Self-defence classes focus on safety, confidence, community for Toronto sex workers

Story by Sarah MacMillan • CBC

Tuesday, May 16, 2023

At a small Toronto boxing gym, people punch, jump, duck, and laugh. Working up a sweat is just one goal for those who are there.

All the participants in this class are sex workers — and they're there to learn self-defence.

"As part of my work, obviously safety is always a concern," said a sex worker who uses the name Selene.

"Hopefully I won't have to use it, but it's better to be prepared."

CBC Toronto has agreed to use the working names of sex workers interviewed for this story.

The classes are organized by the Maggie's Toronto Sex Workers Action Project, in response to an uptick in members reporting incidents of violence and harassment.
Demand for classes

Maggie's executive director Ellie Ade Kur said the ask for self-defence classes came directly from members.

"One of the things we hear a lot from sex workers is the issue around facing direct violence. Often not being able to necessarily defend or report that violence or be taken seriously," Ade Kur said.



The ask for self-defence classes came from sex workers themselves, who are at risk of harassment and violence on the job.© Sarah MacMillan/CBC

The group received a $50,000 grant from Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment to fund the classes, and Maggie's partnered with local boxing coach Frederic Montaricout to teach them. All 30 spots were filled within 24 hours, and within a week there were another 50 on the wait list.

"It grew a lot faster than any of us were really expecting it to, the level of demand and excitement for it," Ade Kur said.


The classes began in March, and will run until the end of June. After more than two months, there's clear progress, Montaricout said.

"I think everybody changed like differently … physically and mentally."



Frederic Montaricout teaches the self-defence classes at his small Toronto boxing gym

.© Sarah MacMillan/CBC

'Strength in numbers'

For Alexia Woodroe, the biggest takeaway from the classes has been confidence.

"The confidence in certain moves, the confidence in how I walk, the confidence in that if something were to happen, I have some idea of what to do, if at least just to get out of the situation," Woodroe said.

Fellow sex worker Alexandra Starr knows all too well what it's like to be in an unsafe situation. She said two years ago, she was assaulted by a client. She said an Uber driver saw what happened, and intervened, and also captured video of the assailant.

"I was definitely lucky, but I can only imagine for a girl that's really alone … it's really drastic what can happen, you know," Starr said.

"After that I was like, OK, I need to learn some skills to prevent this from happening in the future."



The classes focus on technical skills, but also bring sex workers together in a social setting.

© Sarah MacMillan/CBC

Starr said she upped her security process and screening of clients, and also began hitting the gym to improve her physical fitness.

When she heard about the classes organized by Maggie's, she jumped at the chance to learn specific self-defence skills — and also the chance to get to know others in the industry.

"Being a sex worker can be lonely sometimes, and you feel like you can't share your struggles with just kind of the everyday person. So having these girls that relate to you, and have been through the same things that you've been through, it definitely gives you that strength in numbers feeling," Starr said.

Ade Kur, with Maggie's, said those social connections are a big part of why she views the program as such a success. While the classes for this cohort are set to wrap up at the end of June, she hopes to be able to offer more classes in the future, if the group is able to secure funding.

"The violence that sex workers face in community because of criminalization and stigma is jarring and absolutely heartbreaking," Ade Kur said.

"But I also think on the flip side … it's important to also focus on the fact that there are people that are working to change that, that are working to build community and directly address that. Even in the absence of policy makers addressing the issue of criminalization."

GOOGLE UNION BUSTER

Google is downsizing its contract workforce that supports YouTube shortly after one contractor team's union victory

Story by tmaxwell@insider.com (Thomas Maxwell,Hugh Langley) • May 15, 2023

A building on the Google campus in Mountain View, California.

Google is reducing its contract workforce that supports YouTube operations.
Workers in Austin recently formed a collective-bargaining group with the Alphabet Workers Union.

Google is appealing an NLRB decision to categorize it as a "joint employer" of Cognizant staff.

Google is ending some business with contracting firms including Cognizant and Accenture, which employ workers who support various YouTube services. Google bought YouTube in 2006 for $1.65 billion.

