Author Archives: dougdraper

Send Your Letter, Demanding a Real Climate Action Plan, to Canadian Environment Minister Catharine McKenna

“Canadians deserve better options (for addressing the climate crisis). And we’re running out of time to adopt them.” – Canada’s Green Party

A Call-Out from the Green Party of Canada

Posted May 30th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

This summer, for the first time in Canadian history, climate change will be a front-page issue. That’s because our momentous win (in a federal by-election) in Nanaimo-Ladysmith, British Columbia proved that Canadians want decisive climate action and real leadership.

BUT THE LIBERALS AREN’T LISTENING.

B.C NDP MP Kennedy Stewart and Green Party Leader Elizabeth May protesting Kinder Morgan tar sands pipe in 2018. The two were later arrested.

Their climate plan for Canada is a half-hearted, half-measure that won’t solve the climate crisis. Continue reading →

“We need to tax pollution, not people”, and “end subsidies for fossil fuels,.” – United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres, this May 28^th, 2019 at the World Summit of the R20 Coalition, a UN-supported environmental organization, founded by former California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres with one of the celebrated youth activists and climate crisis fighters in the world today, Swedish teen Greta Thunberg, who inspired young people around the globe this March to stage a student strike at their schools in a call to adults for climate action.

News from the United Nations on the Climate Crisis facing the World

Posted May 30^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

The idea that subsidizing fossil fuels is a way to improve people’s lives could not be more wrong, said UN chief Antonio Guterres in the Austrian capital, Vienna, because it means spending taxpayers’ money to “boost hurricanes, to spread droughts, to melt glaciers, to bleach corals: to destroy the world.” Continue reading →

Liz Benneian writes a letter to her Niagara MPP, Sam Oosterhoff, urging him to stand up for province’s endangered species

“The Ford government is falling in the polls and for good reason. People don’t want our natural resources gutted.”

– from an Open Letter to Niagara West MPP and Ford Government member Sam Oosterhoff from one of his constituents, Niagara resident and community activist Liz Benneian

An Open Letter sent to Niagara West MPP Sam Oosterhoff from Liz Benneian, a citizen activist and one of Oosterhoff’s constituents.

Posted May 299^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

An image from Ontario Nature, one of many groups pressing the Ford Government not to gut the province’s Endangered Species Act

I am a constituent who lives in Jordan Station who is asking you, for all the good it will do, to change the proposed Schedule 5 of the More Homes, More Choice Bill (108). There are many egregious parts to this Bill but the worst are the changes to the Endangered Species Act that will allow developers to pay to slay.

Do you realize that we have about 240 endangered species in Ontario already? More species are regularly being added to this list because our laws are already too weak to protect Ontario’s biodiversity.

This is not about saving the Blandings turtle or about bringing back the extirpated Karner Blue butterfly, it’s about devastating the already completely inadequate protections for this Provinces biodiversity which supports and sustains human life.

These images are making the rounds on social media as the Ford government moves forward with plans to pull the teeth out of Ontario’s Endangered Species Act on behalf of developers bent on paving over what is left of our natural heritage

The Ford government is falling in the polls and for good reason. People don’t want our natural resources gutted. Continue reading →

St. Catharines NDP MPP Jennie Stevens urges Ontario’s Ford Government to take action to prevent rent increases that would hurt large numbers of people

A News Release from the Constituency Office of St. Catharines NDP MPP Jennie Stevens

Posted May 29^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

St. Catharines MPP Jennie Stevens

St. Catharines NDP MPP Jennie Stevens stands up at Queens Park Wednesday morning, asking Ford’s Government to make necessary changes to prevent rent increases across the Niagara Region.

On Monday (May 27^th) a report was released, outlining the average monthly rental rates across Canada.

This report showed St. Catharines had moved up three spots, now making it the 9th most expensive city to rent in. The cost of a one bedroom rose 5.2 percent and the cost of a two bedroom rose 5 percent – well above what people’s wages rose by. Continue reading →

“We are really concerned about the impact of the $13.15 million (50.3%) reduction in funding for affordable housing programs over the next three years.  This shortfall is coming at a time when Niagara desperately needs affordable housing.”   – Niagara Regional Housing CEO Donna Woiceshyn

Niagara Regional Housing CEO Donna Woiceshyn

News from Niagara’s Regional Housing Board

Posted May 29^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

NRH Board Responds to Ontario Community Housing Renewal Strategy and Funding Shortfall

NIAGARA REGION – At its Board meeting on May 24, the Niagara Regional Housing (NRH) Board expressed concern that the Province has reduced funding for affordable housing programs in the new guidelines accompanying the Community Housing Renewal Strategy (CHRS) released earlier in the month. Continue reading →

“Dan’s leadership has provided an exceptional era at Niagara College and we look forward to the opportunities to express our appreciation in celebration of his accomplishments over the coming year.” – from a statement from Niagara College’s Board of Governors

A Statement  from Niagara College’s Board of Governors

Posted May 29^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Niagara College President Dan Patterson

Niagara, Ontario – President Dan Patterson, the dynamic, visionary and tireless leader of Niagara College, has advised the Board of Governors that he will conclude his tenure as president when his current term ends on June 30, 2020.

While he remains as passionate and energized about Niagara College as he was at the beginning of his presidency almost 25 years ago, Dan has indicated that he feels it is the right time to make a change, knowing the college is in a strong place and well positioned to meet the opportunities and challenges that lie ahead. Continue reading →

“This is just another example of Doug Ford dragging Ontario backwards. He’s prioritizing access to booze over access to books.”

A News Release from Ontario’s NDP and Official Opposition Party

Posted May 29^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

QUEEN’S PARK — Jill Andrew, MPP for Toronto-St. Paul’s and Ontario NDP Culture critic, was joined by library users and workers for a press conference today highlighting her motion calling on Doug Ford to reverse his library cuts.

Niagara Centre MPP Jeff Burch meets earlier this may with members of a Niagara are book club who had police called on them when they staged a “read-in” to protest cuts to public libraries at the constituency office of Niagara West MPP and Ford government member Sam Oosterhoff. Police concluded that the group had done nothing wrong, but an apology from Oosterhoff has not yet come.

Last month, Ontarians learned that the Ford Conservatives had cut funding to both the Ontario Library Service-North and the Southern Ontario Library Service by 50 per cent. Since then, layoffs have occurred at both library services.

“The heartbreaking impacts of Doug Ford’s cuts to libraries are already being felt,” said Andrew. Continue reading →

Greens Choose Michael Tomaino to run in Liberal-held Riding of Niagara Centre 

News from Canada’s Green Party

Posted May 29^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Michael Tomaino has been nominated to lead the Green Party in NiagaraCentre for the 2019 Federal Election.

Michael Tomaino grew up in Port Colborne, attended Notre Dame High School in Welland and graduated as a Pharmacist from the University of Toronto in 1991.  After university, Michael returned to Niagara to raise a family, once again calling Port Colborne his home.

Across Canada, from BC to PEI, we’ve seen the Green Wave surge. Thissame momentum is happening locally in Niagara, as issues of economic stability, clean air, water and land are top of mind. Continue reading →

‘The revelation about the Ford Conservatives ignoring requests for safe zones comes just weeks after PC MPP Sam Oosterhoff stood on the front lawn of Queen’s Park and vowed to make abortion “unthinkable in our lifetime.” Doug Ford refused to condemn Oosterhoff’s comments.’

A News Release from Ontario’s NDP and Official Opposition Party

Posted May 28th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Niagara West MPP Sam Oosterhoff’s recent declaration at an anti-abortion rally at Queen’s Park to make abortion “unthinkable in our lifetime” has raised questions among women about the future of their reproductive rights in Ontario. This in the backdrop of several U.S. states moving to make abortion all but totally illegal.

QUEEN’S PARK — Suze Morrison, Ontario NDP critic for Women’s Issues, is calling on Doug Ford’s Conservatives to approve applications for safe zones at abortion clinics without delay.

According to a news report, the Ford Conservatives have ignored a dozen requests from health facilities to establish safe zones. This flies in the face of legislation that introduced this right in order to protect women seeking abortions from harassment by anti-choice protestors.

