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"Canadians have been clear: they want to see an end to these tax giveaways. The federal budget is coming up soon, so we'll find out soon whether this government is listening," says Steven Guilbeault of Equiterre.

Analysis shows $1.4 billion per year in federal subsidies to the oil sector. A disproportionate share goes to Canada's fastest growing greenhouse gas polluter - the Alberta tar sands. The result is higher greenhouse gas pollution, lower government revenues, and fewer jobs created than would be the case if these subsidies were phased out.

"A sizable majority of Canadians from across the country have stated clearly that they want to see an end to special tax breaks to oil and gas companies in Canada," says Christian Bourque, vice-president of research from Leger Marketing, who did the polling. "It is relatively rare to see such a diverse cross section of demographics share an opinion like this."

An open letter calling on Prime Minister Harper and Minister Flaherty to end these subsidies is signed by a diverse group of over 100 organizations —ranging from major environmental and development organizations to the Asthma Society of Canada and to the Canadian Federation of Students. Additional support for phase out of these subsidies comes from the Department of Finance (internal memo leaked 2010), former Minister of Environment Jim Prentice (revealed in same memo), and the majority of voters from all parties across Canada.

"Just look at who has signed this letter, the list goes way beyond environmental groups. We all believe that 1.4 billion dollars shouldn't be going to oil companies that don't need it, we should be using it to address the climate crisis," says John Bennett of Sierra Club Canada.

The "Energy Justice" site features photo galleries, fact sheets, timelines, interviews, and commentary on hot button issues related to hydro development in Manitoba.

Hydro-affected communities in northern Manitoba are invited to suggest photos and other material to add to the website.

"With Manitoba Hydro wanting to spend over $17 billion on new projects in the next 15 years, robust public debate is important," says Hugo Unruh, co-chair of the Task Force. "Healthy public debate means avoiding a simplistic slant that considers only the pros or only the cons of an issue," Unruh says. "We want to create a forum that encourages people to think carefully and deeply about various views."

The site also explores links between hydro development and spirituality, while seeking to avoid a polarized use of religion. "What does faith have to offer," the site asks, "other than just backing for arguments about who is right and wrong?"

The Interfaith Task Force on Northern Hydro Development consists of official representatives of the Evangelical Lutheran, Roman Catholic and United churches, as well as MCC Manitoba. Members of the Anglican church also participate. Interchurch involvement in hydro issues in Manitoba dates back to 1973 when southern church leaders took up the concerns of people in the South Indian Lake, prior to the Lake becoming a reservoir.

The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) joined forces with Earthjustice to challenge clean air permits the Obama Administration issued to Shell last year. Those permits would have allowed Shell's ships to emit tons of pollutants into the Arctic environment, harming both Native communities and wildlife. The legal action resulted in a federal appeals board ordering the Administration to withdraw the clean air permits and start the process all over again.

"The polar bear and other wildlife of Alaska's Arctic, as well as the local communities that depend upon a healthy ocean, were granted a well-deserved reprieve today," said Brendan Cummings, senior counsel at the Center for Biological Diversity. "Now, the Department of the Interior needs to turn that short-term reprieve into permanent protection of America's Arctic."

Because they sequester and store billions of tonnes of carbon in vegetation, peat, and soils, forests are a critical shield against runaway global warming. Canada's boreal forest stores an estimated 208 billion tonnes of carbon, the equivalent of 26 years of global greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuels.

Over the past two centuries the majority of the world's forests have been destroyed, degraded, and fragmented. Today only about one-fifth of the Earth's original forests remain highly intact. Global population is expected to surpass 7 billion this year, with demands on forests rising.

But hope is coming from a part of the world that many people don't know much about -- Canada's boreal, the world's largest intact forest.

In 2008, spurred on by a letter from 1,500 international scientists in support of the Framework, premiers of Ontario and Quebec pledged that each province would protect half of its northern boreal forest. Manitoba has not made such a promise.

Canada is in the forefront of forest conservation. Since 2000, 130 million acres of Canada's boreal forest have received permanent or interim protected status. Also 110 million forestry acres have been or are in the process of being certified under the Forest Stewardship Council.

A copy of the letters, questionnaire responses, and commitments can be found on Manitoba Wildlands webpage. Additional environment commitments contained in Hansard, Throne Speeches, and Budget Speeches are not included in this review. A summary of commitments made in Budgets and Throne speeches can also be found on our webpage.

In total 105 promises were identified, with some promises repeated on more than one-occasion. Of the 105 promises:

• 13 have been fulfilled (12.4%);
• 18 have been partially fulfilled (17.1%);
• 70 remain unfulfilled (66.7%);
• 4 were immeasurable or it was unclear if the promise had been fulfilled (3.8%).

"It's important now, well before the 2011 election, for the NDP to consider steps to improve its record on these environment promises. Manitobans expect better, and opposition parties need to show us their environment platforms", said Manitoba Wildlands Director Gaile Whelan-Enns.

Ecuadorean Indigenous groups said Texaco - which merged with Chevron in 2001 - dumped more than 18 billion gallons (68 billion litres) of toxic materials into unlined pits and rivers between 1972 and 1992, destroying large areas of rainforest and leading to increased risks of cancer among the local population.

The eighteen year-old case was initially filed in New York in 1993, but was re-filed n Ecuador in 2003 after a US appeals court ruled that the case should be heard in Ecuador. Both sides are contemplating appeals.

