China urges balance on environment, economy in Antarctica

MANILA (PNA) – The Department of Science and Technology – Forest Products Research and Development Institute (DOSTFPRDI) has developed a technology to produce high-quality bamboo charcoal.

Bamboo charcoal is produced from bamboo plants harvested after at least five years, and burned in ovens at 800-1200 degree Celsius.

The bamboo charcoal has various uses in different industries, according to FPRDI.

FPRDI's project, "High Quality Charcoal from Bamboo for Industrial Uses", was funded by the Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development (PCAARRD), another DOST-attached agency.

PCAARD said by developing technologies to create bamboo charcoal, it hopes to contribute to the livelihood of the farmers.

Meanwhile, FPRDI said the oven that was used for this project was designed by Engineer Belen Bisana, project leader.

Bisana said bamboo charcoal can also be used similarly with activated carbon (activated charcoal).

The activated charcoal is processed to have small pores that increase the surface area available for absorption of chemical reactions.

According to FPRDI, the oven that they used was able to create 34-44 percent charcoal, compared to the usual oven made of bricks, which can only make 25-31 percent charcoal.

It added that the machine can also produce pyroligenous liquor or wood vinegar.

BEIJING (AP) – A Chinese leader on Tuesday urged international representatives to strike a “proper balance” between environmental and economic interests in Antarctica, as the frozen continent’s vulnerability to climate change raises worries that some nations could seek to exploit its natural resources.

China is seeking to carve out a greater role in determining the continent’s future while hosting delegates from more than two dozen nations that have agreed to an Antarctic protection treaty.

Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli, who sits on the Communist Party’s all-powerful, seven-member Politburo Standing Committee, told participants that the fate of Antarctica’s fragile environment bears on human survival.

“There needs to be a proper balance between the protection and utilization of Antarctica in order to keep the environment green and sustain economic growth and cultural stability for mankind,” Zhang said.

His reference to economic interests fed into speculation that China and other nations are maneuvering to exploit mineral resources that could be exposed by a shrinking southern ice cap.

United States delegate Kelly Falkner says that’s highly unlikely under international agreements. There also are practical concerns, given Antarctica’s remoteness and harsh weather for much of the year.

Environmental protection protocols under the Antarctic treaty are due to come up for reconsideration in 2048. But Falkner said it would require consensus among the treaty nations to change an existing framework that includes a mining ban.

A bigger worry for the US is that China could overtake it as the global leader in polar research, said Falkner, who heads the Office of Polar Programs for the National Science Foundation.

China acceded to the Antarctic treaty in 1983 and has since established four research stations. It plans to start construction of an airfield later this year and a fifth research station as early as 2018. It also has a new icebreaker under construction to augment the Xue Long, a Ukrainianbuilt vessel currently used to service its Antarctic missions.

Yet while China has publicly emphasized its scientific ambitions, it also appears to be hedging against possible future development opportunities, said Marc Lanteigne, a senior lecturer on China and the polar regions at New Zealand’s Massey University.

Seven countries have made land claims in Antarctica. The United States and Russia have said they don’t recognize the claims but have reserved the right to make future claims of their own.