· November, 2011

Stories about Environment from November, 2011

Peru: Conga Mining Project Suspended in Wake of Public Pressure

  30 November 2011

Protesting residents have managed to temporarily suspend operations of the Conga gold mining project, but protests continue all the same in support of the project's definitive cancellation. At the heart of the conflict is the defense of some 20 lagoons and their ecosystems, which would be seriously degraded by the execution of this mining project.

Myanmar, Thailand: Mong Kok Coal Project

  30 November 2011

A special report was published by Shanland about the devastating impact of a coal mining project in Mong Kok. The project will affect several communities in Thailand and Myanmar.

North Korea Ranked 3rd in Deforestation

  29 November 2011

North Korean Economy Watch blog consolidated current reports on severe deforestation in North Korea. According to one risk analysis firm, North Korea had the third highest deforestation rate among 180 countries surveyed and the UN estimates that North Korea had lost almost one-third of its entire forest mass.

Bangladesh: Climate Change to Increase Hunger and Malnutrition

  28 November 2011

As governments gear up for COP17, which starts today, experts are warning that among climate change's greatest consequences in developing countries are the risks to the agriculture sector, including an increased risk of food insecurity. Bangladesh is among the top five most vulnerable countries.

Costa Rica: Environmental Activists Denounce Repression

  24 November 2011

Diego Molina in Dame un campo [es] summarizes the experiences shared by environmental activists and lawyers during a conference on “Criminalization of the social-environmental protest” held in the University of Costa Rica. Participants denounced the repression they face as a consequence of their activism.

Thailand: Survival and Creativity During Floods

  24 November 2011

The situation in Thailand is improving as floodwaters are receding but the death toll is now more than 600. The flood disaster is the worst in the past five decades but it also showed the creative and inventive ways of the people as they coped with the floods.

Patrolling Cambodia's Forest

  24 November 2011

Some 300 activists visited the Prey Lang Forest to to prevent further illegal logging of the area. A slideshow of the journey which took several days on foot is now available online

Peruvian Amazon: The Challenges of a Wonder of Nature

  23 November 2011

The Amazon rainforest has been declared as one of the provisional 7 new wonders of nature, a recognition that is expected to benefit the Peruvian region of Loreto and the city of Iquitos by incrementing tourism. But is the region actually prepared for this?

Trinidad & Tobago: Water Not the Only Problem

  23 November 2011

Jumbie's Watch comments on the recent flooding in Trinidad: “This is a country with 3 desalination plants…flashy skyscrapers, newly built motorways – and they can't solve a ‘water problem’.”

Brazil: Maximum Fine After Silence on Chevron's Oil Spill

  23 November 2011

On 7 November, an oil platform operated by Chevron-Texaco and located 350km off coast from Rio de Janeiro, began spilling crude oil. Two weeks after, the spill is believed to be under control and Chevron has been fined the maximum amount allowed by Brazilian environmental authorities. But not all is clear concerning the intricacies and coverage of the environmental disaster.

Bulgaria: New Protest Against Shale Gas Planned

  22 November 2011

A new protest is being planned for Nov. 26 in Sofia, part of a series of protests against Chevron's shale gas extraction in northeast Bulgaria. On Nov. 20, nearly 500 people attended a rally in the coastal city of Varna, which didn't receive adequate media coverage. Several Facebook groups have...

Trinidad & Tobago: Flood Damage

  22 November 2011

B.C. Pires comments on the flood damage in northern Trinidad over the weekend: “Somewhere between asking God for strength and not throwing rubbish in the river, there is a lesson to be learned.”

Peru: Iquitos Against the Chaos Caused by Sewage Works

  21 November 2011

The beautiful and warm city of Iquitos, in the Loreto region, is going through several problems; the most worrying and annoying for the inhabitants is the chaos caused by controversial sewage works. Citizens are using social networks to organize and demand a solution.

Nigeria : Homes made of Plastic Bottles

  21 November 2011

In the village of Yelwa — North of Nigeria — a new style of construction intrigued the curiosity of the locals. Noorinfo publishes photos of rounded huts [fr] built with plastic bottles. These new constructions look like a potential alternative to  the old-fashioned bricks.  

Trinidad & Tobago: Flood!

  21 November 2011

Trinidad and Tobago News Blog has reports on the flooding that plagued northern Trinidad this past weekend, here and here.

D. R. Congo: The Stolen Future of the Pygmy People

  20 November 2011

Marie wrote the following in a blog post to comment [fr] on the Greenpeace report: Stolen Future: Conflict and logging in the heart of Congo's forests – the Danzer case : “This action denounces both both an ecological and a human crime. It is time that nations take concrete  measures against logging companies that destroy tropical ecosystems and violate human rights. “

Brazil: Real State Speculation Threatens Sacred Ground

  18 November 2011

Sagrada Terra Especulada (Sacred Speculated Ground), a Brazilian collective that advocates for indigenous land rights, is promoting a documentary [pt] and a petition [pt] in defense of the Pajé Sanctuary, close to Brasilia´s Pilot Plan. Real estate speculation [pt] threatens this area of savannah with the construction of a so-called...

Brazil: Toxic Documentary on the Amazon

  17 November 2011

Brazilian journalist Felipe Milanez (@felipedjeguaka) published [pt, en] a documentary about the Amazon in the series Toxic – “the various ways in which we detonate our planet” – of the Vice website. The documentary features the environmental activist Zé Claudio Ribeiro da Silva who was killed in May 2011.