Stories about Environment from October, 2010
Caribbean: Hurricane Tomas
Trinidad and Tobago, the twin island republic that seemed to be directly in Tomas‘ path on Friday, was spared its effects, but as the storm veered north, islands that had previously been out of its path were suddenly thrust into storm warning mode. Tomas is now situated south-southeast of San Juan, Puerto Rico; the hope remains that the Category 2 storm, which is expected to gather more strength, will steer clear of Haiti.
Guyana: Cyclone Approaches
Demerara Waves reports that “the densely populated coastland, including Georgetown and several villages, could be struck by strong winds, heavy rainfall lightning and thunder” associated with an approaching weather system.
Trinidad & Tobago: Approaching Storm
aka_lol says that an approaching tropical storm “doesn’t look good for a population that had to put up with extremely bad weather for the rainy season and continues to weather the Clico financial crisis with desperate threats from formerly-rich policyholders.”
China and the U.S: Fuss about rare earth
Adam Minter from Shanghai Scrap looks into the data of China agricultural trade and points out that the recent intimations of a ban on the rare earth elements has been overstated. On the other hand, the Chinese experts have underestimated the importance of low-cost soy beans and wheat to social...
Indonesia: Earthquake, Tsunami, Volcanic Eruption in 48 hours
Indonesia was caught unprepared this week when an earthquake, tsunami and volcanic eruption battered the islands in less than 48 hours. Casualties are expected to exceed 500 and thousands of families need immediate relief.
Madagascar: Village Burned Down by Highwaymen during Cattle Robbery
The villages of Ampasimbe and Ankaenihenibe in Madagascar were attacked by gangs of highwaymen [Fr] (Dahalo in Malagasy) that made away with 18 and 15 zebus respectively. As the Ampasimbe villagers retaliated against the robbers, their village was burned down entirely, partly because of the powerful wind guts at the time.
Bermuda: Ahoy There!
Elaborate plans are afoot for the development of “a pirate-themed waterpark”; New Onion asks: “Who has deep pockets and is that bad of a businessperson other than the Bermuda Government?”, while Vexed Bermoothes says: “There has not been a well thought out business plan…there should be limited development on this...
Ecuador: The Kichwa of Ecuador and the Oil Companies
Waves of Change points us towards I am a Defender of the Rainforest, a 2008 documentary by the Kichwa people of Ecuador, where they documented their struggles with oil companies who invaded their autonomous territories.
Ukraine, Serbia: Food, Libraries, Dwellings
A Crimean Tatar wedding feast and fall's bounty at a Kyiv farmers’ market – at The Pickle Project; an initiative to help a library in the Ukrainian town of Konotop – at Jud Dolphin Adventure; the Modern Village exhibit at the Pyrohiv Museum of Folk Architecture and Life just outside...
Guatemala: Photo Essay: ‘K'iche’ People Reject The Exploitation of their Natural Resources’
James Rodríguez begins his photo essay reporting that, “On a historic day, residents from the municipality of Santa Cruz del Quiché – one of Guatemala’s most important hubs and the birthplace of the Maya K’iche’ people – unanimously rejected the exploitation of natural goods and resources, in particular through mining...
Costa Rica: Young Professionals Work to Make San José Bike Friendly
The Tico Times Blog writes: “A group of young professionals calling themselves ChepeCletas [es] is poised to transform San José into a haven for bikers, and they are doing it one ride at a time. The group’s eventual goal is to make the city bike friendly.”
Peru: Thousands of Indigenous People Block Rivers in Protest
Globalizado reports [es] that thousands of indigenous people in the Amazon are blocking the mouth of rivers Marañon and Tigre. The communities are protesting the constant contamination of the rivers by oil company Pluspetrol, which they accuse of neglecting those affected by a recent oil spill [es] and of not...
Trinidad & Tobago : Fix the Floods
The Undisputed Truth thinks it “laughable” that taxpayers’ money has been spent on things like summits “when we have such stupid problems, i.e. 20-30 mins of rain and the entire capital city is crippled.”
Flooding disaster in Thailand
More than 40 people are now confirmed dead due to rising floodwaters in the northeast and central parts of Thailand. Parts of Bangkok, the country’s capital, are now flooded too. Netizens provide disaster updates through blogs and twitter
Myanmar: Cyclone Giri death toll rises
More than 30 died or have been declared missing when Cyclone Giri struck the western coast of Myanmar. The state media claimed that government officials visited the affected region but other reports also mentioned the failure of the government to respond to the relief offer of the international community.
Bangladesh: Land Grab And Protests
In Rupganj, Bangladesh land-owners protested acquiring of land for an army housing project and they clashed with the security forces leaving 50 people injured and one dead. Bloggers react angrily.
Bangladesh: Long March To Protect Natural Resources
A number of Bangladeshi citizens started a long march from capital Dhaka to North-Western district Dinajpur in a bid to protect the country’s natural resources. ShahidulNews posts photos and videos of the long march.
China: Rare earth
George Chen blogs about the international and domestic debates over China’ exportation of rare earth.
India: Community-scale Water Solutions
“Hopefully, one day the soul of India will be rejuvenated with clean drinking water across all of its 638,000 villages,” says Pooja Bhatia.
Jamaica: Rain, Rain, Go Away
The Phoenix in a Gas House lists her top 5 reasons to avoid getting caught in the rain in Kingston.
Haze envelops Singapore
Haze in Singapore and south Malaysia! They blame it on the burning of trees in Sumatra, Indonesia where farmers are preparing for the crop planting season. Residents are coughing and complaining. The haze makes everyone dizzy and the web is buzzing about it
