STATEHOOD OR INDEPENDENCE

This industry is depleting the water supply in Puerto Rico, experts say

Yesterday 

The manufacturing industry in Puerto Rico is putting the island's finite water supply at risk, experts told ABC News.

Is manufacturing jeopardizing Puerto Rico’s water supply?

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In the 1960s and 1970s, industries ventured to Puerto Rico as the result of a now-expired federal tax incentive known Section 936, which exempted businesses from federal income tax profits earned by U.S. companies in Puerto Rico and other U.S. territories.

The incentive is widely regarded by experts as responsible for creating a fiscal crisis on Puerto Rico, as the island's economy remained stuck in a standstill due to its inability to generate wealth from the rapidly growing manufacturing sector. But with the expansion of industry also came severe environmental impact.MORE: Biden visits Puerto Rico after Fiona, commits to recovery 'as long as it takes'

Pharmaceutical manufacturing, among the most prominent on the island, accounted for 65% of total industrial self-supplied groundwater withdrawals by 2010, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. In the northern town of Barceloneta, a municipality dominated by the pharmaceutical industry, industrial groundwater withdrawals were estimated at 1.3 million gallons per day, according to the USGS.

In places like Salinas, a city on the island's southern coast, all of the drinking water comes from groundwater. Ruth Santiago, an attorney based in Salinas, Puerto Rico, and an environmental health advocate with Earth Justice, told ABC News.

The water is extracted from aquifers running through the north and south of the island using pumps before it is filtered and cleaned by the Puerto Rico Aqueducts and Sewers Authority, Santiago said. It is then delivered via pipes to the area.



The community groundwater pump in Salinas, Puerto Rico, sits inoperable behind a fence.© David Miller/ABC News

However, wells in the region are mysteriously drying up, and the South Coast aquifer, the one from which much of the industrial water is being extracted, has been designated as a critical state, experts said.

"It's being depleted," Santiago said.

Not only does industry use vast amounts of water throughout the production process, but it also can impact water supplies through polluting or contaminating water with chemicals, Santiago said.MORE: What to know about Puerto Rico's divide over its territorial status

To exacerbate the issue, the cleanup and monitoring of these sites "take a long time," Carmen Guerrero Perez, director of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Caribbean Environmental Protection Division, told ABC News.

One-third of the island is made of karst limestone soils, a "very porous" substance that can allow contaminated water to leach through, Perez said. Puerto Rico has at least 19 contaminated sites that are on the national priority list for cleanup, she added.

Five of the sites on the national priority list can be partially attributed to the pharmaceutical industry, according to the EPA.



Warning signs are displayed on the fence surrounding the inactive Barceloneta Landfill site in Puerto Rico. About 300 tons of hazardous wastes are located in sinkholes on the property.© Lilia Geho/ABC News

Water contamination has been rampant in Puerto Rico since the 1970s, environmental scientist Neftali Garcia told ABC News.

The industries that arrived bolstered that they were generating jobs and growing the economy, Garcia said.

"But, what were the consequences? Air pollution, water pollution, soil pollution, rivers pollution," Garcia said. "Once you pollute the groundwater, cleaning the aquifer is extremely difficult, and it takes decades, if ever, [to] become clean."MORE: COVID-19 has made food insecurity worse in Puerto Rico

The "theory" is that the federal EPA and the territorial government will require polluters to sink wells, figure out the extent of the contamination problem and clean it up, Erik Olson, senior strategic director of the Health and Food, People & Communities Program at the National Resources Defense Council, told ABC News.

But disposing of the contaminated water in itself is difficult, the experts said.


Environment and community lawyer, Ruth Santiago, overlooks the Fibers Superfund site in Guyama, Puerto Rico. This site was established to clean up hazardous waste in contaminated groundwater from several industries.© David Miller/ABC News

"Eventually, that polluted water will get into the surface water of creeks, rivers and underground water," Garcia said.

A nationwide survey by the National Resource Defense Council that looked into compliance and violations across the country found that Puerto Rico had the worst compliance record and most violations of any territory or state in the country "by far," Olson said.

Experts also worry that the tools used to monitor the health and safety of the water are inadequate, Olson said.

Residents on the island have become accustomed to drinking bottled water, Santiago said. Sometimes, the water is shut off with no notice.

"It's been a number of years where people have had to basically live without water for two or three days per week, some of it during the summer months, like in June, July, August," Santiago said.


