<html><head></head><body><div><span><div>Hi folks</div><div><br></div><div>Here's a quick summery of all the latest Enviro news.</div><div><br></div><div><b><br></b></div><div><b>Local</b></div><div><br></div><div><b>The Costs of Climate Change</b></div><div><br></div><div>Waterloo council has approved three key proposals to improve outdoor spaces in the uptown, while warning the unfunded projects won't happen right away. The city will wait for better mapping of the Laurel Creek flood plain before implementing top outdoor priorities.</div><div>https://www.waterloochronicle.ca/news-story/9205152-plans-to-improve-uptown-waterloo-outdoor-spaces-may-take-time/</div><div>In 2018, the warmest year on record globally, the IBC (Insurance Bureau of Canada) reported $1.9 billion in insured losses due to high volume of severe weather events. A 2017 report by Partners for Action found that 94 per cent of Canadians living in flood risk zones didn’t know they were at risk.</div><div>https://www.waterloochronicle.ca/news-story/9188223-better-flood-resiliency-required-to-deal-with-wild-weather-experts-warn/</div><div><br></div><div>People can also find out their personal level of flood risk by using the online flood risk assessment tool at www.water.cooperators.ca.</div><div><br></div><div><b><br></b></div><div><b>Waterloo Region 2017 Water Quality Report </b></div><div><br></div><div>The report is now online in PDF form and can be viewed here in pdf. </div><div>https://www.regionofwaterloo.ca/en/living-here/resources/Documents/water/reports/2017WaterQualityReport.pdf</div><div>Room </div><div> </div><div><b>Laurel Creek & Silver Lake Rehabilitation Openhouse</b></div><div><br></div><div>Tomorrow there is a public openhouse on the Class EA process regarding rehabilitation of Silver Lake, Laurel Creek and Waterloo Park taking place March 6 from 5:30 to 7:30 at the Waterloo Memorial Recreation Complex (Swimplex) at 101 Father David Bauer Drive. More info here: </div><div>https://www.waterloo.ca/Modules/News/index.aspx?feedId=0d868655-ba17-4efa-988b-1951530c7aec&page=2&newsId=556488aa-ea89-4ff2-b111-d44f192c832e</div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><b>GRCA passes $35.2-million budget</b></div><div><b><br></b></div><div>The Grand River Conservation Authority (GRCA) will spend more than $35.2 million this year on programs protecting watershed with updates and implementation of the Drinking Water Source Protection Plan for the four watersheds within the Lake Erie source protection region. The authority will also continue its work to reduce potential flood damage, ensure water supply, improve water quality and build resilience to deal with climate change through its water management plan. They have also been given permission from the province to take up to $1.8 million from reserves to accelerate the hazardous tree management program over the next three years, to help deal with the fallout from the Emerald Ash Borer epidemic and other hazardous trees along trails and in its parks. Improvements will also be undertaken across the watershed at GRCA parks and to water control structures.</div><div><br></div><div><b>Help support the Groundwater Festival with a nice bowl of soup! </b></div><div><span><font size="3"><span style="color: rgb(20, 23, 26); font-family: Segoe UI, Arial, sans-serif; letter-spacing: 0.27px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Come enjoy a delicious lunch AND support the Children's Groundwater Festival at the "Just Add Water" Soup Fest at </span><a href="https://twitter.com/WRegionMuseum" class="ydpa8ec835dtwitter-atreply ydpa8ec835dpretty-link ydpa8ec835djs-nav" dir="ltr" data-mentioned-user-id="198591009" style="background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; color: rgb(179, 0, 36); font-family: Segoe UI, Arial, sans-serif; letter-spacing: 0.27px; white-space: pre-wrap;" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">@WRegionMuseum</a><span style="color: rgb(20, 23, 26); font-family: Segoe UI, Arial, sans-serif; letter-spacing: 0.27px; white-space: pre-wrap;"> on March 22. A $15 ticket will help us teach local students about water this May. Learn more at </span><a href="https://t.co/Zd7FXfWBk4" dir="ltr" data-expanded-url="http://www.wwcgf.com" class="ydpa8ec835dtwitter-timeline-link" title="http://www.wwcgf.com" style="background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; color: rgb(179, 0, 36); font-family: Segoe UI, Arial, sans-serif; letter-spacing: 0.27px; white-space: pre-wrap;" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">http://www.wwcgf.com </a></font></span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span><b>Fridays for Futures: Everyone welcome! </b></span></div><div><span><b><br></b></span></div><div><span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="3"><span style="color: rgb(20, 23, 26); white-space: pre-wrap;">March 15 is the International Fridays for Futures </span><span style="color: rgb(20, 23, 26); white-space: pre-wrap;"> rally. The local event is happening at 12:30 pm at Waterloo City Hall in solidarity for the Global Climate Strikes happening around the World. Come one come all big or small to demand Climate Change Action. Hosted by Kitchener-Waterloo Climate Save.