THE DANGER OF EV'S

Lithium ion batteries the leading cause of Vancouver fire fatalities, firefighters warn

Vancouver firefighters have issued another stark warning about lithium ion batteries, in the wake of a fatal fire at a Single Room Occupancy (SRO) hotel on the city's Downtown Eastside.


© Global News  One person has died after a fire ignited in Vancouver's Empress Hotel, officials say.

Vancouver Fire and Rescue Services says the fire on the second floor of the Empress Hotel was caused by an exploding battery.

It was the seventh fire-related death in the city this year. Of those seven, five have been linked to lithium ion batteries — including a house fire in East Vancouver in January that killed a child, their mother and their grandfather.

Read more:
Child, mother, grandfather killed in East Vancouver house fire

"If we're on trend with where we are right now, we're in big trouble," Fire Chief Karen Fry told media Monday. "Last year had five deaths in total. And this year five of our deaths have been related to batteries."

Lithium ion batteries are becoming increasingly common in Canadians homes, and are found in devices ranging from e-bikes and e-scooters to mobile phones.

Video: Increase in lithium ion battery fires due to unsafe use

Capt. Matthew Trudeau, the fire service's public information officer, said the city has documented a 500-per cent increase in fires linked to lithium ion batteries since 2016.


The fires have generally been related to the charging, care, handling and maintenance of equipment, with some user error, he said.

Read more:
Vancouver firefighters issue warning amid five-fold increase in battery fires

"We have seen a couple of fires where overcharging has been the problem. In these batteries we're seeing a thermal runaway effect that can cause chemically inside them which make it extremely dangerous and hard to extinguish."

In particular, firefighters are concerned about people modifying their equipment, or using damaged cables or chargers.

Video: E-bike battery issue causing fires

Lithium ion batteries are safe, Trudeau said, so long as people are using quality equipment and exercising caution.

"That includes making sure everyone operates and charges these with care, charges them in accordance with manufacturers' recommendations, they repair and replace their cords, their charging equipment and their batteries with approved devices and avoid the use of any kind of knock-off devices," he said.

Read more:
E-bike battery malfunction in North Vancouver prompts warning for consumers

Fry recommended that people buy electronic devices from a reputable dealer in Canada or that is CSA certified. She said cheaper equipment purchased online is of particular concern.

She said the city's fire service was meeting with BC Housing to look at ways to reduce risks in SROs. It is also looking for help from the province on safety measures, such as a possible ban on keeping e-bikes inside residential units.

"These are all preventable deaths," she said. 

Vancouver Fire Rescue Services says fires caused by lithium-ion batteries are an increasingly deadly problem in the city.

Megan Devlin
Jun 13 2022


Fishman64/Shutterstock


So far this year, five people have died in fires associated with the batteries — making battery fires the number one cause of fire deaths in Vancouver. In total, seven people have died in fires in 2022.

Lithium-ion batteries are rechargeable cells with relatively high power for their size. They’re often used in portable electronics such as laptops and cellphones and are also present in e-bikes — which have been growing in popularity.

Most recently, one person died in a lithium-ion battery-caused fire in an SRO this weekend, captain of public information with VFRS Matthew Trudeau told Daily Hive.

He spoke at a news conference Monday, saying fires caused by these types of batteries have increased fivefold since 2016.

“It’s very concerning and it’s Canada and US-wise,” he told Daily Hive in a phone interview. “We’re just seeing an inherent problem operating lithium-ion batteries safely.”

Most problems occur when people charge the battery with a cable that’s not approved for use in Canada or is damaged. Although buying a charging cable or a replacement battery online may be cheaper and more appealing, Trudeau urged customers to opt for an option that’s manufacturer-approved — even if it means spending more.

In addition, he recommended people charge devices outside their bedrooms, or outside their homes entirely, if possible.

“If you overcharge them or you charge them incorrectly you can heat them up and it causes an internal runaway effect that … causes a subsequent fire and explosion.”

He mentioned the lithium-ion battery fires have been increasing in frequency ever since people have turned to electric modes of transport with fuel prices increasing. While e-bikes and e-scooters have many benefits, Trudeau urged owners to become familiar with safe charging practices.

“Even outside of these five [fatal] fires we have seen numerous fires for these types of batteries resulting in damage and injury.”

Fires from lithium-ion batteries kill five Vancouverites in six months

Take care charging or modifying lithium ion batteries, experts warn

Joanne Lee-Young - Vancouver Sun

After the death of a tenant at a Downtown Eastside single-room occupancy hotel this weekend, fire safety advocates are urging consumers to take care when storing and charging lithium ion batteries.


© Provided by Vancouver Sun

A memorial for a man killed in an explosion at the Empress Hotel, in the west alley off East Hastings Street in Vancouver on June 14, 2022. Reports say the man, identified in the memorial as Shayne Charleson, was killed when an electric bike battery charging in his room exploded.

These batteries have become increasingly ubiquitous, used to power a range of electronics, including cellphones, power tools, e-bikes and e-scooters.

Laypeople and companies not only need help storing and charging them properly, but should also understand the risks of trying to save money by making their own DIY versions and modifying batteries, observers say.

“The technology has, quite frankly, outpaced the legislation and other practices,” says Gerry Van Houdt, regional sales manager for Denios Canada, which specializes in storage of hazardous materials.

A 32-year-old man died when an e-bike battery exploded, potentially causing him to fall out his window at the Hotel Empress on East Hastings Street.

Vancouver Fire Rescue is connecting with fire prevention services across North America to deal with a trend they are all experiencing, said Capt. Matthew Trudeau.

Of the seven fire-related deaths in Vancouver this year to date, five have been linked to lithium ion batteries, Trudeau said. The number of Vancouver fire deaths for all of 2020 was five.


In New York City, the fire department’s figures for fires related to e-bike lithium batteries are also spiking higher this year and the chief fire marshal has said he is expecting the number to double.

