International

‘Progress destroying nature’: Brazil dam fuels fears for river

| By AFP | Carlos Fabal with Joshua Howat Berger in Rio de Janeiro |

Holding a dead fish, Junior Pereira looks grimly at a puddle that used to be part of Brazil’s Xingu river, a mighty Amazon tributary that has been desiccated here by the massive Belo Monte hydroelectric dam.

Pereira, a member of the Pupekuri Indigenous group, chokes up talking about the impact of Belo Monte, the world’s fourth-biggest hydroelectric complex, which locals say is killing one of the most biodiverse regions on Earth and forcing them to abandon their way of life.

“Our culture is fishing, it’s the river. We’ve always lived on what the river provides,” says Pereira, 39, who looks like a man trapped between two worlds, wearing a traditional Indigenous necklace and a red baseball cap.

He gazes at the once-flooded landscape, which Belo Monte’s water diversion has made a patchwork of puddles dotted with stranded fish.

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“We’ve lost our river,” he says.

“Now we have to buy food in the city.”

‘Like a permanent drought’

Stretching nearly 2,000 kilometers (1,250 miles), the Xingu ebbs and flows with the rainy season, creating vast “igapos,” or flooded forests, that are crucial to huge numbers of species.

They are also crucial to an estimated 25,000 Indigenous people and others who live along the river.

Belo Monte diverts a 100-kilometer stretch of the Xingu’s “Volta Grande,” or Big Bend, in the northern county of Altamira to power a hydroelectric dam with a capacity of 11,233 megawatts — 6.2 percent of the total electricity capacity of Latin America’s biggest economy.

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Built for an estimated 40 billion reais ($7.5 billion) and inaugurated in 2016, the dam diverts up to 80 percent of the river’s water, which scientists, environmentalists and residents say is disastrous for this unique ecosystem.

“The dam broke the river’s flood pulse. Upstream, it’s like it’s always flooded. Downstream, it’s like a permanent drought,” says Andre Oliveira Sawakuchi, a geoscientist at the University of Sao Paulo.

That is devastating fish and turtle populations whose feeding and reproduction cycles depend on the igapos, he says.

Sitting by the Xingu’s breathtaking Jericoa waterfalls, which the Juruna people consider sacred, Indigenous leader Giliarde Juruna describes the situation as a clash of worldviews.

“Progress for us is having the forest, the animals, the rivers the way God made them. The progress white people believe in is totally different,” says Juruna, 40.

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“They think they’re doing good with this project, but they’re destroying nature and hurting people, including themselves.”

Lula under scrutiny

Proposed in the 1970s, Belo Monte was authorized under ex-president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva (2003-2010) — who just won a new term in Brazil’s October elections.

As Lula, 77, prepares to take office again on January 1, the project is drawing fresh scrutiny from those hoping the veteran leftist will fulfill his promise to do a better job protecting the Amazon than outgoing President Jair Bolsonaro, who presided over a surge in deforestation.

Touted as a clean-energy source and engine of economic development, Belo Monte has not exactly lived up to expectations.

According to the company that operates it, Norte Energia, the dam’s average output this year has been 4,212 megawatts — less than half its capacity.

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A recent study meanwhile found its operations tripled the region’s greenhouse gas emissions — mainly methane released by decomposing forest that was killed by the flooding of the dam reservoir.

A new plan

In 2015, researchers from the Socio-Environmental Institute (ISA) conservation group teamed up with the Juruna to document the devastation.

They have devised a new, less-disruptive way for Belo Monte to manage water, the “Piracema” plan — named for the period when fish swim upriver to spawn.

Researchers say the plan is a relatively small tweak to the dam’s current water usage, adapting it to the natural flood cycles.

Brazil’s environmental regulator is due to rule soon whether to order Norte Energia to adopt it.

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The company declined to comment on the proposal, saying in a statement to AFP that it instead “recognizes the plan established in the plant’s environmental licensing.”

The decision is vital, says biologist Camila Ribas of the federal government’s National Institute for Amazon Research.

“When you completely alter the flood cycle, forests die,” she says.

“These are incredibly intricate, interlinked systems. If Belo Monte and other hydroelectric projects disrupt them too much, it could spell the end of the Amazon.”

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International

Oil prices surge again as Middle East tensions persist

Oil prices climbed again on Friday for a second consecutive session, as markets remained concerned about a prolonged conflict in the Middle East with no tangible diplomatic progress.

North Sea Brent crude for May delivery rose 4.22% to close at $112.57 per barrel.

Meanwhile, U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) approached the $100 mark, settling at $99.64, up 5.46%.

The decision by U.S. President Donald Trump to delay by ten days his ultimatum for the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz failed to reassure market participants.

“It means there will be ten additional days of disruptions in the Middle East for crude and refined product flows,” said Andy Lipow, of Lipow Oil Associates.

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“For prices to come down, a resolution to the conflict is necessary,” Lipow added. “And even in the event of a ceasefire, it is not certain that Iran would allow oil shipments to pass through the Strait of Hormuz.”

International

Young Spanish Woman Receives Euthanasia After Legal Battle, Sparking Debate

A 25-year-old Spanish woman, Noelia Castillo, received euthanasia on Thursday following a prolonged legal dispute with her father.

She passed away at a care center in Sant Pere de Ribes, about 40 kilometers from Barcelona, where she had been living for some time, according to Spanish media reports.

In an interview broadcast a day earlier on Antena 3, Castillo expressed her exhaustion after enduring prolonged suffering. She indicated that her decision was influenced by a combination of personal circumstances and health-related challenges, including family conflicts and a condition of paraplegia following a previous incident that left her with lasting physical consequences.

Spain legalized euthanasia in 2021, becoming one of the few countries that allow patients under strict conditions to seek medical assistance to end their lives in order to avoid what the law defines as unbearable suffering.

The case has reignited debate in Spain over the ethical, legal, and family dimensions surrounding euthanasia, as well as the broader issue of support for individuals in vulnerable situations.

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International

Over 300 U.S. Troops Wounded Since Start of Iran Conflict, CENTCOM Says

More than 300 U.S. service members have been injured since the start of the conflict with Iran on February 28, the United States Central Command confirmed on Friday.

“Since the beginning of Operation Epic Fury, approximately 303 U.S. service members have been wounded. The vast majority of these injuries are minor, and 273 troops have already returned to duty,” said U.S. Navy Captain Tim Hawkins.

A U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity to AFP, indicated that 10 American troops remain seriously injured.

According to the latest figures, an additional 13 U.S. service members have been killed since the conflict began, including seven in the Gulf region and six in Iraq.

Meanwhile, Iran’s armed forces warned on Friday that hotels hosting U.S. troops in the region could be considered legitimate military targets.

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“When U.S. forces enter a hotel, from our perspective that hotel becomes American,” said armed forces spokesperson Abolfazl Shekarchi in remarks broadcast on state television.