FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: July 12th, 2021 Contacts: Constanza Prieto Figelist (cpfigelist@earthlaw.org, +1 202-621-3877), Monti Aguirre (monti@internationalrivers.org, +1 707-591-1220) Lima, Peru—On July 5th, a coalition of international organizations filed an Amicus Curiae brief before the Celendín Court of Justice, Civil Court, requesting the recognition of the inherent rights of the Marañón River associated with the exercise…
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By Emily Conrad, Dulcepamba River, Ecuador On the western slope of the Andes in Ecuador, 140 campesino and indigenous communities have been resisting activities of the hydroelectric company, Hidrotambo S.A., since 2004. Complicit government agencies have allowed the company to monopolize the water in the ~500 square kilometer Dulcepamba River basin, decimate the River’s aquatic life, destroy private property, criminalize community leaders,…
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Contacts: Constanza Prieto Figelist (cpfigelist@earthlaw.org, 202-621-3877) Monti Aguirre (monti@internationalrivers.org, 707-591-1220) QUITO, ECUADOR—On November 26, a coalition of civil society organizations and law professors submitted an amicus brief to Ecuador’s Constitutional Court calling for the protection of the Piatúa River based on the Rights of Nature and Indigenous rights. The Piatúa River is under threat from…
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By: National River Protection Network (2020) On February 25 and 26 we have met at the Antonio Ruiz de Montoya University in Lima, defenders of the rivers: Nanay in Loreto, Huallaga in Ucayali, Mashcón and Jequetepeque in Cajamarca, Apurímac in Cusco, Marañón in Amazonas and Rímac in Lima to discuss the need for a policy…
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The Marañón River is one of the most important water sources in Peru and a key Amazon tributary. With its source at the Nevado de Yapura glacier high up in the Andes mountains, the Marañón runs northwest through Peru along the eastern base of the Andes before it turns eastwards to flow into the Amazon plains. The…
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By: Monti Aquirre, Latin America Program Director A convergence of forces this month around Colombia’s largest hydroelectric dam have demonstrated the extreme threats posed to the environment and human life when rivers are mismanaged in an absence of accountability and governance. The Ituango hydroelectric dam on the Cauca River, now at an estimated cost of…
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By: Monti Aquirre, Latin American Program Director There was enough fish and plantains to feed the more than 500 fisherfolks gathered by the banks of the Magdalena River on a quiet Sunday in early March. Whole families who would be affected by El Quimbo Dam arrived in dozens of canoes to attend an urgent meeting…
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By: Payal Parekh International Rivers continues to submit comments to the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) Executive Board pointing out problems with proposed hydropower CDM projects. Most recently, I prepared comments on the El Quimbo Project on the Magdalena River in Colombia. This megadam, 400 MW at full capacity, is neither additional nor does it promote sustainable development. Additionality is the flawed…
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