Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
07BRASILIA580
2007-04-03 15:25:00
UNCLASSIFIED
Embassy Brasilia
Cable title:  

SOUTH AMERICA ESTH NEWS, NUMBER 92

Tags:  SENV EAGR EAID TBIO ECON SOCI XR BR 
pdf how-to read a cable
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RR RUEHHM RUEHLN RUEHMA RUEHPB RUEHPOD
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ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 031525Z APR 07
FM AMEMBASSY BRASILIA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 8551
INFO RUEHZN/ENVIRONMENT SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY COLLECTIVE
RUEHDS/AMEMBASSY ADDIS ABABA 0084
RUEHAM/AMEMBASSY AMMAN 0087
RUEHBK/AMEMBASSY BANGKOK 0247
RUEHUP/AMEMBASSY BUDAPEST 0074
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RUEHLP/AMEMBASSY LA PAZ 5263
RUEHPE/AMEMBASSY LIMA 3414
RUEHQT/AMEMBASSY QUITO 2183
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RUEHAC/AMEMBASSY ASUNCION 6023
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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 16 BRASILIA 000580 

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SIPDIS

DEPT PASS USAID TO LAC/RSD, LAC/SAM, G/ENV, PPC/ENV
TREASURY FOR USED IBRD AND IDB AND INTL/MDB
USDA FOR FOREST SERVICE: LIZ MAHEW
INTERIOR FOR DIR INT AFFAIRS: K WASHBURN
INTERIOR FOR FWS: TOM RILEY
INTERIOR FOR NPS: JONATHAN PUTNAM
INTERIOR PASS USGS FOR INTERNATIONAL: J WEAVER
JUSTICE FOR ENVIRONMENT AND NATURAL RESOURCES: JWEBB
EPA FOR INTERNATIONAL: CAM HILL-MACON
USDA FOR ARS/INTERNATIONAL RESEARCH: G FLANLEY
NSF FOR INTERNATIONAL: HAROLD STOLBERG

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: SENV EAGR EAID TBIO ECON SOCI XR BR
SUBJECT: SOUTH AMERICA ESTH NEWS, NUMBER 92

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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 16 BRASILIA 000580

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

DEPT PASS USAID TO LAC/RSD, LAC/SAM, G/ENV, PPC/ENV
TREASURY FOR USED IBRD AND IDB AND INTL/MDB
USDA FOR FOREST SERVICE: LIZ MAHEW
INTERIOR FOR DIR INT AFFAIRS: K WASHBURN
INTERIOR FOR FWS: TOM RILEY
INTERIOR FOR NPS: JONATHAN PUTNAM
INTERIOR PASS USGS FOR INTERNATIONAL: J WEAVER
JUSTICE FOR ENVIRONMENT AND NATURAL RESOURCES: JWEBB
EPA FOR INTERNATIONAL: CAM HILL-MACON
USDA FOR ARS/INTERNATIONAL RESEARCH: G FLANLEY
NSF FOR INTERNATIONAL: HAROLD STOLBERG

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: SENV EAGR EAID TBIO ECON SOCI XR BR
SUBJECT: SOUTH AMERICA ESTH NEWS, NUMBER 92

BRASILIA 00000580 001.2 OF 016



1. The following is the ninety-second in a series of newsletters,
published by the Brasilia Regional Environmental Hub, covering
environment, science and technology, and health news in South
America. The information below was gathered from news sources from
across the region, and the views expressed do not necessarily
reflect those of the Hub office or our constituent posts.
Addressees who would like to receive a user-friendly email version
of this newsletter should contact Larissa Stoner at
stonerla@state.gov. The e-mail version also contains a calendar of
upcoming ESTH events in the region.


