BEWARE FRACKQUAKE

TransAlta sues Alberta government to prevent oilpatch fracking near hydro dam

Kyle Bakx - CBC


Calgary-based electricity producer TransAlta Corp. is suing the Alberta government and the Alberta Energy Regulator to prevent oil and gas companies from fracking near its largest hydroelectric dam in the province because the technique can cause earthquakes.

The court action, which was filed in September in the Court of King's Bench of Alberta, takes place as two oil and gas companies have applied to frack within five kilometres of the dam.

TransAlta is concerned about possible seismic activity causing damage to the Brazeau power plant, near Drayton Valley in central Alberta, as well as the loss of wildlife, habitat and human life.

The company points to an agreement from the 1960s, when the Brazeau Hydroelectric Dam was built, which states that TransAlta should "peacefully enjoy and possess the premises" without any "interruption or disturbance from the province, or any other person."

TransAlta also refers to a section of the Brazeau Agreement, which states that the provincial government had agreed not to allow oilpatch activity that will restrict or interfere with the power plant.

In court documents, the company said the province "has not developed, implemented or enacted any clear policy directives that will protect the Brazeau Storage and Power Development from "unacceptable" risks posed by hydraulic fracturing in close proximity."


The Brazeau Hydroelectric Dam was built in the 1960s and is currently owned by Calgary-based TransAlta. The electricity producer is suing the Alberta government to prevent fracking near the dam, as two oil and gas companies have applied to frack within five kilometres of the structure.© Kyle Bakx/CBC

The case highlights a growing debate in the scientific community about the risk of earthquakes posed by fracking.

Fracking is a common technique in the oilpatch. When drilling an oil or natural gas well, a high-pressure mixture of water, sand and chemicals are injected into an underground rock formation to create cracks and access the hydrocarbons. The injection of those fluids has the potential to cause earthquakes.

There have been thousands of documented cases of fracking activity causing earthquakes in North America, including in Alberta and British Columbia.

Limitations near Brazeau dam

The Brazeau power plant is located about 200 kilometres southwest of Edmonton.

Fracking activity is currently not permitted within three kilometres of the power plant. However, the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER) does allow fracking between three and five kilometres in certain instances based on several factors, such as a review of the risk, the potential for seismic events and mitigation measures.



Calgary-based Ridgeback Resources is one of several oil and gas producers that operate in the area near Rocky Mountain House in Alberta and the Brazeau power plant.© Kyle Bakx/CBC

Westbrick Energy Ltd. and Ridgeback Resources Inc. both want to frack in the three-to-five-kilometre zone. A 10-day hearing is scheduled for the first half of 2023.

A 2016 technical report by a government committee stated that there was "unacceptable risk associated with hydro-fracture induced seismicity to the ... Brazeau infrastructure within the five-kilometre buffer zone."

However, a followup report in 2021 stated that "an action to reduce the risk is clearly necessary if the risk is unacceptable, which appears not to be the case."


TransAlta wants the court to intervene and prohibit fracking near the dam, among other safety measures.

"As we prioritize the safety of all our facilities, TransAlta is taking this prudent step to confirm the government's contractual obligations to not restrict or interfere with the safe operation of the facility," the company said in an email.

In its statement of defence filed in September, the provincial government argues that the court should dismiss the case, in part to avoid interfering with the AER's jurisdiction as the regulator of all oil and gas operations in the province.


In its statement of defence filed in response to TransAlta's lawsuit, the provincial government argues that the court should dismiss the case, in part to avoid interfering with the AER's jurisdiction as the regulator of all oil and gas operations in the province.

© Kyle Bakx/CBC

In court documents, government lawyers state that "there is considerable debate among interested stakeholders about the risks posed by hydraulic fracturing in the five-kilometre area," including some who say any fracking is "dangerous," while others say fracking "presents zero, or close to zero, risk if conducted within specific shallow geological formations."

The government did not provide comment to CBC News. Westbrick Energy and Ridgeback Resources did not respond to interview requests.

Ongoing scientific research

There is no doubt in the scientific community that fracking can cause earthquakes, but researchers aren't able to accurately predict when a large earthquake will occur.

Statistics show that only a small amount of fracking activity will actually cause a noticeable earthquake, so researchers are focusing on trying to figure out why, said Honn Kao, a senior seismology research scientist with the Geological Survey of Canada.

Without knowing whether or not an earthquake will occur, experts will instead create a risk model to come up with the probability.

"Then the debate begins. The probability is very much like the weather, right? You say there is a 50 per cent chance of rain. What do you mean? For an operator and the local community, if an earthquake happens, it's 100 per cent. If an earthquake doesn't happen, it's zero," Kao said in an interview.

"But from a scientific point of view, we say, well, there is a 50 per cent chance. That actually is subject to interpretation, and I think a great amount of debate comes from there."

Induced earthquakes are felt strongest at the oil well drilling site and then slowly diminish in strength the further the distance away.

