By CBC News Ottawa, February 8, 2016
After being off limits for more than a week, the majority of the Rideau Canal Skateway will reopen Tuesday morning.
The National Capital Commission announced Monday that 7.4 kilometres of skating ice will open at 8 a.m. on Feb. 9 — essentially the entire skateway, save for a short stretch between the Bank Street and Bronson Avenue bridges.
By Lee Berthiaume, Ottawa Citizen, January 25, 2016
Lawyer Will Amos has spent most of his career championing environmental causes. Now he’s looking to make a difference in the House of Commons, as the rookie MP for Pontiac. This isn’t his first turn at federal politics: he worked in the Prime Minister’s Office under Jean Chrétien and for one-time environment minister David Anderson. Amos talked to Lee Berthiaume.
By Haley Ritchie, Ottawa Metro News, January 28, 2016
Gatineau Park may be a treasured wilderness escape for the residents of Ottawa and Gatineau but those who enjoy it might be surprised to know it’s not recognized as a national or even provincial park.
That’s the message Soren Antosz is trying to spread in a new campaign calling for the federal government to “Make it a Park” in order to prevent future construction in the area.
“It’s a wilderness area and we’d like to make sure it's protected for generations to come,” said Antosz, vice-president of the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society Ottawa Valley chapter.
By Emma Jackson, Ottawa Metro News, February 2, 2016
A mosquito control program will go to council without the finance committee’s input.
Kanata-North Coun. Marianne Wilkinson wants to charge a special $35 levy to run a three-year pesticide program in neighbourhoods like Morgan’s Grant.But she asked the finance committee to hold off voting while staff work out some technical issues around management and financing.
By Lucy Scholey, Ottawa Metro News, February 3, 2016
A plan to expand the Carlington Community Health Centre may uproot a neighbouring 20-year-old community garden.
The proposed “health hub” would encompass 42 residential apartments for seniors, primary medical care and support services, plus some green space on the side. The four-storey addition would connect to the existing health centre at 900 Merivale Rd. This area is not zoned for residential use, which is why the application is going before the planning committee on Tuesday.
By Allison Sandor, CFRA News, January 27, 2016
The City of Ottawa is set to honour former CTV anchor Max Keeping, by naming a bridge after him.
The Mayor is putting forward a motion, asking for the pedestrian walkway over the Queensway from the baseball stadium to the train station to be called the Max Keeping Memorial Bridge.
By Norman Jack, CFRA News, January 28, 2016
Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson insisted city council will not necessarily follow Edmonton's lead as it considers the licensing of ride-sharing services like Uber.
Edmonton has become the first city in Canada to license the new services.
Beginning in March, there will be one license for ride-sharing companies and one for taxis.
The Alberta Taxi Group said the new bylaw fails to safety and consumer protection concerns.
By CBC News Ottawa, February 6, 2016
The fluctuating temperatures that have wreaked havoc on the Rideau Canal Skateway are also causing potholes on Ottawa city roads.
A "freeze-thaw" cycle has been hard on some city streets, particularly ones in the downtown area, according to City of Ottawa road services manager Luc Gagné. City road crews have filled 10,800 potholes from Jan. 1 to Feb. 5 of this year. In the same time frame last year, city crews had only filled 9,200 potholes.
By Brian Lee Crowley, Ottawa Citizen, January 31, 2016
Scottish Enlightenment philosopher David Hume said it best: reason is, and ought only to be, a slave to the passions.
If you’ve ever tried to reason yourself into a feeling (“I really ought to love Mr. X, or Wagner operas, or pickled herring”), you’ll know that for the vast majority of humanity it is a vain enterprise. That’s because feelings don’t come from reason and the mind. They come from emotions and the heart.
By Glen McGregor, Ottawa Citizen, January 31, 2016
As political leaders debate the future of the Energy East project to move oil from Western Canada to New Brunswick, safety reporting data show a sharp increase in the number of leaks, spills and other incidents involving Canadian pipelines over the past decade.
The number of reportable accidents and incidents more than doubled between 2004 and 2012, before improving slightly over the past two years, according to data from the Transportation Safety Board of Canada.
By Jason Fekete, Ottawa Citizen, January 25, 2016
The federal government is overhauling how it examines major energy projects in order to put more focus on greenhouse gas emissions, and is extending the deadlines for reviewing and deciding on the Energy East and Trans Mountain oil pipelines.
Natural Resources Minister Jim Carr and Environment Minister Catherine McKenna announced new interim measures Wednesday for reviewing energy projects. The government will take more time to craft a permanent environmental assessment regime for resource development that it hopes will improve public confidence in the process.
By Tom Spears, Ottawa Citizen, February 5, 2016
The Crown corporation that wants to build a new high-voltage power line to meet demand in fast-growing South Nepean says it won’t hold public consultations before the line is approved because there’s not enough time — and no alternatives to the project.
The Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO) wants to build a 230-kilovolt transmission line somewhere in the city’s south end, and has told a local advisory committee it needs to get started with approval soon, without any public consultation.