Environment – Winnipeg Free Press

Judge dismisses Native American challenge to $10B SunZia energy transmission project in Arizona

Susan Montoya Bryan, The Associated Press 3 minute read Thursday, Jun. 6, 2024

A U.S. district judge has dismissed claims by Native American tribes and environmentalists who sought to halt construction along part of a $10 billion energy transmission line that will carry wind-generated electricity from New Mexico to customers as far away as California.

Judge Jennifer Zipps said in her ruling issued Thursday that the plaintiffs were years too late in bringing their challenge. It followed an earlier decision in which she dismissed their requests for a preliminary injunction, saying the Bureau of Land Management had fulfilled its obligations to identify historic sites and prepare an inventory of cultural resources.

The disputed stretch of the SunZia transmission line is in southern Arizona’s San Pedro Valley and passes through an area that holds historic, cultural and religious significance for the tribes.

The Tohono O’odham Nation — along with the San Carlos Apache Tribe, the Center for Biological Diversity and Archeology Southwest — sued in January in hopes of stopping the clearing of roads and pads so more work could be done to identify culturally significant sites within a 50-mile (80-kilometer) stretch of the valley.

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‘Incredibly impressed’: Calgary mayor applauds reduced water use after pipeline break

The Canadian Press 2 minute read Preview

‘Incredibly impressed’: Calgary mayor applauds reduced water use after pipeline break

The Canadian Press 2 minute read Updated: 11:52 AM CDT

CALGARY - Calgarians stepped up over the weekend to reduce their water use after a major water main break last week.

Mayor Jyoti Gondek said Monday the city used about 30 per cent less water than it did before the break happened.

"I'm incredibly impressed at how well Calgarians have done," she said.

Calgary was put under a water emergency after the major feeder main in the city's northwest fractured Wednesday night.

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Updated: 11:52 AM CDT

The damaged section of a water pipe is shown in this handout image provided by the City of Calgary. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO-City of Calgary
*MANDATORY CREDIT *

B.C. looks into post-fire mushroom picking rush after First Nation reports conflicts

Chuck Chiang, The Canadian Press 5 minute read Preview

B.C. looks into post-fire mushroom picking rush after First Nation reports conflicts

Chuck Chiang, The Canadian Press 5 minute read Yesterday at 8:00 AM CDT

British Columbia says it is not ruling out regulating wild mushroom picking after an Indigenous community said a rising number of foragers are infringing on its land, with one case involving alleged threats of physical violence and intimidation.

The provincial response comes after the Skwlax te Secwepemculecw First Nation said the areas devastated by the Lower East Adams Lake and Bush Creek wildfires last year are now sprouting large numbers of morel mushrooms, attracting many foragers who are putting new pressures on the land's fragile ecosystem.

"It's what they leave behind that is the problem and the devastation, the damage they're doing cutting trees down," said Chief James Tomma. "We're seeing the unwanted killing of the wildlife who are under a lot of stress right now and really vulnerable."

In a written statement, the B.C. Ministry of Forests said it is continuing to "monitor the situation and may take steps in the future, should circumstances indicate a change is needed."

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Yesterday at 8:00 AM CDT

Trees burned by the Bush Creek East Wildfire are seen above Little Shuswap Lake in Squilax, B.C., Monday, Sept. 11, 2023. British Columbia is not ruling out regulating wild mushroom picking after an Indigenous community said the areas devastated by the Lower East Adams Lake and Bush Creek wildfires last year are now sprouting large numbers of morel mushrooms, attracting a large number of foragers. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck

The Philippines goes all in for natural gas, a climate pollutant

Ed Davey, The Associated Press 7 minute read Preview

The Philippines goes all in for natural gas, a climate pollutant

Ed Davey, The Associated Press 7 minute read Thursday, Jun. 6, 2024

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Sea turtles still scramble from the waters of Batangas Bay, paddling up the sand to bury their eggs. Coral reefs that some marine biologists call the Amazon of the ocean lie just offshore, home to giant clams, nurturing small fish, which in turn are prey for manta rays.

But above the surface the land is changed. The fishing village of Santa Clara is now surrounded by four power generating stations, all burning natural gas.

The construction isn’t over. Four more power plants that burn natural gas are planned for the coastline. What was a string of fishing villages is now an industrial zone.

