Save the Cruces Trail and Panama Canal Watershed

www.chagres.com by Bert G. Shelton, Professional Engineer & Research Scientist August 25, 2011 During a series of short presentations by the Panama Canal Authority (ACP) seen on U-tube last week, the rumored reason for merging the three steps planned for the Pacific end of the canal into a single lock unit – bypassing Miraflores Lake – was made fact. In today's canal, Miraflores Lake separates the top step of the locks from the other two to avoid building critical structures on unstable ground crossed by a system of active faults. In the prior expansion plan it was also included for that reason.   Yet, apparently the choice to exclude Miraflores Lake was made to reduce transiting time through the new lock configuration by about an hour.  Today, with Miraflores Lake included, Canal Residence Time is typically 27 hours during the rainy season and 36 hours during the dry. That time would be 26 and 35 hours, respectively, had the canal been built without it. However, ...

http://www.fox10tv.com/dpps/news/international/flooding-closes-panama-canal-wd10-jgr_3672955 by Bert G. Shelton, Professional Engineer & Research Scientist July 20, 2011 Those who have been following the progress of the Panama Canal Expansion project will recall that the lock design to be used was included in the plan's announcement. That the project's key system had been preselected was most unusual, a shock to lock design experts familiar with Panama Canal expansion issues. Beyond pronouncements assuring that all possible lock configurations and ship lifting mechanisms had been thoroughly assessed prior to selecting the most appropriate water-saving locks for the project – and claiming that, due to those locks, the new system would be environmentally friendly – no technical reports that truly back those assurances have ever been produced. Given the project's reluctance to make available details of their system selection process, outsiders have had to rely on deductive...

*also published in The Panama News No se puede exagerar la urgencia de revisar todos los aspectos de este proyecto de inmediato. Sus repercusiones se extenderán mucho más allá de las fronteras de Panamá. No es demasiado tarde para mejorarlo... si actuamos ya. The urgency for reviewing every aspect of this project immediately cannot be over-emphasized. Its impact will extend well beyond Panama's borders. It is not too late to improve it... if we act now. Comité ProDefensa del Lago Gatún -- Gatún Lake Defense Committee El Comité ProDefensa del Lago Gatún aboga por una ampliación realmente responsable y sostenible del Canal de Panamá, que usa sus recursos valiosos efectivamente y los deja sin daños para el beneficio de esta y de generaciones futuras. (Visite www.crucestrail.com) The Gatún Lake Defense Committee advocates for a genuinely responsible and sustainable expansion of the Panama Canal, where its valuable resources are used effectively and left undamaged for the benefit of...

In view of the recent revelations regarding the Panama Canal expansion project, the report below provides a valuable and timely contribution. En vista de las recientes revelaciones acerca del proyecto de ampliación del Canal de Panamá, los aportes del informe a continuación son muy valiosos y puntuales. Highly negative assessments of the Panama Canal expansion project by the current President and Vice-President of Panama reflect facts, not opinion.  Las evaluaciones muy negativas del proyecto por el actual Presidente y por el Vice-Presidente de Panamá reflejan hechos, no opiniones. Deliberately hiding this“disaster”, as it was characterized, behind hype and politics is unpardonable. Deliberadamente ocultar este “desastre”, como se caracterizó al proyecto, detrás de propaganda y política es imperdonable. For the world to allow it to proceed unchallenged and unchanged, would be to commit financial, commercial and environmental suicide with international repercussions. Que el mundo permit...