COLUMN: Renewable Communities Produce Energy, Jobs and Hope
Anishinaabe economist and writer Winona LaDuke identifies two types of economies, grounded in different ways of seeing. Speaking in Vancouver recently, she characterized one as an “extreme extractive economy” fed by exploitation of people and nature. The second is a “regenerative economy” based on an understanding of the land...
Letter to the Editor: Teck talks about selenium in the Elk River Valley
To the Editor, I wanted to follow up on your February 28, 2018 article (Some good news from Teck. And other things to consider) and provide some additional context for your readers on the extensive work Teck has underway to protect water quality in the Elk Valley. Selenium is a naturally-occurring element throughout the environment, […]
BC Government wants your opinion on ICBC rates
First, a bit of background. ICBC is in dire financial straits. Back in 2016, ICBC applied to the BC Utilities Commission for permission to raise its rates by 4.9%. This publication posted an article by Dermod Travis of Integrity BC on ICBC’s request. Travis unpicked the rationale for the proposed increase in rates, delved...
Op/Ed: Site C work stoppage: a First nations view
Editor's Note: This is a press release from the Union of BC Indian Chiefs. The Treaty 8 First Nations taking the Site C project to court have just secured a major work stoppage in the lead-up to a court injunction application set to be heard this summer. On January 15th, the West Moberly and Prophet River First Nations filed...
Editorial Musings: Some good news from Teck. And other things to consider.
It’s wonderful to be able to pass on some good news, especially about such a vital part of our region. Teck Trail Operations is full of good people and it does an amazing amount of social and economic good in all our local communities. Teck Trail Operations has issued a press release assuring us that their operations will...
Editorial: Fingerprints, security, and 'Big Brother'
A recent news item explained that a Vancouver doctor is upset that he was forced to undergo fingerprinting to prove that he was not a sex offender who had the same (or similar) name. He is quoted as asking, “Why are we being pulled aside as if we were criminals?” Well, there’s the matter of having the same name as a criminal. ...
COLUMN: We can't afford to ignore climate change
Contrary to a common perception, ignoring climate change won’t make it disappear. Global research going back to 1824 in fields ranging through physics, oceanography, biology and geology have confirmed human activity — mainly burning fossil fuels, raising livestock and destroying carbon sinks like forests and wetlands — is...
Column: A strange way to pick a leader
When a political party sets rules for a leadership race and tries to be all things to all members, the result can end up looking more like the proverbial camel designed by a committee than a true and fair method for members to choose a new leader. As they did in 2011, the B.C. Liberal party opted to continue with its practice...
Editorial: On how we vote in BC -- will it change, or not?
Come the next BC election, will we have Proportional Representation (of some kind) or business-as-usual with First-Past-the-Post? A lot of ink and pixels have been swirling around the news and opinion media on the topic. It still bears more examination, given the disparate views expressed. Let’s do some examining, and...
How a US company is suing Canada for rejecting quarry in endangered whale nursery
By Judith Lavoie, DeSmog Canada When a Canadian federal-provincial environmental review panel ruled in 2007 that a proposed quarry would go against community core values and would threaten right whales and other marine life in the Bay of Fundy, groups that had fought against the project believed that was the end of the story....
