The Bigger Picture, 2017-2018
Number of Articles: 180
Trudeau: High levels of airport particles recorded at Montreal airport
Publication Date: December 29, 2018
Tags: Aviation/Airports
Study finds high concentrations of particles harmful to human health in the air at the Montreal airport.CBC News
Mexico’s Texcoco airport project to be cancelled!
Publication Date: November 27, 2018
Tags: Aviation/Airports, Environment
The partially completed airport, a project plagued by controversy over the high cost of building such infrastructure on a sinking, flood-prone former lake bottom, and its proximity to a migratory bird refuge, will be cancelled. The new Mexican government plans to relieve air traffic congestion by expanding an existing military airport. This is the second major "greenfield" airport project cancelled this year. France cancelled plans to construct a new airport at Nantes, opting to expand its existing airport instead.New York Times
Canadians need to rethink air travel in a warming world
Publication Date: November 27, 2018
Tags: Aviation/Airports, Climate Change
Writer and activist Michael Polanyi writes: "We need to urge our governments to come up with ways to reduce aviation growth, and to expand infrastructure for lower-emission means of travel, such as buses and trains."nowtoronto.com
Report: Aircraft noise kills
Publication Date: August 27, 2018
Tags: Aviation/Airports
The adverse health impacts of aircraft noise.silencity.com
Heathrow: what are the pros and cons of expansion?
Publication Date: June 25, 2018
Tags: Aviation/Airports
The UK Parliament will vote on Cabinet's agreement to build a third runway at the airport. Heathrow expansion (or not) has been a political issue since the 1960s. The project is expected to be privately financed at a cost of $24 billion – for one runway! The taxpayer cost for the supporting infrastructure is claimed to be an additional $26 billion.theweek.com
No more flights from Sri Lanka’s second airport
Publication Date: June 8, 2018
Tags: Aviation/Airports, Environment
White elephant dept.: Airlines have stopped using Sri Lanka's new airport, Mattala International.Channel News Asia
Heathrow expansion: key questions answered
Publication Date: June 5, 2018
Tags: Aviation/Airports
Actually, it’s more like “key questions not really answered.”Independent
Two Airbus A380 jets to be stripped for parts 10 years after superjumbo’s debut
Publication Date: June 5, 2018
Tags: Aviation/Airports
Will the Airbus A380, the world's largest commercial airliner, become obsolete?Globe and Mail
Canadian government postpones study of airport privatization
Publication Date: April 20, 2018
Tags: Aviation/Airports
Transport Canada puts in limbo a scheme to privatize large Canadian airports to raise cash for new infrastructure projects. Institutional investors have also repeatedly told the government that their preference is to invest in existing, revenue-generating infrastructure assets rather than in new Canadian projects.Globe and Mail
Pearson: GTAA outlines plan for noise mitigation near Brampton
Publication Date: April 16, 2018
Tags: Aviation/Airports
The GTAA presents a Pearson airport noise mitigation plan.inbrampton.com
Vancouver: airport scares record number of birds from runways
Publication Date: April 15, 2018
Tags: Aviation/Airports, Environment
Vancouver airport reports that it chased a record 1.5M birds away from its runways in 2017.Vancouver Sun
Frankfurt: Exorbitantly high fine dust readings near airport
Publication Date: April 4, 2018
Tags: Aviation/Airports, Environment
Experts are alarmed by high levels of ultra-fine particulate matter (aka aerosols) measured in the town of Raunheimer, 8 km from Frankfurt airport.uecna
Historic Argentine drought shakes grain markets
Publication Date: April 2, 2018
Tags: Climate Change, Food/Water/Agriculture
Argentina's severe drought is impacting global grain prices.GRO Intelligence
Peterborough farmers urge more preservation of farmland
Publication Date: March 20, 2018
Tags: Food/Water/Agriculture
Peterborough conference emphasizes need to preserve farmland.globalnews.ca
Unconventional: Time to take these farmers seriously
Publication Date: March 12, 2018
Tags: Food/Water/Agriculture
Young farmers are changing the Canadian farming industry.CountryGuide
Report: On Ontario’s World Foods
Publication Date: March 7, 2018
Tags: Food/Water/Agriculture
An Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs report on the state of world foods in Ontario and opportunity for growth.OMAFRA
Why Canada has a golden opportunity in the food industry
Publication Date: March 3, 2018
Tags: Food/Water/Agriculture
Multinational food company sales are slowly dying as young consumers look for different, organic, local foods.Independent
Berlin Brandenburg: Tear down unfinished airport and start over!
