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Canada's First Nations challenge constitutional legislation
The Canadian First Nations have launched a constitutional challenge against laws recently passed that would expedite approval of infrastructure projects such as mines and oil pipes. They claim the measures violate government obligations towards Indigenous people. According to a Monday notice filed at Ontario Superior Court, the two new laws - one in Ontario and the other federally - "represent a clearly and present danger to Applicant First Nations’ self determination rights" and violate government obligations to reconcile Indigenous peoples. Nine First Nations are involved in the case, and they are spread across Ontario. They include Alderville First Nation and Apitipi Anicinapek Nation. The federal legislation was passed quickly by the Parliament late last month. The government would be able to select infrastructure and resources projects that are in the "national interests" and decide whether certain laws apply. Mark Carney, the Liberal Prime Minister, wants to see this law fulfill his campaign promise of speeding up approvals for what he called nation-building projects such as mines and oil pipes. The Ontario law passed early in June allows the government declare "special economies zones" which exempt certain projects from provincial laws. Both laws are opposed by environmentalists who say they circumvent legislation intended to mitigate ecological harms. Indigenous groups, on the other hand, claim they violate their right to self-determination as well as the duty of consultation owed to them by government. The court document states that the national law allows Canada to "unilaterally push through projects without meaningful engagement" with First Nations. A spokesperson from Canada's Privy Council Office said in an email that Canada was committed to meeting its obligations and commitments to Indigenous peoples. Carney is scheduled to meet with First Nations Inuits and Metis over the next few weeks. The email stated that "Canada's aim is to pursue projects of national importance in partnership with Indigenous Peoples." This initiative is focused on ensuring that Indigenous equity participation in major project development is at the forefront. The Ontario government has said that it will continue its consultations with First Nations this summer. (Reporting and editing by Aurora Ellis, Cynthia Osterman and Anna Mehler Paperny)
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US Senator calls for safety reforms following fatal crash between Army helicopter and regional jet
Ted Cruz, the chair of the U.S. Senate Commerce Committee, said Tuesday that he would propose broad air safety measures after a January collision between an Army helicopter near Reagan Washington National Airport and an American Airlines regional plane killed 67. Cruz, a Republican, said that the legislation would mandate the use of ADS-B by U.S. Army aircraft near civilian planes. It would also require a review of helicopter route across the country, and the Army Inspector General to examine "systemic failures" which may have led to the fatal crash. Both parties of Congress have asked why the Federal Aviation Administration has not acted for years in response to close calls that involved helicopters near Reagan. The National Transportation Safety Board will hold a three-day investigation on the collision in late this month. Cruz stated that "Radar blindspots, telecommunications failures, capacity bottlenecks and radar blindspots expose the vulnerability of a system built for an earlier era." A group of seven Democratic Senators introduced legislation last month that would mandate new FAA safety assessments after fatal passenger airline crashes and require ADS-B. Senators and regulators are concerned about close calls with Army helicopters. Since 2021, the NTSB reported that there have been more than 15,000 close calls near Reagan involving commercial aircraft and helicopters, with a lateral separation of less 1 nautical mile, and a vertical separation of less 400 feet. In early May, the FAA barred the Army's training and priority transport flights near the Pentagon following a close call on May 1, which forced two civilian aircraft to abort their landings. Last month, the FAA announced that it was in negotiations with the Army regarding future military flights around Reagan. Cruz's bill also requires that all aircraft operating in the same airspace as ADSB Out must use ADSB In. The FAA has placed permanent restrictions on helicopters that are not essential around Reagan Airport to reduce mixed helicopter-passenger jet traffic. This includes closing a key route. In April, the FAA announced that it would take action to prevent helicopter and passenger plane collisions near Las Vegas' busy airport.