2. Table of Contents

Agriculture
--(3)Brazil shuts down Cargill's Amazon port
--(4)Colombia: Farm Bill Criticized As Land Grab and Anti-Green
--(5)Brazil Soy Industry Prepares For Biodiesel War with Argentina
--(6)Brazil's Lula Allows Genetically Modified Imports

Water Issues
--(7)Controversial Brazil River Plan Allowed
--(8)Chile: Lack Of Water Threatens Nature Reserve in Region I
--(9)WWF accuses Brazil, Bolivia and Paraguay of degradation in the
Plata Basin
--(10)Latin America: Greater Effort Needed Against Desertification

Forests
--(11)Brazil's New Forestry Law Draws Praise
--(12)Argentina Considers Year-Long Logging Ban
--(13)Brazil: Use the Internet to Protect Forests

Wildlife
--(14)"Guaranteed Hunts" in Argentina Drawing Fire

Protected Areas
--(15)Chile: Ice Fields Could Become Biggest Natural Heritage Site

Science & Technology
--(16)Brazil Will Use Advanced System of Remote Surveillance


Pollution
--(17)Petrobras to Appeal Huge Oil-Spill Award

BRASILIA 00000580 002.2 OF 016


Climate Change
--(18)Bolivia: El Nino Has Bigger Bite with Climate Change
--(19)Bolivia: Reaping the Rewards of the Clean Development
Mechanism

Energy
--(20)Venezuela's Chavez Pledges "Energy Revolution"
--(21)Brazilian Catholic Church Joins Critics of Ethanol Fuel Boom
--(22)Uruguay Seeks to Change the Image of Atomic Energy
--(23)Argentina to Produce Biodiesel from Algae
--(24)Brazil Biofuel Update, March 2007

General
--(25)Ecuador: Environmentalists Optimistic About Correa
--(26)Study Urges Regional Approach to Development
--(27)Brazil Needs Foreign Money to Preserve the Amazon
--(28)Details of Al Gore's Upcoming Trip to Chile Revealed
--(29)New Environment Ministry for Chile

--------------
Agriculture
--------------


3. Brazil shuts down Cargill's Amazon port

MAR. 25, 2007 - Authorities shut down an important deep-water Amazon
River port owned by Cargill Inc. on March 24, saying the huge U.S.
agribusiness firm failed to provide an environmental impact
statement required by law. The move by federal police and
environmental agents to close Cargill's controversial soy export
terminal was a major victory for environmentalists in Santarem, a
sleepy jungle city about 1,250 miles northwest of Sao Paulo. It came
after a ruling by Judge Souza Prudente, police and the Agencia
Estado news service said. Environmentalists who point to soy
farming, logging and cattle ranching as the primary threats facing
the Amazon praised the closure, calling it a milestone in attempts
to push the government to more effectively police a region where
lawlessness often prevails.

Source - Miami Herald


4. Colombia: Farm Bill Criticized As Land Grab and Anti-Green

BRASILIA 00000580 003.2 OF 016



MAR. 2007 - A Colombian bill designed to spur agricultural exports
has come under attack by critics who say it will legalize an unjust
and environmentally damaging transfer of land from small-scale
farmers to monocrop growers linked to right-wing paramilitary
groups. At issue is the Rural Development Law, approved by the
Colombian Senate in December and now before the lower house, or
Chamber of Deputies. Proponents say the bill is needed to boost
cash-crop and forest-product exports, calling it the country's most
important farm bill of the past half century. But environmental
groups charge the bill would leave illegal, right-wing paramilitary
groups with vast tracts of land they have taken by force from
Indian, Afro-Colombian and peasant farm communities over the last 20
years of the country's civil war. Aside from being confiscatory,
they say, the legislation would encourage expansion of unsustainable
African palm, timber and other large-scale monoculture farming
operations that in the past have taken a heavy toll on Colombia's
environment. Opponents warn the rural-development bill also would
dramatically reduce government subsidies, marketing support and
technical assistance for those producing foodstuffs for the domestic
market. In the process, they say, family farmers and indigenous
communities using agro-forestry, subsistence farming and other
sustainable farming methods will be squeezed and, in many cases,
wiped out.