Luis Hernandez, left, gets help from Sergio Rivera, center, with filling drums with spring water for washing in Jayuya, Puerto Rico, the public water system isn't working full-time, so many collect water from the mountain springs, Oct. 4, 2017.© Carolyn Cole/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

Sociologist says pandemic may have made Canadian youth less empathetic, meaner

Story by The Canadian Press • 

TORONTO — Increased time online during the pandemic may have made young Canadians meaner, a researcher said Wednesday, warning that declining empathy which emerged during isolation was now fostering increased cruelty during in-person interactions, including at school.

Kaitlynn Mendes, an associate professor at the University of Western Ontario, said during an Ontario Medical Association press conference that many parents may not be aware of their children's increased exposure to online harassment during the pandemic, which is now having damaging consequences.

"Teachers really noted that, as young people were coming back into school, the way that young people were communicating with each other during lockdown had changed, and they found that their empathy had really decreased," Mendes, who is a sociologist, told reporters.

"This was likely due to things like the lack of eye contact, facial expression, human touch, and even voice intonations. These are really important cues that are missing from online interaction and this makes empathizing hard, but it means that harassment and abuse actually become much easier," she added.

Mendes has not yet completed a comprehensive study about isolation's mental health impacts on Canadian youth, but based her analysis on anecdotal evidence and a study she conducted in the U.K.

In that study, 96 per cent of British youth between the ages of 13 to 18, teachers and parents said they used more social media during the pandemic. She told reporters she expects similar findings in the Canadian study she is conducting.

The British youths surveyed reported that more time online led to an increase "in their experiences of sexual harassment, misogyny, racism, homophobia, and even various forms of fraud ... and other practices like body shaming."

"We were also looking at harms based on sexuality. So we had lots of young people report how they were outed during COVID," she said.

In the U.K., young people also cited "increased anxiety, depression and even various forms of self harm," she added.

The challenges of confinement also made parents less strict about managing children's screen time, she said, calling for "more preparation, education, support and scaffolding that goes into young people's use of digital technologies."

"It's very clear that when things go wrong, young people do not know where to turn to for help and that was one of the most striking things that came out of our research," Mendes further said.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 19, 2023.

Fakiha Baig, The Canadian Press

ONTARIO
New homes away from home for seasonal farmworkers

Story by The Canadian Press • 

It’s out with the old and in with the new this year at some farms around Niagara-on-the-Lake.

Newly built and extensively renovated bunkhouses for seasonal farmworkers have been popping up, sparked by some major investments by farmers.

Tregunno Fruit Farms, Thwaites Farms, Meyers Fruit Farms and Erwin Wiens Vineyards are among the operations making an effort to improve living conditions for workers.

Tregunno Fruit Farms has built a total of eight new bunkhouses for its workers since 2018.

“We’ve been doing two a year. And this year we did four, actually,” Phil Tregunno, a NOTL farmer and director of Wine Growers Ontario, told The Lake Report.

His four newest bunkhouses are still under construction.

“We’re looking at having (it) finished for the guys to come up for harvest, which is (in) early June,” he said.

Tregunno and Meyers Fruit Farms both said the renovations and additions had nothing to do with criticism about the living conditions at some other Niagara farms.

It was just the right thing to do, especially having weathered the COVID pandemic.

“We don’t want to meet the standards. We want to be ahead of the standards,” said Tregunno.

The planning process for his farm’s four bunkhouses started in January 2022 and the old buildings were torn down last September, said Tregunno’s son Ryan.

The concrete foundations were poured before Christmas and contractors started work early in the new year and have been working ever since at the farm along the Niagara River Parkway, he added.

Tregunno has budgeted $2 million for the construction of the four bunkhouses.

Each bunkhouse will house eight workers, two to a room, with six feet between each bed to meet COVID requirements. The new sleeping quarters replace five older facilities.

The new bunkhouses are each 1,900 square feet and come equipped with a kitchen, sitting area, wifi and a mud room. There’s also a washer and dryer for every eight men. All equipment is new.

The bunkhouses won’t have air conditioning this season, but Tregunno hopes to install it for next year.

The houses all have upgraded electrical service and utilities, new septic systems and new heating systems.

Keeping them well-maintained will be easier since everything is new, said Tregunno.

Tregunno’s farm has been a part of the Seasonal Agricultural Workers Program for more than 50 years and this summer he will be employing 115 seasonal workers.

The program allows Canadian farmers to hire agricultural workers from the Caribbean and Mexico when there are not enough domestic workers to fill positions.

