Noting fewer narwhal, North Baffin hunters ask Baffinland not to break ice
Mon., July 5, 2021
Hunters from Pond Inlet are asking Baffinland Iron Mines Corp. not to do any icebreaking this year near the northern tip of Baffin Island, saying that mounting evidence shows that icebreaking is harmful to the health of narwhal.
The number of narwhal in Eclipse Sound — a body of water near the port that Baffinland uses for shipping iron ore — is affected by the company’s operations and was nearly cut in half between 2019 and 2020, dropping to 5,019 from 9,931, according to the findings of Golder Associates Ltd., Baffinland’s third-party experts on marine life.
Eric Ootoovak, chairperson of the Mittimatalik Hunters and Trappers Organization, said the decrease is due to the Mary River mine operations. Baffinland ships six million tonnes of iron ore a year from its operations there.
“Science is finally catching up with Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit [traditional knowledge] by recognizing the disturbance to narwhal,” Ootoovak stated in a June 25 news release.
“It’s time for Baffinland to take serious action to stop this disturbance, including cancelling its planned icebreaking.”
The hunters’ group also cited a study that found the stress level in narwhals is increasing and affecting their health, which many Inuit groups say is making the narwhals skinnier and less nourishing.
The Mittimatalik Hunters and Trappers Organization is opposed to Baffinland’s expansion proposal to double its annual ore shipments and build a railway and dock at Milne Inlet.
The proposal is currently before the Nunavut Impact Review Board, which had to suspend its hearing on the project when there was a COVID-19 outbreak in Iqaluit in mid-April.
Baffinland spokesperson Heather Smiles said the company agrees that there are fewer narwhal, but this could be due to factors other than the mine’s operations, such as an increase in killer whales and underwater pile driving in Pond Inlet.
“These factors may have acted independently or cumulatively,” she said. “All of these factors were either unique in 2020 or more prominent than in 2019.”
The company hasn’t decided whether it will send icebreakers this year, Smiles said. But she said a “precautionary approach” will be taken because of the low number of narwhal last year.
Baffinland has adopted “conservative” measures that are a product of feedback from Inuit groups, Smiles said.
She pointed to the company’s marine wildlife management plan, which includes two adaptive management measures that could be used: changing the ships’ schedule to avoid times when contact with narwhal is more likely to happen, and find alternative routes.
But Ootoovak said in a June 25 letter to Baffinland and the review board that the mitigation measures are unclear.
Baffinland can begin icebreaking around July 15, depending on ice conditions, and end around Oct. 15, Smiles said.
David Venn, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Nunatsiaq News
Monday, July 05, 2021
ALMOST NATIONALIZED
Alberta takes 50 per cent equity stake in Sturgeon RefinerMon., July 5, 2021
The Sturgeon Refinery is located 45 kilometres northeast of Edmonton.
(CBC - image credit)
The Alberta government is buying a 50 per cent stake in the troubled Sturgeon Refinery and extending the current 30-year processing agreement by another decade.
The province will share ownership of the refinery, located 45 kilometres northeast of Edmonton, with Canadian Natural Resources Limited.
The government said in a news release Monday the partnership will save $2 billion over the life of the project. Debt refinancing will free up to $1 billion in cash flow over five years due to better interest rates.
Energy Minister Sonya Savage said the government made this deal to make the best of a bad agreement that had iron-clad provisions that were impossible to escape.
"Under the previous deal, we had all the risk, we took all the risk...and we had no ability to control or mitigate that risk to control costs or to have any say in how the refinery was operated," Savage said in an interview with CBC News.
"With this deal, we save $2 billion and we have a seat at the table."
Under the original agreement reached in 2012, North West Redwater Partnership, which was owned equally by North West Refining Inc. and a subsidiary of Canadian Natural Resources, owned and operated the refinery.
The deal announced Monday has North West Refining transferring its ownership stake to the government of Alberta, which gives the province an equal vote in the operations. Officials say taxpayers wouldn't incur additional costs.
The North West Redwater Partnership is paying $425 million to North West Refining and $400 million to CNRL. Under the original agreement, Alberta government had to pay processing fees and profits each month.
Paying this money upfront means the government will no longer have to make these monthly payments, and will save money over the term of the agreement.
Savage compared it to the savings of paying off a credit card balance today instead of incurring interest costs by paying instalments over a longer period of time.
"The owners of the refinery were guaranteed a rate of return by the Alberta government under the previous deal for many, many years," Savage said.
"By paying that out now, it saved a lot of money for the Alberta government. If we didn't pay it out now, we'd be paying it out month-by-month, year-by-year over decades and it would be a lot more."
The Alberta Petroleum Marketing Commission (APMC) had responsibility for supplying 75 per cent of the feedstock for the refinery, which would process raw bitumen into diesel and other products.
The government estimates the refinery will lose $2.5 billion over the life of the project. The province will pay $26 billion to refine the bitumen which it intends to sell for a profit.
The Alberta government is buying a 50 per cent stake in the troubled Sturgeon Refinery and extending the current 30-year processing agreement by another decade.
The province will share ownership of the refinery, located 45 kilometres northeast of Edmonton, with Canadian Natural Resources Limited.
The government said in a news release Monday the partnership will save $2 billion over the life of the project. Debt refinancing will free up to $1 billion in cash flow over five years due to better interest rates.
Energy Minister Sonya Savage said the government made this deal to make the best of a bad agreement that had iron-clad provisions that were impossible to escape.
"Under the previous deal, we had all the risk, we took all the risk...and we had no ability to control or mitigate that risk to control costs or to have any say in how the refinery was operated," Savage said in an interview with CBC News.
"With this deal, we save $2 billion and we have a seat at the table."
Under the original agreement reached in 2012, North West Redwater Partnership, which was owned equally by North West Refining Inc. and a subsidiary of Canadian Natural Resources, owned and operated the refinery.
The deal announced Monday has North West Refining transferring its ownership stake to the government of Alberta, which gives the province an equal vote in the operations. Officials say taxpayers wouldn't incur additional costs.
The North West Redwater Partnership is paying $425 million to North West Refining and $400 million to CNRL. Under the original agreement, Alberta government had to pay processing fees and profits each month.
Paying this money upfront means the government will no longer have to make these monthly payments, and will save money over the term of the agreement.
Savage compared it to the savings of paying off a credit card balance today instead of incurring interest costs by paying instalments over a longer period of time.
"The owners of the refinery were guaranteed a rate of return by the Alberta government under the previous deal for many, many years," Savage said.
