News 1. Northern Pulp Mill “A permanent injunction has been granted preventing fishermen from blocking survey vessels from carrying out work for a contentious treated waste pipeline into the Northumberland Strait,” reports the Canadian Press: Justice Josh Arnold approved the injunction Tuesday after Northern Pulp and the fishermen agreed to a consent order last week. […]
Oil spills, protected areas, and the future of the planet
Morning File, Monday, November 19, 2018
November subscription drive I’m really bad at self-promotion, so I’m going to let Trevor Parsons give today’s plug for the November subscription drive: This @HfxExaminer travel mug won't help you survive in #WildNovaScotia, but it will keep your coffee warm on the way to the trail head. More importantly, subscribing to the Examiner helps to […]
City takes Canna Clinic to court
Morning File, Tuesday, October 30, 2018
1. Stadium Halifax council takes up the stadium issue at its meeting today, which starts at 1pm. As the representatives of the Maritime Football League Partnership will be present, I hope council moves the stadium discussion to the top of the agenda, or at least early on. But I can’t be certain of that, and […]
With increased projections of sea level rise and storm surges, does it make sense to put a Cultural Hub on the waterfront?
Question: With signs of accelerating effects from climate change, should $200-300 million of public money be invested in a new building to last less than a century on the Halifax waterfront? When it comes to a new home for both the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia and the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design...
Peter Kelly is back in the news
Morning File, Thursday, October 25, 2018
1. OPOR “This is a story about a potential half-billion-dollar health-care services contract, alleged cozy dinners between bidders and bureaucrats, an unusual legal letter and accusations the government’s tender process was unfair,” writes Chronicle Herald reporter Paul Schneidereit: The planned purchase of a new provincewide electronic health record (EHR) system — expected to cost in the hundreds […]
Stephen McNeil announces his complicated carbon plan
Nova Scotians will pay more for electricity, gasoline, and home-heating over the next four years as part of the province’s plan to reduce its carbon footprint and avoid a carbon tax Ottawa announced it will impose on four other provinces beginning this January. But Premier Stephen McNeil insists Nova Scotia consumers will pay much less...
“Pig in a poke”: die-hard proponents want to open Nova Scotia to fracking
About 200 people gathered last evening in Pugwash, filling the Northumberland Community Curling Club for a debate framed around the resolution “fracking will be beneficial to Cumberland County.” The audience was, not surprisingly, clearly divided between those in favour and those against. For many, including several members of the Nova Scotia Fracking Resource and Action...
The corporate kleptocracy takes aim at Nova Scotia
Morning File, Friday, August 31, 2018
Hi, I’m Joan Baxter, a Nova Scotian journalist and author. Some of my books are actually quite upbeat, proving that I’m not always a bearer of bad news. News 1. Abandoned tidal turbine Jennifer Henderson updates the situation of the abandoned tidal turbine in the Minas Basin in this article for the Examiner. After a […]
Skepticism about tidal power: Morning File, Thursday, April 13, 2017
News 1. Fishermen continue fight against tidal turbines “The Bay of Fundy Fisherman’s Association says it will continue to oppose the development of tidal power in the Minas Passage, near Parrsboro,” reports Bruce Wark: Association spokesman, Colin Sproul made the pledge after the fishermen lost their court challenge to the deployment of a tidal turbine in November and […]
Humiliation as a business model: Morning File, Wednesday, April 12, 2017
News 1. Pre-election spending Jennifer Henderson has begun combing through provincial press releases to build a weekly scorecard of pre-election spending announcements from the McNeil government. We’ll continue to run this until an election is called. (I’ll update it with previous weeks’ announcements as well.) Government Pre-Election Spending Announcements (April 3- April 10) 2. Court Watch This […]