Ontario court finds province broke law on lack of public consultations
Wed., September 8, 2021
TORONTO — An Ontario court has found the provincial government broke the law by failing to adhere to the Environmental Bill of Rights.
Several environmental groups brought forth applications for judicial reviews over the province's alleged failure to consult with the public before enacting the COVID-19 Economic Recovery Act.
Late last year, the province opened up consultations to the public months after the passage of Bill 197 last summer.
The Superior Court of Justice says the minister of municipal affairs acted "unreasonably and unlawfully" by consulting with the public months after it enacted changes.
In a statement, a spokeswoman for Municipal Affairs Minister Steve Clark said the government was forced to act quickly "in the face of a rapidly changing pandemic."
"The ministry consulted with the public after Bill 197 was implemented, and continues to do so, with a clear commitment to take the public’s input into consideration whenever an enhanced Minister’s Zoning Order is used," Zoë Knowles said.
"As Ontario continues to respond to COVID-19, we will not let red tape put Ontarians’ health and safety at risk."
The three-judge panel granted the judicial review in part but dismissed numerous other challenges the environmental groups raised about other ministries.
The court said the government failed to post proposed amendments over the controversial use of Ministerial Zoning Orders on the Environmental Registry prior to implementation.
The province has used the so-called MZOs to fast-track land developments, especially in environmentally sensitive Greenbelt.
Environmental groups that were part of the case hailed the Sept. 3 decision as a victory for the environment.
"As Environmental Commissioner of Ontario for 15 years, I am heartened to see the court uphold the rights of people to participate in government decision-making affecting the environment," said Gord Miller, chair of Earthroots, one of the organizations involved in the court battle.
"The court's declaration is clear – the Government of Ontario broke the law in violating those rights."
The Canadian Environmental Law Association said the decision reaffirms the public's rights.
"The Environmental Bill of Rights provides very significant tools for the people of Ontario to know about, and participate in, decisions that affect their environment," said Theresa McClenaghan, the executive director of CELA.
Ontario Green Party Leader Mike Schreiner said it was a win for the public.
"Ontarians have a right to participate in government decision-making that impacts the environment," Schreiner said.
"By violating Ontarians’ environmental rights, Doug Ford has not only broken the law but has also made it clear that he will put his pro-sprawl, pro-developer agenda above all else."
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 8, 2021.
Liam Casey, The Canadian Press
Thursday, September 09, 2021
UCP PROVES THERE IS NO GOVERNMENT LIKE NO GOVERNMENT
'Boiling point': Alberta doctors warn of health system collapse as COVID cases climb
Thu., September 9, 2021
CALGARY — Alberta's health-care system is on the verge of collapse, warns a group of physicians who are pleading with the government to strengthen public health measures to fend off a relentless fourth wave of COVID-19.
Dr. Shazma Mithani, an emergency room physician in Edmonton, said a staffing crisis, overwhelmed intensive care units and mixed messaging from the province has created a "dire" situation.
Her biggest fear, she said, is that doctors will need to triage patients should hospitalizations continue to mount.
"We don't want to have to make these decisions where we're choosing who gets to have (intensive) care or not. And we're getting closer and closer to that every day," Mithani said in an interview.
Alberta Health Services, the province's health-care provider, said in a statement Wednesday there were 258 intensive care beds in the province, which includes 85 added spaces. It said intensive care unit capacity sat at 87 per cent — just slightly below a seven-day average of 91 per cent.
Mithani said the government needs to listen to frontline health-care workers and implement stronger public health restrictions to prevent the health system from crumbling.
"This is much, much worse than I think people understand," she said. "We, as health-care workers, are telling you that things are very dire, that ICU beds are running out, that we are stretched very thin in terms of our hospital capacity."
On Friday, the Government of Alberta reinstated an indoor mask mandate for public spaces and an alcohol sales curfew at 10 p.m. It also announced a $100 incentive for unvaccinated Albertans who get their shots in response to an intensifying crisis.
Dr. Ilan Schwartz, an infectious disease specialist at the University of Alberta, said those efforts are "all but meaningless."
"They are worse than doing nothing at all because now it is going to delay the government from taking more definitive action," Schwartz said during a panel discussion Wednesday with advocacy group Protect Our Province.
Dr. Darren Markland, an intensive care physician in Edmonton who was also on the panel, said the government should consider vaccine passports and a circuit-breaker lockdown, which is a tight set of restrictions for a limited amount of time to curb ongoing transmission of COVID-19.
Relying solely on vaccinations won't reign in a growing fourth wave driven by the highly contagious Delta variant, added Mithani.
It takes at least six weeks for people to build full immunity against COVID-19 because vaccine shots need to be separated by a month and then allow another two weeks to develop protection.
In the meantime, there are no signs COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations are slowing. There were 647 Albertans in hospital Wednesday due to COVID-19, with 147 of those patients in intensive care. Hospitalizations jumped by 7.5 per cent from Tuesday. Another 18 people died in a 24-hour period.
The doctors with Protect Our Province said there are risks related to government inaction. Those risks, they said, include reduced health-care access for Albertans and increased burnout among health-care professionals.
Alberta Health Services announced late Wednesday that all scheduled, elective surgeries and outpatient procedures in the Calgary Zone have been postponed for the rest of the week. It said on social media the move was necessary to deploy qualified staff to intensive and critical care units.
"The situation really has come to a boiling point," said Schwartz.
"It's going to be a while before the premier and the chief medical officer of health will be willing to step back and accept that these actions have failed to immediately curb transmission and by that point, we're going to be in dire, dire trouble."
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 9, 2021.
Alanna Smith, The Canadian Press
'Boiling point': Alberta doctors warn of health system collapse as COVID cases climb
Thu., September 9, 2021
CALGARY — Alberta's health-care system is on the verge of collapse, warns a group of physicians who are pleading with the government to strengthen public health measures to fend off a relentless fourth wave of COVID-19.
Dr. Shazma Mithani, an emergency room physician in Edmonton, said a staffing crisis, overwhelmed intensive care units and mixed messaging from the province has created a "dire" situation.
Her biggest fear, she said, is that doctors will need to triage patients should hospitalizations continue to mount.
"We don't want to have to make these decisions where we're choosing who gets to have (intensive) care or not. And we're getting closer and closer to that every day," Mithani said in an interview.
Alberta Health Services, the province's health-care provider, said in a statement Wednesday there were 258 intensive care beds in the province, which includes 85 added spaces. It said intensive care unit capacity sat at 87 per cent — just slightly below a seven-day average of 91 per cent.
Mithani said the government needs to listen to frontline health-care workers and implement stronger public health restrictions to prevent the health system from crumbling.
"This is much, much worse than I think people understand," she said. "We, as health-care workers, are telling you that things are very dire, that ICU beds are running out, that we are stretched very thin in terms of our hospital capacity."
On Friday, the Government of Alberta reinstated an indoor mask mandate for public spaces and an alcohol sales curfew at 10 p.m. It also announced a $100 incentive for unvaccinated Albertans who get their shots in response to an intensifying crisis.
Dr. Ilan Schwartz, an infectious disease specialist at the University of Alberta, said those efforts are "all but meaningless."
"They are worse than doing nothing at all because now it is going to delay the government from taking more definitive action," Schwartz said during a panel discussion Wednesday with advocacy group Protect Our Province.
Dr. Darren Markland, an intensive care physician in Edmonton who was also on the panel, said the government should consider vaccine passports and a circuit-breaker lockdown, which is a tight set of restrictions for a limited amount of time to curb ongoing transmission of COVID-19.