"By paying that out now, it saved a lot of money for the Alberta government. If we didn't pay it out now, we'd be paying it out month-by-month, year-by-year over decades and it would be a lot more."
The Alberta Petroleum Marketing Commission (APMC) had responsibility for supplying 75 per cent of the feedstock for the refinery, which would process raw bitumen into diesel and other products.
The government estimates the refinery will lose $2.5 billion over the life of the project. The province will pay $26 billion to refine the bitumen which it intends to sell for a profit.
Nova Scotia to spend $5.4M to encourage sustainable forestry practices
Mon., July 5, 2021,
Nova Scotia is trying to create a more environmentally sustainable forestry in the province. (Robert Short/CBC - image credit)
Premier Iain Rankin continued a string of funding announcements Monday, pledging $5.4 million to encourage more environmentally sustainable forestry in the province.
He made the announcement in New Ross.
Most of the money will be used to extend existing silviculture programs that promote ecological management with measures like thinning stands, tree planting or selective harvesting.
"If you do selection harvests, you can now get funding for doing that. It allows for more opportunities," Rankin said in an interview.
"The alternative is to clear cut. Now with more funding provided, landowners have more options to be able to use the ecological model."
Woodlot owner Debbie Reeves said the government money is needed to promote more sustainable forest management.
"The economics plays a part. There's only so much money to put back into the land. So if we don't have some government funding to support this we aren't going to be able to do as good a job as we can, especially with the ecological forestry element that's now coming to the forefront," Reeves said.
Jean Laroche/CBC
The province is also providing $1 million for training to implement ecological forestry practices outlined in an independent review of Nova Scotia forestry sector by William Lahey.
The government is extending a program for logging roads. It has set aside $1 million for private woodlots.
Owners of small woodlots are eligible for up to $5,000, or 75 per cent of the cost of roads on their property. Those are defined as woodlots from 20 to 2,000 hectares.
The program started last year and had five times as many people apply as there was money available. Unsuccessful applicants were put on a list and next in line will be contacted as more money becomes available.
Small woodlot owners to benefit
Jeff Bishop of the industry group Forest Nova Scotia said 125 to 150 small woodlot owners will benefit this year.
"It's a great investment because those landowners will hire people, they'll buy the supplies to do the work to get those roads done. So there's an immediate impact, but it's also looking forward to allowing landowners to manage their land by having the proper access that they need," he said.
Rankin was accused of caving into the forest industry when he diluted elements in his signature piece of legislation since becoming premier earlier this year.
The Biodiversity Act was billed as a way to protect the environment, but was assailed as government overreach on private land in a campaign organized by the sector.
Those fears were dismissed by environmentalists, but Rankin stripped provisions on penalties from the legislation.
'We need to evolve our practices'
On Monday, Rankin again defended the act and said the province is moving toward a more sustainable model of forestry called for by Lahey in 2018.
"I believe that we can grow traditional sectors and at the same time modernize and keep them competitive. And for forestry, we need to evolve our practices. I'm happy that we have industry collaborating now with environmental non-profits and we're moving forward with the report. We've accomplished many of the recommendations that we're going to continue," he said.
The province will spend $2 million for silviculture and $1 million for roads on private woodlots.
It will spend $1 million for silviculture and $400,000 for roads on Crown land.
The Association for Sustainable Forestry will receive $330,000 for training in pre-treatment assessment.
The Canadian Woodlands Forum will get $670,000 to train contractors in new methods and prescriptions associated with ecological forestry.
Mon., July 5, 2021,
Nova Scotia is trying to create a more environmentally sustainable forestry in the province. (Robert Short/CBC - image credit)
Premier Iain Rankin continued a string of funding announcements Monday, pledging $5.4 million to encourage more environmentally sustainable forestry in the province.
He made the announcement in New Ross.
Most of the money will be used to extend existing silviculture programs that promote ecological management with measures like thinning stands, tree planting or selective harvesting.
"If you do selection harvests, you can now get funding for doing that. It allows for more opportunities," Rankin said in an interview.
"The alternative is to clear cut. Now with more funding provided, landowners have more options to be able to use the ecological model."
Woodlot owner Debbie Reeves said the government money is needed to promote more sustainable forest management.
"The economics plays a part. There's only so much money to put back into the land. So if we don't have some government funding to support this we aren't going to be able to do as good a job as we can, especially with the ecological forestry element that's now coming to the forefront," Reeves said.
Jean Laroche/CBC
The province is also providing $1 million for training to implement ecological forestry practices outlined in an independent review of Nova Scotia forestry sector by William Lahey.
The government is extending a program for logging roads. It has set aside $1 million for private woodlots.
Owners of small woodlots are eligible for up to $5,000, or 75 per cent of the cost of roads on their property. Those are defined as woodlots from 20 to 2,000 hectares.
The program started last year and had five times as many people apply as there was money available. Unsuccessful applicants were put on a list and next in line will be contacted as more money becomes available.
Small woodlot owners to benefit
Jeff Bishop of the industry group Forest Nova Scotia said 125 to 150 small woodlot owners will benefit this year.
"It's a great investment because those landowners will hire people, they'll buy the supplies to do the work to get those roads done. So there's an immediate impact, but it's also looking forward to allowing landowners to manage their land by having the proper access that they need," he said.
Rankin was accused of caving into the forest industry when he diluted elements in his signature piece of legislation since becoming premier earlier this year.
The Biodiversity Act was billed as a way to protect the environment, but was assailed as government overreach on private land in a campaign organized by the sector.
Those fears were dismissed by environmentalists, but Rankin stripped provisions on penalties from the legislation.
'We need to evolve our practices'
On Monday, Rankin again defended the act and said the province is moving toward a more sustainable model of forestry called for by Lahey in 2018.
"I believe that we can grow traditional sectors and at the same time modernize and keep them competitive. And for forestry, we need to evolve our practices. I'm happy that we have industry collaborating now with environmental non-profits and we're moving forward with the report. We've accomplished many of the recommendations that we're going to continue," he said.
The province will spend $2 million for silviculture and $1 million for roads on private woodlots.
It will spend $1 million for silviculture and $400,000 for roads on Crown land.
The Association for Sustainable Forestry will receive $330,000 for training in pre-treatment assessment.
The Canadian Woodlands Forum will get $670,000 to train contractors in new methods and prescriptions associated with ecological forestry.
Wildlife, air quality at risk as Great Salt Lake nears low
Mon., July 5, 2021,
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — The silvery blue waters of the Great Salt Lake sprawl across the Utah desert, having covered an area nearly the size of Delaware for much of history. For years, though, the largest natural lake west of the Mississippi River has been shrinking. And a drought gripping the American West could make this year the worst yet.