</span></font></span></span></div><div><span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="3"><span style="color: rgb(20, 23, 26); white-space: pre-wrap;"><br></span></font></span></span></div><div><font size="3"><span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><span style="color: rgb(20, 23, 26); white-space: pre-wrap;"><span><span style="color: rgb(20, 23, 26); letter-spacing: 0.27px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>Women’s health conference on microbes looks at gut bacteria during pregnancy and their effect on babies.</b> </span></span></span></span></span></font></div><div><font size="3"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.27px; white-space: pre-wrap;">The conference is being held from March 7 to March 9 at McMaster University and will draw professionals from around the globe.<span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51);"> It's being held on Thursday, March 7 from 7 to 9 p.m. at the David Braley Health Sciences Centre Auditorium. <span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51);">Dragana Skokovic-Sunjic, a clinical pharmacist on the Hamilton Family Health Team and one of the lead organizers of the conference, says there's still a lot of misunderstanding about the importance of gut health. Every person's gut bacteria is like a unique fingerprint, she says, and can be influenced by a range of factors (including diet, environment and antibiotic use)</span></span></span></font></div><div><a href="https://www.thespec.com/living-story/9200837-women-s-health-conference-on-microbes-looks-at-gut-bacteria-during-pregnancy-and-their-effect-on-babies/#.XHqS35X19et.twitter" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" class="">https://www.thespec.com/living-story/9200837-women-s-health-conference-on-microbes-looks-at-gut-bacteria-during-pregnancy-and-their-effect-on-babies/#.XHqS35X19et.twitter</a><span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="3"><span style="color: rgb(20, 23, 26); white-space: pre-wrap;"><span><span style="color: rgb(20, 23, 26); letter-spacing: 0.27px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br></span></span></span></font></span></span></div><div><br></div><div><br></div></span></div><div><div><font size="3"><br></font></div><div><b>Provincial </b></div><div><b><font size="3"><br></font></b></div><div><b><font size="3">Happy Birthday Greenbelt! </font></b></div><div><b><font size="3" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><br></font></b></div><div><font size="3"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><span style="color: rgb(20, 23, 26); white-space: pre-wrap;">Ontario</span><span style="color: rgb(20, 23, 26); white-space: pre-wrap;"> Greenbelt Act turned 14 years old on Feb 28. Here is a lovely video on the successes of the program. It was made at the 10th anniversary but it still captures the amazing benefits and cost savings of the program. </span></span><span style="color: rgb(20, 23, 26); white-space: pre-wrap; background-color: rgb(245, 248, 250);"> </span><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q5D-hfj6VjA" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" style="">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q5D-hfj6VjA</a></font></div><div><br></div><div><b><font size="3">Ontario Green Party making History with Galt Paris Moriane Bill</font></b></div><div><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="3"><span style="color: rgb(20, 23, 26); white-space: pre-wrap;">Mike Schreiner aims to protect water in </span><strong style="color: rgb(20, 23, 26); white-space: pre-wrap;">Ontario</strong><span style="color: rgb(20, 23, 26); white-space: pre-wrap;">’s first-ever Green Party bill to Protect the Paris Galt Moraine. <span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Paris Galt Moraine that supplies drinking water to about 130,000 people in Guelph, and more than 200,000 in the region with</span></span> <span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">8 in 10 residents in Guelph dependant on wells. <span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Guelph as a community could face water shortages in the future if the expected population growth and climate change collide. </span></span>T<span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">he region's estimated population is set to increase to one million people by 2041.