“Women seeking abortion services should not be made to feel unsafe,” said Morrison. “That’s why it’s so important to respect the legislation that allows for safe zones — so women are not subjected to harassment and intimidation by anti-choice protestors. Continue reading →

A News Release from the Ontario Government 

Posted May 28^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large 

A Brief Foreword from Niagara At Large reporter and publisher Doug Draper – 

Kevin Strooband, the Lincoln County Humane Society’s executive director, with a friend

The following news from Ontario’s Ford government, that it is taking measures to ensure that “animals remain protected during the transition to an improved animal protection enforcement system” across the province, received a positive response from Kevin Strooband, executive director of the Lincoln County Humane Society in Niagara. 

“I am excited about this opportunity that we can continue to protect animals in our area,” said Strooband when contacted by Niagara At Large this May 27^th about news that the Ford government is introducing amendments to the Ontario Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act that gives his humane society and others across the province that opportunity. 

Strooband, who recently received national honours from Humane Canada, the umbrella group for humane societies across the country, said the Ford government move shows that the provincial government recognizes that there are “robust and professional” humane societies in the province that can continue to do a responsible job of protecting animals. 

Now here is the News Release from Ontario’s Ford Government – 

This May 27^th, the government introduced amendments to the Ontario Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (OSPCA) Act to ensure animals remain protected during the transition to an improved animal protection enforcement system. Continue reading →

“I promise to fight and advocate for the people of Niagara Falls, Niagara-on-the-Lake, and Fort Erie the same way I have advocated for them over the last six years (as a teacher, community activist and vice-president of the Elementary Teachers Association of Ontario Niagara).” – Federal NDP candidate Brian Barker

News from the Campaign to Elect Brian Barker, the federal NDP candidate in the Niagara Falls Riding

Posted May 28^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

(A Brief Foreword from Niagara At Large reporter and publisher Doug Draper – As we approach this coming October 21^st federal election in Canada, Niagara At Large will continue to post news that comes our way from all of the parties running candidates in the Niagara area.

You can also look forward to Niagara At Large running our own news and commentary on the issues at play and what is at stake in this federal election.)

Niagara Falls Riding federal NDP candidate Brian Barker

NIAGARA FALLS, Ontario –Brian Barker, the NDP’s candidate for the Niagara Falls Riding in the 2019 federal election, has been endorsed by two labour organizations, ETFO Niagara and Workers United.

Barker was endorsed by Workers United, the union representing striking workers at the Rainforest Café, on Tuesday, May 14th, the day after Barker received his party’s nomination. Workers United represents 10,000 workers across Canada, and 100,000 more across the United States in various sectors.

“Workers United Canada Council is proud to endorse Brian Barker, federal NDP candidate for the riding of Niagara Falls”, the union said in a statement over social media on the 14th.

“Brian is a teacher, a dedicated trade unionist, and major supporter of the Rainforest Cafe workers on strike.” Continue reading →

Ford’s Cuts to Municipal Services Were On for 2019. Now They Are Off, He Says, Until Next Year. Where is Ford Taking Us Next on this Bumper Car Ride? And is This Any Way to Run a Province?

“It is a relief that it is not happening this year,” says Niagara Regional Chair Jim Bradley, adding that vigilance remains in order.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford Suddenly puts the brakes on some controversial service cuts that threaten to hit municipalities hard

A News Commentary by Niagara At Large reporter and publisher Doug Draper

Posted May 27^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

With municipalities across Ontario rising up against him and his popularity among Ontarians cratering to historic lows for any premier in his first year of office, Doug Ford announced this May 27^th that his government is at least temporarily reversing cuts it was imposing this year to child care, public health care and ambulance and a number of other services delivered by municipalities across the province.

“We’re a government that listens,” Ford insisted during a brief scrum with Queen’s Park reporters after announcing that his self-described “Government for the People” would hold back on the controversial cuts. “We’re going to give the mayors (across the province) more time. We are going to work with them.” Continue reading →

Ford’s More Homes, More Choice Act will reduce homes for wildlife, and reduce choice for municipalities

Municipalities push back against Ontario’s Bill 108

News from the David Suzuki Foundation, Earthroots and Ontario Nature

Posted May 27^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

The Barn swallow is only one of numerous endangered species in Ontario that could suffer serious losses in habitat if Ford’s plans movement forward. Photo courtesy of Ontario Nature

TORONTO — The Government of Ontario is coming under fire from municipalities throughout the province for an omnibus bill that threatens to open up critical wildlife habitat to developers.

With just a few days left until Bill 108, the More Homes, More Choice Act, reaches third reading in the Legislature, several municipalities are voicing opposition to Schedule 5 of the bill, which would drastically reduce protective measures in the Endangered Species Act, 2007.

The municipalities of York, Muskoka Lakes, Oakville, Aurora, Archipelago and Lennox-Addington have voiced their opposition to the bill, which would also reduce municipal planning oversight. Several other municipalities and townships will be considering similar motions this week. Continue reading →

Celebrity Scientist Bill Nye’s viral video mocks Critics of Carbon Pricing

‘Ontario’s Auditor General came out recently and said the (Ford government’s anti-carbon tax) ads would never have passed an independent review] for advertising standards because they neglect to “include all the relevant facts.”’

News from Canadians for Tax Fairness, a non-profit public advocacy organization based in Ottawa, Ontario

Posted May 27th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Ontario Premier Doug Ford slamming four-to-five cent per litre price on carbon pollution – what Ford and his cronies call a  “carbon tax” – that the federal government has put on gasoline.  as one way to address the climate emergency peoples around the globe are facing.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford’s anti-carbon tax campaign  is coming under fire from pundits of all political stripes.

The PCs launched their anti-tax crusade last month to protest the federal government’s carbon pricing system.

Highlights of the campaign have so far included television commercials and mandatory stickers at gas pumps falsely claiming the pricing measures will hurt Canadians despite non-partisan studies that have indicated otherwise.

Ontario’s Auditor General came out recently and said the ads would never have passed an independent review] for advertising standards because they neglect to “include all the relevant facts.” The AG also came down on the PCs for using the ads to criticize another level of government while presenting their own in a positive light. Continue reading →

In first eleven months as Ontario Premier, Doug Ford already enjoys  less public support than the Liberal’s Kathleen Wynne did at end of her five-year tenure

Doug Ford is almost making Kathleen Wynne look good now

“Premier Doug Ford is so unpopular he’s got to look up to see former premier Kathleen Wynne’s approval rating, a Mainstreet Research poll finds.” – from a May 24^th story in The Ottawa Sun

A News Release from Mainstream Research, a national polling firm in Canada

Posted May 25^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

FORD PC SUPPORT COLLAPSES, WHILE LIBERAL VOTERS PREFER TORY AS THEIR LEADER – MAINSTREAM RESARCH

Ontario Premier Doug Ford already cratering in the polls. Can the people of Ontario and the services they need take three more years of this premier and his “government for the people”?

Ottawa, Ontario – The governing Progressive Conservatives have slid to third, Premier Doug Ford’s favourability ratings have now fallen below those of Kathleen Wynne’s at the end of her tenure, while Liberal voters say that John Tory is their most preferred choice to lead the Ontario Liberal Party.

Those are the findings from Mainstreet Research’s latest Ontario survey. The poll surveyed 996 Ontarians between May 21st to 22nd, 2019. The poll has a margin of error of +/- 3.1% and is accurate 19 times out of 20.

“More and more Ontarians are turning away from Doug Ford as his support is collapsing,” said Quito Maggi, President and CEO of Mainstreet Research. “We have never seen an imcumbent premier reach these depths in popular opinion with barely a year into his mandate.” Continue reading →

St. Catharines Mayor and Niagara Regional Housing board chair Walter Sendzik

“Addressing the need for affordable housing is one of the most critical priorities for Niagara Region, as it is for communities across the country.”                                                                                     – St. Catharines Mayor and NRH Board Chair Walter Sendzik

News from Niagara Regional Housing in Niagara, Ontario

Posted May 25th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

NIAGARA REGION in Niagara, Ontario – Niagara Regional Housing (NRH) joined Chris Bittle, MP for St. Catharines, the Honourable Steve Clark, Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, Jennie Stevens, MPP for St. Catharines, Niagara Regional Chair Jim Bradley and St. Catharines Mayor Walter Sendzik to celebrate the completion and grand opening of their new affordable housing building.

