The geopolitical maneuvering in the South China Sea (SCS) is taking a heavy toll on the marine environment, scientists believe. The Spratly or Nansha Islands, a cluster of coral reefs and atolls, has become the focus of a territorial dispute between China and its neighbors. To the dismay of other countries bordering the SCS, China […]
ELEANOR HALL: Scientists from the United States and the Philippines have accused the Chinese Government of destroying coral reefs and fishing grounds with its reclamation program in the South China Sea. Beijing has intensified its dredging and construction on the disputed Spratly Islands in what many see as a challenge to US power in the […]
The Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs said on April 13 that “China’s massive reclamation activities are causing irreversible and widespread damage to the biodiversity and ecological balance of the South China Sea.” It also said that the destruction of coral reef systems resulting from Beijing’s land reclamation projects is estimated to lead to economic losses […]
(Updated 12:38 p.m.) The Philippines on Monday said it finds “unacceptable” China’s claim that its massive reclamation work in several disputed South China Sea territories are not causing marine environment damage, warning that that coastal states stand to lose $100 million annually from Beijing’s activities. China’s ongoing reclamation activities, Foreign Affairs spokesman Charles Jose said, […]
China’s mounting clashes with its neighbors over control of the South China Sea also could be fueling a major environmental catastrophe, endangering fishing stocks, threatening marine biodiversity and posing long-term threats to some of the globe’s most spectacular coral reefs. Environmental scientists say the dangers are increasing as the conflicting sovereignty claims heat up between […]
EVEN on a quiet Sunday morning, a steady stream of lorries trundles along the broad, pristine and otherwise deserted streets of Punggol Timur, an island of reclaimed land in the north-east of Singapore. They empty their loads into neat rows of white, yellow and grey mounds where the country stockpiles a vital raw material: sand. […]
Fiery Cross Reef, a tiny coral dot in the 1.4 million square miles of the South China Sea, wouldn’t seem the most obvious or ecologically sound location for a nearly two-mile-long airstrip. But based on satellite images released last week by Jane’s Defence Weekly, that’s exactly what China seems to be getting ready to build atop it. Such construction […]