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"We say climate change is a material risk," David McLaughlin, head of the NTREE advisory panel.

Previous analysis done by the round table shows that climate change will drain $5 billion a year from the Canadian economy by 2020. The costs will climb steeply after that, chopping Canadian economic activity by between $21 billion and $43 billion a year by 2050, depending on how much action is taken to reduce greenhouse gases by then.

At the same time a April 23, 2012 report, "Tracking Clean Energy Progress," by the International Energy Agency (IEA) says governments around the world must "level the playing field" to ensure clean energy technologies grow fast enough to prevent dangerous levels of global warming.

"Transition to a low-carbon energy sector is affordable and represents tremendous business opportunities, but investor confidence remains low due to policy frameworks that do not provide certainty and address key barriers to technology deployment. Private sector financing will only reach the levels required if governments create and maintain supportive business environments for low-carbon energy technologies," says the IEA report.

De Schutter, a Harvard-educated human rights lawyer who investigates and makes recommendations on food issues, is in the midst of an 11-day cross Canada visit to examine: rising food bank use, whether all Canadians have "adequate, accessible and affordable" sustenance, and the need for national Canadian food policies.

"Having the UN Special Rapporteur come to Winnipeg to discuss the right to food among Canadians is an honour," said Jasmine Tara, Winnipeg North End Food Security Network Coordinator.

In addition to Winnipeg De Schutter will visit Sagkeeng First Nation, God's River First Nation, Garden Hill reserve, as well as fly over the Lake St. Martin area, where prolonged flooding has forced the evacuation of hundreds of reserve residents.

"What the rapporteur is going to see is a transition phase where we're relying less on a traditional diet and more on processed, less healthy food. Where I come from at Pine Creek First Nation, there are no fish left in the lake and there is no moose to hunt on the mountain. We have to make our purchases at the grocery store just like everyone else," said Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs Grand Chief Derek Nepinak.

MKO Cree Northern Grand Chief David Harper said he hopes the envoy will get a feel for the high cost of groceries. Groceries in remote Northern community stores cost at least twice as much as in Winnipeg.

"Challenges remain to ensure that food is adequate, accessible and affordable for marginalized groups, be they poor urban populations or Aboriginal peoples," De Schutter said.

In response environmental charities, including David Suzuki Foundation, Ecojustice, Environmental Defence, Equiterre, Greenpeace, Nature Canada, CPAWS, Pembina Institute, Sierra Club Canada, West Coast Environmental Law, and WWF Canada have launched a major campaign to defend nature and democracy called: "Black Out Speak Out."

On June 4th, 2012 organizations, businesses and citizens from across Canada will blackout their websites in protest against efforts to silence Canadians and undermine environmental laws.

"The attacks on environmental charities and gutting of environmental review processes aim to silence Canadians of all sectors and many backgrounds who participate in decision-making about large-scale industrial developments," said Peter Robinson, CEO of the David Suzuki Foundation. "This is not only undemocratic-it will undermine the government's ability to make sound policy decisions and to protect the environment."

"We are compelled to speak out and we're inviting Canadians from all walks of life to join us.", said Sidney Ribaux, executive director of Equiterre.

Over the next four weeks, environmental groups will build support for the campaign, inviting other organizations, community and social justice groups, and individuals from across Canada to join them in expressing their concern about this erosion of core Canadian values.

Canadians wishing to support the campaign can sign up at blackoutspeakout.ca

Yinka Dene Alliance was a leading creator of the Save the Fraser River Declaration signed by almost 200 First Nations in solidarity to protect the environment of their traditional lands. Representatives of the Yinka Dene Alliance will attend Enbridge's Annual General Meeting in Toronto, Ontario to enforce their ban of the construction of pipelines in their traditional territories.

"We're travelling across Canada to tell Enbridge that they will not be permitted to build their pipelines through our lands, period,” said Chief Jackie Thomas of Saik'uz First Nation. "The fight against Enbridge is a fight for our freedom to govern ourselves and to choose our own future. We will not accept the government imposing a decision on us and forcing this pipeline through our lands.”

During a council held at Ebb & Flow Reserve April 26, 2012 seven of the nine Treaty Two First Nations decided to take a united collective treaty-based approach to questions regarding the proposed Bipole III project.

Treaty Two was signed in 1871 explicitly for the purposes of "obtaining consent" of the indigenous peoples for the sharing of their lands for purposes "of immigration and settlement."

"Bipole III goes far beyond the permission given through Treaty," because it is being built primarily to export power stated Treaty Two co-chairs Chief Norman Bone of Keeseekoowenin Objibway Nation and Chief Barry Swan of Lake Manitoba First Nation in their letter to the Premier.

Unless cellulose ethanol can command a price premium for any greenhouse gas (GHG) reductions achieved, then regardless of Manitoba ethanol mandates, suppliers are likely to choose the lower cost and higher emitting first-generation ethanol fuels.

Shell Canada Environmental and Regulatory Affairs Advisor Ed Brost indicated Shell had planned to apply for a Manitoba Environment Act license for the plant in late summer or early fall 2012. The plant would have created 70-100 jobs, and more than 300 farmers had already signed up to supply the facility with straw.

Brost said there was "no plans to restart the project," and that the decision to scrap the plan was a business decision, which "had nothing to do with anything in Manitoba. Both the Province and the community were receptive and generally supportive of Shell during the feasibility study. Shell appreciates the time and effort of all those who offered support and suggestions during the study."