“It’s not one shipment of bad batteries. If it was, you could do a recall notice and get them out, but we’re seeing it every city,” said Trudeau.

The problem is how lithium ion batteries are being handled. With increased fuel prices, it’s possible more people are seeking alternative modes of moving around.

However, the cost of replacing batteries for e-bikes and e-scooters can be in the range of $2,000 to $4,000 compared to a fifth of that if you buy ones that might not be compatible or approved for use by Canadian or other standard-setting body, said Trudeau.

He said that in one of the Vancouver fires, the battery for an e-bike or e-motorcycle hybrid was “modified” extensively, reconfigured to be more powerful.

Instead of taking a battery to a professional who will charge for the service, some people following YouTube videos which show how to rewire systems so that you can, for example, change a battery that was designed to supply 12 volts into one that supplies 48 volts. Quadrupling the power supply like this raises the resistance and heat in a battery.

And that can lead to what is called a “thermal runaway effect” that is very challenging to extinguish once it starts.

Not all of the fatal Vancouver fires are tied to modified lithium ion batteries for bikes and scooters. One just involved a cellphone that was plugged into a damaged cable, said Trudeau.

Van Houdt suggested that instead of having consumers charging medium and high power batteries, like the ones for e-bikes and larger appliances, indoors or in the home, they could use supervised and outdoor workspaces or areas that are separate for doing this.

Denios recently started selling large, metal boxes that are specifically designed for storing new or damaged or questionable lithium ion batteries. It’s an option for companies who might be handling a large batch of batteries or for a building where there are many users of e-bikes. They are resistant to fire for up to two hours, allowing a user to toss in and isolate a lithium battery that has exploded or is on fire and then call the fire department for more help.

jlee-young@postmedia.com

Alberta teachers, schools scrambling to prepare for launch of new curriculum

Janet French - CBC-Yesterday

In Candice Conrad's Grade 1 classroom, learning to read looks much different than the lessons adults might remember.

On a recent morning, Conrad leads her Thorsby Elementary School students through a sequence of phonemic awareness exercises.

Their desks are clustered into three groups. Conrad sits at the front of the room, her finger on a word list in a thick guidebook.

"We're going to punch that last sound out. Ready?" Conrad says. "Shrink."

"Shrin-kuh," the 18 kids repeat, emphasizing the "kuh" sound and punching their teeny fists into the air.

The group of mostly six-year-olds also say syllables aloud, then blend them into words with a clap of their hands. They chop up word sounds in the air with their hands pressed together, then say the full word while sweeping their hands away.

Conrad is using multi-sensory techniques encouraged by Alberta's new English language arts and literature curriculum, which will be mandatory in all the province's kindergarten to Grade 3 classrooms starting this fall.

So will a new K-3 math curriculum, along with a revamped K-6 physical education and wellness curriculum.

Usually, teachers prepare for new curriculum without fanfare. But Alberta's journey to rewrite its K-12 curriculum in all subjects at once, in English and French, has been on a topsy-turvy path for more than a decade.

Under three governments — Progressive Conservative, NDP and finally the United Conservatives — rewriting the curriculum became a political football.

The schedule of which subjects and grades would be mandatory for the 2022-23 school year changed twice during the last six months.

Some educators, academics and parents pleaded with the government to "ditch the draft" of the proposed elementary school curriculum.

Most school divisions refused to pilot test those drafts, and less than one per cent of Alberta teachers formally participated.

As the deadline approaches for 25,000 Alberta elementary teachers to bring the new curriculum to life, CBC News spoke to 11 educators and school board leaders about preparation. Their message to Alberta politicians was clear: step out of the way, and let us make this work for kids.
How ready are teachers? Depends who you ask

Conrad, who loves teaching literacy, says she's excited about September. She will need to be ready for all three new subjects — a departure from the past, when Alberta introduced just one at a time.


© Janet French/CBC

Grade 1 teacher Candice Conrad shows some of the resources she's using to teach Alberta's new English language arts curriculum in Thorsby, Alta.

Although Leduc-based Black Gold School Division, which includes Thorsby, didn't officially pilot any new curriculum, Conrad has been using some of the guides and resources this year.

In addition to regular meetings with colleagues, Conrad, who has two young kids, spent hours of her own time taking professional development sessions online.

She feels the least ready for physical education and wellness, which is the most different from the current curriculum.

She's far less enthusiastic about the new science, social studies and fine arts curriculum, which are slated to be required in 2023 and 2024.

Conrad says not all her colleagues feel as prepared for September as she does.

Alberta education minister warns districts that opt out of curriculum pilot won’t give ‘rich feedback’

Although the first drafts of all elementary school subjects were publicly released in March 2021, K-6 math, English and phys ed and wellness curriculum wasn't finalized until mid-April, about 10 weeks before summer break.

Some school divisions had just one professional development day left on their calendars.

Others, like Ponoka-based Wolf Creek Public Schools, hustled to get three full days of professional development ready for all elementary teachers.

Although the government has promised to provide funding for substitutes so teachers can step away from class to go through the curriculum, Wolf Creek superintendent Tim De Ruyck says they can't rely on that approach while subs are scarce.

Edmonton Catholic Schools, meanwhile, is growing its contingent of curriculum consultants to 17 to get teachers ready for fall.


© Nathan Gross/CBC

Roffey is manager of elementary curriculum at Edmonton Catholic Schools. She's leading a team of curriculum consultants who are helping prepare teachers for the new K-3 math, English and wellness curriculum.

Trish Roffey, manager of elementary curriculum for Edmonton Catholic, says the consultants have laid out year-long plans suggesting the pace for the new material.

Her goal is to stay a month ahead, by assembling sample lesson plans, suggested resources — like videos, software, tests or games — and curriculum guides as the next school year progresses.

