Fortis Dam Update and Petition

Date: Sat, 12 Jan 2002 21:30:42 -0400
To: <sust-mar@chebucto.ns.ca>
From: Aaron Koleszar <aaronk@isn.net>
Precedence: bulk
Return-Path: <sust-mar-mml-owner@chebucto.ns.ca>

next message in archive
no next message in thread
previous message in archive
Index of Subjects


Note: Fortis is a Newfoundland based company with property holdings across 
the maritimes.
Check out www.stopfortis.org

Date: Fri, 11 Jan 2002 06:53:40 -0500
From: Ari Hershowitz <arih@csi.com>

Dear all,

The dry season has begun in Belize, a window of about six months that
Fortis could use to begin the first phase of construction on the
Chalillo dam.  Public pressure is growing quickly and will soon
overwhelm the company, so Fortis is ignoring all the laws of Belize and
hoping to start construction in the near future.

A recent overflight has shown that--without any of the required permits,
and with a highly incomplete environmental assessment--Fortis has begun
to cut survey lines through the Chiquibul Forest Reserve at their
proposed dam site.  Belizean newspapers report that the British
consulting and construction conglomerate, AMEC, (in clear reciprocity
for providing favorable results in its EIA) was given the contract by
Fortis to design the Chalillo dam.

A new Online petition is showing the opposition to Fortis' plans,
especially in Atlantic Canada: www.stopfortis.org/petition.html. Visit
this website and add your name, noting your interest in the project and
expertise if appropriate.  Please pass this message on to all those who
might be interested.

Fortis' actions are illegal, and concerned citizens in Belize will go to
court to hold the company accountable.  Support from the international
community will help keep the legal process honest and open and help stop
powerful forces in Belize from trampling justice.

A recent investigation by top geologists in Belize has shown that Fortis
provided false information about the dam site geology to Belizean
environmental authorities--claiming that the site is made of
granite--when in fact no granite is found there-- and claiming that
there were no faults at the site, while there are at least three faults
at the dam site itself, and one of Belize's largest fault just 1km
away.  This disregard for the basic science of the dam's foundation
shows Fortis' disregard for the truth, and the potential risks that its
dam poses to the environment and human lives.

On the website, you will find reports from the trip made by Robert
Kennedy, Jr. to Belize, as well as excerpts from one of his interviews
with a radio show in Belize.  Kennedy also participated in the "Save the
Macal" river race and spoke with residents in communities downstream
from the proposed dam, who were passionate about protecting the river
for their children.

Please contact me if you'd like further information on these
developments.

All the best,
Ari Hershowitz
Director, BioGems Project, Latin America.
(202) 289-2388
-- 



-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-
The preceding message was posted on the Sustainable Maritimes
mailing list (sust-mar).  http://www.chebucto.ns.ca/lists/sust-mar
-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-

Volunteer moderator: Paul Falvo  mailto:sust-mar-owner@chebucto.ns.ca

To submit a message to sust-mar (subscribers only!), please send it to:
mailto:sust-mar@chebucto.ns.ca

PLEASE SEND MESSAGES TO SUST-MAR IN PLAIN TEXT ONLY
MESSAGES CONTAINING HTML (MIME) CANNOT BE POSTED

next message in archive
no next message in thread
previous message in archive
Index of Subjects