The earthquakes are caused by a buildup of stress on tectonic plates from fracking activity, although scientists can't measure how much tectonic energy has accumulated and how close the plates are to failure. Fracking also acts like a trigger for the earthquake.

At some point, regulators have to make a decision about safety standards and decide their level of risk tolerance, but others in the community will disagree. This difference of opinion is central to the court action taken by TransAlta about how close fracking can occur to its hydro dam.



In opposing fracking near the Brazeau dam, TransAlta says it has a strong interest in maintaining its physical plant and the safety of its workers, in addition to potential downstream impacts on the environment from an earthquake.© Kyle Bakx/CBC

"How far do you want to set up that exclusive zone? That actually is subject to debate," Kao said. "How high or how low of a risk tolerance level can you accept?

"We know a lot more about injection-induced earthquakes over the past decade. But certainly, in my opinion, I think we still have a lot to learn," he said.

AER subject of separate court action

In a separate case, TransAlta is also taking court action against the AER for approving an oil and gas company's application to frack between five and 10 kilometres of the dam "immediately," which "deprived TransAlta of the opportunity to submit a statement of concern to the AER."

The company is asking the courts to allow it to address its safety concerns about the proposed fracking activity to the regulator.

The AER said it wouldn't comment on an active legal matter, but it did refer to information about its rules for fracking near the Brazeau dam. The regulator has 50 seismic monitoring systems throughout the province.

Some of the largest earthquakes caused by fracking in Western Canada include a 4.5-magnitude event near Fort St. John in northeastern British Columbia. In the Fox Creek area of Alberta, there have been a pair of 4.4-magnitude earthquakes and a 4.8-magnitude event.

In the Brazeau dam area, an earthquake with a magnitude of more than 4.0 occurred in 2019. The epicentre was about 75 kilometres south of the power plant.

The number of earthquakes has risen rapidly in Texas, Oklahoma and other parts of the United States with oil and gas production. As a result, the number of lawsuits against the industry has also increased significantly.

Mounties' union says allowing trucks to park near Parliament was a mistake, Emergencies Act inquiry docs show

Catharine Tunney - Yesterday -

The union representing RCMP members says the decision to allow heavy trucks to park near the parliamentary precinct as part of last winter's convoy protests in Ottawa posed an unacceptable risk, according to documents tabled with the Emergencies Act inquiry.


People walk past fuel cans in front of Parliament Hill on Feb. 9, during the trucker convoy protest against COVID-19 measures that gridlocked Ottawa for more than three weeks last winter.

© Patrick Doyle/The Canadian Press

Lawyers with the Public Order Emergency Commission interviewed two members of the National Police Federation in the summer, ahead of official hearings currently underway.

Both Dennis Miller, a 29-year veteran of the force on leave to serve as vice-president of the federation, and Steve Madden, a board member with the group who previously served with the RCMP for 16 years, including with the Parliamentary Protective Services unit, liaised with commanders and other members during the convoy protests.

A summary of their joint interview was recently entered into evidence.

Both men raised concerns about allowing the self-described Freedom Convoy protesters to park near the parliamentary precinct.

"Mr. Madden observed that placing heavy fuel trucks near Parliament Hill posed an unacceptable risk because of the potential for those trucks to explode, whether by accident or design," reads a summary of the interview.

Miller told the commission's lawyers that he had policed G20 summits where the RCMP had directed protesters to park away from the central location and then arranged for buses to transport people to the protest site.

Former Ottawa police chief Peter Sloly has testified that he did not think he had the legal standing under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms to prevent protesters from parking their trucks and other vehicles downtown.

"I'm a police officer, not a lawyer," he testified on Friday.

Concerns with resources

Related video: Former Ottawa police chief defends handling of convoy protest
Duration 2:38  View on Watch


The need for more RCMP officers was almost immediately apparent after the convoy rolled into town on Jan. 28.

The two RCMP union reps said that by Jan. 30, the head of the force's national division declared a state of emergency.

Under the RCMP's collective agreement, a state of emergency allows the RCMP to redeploy members and temporarily waive scheduling and maximum work hours provisions to ensure public safety and delivery of policing services.

Miller said he was told that assistant commissioner Ches Parsons decided to declare an emergency "because he had exhausted RCMP assets and resources based in the National Division."

Sloly was asking publicly for roughly 1,800 extra officers to bolster the Ottawa police response, including hundreds from the RCMP.

As the commission has already heard, both the RCMP and the Ontario Provincial Police had concerns with the Ottawa police force's lack of an operational plan and were skeptical about how their additional officers would be used.

Miler told the commission that the Ottawa request resulted in an OPS-RCMP meeting, which he did not attend but was filled in on after.

"Mr. Miller was advised that during the meeting, OPS representatives compared the Freedom Convoy to a terrorist attack at Parliament Hill and argued that RCMP should be the lead policing agency because protesters were protesting federal government policies," said the interview summary.

"RCMP representatives attending the meeting disagreed and stated that OPS was responsible for policing the Freedom Convoy because OPS was the police of jurisdiction in the protest site."

