Latest news with #provincialGovernment
CBC
2 days ago
- Health
- CBC
Manitoba eyes plan to cull hundreds of thousands of pigs if African swine fever arrives
Manitoba is developing a plan to cull and dispose of hundreds of thousands of pigs in the event of an African swine fever outbreak, an event agriculture officials call an "economic and animal welfare emergency" that would cost the province $3 billion in annual farm and food-processing revenue. The province issued a request for proposals last week for a consulting firm to develop an emergency response plan for African swine fever, which has killed millions of domestic pigs in Asia, central and eastern Europe and in sub-Saharan Africa, where wild pigs and ticks carry the virus that causes the disease without suffering any ill effects. While African swine fever (ASF) was first identified more than a century ago, it started to spread more rapidly in Asia in 2018 and has a toehold in the western hemisphere in Haiti and the Dominican Republic. If the virus ever makes it to Canada, "a large-scale welfare cull is needed to humanely euthanize and dispose of hundreds of thousands of pigs that cannot go to market," Manitoba Agriculture's animal health and welfare branch notes in its request for proposals. "An ASF outbreak in Canada will lead to immediate border closures with international trading partners," the branch says, estimating the cost of a border closure to the Manitoba swine sector at $1.2 billion in lost farm and processing revenue over three months or $3.1 billion for an entire year. "Given the severe impact of ASF on swine health and international trade, an outbreak in Canada would be an economic and animal welfare emergency. To reduce this risk, Manitoba is collaborating with government and industry partners to proactively develop and refine a provincial welfare response plan should the disease arrive here." The provincial animal health and welfare branch is now looking for a consultant to determine who will be responsible for responding to an outbreak within a number of government agencies as well as at private pork processors and hog producers such as Mississauga, Ont.-based Canada Packers, Steinbach's HyLife and Niverville's Progressive Group. The province is also looking for collaboration with other pork-producing provinces, particularly Alberta, Saskatchewan, Ontario and Quebec. "This response plan could also be applied to other types of disease outbreaks or emergency events," the request for proposals notes. Cam Dahl, the general manager of Manitoba Pork, said one of the goals of the response plan is to reduce the duration of border closures, partly by working with authorities in the United States and Japan, where Manitoba sends most of its pork. "In Manitoba, 90 per cent of what we produce is exported," Dahl said Monday, describing a border closure as "a big hit." Glen Duizer, Manitoba's chief veterinary officer, said the province started working on the emergency response plan following the rapid spread of African swine fever in 2018. He said the province needs the consultant to draw the component parts together and finalize a plan that co-ordinates the actions of multiple government agencies and private companies. "As long as we can continue to do that, we have a good chance of keeping it out. And even if we don't, if we have that approach going into the disease, if it does enter into North American as a whole or even Canada more specifically, then we have a better chance of handling it," Duizer said Monday. Poses no threat to people The virus that causes African swine fever poses no threat to people and, unlike swine influenza, cannot jump to people or any animals other than pigs or old-world soft ticks. "ASF is a completely different virus. It's in its own unique family of viruses and there's really only this one that causes significant disease in pigs," Duizer said. "As that type of virus, it has no human health implications. It doesn't infect people, it has not jumped to other species, so that makes it a fair bit different from other diseases, including influenza." The ticks that carry African swine fever don't live in North America, Duizer said. Neither do wild African pigs such as warthogs or bushpigs. Around the world, the virus is transmitted mainly by contact with infected live pigs as well as their feces, blood or even pork products, where the virus that causes the disease can survive for months or even years. That's why hog producers are concerned with keeping people out of barns and otherwise strictly enforcing biosecurity regimes, Dahl said. "The most likely way of it coming in is it walking in with somebody from an airport … bringing in food from somewhere in an affected area," he said. The increased use of dogs as surveillance at airport arrival areas is aimed at combating this scenario, he added. "That's really what they're looking for. They're looking for food products," Dahl said. According to the request for proposals, the province wants to have the emergency response plan in place by March 2026. Duizer said he's pleased Canada has kept African swine fever out of the country for the past seven years and is also heartened the disease has been spreading elsewhere in the world more slowly over the past few years. "The risk is still present. That's what it really boils down to, and we have to be cognizant of that risk and we have to do everything that we can to prevent it from coming in," he said.