Located at 527 Carlton Street in St. Catharines, the building was built with a combination of federal and provincial Investment in Affordable Housing program funding, municipal grants and the NRH reserve.  The Investment in Affordable Housing program encourages intensification of building sites to maximize the use of funding when it becomes available for new development. With this knowledge, NRH decided on a five-story building with 85 units, 13 of which are accessible.   Continue reading →

Niagara Centre MP Vance Badawey

“By working together with local community leaders such as the Hendersons (owners and operators of Henderson’s Pharmacy in Thorold), our government has been able to help kick-start the economy and create full-time, quality jobs in Niagara.”                             – Niagara Centre’s  Liberal government MP Vance Badawey

A News Release from the Constituency Office of Niagara Centre MP Vance Badawey

Posted May 25^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Henderson’s Pharmacy has been a locally owned business institution in Thorold, Niagara’s downtown for generations – a real survivor on online shopping and corporate chain store competition thanks to great staff and service to a large and loyal customer base. File photo by Doug Draper

Thorold, Ontario – When the middle class has more money in their pockets to save, invest, and grow the economy, we all benefit.  New numbers show that the Government of Canada’s plan for the economy is working.

This May 24th, Vance Badawey, Member of Parliament for Niagara Centre, visited Henderson’s Pharmacy in Thorold to celebrate the 80 years of contributions the Henderson family and their staff have made to the community.

Since 1939, the Henderson team has enthusiastically served residents, and has established a strong standing in the community for its many achievements in business and philanthropy. MP Badawey hailed the entire Henderson team as a shining example of a local small business continuing to thrive while improving the health and quality of life for Niagara residents. Continue reading →

Niagara Falls MPP Wayne Gates in Ontario legislature. file photo

“This is the biggest crisis facing us in our lifetime. Make no mistake about it. And do you know who gets it? Our kids get it. Our grandkids get it. … Do not allow old, white politicians to destroy our planet. That has to stop.”                                                     – from comments Niagara Falls NDP MPP Wayne Gates made earlier this May, 2019 in the Queen’s Park legislature in Toronto, Ontario

Posted May 24^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

A Brief Foreword from Niagara At Large reporter and publisher Doug Draper –

This May 13^th, following a motion tabled by Ontario’s NDP Official Opposition Party’s to join other regions around the world, including cities like St. Catharines and Hamilton that have already done it, and provinces, states and entire nations, and declare a “climate emergency” in Ontario, one of the party’s members, Wayne Gates of Niagara Falls, delivered some passionate words on the subject that Niagara At Large would like to share with our readers here.

Gates was particularly strong in his plea to people his age and older to start showing more concern in the climate crisis confronting us – the kind of concern he says he sees and hears when he meets and talks to young people in his Niagara Falls riding and other parts of the province. Continue reading →

“We again call on the Government of Ontario to defer the implementation of these funding cuts so that the Province and cities can work together on how to minimize the impact on the people we all represent, and the services they depend on.”

– from a statement released this May 24^th by Municipal Mayors Caucus

A Statement from Mayor Cam Guthrie, Chair of LUMCO, and LUMCO Mayors, including St. Catharines Mayor Walter Sendzik

Posted May 24th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Today (Friday, May 24^th), following a meeting of the Large Urban Mayors’ Caucus of Ontario (LUMCO), LUMCO Chair and Mayor of Guelph Cam Guthrie released the following statement:

This May, the City of Toronto launched a more public and province wide campaign to stop the Ford cuts to municipalities. Toronto Mayor John Tory had this to say about the campaign on social media – John Tory
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Verified account
@JohnTory
May 22
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Today, we’re announcing our next step in urging the province to stop the damaging, retroactive cuts to child care, public health, transit & EMS. We’ve launched a petition where residents can endorse Council’s opposition to these cuts & add their voice: http://toronto.ca/stopthecuts

“Big-city mayors from across Ontario continue to be alarmed about the Province’s unilateral, retroactive cuts to municipal funding after cities have already passed our budgets. We are also united in concern about Bill 108, which could put at risk cities’ finances and ability to provide parkland, community facilities, and well-planned neighbourhoods.

We understand the fiscal position the Government of Ontario is in, and we want to be a partner in its efforts to get its budget deficit and debt under control. We appreciate that Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing Steve Clark attended our meeting today to speak with LUMCO mayors about municipal financial sustainability and Bill 108.

We again call on the Government of Ontario to defer the implementation of these funding cuts so that the Province and cities can work together on how to minimize the impact on the people we all represent, and the services they depend on. Continue reading →

Niagara West MPP Sam Oosterhoff has been asked for apology for call to police over seniors protesting public library cuts at his Niagara constituency office.

“At the very least the Premier should send a signal to women by booting him out of his caucus.” – Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU) President Warren (Smokey) Thomas, responding to Oosterhoff’s anti-abortion stance

A News Release from the Ontario Public Service Employees Union

Posted May 23^rd, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Toronto –  OPSEU President Warren (Smokey) Thomas says Niagara West MPP Sam Oosterhoff’s beliefs concerning women’s rights are unacceptable and Ontario’s youngest ever MPP is not fit to serve in the legislature.

OPSEU President Warren ‘Smokey’ Thomas

“If there was ever an argument to have a mechanism to recall politicians in Ontario, Oosterhoff is a perfect example,” said Thomas.  “But at the very least the Premier should send a signal to women by booting him out of his caucus.”

Oosterhoff recently issued a chilling threat to the right of women to control their own bodies by saying he wants to make abortion “unthinkable in our lifetime.”  Earlier this month Oosterhoff brushed by a group of concerned citizens who came out to a public constituency meeting to ask the rookie MPP about his views. Continue reading →

Since its inception in 2014, Brock has handed out the $2,500 entrance scholarships to nearly 300 students.

News from Brock University in St. Catharines, Ontario

Posted May 23rd, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Niagara, Ontario – It was a celebration of Niagara’s future.

For the fifth year in a row, but in a new format on campus, Brock University handed out more than $125,000 in entrance scholarships to graduating secondary school students from across the region Wednesday night.

More than 50 graduating secondary school students from across Niagara were presented with first-year entrance scholarships to Brock University during a ceremony Wednesday, May 22

Selected based on a combination of academic achievements, involvement in school and the community, as well as financial need, the Niagara Principal’s Awards were given to 58 students representing 29 public, Catholic and private schools. Continue reading →

Ford Cuts make “no economic Sense” and could lead to higher risk of illness and death, open letter says

The Full Letter from the Former Health Ministers is posted below

A Brief Foreword from Doug Draper

Posted May 23^rd, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Ontario’s slash and burn premier, Doug Ford, and one of his willing enablers, Health Minister Christine Elliott, like two peas in a pod in the provincial legislature

The cutting and gutting of health services by Ontario’s Ford government – not yet a year in power after someone winning a majority with well less than half the popular vote – have been week-after-week relentless, and they just keep coming.

What is more disturbing is that the Ontario’s premier, Doug Ford, and his ever so willing enabler, Health Minister Christine Elliott, often come across in look and manner as if they are getting some self-satisfying rush out of taking an axe to budgets that compromise health services vital to children, to seniors and to countless thousands of people in between. Continue reading →

“Respected for his knowledge and commitment throughout the policing community.”

A News Release form Ontario’s Niagara Parks Commission

Posted May 23rd, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Ontario Park’s new Police Chief, Paul Forcier

Niagara Falls, Ontario – The Niagara Parks Commission is pleased to announce the appointment and promotion of Paul Forcier, a thirty-year veteran of the Niagara Parks Police Service (NPPS), as its newest Chief of Police.

Born and raised in Niagara Falls, Paul Forcier’s interest and commitment to a career in policing began in 1988, following his completion of the Niagara College Law and Security Program and his hiring as a full-time officer with the NPPS, at just 21 years of age. By 1995, Forcier would be promoted to the rank of Sergeant and then Staff Sergeant in 2000. Continue reading →

The Curtains Are  Finally Closing In On                     Captive Marine Mammal Exhibits in Canada

A News Commentary by Niagara At Large reporter and publisher Doug Draper

Posted May 22nd, 2019 on Niagara At Large

The opening day of Marineland’s 58^th season came and went this May 18^th with the usual gathering of animal welfare activists demonstrating along a narrow stretch of land between the main road and a fence in front of the sprawling Niagara Falls, Ontario amusement park.

Missing from the mix on this opening day was John Holer, the man who founded Marineland and built it into one of Niagara Falls’ top tourist draws by the 1970s and 80s.

A year ago this May on, John Holer was reported to have been seen on the other side of the fence from the demonstrators on opening day, staring them down as he drove his SUV through Marineland’s parking lot. A month later he died at age 83.

