Latest news with #EnvironmentDepartment
CTV News
11 hours ago
- Business
- CTV News
Quebec dials back emissions projections due to global uncertainty
The Quebec government is scaling back its projections for greenhouse gas emissions reductions due to the Trump administration. A report published Thursday by the province's Environment Department says the current U.S. government has created a 'challenging environment for advancing climate action.' It points in particular to U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to impose tariffs, which it says have slowed down business investment, including in decarbonization. It also says the administration's attempts to challenge carbon pricing mechanisms in various U.S. states were 'exerting downward pressure on market prices.' 'The economic and political uncertainty caused by the new U.S. federal administration ... does not allow the deployment of measures as quickly and effectively as planned,' the report says. The government now estimates that measures being adopted in Quebec to reduce emissions will account for 65 per cent of the cuts needed to reach the province's 2030 emissions target, down from a projected 67 per cent last year. Quebec is aiming to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 37.5 per cent compared to 1990 levels by 2030. That's a drop of about 30 million tonnes from projected emissions in the absence of climate policies. The new report is an annual update on the province's progress toward meeting that goal. It estimates that planned measures will cut emissions by 19.4 million tonnes in 2030, a slight drop from last year's projections. The document also says the Canadian government's decision to scrap the federal consumer carbon price in April could harm the competitiveness of Quebec businesses. 'Uncertainty remains regarding the actions that will be taken by the federal government to combat climate change,' it reads. Quebec has so far maintained its own cap-and-trade carbon pricing system, which is linked with California's system. The report says Quebec's carbon price is a major driver of emissions reductions in the province, and revenue from the carbon market is an important source of funding for other climate measures in the government's plan. The report highlights $10.1 billion in planned government spending over the next five years, much of it to reduce emissions from transportation, industry and housing. It says new initiatives under development could lead to further emissions cuts and could get the province to between 67 and 72 per cent of its 2030 target. Despite dialling back its projections, the government says greenhouse gas emissions dropped by 0.9 million tonnes in Quebec between 2022 and 2023, and have not returned to pre-pandemic levels. The report also says there was a record number of electric-vehicle sales in Quebec in 2024, with more than 125,000 new registrations. Zero-emission vehicle sales made up nearly 31 per cent of light-duty vehicle sales that year, it says, and there were 375,000 electric vehicles on the road in Quebec last December. This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 19, 2025. Maura Forrest, The Canadian Press
Daily Maverick
12 hours ago
- Politics
- Daily Maverick
Panyaza Lesufi's Nasi iSpani plagued by payment chaos while relaunch looms
Less than a month after Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi announced that his highly criticised Nasi Ispani employment recruitment initiative would be relaunched, more information on the initiative's struggles to pay Expanded Public Works Programme workers has come to light. In 2024, more than 4,000 workers in Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi's Nasi iSpani 'Green Army' project faced significant payment delays, with millions of rands having to be diverted from other departments to cover the stipend shortfalls. The revelation comes as Lesufi pushes ahead with a controversial relaunch of the employment initiative, sparking concerns about its funding and sustainability amid a fragile public trust in government programmes. In a written reply to a question from the Democratic Alliance in the Gauteng Provincial Legislature, the province's Agriculture and Rural Development MEC, Vuyiswa Ramokgopa, revealed that between June and November 2024, 4,716 workers in Lesufi's Green Army project were not paid on time by both the Gauteng Department of Agriculture and Rural Development and the Department of the Environment. Lesufi's Green Army project was launched unfunded in May 2024. According to MEC Ramokgopa's reply, the Expanded Public Works Project (EPWP) workers involved had previously been funded by a budget allocated to the departments of the Environment and Agriculture and Rural Development, which ran from April 2023 to March 2024. When the Nasi iSpani project ended abruptly in November last year (along with all other projects under the Nasi iSpani banner), it had already spent R73-million on the Green Army, an expenditure that left the Gauteng Department of Agriculture and Rural Development unable to pay service providers. Additionally, another R59-million had to be diverted from the Environment Department between September and November to pay the stipends of the 6,000 workers in the programme. According to Ramokgopa's reply to the DA's questions, this was because the programme's extension from June to August 2024 for the Gauteng Department of Agriculture and Rural Development and from June to November of the same year for the Environment Department, was not budgeted for. 'Reckless' 'This reckless extension, which was not budgeted for, meant that the EPWP workers had to be paid from the goods and services programme. This has had a negative effect on all creditors being paid within 30 days,' Gauteng MPL and DA Shadow Agriculture MEC Bronwynn Engelbrecht said. In a statement released on Tuesday, 17 June, Engelbrecht said that her party was demanding that before Lesufi relaunched Nasi iSpani, the Gauteng premier ensured that 'there is enough money to pay all workers on time and that money is not taken from the budgets of other service delivery programmes'. The benefits that public works employment programmes create, particularly for young and marginalised people, have been well documented. They provide pathways into employment and education, effectively combating unemployment and poverty. However, for them to be successful, they have to be well-planned and adequately funded. In cases where they are not, as with Nasi iSpani, the job programmes fall short of providing the long-term security and skills development that young people need to build sustainable livelihoods. 