The workers impacted by these cuts support YouTube TV and YouTube's social-media accounts. Most of the workers who will be cut are based in Austin, according to four people familiar with the matter. Cognizant workers began hearing about the cuts at the start of May, with effective end dates ranging from May 31 to the end of July, according to three workers.

It's unclear exactly how many Cognizant workers were affected. At Accenture, roughly 120 to 150 workers will lose their positions, two sources estimate. Insider was not able to verify an exact number in that case, either, though one Accenture worker said their effective end date is today.

The move comes shortly after a group of Cognizant workers supporting YouTube Music voted 41-0 in favor of unionizing with the Alphabet Workers Union, which is affiliated with the Communications Workers of America, a larger trade union. The National Labor Relations Board certified the vote on May 5. The cuts did not impact the YouTube Music team, which helps curate themed playlists and review song metadata.

1 of 28 Photos in Gallery©Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

The career rise of Susan Wojcicki, who rented her garage to Google's founders in 1998 and is now stepping down as the CEO of YouTube

Susan Wojcicki provided the garage space where Google was founded in 1998 and later became one of its first employees.

She rose up the company's ranks, becoming YouTube's CEO in 2014. On Thursday, she announced she's stepping down.

Here's a glimpse at the life of 54-year-old Susan Wojcicki, who has an estimated net worth of $765 million.

Most landlords only hope their renters pay on time, keep a tidy space, and don't disturb the neighbors.

But Susan Wojcicki's renters — Google cofounders Larry Page and Sergey Brin — ended up offering up a bit more: the chance to become employee No. 16 in 1998 at a young search engine startup called Google.

Of course, it's taken more than this incredible circumstance for Wojcicki to rise in the ranks at Google. From expanding the company's ad business to persuading its founders to purchase an up-and-coming video-sharing service called YouTube, Wojcicki has played a vital role in Google's becoming one of the world's most valuable companies.

She went on to serve as CEO of YouTube for nearly a decade before announcing Thursday that she's stepping down.

As Wojcicki vacates the role, here's a glimpse at her life and rise at Google from employee No. 16 to YouTube's chief:See More

The Cognizant team supporting YouTube TV had been in early talks to form their own union following the group at YouTube Music, according to three workers there.

In a statement, Google confirmed the changes to its contract workforce and denied it is related to union efforts.

"As we've said, we are managing our spend with our suppliers and vendors more effectively to create durable savings where possible," a spokesperson said. "This work has been happening for well over a year across Alphabet and spans dozens of our major suppliers in the U.S. and abroad. Any suggestion that these changes are due to reasons beyond increasing our efficiency and cost savings is untrue."

Cognizant also confirmed in an email that its contract supporting YouTube TV is ending.

"As a professional services company, ramp-downs and ramp-ups of projects are a normal part of Cognizant's work with clients," a spokesperson said in a statement. "We do have a ramp down in our YouTube TV project; although this specific project has come to an end, those affected by this change remain Cognizant employees."

Workers affected by Google's decision to end business with Cognizant will be placed on a "bench" policy, giving them five weeks of paid time to receive training and find a new job internally before they are let go, the spokesperson added.

An Accenture spokesperson wrote in a statement, "From time to time, we adjust our workforce on ongoing projects to meet the needs of our clients. We are fully committed to supporting our people through this transition."

Google and Cognizant have been appealing an NLRB ruling that deemed the search giant as a "joint employer" of Cognizant's workers who support YouTube. Cognizant HR representatives previously told workers that even if the ruling was upheld, Google would only have minimal involvement in union negotiations.

Cognizant contractors for YouTube Music in Austin first announced their intentions to unionize last year to seek a guaranteed remote-work policy, as well as other changes. Contract workers for Google at other agencies have also been organizing to demand better treatment from the search giant.

Many workers at Appen, who are referred to as "raters" because they rate the quality and relevance of search results, recently visited the Google headquarters to demand better wages, among other changes to their working conditions. Google started layoffs of 12,000 full-time employees in January, citing changing economic conditions.

Other companies like Apple, Starbucks, and Wells Fargo have been pushing back against a rise in union efforts. Even though interest in unions is near all-time highs, only about 10% of US workers are union members.

