Underwater footage shows farmed-salmon processing plants releasing untreated effluent directly into B.C. coastal waters in Campbell River and Tofino. The footage, recorded by photographer and filmmaker Tavish Campbell, shows the bloody discharge billowing into ocean waters via underwater pipes. The Atlantic Veterinary College confirmed samples of the effluent contained Piscine reovirus, a
Continue readingAuthor: Carol Linnitt
B.C. Using Kitimat Smelter Workers as ‘Guinea Pigs’ for Air Pollution Monitoring, Union Says
In October, B.C. Premier John Horgan made a visit to the Rio Tinto Alcan smelter on the banks of the Douglas Channel in Kitimat. He praised the facility for being “a great example of how companies can improve conditions for workers and reduce pollution all while improving their bottom line.” What he
Continue readingKinder Morgan At Risk of Violating NEB Condition With Premature 300,000-Tonne Pipeline Order
Kinder Morgan Trans Mountain may be in violation of a condition laid out by the National Energy Board, Canada’s federal pipeline regulator, after ordering nearly 300,000 tonnes of pipeline for the expansion project without submitting a quality management plan. According to regulatory documents filed by the National Energy Board in September,
Continue reading‘Disingenuous’ Forest Industry Campaign Tries to Undermine Protection of Endangered Caribou
A forestry industry lobby group is working to undermine Canada’s plans to protect endangered caribou, according to several experts. The campaign, ‘Caribou Facts,’ launched by the Forest Products Association of Canada (FPAC), is designed to cast doubt on the science of caribou conservation. Several caribou populations in Canada are listed as threatened
Continue readingFive Reasons Canada’s Environment Commissioner Gave Ottawa a Failing Grade on Climate
Reading Environment Commissioner Julie Gelfand’s report on Canada’s climate action, we’d have to say that the woman sounds … ticked. Here are five reasons Gelfand is wagging a disappointed finger at Canada’s environment officials. Tags: Julie Gelfand environment commissioner canada climate action climate targets Fossil Fuel Subsidies clean energy greenhouse gas regulations
Continue readingB.C. Coal Mine Company Teck Fined $1.4 Million for Polluting B.C. River
Teck Resources pled guilty Thursday to three violations of the federal Fisheries Act for polluting a tributary of the Elk River and was sentenced to pay a $1,425,000 penalty into the federal Environmental Damages Fund, which will help restore fish habitat in British Columbia’s Elk Valley. On October 16, 2014, 45
Continue readingFederal Freedom of Information in Canada Worse Now Than Under Harper: New Report
The federal government received a failing grade in a new national audit of freedom of information regimes across Canada. The vast majority of federal departments under the Liberal government, which campaigned on a promise to increase information disclosure and transparency in Canada, failed to fulfill requests within the legal timeframe, the audit found.
Continue readingChristy Clark’s Secret Consultations with Oil and Gas Donors Revealed As B.C. Introduces Bill to Ban Big Money in Politics
Documents released on Monday reveal that B.C.’s climate plan under the previous Liberal government was drafted by the oil and gas industry in a Calgary boardroom, just as the province’s new NDP government moves to ban corporate and union donations to B.C. political parties. The documents speak to long-standing concerns over
Continue readingIs Trudeau Quietly Turning His Back On Fixing Canada’s Environmental Laws?
Scientists and environmental groups breathed a sigh of relief when Prime Minister Justin Trudeau quickly followed through on a campaign promise to modernize Canada’s environmental laws. Within a year of being elected, the Liberals initiated four parallel reviews of key environmental legislation weakened or eliminated under former prime minister Stephen Harper. But
Continue readingInvisible Horseman: An Interview with Photographer Troy Moth
Troy Moth is an artist and photographer living on Vancouver Island. Moth’s iconic images are featured on art gallery walls and trendy t-shirts alike, famed for their stark, smoky portrayals of landscapes and creatures, of both the human and non-human variety. Moth recently published a provocative photo of a wild bear slouched in
Continue readingLetter from Former B.C. Premier Calls for Halt to Site C Dam
The Site C dam is an “economic, fiscal, environmental and aboriginal treaty rights disaster,” according to former B.C. Premier Mike Harcourt. In a letter submitted to the B.C. Utilities Commission, which is currently reviewing the $8.8 billion project, Harcourt said Site C will “severely damage BC Hydro and B.C. credit ratings”
Continue readingDisturbing New Footage Shows Diseased, Deformed Salmon in B.C. Fish Farms
New footage released to DeSmog Canada shows deformed and disfigured salmon at two salmon farms on the B.C. coast — just as British Columbia reels from news of the escape of hundreds of thousands of Atlantic farmed salmon from a Washington salmon pen. Wild salmon advocate and fisheries biologist Alexandra Morton
Continue readingAmid Closure of B.C. Salmon Fisheries, Study Finds Feds Failed to Monitor Stocks
Canada has failed to monitor and gather data on 50 per cent of all managed salmon populations on B.C.’s north and central coasts, according to a study released Monday in the Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences. Researchers from Simon Fraser University found the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO)
Continue readingKamloops City Council Urge B.C., Ottawa to Re-Think Ajax Mine Environmental Assessment
A group of Kamloops city councilors are asking the provincial and federal governments to consider concerns about the Ajax Mine they say were unaddressed by B.C.’s environmental assessment. The proposal for the gold and copper mine by the Polish firm KGHM Polska Miedz has been controversial, with concerns including mining
Continue readingBREAKING: Last-minute Charges Laid Against Mount Polley in Private Prosecution
In a surprise eleventh-hour move, indigenous activist and former Chief of the Xat’sull First Nation, Bev Sellars, has filed charges against the Mount Polley Mining Corporation, owned by Imperial Metals, for the mine disaster that saw 24 million cubic metres of mine waste released into Quesnel Lake on this day,
Continue readingCanada’s Environmental Fines are Tiny Compared to the U.S.
This week marks the three-year anniversary of the Mount Polley mine disaster, which sent 24 million cubic metres of mining waste into Quesnel Lake, making it one of the worst environmental disasters in Canadian history. It’ll be a stinging reminder of the tailings pond collapse for local residents, especially considering no
Continue readingMount Polley Investigation Still On, Federal Charges ‘In Play,’ Says B.C. Environment Minister
B.C.’s new Minister of Environment, George Heyman, says he identifies with the many British Columbians eager for the outcome of the single ongoing investigation into the Mount Polley mine disaster that sent 24 million cubic metres of mining waste into Quesnel Lake on August 4, 2014. “I have spoken with the
Continue readingNo Charges, No Fines For Mount Polley Mine Disaster as Three-Year Legal Deadline Approaches
As the three-year anniversary of the Mount Polley mine disaster approaches, so too does the deadline for the province to lay any charges against mine owner Imperial Metals. Considered one of the worst environmental disasters in Canadian history, the failure of the Mount Polley tailings pond sent an estimated 25 million
Continue readingNew Aerial Photos Show Site C Construction Impact As Utilities Commission Review Looms
Although former B.C. premier Christy Clark vowed to push the $9-billion Site C dam past the “point of no return” before the May 2017 provincial election, the fate of the most expensive public project in B.C.’s history is still far from certain. B.C.’s new NDP government has vowed to send the
Continue readingOutgoing B.C. Liberals Issue Mining Permits in Tsilhqot’in Territory During Wildfire Evacuation
The Tsilhqot’in First Nation — currently under an evacuation order due to B.C.’s wildfires — learned Monday that permits have been issued for mining company Taseko to conduct exploration for the New Prosperity mine, an open pit gold and copper mine twice rejected at the federal level. Monday was the outgoing
Continue reading