Collapses of Amazon riverbanks threaten communities and shipping routes
Erosion is natural along Amazonian rivers, but increasing boat traffic can raise the risk of bank collapse.
Rivers News
Nepal Indigenous leaders refile writ petition against hydropower project
Amid rounds of court hearings and the decision pending on a 2024 writ petition, Indigenous Bhote-Lhomi Singsa community leaders of the Lungbasamba region in northeastern Nepal have filed another writ…
With a target on their bellies, can California’s sturgeon survive?
Following up on a tip to the state’s poaching hotline, game wardens in California rushed to a popular fishing spot, Clifton Court Forebay, in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta. They’d…
New mapping reveals hidden mining boom in Laos that threatens the Mekong
BANGKOK — A new satellite analysis from U.S. think tank the Stimson Center has identified 517 suspected mines along rivers in Laos, including major tributaries of the Mekong, Southeast Asia’s longest…
In Chocó, river defenders say race for energy transition threatens lifelines
“People bathe in the river, they eat from the river — they live, dance and sing there,” says Dora Agudelo Vázquez. “Their whole lives are bound to the river.” Agudelo…
Scientists chart a new source, and length, for Africa’s famous Zambezi River
A new study suggests that the Zambezi River, Africa’s fourth-longest, is 11% longer than previously thought, with its most distant source lying in Angola, not Zambia. While the finding leaves…
Forest loss, fires and invasions soar in Nicaraguan wildlife refuge, watchdog warns
The Río San Juan Wildlife Refuge, one of the most important protected areas in Nicaragua, is facing an unprecedented environmental crisis, according to a new report. Illegal deforestation, encroachment and…
New riverside lake in Nepal wins hearts, but faces government opposition
SARLAHI, Nepal — Nepali social media influencer Ishtu Karki recently posted photos and videos enjoying a motorboat ride on the Bagmati Lake, popularly known as Bharat Taal, in Sarlahi district…
Bird diversity drops in human-dominated habitats, Nepal study suggests
KATHMANDU — Birds prefer to live in a mix of forests, fields and wetlands, but human activities such as logging, hunting and sand and gravel mining are taking a toll…
Brazil nut hauling effort gets easier with zip lines and ‘Amazon Waze’
Lugging 50-kilo bags through the rainforest’s rough terrain is a vital piece of the nut trade, but could soon change.
Toxic runoff from politically linked gold mine poisons Cambodian rivers, communities
*Sources have requested pseudonyms be used to protect their identity out of fear of retaliation from the government or mining companies BANGKOK, Thailand/RATANAKIRI, Cambodia — “When you touch the water of…
Lesotho communities allege greenwashing by project transferring water to South Africa
Communities in Lesotho have filed a complaint with the African Development Bank over a controversial initiative that transfers water from the country to neighboring South Africa, one of the biggest…
Makassar women press for water as taps and wells run dry in sweltering Indonesian city
MAKASSAR, Indonesia — For years, Rahma paid a monthly rate for water that never flowed to her home in eastern Indonesia’s largest urban area, here where the Tallo River meets…
Photos: Drones help First Nations track down cold-water havens for salmon amid warming
GASPÉSIE, Canada — In Quebec's Gaspésie region, Indigenous river guardians say they are in a race against climate change to protect the Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar). The Mi'gmaq Wolastoqey Indigenous…
The price of gold: In Venezuela, mining threatens Indigenous Pemón
CÚCUTA, Colombia — When Daniel Romero worked at a river mine in Canaima National Park, in southeastern Venezuela, he would wait until the sun had slipped behind the ancient sandstone…
Healthy rivers, healthy people: A Brazil project links human & ecosystem well-being
Some 30 years ago, Apolo Heringer, a Brazilian public health doctor, was participating in a night fishing trip with residents of the community Raiz, in southeastern Brazil. That night, the…
Thai agri giant CPF sues activist over claims linking it to invasive fish outbreak
The secretary-general of a Thai agricultural watchdog is facing a lawsuit that observers say is part of corporate efforts to silence citizens who are calling for greater accountability over the…
Belém faces its social and natural demons as host to COP30
Once a major river city, Belém turned its back on the water, leaving 40% of its urban area vulnerable to floods.