“If we didn’t have the seasonal worker program, there really wouldn’t be much of any agriculture anywhere in Ontario,” said Tregunno.

He said many of the workers who have arrived for the season have said they are happy with the bunkhouses and like that they now have one bathroom for every four workers.

“I really appreciate this. This is very nice,” said Narvil Davis, a seasonal worker from Jamaica who has been working at Tregunno Farms for nine years.

He and co-worker Lamar Minott toured a bunkhouse with The Lake Report.

Davis lives in quarters that are similar to the new builds.

However, this was his first time seeing the inside of the newly built houses and he was impressed.

Davis said he loves his work at Tregunno and never wants to switch farms.

He comes to Canada in February and returns to Jamaica in October. The job helps him support his five kids back home.

Meyers Fruit Farms, a massive operation in the northwest corner of NOTL, also built five new bunkhouses near the corner of Church Road and Stewart Road.

Construction began in the summer of 2022 and workers will be living in the homes for the first time this season.

“Over the years we’ve had these older bunkhouses and we thought we need to change it up,” said Elly Hoff, vice-president of human resources and administration at Meyers.

“We need to just give them what they deserve for the work that they do,” she added.

The 1,904-square-foot bunkhouses can accommodate eight men, two to a room.

“There’s plenty of space. I’ll be very honest. I know it for sure, because I’m living in one of them right now,” she said.

She moved into one of the new builds in the beginning of December after a fire at her home.

“There’s two fridges, two stoves, two microwaves and two double sinks, so that groups of four cook together,” said Hoff.

Each house has a fully-equipped laundry room, two bathrooms, a mud room and air conditioning.

The project cost more than $1 million, which included installation of a new septic system.

This year Meyers Fruit Farm will have about 80 seasonal workers.

Not all workers will be in the new bunkhouses. Some will be living in four other houses that Meyers will be updating.

“One group lives in my mother and father’s old house and so now we’re going to update that and we’re going to update a couple more houses,” Hoff said.

About a year and a half ago Thwaites Farms constructed a new bunkhouse at its operation on Lakeshore Road, too.

It houses 20 men, who each get their own room, farm manager Nelson Thwaites said.

He noted many farmers were hesitant to build new bunkhouses, as there’s been speculation since before COVID that the rules for bunkhouse inspections could be changing.

So, Thwaites Farms came up with a plan that gave, as much as possible, every worker their own room.

“We thought, ‘What could be better than that?’ ” he said.

They took the existing rules and doubled all the requirements.

“We doubled the facilities of everything (the rules) specify, like showers and toilets and sinks,” he said.

The workers are provided with a kitchen, a common area with couches, tables, a TV and wifi. There’s also a washer and dryer.

Thwaites said they sought input from the workers to figure out what they’d like to see.

Thwaites said they ended up creating a mock bedroom in the barn so workers could see what it would look like.

“They do really appreciate it,” he said.

Along with the newly built bunkhouse, they’ve also renovated existing houses and updated others.

Thwaites Farms, which has participated in the seasonal program since 1972, will be home to about 62 workers this season.

The family-run operation is looking to build another bunkhouse and Thwaites estimated it will cost about $30,000 per bed space for a 20-man house.

He noted the workers on the farm are extremely hard-working and reliable.

“They come from a situation where they absolutely need the job as much as we need them to do the job.”

Another farmer, Erwin Wiens, who also is NOTL’s deputy lord mayor, employs eight workers from Jamaica.

He built a new living space for his workers during COVID. Instead of building the average bunkhouse, he decided to build something unique.

He took a 45-foot sea container and turned it into a living space. It cost him about $120,000 from start to finish.

“It turned out super slick,” Wiens said.

He said he treats his workers like family and he wants them to feel at home while they’re in Canada for six to eight months.

He put a bedroom on each end of the container, along with a washroom and a kitchen in the middle.

“What happens now is two guys have their own kitchenette, their own washroom and then their own bedrooms and they also have their own covered porch,” he said.

Two workers live in the modified shipping container and four stay in another bunkhouse beside it. Everyone gets their own room and there are three bathrooms shared among the workers.

Those living in the renovated sea container can go to the common area in the other bunkhouse as well.

Each room is equipped with its own heat and air conditioning so the men can adjust it to whatever temperature they like, said Wiens.

He also bought another sea container and put storage lockers inside so that workers can stash items there rather than in their rooms.

The workers have their own common space, a patio and high-speed internet. Wiens also has vehicles for them to use so that they don’t have to ride their bikes in the dark.

