· August, 2010

Stories about Environment from August, 2010

Chile: Thermoelectric Plant is Approved Despite President's Promise

  24 August 2010

Today, the Regional Environmental Commission of Coquimbo (in Spanish, Comisión Regional del Medio Ambiente de Coquimbo) approved a project to build a thermoelectric power plant in Marine reserve Punta de Choros. Pablo Astudillo writes in his blog, Astu's Science Blog, about the project and its environmental implications; he also posts...

Bolivia: Waste Management in El Alto

  24 August 2010

Mario R. Duran considers [es] waste management options for El Alto, Bolivia, and analyzes the possibility and consequences of installing a plant that would turn waste into diesel fuel.

India: Navi Mumbai Mangroves In Danger

  23 August 2010

The Navi Mumbai mangroves came into spotlight after the recent oil spill near Mumbai port. However, Debolina Raja Gupta asserts that they were endangered much before the oil spill and the authorities need to wake up to the fact.

Guinea Bissau: Videos about Water Scarcity

  23 August 2010

Blog Novas da Guiné Bissau shares the video Bafatá Misti Iagu (Bafatá Wants Water) [pt], describing a project that promotes the access to water for 22.000 people in the city of Bafatá. The issue of lack of access to safe water in Guinea Bissau had been previously reported in a documentary...

China: Pambassadors

  23 August 2010

Elaine Chow from Shanghaiist blogs about the recruitment of six Panda Ambassadors in China. The Pambassadors will be working at the famous Woolong Giant Panda Protection and Research Center in the coming October.

Tanzania: Solar Hope in Tanzania

  22 August 2010

E.B writes about the work of the non-profit organization Solar Hope in Tanzanian schools: “Nine OIT students and two faculty members have landed in Tanzania and are currently installing the first round of solar panels, converters and chargers.”

Bolivia: State of Emergency Due to Wildfires

  22 August 2010

Bolivia is in a state of fire emergency, with 25,000 blazes affecting 1.5 million hectares. Pablo Andrés Rivero writes [es] about the lack of resources to put out the fires; he also expresses his unbelief at declarations from the Minister of Rural Development, Nemesia Achacollo, who said that only rain...

Madagascar: The Undercover Investigations That Exposed Rosewood Trafficking from the Rain Forest

  20 August 2010

One of the consequences of the enduring political crisis in Madagascar is its punishing impact on the environment. The investigation of activists specialized in conservation and protection of the environment was instrumental in documenting the crimes and holding the government accountable for protecting Malagasy natural resources. Here are there reflections on the initiatives:

El Salvador: Climate Change and Migration

  20 August 2010

Tim's El Salvador Blog recommends an essay by his friend Beth, “who works with a local community on reconstruction projects necessitated by weather disasters” in El Salvador. The essay is called, “In Search of Shelter and Protection: Environmental Migration and Climate Change.”

Trinidad & Tobago: Big River

  19 August 2010

My Chutney Garden visits Grande Riviere, “a small fishing village that is best known for attracting nesting leatherback turtles.”

Bangladesh made boat reaches France

  18 August 2010

Bangladesh Watchdog informs that an ‘unsinkable eco-friendly’ boat made of jute fibre has reached the coast of La Ciotat, South of France after an eight month long journey from Bangladesh. The mission of the sail was to highlight the problems Bangladeshi fishermen are facing due to global warming.

Trinidad & Tobago: Toco Lighthouse

  18 August 2010

“No trip to Toco is complete without visiting the lighthouse that sits on the north eastern tip of Trinidad”: My Chutney Garden regales us with tales from her journey.

Brazil: Indigenous Camp Resists for Eight Months in Brasilia

  17 August 2010

Since the beginning of this year, members of different indigenous Brazilian nations have settled a "revolutionary camp" out in front of the Ministry of Justice in Brasília D.F. The indigenous communities demand for the annulment of a decree on matters related to them, which was approved in the end of 2009 without consulting indigenous leaders.