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Alberta steps up pipeline trade war against BC
Inflaming an already simmering trade war, Alberta premier Rachel Notley announced the introduction of a bill that would severely limit British Columbia’s access to petroleum and likely drive up gasoline prices if it continues to oppose expansion of the Trans Mountain pipeline. Meanwhile, Andrew Wudrick, a taxpayers advocate writing for the Georgia Straight, says that any plan by Canada’s federal government or Alberta to buy out the pipeline and reduce KinderMorgan’s shareholder risk would be a fiscal disaster. “Alberta taking ownership of the pipeline will not change the B.C government’s political calculus, dampen the zeal of hardcore protesters, or deter First Nations groups determined to block it.”
Washington environmentalists collect signatures for carbon fee
Unable to pass a carbon tax during the legislative session, environmentalists in Washington are turning to a carbon fee ballot initiative they hope to bring to a vote in November, Seattle Weekly reports. The fee would start at $15 per ton and rise after that, with percentages of revenue set aside for clean energy projects and financial assistance to low income energy users.
Is cross-laminated timber the next big thing in architecture?
Crosscut reports on how architects at the University of Washington are exploring the possibilities of cross-laminated timber (CLT), a super plywood as strong as concrete. It’s a renewable building material that could revolutionize urban architecture, but zoning laws need to be changed to allow towers of more than six stories. US News and World Report notes that Oregon is also forging forward with CLT, hoping to capture 15 percent of the world market.
An interview with Portland rapper Mic Capes
OPB has an interview with hip hop artist Mic Capes, who grew up in the St. Johns neighborhood of Portland and who’s found a supportive community in connection with activism and volunteering for youth programs. Though he finds Portland progressive, there’s a blind spot: “…when you live in a city that’s damn near 75 percent white you’re not forced to deal with your own racism a lot of times because you can grow up in areas where there’s nothing but white people.”
Poetry by Spokane’s Kathryn Smith
At Crab Creek Review you can read Spokane-based poet Kathryn Smith’s “The Young Eat What These Birds Disgorge from their Crops,” a lyric exposition on a bird not generally associated with beauty. “Vultures circle, neclacing our errors.” Read the entire poem here.
That’s today’s news and culture from across Cascadia. –Andrew Engelson
Corrections: yesterday’s report on Sam Hamill’s death incorrectly stated he lived in Port Townsend. Hamill lived in Anacortes from 2010 until his death, which occurred on Saturday. Also, a blurb about a Seattle Times article on a peacemaking program for juvenile offenders incorrectly stated the program is used in cases of youth accused of murder.
Photo credits: Rachel Notley by Dave Cournoyer CC BY-SA 2.0, John Horgan courtesy of BC NDP