International
Pollution turns Argentina lake bright pink
AFP
A lagoon in Argentina’s southern Patagonia region has turned bright pink in a striking, but frightful phenomenon experts and activists blame on pollution by a chemical used to preserve prawns for export.
The color is caused by sodium sulfite, an anti-bacterial product used in fish factories, whose waste is blamed for contaminating the Chubut river that feeds the Corfo lagoon and other water sources in the region, according to activists.
Residents have long complained of foul smells and other environmental issues around the river and lagoon.
“Those who should be in control are the ones who authorize the poisoning of people,” environmental activist Pablo Lada told AFP, blaming the government for the mess.
The lagoon turned pink last week and remained the abnormal color on Sunday, said Lada, who lives in the city of Trelew, not far from the lagoon and some 870 miles (1,400 kilometers) south of Buenos Aires.
Environmental engineer and virologist Federico Restrepo told AFP the coloration was due to sodium sulfite in fish waste, which by law, should be treated before being dumped.
The lagoon, which is not used for recreation, receives runoff from the Trelew industrial park and has turned the color of fuchsia before.
But residents of the area are fed up.
In recent weeks, residents of Rawson, neighboring Trelew, blocked roads used by trucks carrying processed fish waste through their streets to treatment plants on the city’s outskirts.
“We get dozens of trucks daily, the residents are getting tired of it,” said Lada.
With Rawson off limits due to the protest, provincial authorities granted authorization for factories to dump their waste instead in the Corfo lagoon.
“The reddish color does not cause damage and will disappear in a few days,” environmental control chief for Chubut province, Juan Micheloud, told AFP last week.
Sebastian de la Vallina, planning secretary for the city of Trelew disagreed: “It is not possible to minimize something so serious.”
Plants that process fish for export, mainly prawns and hake, generate thousands of jobs for Chubut province, home to some 600,000 people.
Dozens of foreign fishing companies operate in the area in waters under Argentina’s Atlantic jurisdiction.
“Fish processing generates work… it’s true. But these are multi-million-dollar profit companies that don’t want to pay freight to take the waste to a treatment plant that already exists in Puerto Madryn, 35 miles away, or build a plant closer,” said Lada.
International
U.S. Senate Rejects Budget, Bringing Government Closer to Shutdown Amid DHS Dispute
The U.S. Senate voted on Thursday against a budget proposal in a move aimed at pressuring changes at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), following the killing of two civilians during a deployment of immigration agents in Minneapolis.
All Senate Democrats and seven Republican lawmakers voted against the bill, which requires 60 votes to advance, pushing the country closer to a partial government shutdown that would cut funding for several agencies, including the Pentagon and the Department of Health.
The rejection came as Senate leaders and the White House continue negotiations on a separate funding package for DHS that would allow reforms to the agency. Proposed measures include banning Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents from wearing face coverings and requiring them to use body-worn cameras during operations.
The vote took place just hours after President Donald Trump said he was “close” to reaching an agreement with Democrats and did not believe the federal government would face another shutdown, following last year’s record stoppage.
“I don’t think the Democrats want a shutdown either, so we’ll work in a bipartisan way to avoid it. Hopefully, there will be no government shutdown. We’re working on that right now,” Trump said during a Cabinet meeting at the White House.
International
Trump Says Putin Agreed to One-Week Halt in Attacks on Ukraine Amid Extreme Cold
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday that he secured a commitment from Russian President Vladimir Putinto halt attacks against Ukraine for one week, citing extreme weather conditions affecting the region.
“Because of the extreme cold (…) I personally asked Putin not to attack Kyiv or other cities and towns for a week. And he agreed. He was very pleasant,” Trump said during a Cabinet meeting broadcast by the White House.
Trump acknowledged that several advisers had questioned the decision to make the call.
“A lot of people told me not to waste the call because they wouldn’t agree. And he accepted. And we’re very happy they did, because they don’t need missiles hitting their towns and cities,” the president said.
According to Trump, Ukrainian authorities reacted with surprise to the announcement but welcomed the possibility of a temporary ceasefire.
“It’s extraordinarily cold, record cold (…) They say they’ve never experienced cold like this,” he added.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky later commented on the announcement, expressing hope that the agreement would be honored.
International
Storm Kristin Kills Five in Portugal, Leaves Nearly 500,000 Without Power
Storm Kristin, which battered Portugal with heavy rain and strong winds early Wednesday, has left at least five people dead, while nearly half a million residents remained without electricity as of Thursday, according to updated figures from authorities.
The revised death toll was confirmed to AFP by a spokesperson for the National Emergency and Civil Protection Authority (ANPEC). On Wednesday, the agency had reported four fatalities.
Meanwhile, E-Redes, the country’s electricity distribution network operator, said that around 450,000 customers were still without power, particularly in central Portugal.
Emergency services responded to approximately 1,500 incidents between midnight and 8:00 a.m. local time on Wednesday, as the storm caused widespread disruptions.
The Portuguese government described Kristin as an “extreme weather event” that inflicted significant damage across several regions of the country. At the height of the storm, as many as 850,000 households and institutions lost electricity during the early hours of Wednesday.
Several municipalities ordered the closure of schools, many of which remained shut on Thursday due to ongoing adverse conditions.
Ricardo Costa, regional deputy commander of the Leiria Fire Brigade, said residents continue to seek assistance as rainfall persists.
“Even though the rain is not extremely intense, it is causing extensive damage to homes,” he noted.
In Figueira da Foz, a coastal city in central Portugal, strong winds toppled a giant Ferris wheel, underscoring the severity of the storm.
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