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Monday, November 9, 2026
News and Views from the Global South
Ecobreves – ARGENTINA: No Sign of Environmental Report
The Argentine Environment and Natural Resources Foundation asked the government for the official environmental report for 2003, which should have been published in November but has yet to appear.
Oil Spills in the Middle of New York
For decades oil leaks have been contaminating a creek that crosses two of New York's famed boroughs. Activists are taking legal action against Exxon Mobil and other oil companies.Ecobreves – COLOMBIA: Proposals for Garbage Crisis
The Regional Autonomous Corporation, regional environmental authority for the Colombian department Atlántico, proposed construction of three landfills to remedy the crisis arising from poor management of solid waste.
Global Crusade Against Toxic Chemicals
The Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs), which entered into force on May 17, will put the brakes on the most toxic substances around the globe. But the best efforts are yet to come, writes the executive director of the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) in an exclusive column for Tierramérica.Ecobreves – GUATEMALA: Military Guards Nature Park
Sixty soldiers from the Guatemalan army will back 50 agents of the National Civil Police (PNC) in fighting vandals and drug traffickers who threaten the Laguna del Tigre National Park, located in the northern department of El Petén.
Indigenous Eco-Activists Await Medals, or Punishment
Two Mexican indigenous farmers who have fought logging operations could be sentenced to around a decade in prison. To the NGOs, they are prisoners of conscience. To government prosecutors, they are criminals.
Big Landowners Come to the Aid of Atlantic Forests
Some 360 private reserves have been created to protect the forests in the rich Brazilian Atlantic biome, one of the five most endangered in the world. The Mata Atlantica has lost more than 90 percent of the area it covered when Europeans first came to the Americas.
The 'Other Face' of Colombia
Libia Grueso, winner of the Goldman environmental prize for her efforts benefiting Afro-Colombian communities, spoke with Tierramérica about the award and her work. Grueso was able to put the brakes on a multi-use pipeline that threatened the delicate ecosystems of mangroves and jungles in Colombia's Valle del Cauca department.Ecobreves – CHILE: Electric Company Floods Indian Cemetery
Chilean minister of planning, Andrés Palma, said on May 11 that the Endesa electric company must pay damages to the indigenous Pehuenche community for flooding their cemetery when the reservoir of the Ralco dam was filled without authorization.Private Conservation at a Snail's Pace in Chile
The number and size of protected areas in private hands have grown, but they still lack official recognition and there are no incentives for them, say NGOs. There are more than 375 thousand hectares of privately run reserves in Chile -- a tiny area compared to the 14.1 million hectares under public protection.Ecobreves – CUBA: Homemade Vegetable Soap
A community project under way in this eastern province of Cuba promotes the production of homemade soap using the physic or Barbados nut (Jatropha curcas), the cultivation of which also improves soils damaged by drought or salinity.Ecobreves – VENEZUELA: Water Lentils Cover Lake Maracaibo
A fine layer of water lentils (Lemnaceae family) has extended during the past few weeks over a quarter of Lake Maracaibo, in western Venezuela, underscoring the high level of water pollution that affects fish and lake navigation.Ecobreves – GUATEMALA: Dump Filling Up
An enormous garbage dump less than two km from the Guatemalan capital's historic center could reach its breaking point within three years and cause serious damage, warns Mario Dary, minister of environment and natural resources.
Swallows Arrive in European Winter
Many bird species are migrating early to Europe from Africa. Ornithologists believe climate change is the cause behind the new travel habits of swallows, ducks, storks and geese, and could be a threat to their reproductive cycles.
Colombia's Bid to Save Its National Flower
The cattleya trianae orchid is in danger of extinction. But using both traditional and modern techniques, experts are fighting to keep this emblematic flower from disappearing.Free Zone for Paraquat
Paraquat is used without restrictions in Central America, where the herbicide is believed to cause some 400,000 poisonings each year. Each country of the region spends an estimated seven million dollars annually on medical treatment for those affected.Ecobreves – NORTH AMERICA: Dangerous Air for Kids
The 12o million children living in Canada, Mexico and United States are exposed to the annual emissions of more than four million tons of dangerous substances that are proven or suspected to be carcinogens, toxic to fetal development or neurotoxins.Ecobreves – PERU: Coca Growers Deforest the Amazon
Illegal coca plantations have caused environmental damage to the Peruvian Amazon of an estimated 1.5 billion dollars, due to clearing of forest and logging, says an official report from the Peruvian government.Ecobreves – ANTARCTICA: Fish and Birds in Danger
The bird and fish species of Antarctica are threatened by excessive fishing, says a study by Argentine scientists.Ecobreves – COLOMBIA: Medicinal Plants to Fight Malaria
Some 160 plants used to treat malaria by black healers and indigenous shamans in Colombia have been targeted by the Malaria Research Group at the local University of Antioquia with the intention of developing new medications.« 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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