In Ontario and Quebec, RCMP officers can enforce federal laws but must be sworn in as provincial or municipal special constables to enforce provincial and municipal laws.

Miller and Madden told the inquiry's lawyers that the RCMP's lack of authority to enforce provincial and municipal laws was a barrier to using RCMP resources effectively to police protests in Ottawa.

"Miller mentioned that RCMP officers could only act if protesters were openly committing an offence under the Criminal Code, but would lack authority to act in the significantly more common circumstance of protesters committing provincial offences, such as under Ontario's Highway Traffic Act, or disobeying municipal orders or bylaws," the interview summary said.

He also said that even before the convoy arrived in Ottawa, the RCMP had been reducing its policing responsibilities in the Ottawa area. The RCMP used to maintain about 120 officers in Ottawa to patrol areas surrounding embassies and National Capital Commission lands, but it had only 60 patrol officers at the time of the convoy protest, according to Miller's interview.

On behalf of the union, both Miller and Madden told the commission they believe the RCMP should assume responsibility for security and policing in and around Parliament Hill.

A parliamentary committee is currently studying whether Ottawa police should cede control of Wellington Street.

THE DEAD MINK ELECTION
Denmark PM to try to form new government after election win


COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen was in a strong position to remain in power after her Social Democrats won the most votes in Denmark’s election Tuesday and a center-left bloc in Parliament that backs appeared set to retain a majority by just one seat.


Denmark PM to try to form new government after election win

© Provided by The Canadian Press

The result was preliminary and based on the assumption that a vote count in Greenland expected early Wednesday would give the autonomous Danish territory’s two seats to the center-left bloc.

“I am so thrilled and proud. We have gotten the best election result in 20 years,” Frederiksen told supporters early Wednesday in Copenhagen.

Despite the success, Frederiksen, who heads a Social Democratic minority government, said she would resign as prime minister and try to form a new government with broader support across the political divide, something she had said suggested before the election.

"It is also clear there is no longer a majority behind the government in its current form. Therefore, tomorrow I will submit the government’s resignation to the queen,” said Frederiksen, adding that she would meet with other parties about forming a new government.

Frederiksen was forced to call the vote earlier this month amid the fallout from her government’s contentious decision to cull millions of minks as a pandemic response measure. The cull and chilling images of mass graves of minks have haunted Frederiksen since 2020 and eventually led to cracks in the center-left bloc.

The Social Democrats remained Denmark’s top party with 28% of the vote, but it remained unclear long into the night whether the center-left parties together would reach the 90 seats needed for a majority in the 179-seat Parliament. Exit polls suggested they would fall short, but the decisive seat flipped at the very end of the vote count.

Before that former Prime Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen appeared set to become kingmaker. His newly formed centrist party won 9% of the vote for 16 seats, according to the preliminary results.

Løkke Rasmussen said he too wanted to Mette Frederiksen to try to form a government but he would not point at her “as prime minister.”

A two-time government leader who lost the 2019 election to Frederiksen and abandoned the center-right Liberal party following an internal power struggle, Løkke Rasmussen, wouldn't say whom he would back as the next prime minister or whether he saw that role for himself.

“I know for sure that Denmark needs a new government, “ he told jubilant supporters in Copenhagen. “Who is going to sit at the end of the table we do not know.”

Related video: Denmark election: Frederiksen's government hangs in the balance as it battles for centrist votes  Duration 1:35  View on Watch

Denmark may be a small, tranquil country known for having some of the happiest people on Earth, but its politics is filled with intrigue that will be familiar to fans of the fictional Danish TV drama series “Borgen.”

Before the election, Frederiksen, 44, floated the idea of a broader alliance that would also include opposition parties, but was rebuffed by opposition leaders Jakob Ellemann-Jensen of the Liberals and Søren Pape Poulsen of the Conservatives, who both ran as candidates for prime minister in a center-right government.

Even though the election result suggested she could ostensibly carry on as prime minster with only center-left support, Frederiksen said she would keep her ambition to also reach out to opposition parties.

“The Social Democrats went to the election to form a broad government," she said. "I will investigate whether it can be done.”

Denmark’s more than 4 million voters could choose among over 1,000 candidates — the most ever — from 14 parties. Four of the 179 seats in the Danish legislature, Folketinget, are reserved for the Faeroe Islands and Greenland, which are autonomous Danish territories.

Concerns about rising inflation and energy prices linked to Russia’s war in Ukraine and a shortage of nurses in the public health care system were key themes in election campaigns.

“What I feel is important and is a worry to many are the soaring prices, whether it be electricity, bread or gasoline,” said Inge Bjerre Hansen, 82, after casting her vote in Copenhagen. “My son is reducing the number of his visits because it has become expensive to fill the tank (of his car).”

Unlike in previous elections, immigration received little attention. Denmark has some of Europe’s strictest immigration laws and there is broad agreement among the major parties to keep it that way.