Source - EcoAmericas (please contact Larissa Stoner for complete
article)


5. Brazil Soy Industry Prepares For Biodiesel War with Argentina

MAR. 26, 2007 - Brazil's major soyoil producers are preparing for a
fight against Argentina over the biodiesel market, hoping Brasilia
can convince Buenos Aires that Argentine tax policies are bad for
Brazil's biodiesel program. Brazil soy oil is the number one
ingredient used in making biodiesel. Soy oil companies think
Argentina's cheaper costs will cut them out of the market,
especially the export markets. In early February, Argentine
President Nestor Kirchner signed an executive order to create a
national biofuel law designed to make Argentina a biodiesel
exporter. Kirchner put a low 5 percent export tax on biofuels,
compared with a 24 percent export tax on soyoil. That makes it more
beneficial for soyoil companies to sell their soyoil to fuel

BRASILIA 00000580 004.2 OF 016


refineries for export than it does to export pure soybean oil for
human consumption, Lovatelli said. The measure also provides tax
breaks for companies investing in the sector. Whether the industry
can convince Brasilia to go after Argentina, however, will be known
in the months ahead. Given the Argentine strategy to become a
biofuels exporter, it is unlikely Brasilia negotiators will get very
far with Kirchner.

Source - CattleNetwork


6. Brazil's Lula Allows Genetically Modified Imports

MAR. 22, 2007- Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva eased
rules on importing genetically modified agricultural organisms,
official news agency Agencia Brasil said.
The presidential green light given on March 21 could most
immediately benefit Germany's Bayer, which has sought approval for a
variety of genetically modified corn. It came after a bare majority
of the 27 members of the National Technical Biosecurity Commission
gave their backing for the commercialization of just one transgenic
crop. But at the same time Lula vetoed the commercialization of
genetically modified cotton, which has already been planted
illicitly in 2006 on some 150,000 hectares (370,000 acres) in
Brazil. Despite political opposition, transgenic soybeans were
provisionally approved in Brazil in 2004 and approval has been
renewed annually. The government relinquished oversight after many
farmers were found to have been planting genetically modified crops
in southern Brazil.

Source - YahooNews

--------------
Water Issues
--------------


7. Controversial Brazil River Plan Allowed

MAR. 23, 2007 - Brazil's environmental agency on March 23 approved a
USD2 billion project to shift the course of a major river in Brazil,
a plan bitterly opposed by environmentalists. The Sao Francisco
River project is meant to benefit some 12 million poor people by
allowing large sections of the country's arid northeast to be

BRASILIA 00000580 005.2 OF 016


irrigated, but environmentalists say it could dry up the country's
fourth largest river for part of the year. Congress must now
approve funding for the project in Cabrodo, about 1,100 miles
northeast of Rio de Janeiro. Under the plan, a new channel would be
created for the 1,600-mile-long Sao Francisco River. But critics
say the diversion would speed the river's flow toward the ocean,
possibly causing it to dry up for periods of time. "The license
issued in a rush by Ibama shows they want to push the project
through," said Luiz Claudio Mandela of Caritas, a Roman Catholic
group opposing the project. "For us, it is clear this project is not
viable. "Roman Catholic Bishop Luiz Flavio Cappio held an 11-day
hunger strike in 2005 in an attempt to stop the project.

Source - Chron


8. Chile: Lack Of Water Threatens Nature Reserve In Region I

MAR. 21, 2007 - Government authorities reported last week that the
102,000 hectare Pampa del Tamarugal nature reserve in far northern
Chile is in serious jeopardy because of a water shortage. The
unique nature reserve has 25,000 hectares forested with tamarugo and
algarrobo trees, which have been able to survive in hostile desert
conditions because of ample underground aquifers. Annual rainfall in
the area is 0.5 millimeters. Studies by the National Forestry
Corporation (CONAF) and the General Water Directorate (DGA) confirm
that groundwater levels subsided radically since 1997, and
authorities attribute the declining water reserves to "illegal water
wells" built by growing populations nearby and by rogue mining
companies. DGA general director Rodrigo Weisner said the problem
has been growing since 1984, but grew more acute in 1997 when large
number of illegal wells were drilled near the nature reserve.

