The lowdown on changes to BC’s environmental laws
Monday, April 14, 2014 The current session of the BC Legislature has kept us quite busy. While we’ve had occasion to discuss several bills in our Environmental Law Alert, we…
April 2014
Canadian Police and Suicide Hotlines Violating Privacy
It’s mind boggling that Canadian police would think it’s justified in sharing mental health information with Homeland Insecurity in order to help the USA discriminate against people with mental illness.…
Parks Act changed for Kinder Morgan’s illegal pipeline research?
By Andrew Gage You may have heard about controversial amendments to the Park Act by way of Bill 4, the Park Amendment Act, which critics say are to allow industrial…
Merle Tingly at Arts Project
Mark your calendars Sat Apr 26, 4-6pm meet Merle Tingley “Ting” himself! Now 92 Seth will talk about him. #tingfest pic.twitter.com/hxHjyuTySM — The ARTS Project (@theartsproject) April 10, 2014 There…
Tax Breaks In Australia To Fund Climate Misinformation Book
It’s amazing what qualifies for a tax break in Australia these days. The climate science misinformation promotion unit at the Institute of Public Affairs, a Melbourne-based “free market” think tank,…
With Duke Point incinerator, property values could go up in smoke
The following is a letter from Common Sense Canadian economic columnist and Gabriola Island resident Erik Andersen to Nanaimo city council, which is hearing arguments on a controversial, proposed waste…
Sorry Oil Shills, Try Another Talking Point
The Oil and Gas sectors are the biggest of the air polluting sectors in Canada. They’ve recently surpassed transportation. Amazingly, despite Saskatchewan’s refusal to do away with coal burning, electricity…
John Tory is having another one of those bad days
And just think! There’s only about 200 more bad days to go! I was thinking that, on days like today, John probably wishes he’d stayed on as a highly-paid Rogers…
Common sense in Kitimat
Good news over the weekend. The citizens of Kitimat B.C. had their say on the Northern Gateway pipeline, and they said NO. In a referendum on Saturday, they voted 1,793…
Measuring MOOC Media
Here’s the information I sent Steve Kolowsich for his Chronicle article on the (possible?) decline of MOOC mentions in the media: My data measures news articles from selected (and reasonably…
Sometimes, Clicking Your Heels Does Not Send You To Kansas
This thoughtful letter explains why: Re: Tory MP takes aim at elections watchdog, April 9 When it comes to fairness and objectivity, I have more faith in the former auditor…
MMBC could feed incinerators, put local recyclers out of business
Gibsons Recycling Depot owners Barb Hetherington and Buddy Boyd Read this April 11 story from the Coast Reporter on the growing controversy surrounding new waste management plans – including a…
If I Had a Hammer: David Rovics’ songs of social significance
This column originally appeared in the March-April issue of Canadian Dimension magazine. View this issue here. The Popular Front is a regular column by Sean Carleton, bringing politics to arts…
Eagle Spirit offers First Nations ‘energy corridor’ as Enbridge alternative
Eagle Spirit’s Calvin Helin speaking the Vancouver Board of Trade VANCOUVER – A plebiscite defeat for the company proposing a $6-billion oil pipeline across northern British Columbia may have opened…
Why Isn’t Petcoke Regulated As a Public Health Threat?
Last year, a train leaving a Valero refinery in Benicia, CA derailed while carrying petroleum coke, also known as petcoke, a toxic byproduct of the crude oil refining process. None…
Oral Hearings Quietly Vanish From Kinder Morgan Trans Mountain Pipeline Review
A lawyer representing the City of Burnaby says the National Energy Board (NEB) has turned its review of Kinder Morgan’s Trans Mountain pipeline into a “mere paperwork exercise” by cutting…