Going green news from Metronews.ca

Taxman to eye foreign cash going to charities

The Canadian Press — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 18:51:00 -0400

OTTAWA - The federal government wants the taxman to keep an eye on charities that get into political activities, especially if they use foreign money to do it.

The Conservatives have expressed anger recently over what they see as foreign cash being used to bankroll Canadian environmentalists fighting developments such as the Northern Gateway pipeline.

They decry that as foreign interference in a domestic issue — and now they plan to rein it in.

Thursday's budget said the Canada Revenue Agency will get more powers to monitor political activities by charities and to require reporting of foreign financing for these activities.

Charities are allowed to engage in limited, non-partisan politics, but the government suggested some may be overstepping the boundaries.

"Recently, concerns have been raised that some charities may not be respecting the rules concerning political activities," the budget documents say.

"There have also been calls for greater public transparency related to the political activities of charities, including the extent to which they may be funded by foreign sources."

The budget promised tighter rules on charities which give money to other charities for political purposes.

And the taxman will be able to impose new penalties on charities that exceed limits on political spending or fail to provide full disclosure of funding and activities. The sanctions could include fines or a suspension of a charity's ability to issue tax receipts.

A lobby group promoting the Canadian oil industry applauded Thursday's moves.

"EthicalOil.org is very glad to see the government has responded to our efforts to expose environmental lobby groups masquerading as charities and hold them to account," spokesperson Jamie Ellerton said in a release.

"Between the abuse of charities law by engaging in partisan and political activity, and the foreign funding used to clog the present regulatory hearings for the Northern Gateway Pipeline, the measures in Budget 2012 will go a long way to ensuring lobby groups masquerading as charities will be held to account for their political and partisan actions."

Bennett Environmental posts more losses

The Canadian Press — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 20:29:00 -0400

OAKVILLE, Ont. - Bennett Environmental Inc. (TSX:BEV) says it produced no revenue in 2011 as its soil-treatment plant at St-Ambroise, Que., remained closed while it built up inventory to process.

Bennett lost $1.6 million or four cents per share in the fourth quarter and $9.3 million or 24 cents per share for the full year.

The company, which has been reduced to the one idled operation at St-Ambroise after failing to expand or diversify its business, said in January that it's considering strategic alternatives including the sale of its assets.

Redford pledges $3B for oilsands research

The Canadian Press — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 15:41:00 -0400

FORT MCMURRAY, Alta. - Alberta Premier Alison Redford promises to put up an extra $3 billion over the next two decades to further develop oilsands products and protect the environment if her party is re-elected April 23.

Redford says a Progressive Conservative government would contribute $150 million a year for 20 years to make the oilsands a world leader in research.

She says the money would also boost research on how to preserve water quality and reduce environmental degradation.

The premier made the announcement while touring the oilsands region of Fort McMurray with the area's two Tory candidates.

Redford says the plan would build on the party's commitment to the oilsands, which dates back to the days of former premier Peter Lougheed.

The project would be similar to one first launched in 1974.

Plan moves forward for Atlantic seismic research

Brock Vergakis, The Associated Press — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 14:36:00 -0400

NORFOLK, Va. - The U.S. Interior Department said Wednesday it is seeking comment from the public on a plan to allow energy companies to begin seismic testing to find oil and natural reserves in the Atlantic Ocean.

Officials have released a programmatic environmental impact statement on seismic testing for public review. The testing would be used to determine how much oil and natural gas is available and where the best places to drill would be, among other things. The studies also help identify archaeological and geologic hazards to avoid.

Companies would use the information to determine where to apply for energy leases, although no leases are currently available in the region that could be opened up for exploration until 2017.

Supporters of drilling argued that there needs to be a plan in place soon to sell drilling leases to make the seismic testing valuable. Environmental groups said seismic testing could harm wildlife, even before any drilling begins.

"Without an Atlantic coast lease sale in their five-year plan, the administration's wishful thinking on seismic research has no ultimate purpose," the American Petroleum Institute Upstream Director Erik Milito said in a statement.