GOOD

Developer of Alaska's Pebble mine raises going concern doubts

Story by Reuters • May 15, 2023

(Reuters) -Canada's Northern Dynasty Minerals Ltd on Monday raised doubts about its ability to continue as a going concern if the company is unable to raise the necessary capital for the Pebble copper and gold mining project in Alaska.

Northern added that it is in process of exploring and evaluating the Pebble project and has not yet determined whether the project contains mineral reserves that are economically recoverable.

The project has been through a roller coaster of regulations for the past 15 years. Former U.S. President Barack Obama opposed the project, and his successor Donald Trump ultimately did, too, after deciding it was too risky.

President Joe Biden has also long opposed the project and took steps upon taking office in 2021 to permanently protect Alaska's Bristol Bay.

To continue operations, Northern is entirely dependent upon the existence of these economically recoverable mineral reserves and its ability to obtain financing to complete the exploration and development of the project.

As of March 31, Northern and its units had C$9.4 million ($7 million) in cash and cash equivalents for its operating requirements and working capital of C$8.1 million.

The company would require additional financing in order to progress any material expenditures at the Pebble project and for working capital requirements.

In January the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said it plans to take steps to block the proposed project by preventing Northern Dynasty from storing mine waste in the state's vast watershed.

($1 = 1.3372 Canadian dollars)

(Reporting by Arunima Kumar in Bengaluru; Editing by Eileen Soreng and Varun H K)

Canada considers 'forever chemicals' ban of cancer-causing agents

1 day ago

GLOBAL NEWS

We can’t see it but there’s a silent killer lurking in our homes. An invisible danger that is found in things we use every day – forever chemicals. As the name implies, the cancer-causing agents are doing lasting damage to our health and the environment. Ottawa is now looking at limiting or banning these chemicals and as Brittney Rosen reports, experts say it can’t come soon enough.
 

Toxic 'forever chemicals' are turning up in Canadians' blood samples

CBC News

1 day ago

Health Canada and Environment Canada released a report on the science on PFAS, chemicals found in various consumer products — cosmetics, diapers, menstrual products, food packaging, carpets, furniture and clothing. Both departments propose listing the human-made chemicals as toxic under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA).

 

Sustainable packaging contains harmful chemicals: study

CBC News: The National

Mar 31, 2023  #news #chemicals #sustainablepackaging

New research has found that some packaging that's touted as environmentally friendly contains high-levels of PFAS chemicals that can be damaging to the environment and human health. PFAS are hard to break down and have been linked to multiple different types of cancer.

Federal environment committee to make Imperial Oil's Kearl tailings leak documents public

Story by The Canadian Press • May 15, 2023

The public will soon be able to read a lengthy document Imperial Oil submitted to a parliamentary committee studying the recent tailings leaks at its Kearl oilsands mine in northern Alberta.

A motion by Bloc Québécois MP Monique Pauzé to publicly post witness submissions received by the Standing Committee on Environment and Sustainable Development was passed after some debate on Thursday evening.

To date, only one brief submitted by the Athabasca Chipewyan Métis Association is available on the committee’s webpage for the Kearl study.

The environment committee generally publishes all the briefs it receives. But it is not standard practice to upload other documents and additional information MPs often request from witnesses. Pauzé’s motion created a one-time exception to this standard procedure.

“We didn't receive a ton of documents but there are tables and numbers, and I think it could be interesting for everyone to have access to these documents,” Pauzé said in her motion on May 11. It is not clear exactly how many documents were submitted to the committee, but there is at least one 1,250-page submission from Imperial — which includes technical information, charts, an executive summary and recommendations — that would be made publicly available.

Conservative MP Mike Lake urged the committee to give witnesses who submitted information a courtesy notice that it will be made public and give them the opportunity to request a meeting or speak up if the documents contain some commercially sensitive information. Committee chair Francis Scarpaleggia said Imperial Oil will be notified.

“It’s a good idea to be as transparent as we can,” said Liberal MP Lloyd Longfield in agreement with Pauzé’s proposition.

“During the witness testimony, we heard transparency over and over was an issue here, so I think whatever we have that we can share with the public would be worthwhile,” said Longfield.