Relying solely on vaccinations won't reign in a growing fourth wave driven by the highly contagious Delta variant, added Mithani.
It takes at least six weeks for people to build full immunity against COVID-19 because vaccine shots need to be separated by a month and then allow another two weeks to develop protection.
In the meantime, there are no signs COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations are slowing. There were 647 Albertans in hospital Wednesday due to COVID-19, with 147 of those patients in intensive care. Hospitalizations jumped by 7.5 per cent from Tuesday. Another 18 people died in a 24-hour period.
The doctors with Protect Our Province said there are risks related to government inaction. Those risks, they said, include reduced health-care access for Albertans and increased burnout among health-care professionals.
Alberta Health Services announced late Wednesday that all scheduled, elective surgeries and outpatient procedures in the Calgary Zone have been postponed for the rest of the week. It said on social media the move was necessary to deploy qualified staff to intensive and critical care units.
"The situation really has come to a boiling point," said Schwartz.
"It's going to be a while before the premier and the chief medical officer of health will be willing to step back and accept that these actions have failed to immediately curb transmission and by that point, we're going to be in dire, dire trouble."
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 9, 2021.
Alanna Smith, The Canadian Press
KENNNEY PROVES THERE IS NO GOVERNMENT LIKE NO GOVERNMENT
Masks or no masks? Fear, frustration as Alberta schools set their own rules
Wed., September 8, 2021,
Students and staff wear masks as they attend class in Montreal. Alberta school boards are grappling with provincial exemption to public masking rules.
Masks or no masks? Fear, frustration as Alberta schools set their own rules
Wed., September 8, 2021,
Students and staff wear masks as they attend class in Montreal. Alberta school boards are grappling with provincial exemption to public masking rules.
(Ryan Remiorz/The Canadian Press - image credit)
With the provincial government stepping back from the responsibility, school boards across Alberta are having to make gut-wrenching choices about whether or not to bring in mandatory masking requirements to protect students and staff against COVID-19.
At a special meeting Tuesday, trustees on the Parkland School Division board narrowly voted against reinstating a masking policy. Face coverings will be strongly recommended — but not mandatory — for students, staff and visitors.
Jacqueline Sampson, a parent of two students in the school division west of Edmonton, said the province should not be downloading divisive public health decisions onto local school boards.
"I don't think they should be forced to make a decision like this, but the Alberta government has forced them," Sampson said in an interview Wednesday.
"And so, because the Alberta government is not choosing to protect kids, somebody's got to."
Last Friday, in a bid to clamp down on rising fourth wave, Premier Jason Kenney announced that masks would become mandatory in indoor public spaces and workplaces in Alberta.
Schools, however, are exempt.
School boards have been left to set their own policies on masking, creating a patchwork of rules across the province as students return to the classroom.
Public and Catholic school boards in Edmonton and Calgary have since voted to have masks remain mandatory. Students and staff in Red Deer, Fort McMurray and Elk Island Public Schools will also need to mask up.
When Education Minister Adriana LaGrange promised a "normal" school year on Aug. 13, Alberta had 4,438 active cases and 152 people in hospital with the illness.
As of Tuesday, there were 15,486 active cases with 602 people in hospital.
Detailed school data is no longer being reported online. Provincial data shows 2,892 of Alberta's active cases are among people aged five to 19.
"It's going to totally backfire. " -Jacqueline Sampson, parent
Sampson fears the hodgepodge of rules will leave her children, ages six and 12, at risk — and accelerate the spread of COVID in Alberta communities.
If she could afford to keep her six-year-old at home until she's eligible for vaccination, she would.
"When the cases go up, you can be sure that those cases are going to be coming from schools," she said. "It's going to totally backfire. "
According to back-to-school guidelines announced in August, students must wear masks on school transportation until at least Sept. 27.
Beyond the school bus, classroom policies on masks have diverged.
On Wednesday, trustees with Rocky Mountain House-based Wild Rose School Division voted 4-2 against making masks mandatory.
The board, however, voted in favour of mandatory masking for school visitors, and prohibiting schools from holding any large indoor gatherings.
'Fed up'
Wednesday's Wild Rose board meeting demonstrated the divisions facing schools grappling with whether or not to introduce mask mandates.
Parent Roxanne Franczak urged trustees to reject mandatory masks.
She said parents should decide what's best — and said there is no reason why boards should adopt rulers stricter than those set out by the province.
Masks are harmful to students' mental health, Franczak said.
"This is not normal for healthy childhood development," she said. "Parents and children are getting fed up with the narrative and restrictions being pushed upon us."
Wild Rose trustee Daryl Scott, who ultimately voted against the mask mandate, said he supported the motion but felt pressure from parents to reject it.
"The government's downloaded a bombshell," Scott said.
"We, as school boards in the province of Alberta, have been asking for autonomy, more autonomy … Well, the government's picked a very hot topic and said, 'There, deal with it.'"
Protecting the school year
School boards are making health decisions with limited access to public health data, he said.
"There's lots of evidence out there showing vaccination is one of the ways to get out of this pandemic but we can't force everybody to be vaccinated. So there's a problem on our doorstep that, no matter what we say or do, we can't ignore."
Children under age 12 are not eligible for vaccines.
The province has stopped contact tracing in classrooms and is no longer notifying schools of positive cases. School boards are having to rely on the honour system.
Wild Rose trustee Russ Hickman said that despite receiving complaints, he felt compelled to vote in favour.
He said he wants to avoid another year marked by closures and quarantines.
"We can protect children and protect the school year by implementing mask mandates," Hickman said.
With the provincial government stepping back from the responsibility, school boards across Alberta are having to make gut-wrenching choices about whether or not to bring in mandatory masking requirements to protect students and staff against COVID-19.
At a special meeting Tuesday, trustees on the Parkland School Division board narrowly voted against reinstating a masking policy. Face coverings will be strongly recommended — but not mandatory — for students, staff and visitors.
Jacqueline Sampson, a parent of two students in the school division west of Edmonton, said the province should not be downloading divisive public health decisions onto local school boards.
"I don't think they should be forced to make a decision like this, but the Alberta government has forced them," Sampson said in an interview Wednesday.
"And so, because the Alberta government is not choosing to protect kids, somebody's got to."
Last Friday, in a bid to clamp down on rising fourth wave, Premier Jason Kenney announced that masks would become mandatory in indoor public spaces and workplaces in Alberta.
Schools, however, are exempt.
School boards have been left to set their own policies on masking, creating a patchwork of rules across the province as students return to the classroom.
Public and Catholic school boards in Edmonton and Calgary have since voted to have masks remain mandatory. Students and staff in Red Deer, Fort McMurray and Elk Island Public Schools will also need to mask up.
When Education Minister Adriana LaGrange promised a "normal" school year on Aug. 13, Alberta had 4,438 active cases and 152 people in hospital with the illness.
As of Tuesday, there were 15,486 active cases with 602 people in hospital.
Detailed school data is no longer being reported online. Provincial data shows 2,892 of Alberta's active cases are among people aged five to 19.
"It's going to totally backfire. " -Jacqueline Sampson, parent
Sampson fears the hodgepodge of rules will leave her children, ages six and 12, at risk — and accelerate the spread of COVID in Alberta communities.
If she could afford to keep her six-year-old at home until she's eligible for vaccination, she would.