“I look at all my housing (like) if I live in it. Then I’ll let somebody else live in it,” he said.

“And if it’s not good enough for me, it’s not good enough for anybody else.”

Somer Slobodian, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Lake Report

50% OF AMERICANS

Nearly 120 million people in US exposed to unhealthy levels of soot and smog – report

Story by Nina Lakhani • Tuesday 
The Guardian


The climate crisis has upended progress on improving air quality, with one in three Americans currently living in areas with harmful levels of pollutants known to increase the risk of medical emergencies, pregnancy complications and premature death, new research reveals.


Photograph: Étienne Laurent/EPA© Provided by The Guardian

Related: Air pollution ‘speeds up osteoporosis’ in postmenopausal women

Almost 120 million people in the US are still exposed to unhealthy levels of soot and smog, according to the annual report by the American Lung Association (ALA), which found that people of color are almost four times more likely to live in the most polluted places than white Americans.

The extent to which access to clean air is racialized is stark; people of color account for 54% of those living in counties with failing air quality, despite accounting for just over 40% of the general population.

The zip code lottery spotlights decades of racist housing and environmental policies, which have incentivized and enabled polluting infrastructure like highways and railroads, fossil fuel projects and manufacturing plants to be located close to Black, Latin and Indigenous communities.

And despite overall improvements in air quality and pollution-related deaths over the past 50 years, the report also highlights a widening disparity between air quality in eastern and western states, especially for soot particles – scientifically known as fine particulate matter or PM2.5.

Ten of the 11 most polluted counties are in California where the climate breakdown is fueling wildfires and rising temperatures that are undermining efforts to improve air quality in places like Fresno, San Bernardino, Tulare and Los Angeles.

“It is striking and distressing that 120 million people are still at risk from unhealthy air pollution, said Katherine Pruitt, lead author and the ALA’s national senior policy director. “Since around 2017, heat and drought driven by climate change has been undoing some of the progress that we should have made and been able to retain.”

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was mandated by the 1970 Clean Air Act to set health-based limits for six toxins: fine particulate matter, ozone, nitrogen oxides, sulfur dioxide, carbon monoxide and lead. Since then, overall emissions have fallen by 78%, according to the EPA, yet progress has stalled and poor air quality continues to cut tens of thousands of lives short in the US every year.

Related video: Millions of Americans Exposed to Harmful Air Pollution (Cheddar News)

Duration 0:35

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KERO 23 Bakersfield, CA Every 4 in 10 Americans live in places with unhealthy air

1:21

unbranded - NewsworthyAir Pollution May Increase Dementia Risk

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Since around 2017, heat and drought driven by climate change has been undoing some of the progress that we should have made and been able to retainKatherine Pruitt

Globally, air pollution is responsible for almost 7m premature deaths annually, according to the World Health Organization.

The ALA’s 24th annual state of the air report uses data from 2019 to 2021 to grade city- and county-wide exposure to the most widespread air toxins – ozone, AKA smog, and PM2.5 or soot – using three measures: year-round levels and daily spikes of PM2.5 and ground-level ozone pollution. (Seventy-one million people live in counties which do not monitor air quality and so are excluded from the report.)

Overall, almost 64 million people lived in areas that experienced unhealthy daily spikes in PM2.5 pollution, the highest number in a decade.

Eight of the 10 worst performing counties for daily particle spikes were in California which in 2021 recorded almost 9,000 wildfires – a major source of these microscopic particles which are blown for miles and can trigger asthma attacks, heart attacks and strokes, as well as lung cancer. Other sources include fossil fuel-powered cars and trucks, power plants, wood-burning stoves and agricultural burns.

Pittsburgh and Lancaster in Pennsylvania are the two worst metro areas for daily PM2.5 spikes east of the Mississippi River. While several urban, industrialised eastern and midwestern states such as New Jersey, New York and Ohio which once dominated the ALA dirtiest air list, have cut emissions.

Ground ozone – or smog – is a potent respiratory irritant emitted by fossil fuel- powered vehicles, oil refineries and chemical plants, and can cause a sunburn type of effect on the lungs. Inhaling smog can cause breathlessness, coughing and asthma attacks, as well as cutting life expectancy. Higher temperatures driven by the climate breakdown facilitates the formation of ozone – and makes it harder to clean up.