The announcement comes as Americans grumble about escalating gas prices and the Obama administration seeks to fend off criticism from Republicans that not enough is being done to tap domestic energy resources.

"As the president has said, there is no silver bullet to high gas prices. But we must continue to reduce our reliance on foreign oil and reduce our vulnerability to the ups and downs of the international market," Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said at a news conference in Virginia, a key election state.

Salazar said he would make his ruling on whether to allow seismic testing by the end of the year, following a series of public meetings from Delaware to Florida, where the testing would occur. Salazar said six companies have already filed applications expressing interest in conducting seismic testing.

The possibility of oil exploration in the Atlantic drew immediate criticism from environmental groups, who are concerned about its effects on marine life, including endangered whales.

"Today's announcement is great for petroleum companies, but horrible news for our coastlines and a potentially deadly blow to ocean fisheries and wildlife," Natural Resources Defence Council President Frances Beinecke said in a statement.

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Online:

U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management: www.boem.gov/oil-and-gas-energy-program/GOMR/GandG.aspx

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Brock Vergakis can be reached at www.twitter.com/BrockVergakis

Pentair and Tyco flow control business to combine

The Associated Press — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 14:34:00 -0400

NEW YORK, N.Y. - Diversified industrial company Pentair said Wednesday that it's combining its operations with Tyco's flow control business in an all-stock deal worth about $4.53 billion, uniting two of the biggest players in water and fluid products systems.

Under the terms of the deal, which is subject to shareholder approval, the combined company will retain the Pentair Inc. name and Pentair's CEO will remain in place. Two Tyco International Ltd. nominees will join the board.

Tyco shareholders will own about 52.5 per cent of the combined company and Pentair shareholders will own about 47.5 per cent, the companies said.

The news sent Pentair's shares up $5.92, or nearly 15 per cent, to $46.18 in afternoon trading, while Tyco International Ltd. shares rose $1.67, or 3.1 per cent, to $55.20.

The move is part of plan announced by Tyco last year to break itself up into three independent companies, including one for flow control products. The business sells valves and controls for the energy, mining and water markets. It also designs and installs heat management systems for the energy and general process industries.

The deal with Pentair is subject to the completion of the breakup, which Tyco said it still expects to complete by September.

Pentair said the addition of Tyco's business will boost its global reach and give it greater access to developed and fast growth regions, while also allowing it to capitalize on growth trends in the energy, infrastructure and industrial sectors.

Minneapolis-based Pentair's water and fluid solutions business makes products and systems for use in the movement, storage and treatment of water for residential, industrial, commercial, municipal, and agricultural uses.

Pentair said it expects the deal to boost its 2013 adjusted profit by about 40 cents per share and help its annual profit pass $5 per share by 2015, largely as a result of cost cuts. At the same time, the company expects to incur about $230 million in one-time costs related to the deal over the next one to two years.

The deal prompted Moody's Investors Service to place the debt rating of Pentair on review for a possible upgrade. Pentair's senior unsecured debt is currently rated "Baa3" by Moody's, the lowest investment-grade rating. Moody's said its review "will focus on the prospect of a sound integration of the two companies" as well as Pentair's plans to reduce debt.

The combined company will be based in Switzerland, where Tyco is currently incorporated, with its main U.S. offices in Minnesota, where Pentair is based. It will have about 30,000 employees worldwide, with about half coming from each company.

The companies said the deal values Tyco's flow control business at $4.9 billion, including $275 million in debt and $94 million in minority interest.

Feds offer millions for climate change study

The Canadian Press — Mon, 26 Mar 2012 17:17:00 -0400

MONTREAL - The federal government is offering millions in research money to universities to study climate change.

Sen. Larry Smith says the Climate Change and Atmospheric Research initiative will award grants up to $5 million over a maximum of five years to large projects involving university researchers, Canadian government scientists and other partners.

The grants will range in amounts from $500,000 to $1 million per year.

The money comes from $35 million provided to the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada to support climate change and atmospheric study at Canadian post-secondary institutions.

Smith told a news conference that Canada has a world-class capacity for climate change examination and this funding will help advance previous research and develop strategies and policies in response to climate change.

