Government guidelines insufficient to protect North American freshwater ecosystem from salt pollution

PNAS

Canoeing the jacques Cartier_Photo by Jake Dyson

Current water quality guidelines aren't protecting freshwater ecosystems from increasing salt pollution due to road de-icing salts, agriculture fertilizers, and mining operations, according to an international study that included researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. Published today in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), the research shows that freshwater salinization triggers a massive loss of zooplankton and an increase in algae -- even when levels are within the lowest thresholds established in Canada, the U.S., and throughout Europe. Story here.

U.S. corn-based ethanol worse for the climate than gasoline, study finds

(Reuters) - Corn-based ethanol, which for years has been mixed in huge quantities into gasoline sold at U.S. pumps, is likely a much bigger contributor to global warming than straight gasoline, according to a study published Monday. Story here.

An ethanol plant at Minnedosa, MB. A PinP photo  

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CAJ SOUNDS ALARM OVER CONTINUED RISE IN ATTACKS AGAINST CANADIAN JOURNALISTS

The Canadian Association of journalists (CAJ) is deeply concerned about the alarming rise in harassment and threats against journalists covering the Ottawa occupation protests and similar demonstrations across the country. Story here.

"AT THE TROUGH." A VIDEO THAT NEEDS TO BE SEEN AGAIN.

Many well-informed, dedicated and concerned individuals produced this video in 2008. Sadly, their warnings about the dirty and dangerous consequences of unregulated factory "farming" in Manitoba have not been heeded. The industry has been given free-rein and continues to expand with few, if any checks and balances. The video is less than an hour long. I implore you to take the time to watch! If you did see it before, perhaps it will remind you again of just how grave these issues really are. If you have not, I know it will concern you, too - perhaps even inspire you to take action of your own. Thank you! 

PinP

W5: Fears growing that another global pandemic is on the horizon (video)

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BEYOND COVID 19. ARE WE RISKING YET ANOTHER PANDEMIC IF WE CONTINUE TO EMBRACE "ASSEMBLY-LINE" LIVESTOCK PRODUCTION INTO THE FUTURE?

Decoding the migration of the peregrine falcon

Nature

A Satellite-tagged peregrine at its nest site in the Lena Delta, Russia. Peregrines 

were tracked from six separate breeding areas across Arctic Eurasia. 

Genome re-sequencing identified differences among these populations. 

Variations in their numbers were linked to changes in 

glacial conditions over time. Credit: Andrew Dixon.

The migratory routes used by the peregrine falcon have been shaped by environmental changes since the last Ice Age, reports a study published in Nature. The paper also presents evidence that the distance travelled during migration is influenced by a genetic factor.

Satellite-tagged peregrine in Taimyr, Russia. Satellite tracking revealed a 

high degree of fidelity to nesting sites, wintering ranges and 

to the migratory routes connecting them.  

Credit: Andrew Dixon.

Millions of migratory birds have seasonally favourable breeding grounds in the Arctic, but spend their winters in different locations across Eurasia. However, little is known about the formation, maintenance and future of their migration routes or the genetic determinants of migratory distance.

Xiangjiang Zhan and colleagues combined satellite-tracking data from 56 peregrine falcons from Eurasian Arctic populations with genome data from 35 peregrines to study the migrations of this species. The authors found that five migratory routes were used across Eurasia, which have been shaped by environmental changes since the Last Glacial Maximum (around 20,000–30,000 years ago). Peregrines that migrated longer distances were also found to have a dominant genotype of the gene ADCY8 that — the authors suggest — may be associated with the development of long-term memory.

The authors propose that, in a changing global climate, peregrines in western Eurasia may suffer the highest probability of population declines, move to new wintering areas or perhaps stop migrating altogether. They conclude that using ecological interactions and evolutionary processes to study climate-driven changes in migration could help to facilitate the conservation of migratory birds.