Climate change, Ultimatum and game theory
Matthew’s Glass novel, Ultimatum, has a compellingly plausible premise. It is 2032. Decades of Copenhagen-type negotiations have produced nothing but broken promises. As the seas and storms rise, low-lying areas like Florida and Louisiana become uninsurable, then uninhabitable (not to mentio…
View the post titled Climate change, Ultimatum and game theoryNew cars: greenhouse gas limits and ethanol
Canada will control greenhouse gases, although only when the US does. Last week, Canada and the US jointly announced stricter limits on GHG emissions from new cars (light-duty vehicles). This is the first-ever federal regulation to directly control GHG emissions across Canada. Our federal go…
View the post titled New cars: greenhouse gas limits and ethanolBig fine for one minute of air pollution
Highest air pollution fine per minute
View the post titled Big fine for one minute of air pollutionFederal environmental assessment shrinks
Eliminating federal EA makes it less likely that cumulative impacts will be evaluated, such as climate change.
View the post titled Federal environmental assessment shrinksTransit class action, EA and the St. Clair Streetcar
Curactive Organic Skin Care is starting a class action over the St. Clair streetcar. It wants to sue the Ontario government, Toronto and the TTC for $105 million in damages. Curactive says hundreds of small businesses lost money, due to delays in transit construction, and to changes in the d…
View the post titled Transit class action, EA and the St. Clair StreetcarOil sands tailing wastes and dead ducks
In Alberta provincial court, Syncrude is on trial for the death of 1600 migratory ducks, who were unable to escape from its oil sands tailing ponds in 2008. Federal and provincial governments allow Syncrude to create the giant, deadly ponds, as long as they take reasonable care to frighten t…
View the post titled Oil sands tailing wastes and dead ducksPeak oil: Who worries?
A surprising variety of knowledgeable people are worrying about peak oil: Petrobras, for example, the Brazilian state oil company. The International Energy Agency. Sir Richard Branson, founder of the Virgin Group. The City of Bloomington, Indiana. The chairperson of Total Oil. Will peak oil …
View the post titled Peak oil: Who worries?Does law have to be so dysfunctional?
It's a debate worth having - have we allowed the role of litigation and courts to expand too much, in environmental and other fields? And if so, what should we do about it?
View the post titled Does law have to be so dysfunctional?Stormwater surprise
Why does so much filth pour out of Toronto sewer outfalls? Hundreds of the outfalls, which should only carry rainwater and perhaps noncontact cooling water, run even in dry weather. Toronto’s water department has identified 53 priority outfalls, places where the “water” p…
View the post titled Stormwater surpriseMore Olympic nuisance lawsuits
Olympic nuisance claims have now spread past transit. Last year, Susan Heyes was awarded $600,000 for the disruption she suffered during construction of the Canada Line. (The decision is under appeal.) Other businesses in the area have launched a class action seeking similar redress. Now Mar…
View the post titled More Olympic nuisance lawsuitsReceive Blog Posts
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