Animal welfare activists demonstrating this May 18th, on opening day in front of Marineland in Niagara Falls, Ontario

The amusement park has continued without him, however, and a news release it issued the day following the May 18^th opening that boasted about the “huge crowd” of visitors flowing through its gates that “dwarf(ed)” the “small group of annual demonstrators.” Continue reading →

“For many seniors in my riding on a fixed income, it is hard for them to access affordable programs and services.”                            – Sam Oosterhoff, MPP for Niagara West.

News from the Constituency Office of Niagara West MPP Sam Oosterhoff 

Posted May 22^nd, 2019 on Niagara At Large 

Niagara West MPP Sam Oosterhoff

PELHAM in Niagara, Ontario  – Seniors in Ontario want to remain healthy, active and socially connected within their own communities. Seniors deserve to be engaged with and to live independently with dignity in their homes for as long as they can. 

“For many seniors in my riding on a fixed income, it is hard for them to access affordable programs and services,” said Sam Oosterhoff, MPP for Niagara West. “That is why we are announcing funding for projects that will provide local supports and services for seniors.” 

The Seniors Community Grant Program<https://www.ontario.ca/page/information-seniors-organizations#section-2> will invest up to $3 million in grants to partner with non- profit community organizations and municipalities across the province to co-ordinate and deliver local supports and programs to seniors in Niagara. Continue reading →

Niagara Centre MPP Jeff Burch

“Only Doug Ford would cut billions from municipalities and school boards, then spend millions more hiring private consultants to justify those cuts.”                             – Niagara Centre MPP Jeff Burch

News from the Constituency Office of Niagara Centre NDP MPP Jeff Burch

Posted May 21^st, 2019 on Niagara At Large

WELLAND— NDP Official Opposition Municipal Affairs critic Jeff Burch released the following statement regarding Doug Ford’s latest scheme to use $7.35 million in public money to have private consultants conduct municipal audits:

Ontario Premier  Doug Ford, and his government continue to download countless mllions of dollars in “Ford Taxes” on municipalities as he axes services at provincial level.

“Only Doug Ford would cut billions from municipalities and school boards, then spend millions more hiring private consultants to justify those cuts.

Ford’s plan to hire consultant auditors is nothing more than a publicity stunt, and a waste of money – especially since they’re just to re-doing work already done by each municipality’s auditors. Continue reading →

Ontaro NDP and Official Opposition Leader Andrea Horwath

Everyone is Invited. Whether you voted for Andrea Horwath or Not, this Town Hall is a good way to get engaged. All of Our Services, from Health Care to Education and Environmental Protection. Are at stake!

A Call-Out to All from Ontario’s NDP Official Opposition Party

Posted May 20^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

A Brief Note from NAL publisher Doug Draper – 

The Town Hall, hosted by NDP Official Opposition Pary Andrea Horwath and Niagara area NPD MPPs Jennie Stevens, Jeff Burch and Wayne Gates, will take place at the Best Western Hotel and Conference Centre on North Service Road (click on a link for a map below) in St. Catharines,  from 6:30 to 8 p.m. on Thursday, May 23^rd, 2019.

This Town Hall is a good chance for all of us to share our questions and concerns with a political leader in Ontario who is in one of the best positions to stand up to Ontario Premier Doug Ford and his Tories as they work to dismantle key services and rules and regulations for protecting the health and welfare of our communities, our environment and people who live and work in this province. Continue reading →

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres

“We need to tax pollution, not people. …Taxpayer money should not be used to boost hurricanes, spread drought and heatwaves, melt glaciers and bleach corals. We need a green economy, not a grey economy”  – United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres

News from the United Nations

Posted May 20^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Concluding a week-long visit to the South Pacific, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres called on the world’s decision-makers (this May 18^th) to make “enlightened” choices on climate action because “the whole planet” is at stake. 

“Over the past week, I have witnessed first-hand the impacts of climate change in the Pacific Island States”, the UN chief said in a statement concluding his visit to the region. “They contribute very little to the global climate emergency and yet, they are the ones that are being most affected”.  

He did not mince words in saying that for some of them, “climate change is now an existential threat”.

Pointing out that entire villages are being relocated, livelihoods destroyed and people becoming sick from climate-related diseases, Mr. Guterres lamented: “The risks are all too real”.

He drew attention to his time in Tuvalu, where he saw “an entire country fighting to preserve its very existence”.   Continue reading →

Thanks to this iconic Canadian band for all of the     ‘Fine Mornings’ and ‘Sunny Days’ it has gifted us

A Brief Commentary by Doug Draper

Posted May 19^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Fifty years ago this May, as I was reminded this fine morning by another Canadian institution, CBC Radio’s Sunday Morning host Michael Enright, a band that would soon become another Canadian institution took the stage at a Toronto, Ontario music venue called the Rock Pile to make its performing debut.

The band, called Lighthouse and made up of a line-up of horn and string musicians built around a more generic four-piece rock band and lead singer, was introduced that night by non other than one of the most legendary musicians, composers and band leaders in jazz, Duke Ellington, who ended his intro with a play on lyrics from one of his own classic songs; “I am beginning to see the light … house.”

From left, Duke Ellington, one of the towering figures of jazz music, with Lighthouse co-founders Skip Prokop and Paul Hoffert in May, 1969, when the ban performed live, for the first time, at a club in Toronto, Ontario. How cool is that!

Lighthouse was fronted by the late great drummer Skip Prokop, keyboardist Paul Hoffert and guitarist Ralph Cole, and featuring a huge cast of great musicians  from the late singer Bob McBride (whose voice can be heard on such hits as ‘One Fine Morning’ and ‘Hats Off To The Stranger’, and sax players Keith Jollimore, Steve Kennedy (both of whom went on to play with another hot Canadian band, Dr. Music of ‘Sun Goes By’ fame) and Howard Shore,  who went on to front one of the earlier  the Saturday Night Live bands  and later became a three-time Academy Award winner for the music he produced for the Lord of the Rings trilogy.

Lighthouse always could fill a stage. Read more about the band’s history below.

Continue reading →

Ed Smith, a St. Catharines citizen activist and retired Canadian Armed Forces officer who spent the past four years demanding openness and accountability from the old NPCA board, will now take a seat on the new board.

One of the Appointees is St. Catharines citizen Ed Smith, who defeated a lawsuit filed against him over the past four years by the old Bruce Timms/Sandy Annunziata board of the Conservation Authority

Smtih was sued after airing a list of questions and concerns about the way the NPCA’s last boards and mangers were doing business with millions of our tax dollars

A News Release from the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority

Posted May 17^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

The Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority (NPCA) welcomes four new members to its Board of Directors, following a Niagara regional council decision this May 16th.

The newly appointed Board members are Bruce MacKenzie from Town of Grimsby, Ed Smith from City of St. Catharines, Leah Feor from Town of Fort Erie, and John Ingrao from City of Welland. They will replace outgoing members and Councillors Jeff Jordan, Brian Heit, Tom Insinna, and Pat Chiocchio.

Four new Niagara citizen appointees from St. Catharines, Welland, Fort Erie and Grimsby will soon be sitting on the NPCA board.

“We are extremely grateful to the outgoing members for their commitment and dedication to the NPCA since their appointment at the beginning of this term,” says Dave Bylsma, NPCA Board Chair. Continue reading →

“This is excellent news for steel and manufacturers in Niagara Centre, and across Canada. …”It was extremely stressful for steel producers, manufacturers, workers, and for families. This is a big win for everyone, having tariffs lifted, with no quotas attached.” – Niagara Centre MP Vance Badawey

A News Release from the Constituency Office of Niagara Centre MPP Vance Badawey

Posted May 17^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Niagara Centre MP Vance Badawey

Welland, Ontario – Niagara Centre MP Vance Badawey is thrilled this (May 17^th) afternoon, after almost a year of tariffs applied to Canadian steel and aluminum are cancelled.

“This is excellent news for steel and manufacturers in Niagara Centre, and across Canada,” Badawey said after receiving word from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in Hamilton this afternoon.

Trudeau was in Hamilton to make the announcement. Standing strong was what Canadians expected of his government, he said, and “that’s what we did. This was a real Team Canada effort.”

“This was top of mind for me, for all of us, this past year,” Badawey said. “It was extremely stressful for steel producers, manufacturers, workers, and for families. This is a big win for everyone, having tariffs lifted, with no quotas attached.” Continue reading →

Former Media Baron Conrad Black, whose Hollinger corporation holdings once included The St. Catharines Standard, receives full pardon from Donald Trump for decade old convictions in U.S.

