Category: Travel

A B.C. mine that was fined $51,000 for unauthorized release of wastewater late last year is proposing to increase its tailings pond capacity by 70 per cent in a move that won’t automatically trigger an environmental assessment.At 155 metres high, the Copper Mountain mine’s tailings pond dam is already four times taller than the Mount Polley mine tailings dam, which caused the largest mining spill in Canadian history when it failed in 2014. Now, a proposal by the Copper Mountain Mining Corporation to increase the allowable height of the dam to 255 metres — potentially making it taller than Vancouver’s highest skyscraper — is sparking concern.The Copper Mountain mine, located about 20 kilometres south of Princeton, straddles the Similkameen River, which flows south through the province before draining across the Canada-U.S. border into Washington State’s Okanogan River. Downstream residents in B.C. and Washington are frustrated the proposed mine expansion appears to be moving forward without an environmental assessment. The expansion would also more than double the mine’s permitted discharge into the Similkameen River, from 60 litres per second of treated wastewater to 200 litres per second. The mine was fined $51,000 last November for exceeding discharge limits and contravening B.C.’s Environmental Management Act with unauthorized discharge.

Source: Copper Mountain mine tailings pond proposal sparks widespread concern

By Patrick Worrall

28 Apr 2021

The leaders of six opposition parties in the House of Commons are accusing Boris Johnson of “a consistent failure to be honest” – a charge the Prime Minister denies.Who gets to decide whether someone in power is guilty of lying? And what penalties are in place for those who are found to have deliberately misled parliament or the public?Code breaking?In a joint letter to the Speaker of the House of Commons, the leaders of the Greens, SNP, Lib Dems, Plaid Cymru, SDLP and Alliance parties in Westminster refer to two codes of conduct that UK politicians are supposed to follow: the Nolan principles and the Ministerial Code. Both stress the importance of being truthful.The six leaders wrote: “We believe the Prime Minister consistently fails to meet this standard.  This is not a question of occasional inaccuracies or a misleading use of figures: it is a consistent failure to be honest with the facts, or to correct wrong information at the earliest opportunity when misleading information is given.  This, we believe, amounts to a contempt of the House.”A Downing Street spokesman responded to the letter by saying: “The Prime Minister follows the ministerial code and Nolan Principles when conducting himself in public life.”There’s a lot to unpack here: the role of the Speaker, the Ministerial Code, Nolan Principles and contempt of parliament. What do these things mean? And can they be used to hold politicians to account for alleged dishonesty?The Commons SpeakerPeople frustrated with debates in the House of Commons often criticise the Speaker for failing to hold politicians to account over allegedly dishonest remarks.But the MPs who have held this office have been clear over the years that it’s not their job to police the accuracy of debates.The current speaker, Lindsay Hoyle, issued a strongly worded call last month for MPs to correct the record voluntarily if they make inaccurate statements in the Commons.But he also stressed that it is not his role to judge whether a statement is true or false, saying: “The Speaker cannot be dragged into arguments about whether a statement is inaccurate or not. This is a matter of political debate.”Erskine May, the “Bible” of UK parliamentary procedure, states that: “The Speaker’s responsibility for questions is limited to their compliance with the rules of the House. Responsibility in other respects rests with the Member who proposes to ask the question, and responsibility for answers rests with Ministers.”Ministers regularly do correct the record in parliament, if they have inadvertently said something inaccurate, but it’s not compulsory and the Speaker cannot force them to do it or punish those who refuse.In fact, the Speaker has much stronger powers to sanction MPs who accuse others of lying in the chamber than those who actually lie: he can order someone guilty of using unparliamentary language to withdraw the remark or leave the chamber.What about the Ministerial Code?In his statement, Lindsay Hoyle referred to another piece of official guidance on how Westminster politicians should conduct themselves: the Ministerial Code. Like the rules that govern debate in the Commons, this is also available online.It states that “holders of public office should be truthful” and that: “It is of paramount importance that ministers give accurate and truthful information to parliament, correcting any inadvertent error at the earliest opportunity. Ministers who knowingly mislead Parliament will be expected to offer their resignation to the Prime Minister.”But the Ministerial Code is not law, and it is ultimately up to the Prime Minister to decide how to interpret and enforce it.The convention used to be that ministers offered their resignation if they broke the code. In 2018, Amber Rudd resigned as Home Secretary after “inadvertently” misleading a select committee.But this convention is not always followed now. In November last year, an inquiry into accusations of bullying against the Home Secretary, Priti Patel, found that she had broken the Ministerial Code.Ms Patel apologised but did not offer her resignation and Boris Johnson took no further action. As he alone is responsible for enforcing the code, the Home Secretary kept her job.Only a prime minister can order an investigation into whether the code has been breached in the first place, creating an obvious difficulty if it is the head of the government who is accused of breaking it.Nolan PrinciplesThe “seven principles of public life” were first set out by Lord Nolan in 1995. The sixth principle is honesty, and the text states that “holders of public office should be truthful”.Like the Ministerial Code, the Nolan Principles are not law, and no punishment is set out for breaking them.The principles are taken into account when the authorities are investigating MPs for breaking their code of conduct, but the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards in the Commons cannot investigate what MPs say when they are in

