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The Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF), a London-based non-governmental organization, this week published a report on the destructive, largely unregulated, and often illegal operations of China’s immense deep-water fishing fleet. An especially disturbing chapter of the report dealt with the harmful impact of Chinese fishing on West African nations, where entire coastal communities tremble on the verge of economic collapse thanks to China’s rapacious practices.The report, titled The Ever-Widening Net: Mapping the Scale, Nature, and Corporate Structures of Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated Fishing by the Chinese Distant-Water Fleet, accused China of creating a huge fleet to fish outside China’s own depleted...

PAPEETE, French Polynesia (AP) — President Emmanuel Macron is visiting French Polynesia to showcase France’s commitment to the region amid concerns about the impact of climate change on the Pacific island territory, the legacy of French nuclear testing on its atolls — and most of all, growing Chinese dominance in the region.... ...The 4.8 million-square-kilometer (1.85 million-square-mile) Exclusive Economic Zone of French Polynesia has significant fishing and mineral resources, and authorities are seeking U.N. permission to extend the territory’s continental shelf. France is trying to “strike back at obvious Chinese lust” for Pacific resources, said Regnault, who wrote a recent...

China National Offshore Oil Corporation is considering a nearly $14bn (£7bn, €10.6bn) takeover of Unocal of the US. Sinopec, another Chinese state-controlled oil group, has struck a $70bn deal to buy Iranian crude oil and liquefied natural gas over three decades. China has sent $6bn to Rosneft, the Russian company that bought the main production unit of the embattled Yukos oil group, as advance payment for oil supplies. India has just reached a $40bn agreement to import LNG from Iran and develop Iranian oilfields, and is promoting pipeline projects to bring oil and gas across neighbouring countries to supply its...

Proposed amendment passes easily The Senate on Monday easily approved a change to the state constitution that would protect the tradition of hunting and fishing. Senate President Pro Tem Eric Johnson (R-Savannah), the amendment's author, said hunters and anglers are worried that "activist judges and increased urbanization" could take away their rights. "You may not think this is a big threat, and neither was the right to bear arms 200 years ago," Johnson said. "There is a growing anti-hunting and anti-gun group out there. That's why I think we need to do it now before they get stronger." Johnson said...

This really get me steamed! Are there any users here who vacation or have visited North Beach, Maryland? North Beach, Calvert County Maryland http://ci.north-beach.md.us: Mayor Mark Frazer: http://ci.northbeach.md.us/officials.html: Heres the deal folks. The residence of North Beach are blaming the fishermen for the noise and trash problems on the pier and the boardwalk. The fact is most of the noise and trash comes from their on people and children. They party out there all the time and race their cars up the strip at all hours keeping the waterfront residence awake at night and we are getting the blame. Last...