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Tesla's robotaxi service expands as Alphabet Waymo gains speed
Alphabet’s Waymo roboticaxis have driven over 100 million miles with no human driver, double the mileage in six months. The company is accelerating deployment in U.S. city amid increasing competition. Tesla, a rival company, is expanding its self driving taxi service following a trial last month with a few Model Y SUVs. Waymo's service has been growing slowly for years, despite Elon Musk's statement that Tesla would launch the service in multiple U.S. Cities by 2025. It is currently available in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Phoenix and Austin. Saswat Pantigrahi, Waymo’s chief product office, said: "Achieving 100 million fully automated miles represents years' worth of methodical progress that is now accelerating to rapid, responsible scale-up." As we continue to expand our service, we will face new challenges. Waymo had driven 71 million autonomous kilometers (114.3 millions miles) by March. This is up from 50,000,000 miles at the end 2024, and 25,000,000 miles until July 2024. It completed its first mile in January 2023. D.A. Gil Luria, Davidson analyst. The commercialization of autonomous vehicles is more difficult than expected. High costs, strict regulations, and federal investigations have forced many to close down, including General Motors Cruise. Amazon's Zoox is one of the few remaining competitors. It is testing a vehicle that does not have manual controls, such as a pedal or steering wheel, and is planning to launch its commercial services in Las Vegas in this year. Waymo, the U.S. company that operated driverless taxis for paying passengers before Tesla launched its robotaxi last month was the only one. After collisions, federal agencies have launched investigations into Waymo and Tesla as well as recalling Zoox and other vehicles. Musk, despite multiple traffic problems and driving errors as Tesla teetered into the robotaxi industry after years of broken promises, expanded the service area to Austin and announced last week that it will roll out its services in the San Francisco Bay Area in two months. Waymo announced in March that it plans to launch fully automated ride-hailing services in Washington, D.C., next year. It also applied for a New York permit to operate autonomous cars, with a specialist driving the vehicle in Manhattan. Last month, it said it would start manually driving the vehicles until the permit is granted. Robotaxis, which began as a small Google project for self-driving cars in 2009, and were spun off seven years later, cover over two million miles per wk autonomously. By May, the company had completed 10 million autonomous trips compared to 5 million trips by the end of 2024.
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Farmers criticize US renewable energy transmission project
U.S. Farmers on Tuesday attacked a project which received a loan guarantee of up to $4.9 billion from the former president Joe Biden's Administration to transmit electricity generated by wind and solar farms from the Midwest to urban areas. Grain Belt express transmission project, backed by Invenergy, would send power from Kansas to Midwest and East cities. Invenergy claims that the second-longest line in U.S. History would serve as a "national energy security backbone", connecting four grid areas, including the PJM Interconnection (the largest U.S. Grid), which covers states ranging from Illinois to New Jersey. The project may also help President Donald Trump achieve his "energy dominance" goal of increasing energy output. On May 9, the White House praised Invenergy's $1.7 billion investment in the project as part of a "list" of successes that boost the U.S. economic system and improve national security. Garrett Hawkins of the Missouri Farm Bureau said that the project would violate the rights of farmers because it filed dozens of petitions for eminent-domain, or compulsory acquisitions, against state landowners. Hawkins stated that the "single purpose" of the company was to profit from the farmers and landowners, who will have to house the infrastructure they need for many decades. His comments followed Senator Josh Hawley's post on X, a Missouri Republican. Hawley said that he spoke with Trump and Energy Sec. Chris Wright and that Wright told him "he would be putting a halt to the Grain Belt Express scam." Invenergy sent Wright a letter a day after saying that Hawley, and Missouri Attorney-General Andrew Bailey who had opened an investigation on the project, were declaring a "open season" for America's capability to build necessary energy infrastructure. Invenergy requested that Wright "put aside this unfounded noise and affirm a dedication" to the line. Requests for comments were not immediately responded to by the White House or Department of Energy. The project was in the works for over a decade, and received the conditional guarantee of loan from the Department of Energy’s Loan Program Office last November.