Source: FactCheck: what are the consequences for politicians who lie?  – Channel 4 News

Jet maker Exosonic has released the first renderings of an interior designed for top-level government officials, all the way up to the office of the vice president. The California firm said it had developed the interior in collaboration with the USAF Presidential and Executive Airlift Directorate. The “low-boom” supersonic jet, which will have a speed of Mach 1.8 (1,380 mph) and 5,000 nautical mile range, will not replace Air Force One, but would be available for the highest-ranking government missions. It will carry 31 passengers, compared to Exosonic’s 70-passenger commercial airliner.

Source: Our Top Government Officials May Soon Fly in This Plush Supersonic Jet – Robb Report

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Matt Finch, UK policy manager at T&E, said: “We congratulate the Prime Minister for taking this key step on the path to decarbonise planes and ships. Properly accounting for the emissions is essential, but we now need meaningful action to control greenhouse gas releases and prevent future emissions rising above pre-pandemic levels. In the process the UK can become a world leader of zero-emission fuels for planes and ships.”The UK has established an important international precedent, being the first major economy to account for its airline and shipping emissions under its carbon budget. T&E said the EU should follow suit immediately. The European Parliament is pushing EU member states to do this in negotiations over the EU Climate Law this week.Andrew Murphy, aviation director at T&E, said: “The UK is showing how to take responsibility for its climate impact. The EU should incorporate aviation and shipping in its Climate Law or relinquish its aspiration for climate leadership. If the UK, with an economy so reliant on aviation and shipping, can do this then Europe has no excuses.”The UK is responsible for the third highest amount of CO2 emissions from aviation globally, behind only the United States and China. Globally, aviation is responsible for 5% of global warming. Shipping accounts for about 13% of greenhouse gas emissions from European transport.

Source: UK closes loophole on plane and ship emissions with carbon budget | Transport & Environment

Apart from their immense natural beauty, perhaps one of the most exhilarating things about the national parks is that they do not treat visitors with kid gloves. With the exception of some guidelines around permits, campsites, and Leave No Trace education, they let travelers explore and play at will, experiencing their wonders largely free from guardrails and supervision. Of course, with this privilege comes a certain amount of danger. Outforia recently submitted a Freedom of Information Act request to the National Park Service to uncover which parks were the most deadly and what the most common causes of death were. It goes without saying that many of these parks were also the most touristed, but the causes of death may seem surprising and warrant a second thought about how to tour safely.

Source: These Are the 5 Deadliest National Parks | Outside Online

Carney, the former Bank of Canada and Bank of England governor now serving as vice-chair of Toronto-based Brookfield Asset Management, declared the new group “the breakthrough in mainstreaming climate finance the world needs” and “the gold standard for net-zero commitments in the financial sector.”The institutions participating in GFANZ have their collective hand on US$70 trillion in assets, the Globe and Mail reports. And they’re declaring an interest in assembling “the trillions of dollars needed to make the changes that will help countries deliver commitments under the Paris Agreement.”The institutions are focused on net-zero targets that involve “simultaneously reducing greenhouse gas emissions and offsetting those that can’t be cut,” the Globe explains. “Under increasing pressure from investors and the public, financial institutions are increasingly pledging to slash their own CO2 emissions, but also those from lending and portfolio management.”Until now, “one problem on the path to net-zero has been the difficulty in persuading companies in various industries to adhere to the standardized methods of both disclosure and getting emissions in check,” the paper adds. Carney “has been a leading force in the push to improve disclosure and shift financial structures to help decarbonize the global economy.”The Globe adds that “all of the signatories have committed to set science-based interim and long-term emission goals in line with the UN’s Race to Zero. That comprises a set of strict criteria, governed by an expert panel, that help ensure companies are making commitments, setting interim targets, and taking actions ‘consistent with the science.”’For financial institutions, that means factoring in the Scope 3 emissions of the businesses and projects they finance. “Financial institutions have an enormous economic and social footprint,” said Vancity CEO Christine Bergeron. “We must rally that influence to take on the crisis facing our planet and support the shift to a low-carbon economy that is clean and fair for everyone.”But while Vancity’s lending runs mostly to residential and commercial mortgages, the Globe notes that fossil fuel investing by many other financial institutions “remains a top complaint among environmental groups, which contend it is antithetical to any net-zero initiative. In an annual ranking by the Rainforest Action Network, called Banking on Climate Chaos, Bank of America and Citi were in the top five of banks financing fossil fuel development from 2016 to 2020,” the five-year span since the Paris Agreement.Bank of America and Citi have both have now signed on to the GFANZ initiative.“We can’t get to net-zero if we continue to dump hundreds of billions of dollars into fossil fuel companies,” Stand.earth Climate Finance Director Richard Brooks told the Globe. “Particularly ones that are in the midst of expanding their operations—building more coal mines, digging for more oil, or building more infrastructure that have lifespans of 20, 30, 40 years.”“Eliminating emissions has become a major talking point for bank executives this year as the finance industry attracted greater scrutiny for funding the world’s biggest emitters,” Bloomberg Green writes. In a recap of U.S. banks’ net-zero efforts, published a week before the GFANZ announcement, the news agency cites JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon’s recent statement that “climate change and inequality are two of the critical issues of our time, and these new efforts will help create sustainable economic development that leads to a greener planet and critical investments in underserved communities.”JPMorgan “remains the biggest funder of fossil fuel companies globally, financing about $189 billion since the 2015 Paris climate agreement,” Bloomberg notes, citing its own research. “Dimon wrote in his annual shareholder letter last week that ‘the solution is not as simple as walking away from fossil fuels’.”

