Topic Environmental
TSB says brake failure, cold weather led to deadly train derailment
March 31, 2022 by The Canadian PressCALGARY – An investigation into a fatal train derailment near the British Columbia-Alberta boundary has found the locomotive’s brakes failed with prolonged exposure to cold temperatures. The Transportation Safety Board of Canada on Thursday released its findings into the February…
Oil and gas sector emissions need to be cut two-fifths by 2030, new climate plan says
March 30, 2022 by Mia Rabson - THE CANADIAN PRESSOTTAWA – Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told the Canadian oil industry Tuesday that it should use the massive bump in profits from the current surge in prices to fund a transition to cut their emissions. The federal government unveiled an…
One step closer to a National Flood Insurance Program
March 29, 2022 by Alyssa DiSabatinoThe industry is one step closer to getting updated flood maps, and a new national flood insurance program to protect homeowners in high-risk flood zones is in the works, says Canada’s public safety minister. Flood maps are being developed in…
Alberta Appeal Court keeps $217 million oilpatch cleanup liability case alive
March 29, 2022 by Bob Weber - THE CANADIAN PRESSA bankruptcy hearing that could determine whether more than $200 million in oilpatch environmental liabilities wind up on the public dime will have to go back to court. The Alberta Court of Appeal ruled Friday that the long-running bankruptcy of…
Flood fears ease in Manitoba amid good weather and slow melt, officials say
March 28, 2022 by The Canadian PressWINNIPEG – Fears of spring flooding are easing in Manitoba, thanks to recent weather. A winter of heavy snowfall had initially raised worries across much of the province. But two weeks of slow melting – above-zero temperatures during the day…
B.C. ready to proceed with permanent repairs to flood damaged Coquihalla Highway
March 24, 2022 by The Canadian PressHOPE, B.C. – The Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure says it is moving ahead with permanent repairs to a key B.C. highway damaged by catastrophic flooding last November. A statement from the ministry says it has begun the process to…
Alberta auditor general gives qualified thumbs up to oil well cleanup spending
March 23, 2022 by The Canadian PressEDMONTON – The Alberta government is getting mostly check marks from the province’s auditor general over how it handled the billion dollars it got from Ottawa to clean up abandoned oil and gas wells and get service contractors back to…
B.C. wildfire service to increase prevention work from backyards to forests: official
March 21, 2022 by The Canadian PressKAMLOOPS, B.C. – The director of provincial operations for British Columbia’s wildfire service says the province needs a “holistic,” large-scale program to reduce wildfire risk, starting in backyards, moving to communities then extending to forested lands. Cliff Chapman says planning…
Dikes to protect N.S. N.B. link from flooding expected to cost hundreds of millions
March 18, 2022 by The Canadian PressHALIFAX – An engineering study looking at three options to save the land link between Nova Scotia and New Brunswick from climate-related flooding is pegging costs at between $189 million and just over $300 million. The study released today suggests…
How brokers are affected by carriers competing on flood maps
March 16, 2022 by Alyssa DiSabatinoAdd a single flood map to the wish lists of several brokers, who are having a tough time dealing with individual insurance companies competing on flood maps. A Canada-wide flood map has yet to be implemented across the industry, and…
What if the disaster models are wrong?
March 14, 2022 by Canadian Underwriter StaffFor nearly a quarter century, the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) has required Canadian P&C carriers to demonstrate capacity for handling major earthquakes, including so-called one-in-500 year events. Canada’s P&C industry is well capitalized and backed by…
New twist on underwriting flood risk: human-altered stream flows
March 11, 2022 by Alyssa DiSabatinoHuman-altered stream flows, such as dams, canals or areas of heavy urbanization, are at a greater risk of flooding, new research finds. And this could potentially impact flood risk ratings, P&C industry experts say. A study by researchers at the…