Source - Santiago Times


9. WWF accuses Brazil, Bolivia and Paraguay of degradation in the
Plata Basin

MAR. 20, 2007 - According to a press report in Brazilian daily O
Estado de Sao Paulo, World Wildlife Fund (WWF) has accused the
governments of Brazil, Bolivia and Paraguay of planning a waterway
in the Plata Basin system without analyzing its eventual
environmental impact. According to a WWF report, the Plata Basin is

BRASILIA 00000580 006.2 OF 016


one of the world's 10 most important endangered fresh water sources.
The report says that hydroelectric plants and the use of the system
as a waterway are the major threats to the basin.

Source - Public Affairs US Embassy Brasilia. See also BBC report


10. Latin America: Greater Effort Needed Against Desertification

MAR. 19, 2007 - Non-governmental organizations have called for more
effective action to halt desertification in Latin America. That was
the main result of the 5th session of the application exam committee
of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification, held
Mar. 12-21 in Buenos Aires with representatives from some 170
countries. The Latin American governments have made "great efforts"
towards progress, said Patricia Maldonado, representative in
Argentina of the International Network of NGOs on Desertification.
But 10 years since the Convention entered into force, government
reports show that actions have proved "insufficient", she told
Tierramerica. "We must review the strategies for intervention,
allow greater participation by the affected communities, and
decentralize national policies," recommends Maldonado, who heads the
Llastay Environmental Association in Argentina.

Source - Tierramerica

--------------
Forests
--------------


11. Brazil's New Forestry Law Draws Praise

MAR. 23, 2007- New rules that allow sustainable logging of national
forests in the threatened Amazon drew guarded praise from both
environmentalists and loggers. President Luiz Inacio da Silva
recently issued rules to carry out the law, passed last year by
Congress, which opens national forests to use by private companies
and citizens. Officials are supposed to create a registry of all
public lands in the Amazon region and the National Forestry Service
will then determine which areas can be opened up for concessions.
Loggers will have to present a plan for sustainable management that
preserves the forest while allowing commercial profit from it. "We
see more positive points than negative points in the decree,"

BRASILIA 00000580 007.2 OF 016


Marcelo Marquesini, a senior campaigner for Greenpeace, said
Thursday. "Success or failure of this public policy will depend on
monitoring and enforcement. If there is no enforcement it will not
work." "It's a good move if everybody follows the law, but if some
people are logging responsibly and others aren't, it won't work. I
can't compete with those who log without a management plan they can
sell wood for a fifth of the price that I do," said Marcelo Sobral,
a logger from the southern state of Curitiba with holdings in the
Amazon rain forest.

Source - Miami Herald


12. Argentina Considers Year-Long Logging Ban

MAR. 2007 - Argentine lawmakers are weighing legislation that would
impose a one-year nationwide ban on commercial timber cutting, a
highly controversial proposal that has caused friction within
President Nestor Kirchner's ruling Front for Victory party.
Following months of sharp debate within the governing party, the
Chamber of Deputies-the lower house of Argentina's Congress-voted on
March 14 in favor of the proposal. It was unclear, however, when
the Senate would take up the bill, which reflects growing concern
here about deforestation as fast-expanding crop farming operations
consume woodlands in northern provinces. Under the moratorium bill,
Argentine provinces would be required to classify and zone
forestland in categories of low, medium and high levels of
environmental concern. And once timber cutting is allowed to
resume, they must prepare environmental-impact assessments for
projects that would have significant environmental, aesthetic or
social effects. Deforestation worries here have grown since 2003,
when officials reported that the country's forests cover a total of
82 million acres (33 million hectares),less than a third of the 262
million acres (106 million hectares) estimated in an inventory
completed in 1914.

