An expanded Panama Canal opens for giant ships

A mammoth ship bearing 9,472 containers, on Sunday will become the first vessel to officially pass through the new expanded Panama Canal, a $5.25 billion project designed to modernize a 102-year-old landmark. Others worry about the ability of the nearly 300 canal pilots to safely guide the new giant ships through the snug locks and channels.

Mangrove forest in SW China endangered

The vast tracts of mangrove forest in the Beibu Gulf of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region have been almost erased by the immense construction of marine reclamation lands and industrial plants.