Living in Peru : your everyday companion

LivinginPeru.com
Isabel Guerra

According to regional reports, posted in EnlaceNacional.com network, the water levels of Titicaca Lake has dropped almost 2 meters due to climate change, reaching its lowest level in at least 60 years.

David Araníbar, Director of the Reserva Nacional del Titicaca (National Reserve of Titicaca) warned that “we have been concerned about this fact since last year; this is drawing national and international interest."

According to Aranibar, and as the video clearly shows, the water level has dropped dramatically, which affects several economic activities; many little quays are out of order now. “All this infrastructure that many local communities have built to access the lake and offer touristic services has turned out to be useless now,” says Aranibar.

Despite the doubts expressed by the Binational Authority of Titicaca Lake coordinator, Dámaso Ramos, Peru's Meteorologic Service confirmed that in fact the level has dropped more than 1.5 meters.

Have other topics you'd like to see in our news section? If you or someone you know would like to contribute a news article to Living in Peru, whether it's translated or based on a personal investigation, send it to editor@livinginperu.com.

LivinginPeru.com
Isabel Guerra

The US decided to move its Regional Office of Environment, Science, Technology and Health for South America's headquarters from Brazil to Peru.

This office, formed ten years ago in Brazil, is responsible for coordinating environmental policies in the region with the US.

"Peru is an important country for us because it is one of the mega-diverse countries in the world. We have a close relationship with Peru and this is a way to show our friendship, " stressed the head of this office, Indran Amirthanayagam, to El Comercio.

Amirthanayagam stated that global warming is a problem in which we are all stuck, so it is necessary to share information and strategies to achieve effective solutions, and said that the office will provide technical assistance and promote scientific research in our country.

Have other topics you'd like to see in our news section? If you or someone you know would like to contribute a news article to Living in Peru, whether it's translated or based on a personal investigation, send it to editor@livinginperu.com.

LivinginPeru.com
Isabel Guerra

A strong sea surge flooded some streets and avenues in of La Punta District (Callao), dragging stones and rocks onto the nearby streets, as well as some small fishing boats.

The most affected route has been Bolognesi Avenue. Residents of the area confirmed to El Comercio that there were not alerts to evacuate the area, and that these sea surges are common during this time of the year.

However, some people also declared that a sea surge this strong had not been seen since at least 4 years ago.

On the other side, the Direction of Hydrography and Navigation of the Peruvian Navy said in an alert sent on Friday that "the atmosphere conditions at Pacific North Ocean are showing intense disturbances and generating persistent anomalous waves."

The Peruvian Navy recommended to take preventive measures, but also expects that the weather conditions will normalize soon.

Have other topics you'd like to see in our news section? If you or someone you know would like to contribute a news article to Living in Peru, whether it's translated or based on a personal investigation, send it to editor@livinginperu.com.

LivinginPeru.com
Isabel Guerra

Peru's contribution to mitigate the climate change will be the reduction of greenhouse gases emissions in 45% in ten years time, which will add up to the reduction of logging to zero, said Peru's Environment Minister, Antonio Brack.

Brack recalled that last year Peru assumed the commitment of preserving the forests, and in order to do this, a joint agreement with Germany and Japan is currently being developed.

He added that developing countries are "victims" because they are not issuers of pollutant gases. "The temperature already raised in Peru, there is a setback of the glaciers and illnesses like dengue fever are expanding, like never before," said Brack.

The Minister also said Peru needs US$ 45 million to adapt to the climate change.

Have other topics you'd like to see in our news section? If you or someone you know would like to contribute a news article to Living in Peru, whether it's translated or based on a personal investigation, send it to editor@livinginperu.com.

LivinginPeru.com
Isabel Guerra

The Agriculture Ministry started a campaign to plant 60 million trees between 2009 and 2010 as a way to curb climate change.

Gerardo Ochoa Vasquez, zonal director of the Agricultural Development Program, and Guillermo Malpartida Lagos, head of Concepcion-Jauja Zonal Agency, are shown in the photo helping plant 4,000 trees in in the Junín district of Pomacancha.

The planting was done in a 3.5 hectarea area, and included Eucalyptuses, pine, and quinual trees.

Four million trees are scheduled to be planted in Junín alone.

Have other topics you'd like to see in our news section? If you or someone you know would like to contribute a news article to Living in Peru, whether it's translated or based on a personal investigation, send it to editor@livinginperu.com.

LivinginPeru.com
Isabel Guerra

Carbon neutral is a term that indicates that a company's carbon emissions have been compensated. That is, a company that is considered carbon neutral is one that seeks mechanisms for removing as much CO2 as it emitted.

