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Canada Gazette, Part I, September 9, 2017 — Draft Screening Assessment re Hydrogen Sulfide (H2S), Sodium Sulfide (Na(SH)) and Sodium Sulfide (Na2S)
The document outlines opposition to a Draft Screening Assessment regarding hydrogen sulfide (H2S), sodium bisulfide (Na(SH)), and sodium sulfide (Na2S). The authors argue that H2S poses significant risks to human health, particularly for communities near oil and gas operations, and that the government's assessment fails to apply a precautionary approach or account for olfactory nuisance as an adverse effect.
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Document type: Statement
Cities and Smart Grids in Canada
The report examines the intersection of urban growth, aging electricity infrastructure, and climate change in Canada, arguing that the deployment of smart grid technologies is essential for decarbonization and grid resiliency. It identifies a significant financing gap for modernization, estimating a need for CAD 350 billion in investment over 20 years. The document outlines four emerging business models—Energy Service Provider, Customer Energy Marketplace, Local Balancing Authority, and Smart City—and notes that their adoption varies by region. It highlights barriers to smart grid deployment, including technical complexity, cyber security risks, and regulatory frameworks that treat smart investments as traditional capital infrastructure. The report concludes by calling for a National Vision on Grid Modernization to coordinate stakeholders and align the energy transition with mid-century climate goals.
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Document type: Report
Whittling Away the Health and Climate Benefits from a Canada-Wide Coal Plant Phase-0ut?
The Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE) urges the Federal Minister of Environment and Climate Change to ensure the 2030 coal-fired power plant phase-out is not undermined by a reliance on natural gas. CAPE recommends amending regulations to shorten the 'useful life' of coal generators to 40 years, enforcing stricter emission rates for gas plants, and requiring that at least two-thirds of generation be replaced with renewable energy. The organization highlights that a successful phase-out could prevent 1,000 premature deaths and 900 hospital visits while reducing greenhouse gases by up to 325 Mt between 2015 and 2035.
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Document type: Statement
Comments on the 2017 Climate Change Scoping Plan Update regarding Carbon Capture and Sequestration
The authors argue that the Proposed Plan underestimates the readiness and effectiveness of Carbon Capture and Sequestration (CCS). They assert that CCS is technologically viable, citing sixteen integrated projects in North America and the necessity of the technology for deep decarbonization in industrial sectors like steel and cement. The coalition recommends that the Scoping Plan explicitly include CCS for both industrial and power sectors, identify potential synergies with the reduction of toxics and criteria pollutants, and remove regulatory barriers, such as the requirement that carbon capture occur onsite at crude oil production facilities.
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Document type: Statement
2017_lancet_canada_brief-d5b350a3c2f6d2aa.pdf
The document outlines the intersection of climate change and public health in Canada, highlighting risks such as extreme heat, wildfires, and food insecurity, particularly in the Arctic and among Indigenous populations. It advocates for a rapid phase-out of coal-powered electricity by 2030, the implementation of a National Active Transport Strategy, and the integration of Health Impact Assessments into federal environmental processes to mitigate health risks and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
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Document type: Policy brief
A Good Week for People and the Planet
The Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE) supports the 2030 phase-out of coal-fired power plants in Canada and Alberta, citing significant reductions in premature deaths, healthcare costs, and mercury emissions, as well as an 8% reduction in national greenhouse gas emissions to help meet Paris Agreement commitments.
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Document type: Statement
Large Area Planning in the Nelson-Churchill River Basin (NCRB)
The report assesses the biophysical and socioeconomic characteristics of the northern Nelson-Churchill River Basin (NCRB) in Manitoba, highlighting the economic value of its provisioning, regulating, cultural, and supporting ecosystem services. It identifies a lack of basin-wide planning and fragmented monitoring as key challenges. Drawing on case studies from the Fraser Basin, Mekong River Basin, and Quebec's Plan Nord, the document recommends establishing a multi-party, basin-level organization that includes Indigenous communities in shared decision-making, securing consistent funding through innovative mechanisms like trusts and user fees, and enhancing centralized data sharing and reporting to support sustainable development.
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Document type: Report
Meeting Canada's Subsidy Phase-Out Goal: What it means in Saskatchewan
The document identifies approximately CAD 182 million in financial supports for fossil fuel consumption in Saskatchewan in 2015. It argues that these subsidies hinder efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and obstruct Canada's ability to meet G7 subsidy elimination targets. While acknowledging the use of carbon capture and storage technology in the province, the author calls for subsidy reform, increased transparency regarding foregone revenue, and a coordinated federal-provincial approach to support affected industries and workers during the transition.
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Document type: Briefing
Cosmetic Pesticides Bans: Highlights, Best Practices & Lessons Learned
The document outlines the regulatory landscape of cosmetic pesticides in Canada, comparing 'white list' and 'black list' approaches and evaluating the effectiveness of mandatory bans over voluntary programs. It identifies key gaps in current legislation, such as exceptions for golf courses and lack of retail enforcement, while providing evidence of reduced pesticide concentrations in Ontario water bodies and decreased resident use in Toronto following the implementation of bans.
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Document type: Briefing
Cosmetic Pesticides – Provincial Policies & Municipal Bylaws: Lessons Learned & Best Practices
The report analyzes the landscape of cosmetic pesticide bans in Canada, evaluating the effectiveness of various provincial and municipal regulatory frameworks. It argues that the most protective laws utilize 'white lists' of approved low-risk pesticides, maintain a broad scope of coverage across all landscaping elements, and combine legal prohibitions with robust public education and enforcement. The document highlights significant gaps in jurisdictions like Alberta and British Columbia, while praising the comprehensive approaches of Ontario and Nova Scotia.
