The Stream, July 23: Canada First Nations Community Protests $6 Billion Dam

The Global Rundown

Accelerated snowmelt is causing floods and landslides that claim lives and destroy villages in Tajikstan. Protests by the Nutashkuan Innu have forced the Quebec government to negotiate over a large hydroelectric dam project that could cause ecological damage. European researchers have determined the role of 12 African rivers in contributing to greenhouse gas emissions. Texas approved the first round of water projects under the state’s revolving water fund.

“When you live in a place with social problems, with poverty, with family violence, with substance abuse, it’s not easy to organize politically.”–Daniel Salée, a Concordia University professor who specializes in First Nations politics. Three days of protesting by the Nutashkuan Innu have forced the Quebec government to begin negotiations over a hydroelectric project that may cause ecological damage to fisheries and forests. (Montreal Gazette)

By The Numbers

$50 million Estimated cost of a recent spate of floods and landslides in Tajikistan. An intense heat wave accelerated snowmelt to a dangerous level, triggering the natural disasters. Eurasianet.org

Science, Studies, And Reports

Greenhouse gas emissions from rivers and wetlands in sub-Saharan Africa are equal to about a quarter of the carbon taken out of the atmosphere by oceans and land globally, according to a study published in the journal Nature Geoscience. Researchers from the University of Liege, the University of Leuven, and France’s Research Institute for Development completed a five-year study of 12 major rivers in sub-Saharan Africa, including the Congo, to calculate the estimates. Because rivers carry organic matter, they play a large role in both producing and emitting greenhouse gases. Nature Geoscience

On The Radar

Texas approved 32 water projects to receive $US 4 billion in state funding over the next decade. The money will fund projects designed to increase the state’s water supply, ranging from desalination plants to conservation initiatives. The Texas Tribune