Symbient Environmental ($1.5 million) of Mississauga, Ontario – a start-up wastewater treatment company that is pioneering a low-cost system to disinfect wastewater using performic acid instead of chlorine, reducing impacts on aquatic environments.
Fresh water: Quebec to spend $150M annually to protect 'blue gold'
Quebec plans to “significantly increase” the fees charged to companies that extract fresh water in the province, Premier François Legault said Thursday. Speaking at the United Nations COP15 biodiversity conference in Montreal, the premier announced his Coalition Avenir Québec government will introduce a bill early in 2023 on protecting water. Describing water as “blue gold,” Legault said 25 per cent of the planet’s fresh water runs through the St. Lawrence River.
Companies fined after beaver dam removal floods Nesslin Lake in northern Sask.
Two forestry companies and a contractor have been fined for their roles in 2019 road repairs gone wrong that led to flooding in a northern Saskatchewan lake, the province says. A track hoe was used to remove a beaver dam during road repairs in July 2019 near Nesslin Lake, about 200 kilometres north of Saskatoon, the province said in a Friday news release. Water and other sediment leaked into a creek before flowing south into the lake, causing water levels to rise quickly and resulting in flooding.
Government of Canada invests in climate change awareness and action project for young Canadians
Canadians want clean air and clean water for their children and grandchildren. When companies pollute our natural environment, they pay the price, and the Government of Canada ensures that environmental good follows environmental harm by reinvesting those fines in projects that will benefit our environment. Today, Kate Young, Member of Parliament for London West, on behalf of the Honourable Jonathan Wilkinson, Minister of Environment and Climate Change, announced that the Government of Canada is investing $5.9 million from environmental fines into Let's Talk Science. With this funding, Let's Talk Science will engage over 600,000 youth across Canada in climate science awareness and action through regional events, action projects, hands-on activities and a suite of digital resources, including career information.
Neskantaga First Nation Still Doesn’t Have Clean Water
This past November marked 25 years since Neskantaga First Nation, located in Northwestern Ontario, was placed on a boil water advisory. In October 2020, over 250 Neskantaga residents were evacuated and transferred to a hotel in Thunder Bay after “an oily sheen was found in the Neskantaga water reservoir;” “high levels of hydrocarbons” were discovered in the water after testing. Residents were able to return after two months, but the boil water advisory remains. Chief Chris Moonias has called upon Ontario Premier Doug Ford to support Neskantaga First Nation in securing clean drinking water and properly trained water operators – Ford has yet to respond. Ending all boil-water advisories in Canada can no longer be delayed; Ford must act in accordance with the concerns of the Neskantaga First Nation immediately.
Province's plans to change gravel pit rules could harm local water, natural areas: report
Regional staff are urging the province to reconsider proposed policy changes that could loosen rules around gravel mining and other aggregate extraction. Aggregate is the technical term for raw materials like sand, gravel and stone. The proposed changes are outlined in a draft update to the Provincial Policy Statement, a document that provides direction on land use planning across the province.