Researchers from the Indian Institute of Science (IISC) found out that pollutants like micro-plastics may be causing growth defects in fish, including skeletal deformities The other day, as I stepped out of my car to buy fish from a fisher folk on the bank of river Mahanadi, a waste carrier vehicle engaged by the local… Continue reading Micro-plastics in the fish I eat
Tag: dams
Another poor wet season endangers Cambodia’s biggest lake and its people
Ate Hoekstra, Yon Sineat Climate change, unsustainable and illegal fishing and the proliferation of hydropower dams on rivers that feed Tonle Sap threaten the livelihoods of over one million Cambodians Sarun Nong, a fisher on Koh Krabey, a small island in Cambodia’s Tonle Sap lake, takes another look at the fishing net in front of him. It… Continue reading Another poor wet season endangers Cambodia’s biggest lake and its people
Could the Yarlung Tsangpo canyon be China’s next big national park?
Shi Yi Experts say the river’s Grand Canyon area, a haven for many species, should be designated a national park to show China’s commitment to protecting biodiversity he Yarlung Tsangpo Grand Canyon is a dream destination for many biologists and explorers, its forests a constant source of sightings of rare animals and species new to… Continue reading Could the Yarlung Tsangpo canyon be China’s next big national park?
As the Mekong delta washes away, homes and highways are being lost
Michael Tatarski Upstream dams are blocking the sediment that nourishes the Mekong delta, while erosion and sand miners take what remains
Comment: The lurking danger of India’s dying dams and failing reservoirs
J Harsha Current projections of surface water security for India are outdated and inaccurate with crisis looming in the 21st century t is very encouraging to hear that India can currently store 257 billion cubic metres (BCM) of surface water in its reservoirs. Even more welcome is the prognosis that this quantity of water held in reservoirs… Continue reading Comment: The lurking danger of India’s dying dams and failing reservoirs
Damming Brahmaputra: With mega-dam plans, China might end up hurting itself more than India
The true idea of a river is not of a single stream of water between two banks, but a nervous system of watery arteries and capillaries that form the circulatory system of a living ecosystem in a particular river basin. At first glance, it looks like another step towards the realisation of an old nightmare… Continue reading Damming Brahmaputra: With mega-dam plans, China might end up hurting itself more than India
Argentine provinces clash over a new large-scale dam
Damian Profeta Downstream provinces challenge the Portezuelo del Viento dam over the reduction of water availability After fits and starts that date back to the 1950s, Argentina’s Mendoza province is preparing to make the Portezuelo del Viento mega-project a reality. The dam in the west of the country promises energy, tourism and jobs. However, it… Continue reading Argentine provinces clash over a new large-scale dam
Watch: DamNation | The Problem with Hydropower
Patagonia This film explores the evolution of our national attitude from pride in big dams as engineering wonders to the growing awareness that our own future is bound to the life and health of wild rivers. Produced by Matt Stoecker & Travis Rummel Directed by Ben Knight & Travis Rummel
The long goodbye: Study declares ancient Chinese paddlefish extinct
Shreya Dasgupta The Chinese paddlefish is, or rather was, a unique species. It was one of only two living species of paddlefish, part of an ancient group of fish known to have existed since the Lower Jurassic, 200 million years ago The Chinese paddlefish (Psephurus gladius) was last recorded by researchers in 2003. Subsequent local surveys… Continue reading The long goodbye: Study declares ancient Chinese paddlefish extinct
Colonial Hangover: Engineering a season of floods
Insurgent South Asian rivers breached embankments repeatedly, turning engineered floodplains into hydrological dystopias, but dams kept getting built, and embankments kept getting longer and higher In 13 states of India this year, the monsoon appeared in the form of floods. The same happened in the Terai region of Nepal, Karachi and the Neelum valley area… Continue reading Colonial Hangover: Engineering a season of floods