That and internal squabbles help explain the collapse of the populist Danish People’s Party, which spearheaded Denmark’s crackdown on immigration two decades ago. Once polling over 20%, the party recorded its worst parliamentary election result since its creation in 1995, with around 3% of the vote, the results showed.

The Danish People's Party faced competition for nationalist voters from new right-wing parties. Among them are the Denmark Democrats, created in June by former hardline immigration minister Inger Støjberg. In 2021, Støjberg was convicted by the rarely used Impeachment Court for a 2016 order to separate asylum-seeking couples if one of the partners was a minor.

She was eligible to run for office again after serving her 60-day sentence. The official results showed her party getting 8%.

Frederiksen, who became Denmark's youngest prime minister when she took office at 41 more than three years ago, teamed up with the opposition to hike NATO-member Denmark’s defense spending in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Her steadfast leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic was partly overshadowed by the mink-culling episode.

The decision to slaughter up to 17 million minks to protect humans from a mutation of the coronavirus was taken in haste and without the required legislation in place. It dealt a devastating blow to Danish mink farmers, even though there was no evidence the mutated virus found among some minks was more dangerous than other strains.

___

Ritter reported from Stockholm. Associated Press journalists and Aleksandar Furtula and Anders Kongshaug in Copenhagen contributed to this report.

Jan M. Olsen And Karl Ritter, The Associated Press

BACKGROUNDER

Danish election: 17 million dead minks and a US spy allegation plunge country into chaos

Denmark's politics have been fraught with scandal in recent years. Now, the country is set to go to the ballot box.

By CHARLIE BRADLEY
Tue, Nov 1, 2022 

Denmark goes to the polls on Tuesday in a vote, a ballot which on the surface appears to be heading in a business-as-usual direction. Mette Frederiksen, the Danish Prime Minister and leader of the Social Democrats, is expected to win. But it is unknown whether her party will stay in government. This is because former Danish Prime Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen, leader of a surging centrist party, has refused to endorse either the left coalition or the group of right-leaning parties. It is likely his Moderate party will be the kingmaker in this vote.

Danish election: Frederiksen ordered the killing of minks (Image: Getty)

Prime Minister Frederiksen was forced to call the election after losing the support of a leftist party which collapsed the coalition. The story of how her government lost the confidence of the political class and the Danish population is as dramatic as it is bizarre.

The catalyst for Ms Frederiksen's polling slump in recent months has been attributed to a decision she made in 2020. Amid fears that COVID-19 could spread into the human population via minks, she ordered the culling of the 17 million mink population in the country.

Not only was the policy illegal, it destroyed Denmark's fur industry. Danish farmers were seen on TV crying as they saw their livelihoods were torn apart. Ms Frederiksen apologised earlier this year and said she "regrets [the] mistakes" that were made.

Danish election: 17 million minks were culled (Image: Getty)

But she maintained that the decision was the "only solution", adding: "I would like to apologize to the mink farmers and their families. I know it has been hard. And the fact that there have been mistakes in the process has made it all the more painful.

"For the sake of the Danes' health and our country's reputation and responsibility to the rest of the world, the only solution was to cull the mink. Unfortunately."

While the mink farming ban is set to end in 2023, this is not expected to lead to renewed investment in the industry.

As reported by Politico's Brussels playbook, a mere 13 breeders’ licenses have been registered for next year. The Danish government will also have to fork out over £2million to compensate those whose businesses have collapsed due to the ban.

Minks are not the only thorn in the side of the Danish Prime Minister. A number of other scandals have also left Danes questioning the credibility of Ms Frederiksen — and crucially the country's security.

Danish election: Findsen was charged for leaking classified information 

(Image: Getty)

In May last year, allegations were made claiming that Denmark’s military intelligence agency cooperated with the US to spy on European leaders, including former German Chancellor Angela Merkel

French Europe minister, Clément Beaune, summarised the concern amongst those in the EU, last year saying the allegations were “extremely serious”.

Then, in January this year, another scandal rocked Copenhagen when Denmark's spy chief was imprisoned for allegedly leaking classified information. Later, in September, Lars Findsen was charged for the offence. He has denied any wrongdoing and is now awaiting his sentence.

Denmark's security services were also caught off guard when the Nord Stream pipeline exploded in the Danish part of the Black Sea, an event that many suspect was an attack carried out by Russia.

Danish election: The Nord Stream explosion happened near Denmark

 (Image: Getty)

With Ms Frederiksen's reputation tarnished and Danes losing confidence in their leaders, the upcoming election will lay bare just how much damage has been done. The Danish Prime Minister seemed to be aggrieved having been forced to call the vote.

Announcing the election last month, she said it was "peculiar to have a general election in the middle of an international crisis" but conceded that it is “nevertheless what a majority in parliament wants.”

The global economic crisis will also beat the forefront of Danes' minds as they fill out their ballots this week. Like many other countries, Denmark is suffering from inflation, labour shortages and low salaries.