The division has five voluntary professional development "PD parties" planned for the summer, for teachers to learn some classroom-ready examples, she said.

Like many other divisions, Edmonton Catholic is relying on online training sessions organized internally, offered by the government and third parties like the Alberta Regional Professional Development Consortia.

Edmonton Public Schools is leaving decisions about how much professional development to take up to individual teachers.

Too much, too fast, too soon, some educators say

The pressure is compounding at the end of the school year while employees are still dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic. Grading assignments. Writing report cards. Planning next year's class lists. Organizing field trips. Hosting year-end parties.

"It's very tight, it's very stressful, and our teachers are burned out," said Jennifer Lefebvre, director of instruction for the Rocky Mountain House-based Wild Rose school division.

Other hurdles will be cultural and psychological. Many educators and academics disagree with the content and philosophy of the curriculum, including math, English and wellness.

Government-run surveys found the concerns persisted even after Alberta Education released the final drafts of those three subjects.

Critics say some math concepts are introduced too early for children to understand, that language arts excludes critical thinking and isn't culturally inclusive enough, and that wellness mishandles issues of consent and body image.

The surveys also showed the public doesn't feel the government is acting to correct these problems.

The Alberta School Boards Association has lobbied, with partial success, for a delay of mandatory implementation of all subjects until 2024.

A spokesperson for Education Minister Adriana LaGrange said the timeline was set based on recommendations from a curriculum implementation advisory group that included school board representatives.

Sandra Haltiner, president of Edmonton Catholic Teachers Local 54, says educators will have to balance their advocacy for change with making the curriculum work as best they can for the time being.

"Can we be ready for it? OK, sure, absolutely," she said. "Does that make it right? No."

Teachers feel pressured by employers to attend "voluntary" summer training when what they really need is a break, she says.

The government's rush baffles Maren Aukerman, a University of Calgary professor who specializes in literacy education. She says three subjects at once is too much.

"The biggest risk is for kids," Aukerman said. "I really worry about the children in the classroom who are going to be faced with a bunch of stuff that their teachers are not that prepared for."

More enthusiastic curriculum adopters worry critics are unnecessarily frightening parents, and undermining teachers' abilities.


© Janet French/CBC

Students at Edmonton's Suzuki Charter School play an ensemble piece. Teachers at Suzuki have been informally working with elements of the new curriculum this school year.

Lynne Paradis, superintendent of Suzuki Charter School in Edmonton, said schools like hers were preparing for the shift long before the final versions of curriculum were made public.

"Teachers are not going to let children get harmed," she said.

What educators want is for politicians and parents to have faith in teachers' professionalism and judgment, said Terri Reid, a curriculum consultant with the Black Gold school division.

"We need everyone now to stop and take a breath and let our teachers do their job," Reid said. "Teachers do phenomenal work with children. And they need to have the time and the space to do that."

Eyes out for Ontario's only venomous snake: Massasauga rattlesnake


Lexy Benedict - 
The Weather Network

Ontario is home to over a dozen types of snakes, but only one of them is venomous – the Eastern massasauga rattlesnake (Sistrurus catenatus).

According to Tianna Burke with the Georgian Bay Biosphere, a charity organization that works to preserve wildlife and endangered species, these rattlesnakes tend to move out of hibernation late May into early June – so if you’re at the cottage or on a hike in a wooded area, now is the time to keep your eyes out!

While the sound of a venomous snake is alarming, Burke says that these snakes have an introverted personality and generally like to keep to themselves. They have no interest in interacting with humans, and typically when you see snakes on the move, they’re just trying to get from one spot to another.

“Snakes don't attack people, they just want to be left alone,” explains Burke. “Most snake bites occur because you haven't taken precaution to see what's around you or you have gone to try and harm it, so it’s just acting in defence".A massasauga rattlesnake (Credit: Georgian Bay Biosphere).

RELATED: These alarmingly large snakes are more common than you may realize in Ontario

HOW TO IDENTIFY THE EASTERN MASSASAUGA RATTLESNAKE

You can find these snakes primarily along the eastern side of Georgian Bay and on the Bruce Peninsula, according to the Government of Ontario. Two small populations are also found in the Wainfleet Bog on the northeast shore of Lake Erie and near Windsor. The massasauga was once more widespread in southwestern Ontario, especially along the shores of the Great Lakes.


© Provided by The Weather NetworkEyes out for Ontario's only venomous snake: Massasauga rattlesnakeThe massasauga rattlesnake was listed as threatened when the Endangered Species Act took effect in 2008. On June 27, 2014, the population was split into two, with the Great Lakes – St. Lawrence population listed as threatened, and the Carolinian population listed as endangered.

 (Photo credit: Georgian Bay Biosphere).

According to Burke, massasauga rattlesnakes can grow to a maximum of one-metre-long. It’s distinguished usually by the figure ‘8’ pattern on its back, its diamond shaped head, cat-like eyes, and of course, the rattle. The body is grey to dark brown with darker brown "butterfly" or "saddle-shaped" blotches down the back, with alternating blotches along the sides. If you hear the tail rattle, that means you’re too close – and take a step back.

WHAT TO DO IF YOU GET BIT

While it's highly unlikely to get bit by an unprovoked snake, it’s still important to know what to do if in the event you do get bitten. Medical Director of the Ontario and Nunavut Poison Centre, Dr. Margaret Thompson, says no matter what severity of the bite, it’s important to get it checked out by a professional.

She also emphasizes the importance of leaving these critters alone, and not moving them or picking them up. In fact, it’s actually illegal in Ontario to move a rattlesnake more than one kilometre from where you find them.


© Provided by The Weather NetworkEyes out for Ontario's only venomous snake: Massasauga rattlesnakeThe massasauga rattlesnake is Ontario’s only venomous snake, though it will only bite in self-defence if it is threatened or harassed. (Photo credit: Georgian Bay Biosphere)

Dr. Thompson adds the first thing you need to do if you get bit is stay calm. The second, is to go to your nearest emergency room.

