Oct. 7 (UPI) -- China's surprise declaration of a new nature reserve at Scarborough Shoal is more than a nod to environmental stewardship. It is a carefully calculated maneuver that fuses ecological language with geopolitical ambition, placing one of the South China Sea's most hotly contested reefs at the nexus of two global struggles: the race to protect biodiversity and the competition for maritime dominance. Scarborough Shoal, a triangular chain of reefs and rocks about 120 miles off the