Publication Date: March 1, 2018
Tags: Aviation/Airports
Nearly $11 billion have been spent so far on building Berlin’s new airport. This op-ed says the project is a bottomless money pit and unfixable.DW
Foods at risk
Publication Date: February 22, 2018
Tags: Climate Change, Food/Water/Agriculture
Twelve foods that are vulnerable to climate change.World Economic Forum
Environmental noise and the cardiovascular system
Publication Date: February 1, 2018
Tags: Aviation/Airports
A research paper published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology describes how loud noise contributes to the development of heart disease. Aircraft noise is not ignored.UECNA
WestJet begins selling tickets, some for $0, for its ultra-low cost carrier Swoop
Publication Date: February 1, 2018
Tags: Aviation/Airports
Will Westjet's Swoop kill off competition from nascent Canadian ultra-low-cost air carriers?financialpost.com
Government support ensures US air service to small communities
Publication Date: January 31, 2018
Tags: Aviation/Airports
U.S. government heavily subsidizes most small American air-passenger airports.Eno: Centre for Transportation
Dairy farmers call TPP signing a “somber” day
Publication Date: January 24, 2018
Tags: Food/Water/Agriculture
Canadian agri-business views are split on TPP-11 export opportunities.TheWesternProducer
US farmers in crisis; looking to Trump for relief
Publication Date: January 23, 2018
Tags: Food/Water/Agriculture
Rural America is counting on President Trump to end its farm crisis.The New Yorker
Cape Town at risk of being first major city in world to run out of water
Publication Date: January 18, 2018
Tags: Climate Change, Food/Water/Agriculture
Climate change catastrophe? The 3.7 million residents of Cape Town are being warned about "Day Zero," in April, when the city will be shutting off the water supply to homes. The city is running out of water.Globe and Mail
Millennials are leaving desk jobs for this surprising profession
Publication Date: January 18, 2018
Tags: Food/Water/Agriculture
Millennials want to return to the farm. Barriers include the price of land and equipment.ThriveGlobal
France abandons plan for €580m airport near Nantes
Publication Date: January 17, 2018
Tags: Aviation/Airports, Food/Water/Agriculture
One of the world's most infamous airport battles has ended. Over 50 years ago, the French government proposed an airport project in Brittany called the "Great West” transatlantic gateway and expropriated over 4,000 acres of farmland near Nantes for the project. Five decades of protesting followed, involving thousands of people at rallies, the lands permanently occupied by protesters, and several violent clashes between protesters and police. Expansion of existing airports (at Nantes, at Rennes) was rejected by the government. The new Macron government committed to making a final decision by mid-January. Today came the announcement: in face of continuing "stiff opposition" the project would be abandoned and the site "would remain for agricultural use." The airport at Nantes will be expanded instead.The Guardian
France abandons plan for €580m airport near Nantes
Publication Date: January 17, 2018
Tags: Aviation/Airports, Food/Water/Agriculture, Historical
One of the world's most infamous airport battles has ended. Over 50 years ago, the French government proposed an airport project in Brittany called the "Great West” transatlantic gateway and expropriated over 4,000 acres of farmland near Nantes for the project. Five decades of protests followed, with thousands of people at rallies, the lands permanently occupied by protesters, and several violent clashes between protesters and police. Expansion of existing airports (at Nantes, at Rennes) was rejected by the government. The new Macron government committed to making a final decision by mid-January. Today came the announcement: in face of continuing "stiff opposition" the project would be abandoned and the site "would remain for agricultural use." The airport at Nantes will be expanded instead.The Guardian
Ontario invests $24 million in Chinese-owned baby formula factory in Kingston
Publication Date: January 10, 2018
Tags: Food/Water/Agriculture
The operation is expected to increase Ontario dairy milk production by 7% per year, and the funding will help create local jobs at the factory. Farmers forum
Finding the true cost of food: hard truths
Publication Date: January 10, 2018
Tags: Food/Water/Agriculture
(video) Guests on The Agenda with Steve Paiken discuss how to reconfigure the food system – a complex issue.TVO
Politicians take note: rural Ontario is about more than just farms
Publication Date: January 8, 2018
Tags: Food/Water/Agriculture
In a new paper about economic development in rural Ontario, the Rural Ontario Institute (policy director Norman Ragetlie,is also chairman of Ontario Farmland Trust) argues that one rural policy for all Ontario is insufficient; rural policies must address regional needs.TVO
Land grab looms in hurricane-wrecked Barbuda, and not just for an airport
Publication Date: January 4, 2018
Tags: Aviation/Airports
Disaster capitalism. Rather than rebuilding hurricane-damaged infrastructure on Barbuda so its population can return home, the government is trying to revoke centuries-old collectively held property rights to build an international airport and sell some of the best unspoiled beachfront properties in the Caribbean to tourism development companies.International Alliance of Inhabitants (IAI)
USA: 2017’s natural disasters cost US agriculture over $5 billion
Publication Date: January 4, 2018
Tags: Climate Change, Environment, Food/Water/Agriculture
In 2017, American agriculture suffered major economic losses from extreme weather/climate change disasters.The New Food Economy
Air passenger growth records in 2017
Publication Date: January 1, 2018
Tags: Aviation/Airports
In 2017, Canadian airports saw a record number of air passengers.Canadian Airports Council: Airport Voice
Minister MacAulay strengthens ag trade partnership with Mexico
Publication Date: December 8, 2017
Tags: Food/Water/Agriculture
The federal agriculture minister's visits to Mexico and China are part of Canada's efforts to grow global agri-food exports to $75 billion by 2025.Farms.com
Mozambique government wants to make Nacala airport profitable
Publication Date: December 4, 2017
Tags: Aviation/Airports
Building an airport without researching whether any airline is interested in flying to it is a bad idea.allAfrica
Soil power! The dirty way to a green planet
Publication Date: December 2, 2017
Tags: Climate Change, Environment, Food/Water/Agriculture
The importance of soil carbon sequestration.New York Times
Report: A Food Policy for Canada
Publication Date: December 1, 2017
Tags: Climate Change, Environment, Food/Water/Agriculture
The House of Commons Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food has proposed our first National Food Policy. Our vision for the remaining Federal Lands tallies perfectly with the Committee's recommendations. Have a read!
