Rising temperatures are suppressing survival rates for young fish. Climate change is making fish die young. Over the past six decades, the proportion of fish that survive to adulthood has been going down, by three percent per decade on average, according to a new analysis of global fish stock data. Compiling statistics on changing fish […]
environment
A Fishy Plan
Canada’s new government says it’s going to expand the country’s marine protected areas. Scientists worry the government is cutting corners to hit its goal. Canada has a long way to go in protecting its oceans. The United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity wants 10 percent of the world’s marine and coastal environments protected by 2020. […]
Oil Sands Dilbit Causes Developmental Problems in Fish
Scientists have very little idea what the environmental effects of an oil sands “dilbit” spill would be. The oil that flows in pipes away from Canada’s oil sands is not the same as conventional crude oil. Known as diluted bitumen, or “dilbit,” this proprietary blend of oil and chemicals behaves differently in the event of […]
Pharmaceuticals in the environment: a growing problem
Drugs taken by humans and animals find their way into rivers, lakes and even drinking water, and can have devastating effects on the environment. When Rebecca Klaper searched for signs of pharmaceuticals in Lake Michigan, she got a surprise. The most common drug she found was one she hadn’t even considered looking for — metformin, […]
Can Winter De-Icers Go Completely Green?
Environmentally friendly additives to road salt may still have tradeoffs. Every year, as winter closes in, transportation authorities prepare to deploy their vast stockpiles of salt and sand to keep the roads and highways safe and ice-free for drivers. In the United States, roughly 18 million metric tons of road salt are spread on the […]
BMA votes to end investment in fossil fuels
The British Medication Association set an international precedent with a vote to end its investment in fossil fuel companies. The motion also urged the BMA to switch its electricity supply to renewable sources and to help create an alliance of health care bodies to promote the health benefits of reducing greenhouse gasses. Read more in CMAJ.
Sponsor a fish and save Canada’s experimental lakes
Fans of environmental science can now play a direct role in helping Canada’s unique Experimental Lakes Area continue to do the research it has done for decades. The International Institute for Sustainable Development, based in Winnipeg, took over running the ELA on 1 April, after the federal government eliminated funding for the decades-old environmental research […]
Backyard Hockey A Bellwether For Climate Change
Volunteers track shifts in temperature with their homemade rinks. Outdoor hockey games on suburban backyard rinks are an iconic part of the culture in Canada. Wayne Gretzky famously learned his trade on a homemade rink his father created every winter, and until recently the image of children skating on a frozen pond was featured on […]
Canadian government accused of destroying environmental archives
Researchers fear that valuable documents will disappear as libraries close and merge. Scientists in Canada are up in arms over the recent closure of more than a dozen federal science libraries run by Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) and Environment Canada. The closures were mostly completed by last autumn, but hit the headlines last week […]
Lakes scientists ‘surplus’ to fisheries ministry requirements
Researchers at the Experimental Lakes Area have received letters from Fisheries and Oceans Canada declaring their positions to be “surplus”, and offering them jobs elsewhere in the ministry, Research Canada has learned. The letters were expected, as the government department has ended funding for the environmental research station and is working to transfer ownership of […]