A Commentary by Doug Draper

Posted May 17th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

“Dear Doug, Nothing is ever really lost, even if it disappears temporarily. One just has to keep bouncing back until sanity prevails.

“No one can work backwards into the future. You make a very special difference in the lives of those around you. Please don’t lose hear, Doug. Lynne.”

During Doug Draper’s years as an environment reporter at The St. Catharines Standard. When Conrad Black’s Hollinger corporation took ownership of The Standard and dozen of other daily newspapers across Canada, the environment beat disappeared at most, if not all of them, as newsrooms were hollowed out to fatten profit margins.

I received that nice note from a very nice lady named Lynne Matthews who was president of the Glenridge Landfill Citizens Committee, a community group in south St Catharines that played a strong role in shutting down the city’s dysfunctioning Glenridge Landfill site on the crest on the Niagara Escarpment and having it transformed into the naturalized park that it is today.

Lynne, who died in 2005 and had her name deservingly placed on what is now the Glenridge Quarry Naturalization Site for the role she played in this now popular recreational area’s creation, sent me the note after Conrad Black and his then giant Hollinger media corporation assumed ownership of The St. Catharines Standard, where I worked at the time, and dozens of other newspapers across Canada. Continue reading →

“Since Doug Ford tabled his budget (early this past April), municipalities throughout Ontario have been hit with cut after cut. Now, cities are forced to choose between making deep cuts to municipal services or increasing taxes on families… One way or another, people throughout the province are paying big for Ford’s cuts.” – Ontario NDP and Official Opposition Leader Andrea Horwath

A Brief Foreword by Doug Draper

Posted May 17^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

How real is Premier Doug Ford’s repeated claim to Ontario residents that he is “putting money back in our pockets.”

Since Ontario Premier Doug Ford and his self-described “Government for the People” tabled their first major provincial budget early this past April, their self-serving propaganda service called Ontario News has been issuing one news release after another talking about how the government has made cuts to services to put money back in the pockets of those of us who live across the province.

But how much, if any, money that Ford and company cut from budgets at the provincial level is really going to go into our pockets?

What if the services being cut at the provincial level are simply being downloaded to towns and cities at the municipal level, then passed on to home and business owners through property taxes? That is, of course, unless municipal councillors want to be the bad guys and cut the services altogether. Continue reading →

“Speaker, I want to apologize. The member (Niagara West MPP Sam Oosterhoff) had a chance to apologize on behalf of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario for the way they were treated.” – Niagara Centre MPP Jeff Burch, from a statement he made in the Ontario legislature this past Tuesday, May 14th

Members of a Niagara area book club at the Welland constituency office of Niagara Centre NDP MPP Jeff Burch last 10th, discussing how the police were called on them while they protested Ford government cuts to public libraries at the Beamsville constituency office of Niagara West MPP and ford government member Sam Oosterhoff earlier in the week. Photo by Doug Draper

A Brief News Commentary by Doug Draper

Niagara West MPP Sam Oosterhoff has been asked for apology for call to police over seniors protesting public library cuts at his Niagara constituency office.

Posted May 16th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

More than a week has passed since staffers in the Beamsville constituency office of Niagara West MPP and Ford government member Sam Oosterhoff called the police on a group of about 15 seniors and book club members from across the region who had come to Oosterhoff’s office to hold what they called a “read-in” to protest recent funding cuts Ford, Oosterhoff and company are making to Ontario’s public libraries. Continue reading →

Old Storybook Tells Tale Of Children’s Concern For Caribou  

Students Created The Book To Express Their Fear That Coastal Caribou Could Disappear

A News Release from Ontario Nature, a province-wide advocacy group for protecting and preserving Ontario’s natural heritage

Posted May 17, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Thunder Bay, Ontario – The Recent Discovery Of A Children’s Storybook About Saving Caribou Shows That Fear For The Animal’s Future Is Not New.

A Woodland caribou. Photo courtesy of Paul Tessier and Ontario Nature.

Nearly 20 Years Ago, Elementary Students At Schreiber Public School Wrote The Book To Voice Their Concern That Caribou On The Slate Islands Off The Northern Coast Of Lake Superior Could Disappear.

Mirabai Alexander Was One Of Those Students. Growing Up In Rossport, And Now An Ecologist Working For A Conservation Organization In Thunder Bay, She Reflects On A Time When There Were More Than One Hundred Caribou Estimated To Live On The Slate Islands. Continue reading →

“As three young owners who have come up through the ranks in the restoration and construction industry, we understand the importance of earning enough to get by.” –  ServiceMaster Restore of Niagara co-owner Justin Callon

News from the Niagara Poverty Reduction Network

Posted May 15th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

The Niagara Poverty Reduction Network is pleased to announce that ServiceMaster Restore of Niagara <https://www.svmrestore-stcatharines.ca/> has become a certified living wage employer.

ServiceMaster Restore of Niagara now certified as a “Living Wage Employer in the Niagara region.
Photo courtesy of the Niagara Poverty Reduction Network.

ServiceMaster Restore of Niagara is a full service restoration company that provides property owners and insurance companies with the highest quality emergency restoration services. They have been serving the Niagara region for over 50 years. Continue reading →

Turn in an animal hide to Ford government authorities and get your made-in-Ontario hat!

Province’s  “Government for the People” is Making Ontario More Open for Destroying Wildlife

“Our government supports Ontario’s hunters and recognizes that they are good stewards of our resources. … Hats for Hides supports thousands of hunters across Ontario, by making life easier and reducing waste.” – some of the most recent garbage coming out of the mouths of Ford government MPPs

A News Commentary by Niagara At Large reporter and publisher Doug Draper

Posted May 14th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

“Hey, Bungalow Bill
What did you kill
Bungalow Bill?”

• from The Beatles song, ‘The Continuing Story of Bungalow Bill’

Let me begin by asking  my fellow Ontarians something.

Not the 2.3 million people across the province who voted for Doug Ford and his extreme right-wing band of crazies in last June’s provincial election. They knew what kind of bully and ignoramus Doug Ford was, or at least they should have from his highly publicized Ford Nation days in Toronto, before they voted for him. So they deserve everything they get.

Let Ford and his morally bankrupt caucus and cabinet gut all of their health care services if they want to cram money back in their pockets.

Just please leave the rest of us alone!

Continue reading →

“Carbon pricing creates a financial incentive to reduce our emissions. There is no economic cost to carbon pricing. … “The cost of climate change (on the other hand) is high and escalatin, (and the Ford) Conservatives are offering no alternatives.”           – Niagara Centre MPP Jeff Burch

A News Release from the Constituency Office of Niagara Centre MPP Jeff Burch

Posted May 14th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Niagara Centre MPP Jeff Burch

The following is from a statement Niagara Centre NDP MPP Jeff Burch delivered in the Ontario legislature at Queen’s Park this May 14th –

Mr. Jeff Burch: ”A discussion on climate change must include a discussion on carbon pricing. Carbon pricing, Speaker, is the most effective, convenient and least expensive means of reducing greenhouse gas emissions that cause global warming. That is a fact.

“This government claims your cost of living is about to soar. They call it the ineffective, job-killing carbon tax. Those are falsehoods-no different from the fake news that caused perverse outcomes in the 2016 Brexit referendum and the US presidential election. Continue reading →

“Therefore the Legislative Assembly calls on the Ontario government to declare a climate emergency in order to officially recognize climate change as a real threat to our environment, our people and our economy.” – from the motion Ontario Opposition Leader Andrea Horwath and her NDP tabled for possible passage this May 13th, 2019 in the provincial legislature.

A News release from Ontario’s Official Opposition/NDP Party

Posted May 14th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Ontario NDP and Official Opposition Leader Andrea Horwath

QUEEN’S PARK — NDP Official Opposition Leader Andrea Horwath is calling on all MPPs to vote to make Ontario the first province in Canada to declare a climate emergency.

On Monday May 13^th), Horwath will bring forward a motion to recognize climate change as an imminent threat to Ontario’s environment, people and economy, and declare a climate emergency in the province.

