RSS Feeds:
News |
- Energy Justice Campaign Launch
- NRDC Calls For Expanded Review
- World's Forests Feed State's Appetite
- Manitoba Accepts Sewage Spill Recommendations
- Manitoba/Iceland Hydrogen MOU
- Wendake Action Plan
- Forest Commitments Must Be Kept
- B.C. Power Plant Project Blocked
- Landmark Agreement For Ontario's Boreal Forest
- Logging Canada's Boreal Forest - Moratorium
- Energy Conservation Loan Rate Lowered
- Canada Forest Accord & Strategy Update
Energy Justice Campaign Launch |
14 October 03 |
 The newly formed Energy Justice Alliance (EJA) announced their intention "to seek justice for the people and environments impacted by hydro development," October 14, 2003 at the Manitoba Legislature. The EJA is an international partnership of environmental, social justice groups and Indigenous Peoples."We are living in the ongoing disaster created by past hydro development and we want it dealt with before additional damage and impacts are created," said Carol Kobliski of Nelson House. Energy Justice Alliance partner groups are working together to ensure that commitments under the Northern Flood and other agreements to Indigenous Peoples are fulfilled. Hydro is currently proposing a series of new dams in Manitoba, with much of the energy intended for export to the U.S. "I have seen the poverty and unacceptable living conditions in Northern Manitoba. Communities that have been impacted by hydro generation should have living conditions as high as those of us that consume the electricity, "stated Ken Bradley, Just Energy Program Coordinator for Minnesotans for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ME3). The EJA is calling for a full federal and or joint federal/ provincial panel review of the impacts of the entire Manitoba Hydro Project, including previous, existing and proposed projects. They are, also, committed to educating U.S. and Canadian consumers about the cumulative effects of hydro production on Indigenous Peoples and other affected communities. American groups representing 1.4 million American hydro consumers accompaniedBradley to the launch. Representatives from The North America Water Office, Sierra Club Harmful Hydro, Clean Water Action Alliance and Save Our Unique Lands (SOUL) participated in the launch of the EJA. Don Sullivan, North American coordinator for the Boreal Forest Network, hosted the launch. Download the Energy Justice Alliance October 14, 2003 press release (DOC) Download the Energy Justice Alliance Mission statement (DOC) |
|
NRDC Calls For Expanded Review |
10 October 03 |
 The Natural Resources Defence Council (NRDC) of Washington DC wrote the chair of Manitoba's Clean Environment Council (CEC) to support the motion brought before the CEC by Pimicikamak Cree Nation. The motion requests a complete review of the proposed Wuskwatim generation station and transmission projects in relation to past and future impacts on or from the project by other hydro developments.Several public participants, including communities from northern Manitoba, and environmental organizations spoke in support of the motion at the September 30, 2003 hearing into the motion. Manitoba Hydro and Nisichawayasihk Cree Nation (NCN) opposed the motion. The NRDC also notified its members that Manitoba Hydro is planning new dams and transmission lands that could destroy Canada's boreal forest. This week they flooded the Conservation Minister's office with 5, 000 letters demanding that the Wuskwatim review be expanded to include all proposed new dams. To obtain the NRDC letter to the CEC, click here Visit the NRDC web site |
|
World's Forests Feed State's Appetite |
10 October 03 |
 Thick as a phone book, a new state report on the environment cites a little-recognized danger to global forests: California.By consuming "vast amounts of... wood products" while increasingly protecting our own forests from logging, Californians are sharpening the pace of cutting elsewhere, including Canada, says a draft of the report "The Changing California, Forest and Range 2003 Assessment," obtained by The Bee. The 1,400-page report by the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection was presented to the state Board of Forestry October 5, 2003. It is the fourth in a series of periodic checkups and the first to discuss the global reach of California's wood-consumption and forest-conservation practices, a theme explored by The Bee six months ago in a series of articles, "State of Denial." In drawing attention to consumption, conservation and wood imports, the report highlights a national problem - one that U.S. Forest Service Chief Dale Bosworth also cited in a speech late last month at the World Forestry Congress in Quebec City, Canada. "We in the United States consume far more timber than we produce," Bosworth said. "We're concerned about undermining the health of the world's forest ecosystems through consumption patterns that are out of balance with production," Bosworth added. "Our habits raise questions of both equity and sustainability." In effect, the "Changing California" report is a conservation report card on the 80 million or so acres of California's forests and rangelands. You name it and the report discusses it: soil erosion, water quality, forest fires, fish and wildlife, urban sprawl. Visit The Sacramento Bee web site View the The Changing California: Forest and Range Assessment 2003 The Bee's April series reported that in Canada, up to 90 percent of timber is logged through clear-cutting, in which entire stands of forest are harvested. And cutting is expanding in the boreal - a vast northern forest that plays an important role in helping protect the planet from global warming.