Source - EcoAmericas (please contact Larissa Stoner for complete
article)


13. Brazil: Use the Internet to Protect Forests

MAR. 19, 2007 - The Network of Forest Peoples set up antennas and
equipment to connect eight isolated Brazilian communities and 30

BRASILIA 00000580 008.2 OF 016


offices to the Internet with the aim of making them agents of
environmental defense. The network won a commitment from the
government to extend connectivity to another 150 indigenous,
Afro-Brazilia and river communities in the Brazilian interior. et
up in 2003, the Network only accepts communities approved in an
evaluation during a seminar in which they prove "clear and strong
cultural identity", Joao Augusto Fortes, a co-promoter of the
endeavor, told Tierramerica. Once connected, these communities
receive training and then can quickly report land invasions,
deforestation and other crimes against them and the environment.
They also can disseminate their culture, develop eco-tourism and
export their "sustainable products", said Fortes.

Source - Tierramerica

--------------
Wildlife
--------------


14. "Guaranteed Hunts" in Argentina Drawing Fire

MAR. 2007 - Argentine wildlife-conservation groups are denouncing
the proliferation of so-called guaranteed hunts, in which wild
animals are captured and then freed at a set time and place to
ensure they'll be tracked down by the hunters who have paid to kill
them. Critics of the practice say organizers of the hunts are
catering to a growing international clientele attracted to
Argentina's relatively low costs. They claim the animals, often
malnourished and sometimes sedated, include not only the collared
peccary (Tayassu tajacu),capybara (Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris) and
puma (Felis concolor),which are legal to hunt in Argentina, but
also the maned wolf (Chrysocyon brachyurus) and the jaguar (Panthera
onca palustris),which are not.

Source - EcoAmericas (please contact Larissa Stoner for complete
article)

--------------
Protected Areas
--------------


15. Chile: Ice Fields Could Become Biggest Natural Heritage Site

BRASILIA 00000580 009.2 OF 016



MAR. 23, 2007 - The Chilean government will nominate six parks and
reserves in the extreme south of the country, including Torres del
Paine, for the UNESCO World Natural Heritage list in February 2008.
The total area covers 7.2 million hectares, and it is unequalled for
sheer size in this category. The tentative name for the listing is
Patagonian Ice Fields of Chile, Andrs Meza, head of protected areas
and the environment for the government National Forest Corporation
(CONAF),which is responsible for the initiative, told IPS. The
complete site includes ice fields, glaciers and snow-capped peaks in
the Laguna San Rafael, Bernardo O'Higgins and Torres del Paine
national parks and the Las Guaitecas, Katalalixar and Alacalufes
national reserves, located in the Aysen and Magallanes regions, over
2,000 kilometers south of Santiago. The Patagonian Ice Fields, if
listed, would be the first Chilean site on the natural heritage
list.

Source - IPS

--------------
Science & Technology
--------------


16. Brazil Will Use Advanced System of Remote Surveillance

MAR. 21, 2007 - Project Maracatu, being developed by the National
Institute of Space Research (INPE) will construct biodegradable
nano-robots and micro-satellites to monitor the Amazon. The project
will provide the installation in orbit over the region of 30 to 40
micro-satellites weighing between 3 and 4 kilos and thousands of
nano-robots with sensors of several types. The Maracatu project will
use 100 percent domestic technology.