"When the cases go up, you can be sure that those cases are going to be coming from schools," she said. "It's going to totally backfire. "
According to back-to-school guidelines announced in August, students must wear masks on school transportation until at least Sept. 27.
Beyond the school bus, classroom policies on masks have diverged.
On Wednesday, trustees with Rocky Mountain House-based Wild Rose School Division voted 4-2 against making masks mandatory.
The board, however, voted in favour of mandatory masking for school visitors, and prohibiting schools from holding any large indoor gatherings.
'Fed up'
Wednesday's Wild Rose board meeting demonstrated the divisions facing schools grappling with whether or not to introduce mask mandates.
Parent Roxanne Franczak urged trustees to reject mandatory masks.
She said parents should decide what's best — and said there is no reason why boards should adopt rulers stricter than those set out by the province.
Masks are harmful to students' mental health, Franczak said.
"This is not normal for healthy childhood development," she said. "Parents and children are getting fed up with the narrative and restrictions being pushed upon us."
Wild Rose trustee Daryl Scott, who ultimately voted against the mask mandate, said he supported the motion but felt pressure from parents to reject it.
"The government's downloaded a bombshell," Scott said.
"We, as school boards in the province of Alberta, have been asking for autonomy, more autonomy … Well, the government's picked a very hot topic and said, 'There, deal with it.'"
Protecting the school year
School boards are making health decisions with limited access to public health data, he said.
"There's lots of evidence out there showing vaccination is one of the ways to get out of this pandemic but we can't force everybody to be vaccinated. So there's a problem on our doorstep that, no matter what we say or do, we can't ignore."
Children under age 12 are not eligible for vaccines.
The province has stopped contact tracing in classrooms and is no longer notifying schools of positive cases. School boards are having to rely on the honour system.
Wild Rose trustee Russ Hickman said that despite receiving complaints, he felt compelled to vote in favour.
He said he wants to avoid another year marked by closures and quarantines.
"We can protect children and protect the school year by implementing mask mandates," Hickman said.
THE DUTY OF THE POW IS TO ESCAPE
'We are proud of him,' brother of Israel jail escapee tells FRANCE 24
Issued on: 09/09/2021 -
Six Palestinian prisoners, all from militant groups, are still on the run – four days after they fled Israel's highest security prison in a story that seems like it could have come from a film. FRANCE 24 spoke to the family of the most famous escapee, Zakaria Zubeidi.
Israel on Thursday announced a formal inquiry into lapses that enabled six Palestinians to escape a high-security prison, as it pressed on with a manhunt for the fugitive militants.
Israeli forces continue to search the country and the occupied West Bank for the six escapees, who are all accused of links to attacks on Israelis.
“We are proud of him,” said Yahya Zubeidi, Zakaria’s brother. “He raises the heads of all those who seek dignity. When we found out, we felt great joy but also great fear. The joy because they have freed themselves from this occupation prison, the fear because we do not know what their fate will be.”
Issued on: 09/09/2021 -
FRANCE 24 spoke to the family of the most famous escapee, Zakaria Zubeidi.
© FRANCE 24 screengrab
Six Palestinian prisoners, all from militant groups, are still on the run – four days after they fled Israel's highest security prison in a story that seems like it could have come from a film. FRANCE 24 spoke to the family of the most famous escapee, Zakaria Zubeidi.
Israel on Thursday announced a formal inquiry into lapses that enabled six Palestinians to escape a high-security prison, as it pressed on with a manhunt for the fugitive militants.
Israeli forces continue to search the country and the occupied West Bank for the six escapees, who are all accused of links to attacks on Israelis.
“We are proud of him,” said Yahya Zubeidi, Zakaria’s brother. “He raises the heads of all those who seek dignity. When we found out, we felt great joy but also great fear. The joy because they have freed themselves from this occupation prison, the fear because we do not know what their fate will be.”
Unleashing reforms, Xi returns to China's socialist roots
Having done away with term limits in 2018, China's most powerful leader since Mao Zedong is pushing what some observers describe as a mini "revolution", curbing the excesses of capitalism and shedding negative cultural influences of the West.
The effort, touching everything from school curriculums - including the newly required study of "Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics" - to tighter regulation of the property sector and a squeeze on what the government sees as unwholesome entertainment https://www.reuters.com/world/china/china-radio-tv-body-strengthen-regulation-cultural-programmes-salaries-2021-09-02, has rattled investors and prompted officials and state media to try to assuage markets.
On Wednesday, for example, the official People's Daily sought to reassure the private sector that support for it "had not changed": recent regulatory actions were meant to "rectify market order", promote fair competition, protect consumer rights and "perfect the socialist market economy system".
But the intent, observers say, is clear.
"Xi wants to address a very contemporary issue, the way in which neoliberal reforms have made China much less equal, and bring back the sense of mission that shaped early Maoist China," said Rana Mitter, a professor of Chinese history and politics at Oxford University.
That inequality, as well as the vast wealth and power accumulated by some industries, threatened to undermine social stability and ultimately the party's legitimacy if left unchecked, some analysts said.
The timing of the reforms reflects confidence that China can solve its problems through its own hybrid system instead of following the model of the West, whose shortcomings - from managing COVID-19 to the chaos of the U.S. election and withdrawal from Afghanistan - are repeatedly depicted in China as evidence of systemic decay.
"The state control model did seem to serve China well in the fight against COVID," said Chen Daoyin, a political commentator who is based in Chile and was formerly an associate professor at Shanghai University of Political Science and Law.
Xi is confident of striking a balance between government and markets, and between power and capital, Chen said.
"The danger is when the state can't resist reaching out its visible hand ... it creates unpredictability and political risk for capital," Chen said.
The Hong Kong market, where many Chinese tech firms targeted by the crackdown are listed, has lost over $600 billion in value since July, with investors whipsawed by new regulations and scouring old speeches for clues as to what may be coming.
Xi's activist populism also demonstrates confidence that he can afford to alienate elites who fall on the wrong side of his policies as he solidifies his case for a third five-year term - not that there is any visible competition.
But his calculus goes even beyond that, analysts say.
"Xi is an ambitious leader with a grand vision who genuinely wants to go down in history as the man who saved the party and made China strong," said Yang Chaohui, a lecturer in politics at Peking University.
China's State Council Information Office did not immediately reply to a request for comment.
MR. FIX-IT?
Under Mao, the earliest iterations of party doctrine aspired to free people from the exploitation of capital, destroy private ownership and defeat American imperialism.
Deng Xiaoping, Mao's successor, took a pragmatic turn, allowing market forces to incentivise production and unleashing four decades of breakneck growth that fuelled massive wealth accumulation - but also deep inequality.
This summer's reforms are enabled by Xi's consolidation of control since taking office: he unleashed a massive anti-corruption campaign, eliminated space for public dissent, and reasserted Communist Party power - with himself at the "core" - across all aspects of society.
With that power, Xi is addressing a spate of societal woes, from people not having enough babies and an unhealthy obsession with educational achievement to young adults so stressed by the rat-race that they would rather drop out and "lie flat". New rules curb young people spending too much time playing online games and too much money promoting their idols.
"Xi has set out to tackle the problems that cause anguish for the common people, such as corrupt officials and the rich-poor gap," said Chen.
While many in China express scepticism that Beijing can get people to have more babies or make big-city housing more affordable, some of the moves appear popular: many parents welcome an easing of the educational burden and the new three-hour-per-week time limit for children to play online games.
"Championing the common people gives him a moral high ground to consolidate his authority within the party and makes it hard for his political opponents to attack him. After all who can be against social equality?"