Nationwide, 103 million people – including 24 million children – are exposed to unhealthy smog levels, a staggering number, yet almost 20% less than reported last year. Los Angeles is the country’s smoggiest city by a long way, but the top 10 also includes Phoenix, Denver, Houston and Salt Lake City.

Related: Great Salt Lake’s retreat poses a major fear: poisonous dust clouds

There is hope of fighting back against the climate-fueled regression.

Despite little progress in curtailing fossil fuel extraction, incentives to electrify the transport system in the Inflation Reduction Act plus several proposals by the EPA to tighten the outdated smog and soot standards and mandate lower emissions from vehicles and power plants are in the works.

Pruitt said: “The current standards need to be stronger to protect public health. If the EPA acts to reduce community level exposure, that along with proposals for new regulations to reduce emissions could be hugely significant in cleaning up pollution sources and reducing health inequities.”

Meanwhile, the report ranks Wilmington, North Carolina; Bangor, Maine; Lincoln, Nebraska; Rochester, New York and Honolulu, Hawaii among the country’s cleanest cities.

GE's largest union ratifies 2-year contract extension with wage hike

Story by Reuters • 

(Reuters) - General Electric Co's workers have ratified a two-year contract extension that provides for a 12% rise in wages, their union said on Wednesday.


The General Electric logo is pictured on working helmets during a visit at the General Electric offshore wind turbine plant in Montoir-de-Bretagne

© Thomson Reuters

The contract extension, which covers about 3,000 American workers of GE, will also ensure labor protections after the spinoff of the company's aerospace and energy divisions, according to the International Union of Electric Workers - Communications Workers of America (IUE-CWA).

GE is set to separate its aerospace and energy businesses in early 2024 to become GE Aerospace and GE Vernova, respectively.

The contract extension will take effect on July 1 and continue through June 22, 2025.

Separately, eight local unions that together cover about 400 employees also ratified contract extensions with the company, GE said on Tuesday.

(Reporting by Aishwarya Nair in Bengaluru; Editing by Devika Syamnath)

Judge dismisses youth climate lawsuit over Ontario's greenhouse gas targets

Story by The Canadian Press • Yesterday 

TORONTO — The Ontario Superior Court has dismissed a constitutional challenge from seven youth activists who argued the province is discriminating against young people by setting greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets dangerously low, putting their futures at risk.


Judge dismisses youth climate lawsuit over Ontario's greenhouse gas targets© Provided by The Canadian Press

In a decision issued last week, Justice Marie-Andrée Vermette called the youths — all aged between 15 and 27 — remarkable young people committed to fighting climate change. But while she voiced sympathy about their concerns for the future in light of scientific evidence on the impacts of climate change, she did not find Ontario's policy breached their Charter rights.

"While it would be difficult not to be sympathetic to the concerns expressed by the applicants about their future in light of the evidence filed in this case, this court cannot, based on the current state of the law, find violations of the Charter in this case," she wrote in a 52-page decision.

She found that the young activists made a compelling case that the existential threat of climate change imposes on their Charter rights to life and security, but lay blame with climate change itself, rather than provincial policy.

The lawsuit, backed by Ecojustice environmental lawyers, dates back to 2018 when the newly elected Progressive Conservative government repealed a law from the former Liberal government that had established a cap-and-trade system for reducing emissions. That law had set a target of reducing emissions 37 per cent below 1990 levels by 2030.

The Tories replaced that target with one to reduce emissions 30 per cent below 2005 levels by 2030, which the government argued in court was to balance "a healthy economy with a healthy environment."

The revised target will allow for an additional 200 million tonnes of emissions, the youths' experts had said. The lawsuit alleged the "dangerously high level of greenhouse gas emissions" violates sections of the charter on life and security of the person, as well as discrimination based on age.

The Ontario government had previously asked the court to dismiss the lawsuit, arguing against "judicial control over environmental and climate policy." There is no constitutional right requiring a government to take certain actions now to avoid future climate-related harms, government lawyers said in written arguments.

Ontario did not dispute human-caused climate change and its risks to public health, but argued that the province's emissions represent less than one per cent of the global total and is therefore not statistically significant.

Vermette rejected that argument, finding Ontario's inaction to further reduce greenhouse gases is contributing to global warming and is connected to the future hardship the youths may face as a result.

"While Ontario's contribution to global warming may be numerically small, it is real, measurable and not speculative," she wrote. "Every tonne of CO2 emissions adds to global warming and leads to a quantifiable increase in global temperatures that is essentially irreversible on human timescales."

