If this Brampton gas plant expands production, can the city still meet its emissions targets?


CBC
Sat, November 4, 2023 

The Goreway Power Station, located near Highway 407 in Brampton, is an 875-megawatt natural gas power plant. (Goreway - image credit)

The company behind one of Ontario's biggest privately owned gas plants wants to expand production, but critics say the environmental impacts aren't worth it.

Capital Power, which owns the Goreway Power Station in Brampton's east end, is already projecting to more than double the amount of greenhouse gases it emits by 2032.

Now, the company is seeking a 40-megawatt upgrade to its 875-megawatt facility, which requires the replacement of a variety of parts within the gas turbine. That upgrade would see the station pump out an additional 48,000 tonnes of greenhouse gases every year.

The request comes as four nuclear power units that supply nine per cent of Ontario's electricity are down for refurbishment, and as the demand for electricity in the province is projected to double over the next 25 years.

Expansion could impact city's emissions targets

If approved, Ontario Clean Energy Alliance chair Jack Gibbons says the upgrade could jeopardize Brampton's goal of reducing corporate greenhouse gas emissions by 45 per cent by 2030 — a target the city hopes to achieve through electrifying public transit and replacing natural gas with renewable natural gas sources.

"This will mean more asthma attacks in Brampton and more climate damage everywhere," said Gibbons.

The upgrades will improve the plant's efficiency at the same time as they increase its capacity to 4.5 per cent, according to a September environment review report from Capital Power. However, per that report, even with better efficiency, the Goreway Power station is still expected to release, on average, 1.4 million tonnes of emissions each year — 3.2 per cent higher than estimated if the upgrades do not go forward.

Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown said he shared his concerns about how the upgrade would impact the city's ability to meet its emissions targets with both Capital Power and the province.

The city is "getting different responses," he said. "It lacks clarity."

Brampton mayor Patrick Brown told CBC he raised concerns about Capital Power's plans to upgrade one of the biggest natural gas plants in Ontario, but hasn't received a clear response about how that expansion might affect Brampton.

Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown told CBC Toronto he raised concerns about Capital Power's plans to upgrade one of the biggest natural gas plants in Ontario, but hasn't received a clear response about how that expansion might affect Brampton. (CBC )

Brown says the province has presented the plant upgrades as an "emergency valve" that Ontario's Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO) can access during peak demand.

Gibbons and other critics continue to pressure the Brampton city council to pass a resolution rejecting the proposal, however Brown said, "it will be a provincial decision."

Ford government fires up more natural gas

As IESO spokesperson Martin Holmsen explains it: there are currently "no like-for-like replacements with similar operating flexibility for natural gas generation."

That means the IESO is expecting to rely on natural gas to meet demand for electricity continuing into the 2030s.

Holmsen says strong economic development and the electrification of the broader economy are driving up demand by two per cent each year, and increasing regional needs. At the Goreway plant, capacity went from 12 per cent in 2017 up to 30 per cent in 2023.

"When the world is on fire, the last thing we should be doing is burning more fossil gas to produce electricity," Gibbons said.

Jack Gibbons from Ontario's Clean Air Alliance says if Capital Power's proposal to expand production at Goreway Power station is approved, it will put Brampton's emissions target at risk.

Jack Gibbons from Ontario's Clean Air Alliance says if Capital Power's proposal to expand production at Goreway Power station is approved, it will put Brampton's emissions target at risk. (Submitted by Jack Gibbons)

In 2018, the Ford government scrapped 750 renewable energy projects, saying it would save provincial ratepayers millions. Instead, provincial documents revealed in 2019 that it cost the government $230 million.

If that hadn't happened, Gibbons said, there wouldn't be such reliance on natural gas to meet the "urgent demand."

"Unfortunately, the Ford government hasn't contracted for one KW hour of wind or solar electricity during the last five years. This is just wrong," he said.

"We have a premier driven by an ideological hatred for wind and solar energy, which are our lowest cost and cleanest sources."

In 2019, when it became clear the government paid to scrap the projects, Ford told a news conference he was "so proud of that" decision, saying, "if we had the chance to get rid of all the wind mills we would."

Gas- and oil-fired generation provided four per cent of Ontario's electricity supply in 2017. That figure reached 10.4 per cent in 2022 and is expected to climb as the province solicitd bids to expand gas-fired electricity generation..

"Natural gas is the insurance policy that guarantees the lights stay on and prices stay down," said energy ministry spokesperson Michael Dodsworth in a statement.

The expansion will mark Ontario's biggest increase in the gas-fired power supply in more than a decade — since the previous Liberal government scrapped two gas plants in Mississauga and Oakville at a cost theauditor general pegged around $1 billion.

CAPITAL POWER IS A PUBLICLY TRADED OFFSHOOT OF EPCOR (EDMONTON POWER)

Trial of (FASCIST) Freedom Convoy organizers longer than protest that sparked it


CBC
Sat, November 4, 2023 

Police enforced an injunction against protesters on Feb. 19, 2022 after about three weeks of protest. The criminal trial that came out of the protest has already run longer than the protest. (Evan Mitsui/CBC - image credit)

After 26 days the criminal trial for a pair of "Freedom Convoy" organizers has now taken longer than the original protests in 2022.