(Reporting by Yew Lun TianEditing by Tony Munroe and Lincoln Feast)
SOCIALISM IS STATE CAPITALISM
PLUS ELECTRICITY
V.I.LENIN
Thu., September 9, 2021
FILE PHOTO: Show commemorating the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China, in Beijing
By Yew Lun Tian
BEIJING (Reuters) -When Xi Jinping took command of the Communist Party in late 2012 and proclaimed "only socialism can save China", it was largely ignored as the perfunctory mention of an antiquated slogan - not to be taken literally in a modern-day, market-powered economy.
But sweeping new policy moves - from crackdowns
Thu., September 9, 2021
FILE PHOTO: Show commemorating the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China, in Beijing
By Yew Lun Tian
BEIJING (Reuters) -When Xi Jinping took command of the Communist Party in late 2012 and proclaimed "only socialism can save China", it was largely ignored as the perfunctory mention of an antiquated slogan - not to be taken literally in a modern-day, market-powered economy.
But sweeping new policy moves - from crackdowns
on internet companies, for-profit education
online gaming
https://www.reuters.com/world/china/china-rolls-out-new-rules-minors-online-gaming-xinhua-2021-08-30
and property market excesses, to the promulgation of "Common Prosperity" - show Xi's seriousness in steering China back towards its socialist roots.
Having done away with term limits in 2018, China's most powerful leader since Mao Zedong is pushing what some observers describe as a mini "revolution", curbing the excesses of capitalism and shedding negative cultural influences of the West.
The effort, touching everything from school curriculums - including the newly required study of "Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics" - to tighter regulation of the property sector and a squeeze on what the government sees as unwholesome entertainment https://www.reuters.com/world/china/china-radio-tv-body-strengthen-regulation-cultural-programmes-salaries-2021-09-02, has rattled investors and prompted officials and state media to try to assuage markets.
On Wednesday, for example, the official People's Daily sought to reassure the private sector that support for it "had not changed": recent regulatory actions were meant to "rectify market order", promote fair competition, protect consumer rights and "perfect the socialist market economy system".
But the intent, observers say, is clear.
"Xi wants to address a very contemporary issue, the way in which neoliberal reforms have made China much less equal, and bring back the sense of mission that shaped early Maoist China," said Rana Mitter, a professor of Chinese history and politics at Oxford University.
That inequality, as well as the vast wealth and power accumulated by some industries, threatened to undermine social stability and ultimately the party's legitimacy if left unchecked, some analysts said.
The timing of the reforms reflects confidence that China can solve its problems through its own hybrid system instead of following the model of the West, whose shortcomings - from managing COVID-19 to the chaos of the U.S. election and withdrawal from Afghanistan - are repeatedly depicted in China as evidence of systemic decay.
"The state control model did seem to serve China well in the fight against COVID," said Chen Daoyin, a political commentator who is based in Chile and was formerly an associate professor at Shanghai University of Political Science and Law.
Xi is confident of striking a balance between government and markets, and between power and capital, Chen said.
"The danger is when the state can't resist reaching out its visible hand ... it creates unpredictability and political risk for capital," Chen said.
The Hong Kong market, where many Chinese tech firms targeted by the crackdown are listed, has lost over $600 billion in value since July, with investors whipsawed by new regulations and scouring old speeches for clues as to what may be coming.
Xi's activist populism also demonstrates confidence that he can afford to alienate elites who fall on the wrong side of his policies as he solidifies his case for a third five-year term - not that there is any visible competition.
But his calculus goes even beyond that, analysts say.
"Xi is an ambitious leader with a grand vision who genuinely wants to go down in history as the man who saved the party and made China strong," said Yang Chaohui, a lecturer in politics at Peking University.
China's State Council Information Office did not immediately reply to a request for comment.
MR. FIX-IT?
Under Mao, the earliest iterations of party doctrine aspired to free people from the exploitation of capital, destroy private ownership and defeat American imperialism.
Deng Xiaoping, Mao's successor, took a pragmatic turn, allowing market forces to incentivise production and unleashing four decades of breakneck growth that fuelled massive wealth accumulation - but also deep inequality.
This summer's reforms are enabled by Xi's consolidation of control since taking office: he unleashed a massive anti-corruption campaign, eliminated space for public dissent, and reasserted Communist Party power - with himself at the "core" - across all aspects of society.
With that power, Xi is addressing a spate of societal woes, from people not having enough babies and an unhealthy obsession with educational achievement to young adults so stressed by the rat-race that they would rather drop out and "lie flat". New rules curb young people spending too much time playing online games and too much money promoting their idols.
"Xi has set out to tackle the problems that cause anguish for the common people, such as corrupt officials and the rich-poor gap," said Chen.
While many in China express scepticism that Beijing can get people to have more babies or make big-city housing more affordable, some of the moves appear popular: many parents welcome an easing of the educational burden and the new three-hour-per-week time limit for children to play online games.
"Championing the common people gives him a moral high ground to consolidate his authority within the party and makes it hard for his political opponents to attack him. After all who can be against social equality?"
(Reporting by Yew Lun TianEditing by Tony Munroe and Lincoln Feast)
GOLD IS THE MOST TOXIC OF MINES
N.S. environment minister wants more info about proposed changes to gold mineWed., September 8, 2021
Atlantic Gold's Touquoy mine site in Moose River, N.S.
(Paul Palmeter/CBC - image credit)
Nova Scotia's environment minister says the owner of the province's only operating gold mine has not provided sufficient information about proposed changes at the site for him to make a decision whether or not to approve them.
Environment Minister Tim Halman sent a letter to Atlantic Mining NS Inc. on Wednesday informing the company that he needs more details about tailings disposal, historic tailings, and the project's impact on ground and surface water, wildlife, wetlands, a nearby wilderness area, and fish and fish habitat before he can determine the possible environmental impacts of the proposed changes.
In July, the company, better known by its corporate name, Atlantic Gold, submitted to the province its plans for changes at the mine in Moose River, N.S.
It wants to store the tailings — the material that remains after ore has been processed for gold — in the open mining pit because its current storage area is expected to run out of room in March.
The open pit, which will be finished being mined next year, would be allowed to fill with water and eventually seep out into the Moose River. The company says it would treat the water before it is discharged into the river.
The company's proposed changes also include expanding the designated storage area for waste rock, moving an access road and allowing the company to extract clay from more of its land.
Nova Scotia's environment minister says the owner of the province's only operating gold mine has not provided sufficient information about proposed changes at the site for him to make a decision whether or not to approve them.
Environment Minister Tim Halman sent a letter to Atlantic Mining NS Inc. on Wednesday informing the company that he needs more details about tailings disposal, historic tailings, and the project's impact on ground and surface water, wildlife, wetlands, a nearby wilderness area, and fish and fish habitat before he can determine the possible environmental impacts of the proposed changes.
In July, the company, better known by its corporate name, Atlantic Gold, submitted to the province its plans for changes at the mine in Moose River, N.S.
It wants to store the tailings — the material that remains after ore has been processed for gold — in the open mining pit because its current storage area is expected to run out of room in March.
The open pit, which will be finished being mined next year, would be allowed to fill with water and eventually seep out into the Moose River. The company says it would treat the water before it is discharged into the river.
The company's proposed changes also include expanding the designated storage area for waste rock, moving an access road and allowing the company to extract clay from more of its land.
Paul Palmeter/CBC
Halman's request for additional information included questions about how permeable the open pit is, details of the water treatment plan, how the changes would meet the Fisheries Act and how the Moose River would be affected, among others.
