Save the Cruces Trail and Panama Canal Watershed

Panama Canal sets sights on new $17 billion expansion project   By  Simon Gardner and Elida Moreno 12 hours ago     . View gallery A general view of the Miraflores set of lock (top) on the Pacific side, next to the Panama Canal Expansion … By Simon Gardner and Elida Moreno COCOLI, Panama (Reuters) - As it enters the final stretch of a massive expansion, the Panama Canal Authority is setting its sights on an even more ambitious project worth up to $17 billion that would allow it to handle the world's biggest ships. Workers are now installing giant, 22-story lock gates to accommodate larger "Post-Panamax" ships through the Canal, one of the world's busiest maritime routes. The project involves building a third set of locks on the Canal. It is being headed by Italy's Salini Impregilo and Spain's Sacyr, and should open on April 1, 2016. But Jorge Quijano, who leads the Panama Canal Autho...

Why the Nicaragua canal poses new challenge to Ortega's power Nicaraguans have lots of questions, but the closed-door nature of canal decisions mean they're getting few answers – and taking their frustration to the streets.   By  Sara Van Note 15 hours ago     On the windy shore of  Lake Nicaragua , farmer Dayton Guzman surveys the vast expanse of water his family relies on for irrigation. “If something affects the lake,” he says, “it affects us.” The lake’s future is in doubt since a massive Chinese-backed canal project was inaugurated late last year. The multibillion-dollar “Grand Canal” is slated to stretch 170 miles from the Caribbean to the Pacific, and some 60 miles of it will cross through this lake. Recommended:  Think you know Latin America? Take our geography quiz. The government argues the project will create tens of thousands of jobs and boost GDP by up to 12 percent – a critical point i...

WORLD   AMERICAS Central America face-off? Panama gears up for possible rival canal In late December, Nicaragua inaugurated work on what it says will be a waterway able to handle the world’s largest ships passing between the Atlantic and the Pacific. The project comes as Panama doubles its own canal's capacity.  By   Tim Johnson , McClatchy   MARCH 10, 2015 Carlos Jasso/Reuters/File View Caption PANAMA CITY —  When it comes to interoceanic canals, Panamanians speak with a century of experience. So as nearby  Nicaragua  moves ahead with a plan to build what it claims would be a bigger, better canal, some Panamanians look on with interest and puzzlement. “We take the possibility of construction of a canal in Nicaragua very seriously,” said   Francisco J. Miguez, executive vice president for finance and administration of the Panama Canal Authority, the waterway’s operator. The Nicaraguan plan  is feasible, Mi...

Stratfor   Contributor We provide insight into global developments. Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own. FOLLOW WASHINGTON   3/06/2015 @ 4:13PM   2,146 views How a Chinese Billionaire Got Invested in Nicaragua's Canal Plan Comment Now Follow Comments   Summary: The idea of a canal across Nicaragua, easing transit flows between the Pacific and the Atlantic, is as old as the country itself. But despite numerous surveys and plans across the centuries, no Nicaraguan canal has ever been shown to be economically viable for the investors. The United States, European and numerous Asian countries and companies have explored both “wet” and “dry” canals — the latter utilize rail between ports on both sides of the isthmus. Lately a Chinese businessman has been exploring the idea. His efforts have raised similar questions to previous attempts: Is a canal in Nicaragua economically sound, envir...