Tony R. Walker

Let it snow! ❄️⛷️❄️

When marking student assignments, I wish I had a short cut key for this comment:

"Always define acronyms at their first use."

N.S. premier says no changes planned for budget cuts | CBC News Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston says he’s not changing course. A week after his government tabled a budget with $300 million in cuts that sparked multiple protests around the province, including two t...

Budget
Cuts
Under
Neoliberal
Tim

www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...

This new law in France 🇫🇷 will help us achieve Sustainable Development Goal 12, "responsible consumption and production.

georgiatoday.ge/france-crimi...

UMass researchers are discovering new ways that plants with wounded roots might be absorbing microplastics. In this piece for @NatureComms, Prof. Baoshan Xing was among the team whose investigation underscored how adjusting farming practices could improve food safety. https://go.nature.com/3Nm56s2

Curbing health harms from microplastics Policy action lags behind growing evidence Microplastics have emerged as a serious environmental and public health concern in recent years. Initially regarded as an environmental problem affecting ma...

Curbing health harms from #microplastics

www.bmj.com/content/392/...

Retired wildlife biologist Bob Bancroft wants his name removed from Nova Scotia Forestry Hall of Fame - Halifax Examiner Premier Tim Houston listens only to industries, facilitating their wish to make money by degrading the land and its freshwaters. Those who speak for nature and environmental consequences are labelled ...

I agree wholeheartedly with Bob Bancroft in this Op-Ed he wrote:

www.halifaxexaminer.ca/commentary/r...

"Those who speak for nature and environmental consequences are labelled “the enemy.”"

According to our Premier, I am not only a member of a special interest group (FFS), I am now "the enemy".

Dodgy Dow trying to dodge its environmental and financial liabilities. The lawsuits will catch up eventually. The “Polluter Pays”!

#PolluterPays
#PlasticPollution
#Microplastics

Yes!!👍

The problem of abandoned, lost, and discarded fishing gear (ALDFG) or 'ghost gear' is not going to "go away", even if the provincial and federal funding does 😡

Who’s going to pay for marine cleanups? Provincial, federal cuts leave N.S. organizations footing the bill | CBC News The head of a marine cleanup organization says she and her team will work with or without pay to keep Nova Scotian waters free of trash — but the lack of funding feels like a gut punch.

Reaching peak short-sightedness. Argghh! Over the years I've worked with amazing, award winning students who've so much to give to ocean pollution problems & solutions. Embarrassed by gov't policy! Sad day for the ocean!
@deepseadawn.bsky.social @tonyrwalker1.bsky.social

www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...

#PlasticPollution
#MarineDebris
#ALDFG
#ghostgear

Who’s going to pay for marine cleanups? Provincial, federal cuts leave N.S. organizations footing the bill | CBC News The head of a marine cleanup organization says she and her team will work with or without pay to keep Nova Scotian waters free of trash — but the lack of funding feels like a gut punch.

The problem of abandoned, lost, and discarded fishing gear (ALDFG) or 'ghost gear' is not going to "go away", even if the federal and provincial funding does 😡

Who’s going to pay for marine cleanups? Provincial, federal cuts leave N.S. organizations footing the bill

www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...

And next week you can join in a webinar on Unlocking progress in the Global Plastics Treaty organized by the Revolution Plastics Institute.

When: Friday, 13 March 2026 from 1-2.3pm GMT
Where: Online via Zoom
Register via this form: lnkd.in/esN3iN2M

#PlasticsTreaty

Lynn Konwaia'tanónwe's Jacobs

Indigenous rights, knowledge, and participation in the global plastics treaty

www.cambridge.org/core/journal...

#PlasticsTreaty

UN politics won’t deliver an ambitious plastics treaty Negotiators again failed to finalize the text for a global plastics treaty in Geneva in August 2025. The talks exposed two harsh truths. Consensus on the treaty text, where no state formally objects, ...

Peter Dauvergne and Jen Iris Allan

UN politics won’t deliver an ambitious plastics treaty

www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

#PlasticsTreaty

Tim Kiessling et al

Underrepresented developing States, marginalized communities, big business and procedural injustice – how equal were the UN INC-5.2 Global Plastic Treaty negotiations?

www.cambridge.org/core/journal...

#PlasticsTreaty

Others have also written about their frustration and offered suggestions to break this deadlock

Antaya March and Sam Winton

Unlocking opportunities to fulfil the Global Plastics Treaty

www.nature.com/articles/s43...