"This is an important step but we're going to appeal this sentence because we think that the damages awarded are not enough considering the environmental damage caused by Chevron here in Ecuador," said lawyer Pablo Fajardo, who brought the case on behalf of 30,000 Ecuadoreans.

"We plan to appeal ... this illegitimate verdict and see to it that the perpetrators of this fraud are brought to justice," said James Craig, a Chevron spokesman. Chevron has long contended that plaintiffs unduly influenced the court-appointed expert in the case.

Environmentalists applauded the decision hoping the case will set a precedent, forcing companies operating in developing countries to comply with the same anti-pollution standards as in the industrialized world.

John van Schaik, an oil analyst at Medley Global Advisors in New York, said, "...the fact that the Lago Agrio court ruled in favour of the plaintiffs sends a signal to oil companies that, more than ever, they need to be good corporate citizens."

Actions can be as simple as: bundling up and turn down the heat by five degrees; turn off your car engine when idling in line or at a traffic light; or walk, bus or take your bike to work or school. If you are feeling more motivated consider: organizing a community service day or an event like a polar bear plunge to raise awareness and funds to support PBI.

Polar bears are completely dependent upon large expanses of sea ice to hunt, feed and survive. They use the sea ice as a platform to capture seals and other prey. Global warming caused by GHGs means less ice for shorter periods for Polar bears to hunt on.

The western Hudson Bay polar bear population in Manitoba declined 22 percent between 1987 and 2004. If current trends persist they could be the first polar bear population driven extinct by global warming. Manitoba has new legislation to protect polar bears, and 2009 protected some polar bear habitat. Several other candidates for new protected areas along Hudson Bay need action urgently.

Manitoba Wildlands will provide with each Reality Check: news item on our website, and occasional attached documents or charts. Sources of information and links will be provided. Where the Reality Check concerns previous Manitoba Wildlands news or analysis these will also be linked.

The first two Reality Checks are now posted. Do Manitoba Protected Areas have Management Plans? and Is Manitoba Protecting Species? can be accessed at links below.

The document, prepared by Hydro's transmission business unit and leaked to the Canadian Taxpayers Federation January 28, 2011, estimates the cost of the line and converter stations at just over $4.1 billion.

The increased costs come mostly from the 132% rise in costs of two converter stations, not from the line itself and therefore most of the additional costs will accrue regardless of whether the line is built on the East or West side of Lake Winnipeg.

The Bipole III route has been the subject of controversy at the Manitoba legislature since the government decided in 2007 that Hydro would build the line along the western edge of the province. The Manitoba Government argued that an east-side line would jeopardize the pristine boreal forest east of Lake Winnipeg and could result in legal wrangling from east side First Nations and international environmental organizations.

Despite years of planning since 2004, the Manitoba government has been slow to move towards the intended 4 million hectare UNESCO World Heritage Site on the East Side of Lake Winnipeg.

"3M made a mess, they contaminated the waters. We want them to step up and make it right," said Swanson.

3M manufactured PFCs in Minnesota from the 1950s through 2002. It stopped making them following negotiations with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, which says the chemicals pose serious risks to human health and the environment.

3M, best known for its Post-it Notes and Scotch tape, has been engaged in settlement talks with the state to pay damages for the contamination for some time. In 2007, the company signed a consent decree with the state's pollution control agency and agreed to remediate a number of sites in Minnesota.

"What really threatens us is if you look at the [contract], it says verification and standardization. Verification to what, to whom? If you start doing that, aren't you starting to dabble in definition?" asked Manitoba Metis Federation President David Chartrand.

A watered-down definition of who is Métis could dramatically impact the progress Métis people have made in being recognized as a distinct group of people, developing governance and economic opportunities.

"All of a sudden we'll have a dismantling of all the work we've done for the last 23 years," said Chartrand adding there was no consultation with Metis leaders. "If they [Government of Canada and INAC] were sincere... don't you think they would sit down with us first? What is their agenda here?"

Clarifying who can rightly identify themselves as Métis became an issue after the 2003 Supreme Court of Canada decision of R. v. Powley, which established the Métis constitutional right to hunt for food.

According to Chartrand the Métis definition of belonging is already more or less settled among its provincial associations. A person must self-identify as Métis, be able to trace their family connection to the Métis homeland (the fur trade areas from Ontario westward), be distinct from other aboriginal groups, and be accepted by other Métis.

On February 9, 2011, after considerable uproar, INAC promised the Métis National Council that the government would revisit the CSA contract.

The proposed exemption ignores Ontario Environmental Commissioner Gord Miller's warning that "woodland caribou is at risk of being extirpated in Ontario by the end of this century." Only 20,000 woodland caribou remain in Ontario and their territory has shrunk by 50 per cent.

"This proposed exemption from the Endangered Species Act is a complete reversal for Premier McGuinty who solemnly promised to protect Ontario's threatened caribou," said Catharine Grant, Greenpeace forest campaigner.

"I have a responsibility to try and find some balance," retorted Ontario Natural Resources Minister Linda Jeffrey. "I've got to do two things - I need to protect woodland caribou and ensure a successful northern economy."

"Rather than shielding industry, the government should be providing the leadership necessary to save species and spur a vibrant economic future in the north," said Rachel Plotkin, Policy Analyst for the David Suzuki Foundation.

Manitoba's woodland caribou are also threatened and also listed under Manitoba's Endangered Species Act. Manitoba Wildlands Director Gaile Whelan-Enns warned, "Manitoba must not do what the McGuinty Government is doing. We expect the Manitoba Government to avoid any exemptions, and protect Woodland Caribou and their habitat."