The trial, originally slated for 16 days, has been bogged down by delays like the legal wrangling over certain testimony or evidence, or how Ottawa police collected and handed over evidence to Crown prosecutors.

Tamara Lich and Chris Barber, the two most prominent leaders of the trucker protest, helped lead thousands of demonstrators to Ottawa where they clogged streets for nearly four weeks in January and February of 2022.

They are on trial for charges of committing mischief, obstructing police, counselling others to commit mischief and intimidation for their role in the protest.

At the outset of the high-profile trial, the court dedicated 10 days for the Crown to make their case that Lich and Barber "crossed the line," but the pace of proceedings slowed almost immediately.

Issue with 1st witness

The Crown's first witness came with a few hiccups.

First the court entered into a voir dire — a "trial within a trial" — to determine the permissibility of a compilation of police-gathered video clips, which prosecutors were trying to introduce as evidence.

Cross-examination was then delayed because Barber's lawyer, Diane Magas, requested and was granted access to all the open source and police video used to make the compilation video.

The first week also saw technological and other delays bring proceedings to a crawling pace and when it ended, the defence had established its frustration, raising complaints about the large swaths of new evidence from the Crown introduced mid-trial.

Justice Heather Perkins-McVey also told the court she was "very unhappy" about those disclosures, even calling a short recess to "settle" herself.

"This should have been done well before the trial," she chided before leaving the courtroom.

Three extra days were added as a precaution.

Freedom Convoy organizers Tamara Lich, left, and Chris Barber speak as they wait for the Public Order Emergency Commission to begin Nov. 1, 2022 in Ottawa.

 (Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press)

Issues with other witnesses, police

As the trial crawled on, three of four police officers who entered the witness box had their testimony halted because of issues over how police disclosed materials to Crown prosecutors.

Perkins-McVey also had to order the Crown to disclose internal police documents to the defence after Lich and Barber's lawyers requested information from the police service about a software upgrade that wiped phones from at least two officers who were communicating directly with protesters.

The judge called it "very unusual" and ordered the Crown produce an internal police email about the phone upgrade for defence lawyers to review.

After reviewing heavily blacked-out internal police emails, she also unredacted the contents: detailed instructions to officers on disclosing evidence.

Kim Ayotte, Ottawa's manager of emergency and protective services, then showed up to testify about his role, but he didn't bring his notes and that caused a recess.

Perkins-McVey vowed before the trial began she would keep the proceedings on the rails, and as the first week ended, she repeated that intention.

Police enforce an injunction against protesters, some who have been camped in their trucks near Parliament Hill for weeks, on Feb. 19, 2022.
 (Evan Mitsui/CBC)

Defence attempt blocking testimony, evidence

That was not the case when court returned the following Monday.

Barber's lawyers rose to block nine Ottawa residents and businesses from testifying on behalf of the Crown, which further delayed the trial. Ultimately the citizens did testify, about the protest's impact.

Defence lawyers then argued against Crown plans to use 212 pages worth of posts and videos from the "Freedom Convoy 2022" Facebook page, including updates that convoy organizers gave to supporters. Again, more delays.

More delays are likely because there is ongoing discussion about the contents of text messages retrieved from Barber's phone. The defence and Crown are painstakingly going through about 20 conversations with Perkins-McVey to decide what should be admissible.

The trial was adjourned on Nov. 3 with no additional sitting days scheduled, but lawyers plan to meet next week to set some.

Diane Magas, left, lawyer for Chris Barber, middle, walks with Tamara Lich's lawyer Lawrence Greenspon to the Ottawa Courthouse on Sept. 19, 2023. 

(Justin Tang/The Canadian Press)

The trial has run long despite prosecutors staying a bail-related charge against Lich to ensure the criminal trial was the focus.

Still, Diane Magas has said multiple times — if the trial slows because of the Crown — she would consider seeking an application to have the charges stayed because her client's right to be tried within a reasonable time would have been violated, also known as a Jordan application.

Canada's largest fishing vessel will be ready for 2024, says Baffin Fisheries CEO


CBC
Sat, November 4, 2023 

The Inuksuk II fishing vessel was launched into the water at a shipyard in Turkey this week. The vessel is being built for Baffin Fisheries, which is based in Iqaluit, Nunavut, and has an operational office in St. John's. The company, which is 100 per cent Inuit-owned, harvests shrimp and turbot from Arctic waters for the benefit of Nunavut. 

(Submitted by Chris Flanagan/Baffin Fisheries - image credit)More

A ship being described as Canada's largest fishing vessel — one that will soon make regular ports of call in Newfoundland harbours like St. Anthony, Harbour Grace and Bay Roberts — was launched this week from a yard in Turkey, and the Nunavut-based owners say it's on track to be harvesting turbot and shrimp from Arctic waters by next year.

The vessel will also bear a name that's quite familiar to ship-spotters in Newfoundland and Labrador: Inuksuk II.

Baffin Fisheries currently operates a fleet of three fishing vessels, including the MV Inuksuk I.

"It's a great achievement for the Inuit owners of Baffin Fisheries in Nunavut," Baffin Fisheries CEO Chris Flanagan told CBC Radio's The Broadcast this week. Flanagan is based at the company's office in St. John's.