In an emailed statement, Atlantic Gold spokesperson Dustin O'Leary said the mine's parent company, St Barbara Limited, will work with the government to provide more details.
"The province of Nova Scotia is making efforts to be thorough and provide Nova Scotians with comfort and clarity in the environmental assessment process," said O'Leary.
"St Barbara remains fully committed to demonstrating all the steps we are taking to protect the local environment."
He said the additional information will be provided "in due course," but did not provide a timeline.
Feedback and responses total 450 pages
O'Leary did not respond to a question from CBC News about what will happen to the mine's tailings once the tailings pond is full in March if the approval has not been granted.
Atlantic Gold has one year to submit the additional information. Once it is submitted, the environment minister will have 50 days to make a decision.
Public feedback on the proposed changes at the mine were accepted earlier this summer, and, along with responses from provincial and federal government departments, Mi'kmaw and environmental groups, total more than 450 pages.
Environment Department staff recently conducted tests on a rust-coloured substance at the Touquoy mine's tailings pond after the discoloured material was spotted and photographed by a pilot. The results of those tests are expected in about a week.
Feds, North Dakota to negotiate pipeline policing costs
Thu., September 9, 2021
BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — Federal and state lawyers will meet in North Dakota next week to negotiate a settlement for money that the state claims it spent on policing protests against the Dakota Access oil pipeline.
North Dakota filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in 2019, seeking to recover more than $38 million in damages from the monthslong pipeline protests almost five years ago.
State Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem and other state lawyers will meet with attorneys from the Corps and Justice Department at the federal courthouse in Bismarck on Sept. 16. U.S. Magistrate Judge Alice Senechal will preside over the negotiations, which are closed to the public.
“We will know on the 16th if they are serious in settling,” Stenehjem said.
It’s the first sit-down meeting with state and federal lawyers to work out a settlement, Stenehjem said. Federal judges handling the case have “strongly suggested” the negotiations, he said.
If no settlement can be reached, a trial is set for May 1, 2023.
Thousands of pipeline opponents gathered in southern North Dakota in 2016 and early 2017, camping on federal land and often clashing with police. Hundreds were arrested over six months.
Stenehjem has long argued that the Corps allowed and sometimes encouraged protesters to illegally camp without a federal permit. The Corps has said protesters weren’t evicted due to free speech reasons.
The Army Corps of Engineers had argued that it has “limited authority to enforce its rules and regulations” on land it manages.
The $3.8 billion pipeline has been moving oil from the Dakotas through Iowa to Illinois since 2017 but remains mired in litigation.
The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe opposed the pipeline built by Texas-based Energy Transfer Partners over fears it would harm cultural sites and the tribe’s Missouri River water supply — claims rejected by the company and the state.
One year ago, a federal judge issued a ruling allowing North Dakota to proceed in its effort to recoup money the state spent on policing protests against the pipeline.
The Department of the Army then asked the Department of Justice to enter into negotiations with the state for the protest costs “to avoid protracted and costly litigation, particularly in light of the harm that occurred in this case,” according to a letter obtained by The Associated Press.
Stenehjem said negotiations have stalled since then.
Then-President Donald Trump in 2018 denied a state-requested disaster declaration to cover the state’s costs. The Justice Department later gave the state a $10 million grant for policing-related bills. The pipeline developer gave the state $15 million to help with the costs that were funded from loans from the state-owned Bank of North Dakota.
Stenehjem has said that money doesn’t get the Corps off the hook for the state’s $38 million total cost of policing.
James Macpherson, The Associated Press
Thu., September 9, 2021
BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — Federal and state lawyers will meet in North Dakota next week to negotiate a settlement for money that the state claims it spent on policing protests against the Dakota Access oil pipeline.
North Dakota filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in 2019, seeking to recover more than $38 million in damages from the monthslong pipeline protests almost five years ago.
State Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem and other state lawyers will meet with attorneys from the Corps and Justice Department at the federal courthouse in Bismarck on Sept. 16. U.S. Magistrate Judge Alice Senechal will preside over the negotiations, which are closed to the public.
“We will know on the 16th if they are serious in settling,” Stenehjem said.
It’s the first sit-down meeting with state and federal lawyers to work out a settlement, Stenehjem said. Federal judges handling the case have “strongly suggested” the negotiations, he said.
If no settlement can be reached, a trial is set for May 1, 2023.
Thousands of pipeline opponents gathered in southern North Dakota in 2016 and early 2017, camping on federal land and often clashing with police. Hundreds were arrested over six months.
Stenehjem has long argued that the Corps allowed and sometimes encouraged protesters to illegally camp without a federal permit. The Corps has said protesters weren’t evicted due to free speech reasons.
The Army Corps of Engineers had argued that it has “limited authority to enforce its rules and regulations” on land it manages.
The $3.8 billion pipeline has been moving oil from the Dakotas through Iowa to Illinois since 2017 but remains mired in litigation.
The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe opposed the pipeline built by Texas-based Energy Transfer Partners over fears it would harm cultural sites and the tribe’s Missouri River water supply — claims rejected by the company and the state.
One year ago, a federal judge issued a ruling allowing North Dakota to proceed in its effort to recoup money the state spent on policing protests against the pipeline.
The Department of the Army then asked the Department of Justice to enter into negotiations with the state for the protest costs “to avoid protracted and costly litigation, particularly in light of the harm that occurred in this case,” according to a letter obtained by The Associated Press.
Stenehjem said negotiations have stalled since then.
Then-President Donald Trump in 2018 denied a state-requested disaster declaration to cover the state’s costs. The Justice Department later gave the state a $10 million grant for policing-related bills. The pipeline developer gave the state $15 million to help with the costs that were funded from loans from the state-owned Bank of North Dakota.
Stenehjem has said that money doesn’t get the Corps off the hook for the state’s $38 million total cost of policing.
James Macpherson, The Associated Press
EPA seeks to restart process that could restrict Alaska mine
Thu., September 9, 2021
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced Thursday it would seek to restart a process that could restrict mining in Alaska’s Bristol Bay region, which is renowned for its salmon runs.
The announcement is the latest in a long-running dispute over a proposed copper-and-gold mine in the southwest Alaska region.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in November 2020, under the Trump administration, denied key authorization for the proposed Pebble Mine following an environmental review from the agency months earlier that the developer had viewed as a favorable to the project.
In the rejection decision, a corps official concluded the project would “result in significant degradation of the aquatic ecosystem” and that it was “contrary to the public interest.”
The Pebble Limited Partnership, the mine developer owned by Canada-based Northern Dynasty Minerals Ltd., is appealing that determination.
“As the Biden Administration seeks lower carbon emissions for energy production, they should recognize that such change will require significantly more mineral production – notably copper,” Mike Heatwole, a Pebble partnership spokesperson, said in an email. “The Pebble Project remains an important domestic source for the minerals necessary for the administration to reach its green energy goals.”
Restrictions on mining in the region were proposed but never finalized under the Obama administration.
In 2019, during the Trump administration, Matthew Leopold, who was EPA general counsel, directed then-regional administrator Chris Hladick to decide whether to move forward with the proposed restrictions or withdraw them.
Hladick withdrew them and the agency at the time said it was removing what it called an “outdated, preemptive proposed veto of the Pebble Mine” and allowing the project to be vetted through the permitting process.
