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| Nicaragua canal route: Atlantic-Pacific link unveiled | Nicaragua canal route: Atlantic-Pacific link unveiled |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| The Nicaraguan government and the company behind plans to build a canal linking the Atlantic and the Pacific Ocean have settled on a route. | The Nicaraguan government and the company behind plans to build a canal linking the Atlantic and the Pacific Ocean have settled on a route. |
| It would stretch 278km (173 miles) from Punta Gorda on the Caribbean through Lake Nicaragua to the mouth of the river Brito on the Pacific. | It would stretch 278km (173 miles) from Punta Gorda on the Caribbean through Lake Nicaragua to the mouth of the river Brito on the Pacific. |
| Environmentalists have expressed concerns about the plans to build a canal to rival that of Panama. | Environmentalists have expressed concerns about the plans to build a canal to rival that of Panama. |
| Nicaragua says it will break ground on the $40bn (£23bn) project this year. | Nicaragua says it will break ground on the $40bn (£23bn) project this year. |
| Environmental concerns | Environmental concerns |
| Engineers for the Hong Kong-based HKND Group said the canal would be between 230m and 520m wide and 27.6m deep. | Engineers for the Hong Kong-based HKND Group said the canal would be between 230m and 520m wide and 27.6m deep. |
| They said they had chosen the route so it would avoid areas of great biodiversity, indigenous territories and environmentally protected lands. | They said they had chosen the route so it would avoid areas of great biodiversity, indigenous territories and environmentally protected lands. |
| But environmentalists are still concerned about the effects it may have on Lake Nicaragua, Central America's largest lake and an important source of fresh water. | |
| The committee in charge of building the canal said environmental and social impact studies would be carried out on the route and changes would still be possible. | The committee in charge of building the canal said environmental and social impact studies would be carried out on the route and changes would still be possible. |
| It said it expected construction to begin in December and to be finished within five years. | It said it expected construction to begin in December and to be finished within five years. |
| 'No rivalry' | 'No rivalry' |
| Sceptics point out that it took the United States 10 years to build the Panama Canal, which at 77km is less than a third of the length of the planned canal through Nicaragua. | Sceptics point out that it took the United States 10 years to build the Panama Canal, which at 77km is less than a third of the length of the planned canal through Nicaragua. |
| But Nicaragua insists engineering and construction techniques have moved on since 1914, when the Panama Canal was completed. | But Nicaragua insists engineering and construction techniques have moved on since 1914, when the Panama Canal was completed. |
| Nicaraguan officials say their waterway would "complement" the Panama Canal rather than be in direct rivalry to it. | |
| They say a bigger canal is essential to allow for increased global trade and ever larger tankers, many of which are too large for the Panama Canal, even after its current expansion. | They say a bigger canal is essential to allow for increased global trade and ever larger tankers, many of which are too large for the Panama Canal, even after its current expansion. |
| They are confident the project will help lift the country out of poverty. | They are confident the project will help lift the country out of poverty. |
| Paul Oquist, a close adviser to President Daniel Ortega on the project, said that formal employment in Nicaragua "would double thanks to the canal and its multiplier effect". | Paul Oquist, a close adviser to President Daniel Ortega on the project, said that formal employment in Nicaragua "would double thanks to the canal and its multiplier effect". |
| Mr Oquist told the BBC that the projects surrounding the canal, such as the creation of two free-trade zones, two ports linked by a railway and an international airport would create "a formative change in job creation". | Mr Oquist told the BBC that the projects surrounding the canal, such as the creation of two free-trade zones, two ports linked by a railway and an international airport would create "a formative change in job creation". |
| The government estimates it will lift more than 400,000 people out of general poverty by 2018 with the help of revenues created by the project. | The government estimates it will lift more than 400,000 people out of general poverty by 2018 with the help of revenues created by the project. |
| Opposition lawmakers have been sceptical of the government's projections. | Opposition lawmakers have been sceptical of the government's projections. |
| Congressman Eliseo Nunez of the Independent Liberal Party called the announcement of the canal route "a propaganda game, a media show to continue generating false hopes of future prosperity among Nicaraguans". | Congressman Eliseo Nunez of the Independent Liberal Party called the announcement of the canal route "a propaganda game, a media show to continue generating false hopes of future prosperity among Nicaraguans". |