Tierramerica
Slash-and-burn clearing in the rainforest in the state of Acre, next to Amazonas. - Mario Osava/IPS

Small-Scale Land Speculators Contribute to Amazon Deforestation

By Stephen Leahy and - -
Among the various drivers of deforestation in the Amazon, a new study reports that families are moving into the rainforest and clearing the land in order to claim land titles, then selling the land to large corporate ranchers.

Ecobreves – HONDURAS: Protecting the Nacaome River Basin

By IPS Correspondents and - -
Communities in the southern Honduran department of Valle are taking the first steps towards reforestation of the basin of the Nacaome River, which provides water and electrical power to some 120,000 people who live in the surrounding area.

Ecobreves – ARGENTINA: Sawdust as Energy Source

By IPS Correspondents and - -
A small town in the northeastern Argentine province of Chaco has built a plant that transforms timber industry waste into renewable energy, with the support of the federal government.

Ecobreves – BRAZIL: Water Purification with Solar Power

By IPS Correspondents and - -
An electrical engineering student at the Federal University of Goiás in Brazil has invented a system to purify water without using electricity, thereby preventing carbon dioxide emissions.

Ecobreves – MEXICO: Greater Protection of Islands Demanded

By IPS Correspondents and - -
Despite their economic, strategic and environmental importance, Mexico’s 1,644 islands are neglected and little studied, according to a group of specialized agencies.
Tomatoes and lettuce growing in the Rostlaube "container farm". Credit: Courtesy of Malzfabrik

Urban Farming Takes Root in Europe

By Julio Godoy
Since the end of World War II, and especially since the 1960s, the Kreuzberg district in Berlin has been a melting pot of cultures, with residents hailing from the Balkans, Central Europe, the Mediterranean, Africa, Asia and Latin America.

Ecobreves – VENEZUELA: Protests Against Oil Refinery

By IPS Correspondents and - -
Residents of the town of Las Piedras on the northern outskirts of Punto Fijo, the site of a major oil refinery complex on the Paraguaná peninsula in northwestern Venezuela, have staged street protests over the coke residue and other toxic contaminants emitted by the refinery.

Ecobreves – HONDURAS: New Geological Risk Zones Identified

By IPS Correspondents and - -
Students and geologists from Costa Rica will undertake the mapping of new areas at risk of landslides and flooding in the Honduran capital.

Ecobreves – BRAZIL: Biodiesel Byproduct Also a Source of Energy

By IPS Correspondents and - -
A waste byproduct of biodiesel production can be transformed from a source of environmental pollution into a source of energy, according to a study conducted by the São Carlos School of Engineering at São Paulo University.
Claudia Consamollo, 16, washes the clothes of the youngest members of the community with recycled soap. Credit: Milagros Salazar/IPS

Spanish NGO Recycles Used Oil into Solidarity with Peru

By Inés Benítez
Tons of artisanal soaps made from recycled olive oil are regularly shipped from Spain to Peru, where their sale and use helps finance local development and education for children in poor communities.
Fruit and vegetable market in San Juan Chamula, Chiapas. Credit: Mauricio Ramos/IPS

Keeping Healthy Veggies from Turning Deadly

By Emilio Godoy
Fatal outbreaks of food poisoning in the United States, Mexico and Europe expose the failure of regional and global initiatives to ensure that fruits and vegetables are safe and healthy.

Ecobreves – ARGENTINA: Urgent Measures Needed to Protect Jaguars

By IPS Correspondents and - -
The Argentine Wildlife Foundation (FVSA) has issued a call for urgent measures to protect the jaguar (Panthera onca), the largest feline in the Western hemisphere.

Ecobreves – BRAZIL: Purifying Water with Coconut Shells

By IPS Correspondents and - -
A filter of coconut shells, bamboo and sand can be used to purify wastewater, according to researchers at the Campinas State University School of Civil Engineering. The method they have developed is a low-cost sanitation alternative ideal for small-scale operations, they say.

Ecobreves – HONDURAS: Social Pact for Forest Conservation

By IPS Correspondents and - -
The local inhabitants, authorities and environmental groups in the municipality of Ojojona, a 20-minute drive away from Tegucigalpa in the central Honduran department of Francisco Morazán, have agreed to a 40-year moratorium on the use of forests in the area, in order to protect them from the advance of illegal logging.
Lake Titicaca seen from Copacabana, Bolivia. Credit: Public domain

BOLIVIA-PERU: Major Efforts Still Needed to Clean Up Lake Titicaca

By Franz Chávez
Efforts to combat pollution in Lake Titicaca, which straddles the borders of Peru and Bolivia high up in the Andes mountains, have shown slightly better results in Puno Bay on the Peruvian side, but have barely made a difference in Cohana Bay on the Bolivian side, according to local fishers and specialists interviewed by Tierramérica.
José Luiz Ferreira at his former home in the old Vila Chocolatão. Credit: Clarinha Glock/IPS

BRAZIL: More Community Input Needed in Relocation of Favelas

By Clarinha Glock
José Luiz Ferreira, 60, was born poor and is still poor, but was able to get an education. Known as Seu Luiz (Mr. Luiz) in Vila Nova Chocolatão, the Porto Alegre neighborhood where he lives, he earns a meager living by giving English classes. And he sees eagles where everyone else sees chickens.
Lake Titicaca seen from Copacabana, Bolivia. - Public domain

Major Efforts Still Needed to Clean Up Lake Titicaca

By IPS Correspondents and - -
Peru and Bolivia have made little progress in binational initiatives to promote sustainable development in Lake Titicaca.

Ecobreves – VENEZUELA: Invading Snails Advance 100 Kilometers a Year

By IPS Correspondents and - -
The carefully landscaped grounds of dozens of condominiums in the northern Venezuelan city of Lechería, on the Caribbean coast, are suffering an invasion of giant African land snails (Achatina fulica), which are now found throughout almost all of South America and on Caribbean islands like Barbados, Guadalupe, Martinique and Saint Lucia.

Ecobreves – HONDURAS: Micro Hydro Dam Project Planned

By IPS Correspondents and - -
The government of Honduras and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) are studying the construction of 50 micro hydroelectric dams over the next five years.

Ecobreves – BRAZIL: Virtual Encyclopedia of Amazon Biodiversity

By IPS Correspondents and - -
The Brazilian National Institute for Amazon Research (INPA) has partnered with U.S. computer giant IBM to create Wikiflora, a collaborative website that will serve as a digital encyclopedia of biodiversity in the Amazon region.

Ecobreves – CUBA: Biopesticides Combat Malaria in Africa

By IPS Correspondents and - -
An integrated anti-malaria program being carried out in a number of African countries with Cuban biological products and technology is yielding good results, according to the Cuban state-run pharmaceutical company Labiofam.
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