The Canadian government has unveiled its first carbon offset trading protocol, the initial step in creating a carbon exchange for federally regulated industries. For companies that must meet targets, the government allows for up to 75 per cent of emissions reductions being achieved through internal reductions and/or through the purchase of federally recognized offsets (25… Read More

Following significant restrictions by the Ontario government in 2015, seed corn companies in the province began to offer non-neonicotinoid seed treatment insecticide options. Now, a significant portion of corn seed sales carry non-neonicotinoid options. It’s bizarre then, that the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change recently published data showing only a 22% reduction in the amount… Read More

The comment period is officially open on the Ontario government’s carbon Offsets Credits Regulatory Proposal. Launched this week by Ontario’s minister of the environment and climate change Glen Murray while at the United Nations’ 22nd Climate Change Conference of the Parties in Morocco, the comment period runs for 45 days. The proposed regulation allows companies participating in… Read More

Grain Farmers of Ontario today announced it has commenced legal proceedings against the Ontario Ministry of Environment and Climate Change. “Late last week, Grain Farmers of Ontario (GFO) filed a request to the Ontario Superior Court of Justice to provide an interpretation of the neonicotinoid treated seed regulations,” says Mark Brock, chair of Grain Farmers… Read More

The Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA) has tallied up the in-season bee death numbers for both 2014 and 2015 (planting only), and the numbers are nothing short of staggering. The PMRA recently reported to the federal bee health roundtable that during the planting period there was roughly a 70% decrease in the number of reported… Read More

The Grain Farmers of Ontario are speaking up about concerns they have regarding the reach of Ontario’s ministry of environment. It’s no secret that GFO disagrees with the province’s proposed regulations regarding the use of neonicotinoid corn and soybean seed treatments — regulations the producer group says equate to a de facto ban on the… Read More

Two webex meetings and two in-person public consultation meetings took place in Ontario this week. At issue is the proposed increased regulation of neonicotinoid seed treatments for corn and soybean crops. Real Agriculture’s Bernard Tobin attended the London meeting on Tuesday (you can hear a recap of the event here), and spoke with Steve Klose,… Read More