The vessel is 80 metres long, 18 metres wide, and will be capable of carrying up to 1,300 tonnes of frozen-at-sea turbot or 930 tonnes of shrimp.

In comparison, the Inuksuk II is six metres longer than the Calvert, the newest vessel in Ocean Choice International's fleet.

Deep connections to Newfoundland and Labrador

The Inuksuk II is owned by Baffin Fisheries, which is based in Nunavut and owned by a coalition of five Inuit hunters and trappers associations in the territory.

But the company also has strong connections to Newfoundland and Labrador because some industry leaders from this province, including people like Carey Bonnell, served on the original committee that helped established the turbot fishery in 2001. The current CEO is from St. John's, and Newfoundlanders and Labradorians often serve alongside Inuit from Nunavut on the company's vessels.

The company's vessels also land their catches in Newfoundland ports.

"A lot of Newfoundlanders were instrumental in setting up this fishery, but the Inuit owners of Baffin Fisheries are very proud and have done extremely well to be ready to get this vessel going. It's going to serve us well and serve Nunavut well for 25 to 30 years," said Flanagan.

The ship is known as a factory freezer trawler, was designed by a Norwegian company, and is being constructed at the Tersan Shipyard in Turkey.

It will be the company's first new vessel, said Baffin Fisheries board chairman Sandy Kautuq, who resides in Clyde River, Nunavut.

In a news release issued this week by the company, Kautuq said: "This beautiful new vessel will allow us to increase benefits to Nunavut communities and improve employment opportunities and working conditions for our fishermen."

A $72M price tag

The ship comes with a $72-million price tag, but Flanagan said the contract was signed before a sharp uptick in the cost of doing business.

"If you wanted to build that vessel today, it would certainly be over $100 million," said Flanagan.

Some important components, such as the main and auxiliary engines, and the shaft and propellers, have been installed.

Flanagan described the ship's power plant as "the world's most fuel efficient marine diesel engine," which he said will dramatically lower greenhouse gas emissions and reduce fuel costs.

But Flanagan said the processing factory and the freezers are still under construction. He described this as "difficult, technical work."

The factory and freezer will feature automation that will reduce the need for heavy lifting by the crew, and include a first-of-its kind robotic arm.

The accommodations deck has not yet been constructed, and will include 36 bunks instead of 28 in order to accommodate more crew and improve training.

The vessel is scheduled to be delivered mid-year 2024, but Flanagan is not ruling out delays because of global supply constraints.

Flanagan said the Inuksuk name is being preserved because the existing vessel, Inuksuk I, has a strong reputation among the company's global clients.

Flanagan said the Inuksuk I will likely be sold, but he said there's also a possibility it could remain in service if Baffin Fisheries can acquire new quotas.

Last year, Baffin Fisheries harvested nearly 9,000 tonnes of turbot, also known as Greenland halibut, and nearly 5,000 tonnes of shrimp.

The company employed 78 Inuit employees last year, according to the company's annual report, which was an increase of six over 2021.

SPACE WAR
How Israel shot down a ballistic missile in space for the first time

Harriet Barber
Sat, November 4, 2023 

The Arrow missile-defence system took out a ballistic missile fired over 1,000km away in Yemen

Israel this week used its Arrow missile-defence system to shoot down a ballistic missile outside of Earth’s atmosphere, in what is believed to be the first combat ever to take place in space.

The ballistic missile was launched from Yemen by the Iran-backed Houthis, and flew almost 1,000 miles over the Arabian peninsula on the way to its target, the Israeli port city of Eilat.

While the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) has released few details about the interception, the Air Force is known to operate several batteries of the Arrow 2 system, which uses a hypersonic interceptor to take out incoming missiles in space.

The Israeli defence ministry released a video showing the moment of interception, with the faint cylindrical shape of the incoming ballistic missile barely visible in the false-colour image, before an explosion smears across the screen.

In a statement, the IDF said that air force systems tracked the missile’s trajectory and intercepted it “at the most appropriate operational time and location.”

Photographs from Eilat showed a trail of smoke from the Arrow interceptor, while residents reported hearing a large explosion from the ground.

The moment the Arrow defence system intercepted a ballistic missile fired by the Houthis rebels

Yemen’s Houthis also released footage purporting to show the missile being launched as part of a barrage of drones and other long-ranged weapons aimed at Israeli towns and cities.

The ballistic missile, which was fired on Monday, is said to have been a Qader missile – an improved version of the Iranian-designed Shahab 3.

At more than 50-feet long, the Qader carries a high-explosive warhead and has a range that puts all of Israel in striking distance of the Houthis, which have now declared war on Israel and are a key part of the Iran-backed alliance set against the country.

It is precisely the threat that Israel’s Arrow system, first deployed some 25 years ago, was designed to counter.

A joint US-Israeli project, Arrow sprang from the need to give Israel a way to defend itself after Israeli cities were hit by Iraqi Scud missiles during the first Gulf War.

