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MercoPress, en Español

Montevideo, October 11th 2026 - 19:52 UTC

Environment

  • Saturday, February 1st 2020 - 08:45 UTC

    How we recruited albatrosses to patrol the high seas for illegal fishers

    An albatross colony in the Falkland Islands

    By Samantha Patrick (*) – Wandering albatrosses have long been considered exceptional creatures. They can fly 8.5 million kilometers during their lifetimes – the equivalent of flying to the Moon and back more than ten times. Their three-and-a-half-meter wing span is the same length as a small car and they can weigh as much as 24 puffins. Their body shape means they can effortlessly glide over the ocean waves, flying in some of the strongest winds on Earth. Now research led by the Centre d'études biologiques de Chizé in France has found that these seabirds may have promising careers in the fight against overfishing.

  • Friday, January 31st 2020 - 10:23 UTC

    State of emergency in Australia's capital surrounded by bushfire

    Officials said an uncontrolled fire in the ACT's south, on the doorstep of Canberra, had grown to 185 sq km, almost 8 per cent of the territory's land mass.

    Australian officials declared a state of emergency for the capital city of Canberra and surrounding regions on Friday, as soaring temperatures and strong winds threatened to propel a large bushfire beyond the control of firefighters.

  • Friday, January 31st 2020 - 08:48 UTC

    Heavy rains and flooding forecasted for Asuncion, Paraguay and Porto Alegre, Brazil

    Much of the heaviest rain through the middle of next week is expected to stay south and east of some of the areas hardest hit in January

    Although flooding rain has already hit parts of Brazil so far in 2020, more rain and flooding could strike the southern part of the country in the coming week. In addition to southern Brazil, other parts of South America may also be threatened.

  • Thursday, January 30th 2020 - 08:59 UTC

    Argentina/Falklands fisheries talks: what happened and what can be expected

    On Monday 20 January, the South Atlantic Scientific Committee was scheduled to meet in Buenos Aires, one of the regular meetings agreed

    Last week there was intense diplomatic activity regarding the Falkland Islands: the meeting of the Fisheries Subcommittee to be held in Buenos Aires on Monday 20 was suspended; the ambassadors before Great Britain and before the international organizations in Geneva, Renato Sersale di Cerisano and Carlos Foradori, were displaced and the secretary of Matters Related to the Falkland Islands, Daniel Filmus, made his presentation in New York in the Decolonization Committee, urging that a negotiation instance be promoted from the UN.

  • Thursday, January 30th 2020 - 08:45 UTC

    UK plans to end automatic rights for EU vessels to fish in British waters

    The new Fisheries Bill will enable UK to create a sustainable, profitable fishing industry for ”our coastal communities, whilst securing the long term health of British fisheries,” Environment Secreta

    Boris Johnson's government plans to reclaim control over British fisheries with a law allowing the U.K. to decide who can fish in its waters and on what terms. The legislation to be published this week will end current automatic rights for European Union vessels to fish in British waters, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said in an emailed statement.

  • Thursday, January 30th 2020 - 08:33 UTC

    Scientists surprised at unusual temperature at the base of huge glacier in Antarctica

    The researchers, working on the Thwaites Glacier, recorded water temperatures at the base of the ice of more than 2 deg C, above the normal freezing point.

    Scientists in Antarctica have recorded, for the first time, unusually warm water beneath a glacier the size of Florida that is already melting and contributing to a rise in sea levels. The researchers, working on the Thwaites Glacier, recorded water temperatures at the base of the ice of more than 2 deg C, above the normal freezing point.

  • Wednesday, January 29th 2020 - 08:17 UTC

    Major quake in the Caribbean, northwest of Jamaica

    The US agency said the quake hit at a depth of 10 kilometers, at 1910 GMT - 125 kilometers northwest of Lucea, Jamaica.

    A major 7.7 magnitude quake struck on Tuesday in the Caribbean northwest of Jamaica, the US Geological Survey reported, raising the risk of tsunami waves in the region.

  • Tuesday, January 28th 2020 - 08:28 UTC

    Brazil floods: 54 dead, 18 missing and over 30.000 people displaced

    Rains subsided by Monday, but were expected to resume later this week in some areas. Flooded roads created violent rapids, sweeping up victims, cars and debris

    Over 30,000 people have been displaced by heavy rains in southeast Brazil that also killed 54 people and left 18 missing. The storms in recent days caused floods and landslides, submerging entire neighbourhoods and sending homes tumbling down hillsides in the states of Minas Gerais, Espirito Santo and Rio de Janeiro.

  • Monday, January 27th 2020 - 07:58 UTC

    One in two Australians have donated money to support bushfire relief efforts

    Some 53% of Australians have donated to a bushfire appeal during this season, a survey conducted by the fundraising and marketing consultancy More Strategic

    One in two Australians have donated money to support bushfire relief efforts, a new survey showed over the weekend, with meteorologists warning more hot and dry weather is to return after a heavy rain respite dampened many of the blazes.

  • Monday, January 27th 2020 - 07:33 UTC

    Catastrophic rainstorms and floods in central Brazil: at least 50 deaths

    Most of the casualties were in the state of Minas Gerais, including the capital Belo Horizonte, which had its heaviest rainfall over a 24-hour period<br />

    At least 50 people have died in Brazil and more than 25,000 have been displaced due to widespread flooding following storms and heavy rains that have swept across the southeast of the country, authorities said on Sunday.