Source - Gazeta Mercantil (hard copy)

--------------
Pollution
--------------


17. Petrobras to Appeal Huge Oil-Spill Award

MAR. 2007 - Brazil's state oil company Petrobras plans to appeal a

BRASILIA 00000580 010.2 OF 016


February state court ruling that it pay fishermen indemnities
totaling Reais 1.1 billion (USD520 million) in the wake of a major
January 2000 oil spill, calling the decision "patently unfair." The
decision concerned a spill in which a pipeline linking a Petrobras
refinery just outside Rio de Janeiro to an island storage terminal
ruptured near the point where it enters Rio's storied Guanabara Bay.
The 340,000 gallons (1.3 million liters) of released refinery oil
caused extensive fish kills and polluted mangroves that are crucial
to the local marine food chain. In its February ruling, a Rio de
Janeiro state court based the indemnity amount on an average loss of
Reais754 (USD356) in monthly income, corrected for inflation, over a
10-year period for a total of 12,180 fishermen. Ten years of wages
were targeted on the assumption that the spill's impacts on marine
life would be felt for a decade. Petrobras contends that the only
fishermen who ought to qualify for indemnities are the 3,339 who
were registered at the time of the accident as working in Guanabara
Bay-not the 12,180 who prevailed in last month's ruling.

Source - EcoAmericas (please contact Larissa Stoner for complete
article)

--------------
Climate Change
--------------


18. Bolivia: El Nio Has Bigger Bite with Climate Change

MAR. 17, 2007 - Bolivia is entering its fourth month of onslaught
from El Nio, the climate phenomenon that has grown stronger, and
threatens to return with even greater force. According to the
forecasts of the National Weather Service and of the scientific
community of international agencies, Bolivia's under-secretariat for
Civil Defense announced earlier this month the end of El Nio, the
warm phase of what is known as the Southern Oscillation. But heavy
rains, overflowing rivers and hurricane-force winds have not ended
in the northeast, while drought, hail and frost persist in the west
of this land-locked South American nation that is home to all types
of climates, from tropical in the plains to polar in the Andes
Mountains. Experts consulted by Tierramrica agreed that the Andean
region should prepare for more frequent and intense visits from El
Nio as a result of global climate change. The greatest threat is
to the northern department of Pando, which faces heavy flooding from

BRASILIA 00000580 011.2 OF 016


rains in neighboring Peru, says the under-secretariat. Although
this is rainy season across all of Bolivia, the period that began in
December is the most severe since 1998.

Source - Tierramerica


19. Bolivia: Reaping the Rewards of the Clean Development Mechanism

MAR. 15, 2007 - Bolivia hopes to mitigate the potential impact of
climate change by taking advantage of the Kyoto Protocol's clean
development mechanism, which allows industrialized countries
committed to greenhouse gas reductions to invest in emission
reduction projects in developing countries. According to government
officials, Bolivia seeks to position itself as a key project host,
in hopes of attracting investment and generating revenue from the
sale of resulting certified emission reduction credits. While an
admirable goal, regulatory uncertainty has slowed its
implementation.

Source - LA PAZ 715

--------------
Energy
--------------


20. Venezuela's Chvez Pledges "Energy Revolution"

MAR. 2007 - Think of Venezuela and energy conservation probably
isn't the first thing that comes to mind. The world's fifth largest
petroleum producer is not only a fossil-fuel heavyweight, it also
outpaces all other Latin American countries in per-capita energy
consumption, Venezuelan officials acknowledge. Small wonder, then,
that environmentalists were caught off guard when President Hugo
Chvez last November announced an "energy revolution" whose
principal goals are to replace incandescent light bulbs with
energy-saving fluorescent ones in six million homes; pipe natural
gas to homes; and boost the role of solar and wind systems in
electricity generation. On March 12, the government announced it
had completed the light bulb substitution in 4.2 million
homes-putting the program over two-thirds of the way to its
six-million-home goal. The government also has installed around 90
solar panels-of a projected 2007 total of over 1,000-for small-scale

BRASILIA 00000580 012.2 OF 016


energy generation in isolated communities, schools and health
clinics that previously lacked electricity. And it has organized,
financed and assisted neighborhoods in the installation of
residential natural-gas lines.