Earlier this year, a divided appeals court panel, in a case challenging the 2019 action, concluded a regional administrator was allowed to take the actions Hladick did “only if the discharge of materials would be unlikely to have an unacceptable adverse effect.”
The matter was sent back to a lower court to determine if the EPA’s action “was arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of discretion or contrary to law.”
U.S. government attorneys, in a court filing Thursday, said the EPA “acknowledges that it did not address the standard that the Ninth Circuit subsequently determined must be met for withdrawal of a proposed determination.”
The EPA, in a statement, said it is asking the judge to vacate the 2019 action. If granted, it said that would “automatically reinitiate" the review process, through which mine-related activities could be restricted or prohibited.
EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan called the Bristol Bay watershed “an Alaskan treasure that underscores the critical value of clean water in America. Today’s announcement reinforces once again EPA’s commitment to making science-based decisions to protect our natural environment.”
He added: "What’s at stake is preventing pollution that would disproportionately impact Alaska Natives, and protecting a sustainable future for the most productive salmon fishery in North America.”
The EPA has said Bristol Bay supports the world's largest sockeye salmon runs and that the watershed contains significant mineral resources.
Nelli Williams, Alaska director for Trout Unlimited, one of the groups that sued over the 2019 action, said proposed restrictions would provide “an important layer of protection that makes it much more difficult for the Pebble Partnership, or any other companies in the future, to mine the Pebble ore deposit.”
Northern Dynasty President and CEO Ron Thiessen, in a statement Thursday, said the Pebble project "can be designed, built and operated with industry-leading environmental safeguards while generating significant financial returns over multiple decades.”
The company touted a preliminary economic review it said also looked at potential expansion possibilities and alternative ways to recover gold.
But the statement said neither Northern Dynasty nor the Pebble partnership “has proposed or intends to propose any of these development alternatives in the near-term for regulatory approval.”
___
Becky Bohrer, The Associated Press
Thu., September 9, 2021
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced Thursday it would seek to restart a process that could restrict mining in Alaska’s Bristol Bay region, which is renowned for its salmon runs.
The announcement is the latest in a long-running dispute over a proposed copper-and-gold mine in the southwest Alaska region.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in November 2020, under the Trump administration, denied key authorization for the proposed Pebble Mine following an environmental review from the agency months earlier that the developer had viewed as a favorable to the project.
In the rejection decision, a corps official concluded the project would “result in significant degradation of the aquatic ecosystem” and that it was “contrary to the public interest.”
The Pebble Limited Partnership, the mine developer owned by Canada-based Northern Dynasty Minerals Ltd., is appealing that determination.
“As the Biden Administration seeks lower carbon emissions for energy production, they should recognize that such change will require significantly more mineral production – notably copper,” Mike Heatwole, a Pebble partnership spokesperson, said in an email. “The Pebble Project remains an important domestic source for the minerals necessary for the administration to reach its green energy goals.”
Restrictions on mining in the region were proposed but never finalized under the Obama administration.
In 2019, during the Trump administration, Matthew Leopold, who was EPA general counsel, directed then-regional administrator Chris Hladick to decide whether to move forward with the proposed restrictions or withdraw them.
Hladick withdrew them and the agency at the time said it was removing what it called an “outdated, preemptive proposed veto of the Pebble Mine” and allowing the project to be vetted through the permitting process.
Earlier this year, a divided appeals court panel, in a case challenging the 2019 action, concluded a regional administrator was allowed to take the actions Hladick did “only if the discharge of materials would be unlikely to have an unacceptable adverse effect.”
The matter was sent back to a lower court to determine if the EPA’s action “was arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of discretion or contrary to law.”
U.S. government attorneys, in a court filing Thursday, said the EPA “acknowledges that it did not address the standard that the Ninth Circuit subsequently determined must be met for withdrawal of a proposed determination.”
The EPA, in a statement, said it is asking the judge to vacate the 2019 action. If granted, it said that would “automatically reinitiate" the review process, through which mine-related activities could be restricted or prohibited.
EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan called the Bristol Bay watershed “an Alaskan treasure that underscores the critical value of clean water in America. Today’s announcement reinforces once again EPA’s commitment to making science-based decisions to protect our natural environment.”
He added: "What’s at stake is preventing pollution that would disproportionately impact Alaska Natives, and protecting a sustainable future for the most productive salmon fishery in North America.”
The EPA has said Bristol Bay supports the world's largest sockeye salmon runs and that the watershed contains significant mineral resources.
Nelli Williams, Alaska director for Trout Unlimited, one of the groups that sued over the 2019 action, said proposed restrictions would provide “an important layer of protection that makes it much more difficult for the Pebble Partnership, or any other companies in the future, to mine the Pebble ore deposit.”
Northern Dynasty President and CEO Ron Thiessen, in a statement Thursday, said the Pebble project "can be designed, built and operated with industry-leading environmental safeguards while generating significant financial returns over multiple decades.”
The company touted a preliminary economic review it said also looked at potential expansion possibilities and alternative ways to recover gold.
But the statement said neither Northern Dynasty nor the Pebble partnership “has proposed or intends to propose any of these development alternatives in the near-term for regulatory approval.”
___
Becky Bohrer, The Associated Press
US to reevaluate review of Alaska petroleum reserve
Wed., September 8, 2021
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — The U.S. Bureau of Land Management is expected to reevaluate a Trump-era environmental review that provided a basis for plans to open an additional roughly 6.8 million acres in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska to oil and gas leasing.
A memo outlining the planned review accompanied government filings in lawsuits brought by conservation and environmental advocacy groups. Those lawsuits challenged the adequacy of the environmental analysis underpinning the plans that were finalized in the final weeks of the Trump administration.
U.S. Justice Department attorneys on Tuesday requested stays in the cases pending the new evaluation.
The memo, dated Friday, was from Laura Daniel-Davis, principal deputy assistant secretary for land and minerals management for the Interior Department. She said she was directing the land management agency to evaluate the environmental review and related analyses.
She wrote that the department had not yet decided whether to "withdraw or replace” the 2020 plan. But she said the department's initial assessment was that it was “inconsistent" with policy set out in a January executive order from President Joe Biden.
Biden's order lists as administration policy such things as protecting the environment and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
Daniel-Davis' memo does not go into great detail on areas the department deemed problematic but describes the 2020 plan as containing provisions that “reduce environmental protections in favor of further promoting oil and gas development."
Daniel-Davis said the Bureau of Land Management was not to offer for lease tracts in the areas that would be newly opened under the Trump-era plan while the evaluation was under way.
She said the agency would provide the status of its review and “related actions” within 120 days from the date of the memo.
The Interior Department “is committed to protecting public health, conserving land, water, and wildlife, and ensuring that management of our public lands and oceans is guided by science, equity, and community engagement," spokesperson Tyler Cherry said in a written statement.
The announced review is in line with Biden's directive “to review and address agency regulations and programs that conflict with this Administration’s climate priorities,” the statement says.
The plan, which the Bureau of Land Management said was signed by then-Interior Secretary David Bernhardt on Dec. 31, made about 18.6 million of the reserve's roughly 23 million acres available for oil and gas leasing. The land agency, in announcing the decision, said it contained “important safeguards for wildlife and sensitive resources, while allowing for responsible oil and gas leasing.”
Suzanne Bostrom, an attorney with Trustees for Alaska who is representing some of the groups in the litigation, said Wednesday that she saw as encouraging the department's intent to review the plans.
Conservationists, among other things, have cited concerns with possible impacts from development on the Teshekpuk Lake Special Area, which they've described as a productive wetlands complex and caribou calving area.
