What's different, and worse, about the smoke from the L.A. fires

CBC News

Lungs, heart, brain and more at risk, doctors say. Story here.

CLIMATE MORONS

By Larry Powell

 In a sane world, the American people would be holding Trump's feet to the (wild) fire for doing absolutely nothing, or, should I say, ALL THE WRONG THINGS regarding our rapidly-worsening climate calamity. As flames consume the LA area - he's nominated AN ADAMENT CLIMATE DENIER - the CEO of a fracking co. - as Energy Secretary! The best this master finger-pointer (Trump) can do is, as usual, blame others who actually grasp the science, like the Governor there or anyone else but himself. By boosting fracking & other disastrous energy projects, he's CULPABLE & has been since he first slithered into public life, for the weather disasters that have uprooted, killed, or ruined the lives of many Americans, his own "base" included. His ignorant hands are dirty and will remain so until either he or I die. Trump and the millions who voted for him are either just plain illiterate or wilfully (and maliciously) stupid in this regard. Meanwhile, any Canadian voices who might oppose him on this front are, sadly, missing in action. To commentators on the CBC, even among our emerging political leaders - it's all about the tariffs - nothing else. How do they expect our economy to endure on a landscape that's charred and lifeless? Oh, I know! Let's choose ANOTHER climate moron as our next national leader here in your country & mine!

That'll fix it!

Meta’s vision: more free speech — except for news

WINNIPEG FREE PRESS

I had to marvel earlier this week at the way Meta CEO Mark 

Zuckerberg trotted out the supposed founding vision of social media 

as a way to give people a voice as he announced changes to content 

moderation on Facebook. Details here.

PLANS FOR A PROJECT THAT WILL LIKELY BRING DISASTROUS ENVIRONMENTAL CONSEQUENCES TO MANITOBA, SLITHERS ITS WAY BACK ONTO THE PUBLIC AGENDA. (LETTER)

LETER BY JOHN FEFCHAK

 "In the months since Sio Silica was denied an environmental license to mine silica sand from southeastern Manitoba, the company has quietly regrouped, rebranded and begun laying the groundwork to reapply for provincial approval — starting with a push to win the support of Broken head Ojibway Nation."

The hanging sword of Damocles is upon us.

If a serious situation hangs by a thread, it means that even a change can decide what will happen and that a bad result such as death, failure, etc. is likely:

The phrase is now commonly used to describe a looming danger or precarious situation.

Has the stench of political scandal surrounding Sio Silica’s controversial quartz silica mine and processing plant doomed the project?

Remarkably, it still remains a live issue; even though it was rejected by the Kinew government in Feb. of 2024.

Even at the risk of contaminating the water aquifers for hundreds of thousand of people/ and creating massive sink holes, it is apparent that some officials are more interested and motivated in the 8000 ghost jobs that may be created in this catastrophic undertaking.

When will clearer minds prevail, to prevent this Armageddon from taking place? This is not an act of preserving and sustaining our water for the people of Manitoba.

Preserving our water sources is one of the most significant challenges facing the people of Manitoba, Canada and the world.

 

John Fefchak.

Virden, MB.

RELATED: 

UNSUSTAINABLE SAND MINING THREATENS A CRITICALLY-ENDANGERED CETATION

Beavers are the unsung heroes of wildfire prevention

Canada's National Observer

A PinP photo.

Beavers are the engineers of the forest. Best known for chewing down trees to build up dams, the animals change their surroundings in obvious ways: pointy stumps lie in their wake; piles of branches and mud peak over riverbeds. However, scientists are increasingly noticing another, less evident way they shift their environment: wildfire prevention.

Details here.

The Cost of Fossil Fuel Reliance: Governments provided $1.5 trillion US from public coffers in 2023

International Institute for Sustainable Development

The science is clear: there is no room for new fossil fuel projects under a 1.5°C global warming limit. Existing oil and gas fields, if fully exploited, would burn through the entire carbon budget for a 50% chance of limiting warming to 1.5°C.

No government can claim to be a climate leader while backing fossil fuel expansion through public subsidies and investments. Instead, they should make the industry pay its fair share of taxes and channel investment into accelerating the rollout of clean energy. Story here.

Canadian banks’ and investors’ unrestricted support for LNG is fuelling a future climate bomb

GREENPEACE CANADA

TORONTO – Canadian banks are pouring billions of dollars into the global expansion of liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminals that could potentially unleash more than 10 gigatonnes of climate-wrecking greenhouse gas emissions, according to new research (1). The expansion of LNG depends on the support of banks and investors, with nine Canadian banks responsible for US$16.7 billion in support for expansion between 2021 and 2023 (2). Reclaim Finance and Greenpeace Canada warn that the emissions from these projects, which can be more damaging than coal, will breach net zero goals. They are urging banks to stop providing financial support to the developers of all new LNG projects, and to primarily stop financing export terminals. Story here.

RELATED: How Ethical are Ethical Funds?