All posts by Rochelle Baker

Rochelle Baker is a staff reporter with Canada’s National Observer, thanks thanks to a grant from the Local Journalism Initiative of the Government of Canada. She previously worked as a newspaper reporter and photographer in BC’s Lower Mainland for over 7 years.
Disaster, Indigenous Nations

Social inequities put Indigenous communities at greater flood risk, study finds

National Observer, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

A recent study has identified Indigenous communities that are “hot spots” for flood risk in Canada, which can help senior levels of government shape and prioritize flood management strategies in line with social equity and environmental justice.A recent study has identified Indigenous communities that are “hot spots” for flood risk in Canada, which can help senior levels of government shape and prioritize flood management strategies in line with social equity and environmental justice.

A total of 40 risk hot spots were identified in the University of Waterloo study among 360 Indigenous reserves, with the highest number of hot spots located in B.C. at 13 and in Ontario with 10.

Continue reading Social inequities put Indigenous communities at greater flood risk, study finds →
Justice, Rivers & Oceans

West Coast poacher gets lifetime ban for fisheries violations 


National Observer, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

A notorious West Coast poacher is banned from stepping aboard a fishing vessel for life after he was convicted of harvesting crabs under the cover of darkness and leading enforcement officers on a dangerous high-speed pursuit.

Scott Stanley Matthew Steer, a repeat offender under Canada’s Fisheries Act, was recently sentenced to a lifetime fishing ban and prohibited from being on board any fishing boat by a B.C. Supreme Court Judge after being convicted of five offences.

Continue reading West Coast poacher gets lifetime ban for fisheries violations  →
Rivers & Oceans

New fisheries minister wades into fish politics, cutting herring harvest in half

National Observer, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

In her first major decision, new federal Fisheries Minister Joyce Murray has reduced the West Coast commercial herring fishery by half.

Wading into the thick of fish politics Thursday, Murray said the decision is based on an abundance of caution given herring are a critical food for endangered salmon stocks — further jeopardized by the double whammy of fire and floods in B.C. this year.

Continue reading New fisheries minister wades into fish politics, cutting herring harvest in half →
Rivers & Oceans

Proposed DFO rules put BC’s prized spot prawn fishery in peril again, harvesters say

National Observer, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

A swell of outrage is rising again as the Department of Fisheries and Oceans revisits regulation changes that independent harvesters say will sink B.C.’s local spot prawn industry.

The newest version of the DFO regulations are equally unworkable for small harvesters, provide big companies exporting products overseas an advantage, and will effectively deny local consumers and communities access to fresh prawns caught sustainably by local fishers, said Sonia Strobel, CEO of Skipper Otto, a community collective of harvesters selling products to local consumers. 

Continue reading Proposed DFO rules put BC’s prized spot prawn fishery in peril again, harvesters say →
Housing, Indigenous Nations

NDP MPs push Liberals for action on housing crisis

National Observer, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Just days after tabling a private members bill that would make decent affordable housing a right for all Canadians, NDP MPs continued to pressure the federal government to address the national housing crisis. They spoke in particular about the horrific state of affairs in Indigenous communities.

Continue reading NDP MPs push Liberals for action on housing crisis →