Where other missile-defence systems were originally meant to shoot down aircraft and had to be adapted to the job of shooting down longer-range ballistic missiles at much higher altitudes and speeds, Arrow was the first to be designed specifically for that task.
‘Proof Israel has ability to act against Iran missile program’

The system had previously been used in 2017 to shoot down a Syrian S-200 surface-to-air missile which missed an Israeli warplane and was heading towards an Israeli town. But Monday’s interception was the first time that it was used for its original purpose.

“The successful interception is about much more than protecting the residents of Eilat and dealing a blow to the Houthis’ boastfulness,” an Israeli defence official said. “Primarily, it proves to Iran, which was behind the launch and supplied the missile, that Israel has the ability to act against its missile program, and this has much broader implications for the regional conflict.”

Since the October 7 attacks by Hamas on Israel, and Israel’s subsequent bombardment of Gaza, the Houthis have launched drones, cruise missiles and ballistic missiles at Israel on four occasions.

The Houthis have vowed there would be more such attacks “to help the Palestinians to victory”.

During strike talks, Biden worked to build ties to the UAW's leader. They have yet to fully pay off


Sat, November 4, 2023 



WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden called the head of the United Auto Workers union to congratulate him this past week on getting a new contract with General Motors and to wish him a happy 55th birthday — a sign of how the relationship had evolved since their first get-to-know-you meeting in the Oval Office on July 19.

UAW President Shawn Fain launched the strike against GM, Ford and Chrysler-owner Stellantis with a willingness to force political leaders to choose between backing unions or corporations. Biden had long straddled this line. He proclaimed in speeches that unions built the middle class, but he also heralded his credentials as a former senator from the "corporate capital of the world," also known as Delaware.

The White House was determined to build trust with Fain and look past his occasional slights of Biden. That approach, which included Biden meeting with workers on the picket line in Michigan, helped to resolve the nearly 45-day set of strikes and produced significant pay raises for workers.

But even as Biden's sympathies publicly shifted toward union workers during the standoff, there are few signs that the UAW fully warmed to the Democratic president. Biden has yet to receive the union's endorsement as he seeks reelection with the message that he has delivered for blue-collar workers.

The UAW declined to talk about its relationship with the White House. No final decision on the endorsement is expected to come until after contracts with the automakers are finalized, which probably will happen later this month.

The relationship between Fain and Biden could be crucial to the outcome of the 2024 election. More than 380,000 UAW members are scattered in states that include Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, places where narrow margins have decided the overall winner of the past two presidential contests.

Gene Sperling, the White House liaison for the strike talks, was in daily contact with executives at the UAW and the three automakers. Biden tasked the economic adviser who has served in three Democratic White Houses to develop a bond with the UAW but also preserve connections with the automakers that are helping to deliver on Biden's electric vehicle agenda.

Sperling told The Associated Press that he followed a set of principles in communicating with all sides: “We’re not here to intervene. We’re not here to mediate. But we want to be in touch. We want to be helpful.”

As the weeks stretched on, though, Biden and his team did less straddling and publicly stepped ever closer to the union.

At one point, Sperling stressed to the automakers the UAW's position that new contracts needed a built-in cost-of-living adjustment, so that wages could be adjusted for inflation. That adjustment became part of the tentative agreement, which for GM workers also includes a 30% pay bump through April 2028, when the contract would expire.

Biden staked out his position that the autoworkers had made sacrifices during the 2008 financial crisis to keep their employers afloat. Now that automakers were pulling in billions of dollars in profits, the president said, those same workers should share in the rewards.

The politics were thorny as the president has suffered from low ratings on his economic leadership. U.S. adults have largely overlooked the healthy 3.9% unemployment rate to focus instead on inflation, including the 20% jump in new vehicle prices since he became president.

But union households have also been a decisive constituency for Democrats. They represent only 16% of voters nationwide, but Biden won the group by a solid 56% in 2020, according to AP VoteCast, a national survey of the electorate.

While organized labor has overwhelmingly backed Biden, the UAW remains a key holdout. Fain has criticized Donald Trump, the front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination in 2024, yet in the weeks leading to the strike and afterward, the labor leader could be out of sync at times with Biden.

When Fain went to the White House on July 19 to meet with senior officials, Biden insisted on a 30-minute meeting in the Oval Office without aides, Sperling said.

But Labor Day showed cracks in relations between the union and the White House. Asked by reporters about prospects for a strike that had yet to be declared, Biden tried to play down the risk.

“I’m not worried about a strike until it happens,” Biden said on Sept. 4. ”I don't think it's going to happen."

Fain responded to a separate group of reporters by suggesting that Biden was misguided: “He must know something we don’t know. Maybe the companies plan on walking in and giving us our demands on the night before. I don’t know, but he’s on the inside on something I don’t know about."

Sperling said the president was trying to be supportive of the unions with his comment. When the president saw how his remarks were interpreted, he called Fain directly to clarify.

Biden had multiple conversations with the automakers and Fain before the Sept. 15 strike deadline. When it became clear that a targeted strike would occur at a select number of plants, Biden showed his support for the UAW. He issued a statement that borrowed UAW language and said that Sperling and acting Labor Secretary Julie Su would go to Michigan to help with talks.

But the UAW did not want administration officials to come during the first week of the strike, Sperling said, because of the message it might send about the status of negotiations. By that point, there was enough trust that the misunderstanding did little from the White House perspective to hurt the relationship. Sperling and Su met twice in-person that next week with the negotiators.