The receding water is already affecting the nesting spot of pelicans that are among the millions of birds dependent on the lake. Sailboats have been hoisted out of the water to keep them from getting stuck in the mud. More dry lakebed getting exposed could send arsenic-laced dust into the air that millions breathe.
“A lot us have been talking about the lake as flatlining,” said Lynn de Freitas, executive director of Friends of the Great Salt Lake.
The lake's levels are expected to hit a 170-year low this year. It comes as the drought has the U.S. West bracing for a brutal wildfire season and coping with already low reservoirs. Utah Gov. Spencer Cox, a Republican, has begged people to cut back on lawn watering and “pray for rain.”
For the Great Salt Lake, though, it is only the latest challenge. People for years have been diverting water from rivers that flow into the lake to water crops and supply homes. Because the lake is shallow — about 35 feet (11 meters) at its deepest point — less water quickly translates to receding shorelines.
The water that remains stretches across a chunk of northern Utah, with highways on one end and remote land on the other. A resort — long since closed — once drew sunbathers who would float like corks in the extra salty waters. Picnic tables once a quick stroll from the shore are now a 10-minute walk away.
Robert Atkinson, 91, remembers that resort and the feeling of weightlessness in the water. When he returned this year to fly over the lake in a motorized paraglider, he found it changed.
“It's much shallower than I would have expected it to be,” he said.
The waves have been replaced by dry, gravelly lakebed that's grown to 750 square miles (1,942 square kilometers). Winds can whip up dust from the dry lakebed that is laced with naturally occurring arsenic, said Kevin Perry, a University of Utah atmospheric scientist.
It blows through a region that already has some of the dirtiest wintertime air in the country because of seasonal geographic conditions that trap pollution between the mountains.
Perry warns of what happened at California's Owens Lake, which was pumped dry to feed thirsty Los Angeles and created a dust bowl that cost millions of dollars to tamp down. The Great Salt Lake is much larger and closer to a populated area, Perry said.
Luckily, much of the bed of Utah's giant lake has a crust that makes it tougher for dust to blow. Perry is researching how long the protective crust will last and how dangerous the soil's arsenic might be to people.
This year is primed to be especially bleak. Utah is one of the driest states in the country, and most of its water comes from snowfall. The snowpack was below normal last winter and the soil was dry, meaning much of the melted snow that flowed down the mountains soaked into the ground.
Most years, the Great Salt Lake gains up to 2 feet (half a meter) from spring runoff. This year, it was just 6 inches (15 centimeters), Perry said.
“We’ve never had an April lake level that was as low as it was this year,” he said.
More exposed lakebed also means more people have ventured onto the crust, including off-road vehicles that damage it, Great Salt Lake coordinator Laura Vernon said.
“The more continued drought we have, the more of the salt crust will be weathered and more dust will become airborne because there’s less of that protective crust layer,” she said.
The swirling dust also could speed the melting of Utah’s snow, according to research by McKenzie Skiles, a snow hydrologist at the University of Utah. Her study showed that dust from one storm made the snow so much darker that it melted a week earlier than expected. While much of that dust came from other sources, an expansion of dry lakebed raises concerns about changes to the state's billon-dollar ski industry.
“No one wants to ski dirty snow,” she said.
While the lake's vast waters are too salty for most creatures except brine shrimp, for sailors like Marilyn Ross, 65, it’s a tranquil paradise with panoramas of distant peaks.
“You get out on this lake and it’s better than going to a psychiatrist, it’s really very calming,” she said.
But this year, the little red boat named Promiscuous that she and her husband have sailed for more than 20 years was hoisted out of the water with a massive crane just as the season got underway. Record-low lake levels were expected to leave the boats stuck in the mud rather than skimming the waves. Low water has kept the other main marina closed for years.
“Some people don’t think that we’re ever going to be able to get back in," Ross said.
Brine shrimp support a $57 million fish food industry in Utah but in the coming years, less water could make the salinity too great for even those tiny creatures to survive.
“We’re really coming to a critical time for the Great Salt Lake,” said Jaimi Butler, coordinator for Great Salt Lake Institute at Westminster College in Salt Lake City. She studies the American white pelican, one of the largest birds in North America.
They flock to Gunnison Island, a remote outpost in the lake where up to 20% of the bird’s population nests, with male and female birds cooperating to have one watch the eggs at all times.
“Mom goes fishing and dad stays at the nest,” Butler said.
But the falling lake levels have exposed a land bridge to the island, allowing foxes and coyotes to come across and hunt for rodents and other food. The activity frightens the shy birds accustomed to a quiet place to raise their young, so they flee the nests, leaving the eggs and baby birds to be eaten by gulls.
Pelicans aren’t the only birds dependent on the lake. It’s a stopover for many species to feed on their journey south.
A study from Utah State University says that to maintain lake levels, diverting water from rivers that flow into it would have to decrease by 30%. But for the state with the nation's fastest-growing population, addressing the problem will require a major shift in how water is allocated and perceptions of the lake, which has a strong odor in some places caused treated wastewater and is home to billions of brine flies.
“There’s a lot of people who believe that every drop that goes into the Great Salt Lake is wasted,” Perry said. “That’s the perspective I’m trying to change. The lake has needs, too. And they’re not being met.”
Lindsay Whitehurst, The Associated Press
Mon., July 5, 2021,
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — The silvery blue waters of the Great Salt Lake sprawl across the Utah desert, having covered an area nearly the size of Delaware for much of history. For years, though, the largest natural lake west of the Mississippi River has been shrinking. And a drought gripping the American West could make this year the worst yet.
The receding water is already affecting the nesting spot of pelicans that are among the millions of birds dependent on the lake. Sailboats have been hoisted out of the water to keep them from getting stuck in the mud. More dry lakebed getting exposed could send arsenic-laced dust into the air that millions breathe.
“A lot us have been talking about the lake as flatlining,” said Lynn de Freitas, executive director of Friends of the Great Salt Lake.
The lake's levels are expected to hit a 170-year low this year. It comes as the drought has the U.S. West bracing for a brutal wildfire season and coping with already low reservoirs. Utah Gov. Spencer Cox, a Republican, has begged people to cut back on lawn watering and “pray for rain.”
For the Great Salt Lake, though, it is only the latest challenge. People for years have been diverting water from rivers that flow into the lake to water crops and supply homes. Because the lake is shallow — about 35 feet (11 meters) at its deepest point — less water quickly translates to receding shorelines.
