MacKenzie River Basin at risk

MacKenzie River Basin at risk (Study notes jurisdictional hodgepodge)

"One agency urged for Mackenzie River", by Bob Weber, The Canadian Press/Calgary Herald. Monday, June 10, 2013

"The [MacKenzie] basin provides breeding habitat for more than 400 bird species that migrate as far as Argentina. Its biodiversity reserves are comparable to those of Africa's Serengeti. And it exercises a powerful impact on climate through its unbroken snow cover and influence on Arctic Ocean currents." - The Rosenberg International Forum on Water Policy at the University of California

Read more: http://bit.ly/14UQxth

Annual spring cleanup (Calgary, Sun May 05) aims for waste-free city year-round

Photograph by: Colleen De Neve, Calgary Herald

Annual spring cleanup (Calgary, Sun May 05) aims for waste-free city year-round

By Eva Ferguson, Calgary Herald May 3, 2013

Kym McCulley, with the city’s parks and recreation department, says by studying the waste collected during the 46th Annual Pathway and River Clean Up this weekend, education programs will be targeted to encourage Calgarians to change their habits and make the spring cleaning unnecessary within 10 years.

Read more here: http://bit.ly/112rau6

Pollution from British Columbia coal mining threatens fish habitat in Canada, Montana

Teck’s Greenhills mine with Fording River in background © Garth Lenz – iLCP

Pollution from British Columbia coal mining threatens fish habitat in Canada, Montana

By The Associated Press/Tristan Scott, The Missoulian, March 25, 2013

WHITEFISH, Mont. — A study by University of Montana researchers shows that pollutants leeching into the heavily mined Elk River drainage in southeastern British Columbia have reached alarming levels, particularly as a metal-like element called selenium threatens critical fish habitat in Canada, as well as downstream in Montana.

The Missoulian reports the study was commissioned by Glacier National Park and carried out by Ric Hauer, a professor of limnology, and Erin Sexton, a research scientist, both at the Flathead Lake Biological Station of the University of Montana.

Read more here: http://bit.ly/ZQ7FAa

‘Elk River is being poisoned’ by coal mining, study finds

A fly fisherman casts onto the Elk river near Fernie, B.C. The Elk river is famous for cutthroat trout and is a favorite fishing destination. (JEFF MCINTOSH/CP)

‘Elk River is being poisoned’ by coal mining, study finds

By Mark Hume, VANCOUVER — The Globe and Mail, Thursday, Mar. 21 2013

As it flows through the Rocky Mountains, near Fernie in southeastern British Columbia, the Elk River seems the picture of environmental health, with its crystal-clear waters supporting a world-famous sports fishery.

But a new study by U.S. researchers warns that all is not well below the surface, where invisible pollutants – including selenium, a metal-like element that can cause spinal deformities in young fish – have reached alarming levels.

“We’ve basically learned that the Elk River is being poisoned,” Sarah Cox, interim director of the Sierra Club of B.C., said Wednesday.

Read more here

B.C. rejects proposal for copper and gold mine

An open-pit copper and gold mine proposed for 

northern B.C., like this one in Spain, has been 

turned down by the provincial government 

on environmental grounds. (Inmet Mining)

From TUC Facebook: 

"The choice between heavy industry jobs and the environment is not always an easy one. What do you think of performance of the BC government on this one? If you want to see a beautiful and informative coffee table book about a remarkable reg ion that contains the headwaters of the Skeena, Nass and Stikine rivers, look for "The Sacred Headwaters" by Wade Davis. Stunning photography and eloquent text about a part of Canada that we believe deserves protection." - Jeff 

 B.C. rejects proposal for copper and gold mine 

Only the second time in B.C. history that a mine has been denied certificate 

The Canadian Press 
Oct 1, 2012 

The B.C. government has denied an environmental assessment certificate for a proposed mine for only the second time in the province's history. 

 The planned Morrison mine, a proposed copper and gold operation in northwest B.C., was scuttled after the government announced Monday there was concern the project could endanger salmon in the Skeena River. 

Pacific Booker Minerals Inc. had proposed the mine at Morrison Lake, a 15-kilometre-long lake surrounded by Crown land near Smithers. 

The lake is at the headwaters of the Skeena River, which produces the second-largest number of sockeye salmon in B.C. 

"This is a part of the province that has a genetically unique species of salmon that could be put at risk," said Environment Minister Terry Lake.

Read more here

We Are Nature

LINK (via: Give a Shit About Nature)