Yet Fain took umbrage at Biden publicly suggesting that the negotiations had broken down and that this had led to the strike.

“We agree with Joe Biden when he says ‘record profits mean record contracts.’ We don’t agree when he says negotiations have broken down,” Fain said in a statement.

UAW officials told Sperling that Fain really wanted Biden to visit the picket lines, not as a political event but as a show of support for workers. Biden liked the idea. After that invitation was accepted, Sperling relayed to the automakers that Biden would meet with striking workers. The companies were unhappy but it did not derail talks.

Biden's Sept. 26 visit to a Michigan picket line — a presidential first — garnered praise from Fain, but little else. Fain said that Biden “has chosen to stand up with workers" and added that “we know the president will do right by the working class and when we do right by the working class.”

But the UAW president declined to endorse the president who had engaged in the historic outreach.

“We’ll just see how things proceed,” Fain told The Associated Press at the time. “That’s up not just to me. It’s up to our leadership and our membership. And we have our process we follow. So as I said we’ll do that when it’s time.”

Still, the White House saw itself as building trust with the UAW as the talks progressed. Ford reached a tentative deal on Oct. 25, followed by Stellantis on Oct. 28, and GM was on the verge of a deal.

Sperling, boarding an unrelated red-eye flight, texted GM CEO Mary Barra and a UAW official to message him in case there was an agreement while he was midair. As soon as a tentative agreement was in place, Barra told the gathered negotiators that she needed to text the White House.

___

AP Auto Writer Tom Krisher in Detroit contributed to this report.

Josh Boak And Joey Cappelletti, The Associated Press

Alberta Hospital Edmonton needs more staff, better monitoring of new patients, judge says in fatality report

CBC
Fri, November 3, 2023 

Kaitlind Credgeur, shown here during a visit to the Telus World of Science in Edmonton. A fatality inquiry was held into Credgeur's 2018 death at Alberta Hospital Edmonton. (Submitted by Carl-Erich Nilsson - image credit)

WARNING: This story discusses suicide and suicidal ideation.

An Alberta judge has issued recommendations to safeguard patients who may be struggling with thoughts of suicide after examining the death of a 25-year-old woman at an Edmonton psychiatric hospital.

The recommendations come more than two years after a fatality inquiry was held into the death of Kaitlind Credgeur, who took her own life in 2018 at Alberta Hospital Edmonton (AHE).

Fatality inquiries are held to help clarify the circumstances of a death and can lead to recommendations for preventing similar deaths but they are not meant to determine legal responsibility.

Two of Credgeur's family members told CBC News it was difficult listening to her death being discussed in detail during the inquiry but they believe the judge's recommendations, if implemented, will help prevent future tragedies.

"It doesn't bring closure but it brings some comfort that maybe someone else could be saved," said Tina Credgeur, Kaitlind's mother.

Tina Credgeur, pictured here with her daughter Kaitlind, says she hopes AHS follows a judge's recommendations outlined in a fatality inquiry report.

Tina Credgeur, pictured here with her daughter Kaitlind, says she hopes AHS follows the recommendations from the judge who presided over the fatality inquiry into Kaitlind's death. (Submitted by Tina Credgeur)

Hospital transfer

Three nurses, a psychiatrist and an AHS executive director for addiction and mental health testified at the two-day fatality inquiry, held in July 2021.

According to the inquiry report, which was recently published, Credgeur had been transferred to AHE from the Royal Alexandra Hospital on June 21, 2018, after an intentional drug overdose. When she was admitted to the psychiatric hospital, she had some personal belongings in a plastic bag.

The psychiatrist who assessed Credgeur shortly after she arrived at AHE testified that she expressed a willingness to remain in the hospital and to accept help.

He determined she should be observed every 15 minutes by a nurse or psychiatric aide.

One of the nurses who had been working on Credgeur's unit testified that Credgeur was very pleasant when they spoke. When questioned about her suicidal thoughts, she said they were there but she had no plans or means to act on them.

Another nurse testified that he saw Credgeur sleeping at 7 a.m. the next morning.

At 8:20 a.m., Credgeur's roommate banged on the nurses' station door and told them there was a plastic bag over the 25-year-old's head.

The report says Credgeur died that morning. The medical cause of her death was determined to be plastic bag asphyxia.

The psychiatrist testified that he estimated Credgeur had been dead for between one and four hours when she was discovered.

Gaps in notes

The fatality report says there were two gaps in the observation notes — one at 11:50 p.m. and another at 6:45 a.m.

The AHS executive director of addiction and mental health testified that gaps in notes were not uncommon. He said nurses making night observations must hear and see at least three respirations and they balance the need for safety with the patient's need for sleep by making observations in the least intrusive way.

He testified that it is impossible to have an in-patient unit free of all risks and that, in his opinion, a plastic bag would not be withheld as it is no more dangerous than a pair of socks or a pillowcase.

Credgeur's mother, who said she had stepped out of the courtroom when that comment was made in person, said she was disappointed to read that remark in the report.

Carl-Erich Nilsson said he likes the recommendations a judge has made to prevent similar deaths at Alberta Hospital Edmonton.