Yahoo
03-07-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
8 more measles cases reported in Manitoba, bringing total to 116
Eight new measles cases were confirmed in Manitoba during the last week of June, the province's weekly update says. The new cases bring the total number of confirmed measles infections to 116 so far this year, according to the province's most recent data, which was posted Wednesday and covers the period up to June 28. There have also been eight probable cases since the start of the year: four reported in April and four in June. The number of cases peaked in Manitoba during May, with 72 confirmed cases. Last month saw 25 confirmed cases up to June 28. Measles is a highly infectious disease that spreads through droplets formed in the air when someone coughs, sneezes or talks. Even a few minutes in the same space as a sick person poses infection risks, as the virus can linger on surfaces for two hours after an infected person leaves. Symptoms of measles generally appear seven to 21 days after exposure, and may include a fever, runny nose, drowsiness and red eyes. Small white spots can also appear on the inside of the mouth or throat, the province said. Over 3,500 reported cases nationwide so far in 2025 Canada achieved measles elimination status in 1998, but imported cases have resulted in outbreaks of the highly contagious disease that started in New Brunswick in October. From Dec. 29 to June 21, there had been 3,526 reported measles cases in Canada, according to data from Health Canada. Most measles cases have been reported in Ontario, where the highly contagious virus has also claimed the life of a baby who died after being born prematurely and infected through the mother early in June. Immunization is the only way to protect people from contracting measles, Manitoba Health says. A two-dose measles vaccine program for measles, mumps, rubella and varicella (chickenpox) is routinely provided for kids at least one year old and again at age four to six in Manitoba. If a child is exposed to measles, the province said a second dose can be given earlier. Manitoba has expanded eligibility for vaccines to infants as young as six months old living in the Southern Health region and the Interlake-Eastern Regional Health Authority area. The province also extended vaccine eligibility to start at six months for children who were evacuated from their communities because of wildfires and who may be staying in southern Manitoba, where there have been measles outbreaks. A list with detailed information on the locations, times and days where the public might have been exposed to measles is available on the province's website.
Yahoo
01-07-2025
- General
- Yahoo
'It's a disgrace': Community wants huge, abandoned railcars removed from Bay of Fundy
The community of Walton, N.S., is begging the provincial government to remove four huge, heavy, abandoned railcars from the Bay of Fundy. Heidi Petracek explains how the boxcars got there, why they're a safety hazard, and why there's not much time to clean up the industrial mess.
Bloomberg
27-06-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Alberta Posts Larger-Than-Projected Surplus, Braces for Deficit
Alberta posted a larger-than-projected surplus in its most recent fiscal year, providing the oil-rich province with some cushion against an expected trade war-driven shortfall in the current period. Revenue exceeded expenses by about C$8.3 billion ($6.1 billion) in the fiscal year that ended in March, about C$8 billion more than originally projected, the provincial government said Friday. The gain was largely attributable to higher-than-expected resource revenue and corporate income taxes.
CTV News
26-06-2025
- Business
- CTV News
Calgary to break ground on long-awaited Green Line LRT project
After years of discussions and planning, city officials will break ground on Calgary's Green Line LRT project on Thursday. A ground-breaking ceremony will be held at the future Shepard LRT station in the city's southeast, kicking off Phase 1 of the project. This first phase is Calgary's largest-ever infrastructure investment, with $6.248 billion in funding from the City of Calgary and both the provincial and federal governments. However, city officials say they've identified at least $1.3 billion in additional costs the city will have to cover. The southeast segment, from Shepard to the future Grand Central Station, will build the first 10 stations and 16 kilometres of track, before connecting with the future downtown segment. It will also deliver 28 new modern low-floor light rail vehicles. 'I think when Calgarians start seeing the rails in the ground, the power lines going up and the stations starting to get built, we will get the momentum to get the job done,' said David Cooper, a transit expert and mobility consultant. 'It's actually pretty significant that it's actually happening, and I think people need to see that for the project to progress.' The design of the downtown segment is expected to be completed by next year, with construction starting in 2027. The provincial government's preferred alignment for a train through downtown is on an elevated track. Calgary's mayor still questions the impact this will have, saying property values, downtown vibrancy and public safety are still on the line. Despite not always agreeing on the project design and funding arrangements, all three levels of government are expected to be at the ground-breaking ceremony. 'Transit has pretty broad support across the political spectrum,' Cooper said. 'At the end of the day, people want to get people to work, and it doesn't matter what side of the political equation you're on – this has been a project that all three funders have said that they want this project to happen.'