Source - EcoAmericas (please contact Larissa Stoner for complete
article)


21. Brazilian Catholic Church Joins Critics of Ethanol Fuel Boom

MAR. 22, 2007 - The Roman Catholic Church joined a chorus of ethanol
critics, saying the current boom in alcohol-based fuel might not be
the blessing Brazil's president says it is. Brazil, the world's No.
1 ethanol exporter and its largest Catholic country, is thriving on
rising interest and investments in ethanol, which powers eight of
every 10 new Brazilian cars. Countries as diverse as Japan and
Italy are negotiating projects to increase production of ethanol,
made from sugar cane in Brazil. But the Brazilian Bishops
Conference, the Church's top body in Brazil, said the government
first should study the social and environmental effect of stepping
up production.

Source - IHT


22. Uruguay Seeks to Change the Image of Atomic Energy

MAR. 16, 2007 - The Government of Uruguay has begun a public
campaign to change the negative image the population has of the use
of atomic energy. As part of the campaign, the Ministry of
Industry, Energy, and Mines organized a meeting on the "Role of
Public Information on Nuclear Technology." During the meeting, held
on March 9, Alejandro Nader highlighted the importance of keeping
the population informed on the uses of this type of energy.
Although Uruguay does not have nuclear reactors, Nader added that
the government thinks it is important for the population to be able
to have an educated opinion on the subject.

Source - SciDev


23. Argentina to Produce Biodiesel from Algae

MAR. 10, 2007 - Argentine business entity Oil Fox has announced it

BRASILIA 00000580 013.2 OF 016


will produce, at a commercial level, biodiesel from the oil
extracted from marine algae. Oil Fox singed an agreement with the
government of Chubut (Argentine Patagonia) to "plant" four species
of marine algae in the province. The production of the oil is
estimated to be ready in six months and three months later biodiesel
will be produced. Approximately USD19 million will be invested in
the project to produce an estimated 240 thousand tons of 'marine'
biodiesel per year.

Source - SciDev


24. Brazil Biofuel Update, March 2007

MAR. 26, 2007 - Please pay note to Cable BRASILIA 512 for an update
on biofuel-related news in Brazil. This months headlines include:
1) Mexico Seeks Strategic Partnership With Brazilian Ethanol
Producers; 2)European Union Also Wants Commercial Agreement; 3)
Brazil Signs Biofuel Agreement With Jamaica; 4) Ethanol Record
Production; 5) Buses In Sao Paulo To Run On 30 percent Biodiesel
Mix; 6) Using Ethanol To Generate Electricity; 7) Brazil May Produce
Ethanol From Sweet Potatoes.

--------------
General
--------------


25. Ecuador: Environmentalists Optimistic About Correa

MAR. 2007 - Two months into the term of populist Ecuadorian
President Rafael Correa, green groups are hoping the environment
will at last become a first-tier government priority in this
country, while business leaders worry regulations will tighten.
Correa, an ally of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, took office on
Jan. 15, promising his policies will "make the human being a higher
priority than capital." The inaugural speech heartened
environmental advocates, as did some of Correa's choices for key
posts. Those picks include Maria Fernanda Espinosa, a former World
Conservation Union (IUCN) official, as foreign minister; consultant
Alberto Acosta, an outspoken critic of the oil and mineral
industries, as minister of energy and mines; and academician Fander
Falconi, who has advocated a moratorium on new oil-drilling
concessions, as planning secretary. Correa has further stoked

BRASILIA 00000580 014.2 OF 016


environmentalists' expectations by saying he would review the
impacts of private oil concessions. For his part, Acosta says if
pollution impacts are found to outweigh the benefits of the
concessions, he would "not rule out a petroleum moratorium."
Moratorium or no, the Correa government does appear more interested
than previous administrations in developing renewable power sources.
In one of its first energy moves, it created the Alternative Energy
Secretariat for the purpose of promoting clean power such as solar,

SIPDIS
wind and geothermal energy as well as such new fuels as biodiesel
and ethanol. Not all Correa's early moves have pleased green
groups. His choice for environment minister, Ana Alban Mora, drew
scathing reviews from environmentalists for her service in the same
post under Correa's predecessor, Alfredo Palacio.

