Tierramerica

Ecobreves – CENTRAL AMERICA: Transborder Plan for the Gulf of Fonseca

By IPS Correspondents and - -
Honduras, El Salvador and Nicaragua are preparing to implement a transborder development plan for the Gulf of Fonseca, an inlet of the Pacific Ocean shared by the three countries, with the goals of reducing natural disaster risks and more effectively managing natural resource use.

Ecobreves – BRAZIL: Climate Change Threatens Amphibians of the Cerrado

By IPS Correspondents and - -
Agriculture-driven deforestation, climate change and poor conservation policies are threatening the survival of amphibians in the Cerrado, a vast savanna region in central Brazil, according to a study conducted by the non-governmental organization Pequi - Research and Conservation in the Cerrado.
"The countries of the North have the responsibility to change the economic model," says Kempf. Credit: Courtesy Hervé Kempf

Q&A: Change the System to Save the Planet

By Marcela Valente
To save the planet from climate change and the loss of biodiversity, we must leave capitalism behind and seek out a less consumerist, more socially just system, insists French environmental journalist Hervé Kempf.
Arctic sea ice. Credit: Christof Luepkes, courtesy of the Alfred Wegener Institute

Arctic Melt Stirs Economic Ambitions

By Julio Godoy
The possibility of exploiting the hitherto inaccessible natural resources of the Arctic Ocean is becoming increasingly tangible with the thawing of the North Pole, much to the alarm of European scientists.
The North has the responsibility to change the global economic model, says Kempf. - Courtesy of Hervé Kempf

Change the System to Save the Planet

By Marcela Valente and - -
Why introduce the concept of the “green economy” instead of continuing to support sustainable development, which has the advantage of emphasizing social concerns? asks French writer Hervé Kempf in this interview.

Ecobreves – VENEZUELA: Protest Against Coal Mine

By IPS Correspondents and - -
Hundreds of local residents who live near the Fila Maestra coal mine, located 300 kilometers east of Caracas, staged roadblocks on the highway between the Venezuelan capital and tourism destinations in the northeastern Caribbean region as a protest against the mine’s impacts.

Ecobreves – BRAZIL: Biogas Can Replace Fossil Fuels in Iron and Steel Mills

By IPS Correspondents and - -
Biogas can be used in place of natural gas and coal in iron and steel mills, significantly reducing polluting emissions and wastes, thanks to a technique developed by professors at the Federal University of Minas Gerais and the Federal University of Ouro Preto.

Ecobreves – HONDURAS: State Forest Institution Weakened

By IPS Correspondents and - -
The functions of the Honduran Forest Conservation Institute (ICF) are increasingly being taken over by the Armed Forces, which is weakening the capacity of this state institution responsible for protecting the country’s forests, say environmentalists.
Antonio da Costa and his giant papayas, grown thanks to an underground reservoir. Credit: Mario Osava/IPS

BRAZIL: Every Raindrop Counts

By Mario Osava
Brazil is considered a country rich in water resources, with its enormous underground aquifers and mighty rivers. But recognition of the vital importance of rainwater begins where it is most scarce: in the semiarid interior of the northeast.
Antonio da Costa and his giant papayas, grown thanks to an underground reservoir. - Mario Osava/IPS

Every Raindrop Counts

By Mario Osava and - -
Techniques for making optimal use of the scarce rainfall in northeastern Brazil are aimed at a shift in focus from fighting drought to learning to coexist with the semiarid climate.

Ecobreves – MEXICO: Pemex Violates Clean Fuel Regulations

By IPS Correspondents and - -
Mexico’s state-owned oil company Pemex is not meeting its obligation to produce clean fuels, a fact which has serious health, environmental, economic and commercial consequences, says a study conducted by three non-governmental organizations.
- Claudius

The Dangerously High Cost of Amazon Beef

By IPS Correspondents and - -
A delicious 500-gram Amazonian beef steak produced with 7,000 grams of carbon dioxide and 7,000 liters of water, mixed with belched methane, is the ideal recipe for climate change.

Ecobreves – ARGENTINA: Geothermal Power Plant on Glacier Rejected

By IPS Correspondents and - -
At the request of neighboring communities, an Argentine court has ruled against the proposed construction of a geothermal power plant in the western province of Neuquén.

Ecobreves – BRAZIL: Amazon Drought Was the Worst In a Century

By IPS Correspondents and - -
The drought that hit the Amazon region last year was the most severe in a century, concluded a study by the National Institute for Space Research (INPE), confirming the suppositions of many scientists.

Ecobreves – HONDURAS: School Kids Raise Family Gardens

By IPS Correspondents and - -
Students from around 100 schools in Tegucigalpa are raising crops in community gardens as part of the Friends of the Environment project, aimed at raising awareness about the role of children in protecting nature.
The Villachica family extracting gold without mercury. Credit: Milagros Salazar/IPS

LATIN AMERICA: Environmental Innovators Create Virtuous Circles

By Correspondents
A method to revolutionise gold mining; biofuel from used cooking oil; a container where garbage and wastewater go in and four useful products and zero waste come out: Latin American science applied to the environment.
Farmed shrimp. Credit: Photostock

ENVIRONMENT: Shrimp Farm Certification: Mere Greenwashing?

By Danilo Valladares
Shrimp farming, one of the most destructive industries for coastal ecosystems, may soon be endowed with a set of standards that would supposedly vouch for environmentally responsible production, through the efforts of the World Wildlife Fund (WWF).

Ecobreves – BRAZIL: Molecule That Converts Carbon Discovered

By IPS Correspondents and - -
A molecule that converts carbon into substances used in the chemical industry has been discovered at Paulista State University in Brazil. This scientific finding can contribute both to the economy and to the mitigation of global warming.
The Villachica family extracting gold without mercury. - Milagros Salazar/IPS

Environmental Innovators Create Virtuous Circles

By Correspondents and - -
Three environmental innovation projects demonstrate the capacity of Latin American researchers to develop solid virtuous circles.

Ecobreves – VENEZUELA: Trees Versus Housing

By IPS Correspondents and - -
The construction of apartment buildings on vacant lots in the centre of Venezuelan cities like Caracas is having an impact on the trees that have surrounded these lots for many years.
Farmed shrimp. - Photostock

Shrimp Farm Certification: Environmental Guarantee or Greenwashing?

By Danilo Valladares and - -
Efforts to establish standards for "responsible" shrimp farming are moving forward amid controversy.
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