Nicaraguan Canal build to start in December
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By Staff Writers, Telesur
Telesur
Friday, Nov 21, 2014
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| A ferry crosses Cocibolca Lake in Nicaragua. The canal is expected to cut through environmentally rich areas of the country, such as this. (Photo: Reuters) |
The construction of a new inter-oceanic canal that will cut through Nicaragua will begin December 22, the committee overseeing the project announced on Thursday. The construction will go through despite warnings by environmentalists, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and scientists that the canal will cause major damage to the environment and many communities in the area.
The Inter-oceanic Grand Canal connecting the Atlantic and the Pacific oceans will be 172-miles long – longer, deeper and wider than the Panama Canal, which is only 48-miles long. It is expected to rival the Panamanian waterway.
It will also run through Lake Nicaragua – the largest source of fresh water in Central America – other environmentally sensitive areas, an indigenous reserve, and has forced many communities to relocate.
Opponents of the canal are concerned that the project lacks transparency and is being rushed through without sufficient regard for its impact on society and the environment, since plans for its construction were released before receiving the results of the environmental impact assessment that was commissioned by the state. The preliminary results, which assessed the canal's impact on lakes, wetlands and other ecosystems, were meant to be released later this week by the London-based Environmental Resource Management.
According to government officials, the canal is expected to double Nicaragua's GDP, what is considered Latin America's second poorest country.
“There is nothing else in Nicaragua that could achieve that within our lifetimes – and it is within grasp. It has never been closer than it is now,” said Paul Oquist, a close adviser to the president, Daniel Ortega.
Construction of the US$50 billion project is expected to take five years to complete.
The project is being financed by Chinese businessman Wang Jing via the Hong Kong-based HK Nicaragua Canal Development Investment Co Ltd (HKND Group). The plan has faced repeated criticism since Jing has no experience in developing or financing major infrastructure projects.
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