On October 30, we celebrate World Lemur Day to raise awareness about one of the world’s most endangered animals, lemurs, otherwise referred to as the “jewel of Madagascar”. Here are some facts about lemurs, why they are important, and how to help them.

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The ancestors of lemurs arrived from the African mainland to Madagascar by natural floating raft 65 million years ago. The creatures evolved and adapted to various ecosystems, leading to a diverse array of lemurs that live in a wide range of habitats. Lemurs such as the Simpona or silky sifaka (Propithecus candidus), live only in the high-altitude rainforest of northern Madagascar. The Maki and Lemur catta live mainly in the thorny forests of southwestern Madagascar and the Alaotra lake hapalemur lives in the marshes and bamboos of the Alaotra lake.

Lemurs are important in maintaining the balance of Madagascan ecosystems and the growth of plants and trees. They are considered the “creators of the forest,” fuelling the growth of plants in Madagascan forests. Despite being fruit lovers, they cannot digest fruit seeds; when lemurs travel throughout forests, they spread the seeds through their droppings, which act as natural fertilisers. These seeds grow into new trees, which offer shelter and food for a wide variety of animals such as snakes, chameleons and lemurs themselves.

However, lemurs are in danger of becoming extinct, with 31% of all lemur species now figuring as ‘critically endangered’ in the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species.

Around 2,000 years ago, the exploitation of nature in Madagascar began as humans arrived. Coal mining, illegal logging and slash-and-burn agriculture have led to deforestation and major habitat loss for lemurs. Since the 1950s, Madagascar has lost 44% of its natural forests and between 2001 and 2019, the country lost 3.89 Mha of forest, which translates to a 23% reduction since 2000, according to Global Forest Watch. The population of lemurs continues to decline as they are hunted for their meat and are illegally kept as pets by individuals and institutions. There are strict laws put in place to protect lemurs and any offences are punishable by imprisonment of between six months and 20 years.

Lemurs are also affected by the climate crisis. Species are at risk of extinction when they leave their initial natural environment because of climate change. A study published in 2019 found that 95% of lemur habitats could be destroyed by global warming in 2070 as places become too hot to live in. A WWF report also showed that 57 species of lemur populations will decline by 60% if the global temperature increases by 2C- 4C by 2100.

What Can We Do for Lemurs on World Lemur Day?

Protecting Lemurs can be hugely beneficial to the Malagasy people. Sustainable ecotourism is considered an effective way to help the survival of endangered animals, including lemurs. Ecotourism not only helps raise awareness for lemurs but also helps the local economy as the industry could bring in millions of dollars each year. It is pertinent that local Malagasy communities view lemurs as valuable assets to their livelihoods. The Madagascan government views ecotourism as a priority and has significantly increased funding to promote the island as an ecotourism destination. 

The WWF is also committed to protecting lemurs and the forests by establishing a relationship with local communities that help detect threats such as poaching. They are also supporting communities in the restoration of natural forests and raising awareness for the lemurs. 

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Happy International Snow Leopard Day 2023! Established in 2014, on October 23 every year we celebrate this endangered cat and raise awareness for its conservation and protection. While there are many countries and communities committed to protecting this fascinating creature, the snow leopard population is under threat due to shrinking habitats, a declining number of prey, and poaching. A large part of conservation efforts is to raise awareness through education. So here are some facts about the elusive, stunning snow leopard.

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1. Snow leopards are often found in the mountains of Central Asia and have adapted to a cold and dry climate.
2. Snow leopards are around 55-65 centimetres in height and 90-115 centimetres in length. They have extra-large paws that are like a natural pair of snowshoes to prevent the cat from sinking into the snow.
3. As one of the world’s most elusive cats, they are solitary travellers and are most active during dawn and dusk.
4. Despite being quite strong cats, they are incredibly gentle creatures that are not known to harm humans. Snow leopards cannot roar because of the physiology of their throat. They are often heard purring, hissing, or growling in a non-aggressive manner.
5. Communication between snow leopards is done through leaving markings by scraping the ground or spraying urine against rocks to mark their territory or to locate mates.
6. These cats can kill prey that are three times their own weight. They also have strong limbs that can launch up to 30 feet in one leap.
7. A female snow leopard is usually pregnant for 93-110 days before giving birth to her cubs in June or July. The mother tends to raise her offspring alone, providing food and shelter for her cubs. The cubs follow their mothers for the first 18-22 months of their lives, learning how to hunt before becoming independent. 
8. Snow leopards are important to their ecosystem because as top predators, they maintain the ecological balance by preying on mountain sheep and goats, preventing increases in herbivore populations and changes to the vegetation.
9. Many people who live near snow leopard populations rely on resources provided by these landscapes, such as wood for shelter, heat and fuel. Protecting snow leopards would, by extension, protect the local people too.
10. Snow leopards are most affected by habitat loss, climate change, human wildlife conflict and the illegal wildlife trade.

