January 31, 2014 (Cortes Island, BC)–A new website is dedicated to exploring how lifestyle choices and technologies impact the environment. The ECOreport[1] is an environmental news website covering the West Coast, from San Diego in California to British Columbia.
Continue reading Launch of the ECOreportAll posts by Roy Hales
Do Chickens Have A Life? Or Are They Simply Food?
By Roy L Hales
A new study published in Poultry Science states that though modern hens are given half the food, 32% less water and yet producing 27% more eggs than their counterparts from 1960. Should we perceive this as an accomplishment of new technologies and increased efficiency? Or simply cruelty to animals?Do chickens have a life? Or are they simply food?
BC’s Forests at Risk: Logging Practices Must Change
The health of BC’s forest cover is not good. In many parts of the province, our forests are emitting carbon, rather than absorbing it.
According to a story in the Times Colonist, “the province’s own data (shows that) net carbon dioxide emissions from forestland in 2011 were 34.9 million tons, equivalent to more than half of B.C.’s total official emissions for that year. However, only carbon emissions from deforestation and afforestation (new or replanted forests) are included in the province’s official total.”
Burnaby’s Mayor Compares BC To a Banana Republic
By Roy L Hales
The coal terminals in BC’s Lower Mainland are being enlarged to handle a great deal more cargo. The capacity of Neptune Terminals, in North Vancouver, has doubled. Westshore Terminals, in Delta, has applied to make a $230 million “upgrade.” It has yet to be seen if a new coal terminal will go in at Fraser Surrey Docks. Just before Burnaby’s council passed a resolution showing their opposition to the proposal, Mayor Derek Corrigan commented that BC is turning into a Banana Republic.
“Over and over again we decisions being made by bodies who are not independent,” said Mayor Corrigan. “Port Metro Vancouver is conducting this environmental assessment. The Majority of Directors on Port Metro Vancouver are appointed by the very companies that stand to economically benefit from these decisions. And so here you have a Board of Directors, appointed by the companies that us in charge of the environmental assessment to determine if they are going to make more money.”
What is Killing BC’s Wild Salmon?
Anyone simply looking for evidence that salmon farms could be infecting wild salmon will find enough five minutes into Twyla Roscovich’s documentary “Salmon Confidential Documentary.” The evidence is laid so convincingly that one is tempted to turn the video off. That would be a mistake. Salmon Confidential Documentary follows biologist Alexandra Morton, as she seeks the cause of the massive salmon die-offs before they can spawn. As she gets closer to the answer, the question becomes why is the Department of Fisheries and Oceans not doing something about it?