Posts

Suburban Sprawl and the Decline of Social Capital

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22 August 2010 - by: Anthony DiMaggio, t r u t h o u t Why Long Commutes Are Bad for the American Body and Mind (P.S. Canadian, too? l.p.) Please also visit this link and read about the tragedy of this huge, new subdivision that was supposed to be a progressive, green addition to Winnipeg. Waverly West construction. Wpg. Free Press photo

The Future of Air Quality at a Big Manitoba Wood Products Plant is Now in the Hands of the Minister

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Au 24-2010 - by Larry Powell Important recommendations on what the Manitoba Government should do about controlling pollution from a big wood products plant in the province, are now in the hands of the Minister of Conservation, Bill Blaikie. Louisiana Pacific Canada's OSB mill near Swan River. Photo by Larry The Clean Environment Commission, an "arms-length" advisory agency, began last year to look into the merits of a government decision almost 20 months ago, to allow "temporary" closure of pollution control devices at Louisiana Pacific's "oriented strandboard" plant in the Swan Valley of western Manitoba. Certain toxic emissions have apparently been escaping into the air around the plant, near the Village of Minitonas, since that time. The Commission will recommend that the devices should either be started up again, or closed permanently. The agency says it submitted its report to Blaikie on Aug. 16th, but, he was away, so wouldn't have seen

On Harper's Northern Tour

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Au 24-'10 - Below is my letter to the Winnipeg Free Press (now published, Au 27.) l.p. === = Dear Editor, I find media coverage of Prime Minister Steven Harper's current tour of the north, appalling. If I heard the CBC correctly this morning, our Prime Minister is "putting emphasis on science" in his approach to northern development! An emphasis on science? The sad fact is, this so-called leader of ours has been spitting on science and scientists ever since he came to power. He has been appointing "climate-denying" oil and gas toadies as his "science advisers" while being nothing but criminally negligent in his approach to the crisis of global warming. As our "True North" melts around the people and creatures living there, Harper parades about, peddling "Arctic sovereignty" as some kind of opiate we can all use to avoid the harsh reality of climate change. No doubt Harper has a greedy eye on the petroleum bonanza that lies

A Great Way to Blow a Day

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By: Laura Rance Wpg. Free Press - 21/08/2010 Folks eating it up at farmers' markets. Farmers' market photo by l.p.

High-Yield Agriculture Slows Pace of Global Warming, say FSE Researchers

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Louis Bergeron - Stanford News Service - 2010 Advances in high-yield agriculture….. EDITOR'S NOTE: I do not always agree with stories I post here. This is a case in point. But what I think is secondary. I would love to hear your comments on this study. Might there be something to it? Or is it just a piece of "agri-biz" propoganda? l.p.

Outrage at UN Decision to Exonerate Shell for Oil Pollution in Niger Delta

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John Vidal, environment editor • guardian.co.uk, 22 August 2010 • Oil giant blamed for 10% of 9m barrels leaked in 40 years
 Photo courtesy of Crossed Crocodiles