The Philippines is going all in for electricity made via climate-damaging combustion, with almost two dozen power stations planned and the ambition to become a gas hub for the entire Asia Pacific region.

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Thursday, Jun. 6, 2024

A man smokes while holding his rooster at the coastal village of Santa Clara near a liquified natural gas power plant in Batangas province, Philippines on Tuesday, Aug. 8, 2023. The Philippines is seeing one of the world's biggest buildouts of natural gas infrastructure. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila)

Australia’s leader says opposition will renege on greenhouse gas emissions target if elected

Rod Mcguirk, The Associated Press 3 minute read Preview

Australia’s leader says opposition will renege on greenhouse gas emissions target if elected

Rod Mcguirk, The Associated Press 3 minute read 2:54 AM CDT

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Monday said the opposition Liberal Party would renege on the nation’s ambitious target to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 if it wins elections due within a year.

Albanese made Australian action on climate change an issue in elections due by next May in response to comments that Peter Dutton, leader of the conservative opposition party, made to The Weekend Australian newspaper.

Dutton said in an interview with the newspaper that he opposed the center-left Labor Party government’s plan to reduce emissions by 43% below 2005 levels by the end of the decade, saying there was “no sense in signing up to targets you don’t have any prosects of achieving.”

Albanese said Australia would achieve the target despite a forecast by the CIimate Change Authority, a government agency, last November of a reduction of between 37% and 42%.

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2:54 AM CDT

FILE - Australia's then Defense Minister Peter Dutton addresses Parliament House in Canberra, July 24, 2019. Australia's Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Monday, June 10, 2024, the opposition, now lead by Dutton, would renege on the nation's ambitious target to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 if the conservative party wins elections due within a year. (AP Photo/Rod McGuirk, File)

Diesel prices jump 56% as Malaysia revamps decades-old fuel subsidies

The Associated Press 3 minute read Preview

Diesel prices jump 56% as Malaysia revamps decades-old fuel subsidies

The Associated Press 3 minute read Updated: Yesterday at 11:43 PM CDT

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — Diesel price in Malaysia jumped by more than 50% on Monday as part of a revamp of decades-old fuel subsidies to tighten government spending and save billions of ringgits annually.

The restructuring eliminates blanket energy subsidies and redirects them to the needy. They're part of economic reforms pledged by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, whose government says they're needed to build a more sustainable economy and plug losses from smuggling cheap oil to neighboring countries.

The plan is bold but risky for Anwar, who took power in 2022, as it may anger working-class voters struggling with rising cost of living. He announced the unpopular decision to cut fuel subsidies last month to give time to lower-income groups to prepare for the transition.

"All prime ministers before this had agreed on the targeted subsidy, but there was no political will to implement it because of the risks involved. However, to save the country, we have no choice,” Anwar, who is also Finance Minister, was quoted as saying Monday by national Bernama news agency.

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Updated: Yesterday at 11:43 PM CDT

A diesel car owner pumps at a petrol station in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Monday, June 10, 2024. Diesel price in Malaysia jumped by more than 50% on Monday as part of a revamp of decades-old fuel subsidies to tighten government spending and save billions of ringgits annually. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian)

Protesters arrested after snarling traffic on Montreal bridge leading to F1 race

The Canadian Press 2 minute read Preview

Protesters arrested after snarling traffic on Montreal bridge leading to F1 race

The Canadian Press 2 minute read Updated: Yesterday at 4:41 PM CDT

MONTREAL - Police on Sunday arrested five environmental protesters who snarled traffic on a bridge leading to the Montreal island that hosts the Formula One Canadian Grand Prix.

The demonstrators, who were charged with obstructing traffic, blocked several lanes on the Concorde Bridge for nearly half an hour starting shortly before 11 a.m., police spokeswoman Sabrina Gauthier said.

The activists are supporters of Last Generation Canada, a self-described "civil resistance" group that has called on the federal government to create a national agency to battle wildfires.

"The F1 races are dripping with oil and gas. And we know that these are the industries that are currently contributing to the terrible wildfire crisis that we've seen in this country that forced 240,000 people out of their homes last summer," spokeswoman Laura Sullivan said in a phone interview.