'Demoralising' Adam Cooper, researcher at the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC), told Daily Maverick that while employment programmes act as a lifeline for young people, they can be deeply demoralising when not implemented properly. 'To many young people, the money they get from public employment programmes is a kind of security for them while they are also fighting the war [on poverty and unemployment] on a bunch of other fronts. If that money doesn't come in, it can be very disheartening to young people and frustrating for them to keep trying to find employment,' Cooper said. In South Africa's current sociopolitical climate, the relationship between people and the state was very fragile, he said, adding that confidence in government programmes was already low, and when promised opportunities turned out to be unreliable, it further eroded trust. 'If programmes are advertised and then they don't pay, it can be very damaging to people having confidence that the government is trying to support them,' Cooper said. The challenges highlighted by Cooper — such as late payments, poor planning and the erosion of trust between young people and government — underscore the need for a more reliable and accountable approach to public employment programmes. In response to these issues, the DA's Engelbrecht said that 'a DA-led Gauteng provincial government will not implement any job creation programme without first ensuring that there is a sufficient budget for the programme. Our unemployed residents need a government that is willing to ensure that they are paid on time for services rendered and do not have to wait longer than the payment date stated in their contracts.' Nasi iSpani 2.0 concerns arise The ball is already rolling on the relaunch of Nasi iSpani, despite heavy criticism from within the African National Congress (ANC) and from opposition parties, including the Economic Freedom Fighters and ActionSA. In May, Lesufi announced that his employment drive, which has been labelled an 'electioneering gimmick' by critics, would receive a second instalment, this time focusing on placing teacher assistants in schools across the province. This instalment of the programme aims to create 40,000 jobs, and while it has been welcomed by the Congress of South African Trade Unions, it has come under fire from parties such as the DA. Refiole Nt'sekhe, MPL and DA Gauteng representative for Social Development, referenced an oral reply made by Social Development MEC Faith Mazibuko, who revealed that – similar to what happened in the Gauteng Department of Agriculture and Rural Development – the Department of Social Development had had to make a special request for R48-million to be reallocated to cover the cost of the stipends for workers in the Nasi iSpani programme. 'This confirms that Nasi iSpani is an unfunded mandate that expects departments to create jobs without funding to meet this objective,' said Nt'sekhe. However, during the relaunch of the project, Lesufi hit back at critics, saying, 'We are not doing this for political mileage; we're doing this to fight unemployment. On one hand, you see poor homes, incomplete infrastructure, and unmaintained roads. On the other hand, youth are unemployed. So we train them, pay them and get them working.' Daily Maverick asked how the premier intended to ensure the relaunch of Nasi iSpani was well funded, sustainable and did not negatively affect the programmes in other departments. Lesufi's office had not responded to the request for comment by the time of publication. DM
The Hindu
18 hours ago
- General
- The Hindu
Kollumedu Government High School transforms into a Green School
From being a school without a compound and cattle lying around on the grounds, the Government High School Kollumedu in Tiruvallur district now has gotten a complete facelift. It is the district's first green school and now has a green fence, walls with heat-absorbent paint, solar-reflective coated roof, and is a zero carbon-footprint institution. The school also has herbal, vegetable and ornamental gardens, vermi-compost shed, rainwater harvesting system, and LED lighting. The works were carried out with funds from the Environment Department and district administration and CSR funds from Aptus Value Housing Finance India Limited. Sanitation First (India) was the implementation partner. District Collector M. Prathap said that three more schools in Tiruvallur had been identified to be upgraded as green schools and the administrative sanction for the same had been issued recently. Schools at Thirumazhisai, Thirukandalam and Kuthambakkam would be a part of this initiative. A total of ₹30 lakh would be allocated from government funds and the rest would be pooled from corporate social responsibility funds, he added. Tiruvallur district Green Fellow under the Department of Environment, Sruthi Saravanan, said, 'We had conducted several awareness programmes for the students and teachers as to how these systems can be maintained. We had ten topics and focused the students based on their age. We made teachers and students in charge of each concept. A gardener-cum-watchman has been appointed for the school.' Sanitation First (India) Chief Executive Padmapriya T.S. said that Green schools would definitely make better study environments for students and work environments for teachers. The aim of this project was also to inculcate the importance of environment protection and sustainable living. 'The children have been taught about the biodiversities of Tiruvallur district through wall paintings. This school is in the middle of an open space. The transformation is nothing short of remarkable. The government gave it a biofence, solar system, rainwater harvesting system, and the gardens too,' she said.
