem is both natural and man-made, stemming from three successive years of drought and a frost during the past winter, as well as Israeli restrictions on movement which prevent access to water, the ICRC said.

...

The Israeli perspective

Israel has said the restrictions on movement are needed to mitigate security threats. A senior defence official, who insisted on speaking off the record, said the problems the herders faced stem from the drought and population growth.

"A well that suited their needs in the past, is no longer enough for the larger family," he said.

Furthermore, Israeli officials said they were working on development plans for certain Palestinian villages and towns, which may help some with their water access issues. Other Palestinians, like those in al-Hadadiya, who are considered to have "illegally invaded" the land - and face eviction and demolition orders - will continue to have trouble.
...

ICRC distributes water

For now, the ICRC has distributed water to some affected shepherds, numbering some 50,000 people.

The first distribution took place in the drought-affected southern Hebron hills, one of the hardest hit areas, helping some 1,000 people and their 50,000 livestock.

By Simon Montlake| Correspondent of The Christian Science Monitorfrom the July 14, 2008 edition

http://www.csmonitor.com/2008/0715/p07s01-wosc.html

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-japanfish15-2008jul15,0,4233571.story
Fishermen say it's too expensive to take out their boats. They plan a strike Tuesday, sparking fears of a food crisis in a nation where seafood is a staple.
By Don Lee, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
July 15, 2008
OTARU, JAPAN -- Shigeru Honma had not been to Tokyo in more than 30 years. But on July 1, the 58-year-old fisherman from this port city in northern Japan dusted off an old suit and traveled to the capital to deliver a letter to the prime minister.

Soaring fuel prices are killing Japan's fishing industry, it said. Give us money, or oil.

There's been no response from the prime minister's office, so fishery cooperatives have organized a nationwide strike today with 200,000 vessels halting operations. About 3,600 fishermen and supporters are to protest in Tokyo.

"We are very gentle, but it's time to say something now," said Honma, a third-generation fisherman.

Spiraling fuel and food costs have sparked riots and protests in many countries. In Japan, where demonstrations are relatively rare, the rising prices are threatening a way of life in this seafood-loving nation.

"If we lose our fishing industry, we Japanese will face a food crisis," said Masahiko Ariji, a fishery specialist at the Amita Institute for Sustainable Economics in Kyoto. About two-thirds of the nation's fishing groups were in the red last year, he said. With fuel prices higher this year, some "are about to collapse."

The price of gas at Japan's pumps has jumped to about $6.40 a gallon from $4.35 in the spring. Taxi and transit companies have bumped up rates, as have airlines. Though prices of tuna, squid and other seafood have risen, fishing companies say they can't easily pass on costs to customers because of competition from imports.

Whether Japan's government will help is not known.