Nicaragua's Canal Project Pushes Forward Despite Economic, Environmental Questions

It’s a centuries-old dream that may finally become reality: a trans-oceanic waterway across Nicaragua. It’s a massive engineering project that could redefine the future of the Western Hemisphere's second-poorest country. If all goes according to the Nicaraguan government’s plan, the digging could begin as soon as December of this year as workers begin forging a new canal to rival Panama's.

But if this possibility has Nicaragua’s leaders already tallying the potential benefits, not everyone is celebrating. Local communities and international observers fret that murky details, dubious economic benefits and a host of potentially devastating environmental consequences could make the canal the latest misfortune to befall a country that has not lacked for troubles....

For starters, many observers aren’t sure the canal’s construction will even happen. “If you take the engineering issues, the environmental issues, the fact that we’re dealing with a regime that is not going to be in office forever, you can’t guarantee that your investment is going to be respected,” said Eric Farnsworth, vice president of the Americas Society/Council of the Americas, based in New York. “There’s healthy skepticism that at the end of the day it would be built.”

“I just don’t see what the purpose for it is,” said Farnsworth, who puts the odds of the canal being built at less than 50 percent....

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