About one-third of the budget implementation bill changes environmental legislation, instead of dealing with fiscal matters as a budget implementation bill does in the Canadian System. Non-budgetary environmental changes in Bill C-38 include:

• Repealing the Kyoto Protocol Implementation Act.
• Replacement of the 79 page Canadian Environmental Assessment Act (CEAA) with a new 40 page Act, Canadian Environmental Assessment Act 2012 (CEAA 2012), creating a whole new scheme for environmental review, with a much narrower scope. Time limits will be set for assessments, and projects will be excluded from federal review if they are reviewed provincially. Environmental reviews are no longer required for projects involving federal money.
• Cabinet will be able to overrule both CEAA and the National Energy Board (NEB).
• Exempting NEB, CEAA, Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission and other federal agencies from requirements to ensure protections are in place for species at risk and their critical habitats when issuing permits.
• Amending the Species at Risk Act to create time limits on the issuance and renewal of permits.
• Removing the habitat protection measure in the Fisheries Act.
• Eliminating the National Roundtable on the Environment and the Economy (NTREE).

First Nations are also deeply concerned about being left out of the new procedures, despite legal obligations on the government to consult First Nations on impacts from major projects.

"It is an alarming development that Canada would take such steps," said Shawn Atleo, National Chief of the Assembly of First Nations.

"The Arctic Ocean is definitely changing on a whole lot of different fronts," professor David Barber of the University of Manitoba said.

Scientist discovered that an increase in open water is dramatically affecting the carbon cycle and creating underwater 'storms' that impact the flow of flora and fauna into the Arctic Ocean. The study is the first of its kind and comes at a time when Canadian Government funding for Arctic research is being slashed.

With more open waters making the Arctic Ocean more accessible each year concerns are being raised about economic buffer zones, security risks, and resources newly accessible, especially fishing.

A group of more than 2,000 scientists from around the world are urging the leaders of all five Arctic nations to impose a moratorium on industrial fishing. With so little still known about the Arctic Ocean, Arctic leaders are being asked to develop an accord to ensure sustainability of Arctic fishing grounds.

The Earth Day showing was particularly strong in Quebec where starting at 2 p.m on Earth Day (April 22, 2012) church bells rang across the province.

In Montreal an estimated 250,000 people gathered for a peaceful Earth Day march. The crowd gathered at Montreal's Place des Festivals before they inched their way along the kilometre-long stretch from Ste. Catherine St. toward Jeanne Mance Park, where they formed a massive human tree" to be photographed from above.

More than 50,000 people signed a Quebec Earth Day declaration calling for Canada to reverse its decision to withdraw from the Kyoto Protocol, and for Quebec to change its plans for northern development to make them more sustainable.

"Beyond the different reasons that may have drawn people was a shared concern for the future and what we're going to leave for our children and grandchildren," said Steven Guilbeault of Équiterre, commenting on the Montreal March.

It is not clear why Winnipeg Mayor Sam Katz and his executive policy committee are promoting the water park, without a business plan or financial plan.

Shindico Reality management, agent for Canalta Development and Waterfun, is also business partners with Sam Katz in the Goldeyes, the baseball club across the street from the proposed water park. More green space, next to the Canadian Museum of Human Rights would have far more aesthetic and human value.

Mayor Katz is a member of Winnipeg Council’s standing committee on downtown development, heritage and riverbank management. The same committee is choosing to green light a water park development including $7 Million of public money. When will we hear about an environmental impact statement? A pattern of development without planning continues in Winnipeg. Remember Olywest? The condo development that would have bulldozed the Lower Fort Garry site?

Winnipeggers want to retain and grow green space at The Forks.

In an interview with the Guardian UK Mr. Hansen shares, "The situation we're creating for young people and future generations is that we're handing them a climate system which is potentially out of their control," he said. "We're in an emergency: you can see what's on the horizon over the next few decades with the effects it will have on ecosystems, sea level and species extinction."

Climate change he argues is ‘a great moral issue on par with slavery’. Professor Jim Hansen was one of the first to build a global climate change model and is credited as being one of the most influential people in the world raising awareness of climate change.

They (China) don't want to follow the path of the US where the country becomes addicted to fossil fuel and has to protect the supply lines around the world. They have taken the right first step. They are now the number one producer of solar cells, wind and nuclear power."

Manitoba received a grade of "fair" in the 2012 assessment. During the first DSF assessment in 2005 Manitoba received a grade of "best", but in 2006 that was reduced to "fair" before it was increased to "good" in 2008.

"The Manitoba government, for most of the past decade, made some impressive commitments on climate change. ... However, policies to tackle the greatest sources of emissions - from agriculture and road transportation - have been at best voluntary or weak and at worst non-existent. Emissions in those sectors, and in the province as a whole, continue to rise," states the report.

The 2012 report ranks Canada's provinces and territories as follows:

Very Good - Quebec, Ontario and British Columbia
Good - Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island with "good" rankings,
Fair - Manitoba, New Brunswick and the Northwest Territories
Poor - Newfoundland and Labrador, Nunavut and the Yukon
Worst - Alberta and Saskatchewan

Manitoba will be releasing an environmental plan in summer 2012 that may shed some light on intended climate change actions.