“If you are in massasauga habitat, the best thing you can do to protect yourself from any potential sites is to be aware if you are walking. The most common places people get bit is around the ankle, usually when people are walking to and from somewhere or are barefoot, and the wrist. The wrist bites are usually from risky behaviour and trying to pick up and interact with a snake, which you shouldn't be doing. Snakes act based on how you act.”

To learn more about Ontario’s only venomous snake, watch the video

Methane leak at Russian mine could be largest ever discovered

Fiona Harvey

THE GUARDIAN

Environment correspondent 


Possibly the world’s biggest leak of methane has been discovered coming from a coalmine in Russia, which has been pouring out the carbon dioxide equivalent of five coal-fired power stations.



About 90 tonnes an hour of methane were being released from the mine in January, when the gas was first traced to its source, according to data from GHGSat, a commercial satellite monitoring company based in Canada. Sustained over the course of a year, this would produce enough natural gas to power 2.4m homes.

More recently, the mine appears to be leaking at a lower rate, of about a third of the highest rate recorded in January, but the leak is thought to have been active for at least six months before January’s survey.

The leak, which comes from the Raspadskaya mine in Kemerovo Oblast, the largest coalmine in Russia, is about 50% bigger than any other leak seen by GHGSat since it started its global satellite monitoring in 2016. The company believes it is bigger than any leak yet traced to a single source.

Brody Wight, director of energy, landfill and mines at GHGSat, said that methane was an often overlooked side-effect of coalmining that added to the climate impact of burning coal. The Raspadskaya leak would add about 25% to the greenhouse gas emissions of burning any coal produced from the mine, he estimated.

“We are seeing an increase in methane from this site generally, which could be the result of increased coal production, linked to global trends in coal use,” he said.

Russia is one of the world’s biggest sources of methane from fossil fuel extraction. The country’s gas infrastructure, including production facilities and pipelines, is notoriously leaky despite calls for the government to take action

Mining for substances such as gold and coal has been big business for hundreds of years. But as technology develops, we need an increasing number of other materials to power new industries in our changing world. Read on as we look at some of the most popular elements, metals, minerals, and more being mined in the 21st century – and how the Russian attack on Ukraine has sent shockwaves throughout the sector.

Paul Bledsoe, a former White House adviser to Bill Clinton and now with the Progressive Policy Institute in Washington DC, said: “Deeply cutting methane is the only sure way to limit near-term temperatures and prevent runaway climate change, yet every month brings new evidence that Russia is hiding the world’s most massive and destructive methane leaks. Putin is desperately hiding these enormous emissions so he can continue to profit from sales of Russian coal, oil and gas and fund his war-making regime. But those nations like China who continue to buy Putin’s oil and gas are equally abetting his climate and war criminality

All underground coalmines produce methane, which can cause explosions if it builds up. A blast at the Raspadskaya mine in 2010 killed 66 people.

Venting methane can be done for safety reasons. However, there are ways of capturing methane when it is produced at a high rate, or venting through oxidisation, so that it causes less harm to the climate.

Methane is about 80 times more powerful as a greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide, though it degrades in the atmosphere over about 20 years. In February, the International Energy Agency warned that most countries were under-reporting their methane emissions, and the true amounts pouring into the atmosphere were far greater than had been thought.

Recent studies have shown that cutting methane could be one of the fastest ways of holding down global temperature rises, and that sharp cuts now could prevent a rise of about 0.25C by 2050.

Durwood Zaelke, the president of the Washington-based Institute for Governance, said the Raspadskaya leak showed the urgent need for action. “It’s critical to set up a comprehensive satellite monitoring system for methane. We also need to deploy a system of incentives and sanctions that can remedy these emissions, focusing first on the super emitters,” he said.

The IEA also found that at current high gas prices, the cost of capturing methane was far less than the value of using it or selling it as a fuel source, which should give companies and governments an incentive to capture the gas rather than venting or flaring.

Related: Sharp cut in methane now could help avoid worst of climate crisis

At the Cop26 UN climate summit in Glasgow last November, more than 100 countries agreed to reduce their methane emissions by at least 30% by 2030. Russia was not among them, however.

GHGSat said it measured 13 distinct methane plumes, ranging in size from 658 to 17,994 kg an hour, from the mine. The discovery was made on 22 January, but the company took time to verify its findings and contact the operator of the mine, which has not responded.

MATURE TREES ARE BIRD APARTMENTS

Edmonton city councillors consider new bylaw to protect trees on private land

Natasha Riebe 


The City of Edmonton is considering ways to protect trees on private land, as it works toward the goal of adding two million more trees to its urban forest.

At a meeting Tuesday, council's urban planning committee discussed creating a bylaw to regulate the removal of trees on private property.

The city considers the urban forest to be a "significant municipal asset," which provides "many environmental, ecological, economic and social benefits to Edmontonians," according to a committee report. An estimated 380,000 trees exist on boulevards and in open spaces.

Coun. Aaron Paquette put forward a motion that administration outline ways the city can achieve its goal of adding two million trees, including the option of drafting a private property tree bylaw.

The committee heard from several people who support the idea of a private tree bylaw and others who oppose the idea.

Kristine Kowalchuk with the Edmonton River Valley Conservation Coalition pressed councillors to adopt a new bylaw to protect trees, which she said would have numerous benefits.

"Trees do critical work in mitigating climate change, cleaning the air, cooling the city, helping to prevent both drought and flooding," Kowalchuk said. "They also contribute greatly to Edmontonians' physical and mental health and are essential to the beauty of our city."

Don Tolsma, a director with the Canadian Home Builders Association, said he doesn't think the city should introduce a bylaw to regulate tree removal.