The water that remains stretches across a chunk of northern Utah, with highways on one end and remote land on the other. A resort — long since closed — once drew sunbathers who would float like corks in the extra salty waters. Picnic tables once a quick stroll from the shore are now a 10-minute walk away.
Robert Atkinson, 91, remembers that resort and the feeling of weightlessness in the water. When he returned this year to fly over the lake in a motorized paraglider, he found it changed.
“It's much shallower than I would have expected it to be,” he said.
The waves have been replaced by dry, gravelly lakebed that's grown to 750 square miles (1,942 square kilometers). Winds can whip up dust from the dry lakebed that is laced with naturally occurring arsenic, said Kevin Perry, a University of Utah atmospheric scientist.
It blows through a region that already has some of the dirtiest wintertime air in the country because of seasonal geographic conditions that trap pollution between the mountains.
Perry warns of what happened at California's Owens Lake, which was pumped dry to feed thirsty Los Angeles and created a dust bowl that cost millions of dollars to tamp down. The Great Salt Lake is much larger and closer to a populated area, Perry said.
Luckily, much of the bed of Utah's giant lake has a crust that makes it tougher for dust to blow. Perry is researching how long the protective crust will last and how dangerous the soil's arsenic might be to people.
This year is primed to be especially bleak. Utah is one of the driest states in the country, and most of its water comes from snowfall. The snowpack was below normal last winter and the soil was dry, meaning much of the melted snow that flowed down the mountains soaked into the ground.
Most years, the Great Salt Lake gains up to 2 feet (half a meter) from spring runoff. This year, it was just 6 inches (15 centimeters), Perry said.
“We’ve never had an April lake level that was as low as it was this year,” he said.
More exposed lakebed also means more people have ventured onto the crust, including off-road vehicles that damage it, Great Salt Lake coordinator Laura Vernon said.
“The more continued drought we have, the more of the salt crust will be weathered and more dust will become airborne because there’s less of that protective crust layer,” she said.
The swirling dust also could speed the melting of Utah’s snow, according to research by McKenzie Skiles, a snow hydrologist at the University of Utah. Her study showed that dust from one storm made the snow so much darker that it melted a week earlier than expected. While much of that dust came from other sources, an expansion of dry lakebed raises concerns about changes to the state's billon-dollar ski industry.
“No one wants to ski dirty snow,” she said.
While the lake's vast waters are too salty for most creatures except brine shrimp, for sailors like Marilyn Ross, 65, it’s a tranquil paradise with panoramas of distant peaks.
“You get out on this lake and it’s better than going to a psychiatrist, it’s really very calming,” she said.
But this year, the little red boat named Promiscuous that she and her husband have sailed for more than 20 years was hoisted out of the water with a massive crane just as the season got underway. Record-low lake levels were expected to leave the boats stuck in the mud rather than skimming the waves. Low water has kept the other main marina closed for years.
“Some people don’t think that we’re ever going to be able to get back in," Ross said.
Brine shrimp support a $57 million fish food industry in Utah but in the coming years, less water could make the salinity too great for even those tiny creatures to survive.
“We’re really coming to a critical time for the Great Salt Lake,” said Jaimi Butler, coordinator for Great Salt Lake Institute at Westminster College in Salt Lake City. She studies the American white pelican, one of the largest birds in North America.
They flock to Gunnison Island, a remote outpost in the lake where up to 20% of the bird’s population nests, with male and female birds cooperating to have one watch the eggs at all times.
“Mom goes fishing and dad stays at the nest,” Butler said.
But the falling lake levels have exposed a land bridge to the island, allowing foxes and coyotes to come across and hunt for rodents and other food. The activity frightens the shy birds accustomed to a quiet place to raise their young, so they flee the nests, leaving the eggs and baby birds to be eaten by gulls.
Pelicans aren’t the only birds dependent on the lake. It’s a stopover for many species to feed on their journey south.
A study from Utah State University says that to maintain lake levels, diverting water from rivers that flow into it would have to decrease by 30%. But for the state with the nation's fastest-growing population, addressing the problem will require a major shift in how water is allocated and perceptions of the lake, which has a strong odor in some places caused treated wastewater and is home to billions of brine flies.
“There’s a lot of people who believe that every drop that goes into the Great Salt Lake is wasted,” Perry said. “That’s the perspective I’m trying to change. The lake has needs, too. And they’re not being met.”
Lindsay Whitehurst, The Associated Press
Mexico: Lightning storm ignited gas leak in Gulf
Mon., July 5, 2021,
MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico’s state-owned oil company said Monday that a bizarre chain of events, including a lightning storm and a simultaneous gas pipeline leak, set off a strange subaquatic fireball seen last week in the Gulf of Mexico.
Petroleos Mexicanos said an intense storm of rain and lightning on July 2 forced the company to shut off pumping stations serving the offshore rig near where the fire occurred.
Simultaneously, the leak in an underwater pipeline allowed natural gas to build up on the ocean floor and once it rose to the surface, it was probably ignited by a lightning bolt, the company said.
Pemex sent fire control boats to pump more water over the flames and no one was injured in the incident in the offshore Ku-Maloob-Zaap field. It said no crude oil was spilled. Pemex said it was repairing the pumps and investigating the cause of the gas leak.
The accident unleashed a subaquatic fireball that appeared to boil the waters of the Gulf of Mexico, and drew a hail of criticism from environmentalists.
Greenpeace Mexico said the fire, which took five hours to extinguish, “demonstrates the serious risks that Mexico’s fossil fuel model poses for the environment and people’s safety.”
President Andrés Manuel López Obrador has bet heavily on drilling more wells and buying or building oil refineries. He touts oil as “the best business in the world.”
Climate activist Greta Thunberg reposted a video clip of the fireball on her Twitter account.
“Meanwhile the people in power call themselves ‘climate leaders’ as they open up new oilfields, pipelines and coal power plants — granting new oil licenses exploring future oil drilling sites,” Thunberg wrote. “This is the world they are leaving for us.”
The Associated Press
Mon., July 5, 2021,
MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico’s state-owned oil company said Monday that a bizarre chain of events, including a lightning storm and a simultaneous gas pipeline leak, set off a strange subaquatic fireball seen last week in the Gulf of Mexico.
Petroleos Mexicanos said an intense storm of rain and lightning on July 2 forced the company to shut off pumping stations serving the offshore rig near where the fire occurred.
Simultaneously, the leak in an underwater pipeline allowed natural gas to build up on the ocean floor and once it rose to the surface, it was probably ignited by a lightning bolt, the company said.