Source: The Sacramento Bee |
|
Manitoba Accepts Sewage Spill Recommendations |
07 October 03 |
 A month after the Clean Environment Commission released its report on last year's massive sewage spill in Winnipeg, the provincial government is responding to the recommendations. In September 2002, a mechanical problem caused 430 million litres of raw sewage to flow directly into the Red River. The Clean Environment Commission issued a report into the incident August 20, 2003, recommending major improvements to the city's wastewater management. On September 26, 2003, Conservation Minister Steve Ashton said the province will comply with the report's request to license waste-water plants and to require the city to improve its sewer system within the next 25 years. The first interim licenses will be issued this fall; Ashton expects the city's three facilities to meet the licensing criteria. The report recommended the three levels of government share the cost of upgrades, however Ashton says there's no money announced yet to help the city upgrade its sewer system or water treatment plants. View the CEC Report View the Government of Manitoba Press Release Source: CBC.ca |
|
Manitoba/Iceland Hydrogen MOU |
07 October 03 |
 Manitoba's Energy, Science and Technology Minister Tim Sale and Iceland Minister of Industry and Commerce Valgerdur Sverrisdottir signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on hydrogen development September 22, 2003.Sale said, "Iceland has taken a leadership role and gained considerable profile globally in the area of hydrogen development. Today's agreement will promote greater partnerships in this area between our two jurisdictions and will enable Manitoba to build on our recently unveiled initiatives including a preliminary report on hydrogen development and a unique hybrid fuel cell bus demonstration project." The MOU states that Manitoba and Iceland will pursue the potential for joint initiatives on hydrogen development. The two jurisdictions will also investigate the benefits of the exchange of people and information, and joint research and training initiatives, in relation to hydrogen development activities. View the Government of Manitoba press release |
|
Wendake Action Plan |
03 October 03 |
 Indigenous Peoples, from different parts of the world, participants at the Indigenous Peoples' Forest Forum, held on the territory of the Huron-Wendat, in conjunction with the XII World Forestry Congress, September 2003, in the province of Quebec, Canada, re-affirmed declarations made by Indigenous Peoples since the Earth Summit was celebrated in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 1992 and demanded that they be acknowledged and implemented.The Wendake Action Plan was presented to the XII World Forestry Congress. It urges Nation States, inter-governmental organizations, specialized agencies, international financial institutions and non-governmental organizations to implement the recommendations. The Wendake Action Plan states clearly that Nation States, the United Nations and inter-governmental organizations must also fulfill their respective obligations to recognize, comply with and implement international agreements and treaties, which address Indigenous Peoples' rights. The Wendake Action Plan concerns:
|
|
Forest Commitments Must Be Kept |
03 October 03 |
 September 25, 2003 - Environmental organizations released a statement urging the 12th World Forestry Congress held in Quebec City, Canada to develop an action plan for environmental protection and social justice in the world's forests.This important international gathering drew key players in the forest sector, government, scientific community, Non Governmental Organizations (NGO) and other participants interested in sustaining the world's forests. Close to 5,000 participants from five continents attended the conferences and discussed the improvement of forestry practices and shared their experiences. ‘Forests, Source of Life', the unifying theme of the XII World Forestry Congress, explored innovative ways to address current and emerging forest issues. Recommendations and a vision for the future were created based on sustainable forest management. The WFC is organized once every six years by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). The NGO statement outlines several international commitments that many of the governments represented at the WFC have agreed to but have yet to implement. The groups called on governments to attach measurable targets, binding timelines, objective evaluation systems and requirements for community-based forest decision-making. Download the NGO/World Forestry Congress Statement View the WFC Official Final Statement View the WFC web site |
|
B.C. Hydro suffered a stunning rebuke September 8, 2003, with the B.C. Utilities Commission rejecting its plan to build an electricity generating plant on Vancouver Island. The provincially owned utility was told to look for a cheaper way to keep the lights burning on the Island, where most of the 700,000 residents rely on electricity transmitted from the mainland.Landmark Agreement For Ontario's Boreal Forest |