Carl-Erich Nilsson, Credgeur's common-law partner, spoke positively about the recommendations made to prevent similar deaths at Alberta Hospital Edmonton. (Peter Evans/CBC)

Carl Erich-Nilsson, Kaitlind Credgeur's common-law partner, said he believes staff did the best they could with the resources they had but he still thinks errors were made.

Nilsson said he had given Credgeur a mesh bag, since he knew her struggles and wanted to do everything possible to prevent another suicide attempt.

He said he was preparing to visit her in the hospital that morning and was feeling optimistic because he felt she was in a safe place.

"As we were getting ready to go, I got the phone call explaining that she was dead and my entire world just fell apart," he said.

Credgeur and Nilsson met when they were students at MacEwan University and they had two children together.

Nilsson said their four years together were magical and they were planning to get married.

Credgeur's mother, who lives in Wetaskiwin, described her daughter as beautiful, playful and full of love.

Judge's recommendations

In her recommendations to prevent similar deaths, Carrie Sharpe with the Alberta Court of Justice said plastic bags should immediately and permanently be removed from new AHE patients.

She wrote that more staff should be required on the units, specifically at night, that nurses and psychiatric aides should have ongoing training as to how to conduct observations, that the observations should occur as directed and that newly admitted patients should be placed in single rooms, close to the nurses' station.

The judge also recommended AHS regularly review technology that could help with completing observations.

Nilsson said he likes the recommendations, especially the one calling for more staff at the hospital.

"These recommendations will help others be safe, especially when they are seeking help," he said.

Added Tina Credgeur: "I'm just really hoping they take it seriously and follow through."

AHS improving protocols

AHS and the hospital have taken steps to improve protocols and address the recommendations, said AHS spokesperson Kristi Bland in an emailed statement.

"This was a tragedy, and our thoughts and sympathies remain with the family and friends of Kaitlind Credgeur," Bland added.

Steps that have been taken include:

A strategy to educate staff on procedures when searching patients, and the practice of removing items that could be used for self-harm


Using Connect Care to enter real-time observations about patients directly into their health records


Evaluating tools and processes for patient unit orientation and the subsequent implementation of a standard process for educating patients on night observation rounds.


Admitting patients at night, when possible, into rooms that allow for easier observation by staff

Ohio will vote on marijuana legalization. Advocates say there's a lot at stake

Fri, November 3, 2023 



COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Voters in Ohio will decide next week whether to legalize recreational marijuana, but people on both sides of the issue say more hangs in the balance than simply decriminalizing the drug.

Supporters of legalization say Ohio can reclaim tax revenue being lost to states such as Michigan, where marijuana is legal, and take power from illegal drug markets through government regulation. But opponents warn of increased workforce and traffic accidents by people under the influence, and argue much of the revenue will land in the pocket of the marijuana industry, not taxpayers.

Issue 2 on the Nov. 7 ballot would allow adults 21 and over to buy and possess up to 2.5 ounces (71 grams) of cannabis and 15 grams (about a half-ounce) of extract, and to grow up to six plants per individual through a government program. A 10% tax would be imposed on any purchases, with those proceeds going toward administrative costs and addiction treatment in the state and to municipalities that host dispensaries.

It would also create a social equity program to give a financial boost to people who want to start a business selling or growing cannabis and who meet certain criteria. They or a family member would need to have had a past run-in with the law for marijuana, and be part of a disadvantaged group based on race, gender, disability or economic considerations.

The program would fall under the Division of Cannabis Control in the state Department of Commerce, an office that will fashion the rules around licensing, testing and product standards, among other regulations.

If it passes, Ohio would become the 24th state to legalize recreational marijuana for adult use, a move that supporters say socially and financially makes sense for the state.

“We’re taking money away from drug dealers and Michigan dispensary owners and putting it back into the pockets of our local governments,” said Tom Haren, spokesperson for the pro-legalization campaign Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol.

The measure also gives those with marijuana-related arrests and convictions, as well as their loved ones, a chance to benefit from the industry once possession of cannabis is no longer illegal. Haren said a marijuana charge can make life much harder for people and has a “downstream effect” on their families.

Issue 2, should it pass, would also create greater access for those who may not be able to afford medical marijuana through their insurance or get a doctor to sign off on it. This includes veterans, according to Haren, who usually get their insurance through the federal government — which has not cleared marijuana for medical or recreational use.

But even if it gets the needed votes Tuesday, the future of marijuana use will not be entirely set.

As a citizen-initiated statute, the measure went first to the Republican-dominated Legislature. Lawmakers had four months to pass it, under state law. But with many — if not all — GOP legislators heartily against it, the measure did not move.

After the election, if it passes, state law calls for the measure to return again to the Legislature, where lawmakers can tweak it to their liking. They can also vote to repeal it entirely, as GOP Senate President Matt Huffman has indicated could happen.

Opponents of Issue 2, including Ohio prosecutors and the Ohio Chamber of Commerce, are in line with Huffman.

“There's legalization, which generally people have a live-and-let-live attitude about. And then there's Issue 2,” said Scott Milburn, spokesperson for Protect Ohio Workers and Families, the main campaign against the issue.