</span></span></span></span></span></font></span></div><div><a href="https://www.nationalobserver.com/2019/02/20/news/mike-schreiner-aims-protect-water-ontarios-first-ever-green-party-bill" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.nationalobserver.com/2019/02/20/news/mike-schreiner-aims-protect-water-ontarios-first-ever-green-party-bill</a><font size="3"><br></font></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div>Note: If we ever wanted to do the same for the Waterloo Moraine, here is a great report we can use: <span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: Droid Serif; font-weight: 700;"><font size="3">THE POTENTIAL IMPACT OF CLIMATE CHANGE ON ONTARIO'S GRAND RIVER BASIN: WATER SUPPLY AND DEMAND ISSUES. PDF online here: </font></span><a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.4296/cwrj2404307" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" class="">https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.4296/cwrj2404307</a></div><div><br></div><div><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><br></span></div><div><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><b>Taxpayers billed for Natural Gas Boondoggle</b></span></div><div><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><br></span></div><div><font size="3" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><span style="color: rgb(20, 23, 26); white-space: pre-wrap;">Last year the Province of </span><span style="color: rgb(20, 23, 26); white-space: pre-wrap;">Ontario</span><span style="color: rgb(20, 23, 26); white-space: pre-wrap;"> paid $12.3 million to hook up 1,370 homes & 155 businesses to Enbridge gas in Cambray, Cameron & Fenelon Falls. To date only 34 residents and one business are using it. R<span style="color: rgb(20, 23, 26); white-space: pre-wrap;">esidents in Cameron and Fenelon Falls concerned that Enbridge Gas “sneaked in” a system expansion surcharge that will be added to customers’ monthly gas bill for the next 40 years. </span></span></font><br></div><div><a href="https://www.mykawartha.com/news-story/9179030-cameron-area-residents-accuse-enbridge-gas-of-hiding-system-expansion-surcharge/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.mykawartha.com/news-story/9179030-cameron-area-residents-accuse-enbridge-gas-of-hiding-system-expansion-surcharge/</a><font size="3" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><span style="color: rgb(20, 23, 26); white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: rgb(20, 23, 26); white-space: pre-wrap;"><br></span></span></font></div><div><br></div><div><b>Salt Study & Petition</b></div><div><span><font size="3"><span style="color: rgb(38, 50, 56); letter-spacing: 0.56px;">Recent studies have </span><span style="padding: 0px; margin: 0px; color: rgb(38, 50, 56); letter-spacing: 0.56px;">found salt concentrations in some GTA rivers and creeks to be as high as sea water.</span><span style="color: rgb(38, 50, 56); letter-spacing: 0.56px;"> Salt levels that high are lethal for many freshwater species. What’s to blame? Excessive road and sidewalk salting. Take action with this quick sign petition to reduce the salt. </span></font></span><br></div><div><a href="https://act.environmentaldefence.ca/page/35147/action/1?ea.tracking.id=twitter" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" class="">https://act.environmentaldefence.ca/page/35147/action/1?ea.tracking.id=twitter</a><span><font size="3"><span style="color: rgb(38, 50, 56); letter-spacing: 0.56px;"><br></span></font></span></div><div><br></div><div><b>Suncor is getting Sued for Climate Change</b></div><div><font size="3"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><span style="color: rgb(20, 23, 26); white-space: pre-wrap;">Suncor</span><span style="color: rgb(20, 23, 26); white-space: pre-wrap;"> warns investors that it is already being sued over climate change & could face more "litigation pertaining to GHG emissions, the production, sale, or promotion of fossil fuels and petroleum products, and/or disclosure." as noted on page 69 of their 2018 Annual Report. PDF here: </span></span></font><a