Pemex sent fire control boats to pump more water over the flames and no one was injured in the incident in the offshore Ku-Maloob-Zaap field. It said no crude oil was spilled. Pemex said it was repairing the pumps and investigating the cause of the gas leak.
The accident unleashed a subaquatic fireball that appeared to boil the waters of the Gulf of Mexico, and drew a hail of criticism from environmentalists.
Greenpeace Mexico said the fire, which took five hours to extinguish, “demonstrates the serious risks that Mexico’s fossil fuel model poses for the environment and people’s safety.”
President Andrés Manuel López Obrador has bet heavily on drilling more wells and buying or building oil refineries. He touts oil as “the best business in the world.”
Climate activist Greta Thunberg reposted a video clip of the fireball on her Twitter account.
“Meanwhile the people in power call themselves ‘climate leaders’ as they open up new oilfields, pipelines and coal power plants — granting new oil licenses exploring future oil drilling sites,” Thunberg wrote. “This is the world they are leaving for us.”
The Associated Press
Tribe becomes key water player with drought aid to Arizona
Mon., July 5, 2021
FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (AP) — For thousands of years, an Arizona tribe relied on the Colorado River's natural flooding patterns to farm. Later, it hand-dug ditches and canals to route water to fields.
Now, gravity sends the river water from the north end of the Colorado River Indian Tribes reservation through 19th century canals to sustain alfalfa, cotton, wheat, onions and potatoes, mainly by flooding the fields.
Some of those fields haven't been producing lately as the tribe contributes water to prop up Lake Mead to help weather a historic drought in the American West. The reservoir serves as a barometer for how much water Arizona and other states will get under plans to protect the river serving 40 million people.
The Colorado River Indian Tribes and another tribe in Arizona played an outsized role in the drought contingency plans that had the state voluntarily give up water. As Arizona faces mandatory cuts next year in its Colorado River supply, the tribes see themselves as major players in the future of water.
“We were always told more or less what to do, and so now it’s taking shape where tribes have been involved and invited to the table to do negotiations, to have input into the issues about the river,” first-term Colorado River Indian Tribes Chairwoman Amelia Flores said.
Lake Mead on the Nevada-Arizona border has fallen to its lowest point since it was filled in the 1930s. Water experts say the situation would be worse had the tribe not agreed to store 150,000 acre-feet in the lake over three years. A single acre-foot is enough to serve one to two households per year. The Gila River Indian Community also contributed water.
The Colorado River Indian Tribes received $38 million in return, including $30 million from the state. Environmentalists, foundations and corporations fulfilled a pledge last month to chip in the rest.
Kevin Moran of the Environmental Defense Fund said the agreement signaled a new approach to combating drought, climate change and the demand from the river.
“The way we look at it, the Colorado River basin is ground zero for water-related impacts of climate change,” he said. “And we have to plan for the river and the watersheds that climate scientists tell us we’re probably going to have, not the one we might wish for.”
Tribal officials say the $38 million is more than what they would have made leasing the land. The Colorado River Indian Tribes stopped farming more than 15 square miles (39 square kilometers) to make water available, tribal attorney Margaret Vick said.
“There's an economic tradeoff as well as a conservation tradeoff,” she said.
While some fields are dry on the reservation, the tribe plans to use the money to invest in its water infrastructure. It has the oldest irrigation system built by the U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs, dating to 1867, serving nearly 125 square miles (323 square kilometers) of tribal land.
The age of the irrigation system means it's in constant need of improvements. Flores, the tribal chairwoman, said some parts of the 232-mile (373-kilometer) concrete and earthen canal are lined and others aren't, so water is lost through seepage or cracks.
A 2016 study conducted by the tribe put the price tag to fix deficiencies at more than $75 million. It's leveraging grants, funding from previous conservation efforts and other money to put a dent in the repairs, Flores said.
“If we had all the dollars in the world to line all the canals that run through our reservation, that would be a great project to complete,” Flores said. “I don’t think that’s going to happen in our lifetime.”
The tribe is made up of four distinct groups of Native Americans — Chemehuevi, Mohave, Hopi and Navajo. The reservation includes more than 110 miles (177 kilometers) of Colorado River shoreline with some of the oldest and most secure rights to the river in both Arizona and California.
While much of the water goes to farming, it also sustains wildlife preserves and the tribe's culture.
“We can't forget about the spiritual, the cultural aspect to the tribes on the Colorado River,” Flores said. “Our songs, clan songs, river and other traditional rites that happen at the river.”
The tribe can't take full advantage of its right to divert 662,000 acre-feet per year from the Colorado River on the Arizona side because it lacks the infrastructure. It also has water rights in California.
An additional 46 square miles (121 square kilometers) of land could be developed for agriculture if the tribe had the infrastructure, according to a 2018 study on water use and development among tribes in the Colorado River basin.
“One day,” Flores said. “That’s the goal of our leaders who have come behind me, to use all of our water allocation and develop our lands that right now are not developed.”
___
Fonseca is a member of The Associated Press’ race and ethnicity team. Follow her on Twitter at https://twitter.com/FonsecaAP.
Mon., July 5, 2021
FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (AP) — For thousands of years, an Arizona tribe relied on the Colorado River's natural flooding patterns to farm. Later, it hand-dug ditches and canals to route water to fields.
Now, gravity sends the river water from the north end of the Colorado River Indian Tribes reservation through 19th century canals to sustain alfalfa, cotton, wheat, onions and potatoes, mainly by flooding the fields.
Some of those fields haven't been producing lately as the tribe contributes water to prop up Lake Mead to help weather a historic drought in the American West. The reservoir serves as a barometer for how much water Arizona and other states will get under plans to protect the river serving 40 million people.
The Colorado River Indian Tribes and another tribe in Arizona played an outsized role in the drought contingency plans that had the state voluntarily give up water. As Arizona faces mandatory cuts next year in its Colorado River supply, the tribes see themselves as major players in the future of water.
“We were always told more or less what to do, and so now it’s taking shape where tribes have been involved and invited to the table to do negotiations, to have input into the issues about the river,” first-term Colorado River Indian Tribes Chairwoman Amelia Flores said.
Lake Mead on the Nevada-Arizona border has fallen to its lowest point since it was filled in the 1930s. Water experts say the situation would be worse had the tribe not agreed to store 150,000 acre-feet in the lake over three years. A single acre-foot is enough to serve one to two households per year. The Gila River Indian Community also contributed water.
The Colorado River Indian Tribes received $38 million in return, including $30 million from the state. Environmentalists, foundations and corporations fulfilled a pledge last month to chip in the rest.
