As the urban centre at the heart of Canada’s oilsands industry, Fort McMurray has seen more than its share of ups and downs. A decade and a half ago, the northern Alberta community was this country’s most famous boom town. High oil prices helped to drive unprecedented demand for the thick, viscous bitumen that lies … Read more
Fresh research suggests Western Canada’s once-dwindling caribou numbers are finally growing. But the same paper concludes the biggest reason for the rebound is the slaughter of hundreds of wolves, a policy that will likely have to continue for decades. “If we don’t shoot wolves, given the state of the habitat that industry and government have … Read more
The federal government says Canada could face another destructive wildfire season because of an unusually warm winter, widespread drought conditions and a forecast of above-normal temperatures in the months ahead. Officials said during a technical briefing Wednesday that more dry, hot weather is expected this spring and summer, putting much of the country at greater … Read more
For the first time in more than 40 years, a congressional district in Colorado is without a voice in the U.S. House of Representatives. In 1983, a seat sat vacant because Jack Swigert, a former astronaut on the Apollo 13 who was elected the previous November, died of cancer one week before taking office. This … Read more
The strongest earthquake in a quarter-century rocked Taiwan during the morning rush hour Wednesday, killing nine people, stranding dozens of workers at quarries and sending some residents scrambling out the windows of damaged buildings. The quake, which also injured more than 1,000, was centered off the coast of rural, mountainous Hualien County, where some buildings … Read more
People who search for human remains in Alberta say a new study identifying predominant scavengers in the region will help them conduct their searches more efficiently. In August 2021 and August 2022, researchers placed pig carcasses at four locations — one near Edmonton, another near Calgary and two in more rural areas. The 200-pound pigs acted … Read more
For two decades, Tamara Franz-Odendaal has been studying how space travel affects the human skeleton. Because of the absence of gravity in space, astronauts experience bone loss when they get back to Earth. “We always think of it as just the scaffold that kind of keeps the body together, but it’s a really dynamic tissue,” … Read more
FORT LUPTON — U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert got into the mix with eight fellow Republican contenders in a 4th Congressional District debate Thursday night in this Weld County city, less than a month after she announced she was moving to the eastern side of Colorado — and a new district — to run for Congress … Read more
A new report by the U.S. branch of the non-profit Environmental Investigation Agency says that investment interest and government tax incentives are fuelling intense mining exploration in remote northern B.C. — raising concerns about the environmental impacts of the work and its financial implications. The report focuses on the transboundary region, which falls along the border between … Read more
A new sugar refinery set to open in Hamilton’s port lands in 2025 promises to be Canada’s largest, with capacity to produce 4,000 tonnes of refined sugar per day, or one million per year. The Sucro Can Sourcing facility, at the foot of Hamilton’s Sherman Street North, will use Randle Reef as an active part of its … Read more