Ecojustice said in a statement that Vermette's ruling still offered optimism as it established Ontario's target falls short of the scientific consensus of what's necessary to confront climate change.

She also found the case justiciable, setting a precedent that Canadian courts can hear Charter-based cases that challenge specific laws or state actions, such as climate targets and plans.

The seven youth activists will appeal the decision at the Ontario Court of Appeal, Ecojustice said.

“Around the world, legal challenges are becoming a powerful tool for young people to hold their governments accountable for climate action," said Ecojustice lawyer Danielle Gallant.

"While this decision is disappointing, we remain inspired by the courage and determination of these young applicants to advocate for a better, safer future for us all. We remain behind them to support their fight, to the Court of Appeal and beyond.”

Ottawa-based Alex Neufeldt, one of the young applicants, said Vermette's decision proves the Ford government is causing climate harm that will impact future generations.

"We are the ones who will have to suffer through the tomorrow the Ford government's policies are creating today," said Neufeldt. "That's why, despite this setback, we're continuing our fight to hold the Ford government accountable for climate action."

Andrew Kennedy, spokesman for Ontario's Attorney General, said the provincial government is leading the country's progress on emission reductions through actions that include investing in electric vehicle production and building the largest public transit expansion in Canadian history.

"We are pleased with the decision dismissing the constitutional challenge," said Kennedy, adding it would be inappropriate to comment further due to the case being in an appeal period.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 19, 2023.

Tyler Griffin, The Canadian Press

Intelligence committee head says idea that Trudeau controls its work is 'considerably off the mark'

Story by Ryan Tumilty • 

OTTAWA — Members of the committee that studies Canada’s intelligence matters insisted Tuesday the prime minister is not interfering in their work, though they did argue the government could be more helpful and more responsive.


Liberal MP David McGuinty appears before the House of Commons national security committee on April 18, 2023.© Provided by National Post

David McGuinty, a Liberal MP and chair of the National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians (NSICOP), testified before other MPs on Tuesday at the Commons Public Safety committee. McGuinty said comments suggesting the committee is controlled by the prime minister are untrue.

“There are comments sometimes about the role of the prime minister or the government in the work of the committee. And they are, I would say considerably off the mark,” he said.

The Liberals established NSICOP as a venue for MPs and Senators to receive classified information and make recommendations to the public. MPs and Senators who sit on the committee have high security clearances and meet behind closed doors to hear classified information.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has asked the committee to take a closer look at foreign interference in Canada’s elections last month. Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre dismissed that move at the time and has repeatedly dismissed the committee as non-transparent.

“This is a secret committee, with secret hearings, secret evidence, and secret conclusions – all controlled by the Prime Minister. It will have neither the openness nor the independence to give Canadians the truth about Beijing’s interference in our politics and government,” Poilievre said.

Senator Frances Lankin, who sits on the committee dismissed that criticism as well.

“There has never been a time when the Prime Minister, the PMO, or anyone else weighed into our work,” she told MPs. “Suggestions of the sort are patently false.”

Conservative MP Glen Motz, who formerly sat on the committee, also applauded the work and said it was legitimately non-partisan.

“It was probably the best and most enjoyable time I’ve had because it actually felt like you were making a difference.”

Both Lankin and McGuinty said there are many improvements that could be made. They said in particular they fear the government has been too quick to withhold information from the committee, especially in cases where documents go to cabinet.

“The committee faces several challenges to obtaining the information we are entitled to under the law, and that we need to fulfill our mandate,” McGuinty said.

Lankin said they get most of the information they want, but there have been some challenges.

“By and large, it has been very good, but we have had specific incidents where we think that certain departments have perhaps given too broad an interpretation to what’s a cabinet confidence.”

The legislation that created the committee is up for a review and Lankin and McGuinty said it could be a good time to make some changes that woul improve how it functions.

NSICOP has raised concerns in the past that it was being ignored by the government and its recommendations gathered dust waiting for a response.

Conservative MP Doug Shipley said of the group’s many reports the government seems to have only really responded to one.

“I was a little shocked to find out that the government has only responded to one report in the five years of NSICOP’s existence,” he said. “Do you think that a set time period where a government must respond to your report should be implemented?

McGuinty said there is a real issue there and he hopes the renewed focus on intelligence issues means the government will move faster on the committees recommendations .

“We’re encouraged with what we’ve seen, but we would encourage this committee to call the government again to perhaps provide more detail on how they’re moving forward,” he said. “We’re always looking for more take up, more traction because the purpose of the committee, why we’re here, is to improve the situation.”