Kevin Moran of the Environmental Defense Fund said the agreement signaled a new approach to combating drought, climate change and the demand from the river.
“The way we look at it, the Colorado River basin is ground zero for water-related impacts of climate change,” he said. “And we have to plan for the river and the watersheds that climate scientists tell us we’re probably going to have, not the one we might wish for.”
Tribal officials say the $38 million is more than what they would have made leasing the land. The Colorado River Indian Tribes stopped farming more than 15 square miles (39 square kilometers) to make water available, tribal attorney Margaret Vick said.
“There's an economic tradeoff as well as a conservation tradeoff,” she said.
While some fields are dry on the reservation, the tribe plans to use the money to invest in its water infrastructure. It has the oldest irrigation system built by the U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs, dating to 1867, serving nearly 125 square miles (323 square kilometers) of tribal land.
The age of the irrigation system means it's in constant need of improvements. Flores, the tribal chairwoman, said some parts of the 232-mile (373-kilometer) concrete and earthen canal are lined and others aren't, so water is lost through seepage or cracks.
A 2016 study conducted by the tribe put the price tag to fix deficiencies at more than $75 million. It's leveraging grants, funding from previous conservation efforts and other money to put a dent in the repairs, Flores said.
“If we had all the dollars in the world to line all the canals that run through our reservation, that would be a great project to complete,” Flores said. “I don’t think that’s going to happen in our lifetime.”
The tribe is made up of four distinct groups of Native Americans — Chemehuevi, Mohave, Hopi and Navajo. The reservation includes more than 110 miles (177 kilometers) of Colorado River shoreline with some of the oldest and most secure rights to the river in both Arizona and California.
While much of the water goes to farming, it also sustains wildlife preserves and the tribe's culture.
“We can't forget about the spiritual, the cultural aspect to the tribes on the Colorado River,” Flores said. “Our songs, clan songs, river and other traditional rites that happen at the river.”
The tribe can't take full advantage of its right to divert 662,000 acre-feet per year from the Colorado River on the Arizona side because it lacks the infrastructure. It also has water rights in California.
An additional 46 square miles (121 square kilometers) of land could be developed for agriculture if the tribe had the infrastructure, according to a 2018 study on water use and development among tribes in the Colorado River basin.
“One day,” Flores said. “That’s the goal of our leaders who have come behind me, to use all of our water allocation and develop our lands that right now are not developed.”
___
Fonseca is a member of The Associated Press’ race and ethnicity team. Follow her on Twitter at https://twitter.com/FonsecaAP.
Berta Cáceres: Ex-dam company boss guilty of planning Honduran activist's murder
Mon., July 5, 2021,
Berta Cáceres had rallied indigenous Lenca people against the dam
A court in Honduras has found a former energy executive guilty of helping plan the murder of a high-profile environmental activist in 2016.
Berta Cáceres led protests against the Agua Zarca hydro-electric dam project before being shot dead in her home.
The court ruled that Roberto David Castillo, whose company had been awarded the contract, had planned the murder and hired the gunmen.
Castillo has denied any wrongdoing. He will be sentenced in August.
Seven men had already been convicted for their role in Ms Cáceres's killing and were sentenced to lengthy jail terms.
Ms Cáceres had faced years of threats over her opposition to the dam project being run by Mr Castillo's company, Desa.
The dam would have flooded large areas of land and cut off the supply of water, food and medicine for hundreds of the indigenous Lenca people.
As well as filing official complaints, Ms Cáceres organised a road block that prevented construction workers from reaching the site.
The Chinese state-owned company Sinohydro, which was jointly developing the project, eventually pulled out citing community resistance.
In 2015 Ms Cáceres was awarded the prestigious Goldman Prize for her role in stopping the building of the dam.
The indigenous rights organisation Ms Cáceres co-founded called the verdict a "victory" for the people of Honduras.
It is one of the world's most dangerous countries for environmental activists, according to advocacy group Global Witness.
In a blog post earlier this year, the group said "at least 40 land and environmental defenders" had been killed in the country since Ms Cáceres's death.
Mon., July 5, 2021,
Berta Cáceres had rallied indigenous Lenca people against the dam
A court in Honduras has found a former energy executive guilty of helping plan the murder of a high-profile environmental activist in 2016.
Berta Cáceres led protests against the Agua Zarca hydro-electric dam project before being shot dead in her home.
The court ruled that Roberto David Castillo, whose company had been awarded the contract, had planned the murder and hired the gunmen.
Castillo has denied any wrongdoing. He will be sentenced in August.
Seven men had already been convicted for their role in Ms Cáceres's killing and were sentenced to lengthy jail terms.
Ms Cáceres had faced years of threats over her opposition to the dam project being run by Mr Castillo's company, Desa.
The dam would have flooded large areas of land and cut off the supply of water, food and medicine for hundreds of the indigenous Lenca people.
As well as filing official complaints, Ms Cáceres organised a road block that prevented construction workers from reaching the site.
The Chinese state-owned company Sinohydro, which was jointly developing the project, eventually pulled out citing community resistance.
In 2015 Ms Cáceres was awarded the prestigious Goldman Prize for her role in stopping the building of the dam.
The indigenous rights organisation Ms Cáceres co-founded called the verdict a "victory" for the people of Honduras.
It is one of the world's most dangerous countries for environmental activists, according to advocacy group Global Witness.
In a blog post earlier this year, the group said "at least 40 land and environmental defenders" had been killed in the country since Ms Cáceres's death.
Covid-19: Pfizer vaccine efficacy declines by one third in Israel, says health ministry
Government data suggests Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine continues to provide strong shield against severe Covid-19
A teenage girl receives a dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine
A teenage girl receives a dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine
in Holon, near Tel Aviv, on 21 June (AFP/File photo)
By MEE and agencies
Published date: 5 July 2021
Published date: 5 July 2021
The efficacy of one of the world's leading Covid-19 vaccines has declined by nearly a third in Israel due to the spread of the delta variant, the country's health ministry has said.
Ran Balicer, chairman of Israel's national expert panel on the coronavirus, said the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine had a 64 percent protection rate from early June until early July - a significant decrease from the 94 percent efficacy researchers had documented a month earlier.
Covid-19: Israel reintroduces mask requirements as cases spikeRead More »
The findings come as Israel reverses some Covid-19 restrictions that had been lifted out of concern for the uptick in delta variant cases.
The health ministry said on Monday that the Pfizer vaccine continued to provide strong protection against severe symptoms of the virus, with people avoiding hospitalisations by a rate of 93 percent from 6 June to 3 July, compared to a 98 percent rate in the previous period.