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Updated: Yesterday at 4:41 PM CDT

Police say they arrested five environmental protesters who snarled traffic on a bridge leading to the Montreal island that hosts the Formula One Canadian Grand Prix. Mercedes driver George Russell, of the United Kingdom, leads as Red Bull driver Max Verstappen, of The Netherlands, drives during the Canadian Grand Prix Formula 1 car race, in Montreal, Sunday, June 9, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Christinne Muschi

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Residents against graphite mine fear powering Pentagon, environmental ruin

Joe Bongiorno, The Canadian Press 5 minute read Preview

Residents against graphite mine fear powering Pentagon, environmental ruin

Joe Bongiorno, The Canadian Press 5 minute read Yesterday at 5:00 AM CDT

MONTREAL - In Quebec's Laurentians region, a few kilometres from a wildlife reserve and just outside the town of Duhamel, lies a source of one of the world’s most sought after minerals for manufacturing electric vehicle batteries: graphite.

Since Lomiko Metals Inc., a mining company based in Surrey, B.C., announced plans to build a graphite mine in the area, some residents living nearby have protested the project, fearing the potential harm to the environment. But opposition has only gained steam after locals found out last month that the Pentagon is involved in the project.

In May, Lomiko announced it received a grant of $11.4 million from the U.S. Department of Defence and another $4.9 million from Natural Resources Canada to study the conversion of graphite into battery-grade material for powering electric vehicles.

In its own announcement, the Pentagon said Lomiko's graphite will bolster North American energy supply chains and be used for “defence applications,” words that make Duhamel resident Louis Saint-Hilaire uneasy.

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Yesterday at 5:00 AM CDT

Since Lomiko Metals Inc., a mining company based in Surrey, B.C., announced plans to build a graphite mine in Laurentians, some residents living nearby have protested the project, ass shown in this undated handout image, fearing the potential harm to the environment. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO-Christian Hobden **MANDATORY CREDIT **

In Mexico heat wave monkeys still dying, birds are getting air-conditioning, lions get popsicles

Mark Stevenson And María Verza, The Associated Press 6 minute read Preview

In Mexico heat wave monkeys still dying, birds are getting air-conditioning, lions get popsicles

Mark Stevenson And María Verza, The Associated Press 6 minute read Saturday, Jun. 8, 2024

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Amid Mexico’s heat wave and drought, suffering birds are getting air-conditioning and monkeys with heatstroke are being rescued by non-governmental groups.

The government, meanwhile, has been more preoccupied with cooling down animals at state-run zoos, giving lions frozen meat popsicles. It's not the only frosty treat: One rescue group is feeding distressed owls with rat carcasses shipped in frozen from Mexico City.

A heat dome, an area of strong high pressure centered over the southern Gulf of Mexico and northern Central America, has blocked clouds from forming and caused extensive sunshine and hot temperatures all across Mexico, as well as in the United States.

Much of the impact on wildlife is being felt in central and southern Mexico, because while temperatures are also high in the north, it is mostly desert and the animals there have some coping mechanisms for extreme heat and drought.

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Saturday, Jun. 8, 2024

A baboon inspects a frozen treat in its enclosure at the Chapultepec Zoo as staff work to keep the animals cool amid a continuing heat wave and drought, in Mexico City, Friday, June 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo)

Large chunk of Wyoming’s Teton Pass road collapses; unclear how quickly it can be rebuilt

The Associated Press 3 minute read Preview

Large chunk of Wyoming’s Teton Pass road collapses; unclear how quickly it can be rebuilt

The Associated Press 3 minute read Saturday, Jun. 8, 2024

JACKSON, Wyo. (AP) — A large chunk of a twisting mountain pass road collapsed in Wyoming, authorities said Saturday, leaving a gaping chasm in the highway and severing a well-traveled commuter link between small towns in eastern Idaho and the tourist destination of Jackson.

Aerial photos and drone video of the collapse show the Teton Pass road riven with deep cracks, and a big section of the pavement disappeared altogether. Part of the guardrail dangled into the void, and orange traffic drums marked off the danger area. The road was closed at the time of the collapse.

The section that failed first drew attention Thursday when a crack and drop in the road contributed to the crash of a motorcycle.