The measure, opponents say, gives around one third of the revenue in that 10% tax revenue back to the marijuana industry — making it more of a benefit to marijuana corporations and small businesses than to taxpayers.

And according to Ohio Treasurer Robert Sprague, the portion allotted for costs such as addiction treatment and administration under the 10% tax isn't enough, and the tax would at least need to be doubled to pay for what the measure says it would.

The Ohio Prosecuting Attorneys Association has also cautioned that legalization could lead to greater traffic and workforce accidents, as well as increased substance abuse among state residents.

Last year, a study by the by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administratio n found that 54% of injured or killed drivers had drugs or alcohol in their systems, with tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), an active ingredient in marijuana, the most prevalent.

The study looked at over 7,000 cases from seven different hospitals around the country from 2019 to 2021, but the authors of the study cautioned that it's not indicative of drivers nationwide, especially when tracking data on marijuana use and traffic accidents is still so new.

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Samantha Hendrickson is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.

Samantha Hendrickson, The Associated Press

McGill says Quebec tuition hike threatens future of Schulich School of Music

UNIVERSITIES NEVER PROTEST TUITION INCREASES TILL NOW

The Canadian Press
Fri, November 3, 2023 



MONTREAL — McGill University says Quebec's $8,000 tuition increase for out-of-province students threatens the future of the renowned Schulich School of Music.

Principal Deep Saini said Thursday that enrolment of Canadian students from outside Quebec could drop by between 20 and 80 per cent after the new $17,000 tuition takes effect next fall.

He says such a loss would be "devastating" for the Schulich School, where nearly 40 per cent of students come from other provinces and territories.

Saini also raises the possibility of cuts to varsity teams, a third of whose members come from elsewhere in Canada.

McGill estimates the tuition increase, plus new government charges tied to international student enrolment, will deprive the university of between $42 million and $94 million every year.

Job cuts numbering in the hundreds and suspensions of major infrastructure projects are among the other consequences Saini outlines.

The Quebec government says it needs to double tuition for out-of-province students to protect the French language by reducing the number of English-speakers in the province.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 3, 2023.

Ottawa Alert a tribute to women who helped break the ice a century ago


CBC
Sat, November 4, 2023 

The Ottawa Alerts pose with the Dr. Lorne Robertson trophy after winning the Ladies Ontario Hockey Association championship in 1923. Star player Shirley Moulds is seated directly behind the cup. (Library and Archives Canada)

When news broke late last month that the nascent Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL) had filed trademark applications for six team names including the Ottawa Alert, James Powell felt a sense of déjà vu.

Powell, a member of the Historical Society of Ottawa and author of the blog Today in Ottawa's History, had recently written about another pioneering women's hockey team with the same name. Well, almost the same.

The Ottawa Alerts — that's Alerts plural — burst onto the sports scene in 1915, a year into the First World War. With many of Canada's most accomplished hockey-playing men enlisting and serving overseas, there was suddenly room on the rink for the women.

Many of the men initially came to mock, but when they saw the quality of the games that turned around pretty quickly. - James Powell, Historical Society of Ottawa

The team drew young women from the Ottawa Ladies' College and the YWCA.

Women's hockey was nothing new in Canada. Lady Isobel Gathorne-Hardy (née Stanley), daughter of the governor general who would later lend his name to hockey's most coveted prize, famously hosted an all-ladies shinny game at Rideau Hall in 1889. (A rematch the following year produced the first known photograph of women playing hockey.)

Women's hockey flourished over the following decades, and there were plenty of local teams. Powell lists the Rideau Club Ladies, the Westboro Pets and the Vestas of Hull among the popular capital region clubs at the time.

Lady Isobel Gathorne-Hardy, in white, battles for the puck in this all-female match at Rideau Hall in 1890. This is believed to be the first photograph depicting women playing hockey. (Library and Archives Canada)

Women's game was a novelty

The women's game was still seen as something of a novelty, however, and not everyone viewed it as a suitable pursuit for proper young ladies in the early 20th century.

"It was considered unladylike, I would put it that way," Powell told CBC Radio's Ottawa Morning earlier this week.

But spectators soon learned that these women could really play. Following a 1916 road trip to Cornwall, Ont., a local newspaper described the Alerts as "good players and very good stick-handlers," Powell said.

They were tough, too.

"They didn't shy away from hits," Powell said. "It was really the quality of the matches that attracted the fans to the games."

Ottawa Alerts player Eva Ault poses for a photograph around 1923. Ault, known as 'Queen of the Ice,' later served as vice-president of the Ladies Ontario Hockey Association. (William Topley/Library and Archives Canada)

In 1917, the Alerts travelled to Pittsburgh to take on the Polar Milk Maids, sweeping the three-game "world" series and gaining some international attention.

Toward the end of 1922, the Alerts joined the 18-team Ladies Ontario Hockey Association (LOHA). In their black and yellow sweaters and long skirts, the Ottawa team took on North Toronto in a two-game contest for the inaugural league championship in March 1923.

Ottawa won the cup with a total of six goals to North Toronto's two, with star player Shirley Moulds netting all but one goal for the Alerts. They won again the following year, and according to Powell the Alerts "remained a power in Ontario women's hockey through the rest of the decade."