#PlasticsTreaty

Although we were armchair observers, it was evident that #geopolitical divisions, industry lobbyists, and #consensus-based procedures hindered the international process to address #plasticpollution.

Its been a while since #PlasticsTreaty negotiations ended in Geneva at #INC5.2 without an agreement to end #PlasticPollution, but this paper was borne out of our frustration of the process.

Pleased to share a new paper led by Dr. Gabriel Enrique De la Torre which was published today as an accepted manuscript in Cambridge Prisms: Plastics

Deadlock at INC-5.2: Understanding the Blocked Progress of the Global #PlasticsTreaty Negotiations

www.cambridge.org/core/journal...

The Distribution and Migration of Microplastics in Soils From Different Agricultural Farmlands in China The widespread occurrence of microplastics (MPs) in agricultural soils raises global concern, yet a systematic understanding of their national-scale distribution and drivers remains elusive. Here, we....

The Distribution and Migration of #Microplastics in Soils From Different #Agricultural Farmlands in #China

onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1...

Temporal succession outweighs substrate characteristics in shaping riverine plastisphere biofilm on textiles Biofilms developing on plastic surfaces (the plastisphere) are increasingly recognized for their ecological significance, yet the drivers of community…

Temporal succession outweighs substrate characteristics in shaping riverine #plastisphere #biofilm on #textiles

www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Marine debris governance and regional dynamics in Southeast Asia Marine debris poses a significant threat to marine ecosystems in Southeast Asia, where rapid economic development, high concentrations of coastal popu…

Marine debris governance and regional dynamics in Southeast Asia

www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Michigan ‘nurdle’ spill underscores a chronic Great Lakes threat Thousands of pounds of plastic pellets spilled alongside the Kalamazoo River, but researchers say the incident reflects a much larger microplastic problem.

Thousands of pounds of plastic pellets spilled alongside the Kalamazoo River, but researchers say the incident reflects a much larger microplastic problem.

Chemical waste from plastic pollution may be altering what octopuses eat Images of turtles tangled in nets or fish choked by bags are the most obvious signs that plastic pollution is harming our oceans. But plastic isn’t just dangerous because of its physical bulk, it’s also dangerous due toe to the chemicals it contains. A new study has characterized how one of these chemicals, oleamide, alters interactions between the common South Florida octopus (Octopus vulgaris) and its crustacean prey. The research showed that oleamide altered how animals responded to one another, suggesting that the plastic chemical could alter the structure of marine communities. The study was published in the Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology. Read More: Octopuses Change Color in Milliseconds, Even Though They Are Colorblind What is Oleamide? Oleamide is a lubricant that is used to reduce friction in compounds such as polyethylene and polypropylene. But as these plastics break down, oleamide leaks out. This is a problem for marine species, many of which produce the compound naturally. The biological form of oleamide functions as a pheromone in marine species such as hermit crabs and is structurally similar to oleic acid, which, according to a study in Marine Pollution Bulletin, influences reproduction in other crustacean species. If industrial...

Chemical waste from plastic pollution may be altering what octopuses eat
->Discover | More on "Plastic chemicals altering octopus behavior" at BigEarthData.ai | #PlasticPollution

A nice looking cornice and wind scoop on our driveway.
❄️🧊❄️

Normally, I like playing in the snow ❄️

But this wall of white stuff will pose a challenge today!

'Shock and awe' at DNR: Wildlife division gone, managers sacked, and restructured department geared for natural resources exploitation and extraction - Halifax Examiner Retired wildlife biologist Bob Bancroft describes the elimination of the division and today’s changes to the department as “absolutely disgusting.”

😡 According to our Premier I must be a member of a “special interest group”, as I remain concerned about #environmental health, #biodiversity, forest ecology, #climate, and #conservation in Nova Scotia, in Canada 🇨🇦 and globally 🌎

www.halifaxexaminer.ca/dismantling-...

From Sea to Solution: Working Together on Ghost Gear Management in Atlantic Canada This workshop offers live interpretation between English and French, and has limited spots available. Register soon to secure your seat! With support from the Environmental Trust Fund and...

From Sea to Solution: Working Together on Ghost Gear Management in Atlantic Canada 🇨🇦

nben.ca/en/get-invol...

#GhostGear
#ALDFG