Geologists and engineers who were sent to the area that day noticed “that crack and that drop started to move a lot,” said Stephanie Harsha, a spokesperson for District 3 of the Wyoming Department of Transportation. A paving crew temporarily patched the road, and traffic began moving again that night.

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Saturday, Jun. 8, 2024

This photo provided by Wyoming Highway Patrol shows a damaged section of Teton Pass near Jackson, Wyo., on Saturday, June 8, 2024, that officials said had “catastrophically failed.” (Wyoming Highway Patrol via AP)

Weeklong heat wave loosens grip slightly on US Southwest but forecasters still urge caution

Susan Montoya Bryan, The Associated Press 4 minute read Preview

Weeklong heat wave loosens grip slightly on US Southwest but forecasters still urge caution

Susan Montoya Bryan, The Associated Press 4 minute read Saturday, Jun. 8, 2024

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — The weeklong heat wave that baked most of the U.S. Southwest in temperatures well into triple digits is on its last legs, but forecasters are still urging people to be cautious as there will be little relief from the warm weather until monsoon thunderstorms begin to kick in, likely in July.

A slight easing of temperatures is expected through the weekend, with Phoenix and Las Vegas falling short of besting any new records. Still, an excessive heat warning continues through Saturday in Las Vegas, where it’s never been hotter this time of year. It was a record-high 110 degrees Fahrenheit (43.3 degrees Celsius) in Las Vegas on Friday, 113 F (45 C) in Phoenix and 100 F (37.8 C) in Albuquerque.

Even in Florida, forecasters with the National Weather Service on Saturday warned that heat indices would be well into the triple digits for Miami and other areas. That measurement reflects what the temperature feels like to the human body when relative humidity is combined with the air temperature.

Record high temperatures also were expected through the weekend for central Florida, where many communities just wrapped up their warmest May on record as temperatures for the month were between 3 and 4 degrees above normal.

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Saturday, Jun. 8, 2024

Sunlight filters through a colorful tube as a swimmer chills out in the 72-degree Fahrenheit water at the top of Rock Springs Run at Kelly Park, Thursday, June 6, 2024, in Apopka, Fla. Central Floridians will be seeking more relief from the heat as temperatures are forecast to be near record-breaking —with highs in the upper 90s— through the weekend. (Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel via AP)

Calgary water conservation progress made as crews repair water main break: officials

The Canadian Press 3 minute read Preview

Calgary water conservation progress made as crews repair water main break: officials

The Canadian Press 3 minute read Saturday, Jun. 8, 2024

Calgary's water conservation efforts have improved but there's still a "high risk" of running dry as crews continue to repair a major water main break over the next five to seven days, city officials said Saturday.

"Calgarians did some excellent work over the past 24 hours," water services director Nancy Mackay told a news conference providing an update on the situation.

She said water supply and demand have mostly evened out, but residents have to continue limiting their indoor water use and refraining from outdoor use altogether.

"Keep doing what you've been doing," Mackay told Calgarians. "There's still a high risk that we can run out of water if we don't continue."

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Saturday, Jun. 8, 2024

Calgarians are being urged to keep reducing their water use as work to repair a major water main stretches into a second day in Calgary, Friday, June 7, 2024.THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh

Housing and identity: Questions about Mississauga’s future as election looms

Rianna Lim, The Canadian Press 6 minute read Preview

Housing and identity: Questions about Mississauga’s future as election looms

Rianna Lim, The Canadian Press 6 minute read Saturday, Jun. 8, 2024

MISSISSAUGA, Ont. - Ana Chang has lived in Mississauga since the age of seven and is now raising her own children in the southern Ontario city that has seen rapid development over the last three decades.

She loves her neighbourhood and the family friendly lifestyle in the municipality just west of Toronto, but worries her three young kids may not be able to make their own lives in Mississauga one day, if they choose, due to the rising cost of housing and uncertainty over what kind of urban identity the city wants to have.

"My husband and I have really good careers, but we also have part-time jobs to be able to afford our mortgage right now," said the 36-year-old.

"I'm thinking about my kids in the future. When you're starting out as a new grad, even graduating as a professional, you're not really making much ... I don't want my kids to face the same financial hard burdens of trying to afford rent in Mississauga when it's becoming unlivable."

