They are foul-smelling, noisy, and move in groups of up to three hundred. They are an important species to the environment, but are on the verge of extinction. A recently released report revealed that the white-lipped peccary, or Warrie, is on the verge of extinction. The animal can be found across the Meso-American region and […]
The Turneffe Atoll Trust today released the findings of a report it conducted on the Turneffe Atoll. That report shows that the marine reserve has sustained multiple damages and is threatened by harmful and improperly, unregulated development activities. Those include dredging, deforestation of mangroves and among other threats. The Turneffe Atoll Trust launched the report […]
The Senate today passed the Designated Processing Areas Bill. It’s a piece of legislation that will replace the Export Processing Zone Act and according to the government, the Designated Processing Areas Bill seeks to ease investment, production of value-adding enterprises and ensure compliance with regulations and standards. The bill was necessary to ensure Belize’s compliance […]
Earlier we heard from Carlos Raul Morales, who left diplomatic service over a year ago and was replaced by Foreign Minister Sandra Polanco. But we asked him to weigh in on why Guatemala has not fulfilled its commitment to the Sarstoon Protocol. Morales and Elrington had agreed to establish a protocol for the Sarstoon in […]
In his interview today, Morales, as the same with others we interviewed reiterated their hope that Belizeans will vote yes in the upcoming referendum to take the claim to the I.C.J. Here at home, one of the main arguments by the proponents of the “No Campaign” is that negotiations can continue instead of going the […]
The San Pedro Fire Department received a fire-truck today thanks to Digi. The fully-equipped fire-truck is the third to be added to the fire station’s fleet. Fire officials say it will greatly enhance the fire-fighting services that have been growing as the population increases. As you’ve seen right here on News 5 Live, we have […]
A small fire destroyed a thatch cover at B.T.L. Park on Saturday night. According to police, someone may have left a lit cigarette under a palapa adjacent to Pier One Bar and Grill. The fire department promptly dispatched a team of firemen who doused the flames. Police say the fire was not caused by an […]
All of last week we’ve been reporting on the negotiations at COP24 in Katowice, Poland. The negotiations progressed slowly and it wasn’t until Saturday night around ten that the final outcome was agreed upon. Countries settled on many of elements of the one hundred and thirty-three pages of the “rulebook” that will see the 2015 […]
A big part of the discussions for the past two weeks at COP24 focused on finance. It was one of the contentious and drawn out topics at the negotiations. Carlos Fuller says the final document has some positive outcomes on finance. He tells us more. Via Phone: Carlos Fuller, Negotiator “There was some positive […]
At this hour, global talks are still under way in Katowice, Poland, to develop a rulebook to enforce the 2015 Paris agreement to address climate change. After two weeks of negotiations, which countries have described to be slow and contentious, there is still not a final agreement because of persisting differences over key issues such […]
Countries have not been able to come to a consensus on certain points. One of the areas that the small island developing states are concerned about is the issue of double counting emission reductions. Here Carlos Fuller explains exactly what that issue is and why they have been sticking to it: Carlos Fuller, Negotiator […]
While Guatemalan president and foreign minister are at the Biltmore, in Belmopan, a protocol was signed to deal with encroachments in the Chiquibul and Vaca Forests by persons from Guatemala who enter the protected area illegally. They extract the rich natural resources posing a serious threat to the environment and putting at risk the sovereignty […]
The newly established guidelines, according to Minister John Saldivar, who holds the national security portfolio, sets out the means by which the respective agencies, including the Forestry Department, will conduct operations in the Chiquibul and Vaca forests. Saldivar says that it is an initiative that the FCD has been clamoring for all along. John […]
Tonight we have another report on COP 24 in Poland where negotiations are expected to go into the weekend since not much progress has been made in creating the rules for how the Paris Agreement will be implemented. The agreement recognises that to cut emissions to lower global average temperature well below two degrees and […]
COP 24 is just a few days away from wrapping up and one of its big events that culminated today in Poland is the Talanoa Dialogue. It is a mechanism being used to help countries keep track of their climate change targets. This mechanism adopts the traditional style of the Pacific people. It brought countries […]
Belize has accepted the chairmanship of the Alliance of Small Island States. This week, during the COP24 in Katowice, Poland, Ambassador Lois Young accepted the leadership from the Maldives during a ministerial meeting. AOSIS was established back in 1990 – around the same time when climate change came to the fore. These same small countries […]
The severity of storms in the last two years in the region has displaced and disenfranchised thousands. But did you know that women are the ones most affected by these hurricanes and super storms? Droughts, floods, vector borne diseases and other issues resulting from climate change in the region has threatened the lives and reduced […]
Every year, the world comes together to attend the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. It is the largest gathering of international climate change policymakers who have committed to make changes to reduce the risks associated with a warming earth. This year’s COP24 is a technical summit as […]
In recent weeks, the Belize Federation of Fishers’ raised concerns about a number of developments in the fishing industry. The federation called out the Gillnet Task Group, saying that gillnet users are jeopardizing the livelihoods of fishermen. Well, another organization, the Belize Fishermen Cooperative Association, has come out swinging saying that the federation cannot make […]
…and on the matter of gillnets, Fuller and Dawson say fishers are not in agreement with a ban on gillnets. They note that fishers resoundingly agreed not to get rid of gillnets because they don’t believe it is causing any harm. In fact, they say gillnets are much needed in Belize since this form of […]
On Monday, the Belize Credit Union League signed a project with the Inter-American Development Bank Lab to boost climate resilience for farmers and fisherfolk through green microfinance in Belize. Under the Caribbean EcoMicro Programme, the League and three of its credit union affiliates will receive technical assistance to design and pilot adaptation finance that will […]
The Caribbean Community Climate Change Centre, through the U.S. AID-funded Climate Change Adaptation Programme, launched its Light Detection and Ranging system today in Belize City. The system, known as LiDAR will help to significantly boost the Caribbean’s ability to limit the devastation of climate change by improving its capability to monitor and plan for physical […]
Friends of Conservation and Development held its nineteenth annual general meeting on Sunday in San Ignacio Town. The AGM, which was held at the San Ignacio Hotel Resort, was well attended. Chief Executive Officer in the Ministry of National Security, Felix Enriquez reiterated support for F.C.D. as it strives to maintain stability in the Chiquibul […]
The 2018 Atlantic hurricane season has ended and there is a sigh of relief in Belize. The season was forecasted to be normal to slightly above normal in the Atlantic Basin. It turned out to be above normal, more specifically in the North Atlantic region. Of the eight hurricanes which formed, two developed into hurricane […]
The C.C.C.C.C., headquartered in Belmopan deals with the environmental concerns of the entire Caribbean. On Wednesday, in San Ignacio, ground was broken for the construction of a resource and resiliency centre that will be working to reduce the carbon footprint of San Ignacio and five surrounding villages in the west. The construction is being funded […]
