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CO2 emissions are on track to take us beyond 1.5 degrees of global warming

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Science News A fertilizer plant in Brandon, Manitoba, Can. A PinP photo. Current and planned energy infrastructure could emit around 850 gigatons of the greenhouse gas.  Story here.

Could our changing lifestyles and a changing climate spell a return of deadly diseases like malaria to Canada? A recent scientific study warns - it's possible!

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by Larry Powell A malaria mosquito, Anopheles albimanus. Photo by CDC. Mosquito-born diseases (MBDs) like dengue fever and malaria aren't currently established in Canada, partly due to our harsh climate. But global warming combined with increasing international travel, could change all that.  New research by a Canadian team from the National Microbiology Lab, the Public Health Agency  of Canada (PHA) and two universities finds, given "an evolving situation" due to climate change, mosquitoes native to Canada "may become infected with new pathogens and move into new regions within Canada." But exotic species may move in, too, bringing diseases like malaria and dengue fever along with them, from afar, as well.  And, "With high levels of international travel, including to locations where the diseases are present," states the report, "there will be more travel-acquired cases of MBDs." As a result, the team stresses a nee

Due to extremely dry conditions, Manitoba livestock producers are being temporarily allowed to cut hay and graze animals on crown land.

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   Government of Manitoba Cattle graze on a Manitoba pasture. A  PinP  photo. Manitoba Agriculture advises that, due to dry conditions in parts of the province, livestock producers will temporarily be allowed to cut hay and allow animals to graze on Crown land not normally designated for agricultural use. Under certain circumstances, Crown land can be made available for agricultural use.  The Agricultural Crown Lands Leasing program will administer the use of available land and provide necessary permits.  Livestock must be removed when the naturally existing forage is exhausted or by Oct. 31.  Baled hay must be removed by Nov. 15. Producers with AgriInsurance contracts who intend to put their crop to alternate use are required to contact the Manitoba Agricultural Services Corporation office to arrange for a field appraisal prior to harvesting the crop.  Crop producers should also consider making crop residue available to livestock producers. For more informatio

It’s feared that a disease deadly to hogs, “PEDv,” will return to the rampant stage it reached in Manitoba in 2017.

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FARMSCAPE "Manitoba Pork" reports 50 cases in the province already this year, and calls for stepped up efforts to combat it. Story here. Piglets with PEDv develop severe diarrhea and vomiting. Almost all die within a few days of birth. A Manitoba Pork photo. RELATED:  Another 2017 for PEDv ? “IN HOGS WE TRUST”  Part 111 - From Malaysia to Manitoba - the global magnitude of livestock diseases.

China Wrestles with the Toxic Aftermath of Rare Earth Mining

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Yale Environment 360 A rare earth mine in Bayan Obo, China. Photo by NASA. China has been a major source of rare earth metals used in high-tech products, from smartphones to wind turbines. As cleanup of these mining sites begins, experts argue that global companies that have benefited from access to these metals should help foot the bill. Story here.

Human contribution to record-breaking June 2019 heatwave in France

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World Weather Attribution The darkest red areas are where temperatures have surpassed 40°C. Several European cities have experienced hottest conditions ever recorded. Map by NASA.  Every heatwave occurring in Europe today is made likely and more intense by human-induced climate change.  Story here.

Global agriculture: Impending threats to biodiversity

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SCIENCE NEWS Wine crops in Chile. A dreamstime phot o. A new study finds that expanding cropland to meet growing food demands,  poses a far greater threat to biodiverity in the tropics than intensification.  More here.

Climate change puts health at risk and economists have the right prescription

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PHYS ORG  by Christopher Ragan And Courtney Howard,  The Conversation Wildfire smoke from Alberta descends on central Manitoba, two provinces away. 2017. A PinP photo.  Doctors and economists may seem like strange partners.  We spend our days working on very different problems in very different settings. But climate change has injected a common and urgent vocabulary into our work. We find ourselves agreeing both about the nature of the problem and the best solution. It is essential that we put a price on carbon pollution.    Story here.

Is relentless industrial development threatening the beautiful Birdtail River? Lucrative highway contracts have brought an explosion of noise and congestion to a picturesque valley in western Manitoba. (Letter)

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Dear Editor, If ever there was an example of just how numb we've become to the planetary crisis we all face, it’s surely playing out in plain sight right here, right now, in Shoal Lake. As many of my neighbours will already know, big dump trucks have been lumbering by in front of our homes for about a week now. Beginning before dawn, they sometimes become a steady stream that lasts much of each day, coming and going, until about dusk.   These heavy diesel "twenty-two-wheelers" with long, steel boxes, have been moving gravel (or some similar material), from a big mine along the Yellowhead to the west, to a big maintenance project along Highway 21 to the south. One of the many trucks working on the project in question, ready to be loaded at the mine. Since the trucks pass right by our front window, I’ve been able to do a rough count. At about 150 round trips per day, they must be set to move hundreds of thousands of cubic yards of material before the ope

Canada's Permafrost Is Thawing 70 Years Earlier Than Expected, Study Shows. Scientists Are 'Quite Surprised'

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TIME Of course, "The Big Thaw" is not confined to Canada. This Alaskan permafrost has melted, causing one of this lake's banks to collapse.  As a result, its waters are draining into a river,  then into the sea,  perhaps leading to the lake's disappearance! NPS Climate Change Response  Photo (C.Ciancibelli) The Canadian Arctic permafrost is thawing 70 years earlier than expected, a rate shocking a group of scientists who released the findings of their long-term study this month. More here.

Canada becomes first G7 country to ban shark fin imports

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The Guardian Shark fins for sale in Canada. Photo by Hakai MAGAZINE  Measure which also bans sale of fins awaits royal assent. Story here.