Tuesday, March 5, 2024

News roundup, 5 March 2024

- The anticipated winter storm had relatively little effect in Winnipeg, but 200km to the west, in Brandon, it was a different story, with 29cm of snow. Sucks if you live there, but probably a good thing for the province as a whole given the drought conditions we've been dealing with lately.

- While earthworms are generally a boon to agricultural soil, they are problematic in ecosystems that developed in their absence - such as the forests of northeastern North America. They consume the leaf litter that provides habitat for a lot of arthropods as well as for many plants. To make matters worse, the loss of understory plants often drives deer to consume more seedlings, reducing the prospect of the forest regenerating as it did in the past.

- Climate change doesn't seem to be as big an issue in the US as it ought to be. While polling does show many eligible voters consider climate change to be a top issue, among people who have an actual history of voting it's not so high on their priorities. 

- Donald Trump is saying that a president could be vulnerable to blackmail unless they're immune to prosecution from anything they might have done while in office.

- Winnipeg Transit is planning to replace their current electronic fare system. This may make it possible to pay your fare with a credit or debit card; apparently in other cities this has been possible for quite some time.

- A van used by Winnipeg nonprofit Street Connections to deliver harm reduction services to vulnerable persons was stolen over the weekend.

- A hardware store that has been a fixture of Winnipeg's Corydon Village neighbourhood for decades is closing after a long decline. Big box stores were a part of the problem, but the final nail in the coffin was the pandemic and the resulting surge in online shopping.

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