SAINT-JEAN, NL — Newfoundland and Labrador will have to wait another 40 days for a federal decision on the fate of an offshore oil project proposed by Norwegian giant Equinor.
Ottawa said in a statement Friday that federal Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault has been given additional time to decide whether the Bay du Nord project “is likely to cause significant adverse environmental effects.”
“The Minister will take into account the environmental assessment report of the Impact Assessment Agency of Canada in making these decisions,” it says.
The project would open a fifth oil field off St. John’s in an area where some experts say there are around 800 million barrels of recoverable oil.
Video: Transition allowances called into question (Le Devoir)
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The West unites against the Russian invasion of Ukraine
West unites against Russian invasion of Ukraine Canada, the United States and the European Union have united against Moscow in response to what looks like the “beginning of a Russian invasion of Ukraine”. Ukraine,” according to the White House, announcing a series of economic sanctions targeting Russia. The day after the recognition of the independence of two pro-Russian regions of Ukraine, Vladimir Putin declared null and void the peace agreements negotiated with the former Soviet republic for these territories in the east of the country occupied since 2014. He declared also announced the establishment of diplomatic ties with the “republics” of Donetsk and Lugansk, not recognized by the international community. The measure aims to establish “comprehensive cooperation” with Russia, said Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, and “to strengthen peace, stability and security” in the region. On Tuesday, the head of the Kremlin also obtained the green light from his parliament to deploy soldiers in the separatist areas in order to “defend” them against what Moscow presents as a possible aggression from Kiev. A propaganda considered worrying by NATO, which described the current escalation by the voice of its secretary general, Jens Stoltenberg, as “the most dangerous moment for European security for a generation”. In response, Washington on Tuesday announced a “first tranche” of sanctions aimed at blocking Russia’s access to Western funding and targeting “Russian elites” as well as the country’s financial institutions. Canada followed the lead of the United States in the following hours by banning all financial transactions by Canadians to the “independent” territories of Lugansk and Donetsk, and announcing the imposition of sanctions against members of the Russian Parliament who voted “for the illegal decision to recognize these territories,” said Justin Trudeau. In the process, the Prime Minister said he had authorized “the deployment of 460 members of the Canadian Armed Forces” in Latvia and the sending of “an additional frigate and a maritime patrol aircraft”. Earlier in the day, the 27 member states of the European Union “unanimously” approved a “sanctions package” against Russia and warned that they “will do very badly”, added the head of diplomacy European, Josep Borrell. He spoke of an asset freeze and visa ban for the 351 Russian Duma deputies who endorsed recognition of the independence of the breakaway territories.
The duty
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Quebec will create an “ombudsman” for children’s rights
Quebec will create an “ombudsman” for children’s rights Called to modify the role of National Director of Youth Protection to make it more independent, Minister Lionel Carmant remains inflexible. The creation of a children’s rights commissioner in a subsequent bill will address several concerns, he said. “I think people confuse the two roles,” noted Mr. Carmant Tuesday morning, a few minutes before beginning the detailed study of his Bill 15 aimed at reforming the DPJ. In its report issued in May last year, the Special Commission on Children’s Rights and Youth Protection recommended that the government proceed with the creation of two separate posts as part of its reform of the DPJ. It recommends the creation of a position of National Director of Youth Protection, as well as a position of Commissioner for the Welfare and Rights of Children. The first was embedded in the bill tabled in December by Minister Carmant. The second had not yet been the subject of concrete announcements. However, on Tuesday, the elected official confirmed that the post of Commissioner would see the light of day, and this, by means of a bill. “We will have to wait for a second term if we want to be realistic,” he told Le Devoir. Last week, in parliamentary committee, several speakers deplored that the position of National Director is intrinsically linked to a position of assistant deputy minister. According to Minister Carmant, there is gender confusion. “The role we gave to the national director is a role of harmonizing practices. The Commission [Laurent] insisted that she take on the role of assistant deputy minister, raised the elected representative of the Coalition avenir Québec. Eventually, we’ll look for the Commissioner. »
The duty
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Difficult to resume surgery
Difficult resumption of surgical operations Waiting lists for surgery have been getting longer since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Nearly 159,000 Quebecers are waiting to get one, 36% of them for more than six months. Catching up will be long and arduous, since it lacks personnel. Medical specialists believe that more use should be made of specialized medical centers (CMS), private clinics that carry out interventions on behalf of the public network. The president of the Quebec Association of Surgery, Dr. Mario Viens, believes that a “strictly medical” reflection must take place concerning the remediation and the prioritization of patients. He sits on a committee that is developing an electronic form to help clinicians determine “reasonable time” for any type of surgery. According to him, catching up must first go through a full recovery of surgical blocks as well as a contribution from specialized medical centers. However, the situation varies from one health establishment to another. “But in the Outaouais, we are really at the bare minimum in the operating rooms, notes otolaryngologist Luc Monette. In Gatineau and Hull, [le niveau d’activités] is below 50%. »
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Earlier this week, 118 environmental and academic groups across Canada signed a letter calling on Ottawa to reject the project, saying it is inconsistent with the country’s national and global climate commitments.
The letter also highlights the International Energy Agency’s statement in May that there can be no investment in new fossil fuel supply projects if the world is to meet net zero targets by 2050.
Newfoundland Premier Andrew Furey and his Minister of Energy, Andrew Parsons, issued a statement on Friday saying they remained optimistic the project would be approved because it will be “the most cost-effective development in carbon of its magnitude.
The Canadian Press