According to the Environmental Enterprise Group (GEA), several Peruvian companies are already working on this issue of carbon neutral. They are among them Hotel Miraflores Park Plaza, Hotel Los Delfines, Hotel Inkaterra, Grapefruit, Corporate Communications, Topy Top, Texfina, Cormin Callao, Corporación Rey, Zinsa Productos No Ferrosos, Fleischmann, Silgelsa Silicatos y geles.

In the case of the Inkaterra hotel chain, we can find information on several of their actions regarding environmental care; they are listed in a website created solely for this purpose, where they state that they are helping to reduce almost 3,400,000 of tons of carbon.

GEA's eco-efficiency center is promoting the development of eco-efficiency programs and advising companies in calculating their carbon emissions.

Have other topics you'd like to see in our news section? If you or someone you know would like to contribute a news article to Living in Peru, whether it's translated or based on a personal investigation, send it to editor@livinginperu.com.

LivinginPeru.com
Isabel Guerra

Lush forests, exotic endangered animals species and important archaeological remains will be part of 15 new conservation areas to be created, that will cover more than one million hectares in eight departments of the coast, Andean mountains and jungle region in Peru.

According to Luis Alfaro, Trade Chief of the National Protected Nature Areas Service (Sernanp), these 15 proposals are already on their way to be officially declared as conservation areas, and have been voluntarily designed by communities that wish to conserve their land.

Some of the future conservation areas are, as an example, the Angostura-Faical woods in Tumbes; the Virrilá wetlands, the dry forests at Salitral and Huarmaca and the Huacrupe and Palacios forests, in Lambayeque.

Alfaro also said that there are also important areas in the Amazon to be declared as conservation areas, like the case of Choquequirao, in Cusco.

Have other topics you'd like to see in our news section? If you or someone you know would like to contribute a news article to Living in Peru, whether it's translated or based on a personal investigation, send it to editor@livinginperu.com.

LivinginPeru.com
Isabel Guerra

According to environmental experts, Lake Titicaca, shared by Bolivia and Peru, might be reduced and divided up into three parts by 2030 due to the effects of climate change, if no action aimed to mitigate it is taken during the next 20 years.

The German environmentalist Joerg Seifert-Granzin explained that studies recently performed show that if climate changes continue as they are now, "Lake Titicaca could fragment into two or three parts in the areas that not are so deep.”

"It's something that has already happened and could happen again if reality behaves like the lab model has does," said Seifert-Granzin, who recalled that in 1993 the highest navigable lake in the world was divided into two parts due to the low level of waters during a drought.

The German expert will present this projection next week in the Copenhagen Climate Summit.

Have other topics you'd like to see in our news section? If you or someone you know would like to contribute a news article to Living in Peru, whether it's translated or based on a personal investigation, send it to editor@livinginperu.com.

LivinginPeru.com
Isabel Guerra

Mexican Science Magazine Phytotaxa announced recently that nine new species of orchids that had been unknown to scientists and that were actually discovered in Peru: M. canarina, M. coniformis, M. deniseae, M. dichaeoides, M. flabellata, M. hajekii, M. leucopurpurea, M. strioñata and M. viseeri.

One of these orchids, Maxillaria deniseae, was first seen and reported in the cloud forest of Machu Picchu Historic Sanctuary, in the province of Urubamba in the Cusco, actually in the gardens of Inkaterra Machu Picchu Pueblo Hotel.

Thus this new species, M. deniseae, was named after Guislain of Koechlin Denise, wife of José Koechlin, the manager of the Inkaterra's Orchid Garden located in Machu Picchu Pueblo Hotel, according to a press release issued by Inkaterra.

This small white orchid which measures only 1 cm. long by 1 cm. high, blooms only one week between April and March, and was published with its picture and description in the book “Orchids at Inkaterra Machu Picchu Pueblo Hotel" in November 2007.

It is estimated that Peru has almost 3,500 species of orchids.

Have other topics you'd like to see in our news section? If you or someone you know would like to contribute a news article to Living in Peru, whether it's translated or based on a personal investigation, send it to editor@livinginperu.com.

LivinginPeru.com
Isabel Guerra

The 127 sea lions that were found dead in Colan, Piura, were not only poisoned, but also were shot. This is one of the conclusions of the report issued by by the research team of the Scientific Organization for the Conservation of Aquatic Animals (ORCA).

In accordance with the terms specified by that organization, the National Police of Peru made a forensic examination of 127 sea lions to determine the real causes of their deaths: 20% of the animals studied had impacts of guns, caliber 38 and 45.

Also, 11% of the corpses show signs of having undergone the removal of  testicles, and another 11% show bruises, lacerations and bumps due to blunt trauma to the skull.

Furthermore, it should be noted that 100 percent of the cases reported signs of poisoning with detergent substances (organophosphates and organochlorines).

Have other topics you'd like to see in our news section? If you or someone you know would like to contribute a news article to Living in Peru, whether it's translated or based on a personal investigation, send it to editor@livinginperu.com.