There was, however, some debate over the difficulties of translating the 1,250-page technical document submitted by Imperial Oil, in particular the technical tables, into French. It would take a translator a year to translate the entirety of the document, said Scarpaleggia. In response to translation concerns, Pauzé suggested that just the executive summary and recommendations could be translated, not the technical tables, a proposal that was accepted by the committee.

Conservative MP and environment critic Gérard Deltell wondered aloud whether the people who sent in documents understood at the time that they could become public.

“I'm not well placed to understand whether this is confidential information,” Deltell said in French, adding that he’d like to do a file-by-file check to ensure that no personal information will be inadvertently published. Conservative MP Damien Kurek echoed Deltell’s point.

“I do share the concern, just about the integrity of our committee process here in the House, that I don't know what the expectations were for those who are coming on commercially sensitive information and that sort of thing,” said Kurek.

Scarpaleggia said witnesses should expect documentation supporting their public testimony to also be public. When there is a sensitive issue, the committee can decide to see a witness in-camera, a.k.a., a meeting closed to the public, he said.

“It's a public study. These are public documents. If it were confidential, we would have said so,” said Pauzé in response to the concerns raised by her Conservative colleagues. “The people from Imperial don't expect the document that has 1,250 pages to not be made public.”

The Alberta Energy Regulator has not yet sent in any information to the committee because its internal investigation is ongoing, parliamentarians noted. The deadline to submit additional information for the committee’s study has already passed.

Natasha Bulowski, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Canada's National Observer

Alien-like comb jellies have a nervous system like nothing ever seen before

Comb jellies appear to have fused nervous systems, raising questions about their evolution.

© Andrey Nekrasov/Getty Images

Story by Stephanie Pappas • May 15, 2023

Ctenophores, or comb jellies, are strange jelly-like animals that ghost through the sea propelled by tiny hairs called cilia. They're an enigmatic bunch, with origins that stretch back approximately 540 million years, and no one is sure exactly when they diverged from the rest of the tree of life.

Now, researchers have discovered that these alien-like creatures are even weirder than we thought: Their nervous system is like nothing ever seen before. Instead of relying on gaps between nerve cells called synapses for communication, at least part of the ctenophore nervous system is fused.

"We haven't actually seen this in any other animal before," study co-author Maike Kittelmann, a cell and developmental biologist at Oxford Brookes University in the U.K., told Live Science. "It means that there are other ways that neurons can connect to each other."
Nervous system evolution

The discovery raises questions about how all nervous systems evolved and adds fuel to a long-standing debate about how comb jellies are related to the rest of the animal kingdom. Many scientists thought that the nervous system in animals evolved only once, at some point after sponges broke off from the rest of the animal kingdom, as sponges do not have a nervous system. But some scientists think ctenophores diverged from other animals early and evolved their own nervous system separately.

Related: What's the weirdest sea creature ever discovered?

Comb jellies don't have brains, but have a weblike system of neurons known as the nerve net. It's within this nerve net that researchers found the fused neurons. The strange fused arrangement could hint that these systems evolved independently, Kittlemann said. But it's still an open question.

"We don’t really know for sure," she said.

The new research, published April 20 in the journal Science, looks at ctenophores in an early developmental stage, when they're just a few days old. At this stage, ctenophores can move around freely and even reproduce, but they're not full adults. (Depending on species, ctenophores have life spans between about a month and several years.)

The vast majority of nerve cells in animals communicate via synapses, which are gaps between cells. To "talk," neurons release chemicals called neurotransmitters across these gaps. But the new study found that within the ctenophore nerve net, the cells are fused and their membranes connected so that the path from cell body to cell body is continuous. This structure is called a syncytium.

"There are some other animals which show fused neurons but not to that extreme, where you have a whole nerve net," study co-author Pawel Burkhardt, who studies the evolutionary origin of neurons and synapses at Norway's University of Bergen, told Live Science.

Fused neural networks

The discovery raises a whole bevy of new questions, Burkhardt said, from how this fused network develops to how it functions. The same cells that are fused together also make connections to other nerve cells via synapses, and other parts of the ctenophore nervous system use synapses, too. It's not clear, Burkhardt said, why comb jellies use two different methods of communication between their nerve cells.