Gov. Mike Dunleavy's office was expected to release a statement.
Becky Bohrer, The Associated Press
Wed., September 8, 2021
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — The U.S. Bureau of Land Management is expected to reevaluate a Trump-era environmental review that provided a basis for plans to open an additional roughly 6.8 million acres in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska to oil and gas leasing.
A memo outlining the planned review accompanied government filings in lawsuits brought by conservation and environmental advocacy groups. Those lawsuits challenged the adequacy of the environmental analysis underpinning the plans that were finalized in the final weeks of the Trump administration.
U.S. Justice Department attorneys on Tuesday requested stays in the cases pending the new evaluation.
The memo, dated Friday, was from Laura Daniel-Davis, principal deputy assistant secretary for land and minerals management for the Interior Department. She said she was directing the land management agency to evaluate the environmental review and related analyses.
She wrote that the department had not yet decided whether to "withdraw or replace” the 2020 plan. But she said the department's initial assessment was that it was “inconsistent" with policy set out in a January executive order from President Joe Biden.
Biden's order lists as administration policy such things as protecting the environment and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
Daniel-Davis' memo does not go into great detail on areas the department deemed problematic but describes the 2020 plan as containing provisions that “reduce environmental protections in favor of further promoting oil and gas development."
Daniel-Davis said the Bureau of Land Management was not to offer for lease tracts in the areas that would be newly opened under the Trump-era plan while the evaluation was under way.
She said the agency would provide the status of its review and “related actions” within 120 days from the date of the memo.
The Interior Department “is committed to protecting public health, conserving land, water, and wildlife, and ensuring that management of our public lands and oceans is guided by science, equity, and community engagement," spokesperson Tyler Cherry said in a written statement.
The announced review is in line with Biden's directive “to review and address agency regulations and programs that conflict with this Administration’s climate priorities,” the statement says.
The plan, which the Bureau of Land Management said was signed by then-Interior Secretary David Bernhardt on Dec. 31, made about 18.6 million of the reserve's roughly 23 million acres available for oil and gas leasing. The land agency, in announcing the decision, said it contained “important safeguards for wildlife and sensitive resources, while allowing for responsible oil and gas leasing.”
Suzanne Bostrom, an attorney with Trustees for Alaska who is representing some of the groups in the litigation, said Wednesday that she saw as encouraging the department's intent to review the plans.
Conservationists, among other things, have cited concerns with possible impacts from development on the Teshekpuk Lake Special Area, which they've described as a productive wetlands complex and caribou calving area.
Gov. Mike Dunleavy's office was expected to release a statement.
Becky Bohrer, The Associated Press
Office air quality affects workers' cognitive function, study shows
Issued on: 09/09/2021 -
Issued on: 09/09/2021 -
A new study by scientists at Harvard has found that the air quality inside an office can have a significant impact on employees' cognitive function, including response times and ability to focus
Nikolay DOYCHINOV AFP/File
Washington (AFP)
Feeling sluggish at work? Poor ventilation and pollution might play a part.
A new study by scientists at Harvard has found that the air quality inside an office can have a significant impact on employees' cognitive function, including response times and ability to focus.
"We have a huge body of research on the exposure to outdoor pollution, but we spend 90 percent of our time indoors," Jose Guillermo Cedeno Laurent, a research fellow and lead author of the paper published Thursday in Environmental Research Letters, told AFP.
The limited amount of prior studies on indoor settings had focused on measures like thermal comfort and satisfaction, rather than on cognitive outcomes, he added.
Cedeno Laurent and colleagues designed a study that followed 302 office workers across six countries (China, India, Mexico, Thailand, the United States of America, and the United Kingdom) over a period of a year.
It ended in March 2020 when the Covid-19 pandemic brought global lockdowns.
All participants were aged between 18 and 65, worked at least three days in an office building, and had a permanent workstation within the office.
Their workspaces were fitted with an environmental sensor to monitor real time concentrations of fine particulate matter 2.5 micrometers and smaller, PM2.5, as well as carbon dioxide, temperature, and relative humidity.
The participants were given a custom-designed app on their phones to carry out the cognitive tests, which they were prompted to take at prescheduled times or when the sensors detected PM2.5 and CO2 levels fall below or exceed certain thresholds.
CO2 concentrations serve as a proxy for ventilation levels. Outside, concentrations are around 400 ppm (parts per million), while 1000 ppm is cited as an upper limit for indoors.
There were two tests. The first required employees to correctly identify the color of displayed words that spelled out another color.
This evaluated cognitive speed and the ability to focus on relevant stimuli when irrelevant stimuli are being presented.
The second test involved basic addition and subtraction with two-digit-long numbers, to assess cognitive speed and working memory.
- Open a window -
Results showed that an increase of 10 micrograms per cubic meter of PM2.5 led to about a one percent reduction in response times to both tests, and more than a one percent reduction in accuracy.
For a frame of reference, the outdoor PM2.5 levels in the US capital Washington were 13.9 micrograms per cubic meter on Thursday, according to the IQAir tracking site, while it was 42 micrograms per cubic meter in New Delhi.
In terms of C02, an increase of 500 ppm (parts per million), which is not an unusual level of variation, led to a more than one percent drop in response times, and more than two percent drop in accuracy across both tests.
The research comes as US Congress is poised to pass an infrastructure package, and Cedeno Laurent argues now is the time to plan to for energy efficient, high performance buildings that provide the right amount of ventilation and air filtration.
While past studies have shown that prolonged exposure to PM2.5 inflames the central nervous system and crosses the blood-brain-barrier to cause long term neurodegenerative disease, this is the first to show short term effects, he added.
For employees returning to in-person office work, there are some solutions.
Opening a window is one, said Cedeno Laurent. If the outdoor air quality isn't good, upgrading the building's filtration systems or adding high quality portable air cleaners are good ideas.
© 2021 AFP
Washington (AFP)
Feeling sluggish at work? Poor ventilation and pollution might play a part.
A new study by scientists at Harvard has found that the air quality inside an office can have a significant impact on employees' cognitive function, including response times and ability to focus.
"We have a huge body of research on the exposure to outdoor pollution, but we spend 90 percent of our time indoors," Jose Guillermo Cedeno Laurent, a research fellow and lead author of the paper published Thursday in Environmental Research Letters, told AFP.
The limited amount of prior studies on indoor settings had focused on measures like thermal comfort and satisfaction, rather than on cognitive outcomes, he added.
Cedeno Laurent and colleagues designed a study that followed 302 office workers across six countries (China, India, Mexico, Thailand, the United States of America, and the United Kingdom) over a period of a year.
It ended in March 2020 when the Covid-19 pandemic brought global lockdowns.
All participants were aged between 18 and 65, worked at least three days in an office building, and had a permanent workstation within the office.
Their workspaces were fitted with an environmental sensor to monitor real time concentrations of fine particulate matter 2.5 micrometers and smaller, PM2.5, as well as carbon dioxide, temperature, and relative humidity.
The participants were given a custom-designed app on their phones to carry out the cognitive tests, which they were prompted to take at prescheduled times or when the sensors detected PM2.5 and CO2 levels fall below or exceed certain thresholds.
CO2 concentrations serve as a proxy for ventilation levels. Outside, concentrations are around 400 ppm (parts per million), while 1000 ppm is cited as an upper limit for indoors.
There were two tests. The first required employees to correctly identify the color of displayed words that spelled out another color.