Twitter: RyanTumilty

Email: rtumilty@postmedia.com

JASPER NATIONAL PARK TOWNSHIP

Pride means more now than ever

Story by The Canadian Press • 

A crowd of approximately 100 people, young and old, watched as the Progress Pride flag was raised at the Jasper Emergency Services Building last Friday afternoon.

The moment marked the start of the town’s 14th annual Jasper Pride and Ski Festival, one of Canada's longest running Pride festivals, and the first in Canada to be held in a national park.

“I am impressed by the turnout because your presence confirms that council’s proclamation of Jasper as a welcoming and inclusive community simply reflects the underlying attitude of support and commitment that prevails through all our residents and throughout the community,” said Mayor Richard Ireland.

Continuing through until April 23, the festival boasts more than 35 events with something for everybody, according to Jasper Pride board member Joost Tijssen. It’s a more diverse selection of festivities than ever before, fellow Jasper Pride board member Lynn Wannop added during her welcoming remarks.

The comment evoked the concepts of “diversity” and “celebration” that are so intrinsic to Pride in Jasper and beyond.

“We're so fortunate to be part of such a supportive community, always welcome to be free to be themselves no matter where you're from or who you love,” she said.

The flag is certainly a powerful symbol, and it comes with the rainbow banners that line the median of Connaught Drive, reminding residents and visitors of Jasper’s inclusivity and good cheer. Those emblems, reinforced by the many businesses with themed window paintings and the many people who put on their rainbow lapel buttons, show that the community rallies whole-heartedly behind Pride.

What does all this mean to those who are the most involved in the local LGBTQ2S+ community? The Fitzhugh asked several people that question. Here are their answers.

“For me personally, it means that it's a safe place to go to, that you feel welcomed, you feel accepted. Places that do celebrate Pride are, for me, a safe place to go to,” Tijssen said.

With so many international visitors, he added, this is especially important.

“It is so important to know that if you're traveling, you’re going to a place where you do feel comfortable, where you won't face discrimination, where you can just be who you are.”

Lynn Wannop said that this is why living here is really important to her. She wanted to be somewhere safe and inclusive where she could raise children.

“I wanted them to be raised somewhere that didn't matter who you are, where you're from, who you love... it's okay to be who you want to be. I've lived my life like that for a long time so it seemed like an obvious thing,” she said, adding that seeing how Jasper has stood with Pride has meant the world to her.

“Pride here really represents strength in the community. I think it really shows how strong the community is to accept everybody who comes and lives here and visits here,” said Plastika, who was one of the first youths to come when they were still in high school.

All of those flags and other rainbow symbols demonstrate that strength and solidarity.

“We're here for everybody here. We're one big community.”

The importance of that cannot be understated, said Pieter van Loon.

“This is our home. It's a very small town, but it's such a big statement. It's a big thing that we can celebrate Pride here in a small mountain town, and that everyone can feel home. That's why when we moved here, we felt that immediately. Everyone is so welcoming,” he said.

“It's a celebration of the person you are and the friends and family that support you. It's a time to acknowledge the progress that has been made, as well as the work that is still to be done,” said Sean Thompson, president of the Fruit Loop Society of Alberta.

Anna DeClercq, who was a teacher at Jasper High School and helped run the Gay-Straight Alliance that Plastika started several years ago, said that this town’s welcoming nature has played a huge part in raising teens properly, especially since adolescence is already such a tumultuous time for everybody.

“There’s a lot of discovery at that age. It's so, so, so important that LGBTQ youth in our community have a visual of adults who are successful and who are thriving in life and are supported and welcomed in our community as LGBTQ members. I feel like Pride just brings that visual. It's a community. There’s support. They're cared for. There’s success. You will have a successful life full of love whatever sexuality you are, or whatever gender you identify with. I feel like that is so important to our kids to see,” she said.

Unconditional acceptance is one of the healthiest ways to show love to your family, friends and neighbours, said Kelly Dawson, captain of training and fire prevention with the Jasper Fire Department.

“I am blown away every single year by this town and its love and acceptance,” she began.

“Pride reminds me to celebrate being myself. I am so grateful to live in a town where I can comfortably hold my partner’s hand while walking down the street. To see all community members in Jasper come together and support Jasper Pride is a pretty heart-warming feeling. At the end of Jasper Pride, I feel such a strong sense of family within the community.”