© Wallis Snowdon/CBC

Also the president of Timber Haus Developments, Tolsma said they try to preserve mature trees as much as possible, which are highly valued by most of their clients, but he would oppose a bylaw that affects trees on private land.

It's not feasible to save all of them, he argued, for a variety of reasons: trees may restrict the development area or impede access to the building, or the tree could be unhealthy and needs to be removed.

Competing goals

Requiring permits or limiting the ability to remove trees will directly impede infill and new housing growth, Tolsma argued.

"If densification is the way to go, which is the city plan, then you are going to lose more trees," Tolsma said. "So we need to keep planting more trees."


© Adrienne Lamb/CBC

Edmonton's tree bylaw requires a permit to remove or work within five metres of a tree on public property.

Kowalchuk suggested the city consider an alternative approach to density like repurposing parking lots and reducing vehicle lanes.

"Densification cannot be a single-minded goal of fitting in more people," Kowalchuk said.

Paquette suggested the city needs more time to balance the goals of increasing density and protecting trees.

"There is a tension here in that some of the redevelopment we need for density, in order to further our climate goals, also means that some of these trees on private land don't lend themselves to that redevelopment," Paquette said.

City managers are expected to report back to the urban planning committee in early 2023.

Bylaw options

Last August, city council passed the Public Tree Bylaw but the new permit process for tree protection and preservation takes effect Wednesday.

The current bylaw says that no work can be done within five metres of the trunk of a boulevard or open space tree or within 10 metres of a natural boundary unless someone has a permit, permission or is doing the work according to an approved tree protection plan.

Drafting a new bylaw and developing a new permitting system for removing trees from private land would require funding, the report says.

Several municipalities in Canada, including Ottawa, Vancouver, Toronto, Surrey, and Oakville, have private tree bylaws with mixed results.

"All municipalities cited difficulties with the volume of enforcement associated with regulating private trees by way of permit," the report says.

Deaths due to homelessness in Edmonton up by 70 per cent last year: advocacy group

Nearly as many Edmontonians died due to homelessness in 2021 than in the prior two years combined, representing a yearly increase of nearly 70 per cent, according to numbers from a homeless advocacy group.


© Provided by Edmonton JournalA homeless encampment on 106 Avenue near 99 Street in downtown Edmonton on Friday April 22, 2022.

Matthew Black - EDMONTON JOURNAL

Figures from the Edmonton Coalition on Housing and Homelessness (ECOHH) indicate 222 identified people died due to homelessness in 2021. The group also deemed homelessness to be a significant factor in the deaths of a further 30 unidentified individuals, 20 men and 10 women.

The rise continues a recent increasing trend, but also represents the sharpest jump over that time period, with 132 deaths in 2020, 99 deaths in 2019, and 96 deaths in 2018.

“Too often people die much too young when they are in such circumstances. The alarming increase in deaths is terrible and should call us to action,” said Susan Watson.

Watson is organizing a public memorial for Wednesday afternoon that will honour those who died in the past three years after the pandemic forced its cancellation in 2020 and 2021.

“This has always been a painful event,” she said. “No one should see their life cut short because they have been without safe, healthy housing.”

ECOHH says it identifies those who have died due homelessness with the help of frontline organizations that work with individuals struggling for housing security.

It says the count includes those who it determines would have not died as soon if they had been in adequate housing as well as a much smaller number of cases where individuals died on the streets.

© Provided by Edmonton JournalDeaths due to homelessness in Edmonton up by 70 per cent last year: advocacy group

ECOHH numbers state 453 identified people have died due to homelessness in Edmonton over 2019, 2020 and 2021.

The figures skew heavily towards men, with just over two-thirds of those deaths being of males.

Last year saw deaths recorded in those aged under 20 for the first time in at least two years. Seventeen people in their twenties died, up from 12 in 2020 and 10 in 2019.

The group says 1,255 identified people have now died over the past 17 years with homelessness as a significant factor.

There were about 50 deaths in identified individuals each year until 2016, when the number of deaths spiked to more than 100, according to ECOHH numbers.

Since the memorial was first held in 2005, 802 people have been remembered at the service.

This year’s event will be held Wednesday at Homeless Memorial Plaza located north of City Hall on 103A Avenue at 100 Street, starting at 2 p.m.

“The memorial service is a time to grieve the people — our family, friends, neighbours — who are no longer with us, a time to gather together in our sorrow and support each other in our losses,” said organizer Jim Gurnett.

“But we need to be leaving the event asking what can be done to end this shameful reality in our city.”

mblack@postmedia.com

Twitter: @ByMatthewBlack

RCMP VS SIKH'S AN OLD STORY

Two Sikh rally organizers say they were wrongly arrested amid Parliament bomb scare

Published on June 13, 2022
By Sonia Ulebor


OTTAWA — Two organizers of a Sikh event near Parliament Hill on Saturday say they are still in shock after being wrongfully arrested in connection with a bomb threat, an experience one of the men described as “disrespectful” and “harassment.”

Officials have released few details about the “potential threat” that prompted an evacuation of Parliament and closure of surrounding streets for several hours on Saturday. Police only said later in the day their investigation had concluded and no threat to public safety was found.

Manveer Singh and Parminder Singh say they are speaking out about the arrests in order to defend their reputations — and they are raising questions about who gave their names to investigators and why, as well as how police handled that information.

“It doesn’t make sense because I know I am not involved in anything. I’m proud as a Canadian Sikh. I love this country, I will do everything to protect this country,” said Parminder Singh.

“Why am I arrested? Because I’m wearing a turban and my skin is not white? What’s going on?”

The two men are organizers of a remembrance rally for the victims of the 1984 massacre of Sikhs in India. The group had received a permit to gather on the Hill, but when members arrived, they were told they were not allowed to be there because of an ongoing threat in the area.

They relocated to the lawn in front of the Supreme Court of Canada nearby to hold their event.

