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Articles on Natural resource exploitation

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Col de Port, in the French Pyrenees. Author provided

Mountains, a fragile source of life

We think of mountains as remote and little affected by human activity. Unfortunately, the negative impacts of what we do has important implications for nature, wildlife and human society.
A crane carrying with melting steel at the blast furnace Schwelgern 2 at ThyssenKrupp steel mill in Duisburg , Germany (December 12, 2014). Patrik Stollarz/AFP

The ‘circularity paradox’ in the European steel industry

Europe recycles 70% of its steel, but much is exported, turning what should be a circular process into a linear one. Instead, materials need to be circularity-ready the moment they’re manufactured.
Government negligence, rampant development and illegal land clearing spark wildfires in Indonesia that annually ravage thousands of acres of forest. AP Photo

Resource depletion is a serious problem, but ‘footprint’ estimates don’t tell us much about it

July 29, 2019 is ‘Earth Overshoot Day,’ a date coined by the nonprofit Global Footprint Network to publicize overuse of Earth’s resources. But their estimates may actually understate the problem.
After 48 hours of frantic effort, Brazilian rescue workers have called off their search for survivors at a collapsed dam in Minas Gerais state. AP Photo/Leo Correa

Dam collapse at Brazilian mine exposes grave safety problems

Nearly 1,800 Brazilian dams are at risk of failure, according to the government. Fixing them is expensive – but ignoring aging dams can have considerable social, economic and environmental costs.
Journalists who cover illegal operations like logging at this site in northern Sagaing division, Myanmar, can face threats and violence. AP Photo/Gemunu Amarasinghe

Why covering the environment is one of the most dangerous beats in journalism

Reporters who cover environment and natural resource issues are commonly threatened and harassed around the world. Some have been killed for coverage that threatens powerful interests.
Guyana, a former British colony on the north shore of South America, may soon supplant Trinidad and Tobago as the Caribbean region’s biggest oil producer. Reuters/Andrea De Silva

Guyana, one of South America’s poorest countries, struck oil. Will it go boom or bust?

Guyana is on the verge of an oil bonanza that could bring in US$1 million a day. But if it’s not careful, this poor nation – population 750,000 – could fall prey to the dreaded ‘resource curse.’

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