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MercoPress, en Español

Montevideo, May 27th 2025 - 20:08 UTC

Environment

  • Thursday, April 24th 2025 - 05:58 UTC

    IAATO Reaffirms Commitment to Antarctic Ambassadorship with Update to Bylaws

    Antarctic Ambassadorship Day – April 24, 2025

    The International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators (IAATO) has reaffirmed its dedication to fostering global stewardship for Antarctica through a key update to its bylaws, further solidifying Antarctic ambassadorship as a central pillar of its mission.

  • Wednesday, April 23rd 2025 - 18:39 UTC

    UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’ Earth Day message 2025

    We know the symptoms: devastating wildfires, floods and heat. Lives lost and livelihoods shattered.  

    Mother Earth is running a fever. Last year was the hottest ever recorded: the final blow in a decade of record heat.  We know what’s causing this sickness: the greenhouse gas emissions humanity is pumping into the atmosphere – overwhelmingly from burning fossil fuels.  

  • Friday, April 18th 2025 - 11:01 UTC

    Falklands/Darwin Plus: RSPB fears on Budget for UK conservation fund in Overseas Territoriesa

    Thanks to Darwin Plus funding, Falklands Conservation, has used satellite tracking to better under the whales’ behaviour and travel patterns.

    The Royal Society for Protection of Birds, RSPB, has strongly defended scientific research in the UK Overseas Territories, which face an uncertain future as core funding is threatened by the austerity of UK’s economic and budgetary reforms.

  • Friday, April 18th 2025 - 10:24 UTC

    Brazil's Fire Monitor detects 70% reduction in burned areas

    Of the total burned areas, 78% were covered by native vegetation

    Brazil reduced its burned areas by 70% yoy in the first quarter of 2025, with fires affecting 912,900 hectares, down from 2.1 million hectares. The reduction is largely attributed to the rainy season, although the Cerrado biome saw a 12% increase in burned areas, surpassing historical averages. The Amazon remained the most affected, accounting for 78% of the total burned area despite a 72% decrease compared to 2024, according to figures released Wednesday by the Fire Monitor, a MapBiomas tool that uses satellite imagery to track fire scars nationwide.

  • Saturday, April 12th 2025 - 10:45 UTC

    Bolivia's YPFB seeks partner for promising gas field

    President Arce pointed out that the discovery supports the decision to explore historically neglected areas

    The State-run Yacimientos Petrolíferos Fiscales Bolivianos (YPFB) is advancing efforts to find an international partner to develop the Mayaya Centro gas field in La Paz, which has been deemed one of 2024’s top ten global discoveries in the sector.

  • Tuesday, April 8th 2025 - 19:25 UTC

    Native communities want in on Chile's lithium production

    The involvement of Indigenous groups in mining at a managerial level is rare in Latin America

    Lickanantay Indigenous communities in Chile's Atacama Desert are negotiating with mining giants Codelco and SQM to secure a historic governance role in lithium extraction, which accounts for 25% of global production and is vital for the manufacturing of electric vehicle batteries.

  • Monday, April 7th 2025 - 15:54 UTC

    Insights into the impact of melting mega-brergs with robotic gliders

    Gathering data from the ocean immediately surrounding a giant iceberg is difficult. Credit: Alice Marzocchi

    For the first time, scientists have collected measurements close to a giant iceberg, giving an unprecedented window into the impact of meltwater on the surrounding Southern Ocean and ecosystem. The paper is published in the journal Nature Geoscience. 

  • Monday, April 7th 2025 - 09:49 UTC

    Indigenous groups ready for week-long protest in Brasilia

    The indigenous groups will also try to persuade COP30 attendees that they are part of the solution to gas emmissions

    Some 10,000 indigenous people from across Brazil are expected to stage the 21st edition of the Free Land Camp (ATL) in Brasília between April 7 and 11 to advocate for land demarcation and oppose the Temporal Framework, which restricts demarcation rights to territories occupied by 1988. Indigenous leaders reject mining proposals and highlight the harmful impacts on communities like the Yanomami.

  • Thursday, April 3rd 2025 - 19:37 UTC

    Brazil's Silva highlights BRICS' potential for just ecological transition

    Silva stressed the importance of countries raising their environmental ambitions

    Brazil's Environment and Climate Change Minister Marina Silva Thursday highlighted the BRICS group's potential to lead a just global ecological transition. She made those remarks during the bloc's 11th ministerial meeting in this regard, where issues like desertification, ecosystem preservation, plastic pollution, and climate action aligned with the UN's Agenda 2030 were discussed.

  • Wednesday, April 2nd 2025 - 09:47 UTC

    Glaciers melting rapidly call for action

    The preservation of glaciers is a matter of survival, Saulo said

    The world has lost 5% of its ice volume over the past 20 years, with an annual melt of 273 billion tons, according to a recent study by the United Nations (UN) and the World Meteorological Organization (WMO). Regions like Europe (39% loss), the Caucasus and Middle East (35%), and New Zealand (29%) were heavily impacted as all 19 glacier regions globally lost mass in 2024 for the third consecutive year, with the 2022-2024 period marking the largest three-year loss ever, including 450 billion tons in 2022 alone.