| Two events focusing on sustainable living are being held to help Calgarians make simple changes.
A conference designed to spur Calgarians to create more sustainable neighbourhoods will take place at the University of Calgary on March 22. Labelled an Urban Sustainability Action Conference, it is sponsored by the Calgary Public Interest Research Group.
Three speakers and a discussion forum will focus on ways to make Calgary communities more ecologically sound – topics include urban sprawl, private land development and a vision for Calgary’s future.
The conference takes place at the University of Calgary’s MacEwan Student Centre at 10 a.m. More information is available at the group’s Web site (pirg-calgary.tripod.com).
Another local organization will be holding a forum teaching people how to grow organic produce in their backyards.
The event will focus on gardening using the principles of permaculture, biointensive agriculture, companion planting, and organic gardening. There will be one-on-one help for interested gardeners who bring a site layout of their yard, including site measurements, features and directions.
The forum is being organized by the University of Calgary Community Garden, the Boiled Frog Trading Co-operative and Calgary Food Not Lawns, and will take place at the University of Calgary’s MacEwan Student Centre on March 21 at 6:30 p.m.
Organizations dealing with poverty and homelessness criticized the provincial government’s decision earlier this month to keep the province’s minimum wage the lowest in Canada.
Human Resources Minister Clint Dunford said earlier this month that there is no need to change the minimum wage because few people in Alberta actually earn the minimum wage, and those who do are predominantly students.
But the Industrial Workers of the World are pressuring the government to institute a true living wage as the minimum standard in Alberta, which is closer to $10 per hour, plus benefits, than the $5.90 minimum currently in place. The last increase was in 1999.
The organization says the $5.90 wage means low-income earners must work longer and harder to keep up with inflation, and the government’s refusal to increase it shows it "cares more for its business buddies than those who produce the wealth in this province."
Some environmental groups are heartened by Premier Ralph Klein’s statements last month that the government would look into boosting protection of grizzly bears.
Several organizations have been lobbying for the designation of the bears to be bumped up to "endangered" from a classification of "threatened." The change would institute more protective measures for the bears.
The Bow Valley Grizzly Bear Alliance and WildCanada.net have relaunched an online "Grizzly Bear Action Centre" (www.Save-TheGrizzly.org) in response to Klein’s comments that the government will investigate the matter, and are urging Albertans to support the change.
The Alberta government says 90 per cent of the power used in its facilities will come from environmentally friendly sources as of 2005.
The green power will come from long-term contracts signed with the city of Calgary’s electricity subsidiary, Enmax, and Canadian Power. Enmax green power comes from wind generation, and Canadian Power’s will come from a biomass combustion facility.
Currently, less than one per cent of government facilities are operated by green power. The time remaining until 2005 will be used by the companies to upgrade green power generation, and by government to switch its 195 facilities over. When the modifications are complete, their greenhouse gas emissions will be reduced to 26 per cent below 1990 levels. |
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