The Star
a day ago
- The Star
RM10.3mil in illegal e-waste seized in Sabah crackdown
KOTA KINABALU: Authorities seize more than RM10.3mil worth of illegal e-waste and detain 44 individuals in Sabah. The joint enforcement operation, codenamed Ops Hazard 2.0, was carried out on Monday (June 16) across 16 locations identified as hotspots for unlawful e-waste collection and handling. Sabah General Operations Force (GOF) commander Datuk Abdul Rani Alias said the raids were conducted in multiple districts, including Kota Kinabalu, Papar, Tuaran, Keningau, Tawau, Semporna, Kunak, Lahad Datu and Sandakan. 313 personnel were involved in the integrated operation, representing various agencies, including the Environment Department, Customs Department, Fire and Rescue Department, Labour Department, local authorities and the Health Ministry. 'From the operation, 44 individuals were detained – 23 local men, five local women, and one child. We also arrested 10 men and five women from the Philippines and Indonesia,' he said in a statement on Thursday (June 19). Investigations revealed that all raided premises were illegally buying and collecting e-waste without proper authorisation or compliance with environmental laws. The seizures included a wide range of discarded electronic and electrical items, with the total value estimated at RM10.3mil. Abdul Rani said several offences were detected during the operation. These included violations of the Environmental Quality Act 1974 and its subsidiary legislation, the Environmental Quality (Scheduled Wastes) Regulations 2005, for the illegal handling and storage of scheduled waste. Other offences were committed under the Immigration Act 1959/63 for the presence of undocumented foreign nationals, the Control of Supplies Act 1961 for illegal trading activities, and the Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases Act 1988 for non-compliance with public health regulations. Additional breaches involved the Food Act 1983, the Fire Services Act 1988, the Sabah Labour Ordinance (Cap. 67) for employment violations, and the Trade Licensing Ordinance 1948 for operating without valid business licences.
The Star
a day ago
- The Star
2,000 metric tonnes of illegal e-waste collected in Ops Hazard 2.0, says Environment Department
KUALA LUMPUR: Some 2,000 metric tonnes of illegal e-waste were seized in Ops Hazard 2.0, says the Environment Department. Its enforcement division director, Rosli Zul, said the department also issued equipment seizure orders on 24 premises raided during the special operation. "It was done per Section 38(1)(a) of the Environmental Quality Act 1974 (Act 127) for operating machinery without any pollution control systems. "We also issued 59 directives under Sections 31 and 37 of the Act, while 18 compounds were issued for various violations of the Environmental Quality (Scheduled Wastes) Regulations 2005," he told a press conference in Bukit Aman on Thursday (June 19). Rosli said investigations have been opened into 25 premises for various offences, including failure to comply with license conditions and operating unlicensed scheduled waste storage facilities. "Other offences detected were failure to obtain written approval from the department's director-general, failure to submit an Environmental Impact Assessment report and disposal of scheduled waste without proper approval. 'These illegal activities not only break the law but pose serious threats to human health and the environment due to the potential release of hazardous pollutants into the air, water, and soil,' he said. Many of the illegal operations were found in remote areas and outside approved industrial zones, making enforcement and monitoring more difficult, and increasing risks for enforcement officers, Rosli said. He stressed that any management of scheduled waste, including e-waste, without proper approval from the director-general is a serious offence " Under the latest amendments to the Environmental Quality Act (Amendment) 2024, offenders now face fines of up to RM10mil and jail terms of up to five years if convicted," he added. Ops Hazard 2.0 was recently conducted, involving various agencies led by the police's General Operations Force.
