Canada’s Sickest Lake

by Nancy Macdonald Summer, 2009 _Macleans Magazine

Living, toxic goo is killing lakes the world over. It may be too late for Lake Winnipeg.

Please also read; "Phosphorus Levels Spike...."
& "Lake of the Prairies, the New Lake Winnipeg?

Another Succesful Harvest Moon Festival - but is Bigger Always Better?

Reminding Manitobans of the Value of the Land -
by Larry Powell

This year, more people than ever descended on Clearwater, not far from the US border, transforming the tiny community into a teeming centre of live entertainment and education.

It was the 8th annual event of its kind, during the weekend of Sept. 18th.

While attendance figures aren't available, an organizer, Robert Guildford, (r.) told me, the first day was the biggest Friday ever for the festival.

The yearly event is organized by the Harvest Moon Society, a non-profit organization. Its mission is to build awareness of the contributions of farmers and farmlands to the development of vibrant rural and urban cultures.
A father enjoys the
music with his child.
An important component is education.
The Society conducts classes and workshops out of the old Clearwater School on topics such as eco-agriculture. It also hopes to develop an action plan for long-term rural sustainability, both environmental and economic. Part of the plan includes value-added processing & direct marketing to generate income for all participating community members.

The outdoor market.
(All photos by l.p.)

This would be done through ventures such as a flax and hemp seed plant, a flour mill and a local producer co-op to grow switch grass for alternative energy.

But is Bigger Always Better?

Our overall experience at the Festival was decidedly positive. However, the age-old question still needs to be asked again.
Is bigger always better?
If an attendance of, say 500 is good, is one thousand twice as good?
Let's all hope that the event (organized ironically by folks who embrace small farms as opposed to "industrial agri-biz,") does not become a victim of its own success!
I am reproducing, below, an email exchange between myself and a festival official soon after it ended. l.p.

========

-------Original Message-------

From: lpowell

Date: 20/09/2009 5:17:23 PM

To: celiaguilford

Subject: FestivalSecurity

Hi Celia.

We attended the festival Sat. afternoon & thoroughly enjoyed it. As organic producers, we appreciate the message and idea behind the event. You have come a long way and deserve a lot of credit.

However, our experience in the quiet campground that night was somewhat different. About 4 in the morning, a group of loud partiers set up shop near the entrance.

At one point, a vehicle screeched at high speed past our tent. After some time of loud partying & amplified music, with no sign of a letup, we packed up our tent & left. We went back to the main entrance on our way out but there was no sign of any security.

While it is good to see your event grow in popularity to the point it has, it would seem your security may also need to be stepped up accordingly. (Perhaps the inclusion of a 'phone number for security on your program would be helpful.)

Thanks and and continued success in the future.

Sincerely,

Larry & Rowena Powell
=====

Hello Larry and Rowena, I am so sorry this happened to you. I want to thank you for letting us know, and we will factor this into next years festival planning for sure. Thanks for coming to the festival, and I hope this does not prevent you from joining us again. Sincerely, Celia

Support Greepeace - Oppose the Tar Sands!

UPDATE: GREENPEACE Int'l.-Se. 21 '09 Stop the tar sands.

Greenpeace activists stop climate crime in the tar sands.

On September 15th 25 activists entered the Albian mining operation in the tar sands of northern Alberta, Canada and staged a 31 hour occupation - successfully shutting down the entire operation. They were there because developing the tar sands - one of largest remaining deposits of unconventional oil in the world - is pushing us towards runaway climate change. Learn more and support our campaign to stop the tar sands.

WTO Takes Aim at the Canadian Wheat Board

MB Co-Operator - Staff 9/18/2009

World Trade Organization talks resuming this week in Switzerland include a proposal to eliminate the Canadian Wheat Board’s ....

l.p. photo

Mine to Turn Alaskan Lake Into a Dump

September 18, 2009 - by Lori Pottinger

• From September 2009 World Rivers Review

Recent federal rulings permitting a gold mining company to dump toxic waste into a pristine mountain lake in Alaska could have widespread ramifications...
Eds. note: Might the U.S. mining industry be taking its cue from Canada? Here, Harper and his gang gave approval some time ago for the same kind of deplorable practice! l.p.

A Manitoba lake, unaffected
by tailings (yet)! l.p. photo

Why Did Monsanto's Latest GM Foods Get a Free Pass Into Canada?

By Lucy Sharratt - Se. 10 '09 - Rabble.ca

Health Canada has begun permitting genetically modified foods onto the market without...
Please also read "Many Farmers Don't Want GM Wheat."

This GM "rogue" canola has spread

as a weed onto an organic acreage.
It's now a huge & expensive headache
for western farmers because it is
resistant to Roundup . (l.p. photo)

Population Growth Steady in the Face of a Changing Climate

Se. 18 - '09 Worldwatch Institute.

The human population is growing somewhat more rapidly than demographers had expected--pointing to uncertainty in the commonly cited U.N. projection of 9.1 billion by 2050--amid a convergence of trends that include decreased funding for family planning services, fertility levels well above replacement level in many countries, and improvements in life expectancy for people living with HIV. According to the latest Vital Signs, population projections also fail to account for the impacts of global climate change, which are expected to most adversely affect people in developing countries.

Read: Population Growth Steady in Recent Years by Robert Engelman

(l.) Children take refuge in a cyclone
shelter in Bangladesh/BBC
World Service Bangladesh Boat

Not More People, But More for All People "...those who bear children should be the ones, more than anyone else, to decide when to do so. The rest will work itself out... Wanting not more people, but more for all people, we might find ourselves at home again, with more nature than we thought possible."--Robert Engelman, More: Population, Nature, and What Women Want.

Worldwatch is working to slow, and ultimately end, the unsustainable growth of world population--a critical force behind many of today's most serious problems. Worldwatch Vice President and population expert Robert Engelman is lead author of the U.N. Population Fund's 2009 report State of World Population, which will highlight the linkages among population, gender, and climate change. This authoritative report will be distributed to policymakers around the world and made accessible electronically to hundreds of thousands of people. The population message must be heard if we are to achieve a sustainable world, so please support this critical work by making a gift today.

Consumers Pay More, Farmers Get Less

By: Laura Rance - Winnipeg Free Press - 12/09/2009

Move to buy local can be beneficial to both....

Farmers' Market in Regina, SK.
Photo by L.P.

Listeria Report Leads to $75M for Food Safety

Staff - MB Co-Operator -9/13/2009

Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz and Health Minister Leona Aglukkaq on Friday pledged $75 million for investments in Canada's food safety system.
A woman works to sterilize meat processing and packaging equipment at the Maple Leaf Foods plant in Toronto in a file photo. Photograph by: Mark Blinch, Reuters

Clean Water Laws Are Neglected, at a Cost in Suffering

By CHARLES DUHIGG - NY Times - Se. 12, 2009 Toxic Waters

Jennifer Hall-Massey's youngest son has scabs on his arms, legs and chest...

Alberta's Tarsands Emissions Higher Than Some Countries

Mary Jo Laforest - Canadian Press. Se. 13 '09

Photo courtesy Nat'l. Geographic
Alberta's oilsands produce more greenhouse gas emissions than some European...