The Globe and Mail reports, “The federal Conservative government is attempting to negotiate the transfer of a renowned freshwater research facility (the Experimental Lakes Area or ELA) in Northern Ontario to a Winnipeg-based international institute…” The transfer of the ELA to the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) is being opposed by ELA scientists, the Council of Canadians, and many others. In part, the ELA researches the impacts of climate change on water. The article adds, “(The IISD) gets money from universities and private-sector companies including Suncor, TransCanada Energy, Enbridge and Manitoba Hydro. …The IISD develops policy, Carol Kelly, a retired professor who worked there most of her career, said, ‘and that’s not the same thing as doing unbiased science where the results are just the results.’ …Green Party Leader Elizabeth May was a member of the institute’s board for nine years (and says) she would worry that the institute could get into a situation where, due to financial pressures, it would agree to conduct research for a private interest, like an oil company, and keep the results private.” A Save the ELA Coalition – Council of Canadians media release on this situation will be released in the morning. The news article can be read at http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/ottawa-set-to-transfer-unique-freshwater-research-lab-to-un-group/article5360306/?cmpid=rss1.
