EcoFriendly West

Peatlands and Why We Should Care About Them, hosted by For Peat’s Sake: Protecting Northern Saskatchewan’s Muskegs, Join us for an afternoon of learning as we explore the vital peatland ecosystems with Bryan Mood – forest ecologist & climate scientist. We will also create our own peat-free soil mixture with For Peat’s Sake member Elizabeth Bekolay BSc., 28 March, 2026, 2-4 pm, Education Building, University of Saskatchewan, Room 2060, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. Free registration. To register please follow the link in the post and fill out the form. www.forpeatsake.ca

Explore the vital role of peatland ecosystems and create your own peat-free soil mix from 2-4 pm, March 28, Saskatoon forpeatsake.ca/events

EcoWest News, March 3, 2026 EcoWest News highlights: The resilience of rivers, atmospheric pollution, low-carbon travel options, and a post-partum snack for female caribou

EcoWest News highlights: The resilience of rivers, atmospheric pollution, low-carbon travel options, and a post-partum snack for female caribou

Canadian LNG out of step with Europe's clean energy shift: EU official Senior Brussels diplomat Belén Martinez Carbonell says renewables and nuclear power win out over fossil fuels to help meet EU economic and emissions reduction goals.

www.nationalobserver.com/2026/03/02/n...

A blue-backed male merlin - a small falcon is seen feeding on a small songbirds in a spruce tree. Below is the Birds of Alberta podcast logo.

Merlins are fantastic neighbourhood birds - they punctuate the scene when they appear and they create memories with every choppy wingbeat. Enjoy a listen to my latest podcast on Merlin! podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/m...

Did you know that the bees that need saving are NOT honeybees?

Honeybees are the dairy cows of bees. People brought them over from Europe to make us honey.

The problem with honeybees, esp in resource-limited ecosystems (like hey! cities!) is that they compete with our native bees for food.

photo and description of Bufflehead from the Nature Companion website and app

Buffleheads are very active, spending almost a quarter of their time diving for food www.naturecompanion.ca/birds/buffle/ #NatureCompanion

Subscribe to ecofriendlywest.ca for a round-up of news and stories about nature and the environment in Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, and British Columbia #Free #NoCookies #NoAds

Ed Sheeran caught the train to Melbourne to protect the climate. But what about his thousands of fans? Australia hosts hundreds of live performance events each year, drawing about 14 million concertgoers – and their environmental footprints.

Live events come with a major environmental footprint. To obtain reductions, audience travel behaviour must change. Ed Sheeran travelling by train to Melbourne may appear symbolic, but it normalizes low-carbon options and reinforces environmental values

book cover for The Company of Owls: A Memoir by Polly Atkin “filled with wonder, wisdom and warmth” – Sy Montgomery

“Watch a parent owl with their children, or owl siblings together, or a couple of courting owls, and what you’ll see is so much love, so much love and tenderness and playfulness – The Company of Owls by Polly Atkin milkweed.org/book/the-com...

Big dreams — and risks — at the Port of Churchill | The Narwhal Some are pushing hard for a major expansion of the Port of Churchill, in Manitoba. Others worry about the risks to the ocean and tundra environment

Expanding Manitoba’s Port of Churchill could open an important economic corridor in the North. But the potential drawbacks — from the risk of oil spills to limited access due to ice cover — have some concerned, @jsrutgers.bsky.social reports. thenarwhal.ca/port-of-chur...

Students weave fashion, sustainability and community care into growing non-profit When Welcome Week brought Maria Alex and Maryam Muayad onto campus, neither expected to meet the person who would become a best friend, roommate and co-founder of a non-profit organization. But someth...

StyleCycle doesn’t simply hand out garments — they style complete outfits, wash and repair each piece, and thoughtfully pair items to help recipients feel confident and cared for. Minor fixes extend a garment’s life and support circular fashion
news.mcmaster.ca/students-wea...

Social media card for the owl survey with logos and text Hooting it up for science

Map of Ontario showing owl survey route locations, the red dots are unassigned routes, see link in post. Note there are only a few rouets in Central Ontario and no routes in Southwestern Ontario

Owl surveyors needed in northern and central #Ontario. Visit buff.ly/6s6esbU to see the position description, buff.ly/fmOLC0g for available routes (red markers) and buff.ly/BE8xneX to request a route. #Night #Science #Volunteer #Birds

photo of a wastewater lagoon with the words: a new chapter in healing Lake Winnipeg, Gimli Wetland Initiative

Gimli, Manitoba, is converting a decommissioned wastewater lagoon into a constructed wetland with trails and interpretive signage www.gimli.ca/p/gimli-wetl...

Vancouver port applies to dredge Burrard Inlet this year to fuel oil exports An application to federal authorities contemplates deepening a navigational channel starting in September 2026

“Sediment is basically a sink for all these pollutants, but it can become a source if we suspend all these materials with dredging,” said Juan José Alava, principal investigator at UBC's Ocean Pollution Research Unit
www.biv.com/news/transpo... via @stefanlabbe.bsky.social

EcoWest News, February 24, 2026 From chocolate and whales to data centres and economic choices: EcoWest News, February 24, 2026

From chocolate and whales to data centres and economic choices: EcoWest News, February 24, 2026

So you’re getting a data centre! Here’s what to know - CCPA What questions to ask when the next new data centre comes to your town.