Another key issue is immigration. The country has some of the strictest rules in Europe, and Ms Frederiksen has adopted the tougher approach to nullify the right-wing parties aiming to oust her from power. The verdict is out on whether this is enough to clinch the support of her country.

How a Mink Cull Sent Denmark Into Tuesday’s Election

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-10-30/how-a-mink-cull...

2 days ago · Denmark will hold early elections on Tuesday as voters struggle with soaring living costs. However, it isn’t sky-high power bills that threaten to push Prime Minister Mette …

Mink cull and TV drama: Five things to watch in Danish …

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-63468599?at_medium=RSS&at...

13 hours ago · PM seeks to escape shadow of Mink cull. Mette Frederiksen has led Denmark through its response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the Covid-19 pandemic, but it was her …

Danish general election called after PM faces mink cull …

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/oct/05/denmark-prime-minister...

2022-10-05

How Dead Mink Are Rising From the Grave, Explained by …

https://www.newsweek.com/coronavirus-denmark-culled-mink-dead-bodies...

2020-11-26 · Dead mink culled in Denmark because of fears over a COVID-19 mutation were reported to be rising from their graves this month as their bodies expanded during the decaying …

Culled mink rise from the dead to Denmark's horror

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/nov/25/culled-mink-rise-from...

2020-11-25 · Wed 25 Nov 2020 12.29 EST First published on Wed 25 Nov 2020 10.11 EST Dead mink are rising from their graves in Denmark after a rushed cull over fears of a coronavirus …

 

Montreal Will Get 200 km More Bike Lanes & 10 Bike Highway Routes Under Mayor Plante's New Plan

Sofia Misenheimer - MTL Blog

Montreal Mayor Valerie Plante has unveiled her new four-year bike plan for the city. Spurred by a rise in the number of cyclists on roads this summer, Plante's "Vision vélo" promises to expand a safe cycling network to every corner of the island between 2023 and 2027.



Under the plan, 17 of 19 boroughs will get new or upgraded bike paths. At least 200 km of new bikeways will be added to the existing network over the next five years, including 10 new Réseau express vélo (REV) routes. The REV paths will make up about 60 km of the planned paths.

"The success of REV Saint-Denis has shown the importance of developing safe bikeways that benefit cyclists, pedestrians and business owners alike. We cannot compromise on the safety of children and seniors residents, who are overrepresented in road deaths," said Plante in a release, noting that bike trips in Montreal went up 20% in the past year.


The mayor promises her "Vision vélo" will offer more secure and sustainable travel, improve mobility and make roadways more equitable for cyclists and drivers.

"When is the Vision on the quality of our pavements?" one commenter tweeted in response.

The plan follows a recommendation from Public Health to develop the Montreal cycling network in less accessible neighbourhoods.

The main parts of Plante's "Vision vélo" include:
REV lanes for Jean-Talon, Henri-Bourassa and Lacordaire;
An upgrade and extension of the Côte-Sainte-Catherine bike path (to make the Parc and Mont-Royal intersection safer);
Redevelopment of the Commune trail, between Berri and Saint-Laurent (to benefit pedestrians);
A new bike path on rue Hochelaga to connect Mercier–Hochelaga-Maisonneuve and Ville-Marie;
New bike paths on Prieur and Charleroi, to connect Ahuntsic-Cartierville and Montreal North;
A new bike path in the West Island that follows the REM de l'Ouest line to Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue and Deux-Montagnes.

Plante said the goal is to get Montrealers biking more every day.

This article's cover image was used for illustrative purposes only.

Indigenous strongwoman makes history by becoming 1st in Canada to earn pro card

Jamie Malbeuf - 

A woman from Whitefish Lake First Nation in northern Alberta has become the first Indigenous woman in Canada to get her pro card in a strongwoman competition.


Angela Houle painted a red handprint across her face to represent Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls during the competition.© Submitted by Angela Houle

Angela Houle, 39, accomplished the feat on Oct. 22 when she battled it out against other amateur strongwomen in the Strongman Corporation of Canada's National Championship in Thunder Bay for the chance at a pro card.

"I worked so hard for it," Houle said. "I couldn't believe how I felt. It was like a spiritual moment for me."

Houle said it was the best she's ever performed, and she smashed her previous personal bests.

"I wanted it not just for me, but for our kids, our Indigenous youth," Houle said.

She competed in an axle press, a circus dumbbell and sandbag carry, among other events.

Houle competed against five other women to get pro status.

"I'm breaking those boundaries… for our Indigenous youth to step forward," Houle said.

Houle said likes to use her platform to help Indigenous youth and women.

Houle told CBC she is connected to her people and culture by wearing moccasins when competing and a red hand over her face to advocate for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls.

Houle said she had Indigenous supporters at the event and it was empowering.

"I feel like I'm on top of the world," Houle said.

Colten Sloan, the first Indigenous strongman in Canada, has been training with Houle for years. The two are related, and Sloan said getting to be the first Indigenous strongman and strongwoman in Canada together has been "powerful."

