There is a growing global movement to recognise the rights of rivers, writes Debadityo Sinha. But rights alone are not enough. We must love and respect rivers, and even think like rivers to understand the vital functions they perform within landscapes and ecosystems, and so discover where their 'best interests' truly lie. And then we must be willing to act: protecting rivers and restoring them to health and wholeness.
… To discover the 'rights of a river', first think like a river Debadityo Sinha | 22nd May 2017 Comment … global movement to recognise the rights of rivers, writes Debadityo Sinha. But rights …
Should rivers be given legal rights like humans? A Bristol campaigner is testing the waters of British law in an effort to protect the Avon from further pollution.
… The rights of rivers Billy Stockwell | 9th August 2022 | News Rivers Pollution Ecocide Law Bristol Bristol … Should rivers be given legal rights like humans? A … pollution. Perched on the dusty bank of the River Avon at Conham River Park just a few …
Humans are to blame for the drastic declines in river dolphin populations around the world, writes Rachel Nuwer. But what exactly are we doing wrong? Mainly, scientists have found, it's building dams - and so destroying and fragmenting their habitat.
… are to blame for the drastic declines in river dolphin populations around the world, … exist outside of salty waters. They are the river dolphins, comprised of several species … Ganges, Brahmaputra , Mekong and Irrawaddy rivers in Asia, as well as South America's …
The free-flowing Salween is the last big undammed river in Southeast Asia, home to a flurry of endangered species including tigers and clouded leopards, writes Tom Fawthrop in Hpa-an, Karen State, Myanmar. And thanks to support from both the indigenous Karen people, and senior officials in China who see the huge ecotourism potential of the river and its dramatic gorge, it could just stay that way.
… Salween: Southeast Asia's last major undammed river Tom Fawthorp | 13th June 2016 News Burma … free-flowing Salween is the last big undammed river in Southeast Asia, home to a flurry of … who see the huge ecotourism potential of the river and its dramatic gorge, it could just …
Since colonising Tibet in 1959, China has ripped out virgin forests, dug up minerals and metals, and dumped nuclear waste with little regard for the fragile ecology of the Tibetan plateau.
… | 1st June 2004 News World Bank International Rivers Dams Water Tibet China Dams … any water that is left in the mostly dried-up river beds is black and deadly. There are … – the Tibetan plateau, where 10 of the great rivers of Asia begin their journey through 11 …
Brazil has suffered its biggest ever industrial disaster, write Ana Luisa Naghettini & Geraldo Lopes. Breached and overflowing dams have released a massive slug of toxic muds and tailings from iron mining into the country's fifth largest river system that provides drinking water for downstream cities, destroying ecosystems in rivers and vast areas of biologically fragile ocean.
… 'the assassination of Brazil's fifth largest river basin' Ana Luisa Naghettini Geraldo … iron mining into the country's fifth largest river system that provides drinking water for … downstream cities, destroying ecosystems in rivers and vast areas of biologically fragile …
The Angara, the only river draining Lake Baikal, might disappear by 2020, as it is progressively dammed for massive hydroelectric schemes designed to aid the development of ... China.
… Siberia: Sold down the river Margarita Baranova | 9th November 2013 … Hydropower plotina.png The Angara, the only river draining Lake Baikal, might disappear by … as the fourth hydropower scheme on the Angara river, a tributary of the mighty Yenisei. By …
Brazil's new neoliberal government is intent on building a massive new dam deep in the Amazon rainforest on the on the Tapajós river, writes Helle Abelvik-Lawson, obliterating the indigenous territory of the Munduruku people in defiance of their constitutional rights.
… the Amazon rainforest on the on the Tapajós river, writes Helle Abelvik-Lawson, … 130 Indigenous families, who live between the river and their small fruit and manioc farms. … of many Indigenous villages along the Tapajós River that are home to the Munduruku people. …
A spate of hydroelectric dam building in Nepal means that future earthquakes could send inland tsunamis flooding down the steep mountain valleys, writes Michael Buckley. Disaster was averted in last month's quake - a badly damaged dam was not yet filled. But despite the risks and the damage to river ecology, tourism and rural livelihoods, there's no sign of any policy shift.
… Lake at the headwaters of the Trishuli River, soon to be changed forever by the … But despite the risks and the damage to river ecology, tourism and rural livelihoods, … Dam was being built on the upper Trishuli River in a very remote corner of Nepal near …
When Michael Buckley took a white water rafting trip in Tibet in 2005, he had no idea of the adventure he was embarking on - a ten-year investigation of China ruthless exploitation of Tibet's mineral and hydroelectric resources, and its systematic attack on indigenous Tibetans, their culture and their survival on the land.
… Damming Tibet: China's destruction of Tibet's rivers, environment and people Michael Buckley … the rafting guides lamented the fact that the rivers were being compromised by the building … made perfect sense: the biggest drops of any river in the world are in Tibet, so there's …
The indigenous Wampis people of the Peruvian Amazon have demanded the immediate closure of a Petroperú oil pipeline after a series of devastating spills, writes Vanessa Amaral-Rogers. The company has already been found guilty of 'negligence' after previous oil spills contaminated the Wampis land and rivers.