href="https://t.co/btFBqxfl9C" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://t.co/btFBqxfl9C</a></div><div><br></div><div><span><span style="color: rgb(20, 23, 26); letter-spacing: 0.27px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><font size="3" style=""><b>Deep Nuclear Geological Repository delayed until next government. </b></font></span></span></div><div><span><span style="color: rgb(20, 23, 26); letter-spacing: 0.27px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><font size="3" style="">The decision for the Lake Huron Nuclear Deep Geological Repository for low level nuclear waste is likely to fall to the next federal government. <span style="color: rgb(64, 64, 64); background-color: rgb(250, 250, 250);">Environment Minister Catherine McKenna paused the process in August 2017 — the latest in a string of delays for the deep geologic repository — to ensure buy-in from Indigenous people in the area. However, members of the Saugeen Ojibway Nation have made it clear they are in no rush to give Ontario Power Generation their blessing for the proposed facility. </span></font></span></span><a href="https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2019/02/17/nuclear-waste-bunker-decision-to-likely-to-fall-to-next-federal-government.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" class="">https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2019/02/17/nuclear-waste-bunker-decision-to-likely-to-fall-to-next-federal-government.html</a><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><font size="3">Federal </font></div><div><font size="3"><br></font></div><div><b><font size="3">Enbridge Line 3 is delayed for a year.</font></b></div><div><font size="3"><span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">The $7.6-billion, 370,000-barrels-per-day Line 3 pipeline project would not be moving Canadian oil to the U.S. Midwest until mid- to late-2020. The new in-service date is roughly one year later than expected.</span></span></font></div><div><a href="https://business.financialpost.com/commodities/energy/line-3-delays-may-see-oil-by-rail-rocket-past-500000-bpd-and-alberta-extending-curtailment" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" class=""><font size="3">https://business.financialpost.com/commodities/energy/line-3-delays-may-see-oil-by-rail-rocket-past-500000-bpd-and-alberta-extending-curtailment</font></a></div><div><span><span style="color: rgb(80, 101, 118); letter-spacing: 1.3px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><font size="3"><br></font></span></span></div><div><font size="3"><span><span style="color: rgb(20, 23, 26); letter-spacing: 0.27px; white-space: pre-wrap;">A $3.3 million grant for Fort Chipewyan will lead to Canada’s biggest remote solar project.</span></span></font></div><div><font size="3"><a href="https://www.pembina.org/media-release/33m-grant-fort-chipewyan-will-lead-canadas-biggest-remote-solar-project" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.pembina.org/media-release/33m-grant-fort-chipewyan-will-lead-canadas-biggest-remote-solar-project</a> <br></font></div><div><font size="3"><br></font></div><div><font size="3"><br></font></div><div><b><font size="3">Resolute Forest Vs. Stand Earth & Greenpeace update</font></b></div><div><font size="3"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><span style="color: rgb(20, 23, 26); white-space: pre-wrap;">Resolute Forest Products loses controversial case against Stand Earth and nearly</span><span style="color: rgb(20, 23, 26); white-space: pre-wrap;"> all of Greenpeace</span><span style="color: rgb(20, 23, 26); white-space: pre-wrap;"> claims were dismissed, including racketeering charges.</span></span><br></font></div><div><a href="https://www.stand.earth/latest/protect-free-speech/resolute%E2%80%99s-bullying-lawsuit/us-federal-court-dismisses-free-speech" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" class=""><font size="3">https://www.stand.earth/latest/protect-free-speech/resolute%E2%80%99s-bullying-lawsuit/us-federal-court-dismisses-free-speech</font></a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><span style="color: rgb(20, 23, 26); font-family: Segoe UI, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br></span></span></div><div><br></div><div>International</div><div><br></div><div><b>Dangers of Neonicotinoid & Chlorinated Water. </b></div><div><span><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Helveticaneueltstd roman, Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">Pesticide water monitoring experts at