Environment

• Monday, April 9th 2012 - 15:40 UTC

  China planning 200m state of the art icebreaker for service in 2014

  

  A new icebreaker is scheduled to join Xuelong, China’s only Antarctic research vessel, in 2014, highlighting Beijing’s ambition for further exploration and scientific study in polar regions.

• Monday, April 9th 2012 - 05:52 UTC

  Brazilian president expected to emphasize on trade, investments and technology

  

  In spite of disagreements in several issues, President Dilma Rousseff during her meeting on Monday at the White House with her peer Barack Obama is expected to insist on the need to join efforts in combating the world economic crisis and particularly monetary instability originated in the manipulation of foreign currency exchanges, which the Brazilian describe as a “monetary tsunami”.

• Monday, April 9th 2012 - 05:46 UTC

  Russian yacht that went missing is en route to South American continent

  

  Russian-Ukrainian yacht Scorpius is sailing to a refuelling stop in southern Argentina after thick ice prevented it from taking on fuel at a coastal Russian outpost in Antarctica.

• Monday, April 9th 2012 - 05:34 UTC

  Brazilian yacht sinks crushed by Antarctic ice close to Chilean base

  

  The Chilean Navy on Sunday released images of the Brazilian Yacht ‘Endless Sea’ which sank on Saturday in Antarctica. The photo shows the boat stuck in ice at Maxwell Bay, Ardley Cove, in front of the Chilean Antarctic base Presidente Eduardo Frei, reported Brazilian online media.

• Thursday, April 5th 2012 - 23:06 UTC

  Argentina’s main grains export hub blocked by grounded vessel

  

  Tens of cargo ships are delayed in Argentina because a grain-bulk carrier has grounded in the Parana River, 150 kilometres south of the city of Rosario, which is the country’s grains and oil seeds hub.

• Thursday, April 5th 2012 - 22:42 UTC

  Larsen Ice Shelf continues retreating

  

  A European satellite has reported rapid ice shelf disintegration in Antarctica’s Larsen Ice Shelf according to a news story posted yesterday on the European Space Agency’s (ESA) website, http://www.esa.int

• Thursday, April 5th 2012 - 22:32 UTC

  Antarctic: Dutch laboratories arrive at Rothera Station

  

  As part of an international collaboration between British Antarctic Survey (BAS) and the Netherlands Polar Programme (NPP), three new containerised laboratories arrived at Rothera Research Station in Antarctica earlier this week, according to a news story posted yesterday on the BAS website: http://www.antarctica.ac.uk.

• Thursday, April 5th 2012 - 15:52 UTC

  Hundreds of dead dolphins in Peruvian beaches; offshore acoustic testing leading suspect

  

  Conservationists counted 615 dead dolphins along a 150 kilometer stretch of beaches in Peru, a wildlife group said Wednesday, and the leading suspect is acoustic testing offshore by oil companies.

• Thursday, April 5th 2012 - 14:45 UTC

  Green light for huge controversial hydroelectric project in Chilean Patagonia

  

  Chile's Supreme Court Wednesday removed the last legal obstacle to building a giant 2.9 billion dollars hydroelectric complex in the Patagonian wilderness, rejecting a bid by environmentalists to block it.

• Sunday, April 1st 2012 - 07:58 UTC

  Oil leaks cast a shadow over the development of Brazil’s offshore huge reserves

  

  Brazilian authorities identified a small oil leak off the shores of Rio de Janeiro on Saturday, the latest in a series of spills that has raised safety concerns over the development of some of the world's largest petroleum reserves.