The land gives us more than food, but can the law give back? 5/9/2012 Published in LawNow, May/June 2012 By Adam Driedzic, Staff Counsel, Environmental Law Centre Set foot on Ruzicka Sunrise Farm and something feels different. Whether it is the diversity of birds, the native prairie, or dugouts...
Castle logging tests public land law 2/27/2012 Regulated access to public land in Alberta has undergone a major overhaul. As of September 2011, the Public Lands Administration Regulation is in force under the Public Lands Act. The new Regulation consolidates a patchwork of existing access regulations and provides sweeping...
Letter of support for "Sustainable Forests, Sustainable Communities. The Future of Alberta’s Southwestern Forests" 12/15/2011 Click here to read the ELC's letter of support for the Alberta Wilderness Asssociation's "Sustainable Forests, Sustainable Communities. The Future of Alberta’s Southwestern Forests" Report. The full report is available to download on the Alberta...
Edmonton Food and Agriculture Policy Project 6/1/2011 On May 28th, a savvy Mayor used high noon at the Strathcona Farmers’ Market to launch the City of Edmonton’s Food and Agriculture Policy Project. Flowing from The Way We Grow Municipal Development Plan, the Project will identify potential for urban agriculture on...
New research on public health implications of coal power 2/21/2011 New research published in Environmental Health Perspectives this month compares public health gains from electricity consumption versus impacts of high electricity consumption. It suggests coal fired power use is linked to higher infant mortality. The study concludes that increased...
Alberta’s coal fired power debacle 1/18/2011 In all the talk about GHGs and contaminants from oilsands, it is often overlooked how significant the known impacts of Alberta’s heavy reliance on coal fired power are, or how urgently we need to switch to other forms of electricity generation. Impacts...
RSC Report: Science, regulation and the precautionary principle 12/18/2010 Earlier this week the Royal Society of Canada (RSC) released a lengthy report on the state of oilsands science and regulation in Alberta. The report rightly notes the lack of data on such important issues as water quality, air...
Update: Irrigation District allowed to sell its water 11/29/2010 As of November 18, 2010, Alberta environment has approved the Eastern Irrigation District’s application to change the purpose of its water licence from irrigation only to a variety of purposes. The purposes added include municipal, agricultural, commercial, industrial, habitat “enhancement”,...
The cumulative impacts of liquor stores and oilsands 11/26/2010 A recent Alberta Court of Appeal “leave to appeal” decision deals with the cumulative impacts of development…well the cumulative impact of having another liquor store in the Town of High River that is. The case involved an application by the Town...
Bill 29 (Alberta Parks Act) Reflects a Step Backward in Good Park Governance 11/17/2010 MEDIA ADVISORY BILL 29 (ALBERTA PARKS ACT) REFLECTS A STEP BACKWARD IN GOOD PARK GOVERNANCE Edmonton, AB, 17 November 2010 – ”It’s an unfortunate and reversible trend,” says Jason Unger, Staff Counsel at the Environmental Law...
Everyone DUCK! 10/29/2010 The notion that tailings pond duck deaths should be trivialized because of how many birds die through other means is getting under my skin. (On occasion I read comments associated with online media, which I have to admit is the source of this frustration.) Duck...
Gravel can be the pits! (Slides and handbook) 9/23/2010 Are you dealing with an Aggregate resources project in your community? Want to know more about what your options are? On September 22nd Laura Bowman, Staff Counsel at the Environmental Law Centre, presented information about how Aggregate is regulated...