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Saturday, Jun. 8, 2024

A person walks past multiple for-sale and sold real estate signs in Mississauga, Ont., on Wednesday, May 24, 2023. Ana Chang has lived in Mississauga since the age of seven and is now raising her own children in the southern Ontario city that has seen rapid development over the last three decades. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette

Animals on the lam: Welfare group documents exotic animal escapes, attacks

Mia Rabson, The Canadian Press 7 minute read Preview

Animals on the lam: Welfare group documents exotic animal escapes, attacks

Mia Rabson, The Canadian Press 7 minute read Saturday, Jun. 8, 2024

OTTAWA - A lot of Canadians have heard of Darwin, the Ikea monkey, who was found wandering a parking garage at the furniture chain's North York store wearing a shearling coat and a diaper.

Many were equally fascinated and horrified last December after a kangaroo named Nathan escaped as he was being transported between zoos and went on the lam in Oshawa, Ont., in frigid winter temperatures.

But have you heard about the alligator that escaped a truck in Montreal and went for a stroll to a nearby café? Or the tiger that had had enough of his pen at an eastern Ontario zoo and was found trotting along a nearby highway?

In a bid to draw attention to the ongoing and dangerous problem of keeping exotic wildlife in captivity, either in zoos or as house pets, World Animal Protection Canada is building a new database and interactive online map to document all the events it can find.

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Saturday, Jun. 8, 2024

Darwin, a Japanese Macaque, is shown at the Story Book Farm Primate Sanctuary in Sunderland, Ont., on Tuesday, August 16, 2016. Darwin, also known as the Ikea monkey, was found wandering a parking garage at the furniture chain's North York store wearing a shearling coat and a diaper. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette

Oregon closes more coastal shellfish harvesting due to ‘historic high levels’ of toxins

The Associated Press 3 minute read Preview

Oregon closes more coastal shellfish harvesting due to ‘historic high levels’ of toxins

The Associated Press 3 minute read Friday, Jun. 7, 2024

SALEM, Ore. (AP) — Oregon authorities have expanded shellfish harvesting closures along the state's entire coastline to include razor clams and bay clams, as already high levels of toxins that have contributed to a shellfish poisoning outbreak continue to rise.

The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife said the new closures were due to “historic high levels” of a marine biotoxin known as paralytic shellfish poisoning. The move, announced by the department in a news release on Thursday, came after state officials similarly closed the whole coast to mussel harvesting last week.

Agriculture officials have also closed an additional bay on the state's southern coast to commercial oyster harvesting, bringing the total of such closures to three.

Elevated levels of toxins were first detected in shellfish on the state’s central and north coasts on May 17, fish and wildlife officials said.

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Friday, Jun. 7, 2024

FILE - Visitors look for clams to dig along the beach at Fort Stevens State Park, Feb. 9, 2016, in Warrenton, Ore. Oregon has expanded shellfish harvesting closures along the state's entire coastline to include razor clams and bay clams. The move comes after state officials closed the coast to mussel harvesting last week. (Joshua Bessex/The Astorian via AP, File)

Washington judge denies GOP attempt to keep financial impact of initiatives off November ballots

Martha Bellisle, The Associated Press 5 minute read Preview

Washington judge denies GOP attempt to keep financial impact of initiatives off November ballots

Martha Bellisle, The Associated Press 5 minute read Friday, Jun. 7, 2024

Information about how much money three GOP-backed initiatives would cost the state of Washington must appear on the November ballot where voters can see it, a judge on Friday ruled.

The measures to repeal the state’s landmark Climate Commitment Act and the tax on the sale of stocks and bonds as well as one that could threaten a long-term care insurance program require financial disclosures, Thurston County Superior Court Judge Allyson Zipp said in a ruling from the bench. The decision is based on a recent law that requires the state attorney general to spell out how funding would be affected by initiatives that repeal, impose or change any tax or fee.

Opponents of the measures, who said they would have massive impacts on the state's ability to provide critical services, praised the judge's decision.

“Their lawsuit had one inexcusable purpose: to hide the truth about the impacts of these initiatives from voters," Aaron Ostrom, executive director of the progressive advocacy organization FUSE Washington, said in a statement. “They know they will lose if voters understand what these destructive, deceptive initiatives actually do.”

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Friday, Jun. 7, 2024

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