Opinion: Human Rights and Canada's Environmental Protection Act
Governments change — along with laws, regulations and priorities. It’s the nature of democracies. In Canada, we’ve seen environmental laws implemented, then weakened or overturned, then strengthened and re-instated. But the basic necessities of health, well-being and life shouldn’t be subject to the shifting agendas of political...
Report on the high and rising cost of fire services; scrap or keep the covered stair at Spokane Street? And, NO BURNING allowed now. None.
Rossland City Council held a special meeting on Monday, July 31, at 9:00 a.m. They just had quorum, with Mayor Kathy Moore and Councillors Lloyd McLellan, John Greene, and Andy Morel attending. The agenda dealt with only four items of business: 1. Declassification of the Fire and Emergency Services...
COLUMN: Our firestorms
For the past month, we have seen a series of wildfires race through the British Columbia interior, destroying homes, disrupting lives and damaging businesses. The BC government has already spent over $150 million fighting the fires and has provided over $100 million in relief to those who have been forced from their homes....
The B.C. government's dark ops
As the new B.C. government settles in and email accounts are transferred over, it’ll soon be time for them to pluck up the courage to check the cellar. The nooks and crannies of government operations, if you will. Some of what they’ll find may come as a shock. Think of it as the former government […]
Pacific NorthWest LNG is dead: five things you need to know.
This article is by Emma Gilchrist and is from DeSmog Canada. Malaysia’s Petronas has cancelled plans to build the Pacific NorthWest LNG plant on Lelu Island near Prince Rupert, B.C., in a move seen as a major setback for B.C.'s LNG dreams and as a major win for those concerned about climate change and salmon habitat. The...
Editorial: On being accused of smiling because the NDP are (sort of) in power
An acquaintance recently said to me, "I guess you're smiling because the NDP are forming the government now." Actually, I was smiling about something completely non-political. Besides, I tend to be a bit agnostic about party politics; are political parties really necessary? She went on to say that in her recollection, "when...
COLUMN: Plastic straws suck
Of all the plastic products we use and take for granted, plastic drinking straws are among the most unnecessary. Designed to be used once and discarded, their only real purpose is to keep your mouth from touching a glass or ice. It made more sense in the days when contaminated vessels were more of an issue. Now, there’s a...
Editorial: A parting shot from Christy Clark's government -- shocking but not surprising
While four of six Tsilhqot’in communities are evacuated due to raging wildfires surrounding their communities, Christy Clark’s outgoing Liberal government has granted permits to Taseko Mines to conduct extensive pre-construction exploration and drilling for the New Prosperity mine proposal in a place precious to the Tsilhqot’in Nation. Never mind that the federal government has twice […]
Opinion: Sexual assaults happen in the summertime, too. And some of us are still in the dark ages about it.
The headline above notwithstanding, people who suffer sexual assault in our region have many resources and many enlightened people available to help with all aspects of the ordeal and its aftermath. Trail FAIR is there to help, and Victims’ Assistance. And I have no reason to believe that this region’s RCMP personnel are anything but […]
Improving Parliament: can we do it?
It’s summertime. We’re all on holiday, right? Who wants to think about stuff like governance at this time of year? On the other hand, can we afford to stop thinking about it, given how things are at the highest levels of Canadian politics? I say we need a fundamental change in the dynamics of […]