"Indigenous women get cast in such a dark light, it's nice to see representation in such a positive manner," Sloan said.

Having a pro card means they are considered professional athletes and will be invited to international competitions. The pair will be going to the Arnold Classic together in 2023.

He said Houle has faced hardships, and seeing her break those barriers and succeed in the strongwoman world is "empowering."

When Houle was announced as the winner, "it was booming." Sloan said. "It was just electric watching everybody be so excited for her."

Maggie Buffalo, Houle's cousin, was watching the competition this month from her home in Alberta. The work that Houle put into training was noticeable, said Buffalo, because Houle "made it look easy."

Buffalo was there when Houle first started flipping tractor tires.

"That's what we would do for the evening," Buffalo said.

"Seeing her work hard to get better and getting her pro card has been amazing," Buffalo said.

She added that' it's important to have role models like Houle in the community.

"Especially for youth in our community to know that they can achieve their goals," Buffalo said.

Quebec judge says McGill work halted to avoid 'irreparable harm' to Mohawk plaintiffs

MONTREAL — McGill University said Tuesday it will begin discussions with an Indigenous group that has raised concerns about unmarked graves after a court ruled that excavation work on a university expansion project would cause “irreparable harm.”


Quebec judge says McGill work halted to avoid 'irreparable harm' to Mohawk plaintiffs

© Provided by The Canadian Press

Justice Gregory Moore last week ordered a halt to any excavation at the former site of the Royal Victoria Hospital until the parties hold discussions to develop an archeological plan to search for graves.

“McGill University takes seriously the concerns of Indigenous communities regarding the New Vic project and seeks to better understand how they may be addressed,” Katherine Gombay, a McGill spokesperson, said in an email. She said the university will engage in a conversation with the Indigenous plaintiffs "with humility and in good faith." The New Vic project is aimed at creating a new research and teaching hub.

The judge also granted Kimberly R. Murray, the federally appointed independent special interlocutor for missing children and unmarked graves, intervener status in the case, and Murray told The Canadian Press Friday that she would take part in meetings with the parties.

In his written decision released Tuesday, Moore said the identification of unmarked Indigenous graves is a priority for discovering the truth and working toward reconciliation. He cited the 2015 Truth and Reconciliation Commission's recommendations on residential school cemeteries and drew a link to the health-care system.

“This call to action is drafted in terms of residential schools, but the plaintiff and the special interlocutor have demonstrated the possible parallels between that system and the health services offered to Indigenous peoples,” Moore wrote.

The injunction was granted Thursday at the end of a two-day hearing, following a request in March from a group of elders from Kahnawake known as the Mohawk Mothers. The group has alleged that the bodies of Indigenous patients of the Allan Memorial Institute and the Royal Victoria Hospital are buried at the site scheduled to be redeveloped.

The Mohawk Mothers claimed to have uncovered evidence of burials through interviews with a survivor of the MK-Ultra mind control experiments conducted in the 1950s and 1960s by Dr. Ewen Cameron at the Allan Memorial Institute on the Royal Victoria grounds.

During the hearing, lawyers representing McGill and the Société québécoise des infrastructures, a provincial body that supports public infrastructure projects, argued that there was no evidence of unmarked graves on the site. “Beyond what I consider to be the very firmly held convictions of the plaintiffs, there’s actually very little evidence to support their assertion that there would be graves on the site of the Royal Victoria Hospital,” McGill lawyer Doug Mitchell said.

However, in his ruling, the judge referred to a 2016 archeological report prepared for McGill and the infrastructure corporation that suggested Mount Royal was used as a burial site before the arrival of Europeans. The former hospital is on the side of Mount Royal.

Moore said the plaintiffs would "suffer irreparable harm if the excavation work is not suspended for the time it takes to develop an appropriate archeological plan to identify any unmarked graves." He noted that there is no evidence the project would be delayed by the suspension since the construction timetable has not been established.

The ruling concludes that there is urgency to respond to the plaintiffs' "legitimate concerns" about unmarked graves. "Otherwise, the plaintiffs and those who share their concerns will continue to face the trauma that comes from not knowing whether, when, or how their community members' graves might be disturbed," the judge wrote.

Julian Falconer, the lawyer representing Murray, called Moore's ruling groundbreaking and said it was tremendously important for Indigenous Peoples that truth and reconciliation were at the heart of his decision.

Murray’s affidavit provides the court with recommendations on best practices for undertaking a search for unmarked graves.

“The judge has directed that deep dialogue occurs outside of the court, but also as part of the case management process. He also accepted that the information offered by the special interlocutor could be helpful,” Falconer said.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 1, 2022.

---

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

Marisela Amador, The Canadian Press

WHITE COLLAR CRIME PAYES

Investment con artist admits guilt, but may never face punishment for his crime, court told

Kevin Martin - Yesterday -  Calgary Herald

Calgary senior Vernon Ray Fauth pleaded guilty Monday to swindling investors out of more than $2 million.

The entrance to the Calgary Courts Centre.

