But during an election year, it seems few can resist a political blood sport capable of bringing down a government that, until the current brouhaha, seemed to have a perfectly good chance of being re-elected on Oct. 21 #cdnpoli
Nova Scotia government mulls mining industry’s $20M request | CBC News
“That’s the job of industry, it’s not the job of taxpayers,” he said.
“It
is not the responsibility of Nova Scotia taxpayers, in a province that
can’t afford to pay its doctors, its teachers and its nurses, and keep
its basic services running at an adequate level to give millions of
dollars to the mining industry to develop mines that the public may or
may not even want.”
SNC-Lavalin controversy raises risk of ‘two-tier’ Canadian justice system – iPolitics
There are two problems with this line. There’s no reasonable argument that the 9,000 jobs purportedly at risk at SNC-Lavalin are actually threatened, and apparently no independent analysis of those claims.
And even if some jobs maybe at risk, accepting employment as a consideration in these kinds of cases means that Canada’s criminal justice system will in future be stymied in efforts to go after corporate crime of any kind, from corruption to money laundering, if somehow jobs are at stake. #cdnpoli
Here’s what a 10-year ban on federal contract bids would mean for SNC-Lavalin | CBC News
One possible workaround lies in the public services minister having the power to reduce or waive bidding bans under certain circumstances, said international trade lawyer Lawrence Herman.
“This is not a law but rather a policy under the government’s integrity regime,” he said in an email.
Moreover, the government is now considering changes to those ethical procurement rules, with Public Services holding a month-long public consultation last fall on a proposed “ineligibility and suspension policy” that would give officials more flexibility to set the ban period. #cdnpoli
Drive to revive polluted Boat Harbour threatens mill jobs in Nova Scotia town | CBC News
NOTE: a little white washing from the CBC. Samples of the effluent tested show the heavy metals to contain mercury, cadmium, lead, nickel, chromium, arsenic, aluminum, vanadium, chromium as well as dioxins and furans.
. Soil samples have shown small amounts mercury and it could certainly leech into the waterways and migrate towards Pictou Harbour as methylmercury. It’s formed from inorganic mercury by the action of microbes that live in aquatic systems including lakes, rivers, wetlands, sediments, soils and the open ocean. It can have disastrous health effects on sea life and people, as being experienced by Grassy Narrows First Nation, located 80 kilometres north of Kenora in Ontario. It can cause neurological damge, IQ deficits, abnormal muscle tone, decrements in motor function, attention, and visuospatial performance and damage to the central nervous system.
This site where the new treatment plant will sit, is an old industrial site with tons of mercury buried below into the bedrock… most of which has never been accounted for. There are concerns that disturbing the ground could activate the mercury to start leaching into the waterways and out into the strait. More research needs to be done on this to confirm it.
Although it could be considered fortunate that only small amounts (mercury) were discovered in the soil samples, the flow of the water in the Northumberland Strait will amplify this condition. There are continuous circulating ocean currents located at both ends of the strait that contains the water and aquatic life for extended periods. Coupled with the nature of methylmercury that bioaccumulates in living organisms, species will digest increased amounts. The bigger fish, feeding on contaminated prey, will absorb a greater quantity. Naturally, this includes other heavy metals as well.
The health of the ecosystem has been getting increasing worse since 2007. with shell fish harvesting restricted in some of the areas. PEI and Nova Scotia will lose a significant fishing area, and once word gets out, tourism is likely to drop as well.