Nevertheless, Balicer warned that the rise in cases offers a "preliminary signal" that the vaccine may be less effective at preventing mild symptoms from the delta variant.
Delta, Israel's 'dominant strain'
While it remains "too early to precisely assess vaccine effectiveness against the variant", Balicer told AFP that "some decrease in vaccine effectiveness against mild illness - but not severe illness - is likely".
Later on Twitter, Balicer underlined the difficulty in compiling data about the delta variant from local outbreaks, describing the work as "very population-segment-specific, complex, & sensitive to significant bias".
The Covid-19 delta variant was first identified in India in October and has since spread to nearly 100 countries worldwide. It is more than twice as contagious as the original Covid-19 virus and has forced a number of governments, including the UK, to delay or rethink lifting pandemic restrictions.
The delta variant's emergence as the "dominant strain" in Israel has led to a "massive shift in the transmission dynamic", said Balicer.
On Monday, Israel reported the highest rate of new infections in three months, with the ministry recording 343 new cases over the past 24 hours. After a peak of over 10,000 new cases in one day in January, new daily cases had fallen to the single digits in June.
In the past fortnight 90 percent of new cases in Israel have been caused by the delta variant, AFP reported. About half of new cases have been detected in fully vaccinated patients, and about half in children, with a handful of returning travellers testing positive.
'It is encouraging'
Experts "remain hopeful that the vaccine effectiveness against serious illness will remain as high as it was for the Alpha strain", Balicer said.
The number of fully vaccinated Israelis experiencing severe symptoms after contracting the virus had increased from roughly one every other day up to five per day, Balicer estimated while also noting a lack of fatalities.
"It is encouraging that we still maintain zero deaths for the last twelve days," he said.
After recently reimposing an indoor mask rule for public spaces, Prime Minister Naftali Bennett was scheduled to meet Health Minister Nitzan Horowitz on Monday to discuss the latest outbreak and whether to advise a third booster shot for certain demographics.
'Dumping ground': Israel blasted for bid to swap expiring Covid-19 vaccines with PARead More »
Israel may also consider limiting the size of permitted gatherings and reintroducing the “Green Pass” system that limited access to certain spaces to vaccinated people, Bennett said on Sunday.
Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla has said people will "likely" need a third dose of a Covid-19 vaccine within 12 months of getting fully vaccinated.
A Pfizer spokesperson declined to comment on the data from Israel but told Bloomberg that other research suggested the vaccine provided ongoing protection against new mutations. Available evidence suggests the vaccine "will continue to protect against these variants", she said.
Israel originally lifted mask requirements on 15 June, reinstating them two weeks later.
Some 5.2 million people have received both doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine in Israel.
But Israel, which has vaccinated some 85 percent of its adult population, has faced criticism for not sharing its vaccines with the 4.5 million Palestinians in the occupied West Bank and the Gaza Strip. Under international law, occupying powers are responsible for the health care of the population they control.
Israel Sees Pfizer Vaccine Efficacy Decrease Against Delta Variant, Still Very Effective Against Severe COVID-19
By Dr Alfredo Carpineti05 JUL 2021
Israeli news site Ynet has reported that based on the number of cases of COVID-19 breakthrough infection reported by the Israeli Health Ministry, the efficacy of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine against mild cases caused by the Delta variant appears to have decreased. Fortunately, the vaccine appears to still be highly effective against the most serious cases.
The reported numbers suggested that between May 2 and June 5, the efficacy against the disease was around 94 percent. Since June 6, the efficacy appears to have decreased to 64 percent. When it comes to hospitalizations, the efficacy seems to drop only marginally from 98.2 percent to 93 percent.
While the drop in efficacy is concerning, it is important to state that there could be several factors at play here, and we should wait for more data to begin to build a complete picture. One possibility, also seen in other countries, it’s that the infections happened before a strong immune response might have developed. Fully vaccinated people are counted from the moment they get the second jab of the two-dose vaccines, but strong immunity doesn’t really kick in until at least two weeks later.
The Israeli government is considering reintroducing social distancing measures. These were lifted mid-June, but things like masks in closed spaces came back on June 25. They are also considering a booster vaccination campaign, although the percentage of vaccinated people, while high, remains below the threshold for herd immunity.
Breakthrough infections are to be expected simply because vaccines are not 100 percent effective. The danger lies in infections being allowed to propagate through a population uncurbed. A new variant of the disease could emerge, against which the vaccines are ineffective. Fortunately, this has not happened yet.
[h/t: Ynet/Bloomberg]
UBS Advises 'Stay Clear' of Cryptocurrencies — Warns 'Regulators Will Crack Down on Crypto'
Switzerland’s largest bank, UBS, has advised investors to “stay clear” of cryptocurrencies and “build their portfolio around less risky assets.” The UBS analysts warned that “Regulators have demonstrated they can and will crack down on crypto.”
UBS’ Crypto Advice and Warning
The global wealth management team at UBS warned in a note published last week that regulators worldwide, particularly the U.S. and the U.K., will impose tougher cryptocurrency regulations. Citing that “China’s latest crackdown — extending to miners, banks, e-payment networks, and social media — hurt crypto prices and operators,” the UBS analysts wrote:
Regulators have demonstrated they can and will crack down on crypto … So we suggest investors stay clear, and build their portfolio around less risky assets.
“We’ve long warned that shifting investor sentiment or regulatory crackdowns could pop bubble-like crypto markets,” the analysts added. “We think investors should avoid crypto speculation, and consider risk-adjusted returns before buying alternative assets.”
The bank pointed out that a number of regulators worldwide have begun tightening their oversight of the crypto market. Recently, China has been cracking down on bitcoin mining and payments. Canada’s regulator has sent notices to crypto exchanges and the regulators in Japan, the U.K., Cayman Islands, and Thailand have targeted global crypto exchange Binance.
The U.K. has imposed tight registration requirements on crypto exchanges, causing 64 firms to withdraw their applications to register. In South Korea, most small exchanges are at risk of having to shut down operations due to strict regulatory and banking requirements.
The UBS analysts further described: “Crypto trading practices, such as extending 50x or 100x leverage, appear fundamentally at odds with mainstream finance regulation.” They warned:
While we can’t rule out future price gains in cryptos, we see this as a speculative market that poses significant risks to professional investors.
The bank, however, reportedly recognizes that some clients want exposure to cryptocurrency, particularly bitcoin, and is rumored to be considering offering crypto services to wealthy clients. A growing number of investment banks are already doing so, including Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Citigroup, Standard Chartered, and DBS.