Source: Carney Launches New Net-Zero Finance Alliance with $70 Trillion in Assets – The Energy Mix

A new supersonic commercial airliner was announced on Monday, one that its designer and manufacturer says will reach speeds of Mach 4-plus. Aerion said the AS3 will make its first flight before the end of the decade, with the ability to fly up to 500 passengers for 7,000 miles.Aerion has already been working on the design of the smaller AS2 supersonic business jet for years and says production will begin in 2023. The company is building a new 100-acre headquarters and production facility in Melbourne, Fla., where it says it will produce 300 AS2 jets. It also recently announced that NetJets, the world’s largest fractional provider, has pre-ordered 20 AS2’s.

Source: Aerion AS3 Airliner Will Fly From NYC to London in Less Than an Hour – Robb Report

A plan by some of the biggest clubs in soccer to form a European Super League has collapsed after British Prime Minister Boris Johnson threatened a “legislative bomb” to stop English teams from joining the venture.Outrage had been building since Sunday when the 12 teams – six from England’s Premier League and three each from the top flights in Spain and Italy – shook the sports world by announcing plans to create the breakaway league and upend the structure of soccer in Europe. The teams had secured US$6-billion in financing and had high hopes that three other teams would join as founder members.But the project began to unravel late Tuesday when Manchester City pulled out, followed by Chelsea. Within hours, the four remaining English teams – Tottenham, Arsenal, Manchester United and Liverpool – had left as well, while Barcelona, AC Milan and Atletico Madrid appeared certain to follow. Manchester United also announced the resignation of Ed Woodward, the club’s top executive and a leading force behind the Super League.“The last few days have shown us yet again the depth of feeling our supporters around the world have for this great club and the game we love,” a statement from Arsenal said. “We needed no reminding of this but the response from supporters in recent days has given us time for further reflection and deep thought.”This isn’t a Disney sports documentary. The European Super League doesn’t end hereThe collapse came hours after a flurry of attacks on the venture from the head of soccer’s governing body, FIFA, and Johnson, who said the British government would introduce legislation to block the league.“Be in no doubt that we don’t support the creation of this [league],” he told a news conference on Tuesday. “It’s not in the interests of fans. It’s not in the interests of football. … I think it offends against the basic principles of competition.”During an earlier meeting on Tuesday with fan groups and soccer officials, Johnson went further and vowed: “We should drop a legislative bomb to stop it – and we should do it now.” Government officials were considering a windfall tax on the participating teams, banning their players’ work visas or modifying competition laws.In a tweet late Tuesday, Johnson welcomed the decision by the English clubs to withdraw from the group. “I hope the other clubs involved in the European Super League will follow their lead,” he added.The proposed league would have been based on a North American franchise system, with revenue sharing and salary caps, and the 15 founding clubs would have been permanent members. That’s contrary to European leagues where teams move up and down through promotion and relegation. Top teams across Europe also compete for places in the annual Champions League and Europa League tournaments, which are run by the Union of European Football Associations.On Tuesday, Gianni Infantino, the FIFA president, came out firmly against the project, saying he couldn’t support the “closed-shop” model. “There is no doubt whatsoever of FIFA’s disapproval for this,” Infantino told UEFA’s annual meeting in Montreux, Switzerland. “If some elect to go their own way then they must live with the consequences of their choice. This means either you’re in or you’re out. You can’t be half in or half out.”

Source: European Super League collapses as top English soccer clubs pull out amid backlash from fans – The Globe and Mail

You can’t park a superyacht in Paris or Prague. You can’t take one to Champagne to quaff bubbly either. But you can aboard Savvy, the world’s first super-luxury, superyacht barge.Designed to ply the narrow, shallow, low-bridged canals and rivers of Europe in style, Savvy was built back in 2004 by leading Dutch superyacht yard Hakvoort, with a stunning interior by British superyacht specialists H2Design. For the past five years, she’s taken her current owner, well-known British entrepreneur Peter de Savary—hence the barge’s name—on a grand adventure around Europe’s inland waterways.

Source: The World’s First Luxury Superyacht Barge Cruises Canals in Style – Robb Report