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Document type: Report
Health Collaborative Submission to the Federal/Provincial Climate Working Group on Specific Mitigating Opportunities: Electricity Sector
The Health Collaborative, representing 15 health organizations, argues that phasing out coal-fired electricity in Canada by 2025 is essential for mitigating climate change and reducing severe public health risks. The document highlights that while coal provided only 10.6% of Canada's electricity in 2014, it accounted for 72% of the sector's greenhouse gas emissions. It details the health benefits of coal closures, citing Ontario's experience where the phase-out led to significant reductions in sulphur dioxide and fine particulate matter, as well as a 23% decrease in air-pollution-related premature deaths in Toronto between 2000 and 2010. The submission also emphasizes the danger of mercury emissions from coal plants, which are linked to neurodevelopmental impacts in children. The authors recommend a complete phase-out by 2025, the development of renewable energy, and the implementation of energy efficiency programs.
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Document type: Statement
Special Review of Atrazine: Proposed Decision for Consultation (REV2015-11)
The document critiques the PMRA's special review of atrazine, claiming it ignores synergistic effects of pesticide mixtures, fails to assess surface water contamination, and uses less protective drinking water standards than necessary. It cites evidence of atrazine's presence in Canadian groundwater and surface water, as well as its links to endocrine disruption in wildlife and various cancers and developmental issues in humans.
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Document type: Statement
1.letter-to-federal-minister-of-environment-and-climate-change-catherine-mckenna-re-phasing-out-coal-plants-across-canada-within-ten-years-feb-2016-322af5f4419006fa.pdf
A consortium of health groups, including the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment, recommends that the Government of Canada phase out all coal-fired power plants within ten years. The letter argues that this action would substantially reduce greenhouse gas emissions and provide significant public health benefits, citing Ontario's successful phase-out between 2004 and 2014 as a model. The authors note that while Alberta has a phase-out plan for 2030, provinces such as Saskatchewan, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia intend to use coal into the 2040s.
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Document type: Statement
CAPE SCORECARD – Provincial Bans on Cosmetic Pesticides – 2016
The 2016 CAPE Scorecard evaluates Canadian provincial bans on cosmetic pesticides, ranking Ontario as the highest providing 'Excellent Protection' with a score of 9. Other provinces such as Nova Scotia and Manitoba are rated as 'Good Protection', while Quebec provides 'Some Protection'. Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick, and Newfoundland & Labrador are rated as providing 'Little Protection', and Saskatchewan, Alberta, and British Columbia are listed as providing 'No Protection'.
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Document type: Fact sheet
Strategic Large-Basin Management for Multiple Benefits
The report highlights Lake Winnipeg's extreme vulnerability to upstream pressures due to its very low volume relative to its massive drainage basin. It argues that managing the lake in isolation is insufficient and recommends a transboundary, basin-wide framework that treats land as 'ecological infrastructure.' By implementing distributed storage and wetland restoration, the region can mitigate floods, capture nutrients, and buffer against climate change while supporting hydroelectric generation. The document draws on case studies from the Columbia River and Murray-Darling basins to illustrate how integrated water resources management (IWRM) and ecosystem services can balance competing economic and environmental needs.
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Document type: Report
Cattail Biomass to Energy: Commercial-scale harvesting of cattail biomass for biocarbon and solid fuel
The International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) conducted trials in 2012 using commercial grain and forage equipment to harvest cattails from ditches and Pelly’s Lake in Manitoba. The project successfully harvested nearly 300 tonnes of biomass, removing an estimated 240 kilograms of phosphorus. The results demonstrated that conventional equipment can be used for biomass feedstock collection, though efficiency is heavily dependent on water level management and weather conditions. Harvested materials were sent to Saskatchewan for biocarbon production and agricultural trials.
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Document type: Report
TomorrowNow— Manitoba’s Green Plan: Toward a New Provincial Climate Change and Green Economy Plan Consultations Background Paper
The document outlines Manitoba's current emissions profile, its history of climate action, and the need for a new integrated plan for mitigation and adaptation. It examines policies from other jurisdictions regarding larger emitters and proposes principles for Manitoba's future strategy, including the development of mandatory GHG reporting regulations.
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Document type: Briefing
Industry What I’m Thankful For: EPA’s Strong Resolve to Press for Deep Carbon Pollution Reductions Under the Clean Air Act
The author defends the EPA's use of the Clean Air Act to mandate deep carbon pollution reductions in the power industry, rejecting claims by certain members of Congress that federal subsidies for clean coal projects prohibit those technologies from being used to set performance standards. The author asserts that the EPA relies on a global array of projects to demonstrate that carbon capture and sequestration is a viable 'best system of emissions control'.
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Document type: Statement
Adaptive Policy Analysis of Mining Policies in Saskatchewan
The pilot analysis of nine mining policies in Saskatchewan using the ADAPTool identified 44 vulnerabilities and 66 corresponding adaptation actions. While most policies showed moderate support for self-organization and decentralization, the analysis found a lack of deliberate foresight methods and a need for more frequent, formal review processes and better reporting of results.
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Document type: Report
Adaptive Policy Analysis of Saskatchewan's 25-Year Water Security Plan
The report applies the ADAPTool to Saskatchewan's 25-year Water Security Plan, finding that while the plan provides indirect support for adaptation, 133 of 198 adaptation actions lack direct program support. It notes that five of the seven reviewed policies are vulnerable to climate change and concludes that the ADAPTool is not well suited for plans that have not yet been implemented.
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Document type: Report