More than 15,000 scientists from 184 countries issue 'warning to humanity'

CBCnews

A similar warning was first issued by scientists in 1992. Story here.

Aftermath of Hurricane Maria - 2017.
Photo by Filo gèn'

Door opens to hog expansion in the Canadian province of Manitoba

Manitoba Co-operator

Anaerobic digesters out, new barns in. Story here.

RELATED: More alarm bells sound over drug usage in the world’s intensive livestock operations.

Thousands of pigs die as southern Manitoba hog barn goes up in flames

CBCnews

Fire commissioner's office investigating the cause of the blaze. Story here.

Climate Change Health Impacts Demand Urgent Action

Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment 

“The human symptoms of climate change are unequivocal and potentially irreversible – affecting the health of populations around the world, today. Whilst these effects will disproportionately impact the most vulnerable in society, every community will be affected.” Details here.

Wildfires in Portugal. Wikimedia Commons.

Animal Farmers & Others - Use Antibiotics Responsibly! WHO

9 November 2017, Geneva/Rome/Paris - In the lead-up to World Antibiotic Awareness Week (13-19 November 2017), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the World Health Organization (WHO) and the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) are together calling for responsible use of antibiotics in humans and animals to reduce the emergence of antibiotic resistance.

Antibiotic resistance is rising to dangerously high levels in all parts of the world and threatening our ability to treat common infectious diseases. Infections affecting people – including pneumonia, tuberculosis, blood poisoning and gonorrhoea – and animals alike are becoming harder, and sometimes impossible, to treat as antibiotics become less effective.

Antibiotics are often overprescribed by physicians and veterinarians and overused by the public. Where they can be bought for human or animal use without a prescription, the emergence and spread of resistance is made worse. Examples of misuse include taking antibiotics for viral infections like colds and flu, and using them as animal growth promoters on farms or in aquaculture.

To tackle these problems, WHO, FAO and OIE are leveraging their expertise and working together in a ‘One Health’ approach to promote best practices to reduce the emergence and spread of antibiotic-resistant microbes in both humans and animals.

“Antibiotic resistance is a global crisis that we cannot ignore,” says Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of WHO. “If we don’t tackle this threat with strong, coordinated action, antimicrobial resistance will take us back to a time when people feared common infections and risked their lives from minor surgery."

“The overuse of antimicrobials blunts their effectiveness, and we must reduce their misuse in food systems,” says José Graziano da Silva, Director-General of FAO. “Antimicrobial veterinary medicines are a crucial tool for animal health and welfare and safe food production, but they are by no means the only tool.”

“Like in human health, veterinary medicine has tremendously progressed thanks to antibiotics. Preserving their efficacy and availability through their responsible use associated with good husbandry and prevention practices, is therefore essential to preserve animal health and welfare,” highlights Dr Monique Eloit, Director-General of OIE.
==============RELATED: More alarm bells sound over drug usage in the world's intensive livestock operations. Will Manitoba listen?

Stephen Hawking Says Earth Will Become ‘Sizzling Ball of Fire’ in 600 Years

EcoWatch

PinP photo

Last year, scientist Stephen Hawking gave humans a shelf-life of 1,000 more years on Earth. Apparently, 2017 hasn't been to his liking—as Hawking shaved another 400 years off that prediction. Story here.

Made-in-Manitoba carbon tax falls short, says Arctic climate change expert

CBCnews

Sea-ice researcher David Barber argues provincial $25-per-tonne tax a good start but not aggressive enough. Story here.

The flooded rail line to Churchill. 
Photo by Omnitrax.