EcoWest News, September 8, 2026

Welcome to EcoWest News, a weekly round-up of news and resources that you can put to use in addressing environmental issues and protecting the wild in your community.

Biodiversity

Western North America’s turkey vultures normally migrate south for the winter, using thermals and updrafts to travel efficiently. They stay over land as much as possible and can be seen hovering over southern Vancouver Island as they wait for suitable air currents to cross the open water. [visual story, Phys.org]

Water

Alberta has introduced new rules that will allow landowners to destroy broad categories of wetlands without seeking government approval. Proponents cite “production inefficiencies”, but wetlands also provide agricultural benefits – habitat for pollinators, nutrients for crops, pest control, contaminant filtering, water flow management, and carbon storage. [The Narwhal]

While there are no Canadian communities directly below a glacier, we do have popular tourist sites such as Lake Louise that are at risk. Debris flows associated with thawing ground and heavy rains, such as the ones that wash out the Trans-Canada highway, occur on a regular basis. [The Narwhal]

Climate Change

More than 26 million Canadians in over 930 communities, more than 60% of the population, have faced the impacts of climate change so far this year: extreme heat – 669 communities, unsafe air quality – 320, flooding – 138, severe storms – 40, and drought – 12. [The Energy Mix]

Restoring the Impact Assessment Act may be impossible, but “public risk assessment of proposed federal subsidies to major projects could still help avert ecological and fiscal calamities.” [The Energy Mix]

It is still possible to talk across the divide – an environmental journalist is offered a tour of an active Alberta coal mine. [photo essay, The Narwhal]

Forestry

It’s where you log, not just how much, that determines flood risk, reinforcing “the importance of managing forests at the landscape level rather than looking at individual harvest areas in isolation”. [UBC]

We Can Do Better

More than 15,000 chemicals come into contact with the food we eat. 1,222 pose serious health risks (cancer, reproductive harm). For the vast majority – 13,200 – we don’t have enough accessible information to even estimate their risks. [Inside Climate News]

BC has killed 200-300 wolves each year since 2015 to help endangered caribou populations recover, but caribou numbers have increased only marginally. Critics argue that habitat loss is the main driver of caribou declines and urge the government to stop issuing logging permits in areas where caribou live, stop building forestry roads, and invest in forest restoration projects. [Mongabay]

Off-leash dogs pose a major risk in human-bear conflicts, with dogs initiating the conflict 54% of the time. [Times Colonist]

Making a Difference

Following forest restoration work in the Kootenays, the Nature Trust of BC has confirmed their first sighting of a nesting Common Nighthawk, a positive sign that their work is helping and not hindering the birds’ survival. [Nature Trust of BC]

The Toronto District School Board has installed almost 148,000 solar panels on 358 of its buildings since 2010. [Toronto District School Board]

Electric vehicles may be cleaner to run, but they place greater demands on tires. ENSO changed the raw materials, formula, and construction of its tires, resulting in lower pollution and longer range. They also focused sales on high-mileage vehicles such as taxis and delivery trucks. [EuroNews]

Researchers in Finland have developed a way to make leather-like fabrics from fungi at large scale using industrial equipment, a key advance towards vegan plastic-free leather alternatives for the mass market. [Anthropocene]

DIY

Grab your camera and submit your photos of butterflies, ants, bees, and wasps to two iNaturalist projects:

Butterfly Big Day, September 12 [Urban Butterfly Initiative]

World Wasp Week, September 20-28 [iNaturalist]

Lululemon customers can buy and sell pre-owned Lululemon clothing among themselves through the company’s online platform. [CBC]

Nature’s Wonders

Check out this year’s Audubon Photography Awards. [Audubon]

Photo credit: https://www.flickr.com/photos/apmckinlay/34593200561

EcoFriendly West informs and encourages initiatives that support Western Canada’s natural environment through its online publication and the Nature Companion website/app. Like us on Facebook, follow us on BlueSky, X, and Mastodon, or subscribe by email.