Among the areas open to the research grants are projects which would improve weather forecasting and help to understand recent changes in the Arctic.

Applicants have to submit their letters of intent by May 17.

Reconnecting kids with nature — one tree at a time

Ben Knight, Metro Canada — Sun, 25 Mar 2012 23:53:09 -0400

One of the simplest ways to connect with nature is to plant a tree. And ChariTREE is a small Canadian registered charity that helps young children do exactly that.

“Our entire focus is giving trees to children,” says founder and executive director Andrea Koehle Jones.

“If they plant the tree, it’s empowering them, too. It makes them think positively — that they’re helping the planet, and that they have power to make it a better place.”

Jones founded ChariTREE on Earth Day, 2006. She has since delivered more than 30,000 trees to Canadian schools and summer camps.

“The teachers come to me and they ask for trees,” she explains. “They’re already teaching kids great things about the environment, but they don’t have the money to be buying trees, or the time to search out the right species and have them shipped in. So we do that work for them for free.”

If a school is short of trees on its property, the planting can happen there. If not, children can take their saplings home — and have their own tree growing with them throughout their lives.

“One of the biggest things about what I’m doing is trying to get kids outside more — giving them more opportunities to connect to nature. I grew up in Toronto, and now I live on a tree-covered island in British Columbia. Many children won’t get that opportunity. So giving them a tree — putting a tree in their hands — is an opportunity to get them outside at the simplest level.”

Kids planting their trees at summer camp get to see it every summer when they return. This gives them a tangible sense of how nature works over time.

“Research studies show kids have much more confidence if they get time to spend outside,” Jones notes. “Pull them away from the TV. Get them away from the video games.

“The tree is just a tool for the greater cause of getting kids back outside.”

For more info – or to make a donation, visit charitree.ca.

Don’t let the bed bugs bite

Lindsay Coulter, for Metro — Sun, 25 Mar 2012 22:23:44 -0400

What are eco-friendly options to prevent and kill bed bugs? - Debbie of Edmonton

To prevent bed bugs, keep clutter to a minimum. Bed bugs thrive in clothes, newspapers and piles of stuff in general.

And stay vigilant. Watch for notifications within your apartment building, local libraries and hotels. Check the Internet for bed bug identification tips, so that you can report them immediately — before they spread.

Generally speaking, high heat or extreme cold kills bed bugs. Try these tips from my friend, Adria Vasil, author of Ecoholic, if you already have bed bugs:

• Steam clean your mattress and then fit the mattress with a tightly woven barrier sheet (organic cotton barrier sheets will also keep out dust mites).

• Wash everything, including curtains, bedding and removable upholstery in hot water. (You may need to do this more than once.)

• Physically remove bed bugs with the vacuum and then carefully empty and clean the vacuum canister and filter.

• Sprinkle diatomaceous earth around baseboards.

• Try an enzyme-based product like Kleen Green.

Diatomaceous earth is also used to control silverfish, fleas and roaches in the home. Sprinkle a small amount along cracks and baseboards, or above the cupboards. Naturally occurring diatomaceous earth is made from crushed fossilized algae. This fine powder is like glass. It is so abrasive that it damages the protective outer shell of creepy crawlies. When that protective exoskeleton is pierced, insects dry up and die. Ask for it at your local garden store.

Kleen Green is an organic blend of enzymes specifically designed to naturally remove and eliminate dirt, germs, bacteria, odours and pests, including bed bugs, lice, scabies, crabs, fleas, mites and more.

I’ve never used this product but it beats toxic pesticides, so it could be worth a try! It claims to be non-toxic, no-residue formula, non-flammable, hypoallergenic and biodegradable.

Lindsay Coulter gives you the straight goods on living green. Send your questions to queenofgreen@metronews.ca. For more great tips, visit The David Suzuki Foundation at davidsuzuki.org.

Audit: Gas lines tied to fracking lack oversight

Garance Burke, The Associated Press — Thu, 22 Mar 2012 19:59:00 -0400

SAN FRANCISCO - The federal government knows nothing about thousands of miles of pipelines that tap natural gas flows released through the drilling method known as fracking, and needs to step up oversight to ensure they are running safely, government auditors say.