Switzerland’s largest bank, UBS, has advised investors to “stay clear” of cryptocurrencies and “build their portfolio around less risky assets.” The UBS analysts warned that “Regulators have demonstrated they can and will crack down on crypto.”
UBS’ Crypto Advice and Warning
The global wealth management team at UBS warned in a note published last week that regulators worldwide, particularly the U.S. and the U.K., will impose tougher cryptocurrency regulations. Citing that “China’s latest crackdown — extending to miners, banks, e-payment networks, and social media — hurt crypto prices and operators,” the UBS analysts wrote:
Regulators have demonstrated they can and will crack down on crypto … So we suggest investors stay clear, and build their portfolio around less risky assets.
“We’ve long warned that shifting investor sentiment or regulatory crackdowns could pop bubble-like crypto markets,” the analysts added. “We think investors should avoid crypto speculation, and consider risk-adjusted returns before buying alternative assets.”
The bank pointed out that a number of regulators worldwide have begun tightening their oversight of the crypto market. Recently, China has been cracking down on bitcoin mining and payments. Canada’s regulator has sent notices to crypto exchanges and the regulators in Japan, the U.K., Cayman Islands, and Thailand have targeted global crypto exchange Binance.
The U.K. has imposed tight registration requirements on crypto exchanges, causing 64 firms to withdraw their applications to register. In South Korea, most small exchanges are at risk of having to shut down operations due to strict regulatory and banking requirements.
The UBS analysts further described: “Crypto trading practices, such as extending 50x or 100x leverage, appear fundamentally at odds with mainstream finance regulation.” They warned:
While we can’t rule out future price gains in cryptos, we see this as a speculative market that poses significant risks to professional investors.
The bank, however, reportedly recognizes that some clients want exposure to cryptocurrency, particularly bitcoin, and is rumored to be considering offering crypto services to wealthy clients. A growing number of investment banks are already doing so, including Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Citigroup, Standard Chartered, and DBS.
Motion seeks to allow evidence of past violence at Kyle Rittenhouse trial
Friday, July 2, 2021
Kyle Rittenhouse, an Illinois teenager charged with shooting three people, two fatally, in Kenosha, Wis. makes his first in-person court appearance.
KENOSAH, Wis. -- Prosecutors in Wisconsin want a judge to allow evidence at Kyle Rittenhouse's trial that shows he had a previous violent encounter in Kenosha before he fatally shot two men and injured another during a police brutality protest last year.
The state's motion filed Thursday in Kenosha County Circuit Court also seeks to show Rittenhouse was associated with the far-right Proud Boys, a group linked to political violence.
Rittenhouse, 18, is charged with killing Joseph Rosenbaum, 36, and Anthony Huber, 26, and wounding Gaige Grosskreutz, 26, on Aug. 25 during protests in Kenosha over the police shooting two days earlier of Jacob Blake, a Black man who was left paralyzed when he was shot by a white police officer.
Prosecutors want to introduce a video from July 1, 2020, which they say shows Rittenhouse striking a teenage girl in the back at Kenosha's lakefront.
"In both the July 1, 2020 incident and the August 25, 2020 incident, the defendant, an Illinois resident, willingly and intentionally put himself in violent situations in Wisconsin that do not involve him in order to commit further acts of violence," the motion states.
Prosecutors also said Rittenhouse's association with the Proud Boys should be considered at the trial because it shows that he takes pride in violence.
Photos taken in January show Rittenhouse drinking inside a Mount Pleasant bar and gesturing with what appeared to be a white power symbol. The motion states that prosecutors have since learned that the people with Rittenhouse at the bar included the leader of the Wisconsin Proud Boys chapter and several of its highest-ranking members.
Prosecutors allege Rittenhouse, who is white, left his home in Antioch, Illinois, and traveled to Kenosha to answer a call for paramilitary groups to protect businesses during the protest.
Rittenhouse faces multiple charges, including two homicide counts. He has argued he fired in self-defense after protesters attacked him.
Black Lives Matter supporters have painted him as a trigger-happy white supremacist, but some conservatives see him as a symbol for gun rights and have rallied around him, generating $2 million for his bail in November.
Rittenhouse's defense attorney did not immediately respond to a message and email seeking comment on prosecutors' latest motion.
Rittenhouse's trial is scheduled to start Nov. 1.
Friday, July 2, 2021
Kyle Rittenhouse, an Illinois teenager charged with shooting three people, two fatally, in Kenosha, Wis. makes his first in-person court appearance.
KENOSAH, Wis. -- Prosecutors in Wisconsin want a judge to allow evidence at Kyle Rittenhouse's trial that shows he had a previous violent encounter in Kenosha before he fatally shot two men and injured another during a police brutality protest last year.
The state's motion filed Thursday in Kenosha County Circuit Court also seeks to show Rittenhouse was associated with the far-right Proud Boys, a group linked to political violence.
Rittenhouse, 18, is charged with killing Joseph Rosenbaum, 36, and Anthony Huber, 26, and wounding Gaige Grosskreutz, 26, on Aug. 25 during protests in Kenosha over the police shooting two days earlier of Jacob Blake, a Black man who was left paralyzed when he was shot by a white police officer.
Prosecutors want to introduce a video from July 1, 2020, which they say shows Rittenhouse striking a teenage girl in the back at Kenosha's lakefront.
"In both the July 1, 2020 incident and the August 25, 2020 incident, the defendant, an Illinois resident, willingly and intentionally put himself in violent situations in Wisconsin that do not involve him in order to commit further acts of violence," the motion states.
Prosecutors also said Rittenhouse's association with the Proud Boys should be considered at the trial because it shows that he takes pride in violence.
Photos taken in January show Rittenhouse drinking inside a Mount Pleasant bar and gesturing with what appeared to be a white power symbol. The motion states that prosecutors have since learned that the people with Rittenhouse at the bar included the leader of the Wisconsin Proud Boys chapter and several of its highest-ranking members.
Prosecutors allege Rittenhouse, who is white, left his home in Antioch, Illinois, and traveled to Kenosha to answer a call for paramilitary groups to protect businesses during the protest.
Rittenhouse faces multiple charges, including two homicide counts. He has argued he fired in self-defense after protesters attacked him.
Black Lives Matter supporters have painted him as a trigger-happy white supremacist, but some conservatives see him as a symbol for gun rights and have rallied around him, generating $2 million for his bail in November.
Rittenhouse's defense attorney did not immediately respond to a message and email seeking comment on prosecutors' latest motion.
Rittenhouse's trial is scheduled to start Nov. 1.
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