Earth Report – Global Disaster Watch
5.8 Earthquake hits Java, Indonesia.
5.2 Earthquake hits the Kuril Islands off Alaska.
5.1 Earthquake hits the Andreanof Islands in the Aleutian Island chain.
5.1 Earthquake hits the Banda Sea.
5.1 and 4.9 Earthquakes hit the Queen Charlotte Islands region.
5.0 Earthquake hits New Guinea, Papua New Guinea.
5.0 Earthquake hits the Fiji Islands region.
Major nations failed to reach agreement on Thursday to set up huge marine protected areas off Antarctica under a plan to step up conservation of creatures such as whales and penguins around the frozen continent.
Environmentalists criticised the failure to agree new marine protected areas in the Ross Sea and off East Antarctica, home to penguins, seals, whales and seabirds as well as valuable stocks of shrimp-like krill.
Most resistance came from Ukraine, Russia and China.
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Peru, the world’s top fishmeal exporter, has slashed its commercial fishing quota as warmer water temperatures and controversial practices deplete stocks of anchovy in one of the world’s richest fisheries.
The government cut its quota for this summer’s anchovy season by 68 percent to 810,000 tonnes, the smallest allowance in 25 years. Anchovy is rarely eaten fresh, but is instead dried, ground up and exported as a protein-rich feed for livestock and farmed fish.
Wind kicks up ash from eruption of remote Alaska volcano 100 years ago – A smog-like haze that hung over part of Alaska’s Kodiak Island this week was courtesy of a volcanic eruption — 100 years ago. The National Weather Service said strong winds and a lack of snow Tuesday helped stir up ash from the 1912 eruption.
Global Volcano Activity Today:
The seismic swarm in the Tjörnes Fracture Zone north off Iceland continues into its 10th day and the frequency of quakes has even picked up again a bit. An warning for a possible larger earthquake remains in place.
3 small phreatic explosions occurred at Poas volcano in Costa Rica on Sunday 29 Oct.
Popocatépetl’s activity remains fairly stable [Mexico]. The volcano continues to glow at night and produced 1-2 weak explosions per hour, sometimes with small ash plumes. A local news article mentioned light ash fall occurred in some nearby areas.
Fuego volcano [Guatemala] continues with mild infrequent strombolian explosions and an active lava flow towards the Ash Canyon about 400 m long.
A strong SO2 plume can be seen from Ambrym volcano on Vanuatu on 30 Oct, where several lava lakes are quite active.
Sakurajima volcano [Japan] had 2 moderately strong explosions on 29 and 30 Oct with ash plumes reaching 3-3.4 km altitude.
Mammoth Mountain in California experienced a deep seismic swarm during 29 Oct, accompanied by some measurable extension of the volcanic edifice.
Marburg haemorrhagic fever in Uganda – update. As of 28 October 2012, a total of 18 cases and 9 deaths, including a health worker, have been reported from 5 districts namely Kabale district, in south-western Uganda, Kampala (the capital city), Ibanda, Mbarara and Kabarole.
U.S. meningitis death toll rises to 29 with fatality in Virginia.
Canada, Switzerland lift ban on Novartis flu vaccines.
Ukraine has confirmed that it will ban wheat exports from November 15 after poor weather conditions slashed its harvest yield. Drought across Ukraine, Russia and Kazakhstan during the growing season has resulted in exceptionally low harvests.
Wildfires in Mexico in the northern part of the Baja California Peninsula, south of the city of Tijuana and just east of the city of Ensenada, release plumes of smoke blowing to the west over the Pacific Ocean.
Stunning NASA video shows Sandy genesis from tropical storm to Hurricane. See it here.
Hurricane Sandy has been blamed for 82 deaths in US and Canada.
Tropical Storm Rosa strengthens in the Pacific, but is still far from land.