Cottagers, tourism operators, local First Nations and Métis, farmers, and environmental groups are raising concerns about plans to raise the water level of the Lake of the Prairies reservoir on the Saskatchewan border as much as two metres to improve irrigation and industrial water supplies downstream.
Governments are considering adding an inflatable rubber gate to the Shellmouth dam's spillway to allow the Lake of the Prairies reservoir to store more spring runoff. The extra water behind the dam would be released throughout the summer to irrigate more potato fields and expand industries dependant on the Assiniboine River. $4 million has been set aside for the dam upgrade. Engineering consultants will advise Manitoba and the federal Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Administration (PFRA) first on alternatives, including water conservation and water storage in upstream tributaries or the nearby Shell River.
Cottagers around Lake of the Prairies are worried about losing beaches and the impact on fish when the reservoir expansion eats up more land. First Nations and Métis people have concerns about water quality and loss of places where they gather food or medicine. Farmers are worried about their fields getting drowned during spring seeding if the rubber gates can't handle the pressure from heavy rains. Environmentalists are starting to raise questions about greenhouse-gas emissions from the expanded reservoir.
The Assiniboine River, which supplies the Maple Leaf hog plant in Brandon and the Simplot potato plant in Portage la Prairie, is almost running out of water for fish habitat protection and any other industries - like ethanol plants - that might want to locate on the river.
View the August 22, 2004 Winnipeg Free Press Article
Source: Winnipeg Free Press
WHO Assesses Millennium Water Targets |
8 September 04 |
A report released in August 2004, by the World Health Organization (WHO) / UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme on Water Supply and Sanitation (JMP) provides the latest estimates and trends on meeting the Millennium Development Goal to reduce by half the people without access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation.
The report suggests that the world is on track to meet the drinking water target, but the global sanitation target will be missed by half a billion people - most of them in rural Africa and Asia. The severe human and economic toll of missing the sanitation target could be prevented by closing the gap between urban and rural populations and by providing simple hygiene education, say WHO and UNICEF.
The agencies warned that a global trend towards urbanization is marginalizing the rural poor and putting huge strain on basic services in cities. As a result, families living in rural villages and urban slums are being trapped in a cycle of ill-health and poverty. Children are always the first to suffer from the burden of disease caused by dirty water and poor hygiene, while the wider impact of unhygienic environments drags back economic progress and erodes good governance.
However, great gains in water and sanitation coverage have been made against considerable odds in many countries, which proves that significant improvements are possible in a short space of time, even in the poorest countries.
View the WHO article
View the WHO press release
Access the full report by the WHO
Source: World Health Organization
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Manitoba Loses Devils Lake Court Battle: War Not Over |
31 August 04 |
A North Dakota judge has rejected Manitoba's legal challenge to appeal a permit issued by North Dakota's Department of Health that will allow construction of the water outlet to drain water from Devils Lake into the Red River system.
The Manitoba government, the Minnesota State government, and environmental groups from North Dakota and Minnesota maintain Devils Lake water will pollute the Red River by introducing foreign water, species and pollutants. Supporters of the outlet say it is necessary to ease chronic flooding from the lake, which has resulted in hundreds of millions of dollars in damages. Construction of the $28-million US outlet is already under way. State officials hope to have it complete by 2005.
The province has filed a 60-day notice of intent to launch another type of legal action also under the federal U.S. Clean Water Act. Manitoba is lobbying to have the project reviewed by the International Joint Commission, a non-partisan body that resolves cross-border water disputes. The US federal government has stated that it doesn't support the state outlet, but has yet to agree to refer the matter to the IJC.
View the CBC online news articles: National and Regional
Download the August 24 Winnipeg Free Press article
Sources: CBC news online, Winnipeg Free Press
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PUB Suggests Stop to Dividend Transfers |
25 August 04 |
The Manitoba Public Utilities Board (PUB), the body that regulates Manitoba Hydro's economic projections and rates, has asked the utility to study the idea of restricting dividends until its debt load drops. In practice, this would mean that the province would no longer be able to transfer a dividend from Hydro profits to general revenues, as they did two years ago.
The drought conditions of the last two years have made it hard to generate electricity, and put the utility into the red. Currently, 86 per cent of Hydro's $10 billion in assets is owned by the bank. The PUB says that figure should be allowed to fall back to 75 per cent before any dividends are to be contemplated.
The PUB has also asked Manitoba Hydro to have an independent expert to assess how it responded to the recent two years of drought.
View the CBC Manitoba online news story
Source: CBC Manitoba
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Update - Industry Doubts EU Emissions Trading |
25 August 04 |
A study by Ernst & Young released in August 2004 suggests that companies across Europe are skeptical about the success of the European Union industrial emissions trading scheme and expect a delay in its launch beyond January 2005.
Responses from representatives of 204 European businesses indicated that they were concerned about the lack of a strong and transparent European Union (EU) regulatory framework and doubted the effectiveness of the scheme. Half of the businesses say they have dealt with the emissions trading plan for 2005 in detail, while nearly a quarter admit they have done little or nothing to prepare.
If it goes ahead as planned, the EU carbon emissions trading scheme will be the first international trading system for CO2 emissions in the world.
View the Planet Ark news story
View the Executive Summary of the Ernst & Young study (PDF)
Sources: Planet Ark news, Ernst & Young
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Fox Lake Agreement - Hydro Development |
25 August 04 |
In August 2004, Fox Lake Cree Nation agreed to the terms of a settlement agreement with the Manitoba Government and Manitoba Hydro. It will address adverse effects on Fox Lake First Nation of past hydroelectric development in the lower Nelson River area.
The settlement agreement amounts to $18.9 million and would be administered by trustees appointed by Fox Lake First Nation. The settlement agreement now goes forward for community consideration.
