Tierramerica

Ecobreves – CUBA: Eco-Friendly Freezers

Cuba will begin production this year of solar-powered freezers, after successfully manufacturing a prototype in 2010. This appliance ensures considerable savings of electrical energy.

Forests and one of the rivers in Peru's Cuzco region that will be inundated by the Inambari dam. - Milagros Salazar/IPS

China and Brazil Flood Latin America with Dams

With green lights for major hydroelectric dam projects, Brazil and China are competing to create the conditions for making the most out of energy from Latin America's mighty rivers.

Ecobreves – HONDURAS: Communities to Manage Sustainable Forest

Eight communities in the northern Honduran departments of Atlántida and Yoro will take charge in the next two months of 30,000 hectares of forest to carry out a sustainable management project.

Processing agave nectar allows San Andrés Daboxtha indigenous peoples to boost their income. - Emilio Godoy/IPS

Agave Sweetens Economic Prospects of Indigenous Women

The production of goods from the traditional agave crops through cooperatives has become the leading source of income for indigenous Otomí communities in central Mexico.

Ecobreves – VENEZUELA: Fighting the Ashen Moth

Researchers at the Central University of Venezuela are proposing to develop the Beauveria Bassiania fungus in mangroves on the Paria Peninsula and other region in the country's northeast as a biological agent to control an onslaught of the ashen moth (Hylesia metabus).

Caudalosa workers clean up mining tailings in the Opamayo River.  Credit: Milagros Salazar/IPS

PERU: Environmental Crime Doesn’t Pay

A legislative bill in Peru aims to channel the fines for environmental crimes to repair the damages to rivers, soils and other public goods that directly affect the population. Until now, the fines collected have ended up elsewhere in the government.

Sergio de Otto Credit: Courtesy of Sergio de Otto

Q&A: “It’s Essential to Change the Energy Model”

Latin America could see more Spanish investment in renewable energy if this otherwise strong sector in Spain is hurt in the war being waged by fossil fuel interests, according to expert Sergio de Otto.

Ecobreves – BRAZIL: Waters Run Dirty

Brazil's rivers are increasingly polluted, according to SOS Mata Atlântica, a non-governmental organization that tested water quality of many water sources in 12 states, plus the federal district of Brasilia.

Ecobreves – HONDURAS: Preparing for Dam Construction

With plans to begin construction in February, the Patuca III hydroelectric complex, in the northeastern Honduran department of Olancho, will require an investment of 250 million dollars, according to official sources.

Ecobreves – MEXICO: More Endangered Flora and Fauna

The number of species in danger of extinction increased in recent years in Mexico, and the government has failed to protect them, denounce environmental groups.

Caudalosa workers clean up mining tailings in the Opamayo River - Milagros Salazar/IPS

Environmental Crime Doesn't Pay in Peru

The Peruvian Environment Ministry's public prosecutor will present an initiative in February to channel fines to pay for the damaging effects of mining, logging and oil drilling.

Sergio de Otto - Personal files of De Otto

“It's Essential to Change the Energy Model”

The global dispute between fossil fuel interests and those developing alternative technologies has spilled onto the Spanish battlefield.

Francisco Medina at the entrance to the 'School of the Jungle'.  Credit: Clarinha Glock/IPS

ARGENTINA: Guarani Effort to Strengthen Culture Through Tourism

Since recovering part of their territory in 2005, an indigenous Guaraní community in the northeastern Argentine province of Misiones is working to maintain and expand a cultural tourism initiative.

Corncobs stored in Chiapas, Mexico.  Credit: Mauricio Ramos/IPS

Mexico Tempted to Shift From Tortillas to Ethanol

Farmers' protests and the rise in corn tortilla prices in late December put temporary brakes on the Mexican Senate, which was preparing to lift the national ban on utilising maize to make fuel alcohol, or ethanol.

Ecobreves – VENEZUELA: Four-Wheeling Vandals Damage Great Savannah

In the period of late December 2010 to early January 2011, all-terrain vehicle enthusiasts caused severe damage in the Canaima National Park, an area of 30,000 square kilometers in southeast Venezuela.

Ecobreves – BRASIL: Ethanol Also Comes from Eucalyptus Bark

The great volume of industrial waste from the paper pulp industry -- eucalyptus bark -- can be made into raw material for ethanol, according to a study by the Luiz de Queiroz Agricultural School at Brazil's University of São Paulo.

Ecobreves – CUBA: Migratory Birds Studied in Guanahacabibes

Cuban scientists will delve deeper this year into the characteristics and provenance of the birds they find on the Guanahacabibes Peninsula, one of the major corridors for migratory species in Cuba.

Ecobreves – HONDURAS: Plans for Law on Garbage Incineration

The Honduran authorities are seeking legislation on different approaches to solid waste management. Of the country's 298 municipalities, 260 do not have any waste treatment system, and the other 38 utilize incineration -- and most are poorly managed.

Guaraní Effort to Strengthen Culture Through Tourism

In a jungle enclave in northeastern Argentina, a handful of indigenous peoples have set out to study their own Guaraní culture to test its tourism potential.

Alto Huayabamba in San Martín, Peru.  Credit:  AMPA

PERU: Local Communities Protect Their Amazon

San Martín is one of the three most deforested Amazon regions in Peru. But now local residents and non-governmental organisations have joined with local and regional authorities to defend the flora, fauna and water resources and halt the destruction of the rainforests.

The Fitzroy River Basin in Australia on Jan. 4, 2011. The flooded areas are dark blue. Credit: Courtesy of NASA/GSFC, MODIS Rapid Response

Climate Change Could Be Worsening Effects of El Niño, La Niña

The strongest La Niña weather system in 50 years has brought historic flooding to Australia and drought to Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay, driving up food prices.

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