Roads
Bill threatens more oil extraction, roads in Guatemala’s protected forests
FLORES — One of Guatemala’s most under-threat protected areas may face future oil and gas development, as lawmakers consider whether to expand extractive activities in the region and the construction of additional pipelines. A bill in Guatemala’s congress would not only renew a contract for the current oil and gas pipeline that already operates in […]
In Brazilian Amazon, mining harm comes from beyond just the mines, study shows
Opening up protected areas to mining in the Brazilian Amazon could have an even bigger impact than previously thought, according to a study published in Nature Sustainability earlier this year. The study focused on the nine protected areas that make up most of the National Reserve of Copper and Associates (RENCA) in the Amazonian states […]
Nearness to roads and palm oil mills a key factor in peatland clearing by smallholders
JAKARTA — Smallholder farmers in Sumatra who cultivate oil palms are more likely to expand their farms into carbon-rich peat forests the closer they are to roads and palm oil mills, a new study finds. The study by researchers from the University of Maryland in the U.S. and Nanyang Technological University in Singapore looked at […]
Road project threatens to derail Nepal’s conservation gains, study says
KATHMANDU — Nepal entered 2022 with encouraging news related to its tiger population. As a census gathered pace, Bardiya National Park, home to 87 of Nepal’s estimated 235 tigers, received the TX2 Award for doubling the population of the endangered species since 2010. Amid the celebrations, conservationists feared the precariousness of that success as they […]
UNESCO reiterates road project’s dangers to Papua park as Indonesia doubles down
JAKARTA — UNESCO has renewed its call for the closure of a road running through Indonesia’s Lorentz National Park after the nation’s environment minister said shutting it down would be impossible. The park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, encompasses a variety of biodiversity-rich ecosystems on the western coast of the island of New Guinea. BirdLife […]