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Sunday, November 8, 2026
News and Views from the Global South
Tierramerica - Ecobrief
Ecobreves – COLOMBIA: Water Not Fit to Drink
Half of the water that Colombians drink is not fit for human consumption, according to a study released Oct. 19 by a group of lawmakers.Ecobreves – BRAZIL: Chagas Disease Alters DNA
Chagas disease, which affects 18 million people in Latin America, can be lethal because it causes genetic alterations, according to the findings of scientists at the University of Brasilia.
Ecobreves – CHILE: Save the Native Trees!
The Chilean environmental group Fiscalía del Medio Ambiente presented a case before the capital's Court of Appeals to overturn a decree from Agriculture Minister Jaime Campos that authorizes the logging of native tree species, which have been declared national monuments.Ecobreves – VENEZUELA: Two Children Die from Bat Bites
Two Venezuelan children died of rabies last week after being bitten by blood-sucking bats in a settlement on the coast of the northeastern state of Sucre.Ecobreves – CUBA: Warning on Forest Fire Risks
Hurricane Ivan's passage through Cuba's Guanahacabibes Peninsula in September left a danger of forest fire, which would be disastrous for the strategic biosphere reserve located there.Ecobreves – HONDURAS: To the Rescue of Chismuyo Bay
Local officials and residents of the Honduran department of Valle, on the southern border with El Salvador, this month launched a project to save Chisjuyo Bay, in the Gulf of Fonseca.Ecobreves – GUATEMALA: Reproducing Endangered Fish
A technical mission from Taiwan is helping Guatemalan officials in an effort to boost the population of the Petenia splendida, or red bay snook, typical of this country but in danger of extinction from overfishing, officials from the Taiwanese embassy told Tierramérica.Ecobreves – MERCOSUR-EU:: Environmentalists Against Trade Accord
Civil society groups from Mercosur (Southern Common Market) issued a call this month to protest the signing of a free trade agreement with the European Union.Ecobreves – COLOMBIA:: Promoting a Reforestation Plan
Colombia is to spend 20 million dollars on reforestation for industrial and environmental purposes, with the backing of the government and the U.S. Agency for International Development.Ecobreves – PERU: : Choropampa Villagers vs. Newmont
Residents of Choropampa, a village in Peru's northern sierra, have filed a lawsuit against the mining transnational Newmont in a federal U.S. court over a spill of 115 kg of mercury on a highway in June 2000.Ecobreves – GUATEMALA: Indians Urge Protection of Wildlife
Indigenous groups have asked the Guatemalan government to adopt new regulatory, protection and reproduction measures for endangered species, and to bring the cases before the global conference on the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Flora and Fauna (CITES), under way in Thailand until Oct. 14.Ecobreves – HONDURAS: Unstoppable Deforestation
The intervention commission designated to halt illegal logging and precious lumber smuggling in Olancho, in northeast Honduras, has not achieved its objectives.Ecobreves – BRAZIL: A Law to Combat Biopiracy
The Brazilian government wants a law for fighting biopiracy. A bill on this issue, drafted by the Environment Ministry, will be sent to parliament this year, and will define the crimes against Brazil's national genetic wealth and establish sentences.Ecobreves – CHILE:: Digital Map of Environmental Damage
The Chilean National Ecological Action Network, RENACE, presented the first digital version of its ''Map of Ecological Destruction in Chile'', an annual report that highlights the environmental trouble spots in each region of the country and the disputes with greatest public impact.Ecobreves – VENEZUELA: Center to Help Beached Whales
The Venezuelan Environment Ministry is pushing for the creation of a special center to deal with cetaceans -- whale and dolphin species -- that end up beached on the country's coast. There have been 40 such cases in the past three years.Ecobreves – GUATEMALA: Summit Against Drought
Some 200 officials and experts will gather in the Guatemalan capital in November to study the problems of drought and desertification afflicting Latin America and attempt to come up with some solutions, announced this Central American country's Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources.Ecobreves – HONDURAS: Protecting Sea Turtles
Authorities from the Honduran Ministry of Natural Resources set up a ban a month ago to protect the sea turtle species that nest around the Gulf of Fonseca, a maritime area shared by Honduras, Nicaragua and El Salvador.Ecobreves – CUBA: New Trees for Havana
''My Green Plan'' has slated for this year the planting of 2.5 million trees of 52 species in the Cuban capital, part of ongoing efforts to re-establish vegetation in this city of 2.3 million people
Ecobreves – A Transgenic Sunflower Is Born: ARGENTINA
Scientists from Argentina's Universidad del Litoral have isolated a gene that, once introduced into the sunflower, helps this crop tolerate extreme drought.Ecobreves – COLOMBIA: Eco-Certificates for Flower Growers
Nine Colombian flower-growing companies received ''Florverde'' certification from SGS (Société Générale de Surveillance, an international quality and testing company), for their contributions to protecting the environment and improving the working conditions of their employees.Ecobreves – MEXICO: Demands for Release of Maize Report
The environmental watchdog group Greenpeace will exhaust its legal options to force the Mexican government to release a report on contamination of traditional corn crops with pollen from genetically modified maize. The study was prepared by the North American Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC).« Previous Page — Next Page »
Tierramérica is the main communications platform on sustainable development and the environment in Latin America and the Caribbean. It is produced by IPS Noticias, the agency’s Spanish-language service, which created it jointly with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), with later support from the World Bank. The weekly editions of Tierramérica are published in Spanish, Portuguese and English and are picked up and printed by dozens of media outlets in the region. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter.
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