Scott Hayes, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Jasper Fitzhugh

Amazon must face driver's spying claims in US court

Story by By Daniel Wiessner •

Electric Rivian trucks purchased by Amazon are pictured in Poway California© Thomson Reuters

(Reuters) - Amazon.com Inc must face a proposed U.S. nationwide class action accusing the company of illegally monitoring private Facebook groups that delivery drivers used to discuss working conditions, a U.S. appeals court said on Wednesday.

A divided panel of the San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said an agreement that driver Drickey Jackson signed requiring him to bring work-related disputes in arbitration rather than court did not apply to his 2020 lawsuit.

The ruling means Jackson can continue seeking to represent a class of at least 800 Amazon drivers instead of pursuing his claims in individual arbitration.

Jackson in the lawsuit alleges that Amazon invaded drivers' privacy and engaged in illegal wiretapping by creating a "social listening team" to monitor and intercept posts to private Facebook groups using automated tools.

Amazon and lawyers for Jackson did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Amazon has denied wrongdoing.

Jackson in court filings cited a leaked document purporting to show an internal social media monitoring list of 43 private Facebook groups that drivers ran in different cities.

He says Amazon used sophisticated digital tools to monitor the groups and gather information about planned strikes and protests, unionizing efforts, pay and benefits and whether researchers examining Amazon’s workforce had approached drivers.

Amazon has argued the case belongs in arbitration, citing the agreement Jackson signed. The agreement applies to "any dispute or claim ... arising out of or relating in any way to ... your participation in the program, or to your performance of services."

But the 9th Circuit on Wednesday said that drivers' use of private Facebook groups and Amazon's alleged privacy violations did not relate to Jackson's performance of services or implicate any provision of his contract with the company.

The decision affirmed a 2021 ruling by a California federal judge.

In a dissenting opinion, Circuit Judge Susan Graber said the case belonged in arbitration because Jackson's claims would never have arisen if he did not have a work relationship with Amazon.

(Reporting by Daniel Wiessner in Albany, New York; Editing by Josie Kao)

Federal budget bill goes after cosmetics testing that causes 'pain or suffering' to animals

Story by Richard Raycraft • 

The federal government is putting forward a ban on cosmetic products developed through testing that causes pain and suffering to animals — a move advocates say would bring Canada in line with many other countries.


Luna the dog stands in front of signs as animal lovers and their pets deliver petitions demanding a ban on animal-tested cosmetic products on Parliament Hill on May 28, 2018.© Justin Tang/The Canadian Press

The ban comes through proposed amendments to the Food and Drugs Act. The amendments are part of the government's budget bill, which was tabled on March 28.

Under the amendments, sellers must prove a cosmetic product has been through safety testing that hasn't caused "pain, suffering or injury, whether physical or mental, to the animal." Products that don't pass that test would not be cleared for sale in Canada.

But the amendments include a wide range of exceptions. For example, the prohibition doesn't apply if the federal government has published the testing data or if the cosmetic is already for sale in Canada.

Another amendment prohibits advertising or labelling a cosmetic as cruelty-free without evidence the product was not tested on animals.

The changes would come into force six months after the bill receives royal assent.

Animal rights groups hail proposed ban

Animals right advocates and groups in Canada have long called for a crackdown on animal testing, saying Canada lags behind many other countries on the issue.

The European Union banned cosmetic testing on animals in 2013. Several countries, such as India, Mexico and Israel, have either banned testing on animals or have banned the sale of products which have been tested on animals. Several American states have also banned the sale of cosmetic products tested on animals.

In a series of email statements, animal rights groups welcomed the measures, which they said are long overdue.

"This is a unifying issue that has earned cross-party support in Canada and will match the progress we are seeing around the world," said Monica Engebretson,Cruelty Free International's head of public affairs in North America.

Michael Bernard, deputy director the Humane Society International in Canada, said the amendments come after a decade of campaigning on the issue.

"When this bill becomes law, Canadian consumers can be assured that the cosmetics they purchase have not come as a result of animal suffering — and that is something we can all feel good about," he said in a statement.

"Industry and animal protection advocates have worked together over the last several years to advance a cosmetics animal testing ban in Canada."

Cosmetics Alliance Canada, which represents over 150 companies, also praised the amendments.

"Industry and animal protection advocates have worked together over the last several years to advance a cosmetics animal testing ban in Canada," Darren Praznik, CEO of Cosmetics Alliance Canada, said in a statement. "We are very pleased to see the government bring forward this long overdue legislation."