The Costa Rica News (TCRN) – The world’s next megaproject just broke ground in Nicaragua: a 172 mile transoceanic canal that will connect the Pacific to the Atlantic while offering all the amenities you could hope for in-between.
The official groundbreaking ceremony was held on December 22, 2014 in Brito, Nicaragua (on the Pacific side of the country) and hosted by Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega and the canal’s Chinese beneficiary, Wang Jing, both enthusiastically talking about how the canal would change the face and fortune of Nicaragua for nothing but the better.
Some could say that this project is a longtime coming, since Nicaragua was second runner up to its southern counterpart, Panama, for the original American-built canal in 1902.
However, since its approval last year, the canal has been met with mixed reactions. Many believe that it’s the key to take the county out of its long running poverty streak while others are incredibly concerned about the environmental impact seeing as how it will destroy delicate wetlands and rainforest, even cutting through Lake Nicaragua, the country’s largest fresh body of water.
On the immediate plus side, the construction of the canal will create 50,000 jobs through HKND Group, the Chinese company chosen to build the project. Once built, the company is also estimating that the canal will employ about 200,000 people.
To avoid the Panama Canal health disasters that occurred at the turn of the century, Nicaragua is already preparing to ramp up its healthcare system in anticipation of the influx of visitors. Plans for new hospitals in San Carlos, San Miguelito and New Guinea are already underway.
The Nicaragua Canal is expected to take five years to complete and will cost about $50 billion. In the end, the canal will be 278 kilometers long, 30 meters deep, and range from 230-520 meters wide. In addition, the new waterway will be a direct path to tourism, featuring luxuries such as a private airport, and two sub-ports complete with free trade shopping areas and a resort.
The Costa Rica News (TCRN)
San Jose, Costa Rica