JESSE ROGERSON: Suncor is publicly celebrating its reclamation of a tailings pond created in 1967. Tailings ponds are designed to catch the residual contaminants left over from mining the tar sands. These pollutants are deposited in the tailings pond and left to leach into the soil and surrounding ecosystems. The pond has been filled in with earth, and the 220 hectare region has been planted with thousands of shrubs and trees.

While Suncor has dubbed itself the first in the industry to complete a reclamation project, the Pembina Institute has said that Suncor has not yet finished the job. Pembina says the true impact of the tailings pond has not yet been fully realized. Continued monitoring and further reclamation are still required in the area before the region can declared fully reclaimed. Suncor officials stated they will monitor the land over the next 10 years.

Pembina applauded Suncor for its leadership and initiative in reclaiming mined land, and call for other companies to follow in Suncors footsteps. [ index ]

CHRIS HANNAY: Ontario’s environmental watchdog says the province is all bark and no bite. Gord Miller, the Environmental Commissioner of Ontario, released his annual report this week. In it, he says the provincial government has come up with ideas and plans for the environment and renewable energy. But, he says the province has been disappointing in the implementation. He says: “This government rightly prides itself on the progress it has made in passing legislation to protect the environment, but actions on the ground often undermine it.” The commissioner criticizes the province’s inability to improve poor air and water quality. Of special concern, is pollution in the Great Lakes. However, he singles out Guelph, Ont., as a city that sets an example by investing in better optimized sewage treatment facilities. The environmental commissioner makes 15 recommendations, and most of them are aimed at conservation. Among the other recommendations are a target of planting one billion more trees in southern Ontario, making caribou a priority in the north of the province and urging the environment ministry to ensure information about industrial air emissions are readily available for the public. The full, 228-page report is available on the Environmental Commissioner of Ontario’s website. [ index ]

JESSE ROGERSON: A lack of laws to protect endangered species in B.C. puts protected species in Alberta and the United States at risk. Many species protected outside B.C. routinely travel across the border leaving them open for hunting. In a study released by the David Suzuki Foundation, Ecojustice and Conservation Northwest, over 1900 species are at risk of extinction because of the lack of B.C. protection. The report says of the species that cross the border into B.C., only 9% have some type of protection.

The study urges B.C. to improve its laws and cross-border coordination with its neighbours. It also states that B.C. should plan for future changes in the location of wildlife habitats due to global warming. [ index ]

CHRIS HANNAY: A prominent water expert is urging Canadians to think more about conserving energy – when they conserve water. John Carey is a former senior executive at Environment Canada. He says we’re in a water-rich nation, and we’re unlikely to run out. But we should be conserving water, by thinking more about the massive energy costs involved in cleaning, heating and storing it. He recommends water meters in home, and says that water-conservation campaigns would be more effective by reminding consumers of the money they could save. Carey spoke at an international water conference in Montreal this week. His speech was reported on by The Canadian Press. [ index ]

JESSE ROGERSON: Containment vessels docking at the Port of Prince Rupert in British Columbia will soon be given a green alternative. When docked, ships are forced to run their diesel engines in order to maintain a power supply. Minister of the Asia-Pacific Gateway, Stockwell Day, announced Thursday that the Canadian government will be funding a shore power alternative, connecting docked ships to shore power so they may turn off their engines. The initiative will remove an estimated 4000 metric tonnes of greenhouse gases from the air every year. CN, Transport Canada, and the B.C. provincial government are also partners in the project, helping to cover the costs including the 69-kilovolt distribution line to be supplied by B.C. hydro. Although the shipping companies will save costs on fuel in port, they will be charged for use of the shore power. Construction of the 3.6 million dollar project, the first of its kind in Canada, will be completed in 2011. [ index ]

CHRIS HANNAY: From the mind of Leonardo da Vinci to the fields of rural Ontario. A University of Toronto student has built what’s believed to be the first human-powered aircraft propelled by flapping wings that can fly continuously. Todd Reichert, who’s pursuing his Ph.D. in engineering, led a team that built the ornithopter. He piloted the vehicle this week for a representative from an international aviation association. The ornithopter has a wingspan of about 32 metres, which is comparable to that of a Boeing 737. It sustained flight for 19 seconds, with an average speed of almost 26 kilometres per hour. Reichert admits the wing-flapping, human-powered plane is not particularly practical, but he hopes it will inspire further inventions. [ index ]

BRYANT BOULIANNE: The blown-out oil well that for three months spewed crude oil into the Gulf of Mexico has been permanently sealed. Crews finished drilling a relief well last week and on Sunday successfully pumped cement into the damaged well, plugging it for good. The magnitude of the spill, previously estimated at 4.1million barrels, is pegged at 4.4 million barrels, based on a new estimate by scientists at Columbia University. Remaining now is the cleanup of oil that washed into beaches and wetlands on the Gulf Coast, as well as an assessment of the lasting damage done by oil that remains suspended in the ocean. The companies involved in the disaster are nervously awaiting the results of an ongoing investigation by the U.S. government that will assign criminal responsibility, if it finds any. At issue are potentially billions of dollars in liabilities owed by any guilty parties. [ index ]

BRYANT BOULIANNE: There are increasing calls for Dr. Rajendra Pachauri, the head of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, to resign. The panel, also known as the IPCC, is a United Nations body of climate scientists responsible for putting together periodic reports to advise world governments on climate policy. The pressure for Dr. Pachauri to resign stems from errors in the IPCC’s 2007 report. These errors included improper sourcing of data as well as a now-disputed calculation that the Himalayan glaciers would disappear by 2035. As the head of the IPCC during the 2007 report, Dr. Pachauri is criticized for failing to maintain the panel’s scientific integrity. A growing group of environmentalists and politicians are calling for him to step aside so that the IPCC can move ahead and rebuild its reputation. [ index ]

BRYANT BOULIANNE: An experimental lighting project in Massachusetts harnesses the power of dog poo to power a street light. The project, called “The Park Spark” project, is the idea of Matthew Mazzotta, a conceptual artist who describes the project as “transforming dog waste into energy to power public art.” The lamp, located in the city of Cambridge, is connected to two large tanks. People walking their dogs nearby are encouraged to clean up after their pets with bio-degradable bags and then deposit the waste into one of the tanks. Methane produced in the tanks is then used to fuel the light which burns at night. Anyone interested in learning more can visit the project’s website at ‘parksparkproject.com’ [ index ]