Cargo Business Techwire

Friday, September 25, 2015

Delays plague $50B Nicaragua Canal project

Construction on the $50 billion Nicaragua Canal has been pushed back to the first quarter of 2016 due to new environmental mitigation measures, a project official has said.

Paul Oquist, executive director of the government’s canal commission, said that four additional studies to identify new mitigation requirements have been recommended by UK-based Environmental Resources Management, one of the canal’s environmental assessment contractors.

"We and (Nicaragua president Daniel Ortega) have made the decision that all studies recommended by

the environmental groups have to be undertaken," Oquist said in Washington, DC at a forum sponsored by the Council of the Americas, according to IHS Maritime 360.

Oquist added: "No stone will be left unturned in terms of the environmental elements."

Scientists who have criticized the quality of ERM’s work on the environmental impact study will likely welcome the surprise announcement.

For more of the Construction Review story: www.globalconstructionreview.com