The Stream, November 8: Vietnam Releases Water From Overwhelmed Reservoirs Ahead of APEC Summit
The Global Rundown
As the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit approaches, typhoon-hit Vietnam releases water from seven inundated reservoirs to avoid further flooding. Nicaragua joins the Paris climate agreement, but moves forward with an environmentally disruptive coast-to-coast canal plan. An outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease kills two people and sickens several others at a large hospital in Lisbon, Portugal. Data indicates that 2017 will be among the three hottest years on record. Slow winds and cold temperatures push air pollution to emergency levels in Delhi, India.
“It has terrible effects on every part of your body. ICUs are full of pneumonia patients. Lots of my patients are coming with coughs today. They are breathless.” –Dr. Arvind Kumar, a chest surgery chairman at Sir Ganga Ram hospital, in reference to soaring smog levels in Delhi, India. A maximum Air Quality Index measurement of 999 was detected in some neighborhoods, the equivalent of smoking 50 cigarettes a day. The Guardian
By The Numbers
34 Number of confirmed cases of Legionnaires’ disease at a large Lisbon hospital since the outbreak was detected a week ago. Experts are working to find the source of the waterborne disease, saying it is still too early to determine if it originated inside the hospital. Reuters
$50 billion Cost of a Chinese-backed shipping canal that would span coast-to-coast in Nicaragua. Environmentalists warn that constructing the canal could cause Lake Nicaragua, a major water source, to become salinated, among other devastating ecological effects. At the same time, the Nicaraguan government has signed on to the Paris climate agreement. Reuters
Science, Studies, And Reports
2017 is set to be one of the hottest years on record, according to data gathered by the World Meteorological Organization. Although 2017 is unlikely to be warmer than 2016 due to last year’s strong El Niño weather system, it is slated to be hotter than any years prior to 2015. The Guardian
Additional reporting: Record heat in 2016 broke lake temperatures records too.
On The Radar
Heavy monsoon rains and widespread flooding continue in Vietnam, where U.S. President Donald Trump, China’s Xi Jinping, Russia’s Vladimir Putin, and other world leaders will soon converge for the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation summit this weekend. On Tuesday, Vietnam released water from seven dangerously full reservoirs in an attempt to stave off further inundation. Reuters
Kayla Ritter is a recent graduate of Michigan State University, where she studied International Relations and Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages. She is currently based in Manton, Michigan. Kayla enjoys running, writing, and traveling. Contact Kayla Ritter
