[Image-1] Life evolved to live within limits. It’s a delicate balance. Humans need oxygen, but too much can kill us. Plants need nitrogen, but excess nitrogen harms them, and pollutes rivers, lakes and oceans. Ecosystems are complex. Our health and survival depend on intricate interactions that ensure we get the right amounts of clean air, […]
Climate change
Posted inNews + Opinion
Historically low water levels prompts mandatory conservation order from Halifax Water for Dartmouth communities
[Image-1] A lack of rain and a long, hot summer has resulted in “historic low water levels” in Lake Major, says a mandatory news release from Halifax Water. In order to conserve what water is left, the utility has instituted water use restrictions for all residents and businesses in the affected areas until further notice. […]
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SCIENCE MATTERS: Airline emissions are flying too high
In July, Solar Impulse 2 became the first airplane to fly around the world without using fuel. At the same time, the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration has been working on electric planes. These developments mean air travel and transport could become more environmentally friendly, with less pollution and fewer greenhouse gas emissions, and planes would […]
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It’s time for some climate change truths
[Image-1] Are we going to live up to our Paris commitments and act decisively to stop climate change? If the recent meeting of environment ministers is any indication, it depends on whom you ask. Federal minister Catherine McKenna clearly understands that urgency and opportunity have converged to create a potent moment for reducing carbon emissions, […]
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SCIENCE MATTERS: How much food can cities produce?
Humans are fast becoming city dwellers. According to the United Nations, “The urban population of the world has grown rapidly from 746 million in 1950 to 3.9 billion in 2014.” Sixty-six per cent of us will likely live in urban environments by 2050. The number of mega-cities (more than 10 million inhabitants) is also skyrocketing, […]
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SCIENCE MATTERS: Broken records define the climate crisis
[Image-1] We’re living in a time of records. More renewable energy came on stream in 2015 than ever—147 gigawatts, equal to Africa’s entire generating capacity—and investment in the sector broke records worldwide. Costs for producing solar and wind power have hit record lows. Portugal obtained all its electricity from renewable sources for four straight days […]
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Carbon pricing offers an answer to climate change
Fusion Halifax believes that our generation deserves a chance to thrive in Nova Scotia. With the impacts of climate change being felt by Nova Scotians and diverse populations worldwide, we urge our provincial government to support our future and join Canadian provinces from coast to coast in adopting a carbon price without delay. Climate change […]
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SCIENCE MATTERS: Got milkweed? Monarchs still need your help
[Image-1] Three years ago, the eastern monarch butterfly population plummeted to 35 million, a drop of more than 95 percent since the 1990s. More than a billion milkweed plants, which monarchs depend on for survival, had been lost throughout the butterfly’s migratory range—from overwintering sites in Mexico to summer habitat in Canada. We needed more […]
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Talking Paris: Life isn’t fair, and neither are climate negotiations
[Image-1] The agreement that comes out of the Paris climate negotiations will include commitments to cut carbon pollution from both developed and developing countries. In the world of United Nations climate change talks, this is a real big deal. The Kyoto Protocol was the first international agreement that required countries to commit to reducing carbon pollution. […]
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What we’re doing right in Halifax
[Image-1] With the 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference happening next week on the other side of the pond, we’re highlighting a few of the exceptional (and Halifax-based) initiatives that are tackling climate change and fighting the good fight here at home against environmental degradation. Solar City Solar City is a nationally lauded program created […]
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The French connection
[Image-1] Once again, the eyes of the world will be watching Paris. From November 30 to December 11, 147 world leaders will join together in the French capital along with tens of thousands of journalists, activists and observers for the 21st annual Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. […]
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Letters to the future
Dear leaders of the 2015 Paris climate change conference, Our planet is suffering due to the devastating effects of climate change. Oceans are dying, forests are disappearing and our air is becoming unbreathable. I am writing you today in hopes that you will do everything in your power to end this issue. Instead of letting […]
