The past two weeks Mennonite Heritage Village (MHV) has hosted the Clean Environment Commission hearing about a proposed silica extraction project in our region’s main aquifer. I heard a significant amount of scientific study and presentations for and against this project. As I listened, I reflected on how most of us take clean water for granted. There is so much in life that is now automated and controlled by us humans that we often lose sight of the value of the natural resources we receive and use.
Aussie Coal Mines Pose Big Threat to Southern Alberta’s Water: Study
A new scientific study on controversial metallurgical coal mines being proposed in southern Alberta’s famed eastern slopes says that the open-pit mines will leave a massive and irreversible footprint on water quality and quantity in the arid region. “Our study has identified significant risks to water quality and quantity and biological diversity in the Oldman River watershed,” Brad Stelfox, the lead author, told The Tyee. Stelfox is the province’s most prominent land use ecologist and founder of the ALCES group which models impact of human activity on natural systems over time.
Decision coming soon on water bottling permits in Ontario, environment minister says
A decision on how to proceed with water bottling permits is expected by early to mid-December, with a review nearly complete, Ontario's Environment Minister Jeff Yurek said Thursday. A moratorium on new and expanded permits to take water for bottling, which was put in place by the former Liberal government in 2017, and was extended last year by the Progressive Conservatives, is set to expire on Jan. 1. Yurek said his decision will be based in science, though if the government can't find a "conclusive way to go forward" he would extend the moratorium again.