“Climate change is not tomorrow’s problem,” said Horwath. “This is not a problem we can punt down the road, and leave for our successors — our children — to tackle. Climate change is happening now, and it is an emergency.” Continue reading →

Superior Court Justice James Ramsey Rules in Favour of Motion Put Forward by the citizens watchdog group, A Better Niagara

“Now, it’s up to the three municipalities (Niagara, Hamilton and Haldimand County) to decide how many members each municipality should have. It’s important for all of Niagara’s citizens to know what we are entitled to given that all of our population and all of the Region’s land is within the NPCA.”         – from a statement released by A Better Niagara

Ontario Court Judge renders ruling on how many people Niagara can have represented on this Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority board. File photo by Doug Draper

A News Commentary by Niagara At Large reporter and publisher Doug Draper

Posted May 13^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Liz Benneian, executive director of A Better Niagara, the citizen watchdog group that one the ruling from the Ontario court. The group has been keeping a close eye on operations at the NPCA

As members of A Better Niagara stated on its website this May 13th, “it’s settled.”

And it only took Ontario Superior Court Justice James Ramsey about five minutes in a Welland courtroom earlier this May 13th to rule in favour of A Better Niagara’s contention that, under the province’s Conservation Act, Niagara Region and its 12 local municipalities can have up to 27 individuals sitting on the board of directors of the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority (NCPA).

That was the ruling Judge Ramsey came to that fast, and despite requests from lawyers for Niagara Region and the City of Hamilton, which along with Haldimand County has representatives on the NPCA board, for an adjournment so the councils for Niagara and Hamilton would have more time to consider their positions in the case.

After the case was over, Liz Benneian, executive director of A Better Niagara, stressed in a brief interview with Niagara At Large a point that the Niagara-based citizens watchdog group has been making clear since Niagara, Hamilton and Haldimand made appointments to what is overwhelmingly a new board of the NPCA more than four months ago. Continue reading →

Five  things you need to know about forests and the United Nations

“Despite the central role forests play in protecting the environment, only two per cent of funds available (globally) for climate change mitigation are available for efforts to reduce deforestation.”

News from the United Nations

Posted May 10th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Photo by Olga Lavrushko – My favorite place by Olga Lavrushko, Ukraine. One of the winners of the International Forest Photograph Contest.

(A Brief Foreword from Niagara At Large reporter and publisher Doug Draper –

Waverly Woods in Fort Erie. Now a possible target for developers unless citizens can save it.

While you are reading this  important, and for those of us who live in Niagara and Ontario, very timely report from environmental representatives for the United Nations, think locally as well as globally.

Those of us who care about protecting any kind of a healthy future on this planet, have got to get together and fight like hell to keep the Ford government in Ontario from cutting programs for planting trees, as it is now doing, and stop it from weakening planning and environmental rules to make it easy for developers to destroy vital areas like the Waverly Woods in Fort Erie and Thundering Waters Forest in Niagara Falls.

More on all of that later on Niagara At Large.

Here is news from the United Nations on how vital trees and forests, and reforestation are to the health of our planet.)

Climate Change

Forests are vitally important for sustaining life on Earth, and play a major role in the fight against climate change. With the 2019 session of the United Nations Forum on Forests wrapping up on Friday in New York, we delve deeper into the subject, and find out what the UN is doing to safeguard and protect them.

1. Forests are the most cost-effective way to fight climate change

Arguably, protection and enhancing the world’s forests is one of the most cost-effective forms of climate action: forests act as carbon sinks, absorbing roughly 2 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide each year.  Sustainable forest management can build resilience and help mitigate and adapt to climate change. Continue reading →

Ford, Ooosterhoff & Company Have Cut Provincial Funding for Flood Management in Niagara in Half

“Doug Ford has cut funding to flood management programs by half, and forced Conservation Authorities (including the NPCA in Niagara) to do more with so much less in the years to come. He cancelled a program to plant 50 million trees, a proven tactic to control soil erosion and reduce flooding.”                                             – NDP Environment Critic Ian Arthur

A News Release from Ontario’s Official Opposition NDP Party

Posted May 10^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Sandbags around buildings along Port Dalhousie Harbour in St. Catharines, as waters rise to near record levels in 2017. The waters are rising again this spring.

A Foreword from Doug Draper,  Niagara At Large –

The Ford government has just cut about $90,000 from the $180,000 the province gives the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority (NPCA) each year to do flood management across the entire Niagara watershed –this at a time when the province is now experiencing record flooding that is going to cost homeowners, businesses and the Ontario economy billions of dollars.

They are cutting a few million dollars for flood management and risking billions of dollars in destruction from flooding waters. Continue reading →

Plan Calls for  Cuttting OPP Budget and Raising Speed Limits on Some Highways, including QEW between     St. Catharines and Hamilton

A Brief Foreword from Niagara At Large reporter and publisher Doug Draper, followed by News Release from Ontario NDP

Posted May 10th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

START YOUR ENGINES!

As if drivers aren’t whipping along Ontario’s highways fast enough, with hardly a police cruiser in site.

In recent years, I have often had friends from the United States say; “Wow, I drove on your highways from Buffalo to Toronto, and it’s crazy the way you people drive. I don’t know whether I want to do that again.”

That is some of our wild and crazy American neighbours complaining about how fast we drive, to which I find myself agreeing and telling them that I would rather drive the full distance of the New York State Thruway from Buffalo to Albany, than drive for 30 or 40 kilometers on the QEW. It’s not only safer, but there are a hell of a lot more New York State Troopers patrolling the highway to make sure it stays that way. Continue reading →

Niagara Centre MP Vance Badawey

This new natural gas station in Fort Erie “provides transport companies with cleaner options to move their goods – cutting costs, reducing pollution and improving productivity.                      – Niagara Centre MP Vance Badawey

News from Natural Resources Canada 

Posted May 10^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large 

Canada’s climate plan is working for our planet, and it is working for Canadians. Electric and alternative fuel vehicles play a key role in our low-carbon future.

Niagara Centre MP Vance Badawey, at right and front, attends opening this May 10th of natural gas station on Ford Erie side of Ontario/New York border.

As Canadians continue to make greener choices, the Government of Canada is delivering more options for them to drive where they need to go, while reducing pollution. 

Member of Parliament for Niagara Centre, Vance Badawey, on behalf of Canada’s Minister of Natural Resources, the Honourable Amarjeet Sohi, today (this May 10th) announced the opening of a natural gas station in Fort Erie. Continue reading →

Meanwhile, Some of Ford’s MPPs were attending a “Pro-Life” Rally, Speaking Out for the Unborn.

“Boy, these conservatives are something, aren’t they? They’re all in favour of the unborn. They will do anything for the unborn. But once you’re born, you’re on your own.” – the late American comedian and social critic George Carlin

A News Release from Ontario’s Official Opposition Party

Posted May 9th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

A Brief Foreword from Doug Draper –

Queen’s Park legislature in Toronto, Ontario

An interesting juxtaposition occurred in and outside the walls of Ontario’s Queen’s Park legislature this Thursday, May 9th.

Inside, Ontario NDP Leader Andrea Horwath and other members of her Opposition Party caucus were going after Premier Doug Ford and his government for recent budget cuts to ambulances and other health care, and education and environmental protection – services that can mean the difference between life and death, or a quality life for many Ontarians.

Outside, a number of Ford’s government members were on the lawns of Queen’s Park supporting a rally staged by thousands of anti-abortion activists from across the province. Continue reading →

“Declaring a climate emergency is an opportunity for Queen’s Park to change direction, and take on the biggest challenge humankind has ever faced.”                   – Ontario NDP Leader Andrea Horwath

A News Release from Ontario’s NDP/Official Opposition Party

Posted May 9^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

(A Brief Foreword by Doug Draper, Niagara At Large –

Late this April, St. Catharines city council became the first in Niagara, Ontario to unanimously declare a climate emergency, encouraging the city to pursue actions to take steps to address climate change and take measures to protect the community against its impacts.

Congratulations to St. Catharines’ council in joining Kingston, Hamilton and other communities across the country and continent in making this declaration.) 

QUEEN’S PARK, May 9th, 2019 — The Ontario NDP has introduced a motion to declare a climate emergency in Ontario. Continue reading →

Long-time Council of Canadians sactivist and Order of Canada medal holder Maude Barlow

“We have urbanized rapidly, paving over water-retentive rural landscapes and destroying streams and watersheds in our cities. … We are also destroying wetlands and forests, both of which are crucial for watershed protection and flood prevention.”                  – Maude Barlow, Council of Canadians

By Maude Barlow, Honourary Chairperson, The Council of Canadians from an article posted on The Council’s website and originally published in The National Observer

Posted May 9^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

The floods that have devastated so much of Eastern Canada this spring have been cited as a “wake up call” that climate change is real.

