World Bank

As I get ready to head up to Nevada City, CA for screenings of Patagonia Rising at the Wild & Scenic Film Festival today, I can't help but reflect on the current state of the campaign to protect Patagonia from the HidroAysén dams and transmission lines.

The Supreme Court of Chile heard the case against HidroAysén on Friday December 23, 2011. A verdict is expected sometime this month, although the court could be sneaky and issue their ruling in February, when everyone in Chile is on vacation (think August in Europe and the US), and the likelihood of mass protests would be at its lowest. Once the court rules, the Council of Ministers will issue their opinion on the matter. Since this is a part of the new legislation from 2010, no one is quite sure what to expect from the Council of Ministers, and what kind of weight their opinion will have in the matter.

HidroAysén has pushed back the date for turning in the transmission line EIA yet again, now saying they will likely submit it in June of 2012.

The idiocy of carbon credits. (Nitrozac and Snaggy - joyoftech.com)

The Independent Evaluation Group (IEG), a wing of the World Bank charged with assessing the Bank's activities, has advised the Bank to stop buying carbon credits from hydropower projects because "it has minimal impact on project bankability".  We've known all along that hydro credits are NOT additional.

Meles Zenawi and Italy's Foreign Minister inaugurate Gilgel Gibe 2

On Jan. 13, Ethiopia's Prime Minister Meles Zenawi inaugurated the Gilgel Gibe 2 scheme, the country's biggest hydropower project. "It is possible to speed up development without polluting the environment," Zenawi proudly declared as he cut the ceremonial ribbon. Yet this was wishful thinking.

A new short documentary by the Dutch group BothEnds offers a clear, concise "you are there" view of problems being caused by the Bujagali Dam, now being built on the Nile River in Uganda. This well-done piece of activist filmmaking shows the viewer firsthand what is at stake in this controversial project. You'll see what the dam will flood, visit a village forced to move for the project, hear from Ugandans who hope their businesses can afford the project's costly electricity, and see the beautiful Bujagali Falls themselves – soon to be submerged by the dam. People on both sides of the debate give thoughtful commentary on key issues – all against the backdrop of the mighty Nile.

The video comes at a time when activists in Europe and Uganda have teamed up to call the European Investment Bank (EIB) to task for its role in the controversial project. A team from the EIB will visit Uganda next week to investigate the complaint, lodged by Uganda's preeminent

NAPE staff and Terri Hathaway (Int. Rivers), Uganda

environmental group, the National Association of Professional Environmentalists, or NAPE. This is the third such official complaint about the project by the group, which also lodged complaints with the World Bank and African Development Bank. Although these institutions' investigators substantiated key concerns raised by NAPE, the banks have taken few steps to resolve the problems. It seems they see their independent "inspection panels" as little more than suggestion boxes. Perhaps the third time will be the charm for these dogged activists.

Dan Rather (ClizBiz on Flickr)

Renowned TV anchor Dan Rather has done an excellent episode of his cable news show exploring the scams and stupidities of carbon offsetting.