In this week’s newsletter, we talk about why pesky potholes might actually be worthy of dinner party conversation — and the online chatter behind our most-read story of the year so far
Climate change is bringing more heat and moisture to the Prairies and its roads — something our Manitoba reporter knows all about. She’s bringing that knowledge to all her dinner parties — fortunately, for all who attend, of course.
Julia-Simone Rutgers, our Manitoba reporter, has a new obsession that’s become an all-consuming topic of conversation at her dinner parties (yes, really). You see, it has been a record year (not the good kind) for potholes in Winnipeg, thanks to an onslaught of spring storms. Those storms, expected to become more frequent as the climate changes, sent the city’s pavement crumbling — forcing crews to fill in a whopping 211,500 potholes (!) and counting in 2022.
It’s a problem that’s far from unique to Winnipeg: take B.C.’s Coquihalla Highway, which was torn apart by the impacts of last year’s atmospheric river.
Then there’s the whole matter of funding: infrastructure debt has reached somewhere in the range of $200 billion nationwide thanks to funding cuts, neglect and a growing number of extreme climate events. In Winnipeg alone, the figure sits at roughly $7 billion.
“Kudos to my partner for listening to me talk through the numbers out loud while she tried to nap,” Julia-Simone told me.
So what are cities doing about it? Winnipeg’s newly elected mayor, Scott Gillingham, wants to fix up the city’s roads and widen highways. But climate-focused solutions? They were largely absent from the election. Julia-Simone delved into what Canada’s coldest city should be up to — and how we can tackle the country’s growing road problems.
Take care and bring pothole preoccupations to potlucks,
Arik Ligeti
Director of audience
The Narwhal goes viral
Sometimes a story just takes off when it’s about a jarring plan to limit the power of conservation authorities to say no to developers.
That was the case this week, when this scoop by Ontario reporters Emma McIntosh and Fatima Syed became our most-read story of 2022 so far — while sparking plenty of discussion online.
These changes are packed into a huge omnibus bill Doug Ford’s PC majority government is getting set to pass. Our team is digging through the fine print to keep bringing you important reporting on Ford’s changes to Ontario’s environmental policy (remember that massive list? Stay tuned for version 2.0 ).
“Which two cities in the world had the audacity to keep narwhals captive?”
At our very first member event in Vancouver this week, mining reporter Francesca Fionda dug deep to ask questions that made a room full of Narwhals scratch their tusks.
As expected, they outsmarted us all, and had some good food and drinks while doing it. After a couple years of not seeing our growing group of Lower Mainland members, we were thrilled to come together to celebrate how far The Narwhal’s reader-funded journalism has come — and to dream about how much further it can go.
And in case you were wondering what the answers were: narwhals can dive as deep as 1,800 metres — just not the ones Vancouver and New York kept captive in the ‘60s and ‘70s.
This week in The Narwhal
B.C. is opening up old-growth spotted owl habitat to logging — again By Sarah Cox (she's baaaaack!)
The NDP government is touting efforts to save the critically endangered bird. But it continues to sanction logging in spotted owl habitat, prompting environmental groups to demand the federal government step in to save the species from extinction in Canada.
How oil and gas lobbyists build ‘very close relationships’ with politicians and governments By Carl Meyer READ MORE
Federal government moving closer to funding Ring of Fire mining roads: document By Emma McIntosh READ MORE
9 things that could have been done to prevent the Sunshine Coast’s state of emergency By Stephanie Wood READ MORE
What we’re reading
When you want to get out on the road but you’re afraid that road damage from climate change events might harsh your vibe. Don’t worry, our newsletters will let you and your friends know about any developments on that front — just tell them to sign up.
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Climate change is bringing more heat and moisture to the Prairies and its roads — something our Manitoba reporter knows all about. She’s bringing that knowledge to all her dinner parties — fortunately, for all who attend, of course.
Get the inside scoop on The Narwhal’s environment and climate reporting by signing up for our free newsletter. On a warm September evening nearly 15...
Your access to our journalism is free — always. Sign up for our weekly newsletter for investigative reporting on the natural world in Canada you won’t find anywhere else.
Your access to our journalism is free — always. Sign up for our weekly newsletter for investigative reporting on the natural world in Canada you won’t find anywhere else.
