Tag Archives: Alberta

Energy

Challenge to federal law that poses ‘existential threat’ to Alberta goes to Supreme Court

By Natasha Bulowski, Canada’s National Observer, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

The Supreme Court of Canada this week will examine whether the federal law that evaluates the impacts of proposed resource projects is unconstitutional.

The Impact Assessment Act (IAA) looks into the environmental, health and economic impacts of proposed resource projects — like pipelines and mines — and came into force in 2019 when the federal government passed Bill C-69.

Soon after, the Alberta government brought a legal challenge against the law and its regulations, arguing it was federal overreach encroaching on provincial jurisdiction. The Alberta Court of Appeal ruled in favour of the provincial government in May 2022, calling the IAA an “existential threat” to the provincial right to control and develop resources.

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Cost of Climate Change

To reach net-zero, Canada must choose one of 2 paths: Wilkinson

By John Woodside,  National Observer, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson says Canada is at a fork in the road and the energy decisions made today will ripple for generations to come. 

During a fireside chat with International Energy Agency executive director Fatih Birol at the University of Ottawa this week, Wilkinson sketched out two paths he sees for Canada. 

Continue reading To reach net-zero, Canada must choose one of 2 paths: Wilkinson →
Health

‘I’ve only got one set of hands’: Last remaining ER doctor in Port Hardy wants to hire physician assistant out of his own pocket

National Observer, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Port Hardy Hospital’s emergency room is headed for life support, says the only ER doctor expected to be available as of July 1.

Of the four local doctors on the roster at the largest hospital in northern Vancouver Island, one tendered a resignation in March and two others recently announced their departure at the end of June, said Dr. Alex Nataros.

Continue reading ‘I’ve only got one set of hands’: Last remaining ER doctor in Port Hardy wants to hire physician assistant out of his own pocket →
Finances

Seven ways to tackle inflation without raising interest rates

Originally published on Corporate Knights

Editor’s note: Guy Dauncey’s Big Solutions: Raising interest rates is a cruel cudgel that hurts the most vulnerable. There are other responses that governments and central banks should consider.

By Guy Dauncey

There are many causes of inflation, but there’s only one solution central banks seem willing to consider: increase interest rates. This has many people scratching their heads: Why would this bring down the price of rent, food or gas? Won’t it increase costs for anyone who pays interest on a variable-rate mortgage or consumer loan? And won’t it make essential green investments more difficult?

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Arts, History

Photographer captures grain elevator images as they fade away on the prairies

By Nicole Goldsworthy, Humbolt Journal, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

NORTHEAST – Tim Lockhart has made it his passion to photograph as many prairie grain elevators as he can find. 

Lockhart was born and raised in Alberta and his dad was a manager at an Old Dutch potato chip plant. When he travelled with his father he gained a passion for grain elevators as each small town they pulled into had one.

About two and half years ago, he saw how many were rapidly being torn down. What every small town in Saskatchewan had was slowly vanishing. Lockhart decided to start documenting as many as he could find throughout the prairie provinces. To date, he has taken pictures of 465 elevators in the three prairie provinces — 275 of them in Saskatchewan alone — with 25 still to document.

Continue reading Photographer captures grain elevator images as they fade away on the prairies →