One possibility is that the fused nervous system has some advantage for tissue repair and healing, Leslie Babonis, an evolutionary biologist at Cornell University who was not involved in the new study, told Live Science. Ctenophores are capable of regenerating an entirely new animal from a small chunk of flesh.

"Maybe this is one of the secrets to their incredible ability for regeneration," Babonis said.

The research team only looked at one species of ctenophore — Mnemiopsis leidyi — in one developmental stage, so they now plan to find out whether other species have fused neural networks and whether this fusion persists through the animal's whole lifespan.

This could help answer questions about the evolution of the nervous system and whether it arose once, twice or more times. If many ctenophores have unique fused nervous systems, this could lend credence to the hypothesis that ctenophores evolved their nervous system separately from other animals. But it's also possible that all animal nervous systems still share a common origin, and ctenophores evolved the fusion later, the researchers said.

Only a handful of lineages in the animal kingdom have had their nervous systems closely studied, Leonid Moroz, a biologist at the Whitney Laboratory for Marine Biosciences at the University of Florida, told Live Science. Moroz was not involved in the current study but led a 2014 study of ctenophores, which found that the genetic and chemical basis of the ctenophore neural system is quite different from that seen in other animals.

If the nervous system is a poem, Moroz said, ctenophores use a different alphabet from the rest of the animal kingdom to write theirs. He argues that these jellies evolved their nervous system independently, and that other understudied animals may have done the same. Unraveling this diversity could lead to a deeper understanding of how neurological disorders arise.

"We need to understand syntax, we need to understand grammar," Moroz said. "But we cannot do it with only one or few species."

Microsoft wins EU antitrust approval for Activision deal vetoed by UK

Story by By Foo Yun Chee • May 15, 2023

 Illustration of Microsoft and Activision Blizzard game characters

© Thomson Reuters

BRUSSELS (Reuters) -Microsoft Corp won EU antitrust approval for its $69 billion acquisition of Activision on Monday, in a significant boost that could prompt Chinese and South Korean regulators to follow suit despite a British veto of the deal.

The U.S. software giant still faces a battle to clinch the world's biggest gaming industry takeover, however. It has until May 24 to appeal a decision by Britain's Competition & Markets Authority (CMA) to block it. A final decision may take months.

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission's case against the deal is also pending at the agency, though Japan approved it in March.

The European Commission said the transaction was pro-competitive due to Microsoft's agreement to licence popular Activision games such as "Call of Duty" to rival game streaming platforms, confirming a Reuters report in March.

Such licences are "practical and effective", European Union antitrust chief Margrethe Vestager told reporters.

"Actually they significantly improve the condition for cloud game streaming compared to the present situation, which is why we actually consider them pro-competitive," she added, contrasting with the UK position that the deal would hit competition in that part of the market.

In rejecting the deal, the UK watchdog was seen as flexing its muscle on the global regulatory stage since Brexit.

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Microsoft has in recent months signed licensing deals with Nvidia, Nintendo, Ukraine's Boosteroid and Japan's Ubitus to bring Activision games to their platforms should the deal go through.

"The European Commission has required Microsoft to license popular Activision Blizzard games automatically to competing cloud gaming services. This will apply globally and will empower millions of consumers worldwide to play these games on any device they choose," said Microsoft President Brad Smith.

Activision's shares were up 1.3% at 1650 GMT, while Microsoft's were little changed.

CLOUD GAMING MARKET GROWTH

Vestager said the Commission had a different view from UK regulators of how the game streaming market, which accounted for just 1% of the total market last year, would develop.

"They see this market developing faster than we would think," she said. "There is a bit of a paradox here, because we think that the remedies that we have taken ... will allow for licensing to many, many more in the cloud gaming markets."

Britain's CMA said streaming was the most rapidly growing sector in gaming, while consoles were a mature market. It said Microsoft already accounted for 60-70% of global cloud gaming services and had other trump cards: Xbox, the leading PC operating system Windows and cloud provider Azure.

The CMA said on Monday it stood by its veto. Microsoft has said it will appeal that decision to the Competition Appeal Tribunal, with a ruling expected to take months.

The EU move will give CMA critics ammunition against the agency, said Alex Haffner, a partner at London law firm Fladgate.