Source - EcoAmericas (please contact Larissa Stoner for complete
article)


26. Study Urges Regional Approach to Development

Mar 22, 2007 - The World Bank, which lends billions of dollars for
development projects in poor nations, should put more funding into
multi-country initiatives such as roads and joint electric grids,
which have shown greater benefits to borrowing nations, according to
the Bank's internal monitor. "A stronger Bank role, if underpinned
by a shift to a more strategic approach, could help countries
realize this increasing potential of regional cooperation," says an
analysis released March 22nd by the Bank's Independent Evaluation
Group (IEG). It urged the Bank to establish more effective regional
program strategies and integrate them into its Country Assistance
Strategies, prescriptions for economic liberalization that borrowing
nations agree to in return for loans. "The potential contribution of
regional programs is likely to grow as the cross-border dimensions
of health, infrastructure, environment, and trade facilitation take
on ever-increasing significance," says the report. Cooperation
across borders is also increasingly helping to control the spread of
communicable diseases like malaria and HIV/AIDS, and helping to
manage the 60 percent of the world's freshwater that derives from
shared river systems, says the IEG.

Source - IPS


27. Brazil Needs Foreign Money to Preserve the Amazon

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MAR. 20, 2007 - A press report in Brazilian daily O Estado de S.
Paulo highlights that the money for forest preservation invested by
the nine Brazilian states that comprise the "Legal Amazon" region is
less than the help received from foreign nations and NGOs. Europe,
the U.S. and Japan devoted about USD 52 million to preserve the
Amazon forest, while the Brazilian states spent USD 45 million on
preservation projects. Story said that Amazonas Governor Eduardo
Braga (PMDB),recently spent two weeks in Washington, New York, and
London seeking new investors interested in applying funds to help
local communities, which would receive aid in exchange for
protecting the forest.

Source - Public Affairs US Embassy Brasilia


28. Details of Al Gore's Upcoming Trip to Chile Revealed

MAR. 19, 2007 - Former U.S. Vice President and newly turned
global-warming celebrity Al Gore will visit Chile on May 11 to
promote the fight against global warming. But Gore's stay will be
brief. After his documentary "An Inconvenient Truth" took home an
Oscar, the speaker and activist's schedule has been so packed that
the former VP will remain in the country for only hours. For the
few hours he spends in Chile, Gore will take home around USD200,000,
the fee he is charging companies that sponsored his visit, including
the environmental NGO Oikos, Chilevision, and the El Mercurio news
daily. All carbon emissions generated from the trip will also be
tracked, and a donation will be made to make the trip "carbon
neutral." Gore's donation will go towards a project in Chile. One
suggested option was a donation to help reforest Chile's Easter
Island (Rapi Nui).

Source - Santiago Times (no link)


29. New Environment Ministry for Chile

MAR. 16, 2007 - Chile is establishing a new Environment Ministry
that should elevate the importance of ecological issues within the
cabinet. President Michelle Bachelet signed Law 20.173 on March 15
that promotes the National Environment Commission (CONAMA) to
ministerial level. She asserted that the new ministry will tighten
the framework for environmental evaluations that are required before

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certain operations such as manufacturing can be established. The
pro-business government has also promised that the ministry will
speed up the process of securing such evaluations. Chile has
measures in place to combat pollution in the capital Santiago and
launched an integrated transport system to help ease the pressure on
the city. The Transantiago system is experiencing serious problems,
however, provoking fierce protests that resulted in the shooting of
15-year old in the early hours of yesterday morning.

Source - Global Insight Daily Analysis

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