A fisherman can sell product right off the wharf,” says A. Estelle Bryant, senior planning and development office for the province’s department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Aquaculture. She goes on to tell us that a number of Nova Scotia fishery businesses are set up with retail operations right out of their factories. It may seem […]
Green Halifax
Posted inNews + Opinion
Artisans that use recycled materials
Five Surprises fivesurprises.com Haleigh Sheehan takes previously loved clothing—especially anything in natural fibres with an interesting print, texture or colour—to make handbags, tops and dresses, and cuts down on waste by using up all the scraps in smaller projects like scarves and cuffs. Worn-out bicycle tires are utilized on the soles of shoes and sandals. […]
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Biomass pros & cons
Of all the different ways Nova Scotia plans to meet its renewable energy goals—25 percent carbon neutral by 2015—the one we hear about most is biomass. The kind of forest biomass they’re talking about in Nova Scotia works by burning wood to convert it to energy. Supporters say biomass is carbon neutral: unlike fossil fuels […]
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Fishing ban suggested for Dartmouth’s Oathill Lake
Oathill Lake is an idyllic, tree-lined oasis hidden amongst middle-class homes in Dartmouth’s Manor Park. The short walking trail along its edge is a popular destination for runners and dog-walkers, and the lake acts as a year-round community centre for people who like to swim, skate or fish. (Full disclosure: I’m a resident of Manor […]
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Suburban homes proposed for park
If Halifax’s most politically connected developers get their way, land within the city’s proposed Blue Mountain-Birch Cove Lake Wilderness Park will instead get developed as suburban neighbourhoods. The land in question is 500 acres west of the Bicentennial Highway, owned by four groups—Annapolis Group, Armco Capital, Gateway Materials and Sisters of Charity. The largest of […]
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Local activists return from Copenhagen disappointed
Nova Scotian activists return home from the Copenhagen climate conference with one adjective in their hearts: disappointed. Thea Whitman, a Kings County member of the Canadian Youth Delegation, is distressed that so little has resulted from 15 years of conferences. “While the Copenhagen Accord cites a goal of limiting warming to two degrees,” she says, […]
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Dalhousie study gets province powered up
Nova Scotia Power will have to give up control over who gets access to the province’s energy grid, says a government-sponsored report released Tuesday. The province has set a target of 25 percent of electricity coming from renewable sources by 2015. That goal is lauded by environmentalists, but there’s concern that it will either not […]
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Halifax environmentalists prepare for Copenhagen
Haligonians are preparing for the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen, Denmark next week. The meeting of world leaders is being billed as the last chance for humanity to implement meaningful policies to avert cataclysmic climate change. Lil MacPherson, owner of The Wooden Monkey, leaves Tuesday to attend the conference as an observer with […]
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Blue Mountain-Birch Cove Lakes wilderness threatened
A group of four landowners is pushing for land designated as part of the Blue Mountain-Birch Cove Lakes wilderness park to be re-zoned for residential housing and apartments. The proposed park is a chunk of land the size of the Halifax peninsula, stretching from the Bayers Lake Industrial Park to Hammonds Plains. It includes a […]
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Tree-mendously safe
It’s that time of year again—the holidays are almost upon us. And the pressure is on to spend, consume and waste. The Ecology Action Centre, on the other hand, is busy prepping for its annual preemptive damage control effort. The Annual Organic Christmas Tree and Chemical-Free Wreath Campaign invites people to green their holidays by […]
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Slow Food’s Edible Schoolyard doc released
Head to Keshen Goodman Library Sunday (Nov. 15, 2:30pm) for a screening of Slow Food Nova Scotia’s new documentary, The Edible Schoolyard. The film tells the story of a group of Summerville students with green thumbs. Dr. Arthur Hines’ elementary students have been tending a vegetable garden at school for nearly six years, as part […]
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Local greens go Copenhagen or bust
“We’re hoping to send the politicians a message,” sayJannelle Frail, explaining this weekend’s environmental gathering on the Common. Frail is an organizer with the local branch of 350.org, an international group drawing attention to the need for strong results from the UN’s Climate Change conference in Copenhagen, Denmark, this December; “350” refers to the maximum […]
