JANICE HARVEY
February 6th, 2008

As Premier Graham stands poised to sign a deal with Atomic Energy of Canada, the advice "buyer beware" seems apt.

AECL, a Crown corporation, wants to sell us a brand new reactor, the ACR 1000, or Advanced Candu Reactor. This 1000 megawatt reactor is so fresh it exists only on paper. And yet, according to court documents, Premier Graham has already urged NB Power to tag it as the preferred reactor. (I'm sure this has nothing to do with the fact that Liberal lobbyist Doug Tyler is one of the salesmen, and that former Liberal premier Ray Frenette did a stint as chairman of AECL).

February 5th, 2008

The Conservation Council of New Brunswick is not mistaken about the increases in benzene emissions from the refinery as cited in a story in the Jan. 29 Daily Gleaner.

We are well aware of how benzene and volatile organic compounds are reported. Benzene stack emissions were 4.88 tonnes in 2003 and 6.69 tonnes in 2006. Those figures represent an increase of 37 per cent.

Average annual ground level concentrations of benzene at the Champlain Heights air quality monitoring station have increased from 0.38 ppb before the upgrade (2000) to 0.62 ppb in 2005 after the upgrade, an increase of 63 per cent, contrary to statements made by a Department

The New Brunswick Federation of Labour has announced that they are holding round table discussions on Atlantica, Public-Private Partnerships and Job losses in the Manufacturing and Forestry Sector throughout New Brunswick over the next 3 Months. All Discussion are open to the public.

Oromocto - February 20th at 7pm Royal Canadian Legion Br. 93, 284 Restigouche Rd

Miramichi - February 26th at 7pm, CEP Local 689, 138 Burns Street

Bathurst - February 27th at 7pm, Union Centre, 975 King Street

Edmunston - March 18th at 7pm, Chateau Edmunston, (100 Rice Street)

Dalhousie - March 25th at 7pm, NBIP Hall, 361 William Street

Sent: Tuesday, January 29, 2008 8:58 AM

Dear chapter activists,

As reported by Reuters this morning, "To a standing ovation from Congress, the U.S. president said: 'Tonight I am pleased to announce that in April we will host this year's North American Summit of Canada, Mexico, and the United States in the great city of New Orleans.'"

CNN reported that, "Among other proposals in the 53-minute speech, the president: Announced plans to hold the annual North American Summit of U.S., Canadian and Mexican leaders in New Orleans, still rebuilding from the devastation of Hurricane Katrina in 2005. White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said the president decided to hold the summit there to send a signal about the city's redevelopment since the hurricane, which killed more than 1,800 people on the Gulf Coast."

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
23 JANUARY 2008

Clifton Royal, New Brunswick

The Fundy Royal NDP has reiterated its call for a full Federal Environmental Impact Assessment of the proposed 2nd oil refinery in Saint John. Prime Minister Harper's Minister of the Environment, John Baird, has refused to conduct the assessment - despite demands to do so from throughout the province. So far, Harper's decision has left the majority of the proposal under the complete discretion of Provincial environmental authorities. The federal government's ruling is currently the subject of a court case filed by Ecojustice (formerly the Sierra Legal Defence Fund).

JANICE HARVEY
January 16th, 2008

Prime Minister Harper has largely succeeded in averting public scrutiny of Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd. (AECL) in the medical isotope affair. By blaming the chair of the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC), the arms-length nuclear regulatory body, for the shortage of medical isotopes after it shut down the 50-year old NRU reactor at Chalk River, the publicly funded Crown corporation has been largely shielded by the Prime Minister from what should be a major shakedown.

Despite receiving billions of tax dollars since it started operations in Chalk River providing fuel for the American nuclear weapons program, AECL has failed to develop into a viable, reliable enterprise. Worse, it has been shown to be poorly managed, not a trait one would like to see in a national nuclear industry.

Conservation Council of New Brunswick News Release
For immediate publication
Jan 14, 2008

CCNB and Friends of Earth Take John Baird to Court over Irving Refinery Proposal

Fredericton – What if Irving Oil’s proposed new oil refinery is subject to a federal environmental review. That’s the Conservation Council’s what if.

Canada’s Environment Minister John Baird is facing a lawsuit for his lax treatment of Irving Oil’s proposal to construct a massive oil refinery in Saint John. The Conservation Council’s Fundy Baykeeper and Friends of the Earth Canada commenced the lawsuit to ensure that the multi-billion dollar refinery – which is expected to generate greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to New Brunswick’s biggest coal-burning power plant– faces the full scrutiny of an environmental assessment by the federal government.

The Daily Gleaner
Letters, Published Tuesday January 8th, 2008

Electric heat not way to go

A recent letter to the editor about electric heat was wrong on at least two assertions.

The writer argues that electric heat is getting a bad rap and that nuclear power does not produce greenhouse gases.

Electric heat is the least efficient form of heating and is responsible for keeping the demand for electricity high for NB Power.

Replacing inefficient electric home heating systems with more efficient ones using renewable energy will reduce future power demands, and help New Brunswick come closer to both Kyoto targets and the accord that will replace Kyoto.

By Richard D. Vogel
MR Zine, December 18, 2007
http://mrzine.monthlyreview.org/vogel181207.html

Good News!

Opponents of the I-69 NAFTA corridor in the Midwest and the South can take heart from the partial victory of the corridor opposition in Texas. There are valuable lessons to be learned from this skirmish between grassroots citizen groups and the
forces of globalization.

In the face of widespread public opposition, the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) announced on November 13 (www.KeepTexasMoving.com) that it is revising its grandiose plans for the construction of the I-69/TTC corridor through East Texas, one of the primary routes in the U.S. NAFTA corridor system (the NAFTA corridors in Texas were dubbed the Trans-Texas Corridor system, or TTC, by TxDOT).

By Inka Milewski, Science Advisor and Health Watch Director, Conservation Council of New Brunswick

Monday, December 10th, 2007

In a letter to the editor in the Dec. 3 Daily Gleaner, an associate professor in UNB's chemical engineering department said uranium mining can sustain a community without destroying it.

He pointed to Elliot Lake as an example but gave no evidence to support the claim, nor did he define what would constitute destruction of a community.

At one point in Elliot Lake's history, there were at least nine uranium mines operating. Now, there are none.

What's been left behind are lakes, rivers, soil and wildlife contaminated with high levels of radium-226, a by-product of uranium mining and known carcinogen, and former miners with lung cancer and other radiation-related illness who file claims for compensation at a rate of one each week.