But Fauth may never be punished for his crime as he is facing severe medical issues that may make him too ill to face a sentencing hearing, his lawyer told court.

Defence counsel Shamsher Kothari said Fauth, 75, is awaiting the results of medical testing which may prevent him from ultimately seeing justice for bilking investors through his Espoir Capital Corp .

“My client’s going through some serious medical issues,” Kothari told Justice Keith Yamauchi, without elaborating on what health problems Fauth faces.

“There could be a point that there’s not a next (court) date health-wise.”

Fauth pleaded guilty to a single count of fraud relating to investments he took in between Jan. 1, 2012, and July 8, 2015, when Espoir’s bank account had a zero balance.

Reading from a statement of agreed facts, Crown prosecutor Brian Holtby said an investigation by the RCMP Integrated Market Enforcement Team focused on that period and six specific parties which lent Espoir money under the promise of favourable interest rates.

“The amount the six lenders put at risk during the investigation period totalled $2,365,000,” Holtby told the Court of King’s Bench hearing.

“Their total loss was $2,227,751.”

The prosecutor said Fauth accepted short-term loans to Espoir for the purpose of putting the cash in “a pool of secured interest-paying investments.”

“The offender raised funds for Espoir by persuading individuals to loan money to Espoir in exchange for a debenture or promissory note which guaranteed a return.”

Over time Fauth created other companies which were supposed to offer investment possibilities.

“None of these companies was truly a going concern and none provided the type of investment opportunity that Espoir ostensibly pursued,” Holtby said.

Each investor was paid some interest over the period of their loans, but at less than the eight per cent promised. None of them received their principal loan amount at the closure of the loan periods.

“The offender led them to believe that the proceeds would be invested in a pool of secured interest-paying investments. Accordingly, Espoir could be relied on to pay back the principal and the promised interest.”

But that never occurred, the prosecutor said.

“In fact, the offender did not use the money as he represented he would,” Holtby said.

“Almost all of it was quickly paid to earlier Espoir investors/lenders or to the offender’s related companies. Interest payments stopped suddenly and by July 8, 2015, Espoir had no assets.”

In 2019, the Alberta Securities Commission ordered Fauth to repay more than $3 million over his fraudulent scheme.

The case returns to court Nov. 25.

KMartin@postmedia.com

On Twitter: @KMartinCourts

Lula cheered for new climate policies after Brazil election

By Jake Spring - Yesterday 12:36 p.m.

Reuters/MARIANA GREIF

SAO PAULO (Reuters) - Environmentalists, world leaders and sustainable investors on Monday cheered the victory of Brazilian President-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who has promised to protect the Amazon rainforest and restore Brazil's leadership on climate change.

In his victory speech, Lula pledged to clamp down on illegal logging, mining and land grabbing that have driven the surging deforestation of the Amazon over the past four years under President Jair Bolsonaro, who lost Sunday's election.

"Brazil is ready to retake its leadership in the fight against the climate crisis," Lula told a crowd of supporters in Sao Paulo. "Brazil and the planet need a living Amazon."

Destruction of the Brazilian rainforest hit a 15-year high under Bolsonaro, who rolled back environmental protections, and pushed for more mining and commercial farming in the region.

Bolsonaro's office and the Environment Ministry did not respond to requests for comment.

Lula has vowed a sweeping overhaul of environmental policy, on par with the proposed Green New Deal in the United States, although there are doubts if he can get such an ambitious agenda past a Congress where Bolsonaro's allies have the upper hand.

He may have an easier time re-establishing Brazil's role in international efforts to address climate change.

Lula's environmentalist ally Marina Silva told Reuters on Monday that the president-elect would signal Brazil's renewed global leadership on climate change by sending representatives to next week's COP27 United Nations climate summit in Egypt.

The representatives, who have yet to be selected, would form part of an unofficial delegation, as Lula will only assume the presidency on Jan. 1, she said.

Silva said that Brazil would demand rich countries provide financing to poor countries to respond to climate change and give compensation for permanent "loss and damage" from climate change. But international funding will not be a pre-condition to protecting the Amazon, as Bolsonaro's government has signaled.

Norway is ready to discuss restarting a fund for Amazon preservation with roughly 3 billion reais ($573 million), its Climate and Environment Minister Espen Barth Eide said in an emailed statement on Monday. Bolsonaro's government had halted the so-called Amazon Fund in 2019 citing unspecified irregularities.

Under Lula, Brazil will also discuss expanding its national targets for cutting climate-related emissions, said Silva, his former environment minister from 2003 to 2008.

In Lula's third term, he will likely announce targets for cutting methane emissions - a far more potent greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide - from livestock, power plants and other sources, she said.

Lula also plans in early 2023 to hold a summit including Amazon nations and developed countries with an interest in preserving the forest, an adviser told Reuters last month.

BRAZIL BAN LIFTING?

Investors focused on environment, social and corporate governance (ESG) also welcomed Lula's victory.