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J.B. Hunt's profit for the second quarter is down on higher costs
J.B. Hunt Transport Services reported Tuesday a decline in earnings for the second quarter, due to increased expenses on wages and equipment. In extended trading, shares of the company fell 3.8%. Since 2022, the trucking industry is in decline, due to excess capacity, declining freight rates and a modest increase in shipment volume. Experts predict that the recession will continue, and that tariffs imposed on U.S. President Donald Trump by Trump's administration will add pressure to the situation. This could delay recovery. J.B. Hunt has reported a 5.6% increase year-over-year in intermodal volume for the quarter reported. Intermodal transport involves goods being transported via two or multiple modes of transportation. This increased its JBI segment revenue to $1.44billion. The lower demand led to a decline in revenue of 3.7% and 10.5% respectively at the segments for integrated capacity solutions and Final Mile Services. According to data compiled and analyzed by LSEG, the Arkansas-based firm reported total operating revenues of $2.93billion for the quarter ending June 30. This compares to analyst estimates of approximately $2.92billion. Its net income fell to $128.6 millions, or 1.31 per share. This compares to $135.9, or 1.32 per share a year earlier. (Reporting and editing by Mohammed Safi Shamsi in Bengaluru, Abhinav Paramar and Utkarsh Setti)
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US Transportation chief details plan to overhaul airtraffic control
Sean Duffy, the U.S. Transportation secretary, will outline the Trump administration's plan to overhaul the aging U.S. Air Traffic Control System on Wednesday after Congress approved an initial $12.5 Billion in funding. Air traffic control problems at the Federal Aviation Administration have been a problem for years. But a series of high-profile incidents, near misses and an air crash that claimed 67 lives in January between an American Airlines regional jet and a U.S. Army chopper has sparked public concern. Duffy, who will testify before the U.S. House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee on Tuesday, said that "our job is to ensure air travel safety, and I have dedicated my tenure in delivering a new air traffic control system." Duffy testifies that the legislation provides USDOT with $12.5 billion as a "downpayment to implement our state of the art design." USDOT has plans to upgrade radar, telecommunications and air traffic control towers as well as other facilities. It also intends to increase the number of air traffic controllers. The bill includes $2billion for the first new air traffic control center built since the 1960s. Donald Trump, the president of the United States at that time, said in April that he wanted to name a firm to oversee this massive project. Raytheon, IBM or other companies like them You can get the contract. The FAA plans to replace 618 radars with new ones, install anti-collision technology on tarmacs at 200 airports, and expand the ADS-B network for real-time information about aircraft traffic. Duffy said that he wanted new funding to be allocated to airport equipment in order to prevent near miss incidents. He also wants to increase the hiring of air traffic controllers and retain them, as there are 3,500 fewer than required. Last month, National Academies of Sciences Report The FAA has increased the overtime costs of air traffic controllers by over 300% since 2013. According to the report, FAA air traffic controllers will log 2.2 million overtime hours in 2024 at a cost of $200 million. The report states that "inefficient scheduling may be partially responsible for widespread overtime use." (Reporting and editing by Edward Tobin; David Shepardson)
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Nine First Nations in Canada challenge the constitutionality of major projects legislation
Nine First Nations are challenging the constitutionality of a recently passed law that aims to accelerate major projects. They claim it violates the constitutional obligations of government to First Nations. According to an application filed at the Ontario Superior Court, the two new laws are "a clear and present threat to the self-determination of the Applicant First Nations" and violates the obligation for the government to reconcile with First Nations. Alderville First Nation was represented by Apitipi Anicinapek Nation. Aroland First Nation included Attawapiskat First Nation. Fort Albany First Nation included Ginoogaming First Nation. The law passed by the federal government last month was a quick one. It allows the government to select projects that are in the "national interests" and decide if certain laws apply. Mark Carney, Liberal Prime Minster, hopes to keep his campaign promise of speeding up approvals for what he refers to as nation-building projects. This could include mines and oil pipes. The Ontario law passed early in June allows the government declare "special economic areas" which exempt certain projects from provincial laws. The two laws have been criticized by environmentalists who claim they ignore legislation intended to reduce ecological harms and Indigenous groups, who assert that they violate their right to self-determination as well as the duty of the government to consult. The court document states that the national law allows Canada to "unilaterally push through projects without meaningful engagement" with First Nations. The Canadian government's spokesperson did not immediately reply to requests for comment on Tuesday. The Premier of Ontario, a spokesperson said that the province will continue to work with First Nations to develop consensus on shared priorities. In an email, they stated that "We have started productive conversations with First Nations communities who share our vision for unlocking economic opportunities and critical infrastructure and will continue consultations through the summer." (Reporting and editing by Aurora Ellis in Toronto, Anna Mehler Paperny)
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Embraer CEO: US tariffs may have pandemic effect on the planemaker.
