Environmental issues Archives - Page 7 of 30

Broadcasting nitrogen in fall least efficient approach

It’s also the least environmentally friendly

By Allan Dawson October 13, 2017

Broadcasting in fall is the quickest and easiest way to apply nitrogen — and the least efficient. So why, anecdotally at least, does the practice seem to be on the increase? Bigger farms and a shortage of labour could be part of it. Moreover, nobody knows when poor weather will shut down field operations. And

Bob McIntosh, who farms in Perth County, says it can take a lifetime or longer to repair degraded soils.

Crops

Degraded soils cost farmers billions annually

Yet soil care remains a low priority for policy-makers as well as farmers

By Laura Rance-Unger September 19, 2017

Farmers have reduced the amount of soil they lose through annual cropping practices, but they continue to carry a costly legacy of degraded soils, a University of Manitoba soil scientist says. David Lobb used crop production data and computer models to estimate how much lost productivity has occurred over the past four decades due to

Researchers at USC and Texas A&M University grew winter wheat in an arid area of Texas with reduced irrigation and found that the plants protect themselves by producing thick leaf wax.

Cereals, Did you know?, News

The key to drought-tolerant crops may be in the leaves

Leaf wax acts as the equivalent of ‘lip balm’ for plants,  protecting them from the harmful effects of drought

By Manitoba Co-operator Staff August 28, 2017

A new study suggests breeding plants with a thicker layer of leaf wax is the key to greater drought tolerance and growing crops in more arid regions. Sarah Feakins, a scientist at University of Southern California who has studied leaf wax in the context of climate change, teamed up recently with researchers at Texas A&M

Delegates discuss soil health issues, solutions and what should be included in a hypothetical soil health kit during a breakout session of the Global 4-H Summit.

Crops

4-H’ers dig into soil health policy and education

Soil health was a repeat topic as 4-H members from around the world turned their attention to sustainable agriculture and food security

By Alexis Stockford August 16, 2017

It’s time to think about what lies below our feet. That was the message delegates from 35 countries received from multiple speakers at the recent Global 4-H Summit in Ottawa. Soil health emerged from several workshops during the third day of the July 11-14 conference, themed around sustainable agriculture and food security. Syngenta Canada, also

Other, Weather, Weather Vane

Forecast: Slow warming trend expected

Issued August 4, 2017: Covering the period from August 9 to August 18

By Daniel Bezte August 10, 2017

Last week’s forecast quickly fell apart, at least from the point of view of temperature, as the upper low that brought some much-needed rain to western regions also altered the upper-level flow. The upper low combined with the building ridge of high pressure over extreme western North America shifted our flow from west-northwesterly to more

Drops of water falling from the melting ice.

Opinion, Other, Weather

Opinion: Facing up to the truth about climate change

If we want consumers to accept the judgment of science, we need to return the favour

By Lisa Guenther August 9, 2017

Those pants look terrible on you. Perhaps you’ve experienced that awkward moment when you try to stop a friend from committing a fashion faux pas. If so, you may have agonized how to word your concerns to avoid offence, while still getting your message across. It’s a potentially volatile moment that perfectly captures how I

Opinion, Other

Opinion: Short lines get short shrift

By Lee Jebb August 1, 2017

Excerpts of testimony by Lee Jebb, vice-president of Cando Rail Services in Brandon to the Senate Committee on Agriculture and Forestry, June 15. My message is that immediate, relative and absolute significant gains in greenhouse gas emissions resulting from the transport of goods and materials in Canada, including those produced in the agriculture and forestry

A protest sign outside Bakersfield, California in 2015 highlighted the urgency of the drought situation that year. Climate researchers say Arctic warming likely contributed to the severity.

Did you know?, News, Other

Warmer Arctic linked to weaker vegetation growth in North America

The effects of climate change in the extreme north  can be felt far away, researchers say

By Manitoba Co-operator Staff July 26, 2017

Warmer temperatures in the Arctic are having an unexpected effect elsewhere in North America climate, scientists say. Researchers from Korea’s Pohang University and the South University of Science and Technology of China say their analysis suggests the northernmost regions of the continent may be warming and becoming more productive. But that’s being offset by effects

Manitoba continues to invest in hydroelectricity, such as the proposed Conawapa generating station, seen here in a Manitoba Hydro rendering.

Local news, Other

Manitoba getting a carbon tax, amount uncertain

Premier Pallister says Ottawa’s $50-a-tonne tax by 2022 is too high and doesn’t reflect the investment Manitobans have, and continue to make,  into producing clean hydro electricity

By Allan Dawson July 6, 2017

Manitobans will pay a carbon tax, but how much may depend on the courts. Last week Premier Brian Pallister reiterated Manitoba will implement a ‘made-in-Manitoba’ carbon tax, but added the federal government’s plan to impose a $50-a-tonne carbon tax, starting at $10 in 2018 and peaking by 2022 if provinces don’t do it themselves, is

News

New report paints dire picture of Canadian freshwater systems

Watershed Report is a first-time assessment of all 25 of Canada’s watersheds

By Lorraine Stevenson June 28, 2017

The long-held view of Canada’s fresh water as both clean and abundant is being challenged by a new report detailing the threats facing this country’s lakes, streams and rivers. The World Wildlife Fund-Canada’s Watershed Report, a national assessment is a first-ever attempt to document the state of Canadian watersheds, including its 25 watersheds and 167

Daily Network News

U.S. grains: Wheat trades near contract lows under ample global supply

CPKC overshoots grain revenue entitlement, CN stays in bounds

Canada October retail sales down 0.2 per cent; seen up 1.2 per cent in November

Tag Archives Environmental issues