"Critics of the CMA's stance, of which there have been many, will inevitably seize on today’s decision as proving the point made that the UK's regulatory regime is too rigid and stifles innovation," he said.

"Microsoft and Activision’s lawyers will also use the decision to provide greater ballast to their appeal of the CMA's decision."

(Reporting by Foo Yun Chee, additional reporting by Paul Sandle in London; Editing by Alexander Smith and Mark Potter)

KRIMINAL KAPITALI$M; KIEV

Ukrainian security agency says it suspects tycoon Firtash of embezzlement

Story by Reuters • May 15, 2023

Ukrainian oligarch Dmytro Firtash arrives at court in Vienna© Thomson Reuters

KYIV (Reuters) -Ukraine's state security agency has served businessman Dmytro Firtash and top managers of companies he controls with "notices of suspicion" of embezzlement, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) said in a statement on Monday.


Ukrainian oligarch Dmytro Firtash arrives at court in Vienna© Thomson Reuters

The SBU said that, acting with the Economic Security Bureau (BEB), it had uncovered the alleged theft of up to $485 million between 2016 and 2022 as part of a "large-scale scheme" involving Ukraine's gas transit system.

"Effectively we are talking about the embezzlement of money from ordinary Ukrainians who paid their utility bills," the statement said

A statement issued by Firtash's company, Group DF, "firmly and categorically" rejected all the allegations as without legal foundation and "part of an ongoing campaign of corrupt pressure directed at its business operations."

It said the company and its legal advisers "will vigorously defend the interests of its businesses, personnel, and the shareholder in both Ukrainian and international courts."

The statement said Group DF had suffered losses linked to Russia's invasion of Ukraine and "will continue to support the defence effort against the Russian aggression."

While fighting Russia's invasion, Ukraine has also been seeking to reduce the political influence enjoyed by some businessmen since the collapse of the Soviet Union. The European Union has also made tackling corruption a priority for Kyiv as it tries to join the wealthy bloc.

Ukraine imposed sanctions on Firtash last June, accusing him of selling titanium products that Kyiv said ended up being used by Russian military enterprises. Firtash denied the allegations.

Firtash, 58, rose to wealth and influence in Ukraine but has been indicted in the United States on bribery and racketeering charges. He denied wrongdoing and has fought extradition from Vienna.

(Reporting by Dan Peleschuk in KyivEditing by Ron Popeski, Timothy Heritage and Matthew Lewis)

 END BEAR HUNTING

Wyoming black bear hunter accused of killing protected grizzly near highway into Yellowstone

Story by By MEAD GRUVER, Associated Press • May 15, 2023

CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — A Wyoming hunter faces up to a year in jail and a $10,000 fine if convicted of killing a protected grizzly bear he allegedly claims he mistook for a legal-to-hunt black bear outside Yellowstone National Park.

The male grizzly weighing about 530 pounds (240 kilograms) drew a lot of attention from drivers after its death May 1 near U.S. 14-16-20, the eastern approach into Yellowstone.

Patrick M. Gogerty, of Cody, turned himself in early the next morning, Wyoming Game and Fish Department game warden Travis Crane wrote in an affidavit filed in Park County Circuit Court.

By then, rumors about the dead bear were circulating far and wide.

“Gogerty should have turned himself in immediately,” Crane wrote.

Grizzlies in the Yellowstone region of southern Montana, eastern Idaho and northwestern Wyoming are a federally protected species. Killing one without a good reason, such as self defense, can bring tough penalties under state and federal law.

Gogerty is charged under Wyoming law with killing a grizzly bear without a license, a misdemeanor. Along with the jail time and hefty fine, he would face having to pay as much as $25,000 in restitution if convicted.

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Gogerty, who is scheduled for an arraignment Friday in Park County Circuit Court, couldn't be reached for comment. He had no listed phone number and no attorney in court records who might comment on his behalf.

Black bears are typically smaller and darker than grizzly bears. Large black bears with brownish coloring, and small grizzly bears with darker coloring, sometimes get mistaken for the other species, however.

Gogerty went hunting on the day the regular black bear hunting season opened in areas west of Cody. He first saw the grizzly about 100 yards (90 meters) off the highway, according to the affidavit filed Thursday in Circuit Court.

