PLANET IN PERIL

      During the last days of June 2021, Pacific northwest areas of the U.S. and Canada experienced temperatures never previously observed, with records broken in many places by several degrees Celsius. Multiple cities in the U.S. states of Oregon and Washington and the western provinces of Canada recorded temperatures far above 40ºC (104 ºF), including setting a new all-time Canadian temperature record of 49.6ºC in the village of Lytton. Shortly after setting the record, Lytton was largely destroyed in a wildfire [ 1 , 2 ]. The exceptionally high temperatures led to spikes in sudden deaths, and sharp increases in hospital visits for heat-related illnesses and emergency calls [ 3 , 4 , 5 ]. Heatwaves are one of the deadliest natural hazards and this heatwave affected a population unaccustomed and unprepared for such extreme temperatures, for instance with most homes lacking air-conditioning [ 6 ]. Currently ava

 Why GMOs aren't bad but will still poison you with glyphosate (Roundup) and how they get past government regulations in Canada and the USA. Also learn what the mega agro corporations are doing to small farmers regarding seed. In a Nutshell's 'Are GMOs Good or Bad? Genetic Engineering & Our Food'. RELATED:  "GMOs Grab Headlines Again - and Not in a Good Way."

by Kate Storey - Citizen’s Climate lobby - Dauphin, Manitoba Farmers and ranchers are among those most affected by the climate, and yet agriculture is a contributor of climate changing greenhouse gas emissions.  As we work our fields and care for our livestock, it’s hard to imagine how our day to day farm decisions can have an impact on the atmosphere and on the heat, drought, floods, and weather extremes that affect our yields.  Farming activities can store carbon and nutrients in the soil and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Farming activities can also release chemicals into the air that accumulate, destabilizing the climate we depend on.  Fortunately, there are climate friendly farming practices that are both good for the environment and good for farm net incomes. Although the choices that we make on our individual farms may seem insignificant, the widespread adoption of climate friendly farm practices can lead to an agriculture system in which emissions are reduced and carbon is ca

PEMBINA INSTITUTE A power pylon wrecked by severe weather. A Manitoba Hydro photo.   Pembina Institute reacts to the passage of Bill C-12, key to delivering on climate targets. Story here.

by Don Sullivan - Canadian Dimension  Don Sullivan (above) is the spokesperson for What The Frack Manitoba, the former director of the Boreal Forest Network and special adviser to the government of Manitoba on the Pimachiowin Aki UNESCO World Heritage site. He's a research affiliate with the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives and a Queen Golden Jubilee medal recipient. Two corporations, both Alberta-based, are in the midst of seeking Government of Manitoba approval to build and operate silica sand mines and processing facilities that would extract and process some 2.6 million tonnes of silica sand per year.  Story here. RELATED: "Is Manitoba's Brokenhead River about to become a dumping ground for an Alberta-based sand-mining company?"

THE BUREAU OF INVESTIGATIVE JOURNALISM Hog producers on the Canadian prairies (AB,SK & MB) were feeding more antibiotics to their herds in 2018 than 2017. (Source - CIPARS) The use of certain antibiotics deemed critical to human health has surged on British pig farms supplying major supermarkets, prompting fresh concerns about the rise of antibiotic-resistant superbugs. Story here. RELATED: WILL THE WORLD’S ADDICTION TO INDUSTRIAL LIVESTOCK PRODUCTION BRING AN END TO THE AGE OF THE “MIRACLE DRUG?”

Common Dreams Old growth forest in BC. Photo by Nadine Reynolds. More than 100 prominent individuals throughout Canadian society, along with a handful of international supporters, urged British Columbia Premier John Horgan on Friday to fulfill his campaign pledge to immediately protect the region's imperiled old-growth forests, which continue to be logged despite scientific warnings against further destruction. Story here.

Science Daily It's not uncommon for the Oak River, which flows through southwestern Manitoba, CA., to stop flowing at this control dam. A PinP photo. A new study found that between 51-60% of the 64 million kilometres of rivers and streams on Earth that they investigated stop flowing periodically, or run dry for part of the year. It is the first-ever empirically grounded effort to quantify the global distribution of non-perennial rivers and streams. The research, which was published today in Nature, calls for a paradigm shift in river science and management. Story here/

Common Dreams In summer, some polar bears do not make the transition from their winter residence on the Svalbard islands to the dense drift and pack ice of the high arctic, where they would find a plethora of prey. This is due to global climate change which causes the ice around the islands to melt much earlier than previously. The bears need to adapt from their proper food to a diet of detritus, small animals, bird eggs and carcasses of marine animals. Very often they suffer starvation and are doomed to die. The number of these starving animals is sadly increasing. A Wickimedia Commons photo. 'Urgent' action is needed, atmospheric scientist Markus Rex said.  Story here.

The following letter by Jon Crowson appeared recently in the Empire Advance, a weekly newspaper in Virden, Manitoba.  It's his response to an article which appeared earlier in the same paper (see bottom). Hog Barn Saturation. Thanks for the primer on the provinces hog industry (Empire Advance, June 4, 2021). Frankly I’m not sure I really needed one. This map, from the industry itself, shows hog barn locations as they were n 2007. How many are enough? When the big guns from Manitoba Pork seek a meeting with council (even if they don’t have to leave their own boardroom to do it), one can’t help but be suspicious about their motives. Could it be that recent decisions, such as Cartwright-Roblin council to reject a new barn proposal, has got them worried? Worried that the tide is turning against the takeover of our rural areas by “Big Pork”. When it comes to new factory hog barn proposals the concerns of nearby residents cover the gamut from the stink (sufficient to breech the Internati

PHYS ORG The conversion of forests into agriculture has been flagged as one of the major causes of deforestation. A PinP photo. The world is at a crossroads, as humanity tries to mitigate climate change and halt biodiversity loss, while still securing a supply of food for everyone. Story here. RELATED: Illegal clearing by agribusiness driving rainforest destruction