Surface Water Strategy is Imperative

By: Henry Venema 04/4/2012 - Winnipeg Free Press
What a difference a year makes. Last year at this time, all of southern Manitoba was in various stages of panic as forecasts revealed just how bad the 2011 flood might be. 

Details here.                                 Shellmouth dam - flood of 2011. PLT photo
PLT: I defer to your expertise on this topic, Dr. Venema. But I do have a question for you, if you read this. Did the IISD itself not (prophetically), a few years ago, come out with a report(s), warning of increased extreme weather such as floods and droughts on the Prairies, DUE TO ANTHROPOGENIC CLIMATE CHANGE? You do not mention this in your article, this time. Is this not rather significant? Such climate change is caused by humans, burning too many fossil fuels, is it not? Have you and the Institute given up on reminding the public that this is a fact of life? I'm sure what you suggest in your article is valid - managing our surface waters in a sustainable way. But just how far will such measures go if we do nothing to attack this root-cause? Would love to hear your comments on this!

Texas Tornadoes Spark Climate Change Discussion (Video)

PLT: Right! Seeing loaded semis hurtling through the air is not that unusual, is it? Only in the fevered brain of a climate-denier!

Harperites Cast a Long Shadow Over Canada's Natural Places

EcoJustice 

Last week, our Finance Minister stood up in the House of Commons and made good on the rumours. The federal government is going to use the budget to change Canada’s environmental laws and speed up approvals          Jasper Nat'l. Park PLT photo 
for “major economic projects” – including Enbridge’s Northern Gateway pipeline and other industrial development. Details here.

Organic Growers to Appeal Court Loss Against Monsanto

Manitoba Co-Operator  

Non-GMO plaintiffs wanted company to waive any future patent claim. Details here.

Federal Budget a Disaster for the Environment, MPs Say

John Size, CTVNews.ca Staff  
The federal budget dealt a massive blow to the environmental movement and will result in protests across the country, two opposition MPs say. Details here.

The Bee’s Needs

Miranda Holmes - the Common Sense Canadian
When the final tally is done on humanity’s many post-Industrial Revolution screw ups, it is likely that the top of the list will be: They let the bees die. Details here.




Many foods, including apples, depend on 
pollinators, like bees, to produce. PLT photo

Pesticides Linked to Honeybee Decline - Again

Mar 29th - the Guardian

The first study conducted in a natural environment has shown that systemic pesticides damage bees' ability to navigate. Details here.
  PinP photo

PinP: And the beat goes on! Meanwhile, the honeybee killers roam our streets, apparently not even on parole, but with complete pardons!
Please also read: "Are Canada's Pesticide Regulators on the Take? Authorities Refuse to Protect Precious Pollinators from Known Toxins. Is Something Crooked Going on Here?" 
Below is a summary of the scientific study, itself. It adds yet another layer of proof to the fear that these chemicals render the bees incapable of navigating & finding their way back to the hives. Hence, the piece in the "Colony Collapse Disorder" puzzle, involving disappearing bees, seems now to have been found! So what are we waiting for? Extinctions? 
Criminal charges must surely be in order now!  
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"Nonlethal exposure of honey bees to thiamethoxam (neonicotinoid systemic pesticide) causes high mortality due to homing failure at levels that could put a colony at risk of collapse. Simulated exposure events on free-ranging foragers labeled with an RFID tag suggest that homing is impaired by thiamethoxam intoxication. These experiments offer new insights into the consequences of common neonicotinoid pesticides used worldwide." 
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Please also read: Chemical Giants, "Regulators" & Politicians Fiddle While Honeybees Die!