Harpreet Hansra, another rally organizer, said an officer sought to speak with him and asked him to identify Manveer Singh, who was designated as one of the MCs for the event.

A few minutes after the rally got underway, Manveer Singh said police arrested him and told him they had “credible information” that he was connected to a serious bomb threat on the Hill.

“They believed that I’m the one who’s gonna do that. I was shocked. I’m gathering my community here to bomb them?” he said, adding that police searched him, handcuffed him and brought him to the police station for questioning.

He said police asked to frisk his turban while searching him outside the Supreme Court.

“If I don’t obey their instructions they could have done anything to me, because the threat was very big, it was a security threat to the national Parliament.”

Parminder Singh said he was arrested not long afterward by Ottawa police, who told him that his name was connected to an alleged bomb threat of Parliament.

Ottawa police did not answer questions about the men’s account of events, saying only that the investigation into the matter is now concluded and no charges were laid.

The two organizers said that police also searched their cars for explosives.

The remaining organizers decided to wrap up their event sooner than planned due to fear of the ongoing threat and the fact that two of their members were taken by police, Hansra said.

Hansra went to the police station afterward with two other organizers, he said.

When in police custody, both men said officers had them take off their turbans. Manveer Singh said he was also made to remove other religious symbols including a bracelet called a kara and a ceremonial sword known as a kirpan.

“They wanted me to untie my turban because they have to search very closely … Because I believe that I was the terrorist at that time in their eyes,” he said.

After being in custody for a short while, Parminder Singh said police released him and apologized, adding they arrested him based on wrong information.

“We spoke to the officers that were there and they were very clear. They apologized profusely and said, ‘Sorry that this happened, and we know you guys have nothing to do with it,’” he said.

Both the men who were arrested said police told them that the information that connected them to the threat came from the Canada Border Services Agency.

“They said they have no further knowledge about who or what contacted CBSA, but the information was so detailed that it warranted them to take immediate action at Parliament,” Hansra said.

Rebecca Purdy, spokesperson for Canada Border Services Agency, said in a statement Monday that the agency works regularly with law enforcement to ensure border security, including intelligence and enforcement.

The RCMP said Monday that it can only confirm details related to criminal investigations where charges have been laid.

Ottawa police said in a statement Saturday that they received information about a potential threat near the parliamentary precinct, prompting them to close some surrounding streets to vehicle and pedestrian traffic.

The Parliamentary Protective Service also ordered an evacuation of Parliament Hill, issuing an alert to all members of Parliament and staff and noting all buildings in the precinct were to be under shelter-in-place orders until further notice.

Both of the rally organizers say they are worried about the damage done to their reputations as a result of being arrested in connection to the explosives threat.

Although police said they were conducting an investigation and if they did not find anything, they would release him, Parminder Singh said they should have done an investigation before arresting him.

“It’s deeply hurt my kids, my wife and also other community members,” Parminder Singh said, calling the experience “disrespectful” and “harassment.”

He said his group began organizing these rallies in 2017, to gather Sikhs from across Ontario and Quebec. Events have been cancelled over the past two years because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“You’re arresting me doing a peacefully rally? I’ve been doing this for almost my whole life.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 13, 2022.

—

This story was produced with the financial assistance of the Meta and Canadian Press News Fellowship.



Erika Ibrahim, The Canadian Press

https://www.publicsafety.gc.ca/cnt/rsrcs/pblctns/lssns-lrnd/lssns-lrnd-eng.pdf

LESSONS TO BE LEARNED - Sécurité publique Canada 

Oct 11, 2005 ... The report of the Honourable Bob Rae,. Independent Advisor to the ... on board Air India Flight 182, and at Narita Airport, Tokyo, Japan.

https://terrorvictimresponse.ca/docs/Phase-1-report-The-Families-Remember.pdf

THE FAMILIES REMEMBER - Terror Victim Response 

Honourable Bob Rae, former premier of Ontario, considered ... is If Air India Flight 182 had been an Air Canada flight with all fair-.

http://summit.sfu.ca/system/files/iritems1/15624/etd9185_MSingh.pdf

The Bombing of Air India Flight 182: Demanding Justice, Public ... 

and as Bob Rae's (2005) Lessons to be Learned report and the final Air India Inquiry. Reports (2010a, 2010b) eventually state, these delays were directly ...

Police face growing questions, calls for 

investigation into false Parliament bomb 

tip


OTTAWA — Police are facing mounting questions about the origin of a false bomb tip that led to the arrest of two Sikh rally organizers near Parliament Hill on Saturday, with some calling for an investigation into those who alerted law enforcement about the men.



Marco Mendicino, minister of public safety, said engaging in a hoax for any reason is against the law, but it’s additionally concerning when a fake tip feeds into systemic biases.

He said he shares the concerns of the Sikh community about the incident.

"I cannot underline enough that engaging in any kind of a hoax for the purposes of misleading police, casting aspersions on a community, feeding into stereotypes, is wrong. It’s categorically wrong," said Mendicino on Tuesday.

Decisions around investigating a potential hoax are made independently by law enforcement, he said.

Harpreet Hansra, an organizer of the rally who spoke Tuesday on behalf of the men who were arrested, said they would like an investigation into where the tip came from, why police acted so quickly on it and then so swiftly deemed it to be a hoax.

Ottawa police have refused to answer questions about the men’s account of events, to provide more details about the tip or to say whether they will investigate those who made the claim, despite repeated requests from The Canadian Press.

The police service provided a one-line statement Monday saying only that the investigation into the matter has concluded and no charges were laid.

Hansra said the silence of Ottawa police worries him.

"As Canadians, we pride ourselves on transparency, on doing the right thing all the time. And we pride ourselves on being a safe haven for people from all over the world … This was not how the Sikh community felt on June 11," he said.

NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh called attention to the different treatment this tip received from law enforcement compared to the response to the massive "Freedom Convoy" protest that overtook downtown Ottawa for more than three weeks in February.

"When we had people that were engaged in holding up signs and flags that were related to extreme right-wing organizations, dangerous organizations, their presence on the Hill, there was very little reaction (from police) and communities were hurt," said Singh.

In light of the police response to the blockades, he said the way the Sikh rally organizers were treated based on a false call "clearly shows there's a problem with the way threats are being taken."

The World Sikh Organization of Canada said Canadian law enforcement should fully investigate and prosecute those involved in providing the tip that led to the wrongful arrests.

“The hoax bomb threat targeting a Sikh rally in Ottawa is deeply concerning," said Tejinder Singh Sidhu, the president of the organization, which advocates for Sikhs in Canada.

"We call on law enforcement agencies, including the Canadian Security Intelligence Service, to fully investigate this incident and ensure those responsible for making the false threat are fully prosecuted and held accountable."

Brandon Champagne, spokesperson for the service, said it works closely with law enforcement across the country to ensure the safety of Canadians, but directed questions about investigations to Ottawa police, who are "leading the ongoing investigation into the incident."

Police have not confirmed an ongoing investigation is taking place.

Officials have released few details about the “potential threat” that prompted an evacuation of Parliament and closure of surrounding streets on Saturday. After several hours, police said no threat to public safety was found and the area reopened.

Manveer Singh and Parminder Singh have come forward about their arrests to defend their reputations and to raise questions about who gave their names to investigators and why, as well as to express concerns about how police handled that information.

Parminder Singh described the experience as “disrespectful” and “harassment.”

The two men are organizers of a remembrance rally for the victims of the 1984 massacre of Sikhs in India. They had a permit to hold the event on Parliament Hill, but were told when they arrived it was shut down due to an ongoing threat and they moved to a nearby location.

Soon after the rally started, the men say police arrested them and told them their names were connected to a serious bomb threat on the Hill. Manveer Singh said police claimed they had “credible information” linking him to the threat.

Police searched their cars for explosives before handcuffing them and taking them to the police station, where they were made to remove their turbans and questioned by officers, the men said. Manveer Singh also had to remove other religious symbols including a bracelet called a kara and a ceremonial dagger known as a kirpan.

The men said they were eventually released, with police apologizing and explaining that the pair were the victims of a "terrorism hoax."

Both the men said police told them that the information that connected them to the threat came from the Canada Border Services Agency.

The agency has said it works regularly with law enforcement to ensure border security, including intelligence and enforcement.

Spokesperson Judith Gadbois-St-Cyr said Tuesday that the agency does not comment on policing matters or investigations.

Robin Percival, spokesperson for the RCMP, that for privacy and operational reasons, it can only confirm details related to criminal investigations where charges have been laid.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 14, 2022.

---

This story was produced with the financial assistance of the Meta and Canadian Press News Fellowship.

Erika Ibrahim, The Canadian Press

U.S. wants Canada to join probe of cross-border pollution from B.C. coal mines

The United States government, including President Joe Biden's White House, has joined calls for Canada to participate in a probe of cross-border pollution coming from coal mines in southern British Columbia.



In a statement released last week, the U.S. State Department said Biden supports a joint investigation of selenium coming from Teck Resource's Elk Valley coal mines, which flows into rivers and lakes south of the border.

"The (State) Department reaffirmed the administration’s support for a joint reference to the International Joint Commission under the Boundary Waters Treaty of 1909 for the Kootenai Basin regarding the transboundary impacts of mining," says the statement issued Wednesday.

Global Affairs Canada did not immediately respond to a request for a response. On June 2, spokesman Adrien Blanchard said in an email that Canada was "considering a variety of options."

The U.S. has been concerned about the Teck mines for years. The states of Montana and Idaho, eight American senators, the Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Geological Survey and six First Nations from both sides of the border have all said selenium released by the mines threatens fish in their downstream waters.

Several of those groups have requested a reference from the International Joint Commission, which tries to mediate transboundary water disputes. References, an examination of the problem followed by recommendations, have almost always been conducted by both countries together.

The U.S. embassy in Ottawa said the State Department has been "in discussions" with Canada over the issue since September 2021. The U.S. ambassador has brought it up with B.C. Premier John Horgan, as has the U.S. consulate in Vancouver.

"There is an acute and long-standing need to reduce transboundary pollution from mining in the Kootenai Basin," said a spokesman. "We want to work with our Canadian colleagues to promptly submit a joint reference to the (commission)."

Canada and the U.S., through the commission, have worked jointly on problems in the Great Lakes, Lake Champlain in Quebec and the Souris River basin in Manitoba.

The commission has said it's willing to look at the matter and has asked Canada to participate. Now, the State Department has echoed that request.

In its release, it says Canada's participation in an Elk Valley reference would lead to "impartial recommendations and transparent communication, build trust, and forge a common understanding of this issue among local, Indigenous, state, provincial, and federal governments as well as stakeholders and the public in both countries."

The release emphasizes First Nation concerns, underscoring "the Biden-Harris Administration’s commitment to strengthening Nation-to-Nation relationships."

"Support for a joint IJC reference reflects the Biden-Harris Administration’s commitment to protect public health; conserve our lands, waters, and biodiversity; and deliver environmental justice to communities overburdened by pollution."

The government release was preceded by a statement from the six Ktunaxa First Nations in the area, which have been asking Canada to join the reference since December.

"We’re demanding meaningful dialogue," said Nasukin Gravelle of the Tobacco Plains First Nation.

“The missing piece here is Canada’s seeming refusal to participate in a joint reference submission to get the ball rolling on viable, science-based solutions. It’s a disappointment and a sad day for reconciliation when progress on dealing with the pollution of our waterways is blocked by a federal government."

Teck has acknowledged the problem.

