"Scientists are raising the alarm about the possible environmental consequences of a huge shipping canal that could cut across Nicaragua, from the Pacific to the Atlantic."

"The government of this Central American nation has signed a deal with a Chinese company that is planning to build a maritime shortcut that would compete with the Panama Canal. Construction could begin next year — yet there's no official route for the canal and no assessment of its potential impacts on the environment.

So far, the plan hasn't triggered much concern among international conservation groups. There have been many plans in the past to build a canal across Nicaragua, and none of them has borne fruit. But this time could be different."

Richard Harris reports for NPR's All Things Considered February 20, 2014. [2]