Editor's Take: April 04, 2008
Gordon as Arnold
BC Ready to Cap and Trade
British Columbia took another step forward in climate leadership yesterday. The government introduced the Cap and Trade Act in the legislature. The plan is to reduce emissions 33 percent by 2020. My colleagues here at Sightline have been following this closely. For background, check out the Daily Score blog and Sightline’s climate research findings.
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BC Puts Limits on Major Polluters
Victoria Times Colonist
04/04/2008
B.C. stepped up its fight against global warming yesterday by introducing legislation that will limit greenhouse-gas emissions by major polluters.
The first bill of its kind in Canada, the Cap and Trade Act forms a key part of the B.C. government's plan to cut greenhouse gas emissions 33 per cent by 2020.
Go to article.
BC Best Place to Avoid Economic Downturn
CBC BC
04/04/2008
Canada's western-most province is better positioned than any other to withstand the economic free-fall in the United States, according to the Royal Bank's provincial economic outlook, released Thursday.
The bank's analysts say the province's Olympic boom should drive economic growth of 2.3 per cent this year and 2.9 per cent in 2009.
Go to article.
Low Wages Hammer BC Hospital Workers
Georgia Straight
04/04/2008
Hospital cleaners scrounge through garbage for cereal boxes for their kids' breakfasts. An exhausted line cook worked 17 days in a row. A housekeeper can't afford to heat her house.
Go to article.
Seattle Talks about Race
Seattle Times
04/04/2008
Angela Miller has never seen a cross burning on her lawn. She has never been bullied with racial slurs. And she is too young to remember the tumult of the 1960s civil-rights movement. Still, she has felt the sting of racism in Seattle.
"Racism is subtle here," said Miller, 34, who grew up in Chicago and now lives in Bothell. "But it's still something people struggle with on a daily basis."
Go to article.
Washington Wrestles with Paid Family Leave
Crosscut
04/04/2008
One of only a handful of states to enact such a program, it remains to be seen if the state can actually fund it. A 2009 ballot measure might be necessary to impose a payroll tax to cover the cost.
Go to article.
Hanford Negotiations May Avert Lawsuit
Oregon Public Broadcasting
04/04/2008
A lawsuit over clean-up delays at the Hanford nuclear reservation has been averted - at least for now. Top state and federal officials met this week near Seattle.
They made progress toward new timelines to remove and treat nuclear waste.
Go to article.
Yakama Nation Reconsidering Big Dam
Oregon Public Broadcasting
04/04/2008
Two big water users in Eastern Washington are calling for reconsideration of the biggest dam on the drawing boards in the Northwest. The proposed Black Rock dam would be as large as Grand Coulee and cost more than $6 billion.
Go to article.
Eugene's Leftovers Could Power Town
Eugene Register Guard
04/04/2008
Lane County commissioners decided Wednesday to study building a plant that would turn food waste into energy at the county dump.
The board voted unanimously to spend $25,000 to complete a study of diverting food waste from the Short Mountain Landfill near Goshen to a plant that would create energy. If the project pencils out, it could be built as soon as 2010.
Go to article.
Oregon Town Celebrates Birds' Comeback
Oregonian
04/04/2008
They were called "plume hunters," and a century ago they descended on Oregon's high desert lakes south of Burns with shotguns. They killed swans, egrets, herons and grebes for their feathers.
But without the plume hunters and the near-extermination of egrets those many years ago, the 27th annual John Scharff Migratory Bird Festival probably wouldn't be getting under way today in Burns. And without a nationwide campaign against the "plume trade," the 187,000-acre Malheur National Wildlife Refuge wouldn't have been created 100 years ago.
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New Value For Old Forests
IPS News
04/04/2008
Newly sensitised to the dangers of climate change, researchers around the world are making progress in helping to protect old growth forests that are threatened by fires, urban development and logging.
Go to article.
