constitutional obligation

N.S. premier says Ottawa must pay entire bill to protect land link from flooding risk

N.S. premier says Ottawa must pay entire bill to protect land link from flooding risk

Nova Scotia's premier pulled no punches Thursday, saying Ottawa should pay the entire cost of protecting the important land corridor linking his province and New Brunswick from climate change-related flooding. Tim Houston made the comment after being asked whether his government would apply to the federal disaster mitigation fund by the July 19 deadline. Federal Infrastructure Minister Dominic LeBlanc has encouraged both provinces to apply for funding for up to half the $301-million potential cost to protect the Chignecto Isthmus. "That (land) strip is a very significant national trade corridor," Houston said. "We understand Minister LeBlanc's position on that and the offer for the feds to pay 50 per cent, but quite frankly we think he's wrong. We think the feds should be paying for that."

Yukon pushed to develop protections for irreplaceable wetlands threatened by mining

Yukon pushed to develop protections for irreplaceable wetlands threatened by mining

An independent panel is urging the Yukon government to develop a wetlands policy to protect unique streams, bogs, fens and peatland from mining because there are no known ways to fully restore these sensitive ecosystems once disturbed. Wetlands filter water, provide habitat to species and sequester carbon but are quickly being lost to development worldwide — an issue drawing attention on World Wetlands Day Feb. 2.