The Stream, August 15: Cholera Spreads in Somalia

A cholera epidemic is spreading in drought- and famine-hit Somalia, Reuters reported, citing the World Health Organization. Although seasonal cholera outbreaks are not unusual for the country, the number of cases is two to three times higher than last year.

Pollution
Authorities in China’s northeastern city of Dalian ordered the immediate shutdown of a chemical plant after tens of thousands of residents took to the streets demanding the factory be moved over pollution fears, AFP reported.

It could take 30 years and at least $1 billion to clean Nigeria’s Ogoniland from almost two decades of oil spills, according to a United Nations report. In some areas, the drinking water is contaminated with 900 times as much benzene, a carcinogen, as is deemed safe by the World Health Organization, The Economist reported.

Hydropower
Time Magazine takes on the discussion about the proposed Xayaburi Dam on the Mekong River in Laos.

Russia completed the construction of an abandoned Soviet-era dam complex in Saint Petersburg designed to protect the city from potentially devastating floods, according to Reuters.

Aung San Suu Kyi, Nobel laureate and leader of Burma’s pro-democracy opposition, has called for the suspension of a controversial Chinese hydropower project on the Irrawaddy River, Burma’s most important waterway, the Guardian reported. A cascade of at least seven dams is planned for the river.

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