i don't have the answer why they want to do it. >> from the shoreline of lake nicaragua we could make out the silhouette of the lake's two volcanoes. seismologists are also concerned about earthquakes. the region is an active zone. engineering a canal would have to take earth movements into account. >> so these are the 3 most important fault zones and the canal is hitting 2 of them... 2 of the 3? >> yes. >> the people of cardenas live a simple life. a canal would dramatically change all that, in more ways than just their water supply. coming up: who is wang jing? the man behind the canal project goes center stage. >> the date is july 7, 2014. on stage is the chinese billionaire behind the ambitious nicaraguan canal project. he speaks through an interpreter, but his message is clear. this video- posted on you tube - shows what the canal will look like -- with ships entering from the pacific coast, making their way into the brito locks. these locks are similar to the ones techknow saw under construction in panama's new canal locks, complete with basins to capture and conserve water. tec

we are here in the middle of lake nicaragua, one of the national newspapers took something like this to the lake, a depth finder. they went up and down the proposed canal route. what they found, it's shallow, much too shallow for any of those giant super tankers. >> this documentary from the nicaraguan newspaper. >> they would have to dig out 20 meters. where are they going to put it? what does that mean for the lake? there needs to be more studies done. >> judging by the conditions we saw, dredging would be a nightmare, something dr. montenegro showed us on his computer. >> that's the wind going across the canal. yes? >> so the canal is bad for the lake, the lake is bad for the canal. >> very bad. >> so why do you think they still want to do this? >> i don't have the answer why they want to do this. >> in los angeles, i'm phil torres, for al jazeera. >> you can see the full report on the great divide this saturday an techno at 5:30 p.m. eastern. >> we continue following breaking news from mali this hour. gunman attacking a luxury hotel in the capital, at least 137 people are still he