The Globe & Mail is reporting Monsanto & Dole are wanting to tinker with vegetables, and are undertaking a five year project to do so. The objective is to “improve the nutrition, flavour, colour, texture and aroma of these vegetables,” the companies said.

Leave my veggies alone dudes! When is governments going to wake up to the fact that genetically and chemically messing with our food supply is not only killing our environment but it is killing us? Literally.

As long as huge firms like Monsanto and Dole are allowed to mess with our food, our ability to avoid their impact becomes increasingly imposible. Monsanto produces seeds, so growing your own vegetables to avoid the tinkered with versions will become increasingly impossible. Read the rest of this entry »

Waste Diversion Ontario has come up with a plan that should see electronic waste diverted from landfills and into recycling programs. The plan comes with an estimated cost of about $62million which is expected to be financed through fees consumers would pay at the time of purchasing their electronics.

Fees are also being suggested to fund the disposal of old vehicles tires. Although many retailers have been charging $5 / tire for disposal for many years now. Which begs the question, if the government hasn’t been collecting that $5 / tire, who has? If the government does actually impose a disposal fee for tires will retailers then be stopped from collecting the current fee in addition? Read the rest of this entry »

Most Canadians would think of smog and smog days as something that originated in the late 20th century. In fact, the term ’smog’ was coined back in 1905. Back then Dr. Henry Antoine Des Voeux delivered a paper to the Public Health Congress in London, England about the air in London. He noted there was a health threat inherent in urban living due to the pervasive presence of a “smokey fog” or “smog”.

In this country concerns were being raised about smog in 1946 during the debate over the building of the Spadina Expressway in Toronto. They even started a committee to investigate the long term of effects from smog in the preceding two years. A report in the Toronto Star said, “Toronto’s struggle with smoke-laden air will apparently continue for some time” It noted that the study group was planning to implement “public education” – “an admittedly slower way of addressing the problem,” it added. Read the rest of this entry »

It appears the party who ran on a platform of ‘law and order’ and ‘those who obey the rules benefit’ are about to have their standards tested. The House of Commons yesterday passed a law compelling the government (aka the Conservatives at the moment) to honour Canada’s commitment to Kyoto. The bill passed yesterday has to yet pass the Senate which is predominantly Liberal and as such will likely pass it fairly quickly.

So let’s see, last year (and it is a year ago) the Tories came to power with a minority government. Not long afterwards they quietly killed about 100 environmental programs that the Liberals had put into place. Some hadn’t yet kicked in some were running rather well. They also made it pretty clear they have no intention of honouring the Kyoto accord to which we signed on.