The company has spent $1.2 billion on water treatment and plans to spend a further $750 million. It says about 95 per cent of selenium is now removed from water.

However, it has protested what it calls unreasonably low selenium limits brought in by Montana. It says those limits, which apply to the reservoir shared by both countries, are even lower than natural selenium levels in upstream rivers.

Still, the commission has said that selenium concentrations in some parts of that reservoir — Lake Koocanusa — are more than five times Montana's limits, although the levels are lower elsewhere.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 14, 2022.

— Follow Bob Weber on Twitter at @row1960

Bob Weber, The Canadian Press

Note to readers: This is a corrected story; An earlier version had Lake Koocanusa spelled incorrectly.

MANITOBA

Union guide asks teachers to use inclusive language

Yesterday 

The Manitoba Teachers’ Society wants public school educators to think twice about the words they use in their classrooms and swap binary terms for gender-neutral ones, among other adjustments.

Last month, the union representing roughly 16,600 employees in the K-12 school system, published a guide on inclusive vocabulary.

“We don’t expect that language-use will change like flipping a light switch,” said Sherry Jones, a staff officer at MTS who worked on the project in collaboration with the union’s equity and social justice standing committee.

“This is going to be a process for us, collectively, to first question the language we’re using and to transition to using language that is as inclusive as possible.”

The 14-page document, available to all teachers free of charge, stresses the importance of terminology in creating welcoming schools for all visitors — especially members of minority groups who experience bullying and discrimination at higher rates than their peers.

Educators are urged in the guide to be careful of generalizing and stereotyping, learn about the origins of the words they use and honour every individual’s preferred terms.

“Language is important when speaking about identity because it creates respect by allowing people to use language that describes their identity,” states an excerpt on pronoun usage.

Proper names of nationalities, peoples and culture should be capitalized, according to the document, which encourages teachers to consider whether introducing or describing someone by their race, culture or ancestry is necessary.

The toolkit prescribes “Indigenous” rather than “Aboriginal” as the preferred way to describe people who identify as First Nations, Métis or Inuit.


It encourages teachers to focus on individuals first — for example, writing “person with a disability” instead of “disabled person” — and discourages the use of offensive terms, such as “handicapped.” Educators should also be careful about portraying a person as “courageous” or “special” because they have a disability, per the guide.

Also in the document is an acknowledgement of the various types of diverse families that exist, ranging from blended households to common-law relationships. Teachers should refer to a “birth parent” rather than “natural parent” or “real parent,” it states.

The guidelines have been published in both English and French.

Jones said the toolkit is a working document that will evolve alongside language itself so that teachers can access a resource to help them model up-to-date terminology for their students.

The latest project will bolster the union’s existing initiative to distribute safe-space signs, which are posters displaying an intersectional LGBTTQ+ flag (a new design featuring the familiar six-colour rainbow updated with chevrons of light blue, light pink and white from the trans flag and brown and black chevrons to represent community members of colour) to teachers, she said.

So far, the feedback from members has been positive, Jones said, noting that one Winnipeg teacher has already discussed the document with students who are part of the gay-straight alliance at his school and they are discussing how to share the contents with their wider community.

It was by happenstance that the guide was published shortly before Pride month 2022; union members passed a resolution to create it at an annual general meeting in 2020.

As far as MTS president James Bedford is concerned, inclusive language should be built into all curriculum documents.

One way educators can create spaces that are both psychologically and physically safe for everyone is by adjusting vocabulary in their assignments, Bedford said. The union leader used writing a math problem that acknowledges families can have two mothers or two fathers as one simple example.

“If we’re not paying attention to the language that we use…. We could be sending a negative or an unsafe message unknowingly,” he said.

Maggie Macintosh, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Winnipeg Free Press

NOVA SCOTIA
Controversial bill that imposed contract on teachers struck down

The Nova Scotia Scotia Supreme Court has struck down a controversial piece of legislation that imposed a contract on Nova Scotia's 9,300 public school teachers.

Justice John A. Keith called the law, known as Bill 75, "vengeful," "terribly wrong" and ultimately unconstitutional in a ruling released Monday.

In February 2017, the previous Liberal Government under Stephen McNeil passed Bill 75, to bring an end to more than a year of failed contract negotiations between the province and the Nova Scotia Teachers Union (NSTU).

When it was eventually enacted, it stripped the union of its right to strike and imposed a four-year collective agreement along with a three per cent salary increase. Hundreds of teachers protested outside the legislature while it was debated.


© Steve Lawrence/CBC

The former Liberal government created the legislation to bring an end to more than a year of failed contract negotiations between the province and the Nova Scotia Teachers Union.


Lawyers for the province argued Bill 75 was essential because three tentative agreements reached between the NSTU's bargaining team and the province were all voted down by the union's membership — even though each agreement was recommended for approval by the NSTU. It was after the third failed agreement that the McNeil Liberals introduced Bill 75.

"The terms of the collective agreement imposed by Bill 75 were significantly inconsistent with and worse than the third and final tentative agreement that the province said was the byproduct of good faith bargaining," wrote Justice Keith.

"At best," he went on, "Bill 75 was an overzealous but misguided attempt at fiscal responsibility. At worst, Bill 75 was punitive or a vengeful attempt to gain some unrelated, collateral benefit related to ongoing negotiations with other public service unions at the expense of NSTU."

The president of the Nova Scotia Teachers Union Paul Wozney said his union will meet with its legal counsel to discuss any fallout from Tuesday's ruling. For now, he said the union feels vindicated.

"The imposition of Bill 75 by the McNeil Government facilitated the only province-wide teachers strike in the history of Nova Scotia, and today's ruling justifies the unprecedented actions educators took at the time to defend their collective rights and public education," said Wozney. "Even today, five years later, the impacts of Bill 75 on teacher morale are still being felt. Hopefully this will help provide some additional closure."

Justice Keith said the NSTU is entitled to costs.