Rare earth mining expands into Laos, threatening entire Mekong River
BANGKOK — New data show a recent proliferation of rare earth mines across river basins in Laos, potentially posing a transboundary water pollution threat to Vietnam and the entire Mekong River…
Nickel mining damage near UNESCO site stirs outrage in southern Philippines
MINDANAO, Philippines — A nickel mining project in the southern Philippine island of Mindanao is facing renewed calls for closure after a recent government inspection revealed that strip mining there…
Negro River study finds genetic damage in fish after oil spill
On the morning of March 26, 2013, approximately 60,000 liters (16,000 gallons) of an oil byproduct used to produce asphalt spilled from a barge on the Negro River, near the…
More Thai rivers and downstream communities at risk from Myanmar’s rare earth mines
BANGKOK — New satellite data identified 513 sites of rare-earth mining that have cropped up across at least six key tributaries of the Mekong, Salween and Irrawaddy rivers in Myanmar over…
A closer look at Peru’s Amazon reveals new mining trends, deforestation
For years, gold mining has been one of Peru’s most pressing environmental challenges, with illegal operations clearing the Amazon Rainforest and polluting rivers with chemicals. The industry continues to grow,…
Indigenous monitoring project helps protect isolated peoples in Colombia’s Amazon
In Colombia’s Amazon, two communities have worked for more than a decade to guard their territory and to protect the right of other Indigenous peoples to remain isolated. The community…
‘We can have abundant rivers and wildlife’: Director of ‘The American Southwest’ on new film
At its roots, The American Southwest, from Fin and Fur Films, is a natural history documentary. "I'm a wildlife guy," says director Ben Masters, who founded Fin and Fur in…
Cameroon inaugurates controversial dam despite local dissent
YAOUNDÉ, Cameroon — In the village of Ndji, old electrical cables are draped over rickety wooden poles, hanging so low in places, they touch the ground. These makeshift installations provide…
Turning a stream into a river: Inside India’s Yettinaholé diversion project
Daybreak is almost nonexistent during monsoons in Raxidi, a village perched in the thick of the Western Ghats, an Indian biodiversity hotspot. It is the 7 a.m. body clock that…
Satellite data show burst of deforestation in Myanmar rare earth mining hotspots
Myanmar’s Kachin state, near the border with China, is a global hub for rare earth minerals. But the dearth of regulations over mining these resources has come at a steep…
In Brazil’s Pantanal, too many tourists may be the jaguar’s new predator
PORTO JOFRE, Brazil — When Oscar de Morais isn’t out tracking jaguars, you’ll find him aboard his houseboat moored along the banks of the São Lourenço River. He sits beneath…
Shrinking Mekong megafish underlines risks to the river, study finds
The megafish of the Mekong River are shrinking, a new study has found. In the most comprehensive analysis of species size in Southeast Asia’s Lower Mekong Basin, researchers have tracked…
Escalation in tourism, climate change leaves Nepal’s Mustang in fragile state
MUSTANG, Nepal — On a crisp morning after a night of rain, the breeze diffuses the smell of wet earth in the village of Kagbeni in Mustang, Nepal’s trans-Himalayan frontier.…
Development banks under fire for backing disputed Nepal hydropower project
Nepal has long relied on hydropower projects to meet most of its energy needs, but recent complaints from Indigenous and local communities have cast a shadow over the development of…
Special series
Forest Trackers
- Satellite data show burst of deforestation in Myanmar rare earth mining hotspots
- Narco airstrips beset Indigenous communities in Peruvian Amazon
- 15 illegal narco-trafficking airstrips found near Peru Indigenous communities
- Satellite data show bursts of deforestation continue in Indonesian national park
Oceans
- Scientists call for stronger action to save Indonesia’s vanishing seagrass meadows
- Antarctic conservation summit closes with stalemate on MPAs & krill fishing rules
- Norway’s proposal to double krill harvests raises tension at Antarctic conservation summit
- Nickel mining threatens Raja Ampat ecosystems, communities & conservation: Report
Amazon Conservation
- ‘World’s largest’ carbon credit deal in the Amazon faces bumpy road ahead
- New conservation model calls for protecting Amazon for its archaeological riches
- Brazil dredges Amazon rivers to ease drought isolation, raising environmental concerns
- ‘We need white men on our side to save the Amazon from destruction,’ 92-year-old Indigenous Chief Raoni says
Land rights and extractives
- Lithium mining may threaten a precious resource — water: Voices from the land (commentary)
- Indigenous guardians successfully keep extractives out of Ecuador’s Amazon forests
- Amid Venezuela’s illegal gold heist are armed groups, gangs & elites, report says
- Indigenous women in Peru use technology to protect Amazon forests
Endangered Environmentalists
- A killing with precedent: Kaiowá man’s murder fits a pattern in Brazil
- Environmental & rights activists flee and hide as M23 captures DRC’s cities
- Environmental journalist in Cambodia shot and killed by suspected logger
- Vietnam sentences yet another energy expert over renewables research
Indonesia's Forest Guardians
- On a Borneo mountainside, Indigenous Dayak women hold fire and defend forest
- Fenced in by Sulawesi national park, Indigenous women make forestry breakout
- In Borneo, the ‘Power of Mama’ fight Indonesia’s wildfires with all-woman crew
- Pioneer agroforester Ermi, 73, rolls back the years in Indonesia’s Gorontalo
Conservation Effectiveness
- How effective is the EU’s marquee policy to reduce the illegal timber trade?
- How sharing and learning from failures can transform conservation (commentary)
- Is planting trees as good for the Earth as everyone says?
- Failure in conservation projects: Everyone experiences it, few record it
Southeast Asian infrastructure
- An ‘ocean grab’ for a property megaproject leaves Jakarta fishers grounded
- Study: Indonesia’s new capital city threatens stable proboscis monkey population
- Indonesia’s new capital ‘won’t sacrifice the environment’: Q&A with Nusantara’s Myrna Asnawati Safitri
- Small farmers in limbo as Cambodia wavers on Tonle Sap conservation rules