Nordea Asset Management, a wing of giant Nordic bank Nordea, said it is considering lifting its ban on buying more Brazil government bonds that was instituted in 2019 when huge fires in the Amazon provoked global outcry to protect the rainforest.

Responsible investing head Eric Christian Pedersen told Reuters he was "optimistic" the quarantine on its Brazil bond holdings would soon be lifted.

The firm, with roughly 237 billion euros ($234 billion) in assets under management, only owned about 100 million euros in Brazilian sovereign bonds when the prohibition took effect.

Robeco, which manages 200 billion euros in assets, including at least 5 billion euros invested in Brazilian equities and debt, also takes a positive view on Brazil "for now" based on Lula's comments on sustainability and other matters, portfolio manager Daniela da Costa-Bulthuis told Reuters.

Environmental advocates also cheered Lula's proposals for the Amazon, but cautioned that his agenda would face enormous political resistance.

Marina Silva, who won a seat in Congress this month, said Lula aims to create a new national climate authority to oversee efforts by all ministries and agencies to combat global warming.

But he will face a more hostile Congress where Bolsonaro's allies are close to a majority in both houses.

"The nightmare is almost over," said Marcio Astrini, head of the Climate Observatory lobby group, while noting Bolsonaro still had two months in which he could sign off on new policies.

"It will be a long journey to rebuild what was destroyed."

($1 = 5.2397 reais)

(Reporting by Jake Spring; Additional reporting by by Gwladys Fouche in Oslo; Editing by Brad Haynes and Aurora Ellis)

FAKE COP IN FAKE DEMOCRACY
Jailed Egyptian activist on hunger strike will refuse water during COP27

Haley Ott - 

screenshot-2022-11-01-at-17-32-23.png© Free Alaa campaign

London — Alaa Abdel-Fattah, a prominent rights activist imprisoned in Egypt, went on "full hunger strike" on Tuesday and intends to start refusing even water from the first day of the COP27 climate conference, which kicks off this weekend in northern Egypt, according to his family. The dual Egyptian-British citizen has been on a hunger strike for months in hopes that the U.K. government might take action on his case.

Alaa has been behind bars in Egypt for most of the last eight years. He was an important figure in pro-democracy "Arab Spring" protests that led to the overthrow of then-Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak in 2011. He's been locked up, on charges that human rights groups dismiss as spurious, for virtually all of Egypt's current authoritarian President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi's rule, since 2014.

"Regardless of how it ends, Alaa has already won this battle," his sister, Mona Seif, said in a tweet on Tuesday. She said he could either be freed, or "if he doesn't make it and dies in prison, his body will tell the whole world what a bunch of liars you all are, ruthless inhumane creatures that should not be trusted with one plant let alone people and the future of this planet."

For the last 200 days, Alaa has been consuming less than 100 calories daily, and his family says they're worried for his life. They have been calling on the British government to pressure the Egyptian government to at least allow a British consular visit to Alaa in prison.

Alaa's other sister, Sanaa Seif, set up camp outside the U.K. Foreign and Commonwealth Development Office in London about two weeks ago to draw further attention to her brother's case.

Last week, 64 members of both houses of the U.K. parliament wrote to the British foreign secretary to ask him to use the COP27 summit as an opportunity to secure Alaa's release.

"Alaa's situation is so grave that it requires a robust message," the U.K. lawmakers wrote. "In that light, we strongly encourage you to make clear to your Egyptian counterparts that Britain's engagement with COP will be seriously undermined by the continued mistreatment of one of its citizens."

A foreign office spokesperson told the BBC on Tuesday: "We are working hard to secure Alaa Abdel Fattah's release and we continue to raise his case at the highest levels of the Egyptian government. The foreign secretary most recently raised his case when he met Egyptian Foreign Minister [Sameh] Shoukry at the United Nations General Assembly in September."

Meanwhile, it was reported that Egyptian authorities had already arrested nearly 70 people in connection with calls issued on social media for people to stage protests on November 11, during COP27.

Protests have effectively been banned in Egypt since al-Sisi cracked down on political dissent when he came to power, but Egypt's COP27 organizers have said that limited demonstrations will be allowed in designated areas.

One activist from India named Ajit Rajagopal was detained in Cairo after setting off on a solo march for climate justice, where he aimed to walk to the site of the COP27 conference in the resort town of Sharm el-Sheikh, Reuters said. He was released after being questioned for hours over a poster he was carrying showing the route of his walk.

Campaigners including climate activist Greta Thunberg, who's skipping this year's climate conference but visited Alaa's sister Sanaa at her camp outside the foreign office in London, have expressed doubt over the extent to which activists will be able to freely express themselves around the summit.

SEE

https://plawiuk.blogspot.com/2022/10/greta-thunberg-visits-westminster-sit.html

https://plawiuk.blogspot.com/2022/10/greta-thunberg-to-skip-greenwashing.html

https://plawiuk.blogspot.com/2022/10/fake-cop-in-fake-democracy-at-least-70.html