Private companies have put in hundreds of small gathering pipelines in recent years to collect the new gas and oil supplies freed through the high-pressure drilling technique.

Nationwide, about 240,000 miles of gathering pipelines ferry the fuels to processing facilities and larger pipelines in top energy-producing states. Many of these pipelines course through densely populated areas, including neighbourhoods in Fort Worth, Texas.

The Government Accountability Office said in its report issued Thursday that most of those miles are not regulated by the U.S. Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, which means they are not regularly inspected for leaks or corrosion.

In some states, officials don't know where the lines are.

Emily Krafjack, who lives near the gas-rich Marcellus Shale formation in Pennsylvania, said many local residents have no idea that the pipelines near their homes are not overseen by federal regulators. Gathering lines that run in the rural northeastern corner of the state receive no federal oversight if there are fewer than 10 homes within 220 yards of the pipeline.

"Who would ever think that they could run something like this next to your home and it wouldn't have any regulations attached to it?," said Krafjack, a former community liaison for Wyoming County, Pa., on gas issues.

Nationwide, there are about 200,000 miles of gas gathering lines and up to 40,000 miles of hazardous liquid gathering lines in rural and urban areas alike, ranging in diameter from about 2 to 12 inches. But only about 24,000 of those miles are regulated, according to the report.

The industry is not required to report pipeline-related fatality, injury or property damage information about the unregulated lines. PHMSA only collects information about accidents on the small subset of gathering lines that the agency regulates, but that data was not immediately available Thursday.

The pipeline agency is considering collecting more data on the unregulated gas gathering lines, but the plans are still preliminary and have met with some resistance from the natural gas industry. Agency officials are reviewing more than 100 public comments received about their proposal for gas lines, and also plan to propose a rule that will cover hazardous liquid gathering pipelines by the fall, said Jeannie Layson, a spokeswoman for the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration.

PHMSA delegates some enforcement of its rules to state-level pipeline safety authorities, who the Government Accountability Office surveyed to understand the array of risks associated with gathering lines.

Those state-level agencies told the auditors that construction quality, maintenance practices, unknown locations, and limited or no information on current pipeline integrity all posed safety risks for federally unregulated gathering pipelines.

The expansion of hydraulic fracturing, which involves shattering rock thousands of feet underground with a combination of water, sand and chemicals, promises staggering yields, and drilling also comes with promises of job creation and economic opportunities.

But in Fort Worth, where dozens of new gathering lines have been laid in recent years to capture supplies from hundreds of new wells, some residents say there aren't enough protections from leaks and ruptures due to corrosion.

"It's ridiculous," said Jerry Lobdill, a retired chemical engineer who lives in a Fort Worth neighbourhood near several new gas wells and has several lines running near his home. "The gathering lines are unregulated, the city doesn't know where they are, and they're buried so you can't see them."

The recent surge in drilling also has led California lawmakers to write new laws to increase oversight of the industry.

Assemblyman Bill Wieckowski, D-Fremont, is sponsoring a bill now pending before a state Senate committee that would require gas and oil producers to disclose what chemicals they are using when they engage in hydraulic fracturing.

"If we're on this cusp of a boom then maybe we at the very least need to know where these lines are," Wieckowski said.

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Follow Garance Burke on Twitter at http://twitter.com/garanceburke.

Fire crew cuts won't hinder safety: minister

The Canadian Press — Thu, 22 Mar 2012 15:13:00 -0400

REGINA - Saskatchewan's environment minister says safety will not be compromised by a decision to cut the size of northern fire-fighting crews.

The government announced in its budget that fire teams will be reduced to four people from five.

Dustin Duncan says B.C. and Alberta also use smaller crews and he's confident there will still be effective service in northern Saskatchewan.

The crews build breaks and do other ground work to stop fires from growing.

The Opposition NDP says the cuts are dangerous.

New Democrat Buckley Belanger says it's expected to be a dry year in the North and the move will leave communities less protected.