There are plans to build a data centre in your community. Here’s what questions you should ask, from how noisy will it be to will it provide tax revenue?

photo and description of cattails from Nature Companion website and app

Cattails play a useful role in removing pollutants from bodies of water and provide an important habitat for birds, insects, amphibians, and fish www.naturecompanion.ca/plants/catta... #NatureCompanion

book cover for Super Natural: How Life Thrives in Impossible Places by Alex Riley

Super Natural: How Life Thrives in Impossible Places: Why would any animal find itself in a place without oxygen, without food, bathed in intense radiation? Survival isn’t just a case of their environment but also the threat of predation and competition www.penguinrandomhouse.ca/books/807360...

The Victoria Man with a Plan for Your Old Sofa | The Tyee Meet Elwyn Thom, the 23-year-old founder of Recertified Furniture.

About 672,000 tonnes of furniture are thrown out in Canada per year. Recertified Furniture’s goal is to rehome high-end furniture requiring repairs that donation centres or other businesses can’t address

Community Leaders & Books: January 2026 Community leaders and books, January 2026, featuring a warming Arctic, hiking by moonlight, and fan-building tactics from the music industry

Community leaders and books, January 2026, featuring a warming Arctic, hiking by moonlight, and fan-building tactics from the music industry

People cheersing, title reads "Third Thursday Climate Social Drinks with Calgary Climate Hub. - Third Thursday of each month form 5pm at Civic Tavern with support from XhAke brewing co" address is 213 12th Ave SW

Are you thirsty for a casual chat with local climate folks? Join us this month for our #ThirdThursdays Climate Drinks at #CivicTavern. Supported by XhAle Brewing!
#yyc #ClimateChange @xhalebrewco.bsky.social #ThirdThursday

Environmental Law in Focus Part Two, a webinar mini-series, Biodiversity in Focus, webinar schedule, Parks and Protected Areas – Feb. 19, Grasslands – Apr. 9, Wetlands – May 14, Forests – June 4, 12-12:45 MT, Register with the link in the post visit elc.ab.ca

Alberta's Environmental Law Centre is hosting a 4-part webinar series on biodiversity looking at parks and protected areas, grasslands, wetlands, and forests. The first seminar is on Thursday, February 19

A male American Three-toed Woodpecker chips off bark on a spruce tree.

A male American Three-toed Woodpecker chips off bark on a spruce tree.

Dead cold, dead of winter is Three-toed Woodpecker time!
Out there in the frozen, silent forest-scene they softly peck off bark chips to expose insect eggs and overwintering adults. Their calm & deliberate approach match their environment.

Boglands by Merritt Turetsky | Waterstones Buy Boglands by Merritt Turetsky from Waterstones today! Click and Collect from your local Waterstones or get FREE UK delivery on orders over £25.

For my bog and peat lovers! My upcoming book #Boglands is available to pre-order from Waterstones now at 25% off RRP! To redeem the offer, simple enter ‘FEB26’ at the checkout between now and 23:59 on Friday 20th February.

#WPreorder. Pre-order #Boglands here: www.waterstones.com/book/bogland...

EcoWest News, February 17, 2026 Birds, bats, drinking water, reusable dishes and concrete slabs: EcoWest News, February 16, 2026

Birds, bats, drinking water, reusable dishes and concrete slabs: EcoWest News, February 16, 2026

Draining wetlands produces substantial emissions in the Canadian Prairies Some tout wetland drainage as providing numerous benefits, including reducing emissions. This assertion is not supported by science.

Widespread wetland drainage on Prairie farmland releases 2.1 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent per year. That’s equal to more than 5% of Prairie agricultural emissions from the industry as a whole

Oil Wars vs Energy Transition (feat. Markham Hislop) What another oil war means for Canada’s future

Your Sunday morning podcast is HERE. Fire up that morning coffee and enjoy.

Have a GREAT Sunday!

www.podcastics.com/episode/4019...

#Venezuela #ClimateChange #OilWar #EnergyTransition #ElectroStates #PetroStates #CleanEnergy #Renewables #cdnpoli #abpoli #yyc #Electrification #ElectrifyEverything

photo and description of blue grama grass from Nature Companion website and app

Blue Grama Grass has a dense, shallow root mass that holds the soil in place and prevents erosion www.naturecompanion.ca/plants/blugg... #NatureCompanion

Neighbours of proposed AI data centre near Regina raise concerns about water usage, noise | CBC News Neighbours of a proposed artificial intelligence data centre south of Regina have raised concerns about the facility's water usage and noise pollution.

Neighbours and area residents have raised concerns around water usage, drainage, noise pollution, and the impact on road infrastructure of a proposed data centre near Regina

book cover for It’s on You: How Corporations and Behavioral Scientists Have Convinced Us That We're to Blame for Society's Deepest Problems by Nick Chater and George Loewenstein

What is the most effective way to address climate change? Is it through individual actions (change your diet, stop flying) or through systemic change (legislation)? It’s on You outlines why we should stop blaming ourselves for society’s failures www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/nick-...