Alerts drew big crowds

They were also a big draw at home, winning new fans with their action-packed play on such storied local rinks as Dey's Arena.

"They were extremely popular," Powell told Ottawa Morning. "Thousands of fans came to their games. Many of the men initially came to mock, but when they saw the quality of the games that turned around pretty quickly."

The Alerts lost some of their star players including Moulds to rival teams, and after a disappointing disqualification from the 1930 championship, the team "disappeared from the sports pages of Ottawa newspapers, most likely another casualty of the Depression," according to Powell.

The LOHA folded a decade later.

The Ottawa Alerts may be long gone, but they were never forgotten.

Shirley Moulds, photographed here in the 1930s, was an accomplished all-around athlete who was inducted posthumously into the Ottawa Sports Hall of Fame in 2010. (Submitted by Don Moulds)

Star player stayed humble

Don Moulds said his aunt Shirley never talked about her hockey career. In fact, he only learned about her on-ice exploits after she died 50 years ago.

"I only got an inkling of her ability at hockey when a gentleman came up to me at her funeral [and] said that he had seen her play back in the '20s, and that she was as good as any of the junior boys at that time," Moulds told CBC.

Shirley Moulds excelled at many other sports including softball, tennis and later bowling. While she remained humble about those accomplishments, one of her great nephews researched her life's story, resulting in her induction into the Ottawa Sports Hall of Fame in 2010.

Shirley Moulds was a lifelong resident of Fifth Avenue in the Glebe, and later worked for the federal government. She was also an avid Ottawa Rough Riders fan, and a devotee of quarterback Russ Jackson in particular.

"Aunt Shirley is still missed by all of us who were lucky enough to know her," Don Moulds said.

The University of Ottawa Gee-Gees women's hockey team poses with the Alerts Cup in January after defeating the Carleton Ravens 4-3. The interuniversity championship has been held intermittently since 2004. (Greg Kolz)

In another modern tribute, the women's hockey teams from the University of Ottawa and Carleton University now compete for the Alerts Cup. The winner-take-all game has been held intermittently since 2004.

While the name of Ottawa's new PWHL franchise hasn't been finalized, Powell said the choice of the Ottawa Alert would be a fitting acknowledgement of the pivotal role those pioneering women played a century ago.

"I thought it was delightful," he said. "It was a great nod to a historic team."

Don Moulds appreciates the gesture, too.

"I think Alert would be an excellent choice," he said. "I'm sure my aunt would be totally on board with it as well."

NEWFOUNDLAND
Zero bids on land for oil exploration disappointing, but not surprising, says minister

CBC
Fri, November 3, 2023

Energy Minister Andrew Parsons said he wasn't particularly surprised by a lack of interest in a call for bids on offshore land, but that it's a disappointment for the industry. (Sarah Blackmore/CBC - image credit)

The Canada-Newfoundland and Labrador Offshore Petroleum Board's call for exploration bids for 47 parcels resulted in zero interest, leading one industry veteran to question the sector's future.

The 47 parcels of land span some 12 million hectares off eastern and southeastern Newfoundland. The call for bids closed Wednesday with zero bids.

On Friday, Energy Minister Andrew Parsons said he was disappointed by the lack of bids but not entirely surprised.

"It's not often we see that. It might be, obviously, a trend of the times we're in, and that's why I guess I can't say that I'm that surprised," he said.

Rob Strong, an offshore consultant who has been part of the industry since 1979, was also disappointed.

"The fact that we put up, I don't know, 40 blocks of acreage in two separate basins and didn't get a bid, it's got to be disappointing," Strong said Friday.

Strong said he believes the lack of interest could be fuelled a couple of factors: corporations beginning to move in a different direction as more countries move toward a greener economy, and an intensive regulatory regime that comes with exploration in Newfoundland.

Newfoundland offshore oil industry veteran Rob Strong says he wasn't overly surprised by a lack of interest in a call for bids on offshore land, but that it's a disappointment for the industry. Strong says corporations are likely passing on exploration off Newfoundland in favour of 'low-hanging fruit.' (Sarah Blackmore/CBC)

Many corporations realize there is likely only 30 to 40 years of oil exploration left, he said, and most are going for "low-hanging fruit." — places where large quantities of oil can be produced quickly.

"I think the horse is already out of the barn. I don't know if there's anything we can do at this stage," Strong said.

"We have a fairly high regulatory regime, a bureaucratic regime. And … from discovery to first oil it's a long period of time. And I think the world is going to look at that and say, 'Well, why should I drill?'"

Strong said he has faith that projects that are currently underway or in development — like the Bay du Nord project and potential exploration of the Jeanne D'Arc basin — will yield positives for the industry.

"We need that next development if we're going to maintain a high level of employment," he said. "You can't produce it if you can't find it. And if you can't drill it, you can't find it."

Parsons said the future is promising, citing more than $2 billion in exploration scheduled for next summer.

But he also knows the oil is limited, he said. And while the provincial government will continue to "be in that oil space" as long as there's demand, he said, the provincial government is excited about diversifying its energy portfolio into other areas of production.

"We've always had all of our eggs in one basket, completely reliant on one industry. And I truly feel that we are at the time now when we can look multiple different ways," he said.