The three parties signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) relating to the proposed development of the Conawapa Generating Station. The MOU acknowledges that Fox Lake will have a leading and significant role with respect to the proposed development of Conawapa.
View the Government of Manitoba news release
Source: Government of Manitoba
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First Nations Seek Truth About Food Contamination |
18 August 04 |
Grassy Narrows and Wabauskang First Nations held a press conference in Winnipeg,
August 11, 2004 to release a study and call attention to their efforts
to figure out why their people have been experiencing unusually high
incidence of heath problems such as cancer, type two diabetes and
thyroid conditions.
In the late 1960s and early 1970s, the English-Wabigoon River system
was severely contaminated with mercury from a pulp mill located upstream
in Dryden, Ontario. This resulted in birth defects in Grassy Narrows
and Wabauskang children and other health problems for area residents.
Two years ago, the communities began to test the land foods residents
ate for contaminants. Preliminary results from animals such as otter,
beaver and fish show high levels of heavy metals and mercury. No measurable
mercury was found in moose, deer, partridge or geese – the main
sources of wild meat. However, the preliminary results raised sufficient
questions to access funding from the Assembly of First Nations for
more extensive testing this year.
View the Ontario First Nations' Press Release
View the CBC Online article
View the Winnipeg Free Press article
Sources: Grassy Narrows, Wabauskang First Nations, CBC Online, Winnipeg Free Press
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Flawed Recommendations - BC Planning Tables |
18 August 04 |
On July 17, 2004, the government of British Columbia heralded land use
planning recommendations from regional planning bodies, signaling
the completion of the land use tables for the area known as the Great
Bear Rainforest (Central and North Coast of BC). Central to the announcement
was the creation of "a new sanctuary" for the Kermode, or
"Spirit," bear in BC's coastal rainforest.
According to the David Suzuki Foundation (and other conservation groups),
media coverage did not tell the whole story about the crucial planning
process that will determine what happens to the wildlife and human
communities of the BC north coast.
The planning tables are being criticized for removing most of the
thresholds that were designed by the Coast Information Team (the independent
science panel created to advise the planning tables regarding "science-based"
solutions) to ensure species survival on the coast. The tables accepted
the principles of Ecosystem-Based Management (EBM), but deferred its
implementation to forestry companies, with few controls. The proposed
protected areas are effectively isolated patches that could well be
islands of extinction for wide-ranging carnivores such as the grizzly
bear.
The planning tables’ recommendations are still subject to negotiations
between the provincial government and coastal First Nations. Manitoba
is in the midst of a land use planning process of a similar magnitude
for lands east of Lake Winnipeg.
View the Executive Summary of Canada's rainforest: Status Report 2004 (David Suzuki Foundation)
View the Full Report of the David Suzuki Foundation
Download the Vancouver Op-Ed article
View information on the Manitoba East Side Planning Initiative
Sources: David Suzuki Foundation, Vancouver Sun
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Landmark EU Emissions Trading Takes Place |
18 August 04 |
Barclays Bank and the Shell Energy Company have announced the completion
of the first carbon emissions trading in the UK using standard terms
set out by the International Swaps and Derivatives Association. Both
companies emphasized the use of standardized trading terms for emissions
trading as important for the success of the system.
Carbon trading is due to start officially in the Europe in January
2005 when the European Union (EU) launches a trading scheme as part
of its effort to curb greenhouse gas emissions. Firms have already
started trading in forward contracts covering permits for the first
phase of the scheme, which will cap carbon dioxide emissions from
industrial plants.
View the Planet Ark article
Source: Reuters
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California Climate Projections Released |
18 August 04 |
A scientific study released August 16, 2004 presents an alarming view of climate changes in California, presenting scenarios that range from disastrous to those requiring significant social and economic measures to adapt to changes. The study, published in the online version of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), offers the most detailed projection yet of changes in California as temperatures rise around the world because of rising concentrations of greenhouse gases.
Under one scenario fossil fuel use continues at its present pace. The study determined that summertime high temperatures could increase by 15 degrees in some inland cities, resulting in disrupted water supplies from the San Francisco Bay Area to the Central Valley. In the second scenario, which assumed significant increases in the use of renewable energy like wind and solar power, the study concluded that fossil fuel emissions could push average high temperatures up by four to six degrees.
The study was conducted by 19 scientists from several universities and research institutions, who cautioned against dismissing the findings as overstated. "We have been studying this for 30 years, and the conclusions are getting increasingly clear, and increasingly consistent," said Dr. Stephen H. Schneider, a climate scientist at Stanford. He added, "We think this problem has too high a chance of happening for us to ignore it."
View the New York Times article
View the abstract of the study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
View the full text of the study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PDF)
Sources: New York Times, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
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China to Cut Off Power to Polluters |
18 August 04 |
As a result of the country’s energy concerns, China is planning
to cut the power supply to high-polluting factories. Inefficient and
power-intensive factories would also have their electricity supply
restricted. However, during his visit to the State Power Distribution
Centre on July 27, 2004, Premier Wen Jiabao did not provide any details
on when the order would be carried out, or how many factories are
likely to be affected.
Government figures show that China will be short 30 million kilowatts
of electricity this summer despite total electric energy output rising
18.1 per cent year-on-year since January. Twenty-four provincial-level
power grids have experienced brownouts this year; and the shortage
is especially acute in northern China, as well as in the country's
southern and eastern parts where the manufacturing hubs are located.
View the Straits Times article
Source: The Straits Times
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Manitoba Hydro issued a request for proposals August 2004 to develop and deliver a series of two-day Aboriginal Cultural Awareness workshops for its employees over the course of a one-year period.