22 September 03 |
 Recognizing the tremendous importance of upcoming land-use decisions in Ontario's northern boreal region, the First Nation of Pikangikum and the Partnership for Public Lands signed a mutual cooperation agreement August 15, 2003 to work together to ensure a healthy future for the forests, waterways and wetlands of Pikangikum's traditional territory. "Our planning and the activities that follow it will set a new standard for the world to see. We will lead the way. Everyone will see just how our knowledge and traditions partnered with the knowledge of others will support a healthy economy and healthy landscape for our people and the people of Ontario and even Canada", stated Alex Peters of Pikangikum First Nation who is leading the Whitefeather Forest Initiative. "South of Pikangikum's territory, industrial development has transformed the landscape, changing the structure of forests, introducing roads and transmission lines and, in some cases, driving out wild species, like woodland caribou," points out Anna Baggio, director of the CPAWS-Wildlands League boreal conservation program. "It is incredibly important to take a new approach to resource planning in this area," says Gregor Beck, conservation and science director for the Federation of Ontario Naturalists. "These lands represent some of the largest areas of intact forest left on the planet." View the Pikangikum & Partnership for Public Lands Agreement View the Whitefeather Forest Initiative web site View the Partnership for Public Lands web site View the Federation of Ontario Naturalists web site Source: Federation of Ontario Naturalists |
|
Logging Canada's Boreal Forest - Moratorium |
22 September 03 |
 On the eve of the UN-sponsored World Forestry Congress, Greenpeace, ForestEthics and the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) demanded a moratorium on logging and industrial development of the endangered forests in Canada's Boreal. The Boreal forest, a region twelve times as large as California, is critical habitat to 30% of North America's songbirds as well as to other animals including wolf, bear and caribou, and plays a key role in regulating global climate.Approximately 80% of the world's original forests are already destroyed or degraded: Canada's Boreal forests represent a quarter of what's left. Large-scale industrial development from oil and gas exploration, hydropower expansion, mining and logging poses a threat to the survival of many Canadian wildlife species and to the Aboriginal peoples living in the Boreal. The environmental groups are insisting on a moratorium until conservation planning can be completed, protected areas established, and transition funding provided for affected communities. "The US consumes more Boreal wood and pulp than any other nation on earth. It's time for US consumers to make sure that this doesn't come from the endangered forests of the Boreal", said Lafcadio Cortesi of ForestEthics. The environmental groups released a report and a map outlining the destruction of this region, of which the US is the largest consumer. View the Report, View the Map The report and map indicate that:
Source: Taiga-America |
|
To encourage Manitobans to conserve and become energy efficient, Tim Sale, minister responsible for Manitoba Hydro, announced September 16, 2003, Manitoba Hydro is lowering the interest rate on Power Smart loans, from 8.5 to 6.5 percent. Bob Brennan, President of Manitoba Hydro noted that, to date, over $34.5 million in loans has been issued to over 10,000 of the 16,000 customers who have requested information and/or financing though the program.Canada Forest Accord & Strategy Update |
18 September 03 |
To date, Nova Scotia and British Columbia are the only provinces to have signed on to the 2003 Canada Forest Accord, along with a number of national organizations and associations. It is unclear why the Manitoba government has yet to formally commit to the principles of the Accord, but some conservation groups would see a firm commitment to the 2003 Canada Forest Accord as a positive signal. Several Action Items within the 2003 Strategy have a strong basis in conservation principles. The National Aboriginal Forestry Association (NAFA) was one of the signatories to the 2003 National Forest Strategy and Canada Forest Accord in May 2003. NAFA, as a member of the National Forest Strategy Coalition (NFSC), worked closely on the development of the new strategy, which includes a commitment to address Aboriginal and Treaty Rights in forest management practices. The 2003 National Forest Strategy and 2003 Canada Forest Accord are not available on the National Forest Strategy Coalition web site, but are posted on the web site of the National Aboriginal Forestry Association (NAFA). View the 2003 National Forest Strategy View the 2003 Canada Forest Accord Sources: NAFA July 2003 Newsletter, NAFA web site |
|