Whilst not a lot is known about the snow leopard, one thing is clear – the species population is declining due to “habitat deterioration, poaching, conflict with people” and climate change, says Becci May, a Tigers and Asian Species Regional Manager for WWF. Through rebuilding communities in Nepal after the devastating earthquake in 2015, the WWF has been working with communities in the high mountains of the Kanchenjunga conservation area in Nepal to reduce conflicts between snow leopards and people. Snow leopards sometimes prey on livestock that leads to retaliatory killings. Snow leopards are often poached for their fur and bones for commercial and medicinal purposes and are also under threat from climate change-induced warming.

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Celebrating International Snow Leopard Day should encourage us to learn more about this creature and the threats they face, prompting us to rethink the impact of our actions on these cats and the environment in which they live and rely on.

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A cattle station in Australia is to become the world’s largest solar farm, with most of the energy generated to power Singapore. Located in the Northern Territory’s Barkley Region, the 12 000-hectare solar farm will feed the Northern Territory power grid. 

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The $20 billion, 10 GW farm will be three times larger than the world’s current biggest solar farm in northern China. Sun Cable, the owner of the project, hopes to begin construction in 2023, start producing energy in 2026, and start exporting by 2027. Feeding into the Northern Territory grid, it will power the entire state, while two-thirds of the energy generated will supply around 20% of Singapore’s electricity. 

The project will feature at least two underwater cables, each slightly smaller than a football in diameter The partnership is set to facilitate Singapore’s aim to phase out gas-fired power systems.

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The project is expected to generate 1 500 direct jobs and 10 000 indirect jobs during construction and 350 permanent jobs once in operation. Sun Cable is working on a training and employment opportunities plan and is looking to source parts of the workforce from nearby Indigenous communities and use supplies produced by local communities.

As reported on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Sun Cable has selected the Newcastle Waters site for the solar farm project as it meets certain criteria. “It’s on the Adelaide to Darwin rail corridor which is good for logistics given the enormous amount of material we’ll have to transport to the site.” says David Griffin, CEO of Sun Cable. The weather conditions at the site are also good for producing energy as it is south enough to avoid being affected by the wet season, ensuring a “steady solar resource throughout the year.” 

Sun Cable also assessed the environmental impact of the solar farm on the land, aligning itself with the Northern Territory’s Environment Protection Authority. Griffin says that they are planning to build in an area of soil that is a bit different to a lot of the black soil found in the country and will closely monitor the impact on the ground by the solar farm.

This solar farm project is one example of how Australia is looking to invest more in renewable energy. As a country that is responsible for 1.4% of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions, which increases to 5% if fossil fuel exports are counted, exporting solar energy can help Australia increase its energy production while reducing its carbon emissions.

Featured image by: Flickr 

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South Korea has announced that it will try to become carbon neutral by 2050, although he stopped short of promising to achieve the goal. In a policy speech during a national assembly on October 28, President Moon Jae-in said that the nation would “respond to the climate crisis with the international community.”

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South Korea’s declaration follows Japan’s pledge earlier this week to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050 and it joins other major economies who have set the same goal, such as the EU and China, who recently announced that it would become carbon neutral by 2060.