the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) paired up with scientists from the University of Iowa in a federally-funded collaboration to track </span><a href="https://www.nrdc.org/experts/daniel-raichel/ten-things-you-always-wanted-know-about-neonics" style="color: rgb(0, 143, 189); font-family: Helveticaneueltstd roman, Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">neonicotinoid pesticides or “neonics</a><span style="font-family: Helveticaneueltstd roman, Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;"><font color="#666666">” in tap water, including the potential to form chlorinated disinfection byproducts (DBPs) from the pesticides and their metabolites that may be more toxic than the original compounds. And, the news isn’t good. When mixed with chlorinated water it creates <span><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Helveticaneueltstd roman, Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">desnitro-imidacloprid which is </span></span><span><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Helveticaneueltstd roman, Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">319 times more toxic to mammals than imidacloprid, so even much lower levels could be harmful.</span></span> T</font><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Helveticaneueltstd roman, Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">he U.S. Department of Agriculture has also found neonics inside fruits and vegetables where they cannot be washed off. Article and links to the reports are online here: </span></span></span><br></div><div><a href="https://www.nrdc.org/experts/jennifer-sass/neonic-pesticide-may-become-more-toxic-tap-water?utm_source=tw&utm_medium=tweet&utm_campaign=CleanWater" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" class="">https://www.nrdc.org/experts/jennifer-sass/neonic-pesticide-may-become-more-toxic-tap-water?utm_source=tw&utm_medium=tweet&utm_campaign=CleanWater</a></div><div><span><span style="color: rgb(20, 23, 26); font-family: Segoe UI, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap; background-color: rgb(245, 248, 250);"><br></span></span></div><div><b>Roundup Lawsuits increasing </b></div><div><font size="3"><span><span style="color: rgb(40, 47, 47); letter-spacing: 0.5px;">Bayer is now facing lawsuits from around 11,200 plaintiffs over the health implications of Roundup and Ranger Pro, its glyphosate-based weedkillers.<span><span style="color: rgb(40, 47, 47); letter-spacing: 0.5px;">The company is currently appealing against a ruling that said its Monsanto products were responsible for groundskeeper Dewayne Johnson’s cancer</span><span style="color: rgb(40, 47, 47); font-family: PT Serif, Georgia, Times, serif; font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: 0.5px;">.</span></span></span></span><br></font></div><div><a href="http://fortune.com/2019/02/27/bayer-monsanto-weedkiller-cancer-risk/?utm_source=twitter.com&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=social-share-article" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" class=""><font size="3">http://fortune.com/2019/02/27/bayer-monsanto-weedkiller-cancer-risk/?utm_source=twitter.com&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=social-share-article</font></a><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div>Quick Sign Petitions</div><div><br></div><div>Tell your MPP it's time for a REAL climate plan in Ontairo <a href="https://act.leadnow.ca/MPP-peoples-climate-plan-ontario/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://act.leadnow.ca/MPP-peoples-climate-plan-ontario/</a><br></div><div><br></div><div>NRDC made it easy to save the environment against ALL of Trump's changes. Just click the blue sections. It is an international petition. <a href="https://www.nrdc.org/fighting-trump-agenda?utm_source=tw&utm_medium=tweet&utm_campaign=socialmedia" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" class="">https://www.nrdc.org/fighting-trump-agenda?utm_source=tw&utm_medium=tweet&utm_campaign=socialmedia</a></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div>Have a good one everybody! </div><div><br></div><div>Lulu :0) </div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div style="margin: 0px 0px 1.1em; padding: 0px; font-family: Lato, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 1.3em; clear: none; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: 1.1em;"><br></div><br></div><div class="ydp21dfd17fyahoo-style-wrap" style="font-family:Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;font-size:16px;"></div></body></html>