At first, he was confident that the bear he shot at seven times was a black bear because the animal didn't have a grizzly's characteristically humped back, he allegedly told Crane, the game warden.

“When Gogerty went up to the bear and saw the bear's claws, the pads and the head of the bear, he realized it was a grizzly bear,” Crane wrote in the affidavit.

The bear had been shot at least four times, the affidavit alleges.

Hunters and others on Yellowstone's outskirts kill grizzlies in self-defense or in cases of mistaken identity fairly often — about six times per year, on average, from 2015 to 2020, according to researchers.

Such encounters typically occur on private land or remote areas, far from the public eye.

As many as 50,000 grizzlies once roamed the western U.S., far more than today. Still, they are considered a conservation success story with rebounding numbers in Yellowstone and other pockets in the lower 48 states.

Grizzly-human encounters have increased as the Yellowstone region's grizzly population has grown as much as tenfold, to as many as 1,000 animals, since the 1970s.

Fire protection company Kidde-Fenwal files for bankruptcy citing PFAS lawsuits

Story by By Dietrich Knauth • May 15, 2023

Signage is seen at the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York in Manhattan, New York City© Thomson Reuters

By Dietrich Knauth

(Reuters) - Kidde-Fenwal Inc, a subsidiary of Carrier Global Corp that specializes in fire control systems, filed for bankruptcy on Sunday, as it buckles under the weight of lawsuits alleging that "forever chemicals" in its firefighting foam products have contaminated water sources around U.S. airports and military bases.

Kidde-Fenwal filed for Chapter 11 protection in Delaware bankruptcy court. The company is seeking a buyer for its business, saying its likely liability in the litigation "substantially exceeds" its capacity to pay.

Since 2016, Kidde-Fenwal has been named as a defendant in more than 4,400 lawsuits filed by local governments, companies and individuals, claiming that aqueous film forming foam (AFFF) products contaminated drinking water and soil with perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, known as PFAS or "forever chemicals." Kidde-Fenwal sold AFFF foam products from 2007 to 2013, according to court documents.

Kidde-Fenwal is one of several defendants, along with 3M Co and DuPont de Nemours Inc, to face a bellwether trial in June in South Carolina federal court, where AFFF litigation has been consolidated.

The litigation has cost Kidde-Fenwal $6 million in 2023 alone. Kidde-Fenwal has $318 million in assets, and had $200 million in sale revenue for 2022, according to its court filings.

AFFF was jointly developed by 3M and the U.S. military in the 1970s, and has primarily been used to quickly extinguish burning fuel fires at military bases and airports, according to court documents.

Kidde-Fenwal does not make AFFF products, but it previously sold AFFF products through a subsidiary called National Foam. Kidde-Fenwal sold National Foam in 2013 for $77 million to a company that became known as New National Foam, according to court documents.

Carrier Global said Monday that it would support Kidde-Fenwal's efforts to find a buyer in bankruptcy, and that all proceeds from the sale would be available to pay AFFF liabilities and other claims. Carrier said there was "no assurance" that it would receive any recovery from a bankruptcy sale.

Carrier took ownership of Kidde-Fenwal when both companies were spun off from United Technologies Corp in 2020. Carrier said in a Monday statement that Kidde-Fenwal was an independently managed company and was not a "strategic fit" for Carrier going forward.

PFAS are found in thousands of products, from cell phones to food packaging. They have been the subject of an increasing number of lawsuits linking them to cancer, other health risks and environmental damage. 3M, a central defendant in the AFFF lawsuits, has said it would stop producing PFAS by 2025.

The case is In re Kidde-Fenwal Inc, U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware, No. 23-10638.

For Kidde-Fenwal: Derek Abbott of Morris, Nichols, Arsht & Tunnell; and Justin DeCamp of Sullivan & Cromwell

Read more:

North Carolina sues 3M, others over firefighting foams

3M to end 'forever chemicals' output at cost of up to $2.3 bln

New York sues 3M, five others over toxic chemical contamination

California sues 3M, DuPont over toxic 'forever chemicals'

(Reporting by Dietrich Knaut