… oil spills contaminated the Wampis land and rivers. The autonomous territorial government … pipeline before flowing into the Cashacaño River which itself flows into the river Morona. Wrays Perez Ramirez, recently …
International Rivers has highlighted the environmental damage caused by the world's biggest hydropower project amid concern about plans for two new dams in China
… The Ecologist | 30th October 2009 News River Three Gorges Dam China Natural World … Dam is a 'model of the past' International Rivers has highlighted the environmental … for two new dams in China China's Yangtze River hydropower project has been a 'model for …
Biggest engineering project in Chinese history could repeat failures of Three Gorges Dam, with significant pressure on ecosystems and fisheries from the resettlement of 300,000 people
… Three Gorges Dam. A report from International Rivers said policies to relocate residents … and will take water from the Yangtze and Han rivers in the south to drier areas in the … for those being resettled, International Rivers has said the report illustrated an …
China's least talked about crime against Tibet is the damage to the Tibetan plateau: dams, deforestation, mining, poaching and the dumping of nuclear waste. And it is impacting on all of us
… an ongoing mass damming programme on the many rivers flowing from the Tibetan plateau. The … all rise in Tibet. The tributaries of these rivers are vital to millions of people on the … 47 per cent of the world population. The rivers flow into ten countries: China, India, …
Doima, a small town in the Colombian highlands, is on the front line of battle against a giant government-backed gold mine that would fill a nearby valley hundreds of metres deep in over a billion tonnes of mine waste. Hal Rhoades met Mariana Goméz Soto, an activist in Doima's campaign to defeat the mine project.
… Doima protestor: 'The oysters of our own river shine brighter than greed for gold'. … of Colombia. The town sits in the Magdalena River valley, between the eastern and central … in the Andes highlands which feeds the rivers, Doima is very rich in water. Many …
A moving cinematic tale of life on Asia’s longest river raises questions about ecology, development and China’s future
… cinematic tale of life on Asia’s longest river raises questions about ecology, … Chang was 24 when he first saw the Yangtze River. It was 2002 and Chang, who grew up in … while Up the Yangtze spans Asia’s largest river and puts one of the world's most …
The impact of fracking on communities and ecosystems demands a complete rethink of the human relationship with nature, writes Shannon Biggs. Nature has rights - and this must be reflected in our laws.
… Welcome to 'frackland': does a river have the right not to be polluted? … How else could we legalize the damming of rivers, the removal of whole mountaintops for … with 63% of the votes cast. Should trees and rivers have 'standing'? Crucially, it …
Deep in rural Devon, the word is that the Government intends to trap the wild-living beaver family on the River Otter next month, and consign them to captivity. But as Alasdair Cameron writes, this is not only unnecessary and unpopular, but probably illegal as well.
… to trap the wild-living beaver family on the River Otter next month, and consign them to … in England too, living and breeding on the River Otter in Devon. Like most people I was … them. They are a recognised component our river systems. Natural England, the body that …
If you want evidence that global warming is happening, you need only look to China. Unseen by the rest of the world, much of the north of the country is turning into a land of droughts, dust storms and deserted villages.
… began to crow. The Death of the Yellow River As Mr Dong suggested, Chinese dust … is illustrated by the fate of the Yellow River – one of the world’s greatest rivers and the largest in China after the …
Our legal system needs a radical overhaul that asserts the rights of the whole ecosystem. A forthcoming conference will discuss the set out the vision for a Wild Law. SHEHANA GOMEZ reports
… natural features such as mountains and rivers. Legal personality Currently, human … The rights would simply enable a mountain, river or bird to do what it naturally does. In … previously recognised rights of the Atrato River. The first 'rights of nature' law was …
One unintended consequence of China's spectacular economic growth is a growing water shortage, reports Joshua Bateman. As rivers run dry, aquifers sink, climate harshens and pollution spreads, he asks: can China solve its water crisis?
… water shortage, reports Joshua Bateman. As rivers run dry, aquifers sink, climate … that approximately 55% of China's 50,000 rivers that existed in the 1990s have ... … Thailand and Bangladesh will be affected. Rivers which could be impacted include the …
China is attempting to pursue the same impossible path as the rest of the world: generating consumer demand and wealth without destroying its natural resources and the planet
… of chemicals into the Yangtze and other rivers means half the Chinese population drink … billion cubic meters of water from Yangtze River to the Yellow River and Huai River. To drive down car …
To save a small amount of money residents of Flint, Michigan, have been forced to consume hazardous levels of lead in their drinking water, writes Farron Cousins. Just the moment for the Republican House Speaker to attack the Clean Water Act.
… the city of Detroit's supply to the Flint River. And according to Occupy Democrats , this river was known to be both highly polluted and … and others knew that the water in the Flint River was poison - but you decided that taking …
A crucial component of concrete, sand is vital to the global construction industry, writes Nick Meynen. China alone is importing a billion tonnes of sand a year, and its increasing scarcity is leading to large scale illegal mining and deadly conflicts. With ever more sand fetched from riverbeds, shorelines and sandbanks, roads and bridges are being undermined and beaches eroded. And the world's sand wars are only set to worsen.
… conflicts. With ever more sand fetched from riverbeds, shorelines and sandbanks, roads and … while machines were extracting sand from the riverbed. That bridge is in Virar, north of … when the Mahad bridge , across the Savitri river, on the Mumbai-Goa highway collapsed, …