According to its CEO, the 50% tariff that U.S. president Donald Trump intends to impose starting in August on Brazilian exports could have a similar impact on revenues as the COVID-19 epidemic. The Chief Executive Francisco Gomes Neto said to reporters that tariffs may lead to order cancellations, delayed deliveries, reduced investments, and job cuts. They could also generate an additional cost of $9 million for each airplane exported to the U.S. Embraer is the third largest planemaker in the world after Airbus. The U.S. accounts for 45% of commercial jet exports, and 70% of executive jet exports. Gomes Neto stated that "given the importance of this market, if we continue to implement this (tariff plan), we will see a similar impact as COVID-19, in terms of a decline in revenue for the company." He said that a 50% tariff on commercial jets would be like a trade embargo, particularly for Embraer’s E1 narrow body aircraft, which would make shipments to U.S. carriers "unfeasible." The executive insisted that no orders had been cancelled so far. Embraer shares listed in Sao Paulo, which had been up around 3% in the morning, were volatile after Gomes Neto made his remarks. The gains were erased, and then the stock ticked back up by 1%. (Reporting and writing by Gabriel Araujo, editing by Brad Haynes and Kylie Madry; Andre Romani is the writer; Brad Haynes is the editor)
Heat warnings issued in the East and Midwest of the US
On Monday, tens of millions of Americans were forced to endure record heat in the Northeast and Midwest of the United States. This caused electricity supply disruptions and train travel.
In many parts of the United States, heat warnings began on the weekend and will continue into the coming week. East Coast officials warned of conditions "feeling" like 110 degrees Fahrenheit in many places as heat and humidity combine.
National Weather Service warns that the nighttime temperatures will not provide much relief from the "oppressive" heat, with temperatures forecast to be in the 70s or even 80s at night for East Coast cities.
Amtrak announced in a press release that the cars of its East Coast trains would be operating at lower speeds because of heat restrictions.
Amtrak heat restriction kicks in when temperatures exceed 95F (35C). Amtrak also reduces train speed when the track itself reaches 128F (54C).
Health experts advised employers to modify the working hours of outdoor workers, ensure that they have adequate breaks, hydration opportunities, and monitor for signs such as heatstroke or exhaustion.
Howard Frumkin is an expert on environmental and occupational health at the University of Washington.
The police departments of Raleigh, North Carolina and Washington D.C. are taking measures to protect officers stationed outside. They encourage them to drink water or stay in the shade if possible.
The U.S. electrical network operators told power plants to prepare to run at full force. They expected a spike in electricity demand as people use fans and air conditioners for cooling.
New York City's temperatures are expected to reach 97F (36C) on Tuesday, breaking the previous record set over a century earlier when the mercury reached 96F in June 1888.
Scientists warn that extremes like these are becoming the norm, and also challenge assumptions about regions that may be spared from the worst effects of climate change.
Many people ask, "Where is it safe?" Frumkin stated that the answer to this question is most likely - nowhere. "We didn't think that the upper Midwest would be susceptible to extreme heat."
Last week, Alaska's Arctic state registered its first heat advisory. China's temperatures soared last month.
NEW NORMAL
Extreme heat is the most dangerous of all weather effects linked to climate changes. It's more deadly than hurricanes and floods.
The world experienced its warmest year ever last year. Temperatures are expected to rise for several decades, as emissions that cause climate warming continue to increase.
Este Geraghty is chief medical officer at Esri and director of health solutions. She uses data and mapping to analyze climate risks and determine where help is most needed.
According to a quick analysis conducted by a UK team of scientists, this week's extreme heat in England could lead to hundreds of deaths. This forecast was made after a report from the UK Met Office, which found that extreme heat is now 10 times more likely than it was in previous decades.
Swiss Re Institute's report on insurance risks this month found that extreme heat can have a serious economic impact. It could threaten crop yields and livestock, cause electrical outages, wildfires and disrupt utility services, healthcare and transportation systems.
Nina Arquint is CEO UK & Ireland of Swiss Re Corporate Solutions. She said that the global heat event taking place this week "sounds an alarm for society."
Arquint stated that "these events are more dangerous in terms of the human lives lost than natural disasters, but their true cost has only just begun to be revealed." Reporting by Patrick Wingrove and Katy Daigle, both in New York City; editing by Rosalba o'Brien
(source: Reuters)