Tierramerica

Ecobreves – BRAZIL: Bio-Construction at the World Social Forum

By IPS Correspondents and - -
The 5th World Social Forum put into practice the technique of bio-construction -- ''less expensive and more ecologically correct'' -- in building the venues for five days of conferences and debate by 120,000 civil society activists gathered in the southern Brazilian city of Porto Alegre.

Ecobreves – CHILE: Ecologists Applaud Energy Efficiency Plan

By IPS Correspondents and - -
The non-governmental Sustainable Chile Program congratulated Economy Minister Jorge Rodríguez for presenting a National Energy Efficiency Project, which includes standards for both the public and private sectors for rational use and saving energy.

Ecobreves – CARIBBEAN: Community Education to Save Birds

By IPS Correspondents and - -
Residents of coastal ecosystems in two Cuban provinces, like their counterparts in Haiti, Dominican Republic and Jamaica, are learning in conference and workshops about protecting the 'yaguasa criolla' (Dendrocygna arobrea), a Caribbean bird that faces extinction.

Ecobreves – VENEZUELA: Indians Pro-Water, Anti-Coal

By IPS Correspondents and - -
Indigenous and peasant communities of the northwestern Venezuelan oil-producing state of Zulia, bordering Colombia, founded the Water for Life Committee as a counterweight to a government proposal to mine coal in the watersheds of the area's two main rivers, the Socuy and Cachirí, and the Tulé reservoir.
-

Voyage to the Fragile Beauty of Antarctica

By Julio Godoy and - -
The international renowned photographer Sebastiao Salgado shares with Tierramérica his first days aboard the Tara, which set sail this month on an Antarctic expedition.
The Mexico City subway transports some five million people each day -

Death Traps Below the Big Cities

By Stephen Leahy and - -
The ever-growing number of underground transportation networks, shopping centers and parking ramps in the world's mega-cities are vulnerable to natural disasters, warn experts. Not even the wealthiest cities of the United States and Europe have given this serious issue much thought.
Tsunami survivors use an elephant to pull a car out of a village demolished by the giant wave in Sumatra, Indonesia - U.S. State Department

Tsunami Forces Issue of Early Warning System

By Suvendrini Kakuchi and - -
United Nations experts have announced an early warning system for tsunamis in the Indian Ocean to be launched in Julio. But there is still much to do. ''We are worried the importance of rehabilitating the local communities is being sidelined in this process,'' say NGOs.

Ecobreves – ARGENTINA: Demands for More Forest Protection

By IPS Correspondents and - -
Social and environmental groups from the northern Argentine province of Santiago del Estero, which lost 2.5 million hectares of forest in the 20th century, denounce the government's bill on forest conservation and use.

Ecobreves – COLOMBIA: A Guide to Fruits and Seeds

By IPS Correspondents and - -
The EcoAndina Foundation has launched the ''Guide to Fruit and Seeds of the Middle Otún River'', a record of the great diversity of the flora of the Colombian Andes

Ecobreves – PERU: Investigation Into Gas Leak

By IPS Correspondents and - -
Elena Foronda, head of the Peruvian Society for Environmental Law, and representatives of the Machiguenga indigenous council are demanding that the authorities conduct a public environmental inspection of the gas leak that occurred in the pipeline that runs from the south-central zone of Camisea to the central Peruvian coast on the Pacific.

Ecobreves – GUATEMALA: Protests Against Mine Continue

By IPS Correspondents and - -
Opposition to open-pit mining in Guatemala will continue, rural leader Daniel Pascual told Tierramérica, despite the violence that erupted on Jan. 11, claiming the life of one protester.
-

Ships Leave Tons of Waste in Caribbean Waters

By IPS Correspondents and - -
Each of the thousands of cruise ships that sail through the Caribbean Sea generate up to 1,200 cubic meters of liquid waste daily, including wastewater from kitchens and showers. The region lacks effective system for handling organic and toxic waste generated by the shipping industry.
Corals - Claudio Contreras

Coral Reefs the Silent Victims of Asian Tsunami

By IPS Correspondents and - -
The gigantic waves of Dec. 26 caused large-scale destruction of the barrier reef of Andaman and Nicobar islands, the largest in South Asia and the source of sustenance for local communities, reports our special Tierramérica contributor from Thailand.
Apoyo Lagoon in Masaya, Nicaragua - Mauricio Ramos

Maps Ignore Lakes and Lagoons

By Diego Cevallos and - -
Around a thousand bodies of water do not appear in the cartography of Central America, according to the preliminary results of a new study to which Tierramérica had access.

Ecobreves – BRAZIL: Tsunami Fizzles on Copacabana Beach

By IPS Correspondents and - -
The giant waves that killed more than 150,000 people around the Indian Ocean reached this Brazilian coastal city, but had been reduced to small waves some 20 hours after the underwater earthquake the triggered the tragedy on Dec. 26.

Ecobreves – GUATEMALA: A Green Belt for the Capital

By IPS Correspondents and - -
Officials in the Guatemalan capital are seeking a way to create a ''green belt'' to improve the environment and the flow of water through the city.

Ecobreves – COSTA RICA: Prevention Plans Come Up Short

By IPS Correspondents and - -
The torrential rains that hit Costa Rica last week, killing two people and causing economic losses that will surpass 20 million dollars, demonstrated the fragility of the country's disaster prevention systems, admitted an official source.

Ecobreves – CHILE: Cellulose Plant Construction Halted

By IPS Correspondents and - -
The regional environmental commission, COREMA, of Biobío, in southern Chile, ordered a stop to the construction of the Itata cellulose plant, which was designed for a production volume greater than what was authorized, as environmental groups denounced two months ago.

Ecobreves – CUBA: Bays Increasingly Contaminated

By IPS Correspondents and - -
Contamination from organic waste in Cuba's bays increased 2.3 percent during 2004, in contrast to a decline of 3.6 percent of the waste burden received by the island's eight main basins.

Ecobreves – VENEZUELA: Shrimp Granted a Visa for U.S.A.

By IPS Correspondents and - -
The United States has lifted a ban that since the late 1990s prohibited entry of shrimp from Venezuela, saying the South American country now meets the international requirements for protecting sea turtles that accidentally get caught in the fishing nets.

Ecobreves – MEXICO: Whales in Danger

By IPS Correspondents and - -
Dozens of female gray whales that are pregnant, many of which are ready to give birth, began to arrive this month in the Sea of Cortez, off the Mexican state of Baja California, in keeping with a natural cycle that could come to an end if tourism development plans continue, say environmentalists.
« Previous Page — Next Page »
*#*