BC

BC


‘Cannot believe COVID-like outbreaks don’t happen far more often’: Canada’s role in animal trade driving pandemic risks

British Columbia conservation biologist Chris Shepherd has spent more than three decades, oftentimes undercover, inside wildlife markets across the globe.  The gruesome sights he has witnessed make it hard to believe that “outbreaks like COVID don’t happen far more often”. In the early 90s, Shepherd had just completed high school, unaware of the world he […]

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Hundreds of Surrey Memorial Patients Are Overdosing Every Year

Hundreds of patients are having non-fatal overdoses at Surrey Memorial Hospital every year, according to data obtained through a freedom of information request. But fatal overdoses are rare. According to the BC Coroners Service, four people died after taking illicit, unregulated drugs while they were patients at Surrey Memorial between 2020 and 2025. These deaths […]

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B.C. energy regulator finds non-compliant black smoke flaring by LNG Canada

LNG Canada has been ordered to identify the root causes of “black smoke flaring” from its facility in Kitimat, B.C., and implement measures to prevent it by October. The British Columbia Energy Regulator issued the order Wednesday after an inspection revealed at least two instances of non-compliance with the company’s permit, which limits the emission […]

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Cougar blamed for killing three sheep and an emu on Vancouver Island

Residents of a Vancouver Island community are sounding the alarm after blaming an aggressive cougar for killing three sheep and an emu in the past week. The owners of the Truffle Farm in Parksville, B.C., about 155 kilometres northwest of Victoria, say they found two of their sheep dead from an apparent cougar attack Saturday […]

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After Tumbler Ridge, B.C.’s throne speech was cancelled — here’s what it said

In a typical year, the spring sitting of the B.C. legislature starts with a throne speech. The speech from the throne — as the document is formally known — is delivered by the lieutenant-governor on behalf of the provincial government. It is a snapshot of the political moment, a mixture of policies and milestones the […]

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Did an RCMP Sting Op Make Sex Work More Dangerous?

The BC Counter Human Trafficking Unit and Richmond RCMP have made multiple arrests that they say will deter predators looking to purchase sex from potential trafficking victims. But a criminologist who specializes in sex work laws and an organization that supports sex workers — some of whom have been trafficked themselves — say police operations […]

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Village of Granisle, B.C., faces lawsuit over aluminum-contaminated water

Soon after Rhiana Stryd moved to the scenic lakeside Village of Granisle in British Columbia’s northern Interior in the fall of 2024, she says she began noticing her parents’ health going downhill, while she was vomiting every day for months.  Stryd said that when her daughter visited, she got sick too.  Their health woes prompted […]

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B.C. health workers breached privacy of injured victims of Vancouver festival attack

British Columbia health care workers unlawfully accessed highly sensitive personal information on victims of Vancouver’s Lapu Lapu Day festival attack mostly out of “curiosity,” the province’s privacy commission says.  A report released by the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner said it was notified of privacy breaches within days of the deadly attack, and […]

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How Many People Are Overdosing at BC’s Hospitals?

How many people are overdosing while they are patients at British Columbia’s hospitals? This data is essential to understanding the importance of opening hospital-based overdose prevention sites, addiction medicine doctors told The Tyee. In an atmosphere where the province’s drug policy is a hot-button topic, it’s also key to developing public understanding about why the […]

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B.C., Ottawa deflect responsibility for train-wildlife collisions

B.C.’s minister of Water, Land and Resource Stewardship hopes to start working with the federal government toward a strategy to prevent train-wildlife collisions in the new year. “It’s really concerning,” Randene Neill said in an interview with The Narwhal this week. “I wasn’t aware that the numbers are that high.” Neill’s comments follow The Narwhal’s […]

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Police in Kelowna, Abbotsford, B.C., warn of fake speeding tickets issued by text

Police in two B.C. cities are warning area residents after a number of cases where fraudsters are texting potential victims telling them they need to pay their fines for speeding tickets. RCMP say a number of people in Kelowna have reported receiving the texts, where they are asked to provide personal information such as date […]

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Alberta gets its way in deal with Ottawa

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has long demanded the federal government roll back climate policies, further support its highly polluting fossil fuel sector, and threatened a constitutional unity crisis if she doesn’t get her way.  On Thursday, Prime Minister Mark Carney blinked.  The two leaders signed a memorandum of understanding that immediately exempts Alberta from clean […]

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