Provincially significant wetlands in the Niagara River watershed, in Thundering Waters Forest in Niagara Falls – now a target for sprawling urban development

Many reports of the flooding cite climate change as the cause. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau himself has named climate change as the culprit and several journalists noted that the flooding probably forced the federal Conservatives to take climate change seriously and promise to come up with a plan to tackle it.

While no doubt climate change is a major factor in the floods that ravaged so many communities, it would be a mistake to lay all the blame there. Continue reading →

“I agree that things could have been handled     differently.”  – Sam Oosterhoff, MPP and Ford Government member for Niagara West

A Brief Commentary from Niagara At Large reporter and publisher Doug Draper

Posted May 9^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

In the wake of a May 7th incident at Niagara West MPP Sam Oosterhoff’s Beamsville constituency office involving members of a senior’s book club and Niagara Regional Police, I contacted Oosterhoff’s office via email this May 8th for the MPP’s take on what went down.

Niagara West MPP Sam Oosterhoff, a Christian concervative, seen here in April, 2018, sharing a few verses of a gospel song on TVO’s public affairs program, The Agenda, hosted by Steve Paikin.

The incident, which began when about 15 seniors from Niagara showed up at the office carrying books and determined to stage a “read-in” to protest recent Fort government funding cuts to public library, ended with three armed police officers showing up, and I wanted to know from the MPP why he and his office staff felt the call to police was necessary – especially given the fact that the officers on hand concluded that the seniors had done “nothing wrong.” Continue reading →

A Statement on the Ontario Government’s proposal to gut the Endangered Species Act

Caribou, one of the most majestic animals in the country, are listed as endangered in Ontairo. Environmental Defence photo

From Ontario Nature, Environmental Defence and the David Suzuki Foundation

Posted May 7th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

(A Brief Foreword from Niagara At Large reporter and publisher Doug Draper –

In the wake of an alarming report from the United Nations, released around the world this May 6th, about a possible global species extinction disaster on an unprecedented scale,  Ontario’s Ford government appears ready to do its part to help the extinction of all creatures great and small along by moving forward with plans to gut protections for endangered species at the behest of its supporters in the development industry.

We apparently can’t be “open for business” in Ontario unless we are prepared to pave what ever is left of our woodlands, wetlands and other habitat for wildlife over.

That is part of what being “open for business” in Ontario is all about – plundering what is left of our green places for low-density urban sprawl.

Shocking and outrageous, indeed!

Please people, for the sake of ourselves and for the sake of future generations, speak out against this war that Ford and his so-called “Government for the People” are  waging against our natural heritage and the life-sustaining resources of our region of the world before it is too late.

Continue reading →

“WE are destroying the planet. WE are a cancer.”

A Comment from Linda McKellar

Posted May 7th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

A Brief Foreword from Doug Draper –

The following commentary by Linda McKellar, a Fort Erie, Ontario resident and retired nurse who spent her adult life doing her best to save peoples’ lives, is a what I regard as an understandable response to news from the United Nations (posted here this May 6th) that destructive human activities are leading more rapidly to the extinction of other species of life on this planet.

I am re-posting this commentary on Niagara At Large as a stand-alone piece because, I must confess, there are many times these days when I find myself coming to the conclusion that other life on this planet might be better off if humans were gone.

Sudan, the world’s last northern rhinoceros – a species that has lived on this planet at least as long as humans – died last year,but you may not have heard about it. Donald Trump’s moronic tweets and Doug Ford’s promises for cheaper gas and one-buck beet received more media attention than this  did.

Let’s face it, we humans are the most destructive species on the planet and members of my generation – the oh, so self-absorbed, all-consuming and wasteful baby boomers – have been among the worst.

A dispr0portionate number of people my age and older voted for Doug Ford in Ontario and Donald Trump in the United States, knowing full well that neither one of them take climate change or the need to protect our environment seriously. In fact, may offer cheers of support when these politicians and others like them tear environmental protection programs apart.

So maybe other life on this planet, if there is any by the time we get through, would be better off if we humans were gone.

Now here is Linda McKellar’s comment on it –

A video I saw of a starving, skeletal polar bear with its skin hanging, struggling to stand, made me physically ill. Humans need to become extinct.

WE are destroying the planet. WE are a cancer. We have skewed the balance of nature. Continue reading →

Brock U. Policy Brief Examines Ways to Help Niagara’s Bee Population

“Bee populations have been declining in Niagara, mainly because the places where they lived have been paved over or built upon.”

News from Brock University in St. Catharines/Niagara

Posted May 7^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Brock University biologist Miriam Richards monitors the bee population in the Glenridge Quarry Naturalization Site. Photo courtesy of Brock Univwersity

Niagara, Ontario – In the world of bee conservation, messy is beautiful. A slightly overgrown lawn, a garden with flowers native to the area, patches of soil, and scatterings of twigs and leaves are pure paradise for these tiny creatures.

“The recipe for bees is surprisingly straightforward — provide flowers and nesting habitat, avoid pesticide use and like magic, bees appear and thrive,” Brock University Professor of Biology Miriam Richards says in her policy brief “Promoting Pollinators: Niagara Bees and How to Help Them<https://brocku.ca/niagara-community-observatory/policy/>.”

The brief is the latest to come out of Brock’s Niagara Community Observatory (NCO), and was presented in front of a packed house at the University on Tuesday, May 7. Continue reading →

New York State Officially Announced A Ban on Fracking in the State in 2014

A News Release from Ontario’s NDP/Official Opposition Party

Posted May 7th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

QUEEN’S PARK — Peter Tabuns, Ontario NDP Energy and Climate Change critic, held a press conference this May 7th to re-introduce a private member’s bill proposing to ban fracking in Ontario.

The bill, which Tabuns first tabled in 2015, has only taken on increasing urgency as new evidence has emerged showing that fracking is even more problematic than anyone realized four years ago. Recent studies by NASA show a much greater role in global warming from methane leaks from oil and gas production. Other studies show fracking having much more significant methane leaks than conventional oil and gas production. Continue reading →

“Our government is keeping our promise to make mental health and addictions a priority.”                               – Sam Oosterhoff, MPP for Niagara West

A News Release from the Constituence Office of Niagara West MPP Sam Oosterhoff

Posted May 7th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Niagara West MPP Sam Oosterhoff

NIAGARA- Ontario’s mental health care system is disconnected, making it difficult for patients and families to get the care and services they need. This leaves many vulnerable Ontarians to navigate a confusing system on their own and access timely mental health care only when in crisis.

Too many Ontarians wait too long for the mental health and addictions services they need. This fragmented approach to care is failing Ontario’s families and is simply not good enough.

In response, Ontario’s Government for the People is adding desperately needed mental health and addictions services on the ground, in schools, communities and health centres across the province. Continue reading →

Meanwhile, Ontario’s Ford Government Doing its Party to Push Extinction Along by Shredding Endangered Species Protection Rules for Friends in Development Industry

An Alarming New Report from the United Nations

“Following the adoption of this historic report, no one will be able to claim that they did not know,” Audrey Azoulay, the head of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization said. “We can no longer continue to destroy the diversity of life. This is our responsibility towards future generations.”

Posted May 6th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

World is ‘on notice’ as major UN report shows one million species face extinction

Splendid Leaf Frog, Ecuador. (19 January 2015)

A hard-hitting report into the impact of humans on nature shows that nearly one million species risk becoming extinct within decades, while current efforts to conserve the earth’s resources will likely fail without radical action, UN biodiversity experts said on Monday (May 6th).

Speaking in Paris at the launch of the Global Assessment study – the first such report since 2005 – UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay said that its findings put the world “on notice”. Continue reading →

The NPCA’s New Board and Management Team has dropped a controversial lawsuit against former Conservation Authority employee Jocelyn Baker and is now partnering with her to pursue a key environmental designation for the Niagara River watershed

A Brief Foreword from Doug Draper, Niagara At Large, followed by statements from the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority

Posted May 6^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

From Doug Draper –

Respected conservationalist and former NPCA employee is now free of the lawsuit the old NPCA filed against her and has been hired by the new NPCA to assist with a global wetland designation for the Niagara River watershed.

Well, hallelujah.

And thank God for this great news about a conservationist who is highly respected on both sides of the Canada/U.S. border and is an decent, honest principles person who never deserved the nightmare she was put through by managers and an old board of the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority (NPCA) that are now mercifully gone.

