HKND

The planned trans-oceanic canal in Nicaragua could spell disaster for jaguars and other large mammals, according to a new study.

One year after a Chinese consortium began work on a canal across Nicaragua, there is little sign of progress.

The government of Daniel Ortega has approved environmental and social impact studies allowing construction of the Nicaragua Canal to commence in 2016.

It isn’t looking good for Chinese billionaire Wang Jing and his planned $50 billion Nicaragua canal project. New financial, social and environmental concerns have cast doubt on the feasibility of the proposed interoceanic canal, and construction has now been delayed until March.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Opponents of Nicaragua’s dubious plans to build a $50 billion interoceanic canal are trying to rally U.S. help in fighting the controversial project. But it’s not clear if official Washington is listening.

HKND plans to dredge 715 million cubic meters of material from the bottom of Lake Cocibolca, possibly the biggest dredging job ever. In comparison, all dredging and excavating in the 100-year history of the Panama Canal has removed a total of 550 million cubic meters of material.

“No to the canal,” “Get out Chinese,” “Ortega, sell out,” shouted a chorus of demonstrators Wednesday as thousands took to the streets of Managua to protest the construction of a mega-canal that threatens to expropriate land from small holders and Lake Cocibolca, the largest freshwater lake in Central America.

After acknowledging Nicaragua’s right to build large infrastructure projects in its territory, the diplomatic letter specifically expressed concern over how the mega-project might affect water levels in the Colorado and San Juan rivers, over which Costa Rica holds navigation rights.

MANAGUA, Nicaragua – It would be an engineering feat of gargantuan proportions – a $40 billion Chinese-built canal across Nicaragua to boost the flow of ships between the Caribbean and the Pacific.