Environment

• Wednesday, July 17th 2013 - 19:35 UTC

  Russia blocks creation of two huge Marine Protected Areas in Antarctica

  

  An extraordinary meeting of the Commission of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) to establish Marine Protected Areas (MPA) in the Ross Sea region and in East Antarctica wrapped up on Tuesday without an agreement after Russia with support from Ukraine blocked the initiative.

• Wednesday, July 17th 2013 - 07:07 UTC

  Argentine Orcadas base reports 7.3 magnitude earthquake close to Antarctica Peninsula

  

  A powerful 7.3-magnitude earthquake has struck off the coast of Antarctica, generating large waves but causing no injuries, seismic experts at Argentina's Orcadas base in Antarctica reported on Monday.

• Tuesday, July 16th 2013 - 20:29 UTC

  Chernobyl at sea? Russia building Floating Nuclear Power Plants

  

  By John C.K. Daly of Oilprice.com - So much for the lessons of Fukushima; never mind oil spills the Russian Federation is preparing an energy initiative that, if it has problems will inject nuclear material into the maritime environment.

• Tuesday, July 16th 2013 - 04:04 UTC

  Falklands’ war and British identity, a project study financed by the Shackleton Scholarship Fund

  

  Four academic scholarships have been awarded by the Shackleton Scholarship Fund (SSF) for 2013, covering scientific and historical subjects related to the Falkland Islands, with one of them of particular interest since it refers to the Falklands war and British identity

• Tuesday, July 16th 2013 - 03:50 UTC

  Chilean court suspends major 8.5bn dollars gold development project in the Andes

  

  A Chilean appeals court on Monday formally suspended Barrick Gold Corp’s controversial 8.5 dollars billion Pascua-Lama gold mine until the company meets environmental standards and builds infrastructure that will prevent water pollution.

• Thursday, July 11th 2013 - 07:08 UTC

  Eight times Manhattan island iceberg breaks off from Antarctic glacier

  

  Pine Island Glacier (PIG), the longest and fastest flowing glacier in the Antarctic, has spawned a huge iceberg. The block measures about 720 sq km in area - roughly eight times the size of Manhattan Island in New York.

• Wednesday, July 10th 2013 - 17:35 UTC

  Brazil’s research company which turned the country into world breadbasket turns 40

  

  Embrapa (Empresa Brasileira de Pesquisas Agropecuarias) created tropical agriculture in Brazil, thus allowing the country to become the giant food producer it is today. Hailed for the work done in adapting soybeans to the hot, humid, acidic climes of the Cerrado savannah, where nearly 17% of the world's beans are now cultivated, the state-run research company is a national treasure.

• Saturday, July 6th 2013 - 06:51 UTC

  Success of South Georgia’s rat eradication campaign makes BBC news

  

  The world's largest rat eradication campaign has now laid toxic bait on a further 580 sq km of South Georgia, reaching its target. These poisonous pellets have now been spread on 70% of the rat-infested island, according to a BBC report from Melissa Hogenboom.

• Saturday, July 6th 2013 - 05:12 UTC

  Brazil inflation in June slowed to 0.2% and 3.15% in six months, but still ahead of target

  

  Inflation in Brazil slowed to 0.2% in June compared to the month before, but, at 6.7% over 12 months, was still well above the government's target of 4.5%, according to the latest official figures released on Friday.

• Thursday, June 27th 2013 - 05:07 UTC

  Iguazu Falls Park closed because of heavy rains and flooding

  

  Pouring rains and floods have forced the closure of the Iguazu Park, home of the world’s most famous waterfalls in the heartland of South America, shared by Argentina and Brazil, according to reports from the Argentine navy outpost in Puerto Iguazú.