This evaluated cognitive speed and the ability to focus on relevant stimuli when irrelevant stimuli are being presented.
The second test involved basic addition and subtraction with two-digit-long numbers, to assess cognitive speed and working memory.
- Open a window -
Results showed that an increase of 10 micrograms per cubic meter of PM2.5 led to about a one percent reduction in response times to both tests, and more than a one percent reduction in accuracy.
For a frame of reference, the outdoor PM2.5 levels in the US capital Washington were 13.9 micrograms per cubic meter on Thursday, according to the IQAir tracking site, while it was 42 micrograms per cubic meter in New Delhi.
In terms of C02, an increase of 500 ppm (parts per million), which is not an unusual level of variation, led to a more than one percent drop in response times, and more than two percent drop in accuracy across both tests.
The research comes as US Congress is poised to pass an infrastructure package, and Cedeno Laurent argues now is the time to plan to for energy efficient, high performance buildings that provide the right amount of ventilation and air filtration.
While past studies have shown that prolonged exposure to PM2.5 inflames the central nervous system and crosses the blood-brain-barrier to cause long term neurodegenerative disease, this is the first to show short term effects, he added.
For employees returning to in-person office work, there are some solutions.
Opening a window is one, said Cedeno Laurent. If the outdoor air quality isn't good, upgrading the building's filtration systems or adding high quality portable air cleaners are good ideas.
© 2021 AFP
GOOD NEWS MORTGAGE & CREDIT CARD HOLDERS
Bank of Canada plans to raise interest rate before moving to reduce bond holdings
Thu., September 9, 2021
Bank of Canada governor Tiff Macklem says the central bank plans to increase interest rates before it reduces the size of its government bond holdings, although its timing on the rate hike will depend on the economic recovery.
The central bank is currently purchasing government bonds at a rate of $2 billion per week.
The bond-buying strategy, known as quantitative easing, is meant to lower borrowing costs by placing downward pressure on interest rates, but Macklem says it will eventually not be necessary.
"We are not there yet — and that timing is a monetary policy decision that will depend on economic developments," Macklem said in prepared remarks to the Fédération des chambres de commerce du Québec on Thursday.
Before that happens, though, Macklem said the Bank of Canada will enter what he calls the "reinvestment phase" when the bank will roughly match its bond purchases with the amount that are maturing.
During the reinvestment phase, Macklem said bond purchases would average around $1 billion per week.
Macklem said the bank expects to remain in this phase at least until it can hike the policy interest rate, which currently sits at 0.25 per cent. The bank has said that it will keep its policy rate at what it calls the effective lower bound until the economy is strong enough, which it projects will be in the second half of next year.
At that point, he says the Bank of Canada would be able to begin reducing the size of its bond holdings.
"When we get to the reinvestment phase and how long we are in it are monetary policy decisions that will depend on the strength of the recovery and the evolution of inflation," Macklem said.
"The governing council continues to expect the economy to strengthen in the second half of 2021, although the fourth wave of COVID-19 infections and ongoing supply bottlenecks could weigh on the recovery."
The speech by Macklem followed the Bank of Canada's rate decision on Wednesday when it held its overnight rate target at 0.25 per cent.
Canada's economy contracted in the second quarter of this year, which Macklem said was due to supply chain issues, rising COVID-19 cases and weak export numbers.
"But consumption, business investment and government spending all contributed to growth, with total domestic demand growing at more than three per cent," he said.
Sri Thanabalasingam, senior economist with TD Economics, noted the Bank of Canada chose to downplay the contraction the Canadian economy faced in the second quarter, and decided to focus on domestic strength and employment as reasons the second half of the year will be more positive.
"The bank is assuming the fourth wave of the pandemic is not really going to revert the economic recovery," said Thanabalasingam.
"Even though today's statement was very forward looking on reining in this stimulus, I don't think we can completely disregard the near term risk to the economy right now."
Meanwhile, Macklem said the bank is also studying the difficulties that some businesses are facing with hiring and how it will effect the economy.
The governor said there is still much excess capacity in the Canadian economy, and the current policy interest rate is necessary for Canada to meet its two per cent inflation target.
The annual pace of inflation rose to 3.7 per cent in July, marking the biggest increase since May 2011, and compared with a year-over-year increase in the consumer price index of 3.1 per cent in June.
Macklem said current inflation levels remain higher than before the pandemic due to supply disruptions, and because prices are being compared with a year ago when lockdowns placed downward pressure on some prices.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept 9, 2021.
Salmaan Farooqui, The Canadian Press
Bank of Canada plans to raise interest rate before moving to reduce bond holdings
Thu., September 9, 2021
Bank of Canada governor Tiff Macklem says the central bank plans to increase interest rates before it reduces the size of its government bond holdings, although its timing on the rate hike will depend on the economic recovery.
The central bank is currently purchasing government bonds at a rate of $2 billion per week.
The bond-buying strategy, known as quantitative easing, is meant to lower borrowing costs by placing downward pressure on interest rates, but Macklem says it will eventually not be necessary.
"We are not there yet — and that timing is a monetary policy decision that will depend on economic developments," Macklem said in prepared remarks to the Fédération des chambres de commerce du Québec on Thursday.
Before that happens, though, Macklem said the Bank of Canada will enter what he calls the "reinvestment phase" when the bank will roughly match its bond purchases with the amount that are maturing.
During the reinvestment phase, Macklem said bond purchases would average around $1 billion per week.
Macklem said the bank expects to remain in this phase at least until it can hike the policy interest rate, which currently sits at 0.25 per cent. The bank has said that it will keep its policy rate at what it calls the effective lower bound until the economy is strong enough, which it projects will be in the second half of next year.
At that point, he says the Bank of Canada would be able to begin reducing the size of its bond holdings.
"When we get to the reinvestment phase and how long we are in it are monetary policy decisions that will depend on the strength of the recovery and the evolution of inflation," Macklem said.
"The governing council continues to expect the economy to strengthen in the second half of 2021, although the fourth wave of COVID-19 infections and ongoing supply bottlenecks could weigh on the recovery."
The speech by Macklem followed the Bank of Canada's rate decision on Wednesday when it held its overnight rate target at 0.25 per cent.
Canada's economy contracted in the second quarter of this year, which Macklem said was due to supply chain issues, rising COVID-19 cases and weak export numbers.
"But consumption, business investment and government spending all contributed to growth, with total domestic demand growing at more than three per cent," he said.
Sri Thanabalasingam, senior economist with TD Economics, noted the Bank of Canada chose to downplay the contraction the Canadian economy faced in the second quarter, and decided to focus on domestic strength and employment as reasons the second half of the year will be more positive.
"The bank is assuming the fourth wave of the pandemic is not really going to revert the economic recovery," said Thanabalasingam.
"Even though today's statement was very forward looking on reining in this stimulus, I don't think we can completely disregard the near term risk to the economy right now."
Meanwhile, Macklem said the bank is also studying the difficulties that some businesses are facing with hiring and how it will effect the economy.
The governor said there is still much excess capacity in the Canadian economy, and the current policy interest rate is necessary for Canada to meet its two per cent inflation target.
The annual pace of inflation rose to 3.7 per cent in July, marking the biggest increase since May 2011, and compared with a year-over-year increase in the consumer price index of 3.1 per cent in June.
Macklem said current inflation levels remain higher than before the pandemic due to supply disruptions, and because prices are being compared with a year ago when lockdowns placed downward pressure on some prices.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept 9, 2021.
Salmaan Farooqui, The Canadian Press
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