Stories about Environment from February, 2011
Australia: ‘Tea Party’ Style Campaign Against Carbon Tax
If the Oz blogosphere is any indication, the next Australian Federal election will be a referendum on a proposed climate tax. And the issue has already become nasty and personal. GV author Kevin Rennie gathers online reactions to this controversial measure.
Bahamas: The Right to Speak Out
“I always have and always will speak up when my rights as a homeowner, a citizen and a human being are being threatened”: Womanish Words believes that her voice is the most powerful tool she has.
Uzbekistan: Unauthorized use of energy
Elina Galperin reports that Uzbekistan is systematically sneaking electricity from Kazakhstan’s power grid beyond amounts agreed between the two parties, according to the claims by the Kazakhstan Electricity Grid Operating Company (KEGOC).
Pakistan: Unexpected Snowfall In Lahore
Guppu.com reports that “on February 26, 2011, Lahorites witnessed an extraordinary day when all of the sudden, dark clouds came and it felt as if the winter has come back, and snowfall started.”
Haiti: Challenges & Hopes
Kevin Fortuna at Concern Blogs visits Haiti and writes about his experience.
Kenya: Video: Me and My Bike
A group of teenagers from Nairobi won the $8000 Passion Pictures Best Film and Artists Project Earth Youth Visions award as part of the 1 min to Save the World contest, which challenged young filmmakers to create a one-minute video about climate change.
Cuba: Cigar Fest
Havana Times and Repeating Islands blog about Cuba's Cigar Festival.
Trinidad & Tobago: Learning from Nature
“It's not always necessary to have complete control in a garden. Sometimes it's necessary to stand back and let things evolve naturally”: My Chutney Garden lets nature take the lead.
Chile: Social Media Reactions Against Coal Mining Project
The approval of a coal mining mega-project in Isla Riesco, nature and protected species sanctuary in southern Chile, reveals a serious environmental conflict of interests that is being analyzed and denounced on the active Chilean social networks.
Russia: Photos of “Putin's Palace” Published by Bloggers
Krasnodar environmentalist group “Open Shore” published a photo report that illustrates how a number of huge villas have been built on a place of a relict forest on the shore of the Black sea. One of the villas shot by activists is the so-called “Putin's Palace,” a 3-storey luxurious manor...
Jamaica, B.V.I.: Non-Indigenous Species
Lemurs in the Caribbean? Labrish Jamaica calls on Sir Richard Branson to do the right thing.
Russia-Kyrgyzstan: Mount Putin on the map
Windows to Russia reports that Kyrgyzstan on 17 February decided to name a mountain peak after Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.
South Korea: Dead livestock draws a flocks of vultures
South Korea's citizen media, Wiki Tree posted Twitter @Photomaker79's image of a flocks of vultures circling over a burial ground in Kyunggi Province, where dead livestock have been dumped. To slow down the country's worst foot-and-mouth disease outbreak, the government culled near a quarter of its herd and buried them...
China: Worst Drought in 60 Years
Major agricultural regions in China are facing their worst drought in 60 years. According to government statistics, 2.57 million people and 2.79 million livestock have been hit by the drought. The immediate impact has been rising food prices, indeed its implication on food security has prompted the United Nations' food agency to issue a warning to the world's grain markets.
Venezuela: Netizens Comment on Possible Gasoline Use Restrictions
Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez announced possible measures to start rationing gasoline. This matter constitutes a very sensitive issue for Venezuelans, since Venezuela is a country with one of the world's lowest gasoline prices. After the announcement, bloggers and Twitter users reacted in different ways.
Serbia: Government Website Broken Into Due to 12345 Password
Belgraded.com writes about the most recent awkward situation that the costly website of Serbia's Ministry of Ecology and Urban Planning has found itself in: “The site was the target of public ridicule once again couple of hours ago when someone noticed that the username/password combination for logging on to the...
Trinidad & Tobago: “Arima” in Kiddies Carnival
“Arima — which means both ‘place of the beginning’ and ‘water’ — is an indigenous Amerindian place name for what is now a large town in eastern Trinidad”: Alice Yard blogs about its children’s Carnival masquerade band, which “attempts to bring these two definitions together”.
Ecuador: Judge orders Chevron to pay $8.6 billion fine
“The eighteen-year lawsuit against Chevron came to a climax when a judge ruled that Texaco (now owned by Chevron) was liable environmental damages in the Ecuadorian rainforest. The court decreed that the oil company pay a reported $8.6 billion fine and apologize publicly or risk doubling the damages figure,” reports...
South Korea: Blood exuding from the ground where culled animals are buried.
South Korea had lost a quarter of the herd from its worst foot-and-mouth disease outbreak. Fears among Koreans grow as experts anticipated the blood from culled animals may contaminate nearby underground water and soil. Twitterer @Hyeyounga posted a gruesome photo of blood exuding from the burial ground and running over...
Bangladesh: Widespread Protests Force Government To Back Down On Airport Project
A recent venture by the Bangladesh government to takeover 25000acres of wetlands (Arial Beel) 60km South of the capital city of Dhaka, for a proposed International airport and satellite city led to protests and violence in the area. Netizens too, reacted strongly to the government debating the need for a new airport and the government was forced to back down on the airport project.
Brazil: Journalist's dismissal causes outrage
Journalist Aguirre Peixoto's dismissal from the Brazilian newspaper A Tarde caused outrage among bloggers and journalists [pt]: Peixoto's reports on the environmental damage caused by a new development to the city of Salvador allegedly put an end to the contractors’ advertising in the broadsheet. After applying 30-days suspension on Peixoto,...