Parliament of Canada
A growing number of young Americans are leaving desk jobs to farm
Publication Date: November 23, 2017
Tags: Food/Water/Agriculture
They are part of a growing movement – highly educated, ex-urban, first-time farmers, capitalizing on booming consumer demand for local and sustainable foods. Expert say they could have a broad impact on the food system.Washington Post
Berlin’s Brandenburg airport may not open until 2021
Publication Date: November 23, 2017
Tags: Aviation/Airports
In the post-Cold War era, Germany decided to replace Tegel and Schönefeld airfields with a new airport in Berlin. Planned to be a model of infrastructure efficiency, it would modernize a runway of adjacent Schönefeld airport thus requiring construction of only one new runway. It’s been a decade-long disaster. The plan to have private investors build the airport fell through, their proposals deemed too expensive. The new airport was to open in 2011-2012, but now 2021-2022 is more likely. Most of the delay has been caused by major design and construction flaws in nearly all the safety systems in the passenger terminal, making it unsafe to use. It will take several more years to gut, redesign, rebuild, repair and certify these systems as safe. The original construction cost estimate of $4.3B has ballooned to over $10B – or $5B per runway.Business Traveller
Emails show Airbus writes aircraft CO2 rules
Publication Date: November 23, 2017
Tags: Aviation/Airports, Climate Change
Oops. The European Union allowed Airbus to write key aircraft CO2 emission rules?! This explains a lot!Transport & Environment
Barbudians, land rights, and a new airport
Publication Date: November 22, 2017
Tags: Aviation/Airports
Hurricane Irma completely destroyed 95% of the structures on the island of Barbuda, forcing evacuation of the entire population to nearby Antigua. Returning Barbudans find water and electricity have not been restored. The schools and hospital haven’t re-opened. Instead, they discover their government constructing an international airport on their landplace
Thanksgiving dinner cheapest in years, but farm families paying the price
Publication Date: November 21, 2017
Tags: Food/Water/Agriculture
Increased investments in local and regional food systems in the 2018 U.S. farm bill would benefit both farmers and consumers.EcoWatch
Mexico’s Green Airport of Future meets sinking lake bed
Publication Date: November 18, 2017
Tags: Aviation/Airports, Environment
Mexico City's airport reached its maximum aircraft handling capacity years ago, requiring construction of a second airport. Despite government pledges to build a green, sustainable new airport on the bottom of Lake Texcoco, an environmental disaster is unfolding. It is said that the airport construction cost estimate of $17B is likely to be low as engineers struggle to build solid foundations for runways on a constantly sinking lake bottom.New York Times
Ontario Hydro in pilot projects deal with one of Ontario’s largest greenhouses
Publication Date: November 7, 2017
Tags: Food/Water/Agriculture
Ontario Hydro cuts a deal to help reduce greenhouse grower's electricity costs. (See also Feb. 7)Farmers Forum
Ferrero looks to Ontario to crack Turkish grip on hazelnuts
Publication Date: November 3, 2017
Tags: Food/Water/Agriculture
Governments support Ferrero's hope that 25,000 acres of hazelnut trees will be planted in Ontario within the next 10 years. Start-up requires investment of $6,000 per acre, plus $100,000 in equipment, for a crop that takes 10 years to reach full production. But the net return is 10 times that of corn.CountryGuide
Feeding China’s growing appetite
Publication Date: November 2, 2017
Tags: Food/Water/Agriculture
The chief economist of Canada's export credit agency says that Chinese demand for high-quality Canadian food has been growing at double-digit rates since the turn of the century, and we've only just begun.EDC
WestJet introduces low-cost Swoop
Publication Date: October 31, 2017
Tags: Aviation/Airports
Canada's mainline air carriers plan to give small start-ups a turbulent ride.CBC News
Rich millennials are ditching golf communities for farms
Publication Date: October 30, 2017
Tags: Food/Water/Agriculture
Millennials don't want to live around golf courses. They prefer “agrihoods.Business Insider
Canadian cities are counting on nature – and it’s paying off
Publication Date: October 29, 2017
Tags: Climate Change, Environment
Cities are starting to recognize the importance of protecting natural habitat as the smart way to reduce storm damage.Globe and Mail