Dear Cristian,
A coastal watch sounds like a terrific idea for the US. I don't know if there's anything like it in progress already.
From what I understand, many parts of Europe have instituted the Precautionary Principle as a standard. That means, for example, that a particular substance needs to be proven to be safe before being being manufactured, as opposed to the US standard whereby something must be proven dangerous before being withdrawn.
Here, the prevailing dogma is touted as "cost/benefit analysis," in which corporations do not have to give much thought to the cost of safe disposal of byproducts. If they want to treat the environment like a toilet bowl, that's their "right." If their effluents cause an upturn in cancer deaths 40 years later, the relatives of the dead are free to sue the corporations if they can prove causality.
San Francisco is one of the few US localities to utilize the Precautionary Principle. I think proponents of environmental conservation would do well to make this framework far more familiar during policy discussions in the US.
David Kirsh
Durham, NC
-----Original Message-----
From: Cristian Ruiz Altaba <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Nov 18, 2004 3:06 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Endangered list from IUCN
Dear Mike and friends,
Yes, pollution of all kinds is possibly the biggest threat for marine
ecosystems as a whole. But we can do some things.
Here in Europe there is a big project called Coastwatch, which has a
continental scale but is done by local groups - schools, elders, scouts,
even convicts... It is entirely voluntary, yet it provides a citizen's
first-witness account of what is going on along the coastline. Not
surprisingly, some governments don't like it very much; but in many areas,
yearly surveys by motivated individuals are a heavy pressure on
politicians. Is there anything like this in the US?
There is another interesting thing, called MARBENA, which is a European
organizer of internet conferences (some are ongoing, worth looking at). A
couple years ago they had a meeting here in Mallorca, and I had the
opportunity toi speak with its coordinator. He was striving to find good
bio-indicators for coastal ecosystems throughout the continent. I
suggested looking at the abundance and sizes of cockles -the abundant,
moderately diverse Cardiidae.
So, we malacologists could do a lot for marine life, if we got organized
into performing yearly surveys of common species. Any ideas?
Best wishes,
Cristian
-----Mensaje original-----
De: mike gray [SMTP:[log in to unmask]]
Enviado el: miércoles 17 de noviembre de2004 19:53
Para: [log in to unmask]
Asunto: Re: Endangered list from IUCN
Cristian Ruiz Altaba wrote:
> For most marine species, it would be more than enough to
>enforce existing trade and fisheries legislation.
>
And pollution laws.
Here in Florida, we have regulations up the wazoo but not a single
prosecutor to enforce them. The major damage to the marine environment
is from municipal discharge of nitrogen-rich effluent directly onto the
reefs, not from fisheries or industry.
What money there is goes to yet still more additional redundant study
groups, not enforcement.
Discouraging.
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