While Elon Musk’s SpaceX is attempting to make humans multi-planetary, a number of publicly traded space stocks are forging ahead with plans to deliver massive payloads to space, provide access to high-speed internet across the globe, and even create a space tourism industry. Analysts at Citigroup are predicting that the space industry could reach…
Shelterbelts and hedgerows reduce emissions of greenhouse gas by an average of 89 per cent
Both dead and alive, trees are an essential ally for farmers in helping the environment, a new University of Alberta study shows. Preserving and planting shelterbelts and hedgerows – and keeping the deadwood they contain – next to cropland helps store carbon and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. “Retaining those live and dead trees, and planting…
There is no place for the state in the kitchens of the nation
During the current campaign in Quebec, one political party recently proposed a protein shift in the public cafeterias and institutions by offering a menu made up of 50 per cent plant-based protein meals. In the same vein, the party also suggested that 70 per cent of food products served in public institutions be local. Local…
Meadow Vole poop is an essential source of nutrients for grasses and other plants where they forage
It’s easy to admire big animals, but without tiny critters nothing can survive. From the soil insects, micro-organisms and small mammals that become food for predators up through the food chain, everything relies on something smaller to survive. One of the most overlooked mammals is the Meadow Vole. It’s a small mouse-like animal that lives…
The Toyota Mirai feels like any other upscale electric car
Back in the ’80s and ’90s, when alternate fuel technology was at a fever pitch, one of the possibilities that seemed the most promising was hydrogen power. It’s clean burning, abundant, and fuel efficient, and a slew of manufacturers, including Mazda, BMW, and Toyota, spent enormous amounts of time and money pursuing the idea of…
Singling out oil and gas doesn’t make sense
Canada’s strategy to single out greenhouse gas emissions from the oil and gas industry could make it harder to meet overall reduction targets, according to two leading energy analysts. Neither of Ottawa’s two proposed policies to cap and reduce oil and gas emissions would allow carbon market trading with other industries. That’s a problem, says…
How did things get so bad, so fast?
By Stewart Muir and Margareta Dovgal It’s been obvious for months that a global energy crisis was coming. Then last Monday, just when we thought things couldn’t get any worse, the chief executive of Shell predicted that Europe is headed for a multi-winter energy crisis, with consequences that cascade around the world. The situation is…
Coastal GasLink and Indigenous partners work together to revive depleted salmon stocks
“When we talk about land, we say we belong to this territory. This land holds us, and we are nurtured from it.” These are the words of Aileen Prince, chief of the Nak’azdli Whut’en First Nation in northern B.C. near Fort St. James. Prince and her community have suffered numerous indignities over the years, including…
Not to do so hurts us, our allies and the environment
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz recently completed a trip to Canada to discuss, among other things, Europe importing Canadian natural gas. With the invasion of Ukraine, and the sanctions that followed, Germany, which imported 55 per cent of its natural gas from Russia in 2021, has had to reopen some coal plants and has started looking…
One simple tip to get some natural protection is to wear light-coloured clothing
It’s nearly impossible to head outdoors during the summer without coming across mosquitoes – and experiencing the itch-inducing bites they bestow. But as irritating as those bites may be, mosquitoes are a necessary part of the ecosystem. “Both the larvae and the adults are food sources for other insects such as dragonflies, amphibians, birds and…
Episode 24 in our DECARBONIZATION series is the second of three which looks at leadership and the options for resolving chaos. Today's guest, Robert Walker formerly with Atomic Energy Canada, explores the many and various sources and forces of change contributing to the current chaos and the importance of "values" in defining great leaders. The…
It isn't so much to escape the cold but to find enough food to survive
I get both excited and saddened at this time of year. In the spring, I await the return of the birds and then all summer long I enjoy their song, but in the fall I know they will soon be migrating south. The young have fledged and the adult birds have put on enough weight…