Jocelyn Baker, a conservationist and watershed expert who was fired by NPCA managers three years ago for reasons that never made sense to those she worked with at the regional, provincial and federal government levels, then slapped with a lawsuit two years ago by those running the NPCA for emailing a Niagara area MPP about a “culture of harassment” rank-and-file employees inside the body were enduring at the hands of then senior managers.

“NPCA frontline staff and middle managers continue to work in unsafe and dangerous conditions. This will continue until (the province’s Minister of Natural Resources – then Liberal government minister Kathryn McGarry) steps in and stops it,” wrote Baker in a 2017 email that now retired Niagara Centre MPP Cindy Forster received her permission to read in the Ontario legislature. Continue reading →

‘Water levels in Lake Ontario are forcasted to continue to rise. The City is monitoring the impacts of the spring thaw, rain and other factors that contribute to rising water levels and ewill respond as needed to maintain public safety and protect public assets.’ –City of St. Catharines

A News Release from the City of St. Catharines

Posted My 6th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Looking across from the east pier to the west pier in Port Dalhousie in the spring of 2017 when rising Lake Ontario waters flooded much of the shoreline grounds. file photo by Doug Draper

The east pier in Port Dalhousie is temporarily closed to the public due to high water levels in Lake Ontario.

Temporary fencing is being installed this May 6th to ensure the safety of visitors to Port Dalhousie along the east pier in the area of the Dalhousie Yacht Club. The temporary closure is in effect as of Tuesday, May 7 and will remain until water levels return to a safe level. Continue reading →

Auditor General Of Ontario’s Special Audit Recommendations Initiated By NPCA

A News Release from the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority, following  a Foreword by Niagara At Large reporter and publisher Doug Draper

Posted May 3rd, 2019 on Niagara At Large

A Brief Foreword from Niagara At Large reporter and publisher Doug Draper –

At a time when there is more than enough bad news out there in the world today, here is what I think many of us can embrace as a bit of good news.

A meeting of the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority’s board of directors this past April – another day of work in getting the NPCA back on track as a serious conservation agency.

After five or six years of what I would describe as ‘a long, dark journey into night’ for a Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority (NPCA) that this veteran environment writer long viewed as one of this region’s best and most important public agencies, I see it finally making a comeback at a time when we need an agency like this the most.

Ontario’s Auditor General Bonnie Lysyk issued a scorching report last year on the NPCA’s operations. The new NPCA board has been working to address the many concerns raised in the report.

I believe that I have been witnessing the re-birth of this agency for at a few months now, but it was particularly apparent this May 3^rd when members of the NPCA’s board of directors and senior staff held a special meeting at the Meridian Community Centre in Pelham to hear directly from Ontario’s Auditor General, Bonnie Lysyk, outline the findings and recommendations of what turned out to be a very scorching audit she and her team completed on the NPCA’s operations over the past six or so years – an audit her office released while the agency was still in the ice cold grip of managers and board members who are mercifully not there anymore.

Continue reading →

Legislation would commit United States to carbon reduction goals detailed in 2015 Paris Climate Accord

‘Niagara Falls (New York) and Erie County are among more the 280 American states, cities, and countieswho have independently committed to support climate action and reduce emissions.’

News from the Buffalo, New York Office of U.S. Congressman Brian Higgins

Posted May 3rd, 2019 on Niagara At Large

U.S. Congressman for the Buffalo, New York area, Brian Higgins, is a member of Nancy Pelosi’s Democratic Party caucus

Buffalo, New York – Congressman Brian Higgins (NY-26) announced House passage of H.R. 9, the Climate Action Now Act.

H.R. 9 requires the United States to honor its commitment to cut carbon pollution outlined in the Paris Agreement<https://unfccc.int/process-and-meetings/the-paris-agreement/the-paris-agreement>, the international climate accord signed by nearly 200 countries around the world in 2015.

It passed by a vote of 231-190, and was cosponsored by 224 Representatives, including Higgins. The bill is the culmination of more than 30 hearings in the House this year, which marked the first House of Representatives hearings on the critical issue in eight years. Continue reading →

Any Time one of our  Politicial Leader will Praise the Role of a Press in a Democracy, this Journalist will Take It

It sure beats all of the jabs about “Fake News” and journalists being “scum” and “enemies of the people”

A Brief One from Doug Draper

Posted this May 3^rd, World Press Freedom Day on Niagara At Large

Even after all of the criticism that Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau  has taken in recent months over his Liberal Party’s dealings with SNC-Lavalin, a giant, Quebec-based engineering firm, and the throwing of two high-profile members out of the party’s caucus, he released a statement for Word Press Freedom Day this May 3^rd, , praising the important role of the press plays in a democracy. Continue reading →

“We wanted to be involved in positive incentives for the community from day one (and) it only made sense to offer livable wages.” –  Niagara Herbalist co-owner Kevin Trethowan

News from the Niagara Poverty Reduction Network

Posted May 3^rd, 2019 on Niagara At Large

The reps of The Niagara Herbalist are recognized as one of the region’s latest businesses to provide their employees a livable wage.

Niagara, Ontario – The Niagara Poverty Reduction Network is pleased to announce that The Niagara Herbalist has become a certified living wage employer.

The Niagara Herbalist is a family owned and operated recreational cannabis retail store located in St. Catharines. They opened on April 1, a few months after being selected as one of 25 new retailers in the Ontario retail cannabis store lottery. The Niagara Herbalist is currently the only fully operational retail cannabis store in Niagara region, employing nine full time and six part time staff.

“We wanted to be involved in positive incentives for the community from day one. The first step in doing so was to offer employment opportunities for locals that reflected this. It only made sense to offer livable wages. The employees are happy to come into work and to be part of our “work family,” says The Niagara Herbalist co-owner Kevin Trethowan. Continue reading →

Citizens in Niagara rally to save what is left of our wetlands in Niagara. File photo by Doug Draper

“What doesn’t help is the fact that people are building close to rivers and lakes. …  You remove wetlands and pave over other areas so with heavy rainfall, the water has to go somewhere else.” – Brock University Professor of Biology and UNESCO Chair in Community Sustainability Liette Vasseur

“We need to start bringing more of the natural components that can help with these storms like recreating wetlands and marshes.” – Liette Vasseur

News from Brock University in St. Catharines, Ontario

Posted May 2^nd, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Niagara, Ontario – Record-high lake levels led to devastating flood damage in Great Lakes coastal communities in 2017, but in the two years since, little has changed.

Provincially significant wetlands in Thundering Waters Forest in Niagara Falls, Ontario where foreign investors are now looking to build a sprawling community. Citizen campaigns to save the area from development continue.

Brock University Professor of Biology and UNESCO Chair in Community Sustainability Liette Vasseur said those communities are in for serious flooding this year and this may coming from frequently.

And she says despite knowing it was coming, our complacency as a society has meant that we’re not only ill-prepared, but we’ve made things worse on ourselves. Continue reading →

Ontario’s Ford Government is planning “new loopholes for developers and other proponents of harmful activities (that) will grease the wheels of destruction” for our province’s species at risk.

A Call-Out to All Ontario citizens from Ontario Nature, a citizen group advocating for our natural heritage

Posted May 2^nd, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Barn owls are an endangered species in Ontario

(A Brief Foreword by Niagara At Large reporter and publisher Doug Draper –

The current Ford government, which did not receive a mandate in last year’s Ontario elections from a majority of the province’s voters, has proven time and time again that it is willing to weaken or eliminate environmental protection programs and safeguards for those in the development industry who would pave over the landscape at any cost to our natural heritage.

As a veteran environment reporter, I remember representatives of the development industry in Niagara and other regions of Ontario who believed in building and growing communities in ways that were environmentally sustainable and respectful of our valuable green places.

Where are those members of the development industry now? Why aren’t they speaking out against those who are giving their industry such a bad name in the eyes of the public?

Please read the Call-Out below from Ontario Nature to save endangered species rules in this province that not only protected wildlife at risks, but the natural habitat birds, animals and other wildlife need to survive.

And click on the link provided to lend your name to a message to Ford’s environment minister to act like an environment minister, and not like an agent  for those who would damage or destroy what is left of our natural spaces for their own, short-term interests.)

Now here is the Call-Out from Ontario Nature to All of Us to Speak Up  for our Natural Heritage in this Province –

Photo: Prothonotary warbler © Bill McDonald, Video: Spotted turtle © Noah Cole

Ontario’s Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks (MECP) is misleading the public by claiming that its recently proposed amendments to the Endangered Species Act, 2007  (ESA) will “improve outcomes for species at risk.” Continue reading →