PLANET IN PERIL

The Washington Post The much-heralded demise of the coal industry may be overstated, a new scientific analysis asserts — finding that if all planned plants were constructed, the world would have little chance of meeting its climate change goals. Story here. Dave Johnson coal-fired power plant,  central Wyoming  Greg Goebel  from  Loveland CO, USA

EcoWatch As Mark Mattson waited to speak to Canada's minister for the environment, Catherine McKenna, about the  Great Lakes  last December, he could feel the weight of the 184-page report he carried in his shoulder bag. More here.

EcoWatch Oil from the stricken oil tanker Sanchi, which exploded and sank in the East China Sea, may have now reached the shores of Japan, according to the country's Coast Guard. More here.

OTTAWA - Sierra Club Canada Foundation is disappointed, but not surprised, that Federal Environment Minister Catherine McKenna approved up to seven exploratory drill wells for BP off Nova Scotia yesterday. The leases where BP will be drilling are located 48 km from Sable Island National Park and 71 km from the Gully Marine Protected Area, home to the Northern bottlenose whale and deep-sea corals. "I wish I could say I was shocked, but sadly I'm not," stated Gretchen Fitzgerald, National Program Director of Sierra Club Canada Foundation.  "This project could  result in a massive blow out on the East coast, one  that  we are not prepared nor equipped  to deal with. Even under the best  conditions,  BP says it will take two weeks to cap a well.  That's two weeks  for oil to flow,  threatening whales, fish, birds, and fisheries." The Environmental Assessment Report for the project indicates that in  case of  a spill, oil could  rea

Dogwood Leaving an ocean of fire, and the largest oil spill since 1991 in its wake, MV Sanchi exploded and then sank to the bottom of the Pacific on January 14. As two of Asia’s most powerful countries stood by — BC got a firsthand look at just how easy it is to sink an oil tanker. More here. World Maritime News photo.

NATIONAL OBSERVER    PinP photo. Some birds have been forced to change their tune as a result of noise pollution from oil and  gas drilling, new research  from the University of Manitoba has found.  More here.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     

U.S. National Academy Sciences A Wikimedia photo. Across North America, streams and rivers are becoming saltier, and freshwater bodies, more alkaline, all thanks to human activity. According to a new study, salty compounds like road de-icers and fertilizers, which make their way into rivers, are significantly changing the salinity levels of the waters in the United States and southern Canada. Researchers analyzed the data recorded at 232 U.S. Geological Survey monitoring sites across the country over the past 50 years. It's the first study to simultaneously account for multiple salt ions — such as sodium, calcium, magnesium and potassium — in freshwater across the United States and southern Canada. The results suggest that salt ions, damaging in their own right, are driving up the pH of freshwater as well, making it more alkaline.

the guardian Colossal funding in manufacturing plants by fossil fuel companies will increase plastic production by 40%, risking permanent pollution of the earth. Story here. RELATED:  Big oil invests $180B in plastics, merging two planet-killing industries

|NATIONAL |OBSERVER Canada has chosen an alternate site for a critical air pollution research station that was shuttered in June, but almost a year will have passed before it's operational again. Story here.

YaleEnvironment360 A loophole in carbon-accounting rules is spurring a boom in burning wood pellets in European power plants. The result has been a surge in logging, particularly in the U.S. South, and new doubts about whether Europe can meet its commitments under the Paris accord.   Story here. PinP photo   PinP photo.

EurekAlert! Photo courtesy of  http://beautifuldestruction.ca Wildfires, cigarette smoking and vehicles all emit a potentially harmful compound called isocyanic acid. The substance has been linked to several health conditions, including heart disease and cataracts. Scientists investigating sources of the compound have now identified off-road diesel vehicles in oil sands production in Alberta, Canada, as a major contributor to regional levels of the pollutant. Story here.

CBC news UBC researchers found BMAA toxin in high concentrations in 25% of algal blooms tested in Manitoba lake. Story here. Lake Winnipeg. Greenpeace photo. A FOOTNOTE: In the interests of fairness and accuracy, it should be pointed out that it was Eva Pip, a long-time water expert at the University of Winnipeg, and a colleague who are on the record as first confirming BMAA in Lake Winnipeg, NOT the BC research team referenced in the CBC story.   PinP Find Prof. Pip's research here.

DESMOG Clovelly Oil is not quite a household name, as far as oil and natural gas companies go, though it recently gained attention when its oil and natural gas storage rig exploded on October 15 in Louisiana. Story here.

EcoWatch Wildfires like this can send harmful air particles continent-wide. Wikimedia Commons. "For decades,  pollution  and its harmful effects on people's health, the environment, and the planet have been neglected both by Governments and the international development agenda. Yet, pollution is the largest environmental cause of disease and death in the world today, responsible for an estimated 9 million premature deaths."  Story here. RELATED: Please watch my TV newscast, below, which aired some months ago. A segment contained within it references the severe cost of pollution on the world's population.

|NATIONAL OBSERVER Ron Plain will most likely be dead in 24 months. In November 2016, his doctors diagnosed him with a rare form of cancer… Story here.

NATIONAL  OBSERVER This investigation is the first chapter in an  unprecedented series   investigating the power and influence of the oil and gas industry, and its impacts on Canadian communities. Story here. A Trans Canada Pipeline facility in Nebraska. shannonpatrick17 Nebraska, U.S.A.

Nation of Change Living within a 1/2 mile of these production facilities is clearly correlated with negative health impacts. Story here. PinP photo.

ScienceNews As governments decide what to do about air quality, studies connect an array of health problems to dirty air. Story here.

EcoWatch Photo of a dead zone with sediment from the Mississippi River  carrying fertilizer to the Gulf of Mexico. Photo by NOAA. Scientists predict  that so much pollution is pouring into the Gulf of Mexico this year that it is creating a larger-than-ever " dead zone " in which low to no oxygen can suffocate or kill fish and other marine life. Details here.

The Western Producer Several cattle producers along the Wood River in south-central Saskatchewan have to move about 1,000 head to different pastures after water quality in the river declined unexpectedly. Story here.