South Korea is one of the largest fossil fuel-reliant economies, with 40% of its electricity generated from imported coal and less than 6% from renewables. It still has seven coal power units under construction and it is one of the top three public financers of overseas coal power projects

To become carbon neutral by 2050, Moon says that South Korea will commit itself to ending its dependence on coal by investing USD$ 2.1 billion next year in renewables as part of its Green New Deal as well as investing $3.7 billion to increase charging stations for electric vehicles. The Green New Deal was set up in July 2020, which plans to end the financing of overseas coal plants and create urban forests, establish a carbon tax, plan for recycling and establish a foundation for renewable energy. It was also set up to help the country achieve a green economic recovery post-COVID-19.

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According to the International Energy Agency, the country was the world’s 7th largest emitter of carbon dioxide in 2017 and the current trajectory will result in only 24% reduction in emissions below 2017 levels by 2030. Campaigners have warned that South Korea will need to change their energy policy to have even the slightest possibility of reaching their zero-emissions target. 

The government announced earlier this year that its 60 coal-fired power stations would be halved by 2034, with new liquefied natural gas plants making up the deficit. 

The UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres was “very encouraged” by President Moon’s commitment to get South Korea to net zero emissions.

Through closing coal-fired power plants and plans to cut 24 nuclear power plants to 17 by 2034, Moon’s government hopes to rely on renewable energy, like wind, water and solar power. However, shutting down nuclear plants will make the 2050 goal much more difficult to achieve, as its plan to cut its nuclear plants will reduce the sector’s energy output by nearly half.  

Although there is still a lot to do, “South Korea is finally one step closer to aligning itself with the reduction pathway compatible with the Paris climate agreement goal,” managing director of NGO Solutions for Our Climate, Joojin Kim, says.

Featured image by: Flickr

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The ozone hole above Antarctica is at its largest and deepest size in 15 years. The hole started to grow in mid-August and reached 24 million square kilometres in size on October 2. It is currently at 23 million square kilometres, which is above average for the last decade, according to the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO).

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The unusually large size of this year’s ozone hole is a result of a strong, persistent and cold polar vortex, which keeps temperatures of the ozone layer above Antarctica cold. This facilitates ozone depletion because polar stratospheric clouds, important for the wearing of the ozone layer, form below -78°C. According to NASA, the 2019 ozone hole above Antarctica was at its smallest in 30 years, peaking at 16.4 million square kilometers and shrinking to less than 10 million square kilometers. It also closed earlier than usual. This was due to unusually strong and warming weather conditions that weakened the polar vortex, which prevented polar stratospheric clouds from forming.

The European Space Agency’s missions manager for the Copernicus Sentinel-5P satellite, Claus Zehner, says that the “ozone hole phenomena cannot be used in a straightforward manner for monitoring global ozone changes” because it depends on the “strength of regional strong wind fields that flow around polar areas.” 

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The formation of Antarctica’s ozone hole is an annual event. The hole normally forms during the Southern Hemisphere’s late winter as ozone-depleting reactions are induced by sun rays. This reaction occurs between active forms of chlorine and bromine that comes from anthropogenic sources, gradually thinning the Earth’s ozone layer. Ozone depletion increases the amount of UV radiation that reaches Earth’s surface, which can impact life on Earth such as plants and cause cancer in humans. The variability in size of the ozone hole is predominantly driven by the strength of a wind band that flows around Antarctic regions. This wind band is brought on by strong temperature differences between polar and moderate latitudes and Earth’s rotation.

The Montreal Protocol agreement was established in 1987 to reduce ozone-depleting substances in the atmosphere to protect the earth’s ozone layer. Scientific discoveries in the 1970s and 1980s showed that human activities were affecting ozone levels in the stratosphere and creating the ozone hole. The Montreal Protocol is one of the most successful environmental protection agreements, with 197 countries ratifying the agreement. The protocol has a timeline for developed and developing countries to phase out 96 ozone-depleting chemicals. So far, many substances such as chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs) have been phased out by both developed and developing countries. Hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) remain on a tight schedule to be reduced by 85% by 2036 in developed countries and 80% by 2045 in developing countries.

The Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service states that despite the large ozone hole this year, the positive impact of the Montreal Protocol means that the ozone layer is on a “slow recovery” to reach 1980 levels by 2060. However, there is also a connection between the changes in the ozone layer and the climate crisis, which may delay recovery.

Featured image by: NASA Earth Observatory

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