My father died on Wednesday. We’ve been trying to make the usual arrangements during a very unusual time and have finally realized we’ll simply have to wait and see how we weather this storm before announcing visitation and funeral plans. I had decided not to publish next week even beforeRead More

If you haven’t read Joan Baxter’s two-parter (Part II is here) on EverWind, the US-based company planning to turn Nova Scotia into a regional green hydrogen hub, you really must. Brief commercial break: the Halifax Examiner, like the Cape Breton Spectator, is reader supported and you can purchase a jointRead...

I am an easily distracted human being who almost didn’t get beyond the second page of CBRM’s 2022 active transportation (AT) plan because it contained this quote:   I can’t remember whether I discovered the British writer and critic Leigh Hunt the summer I was obsessed with Victorian poetry (blameRead...

Coal Face “There’s no stone left unturned when it comes to safety with this company”—CBRM District 8 Councilor James Edwards on Kameron Collieries’ decision to reopen the Donkin Mine, CTV Atlantic News, 14 September 2022 The unfortunate reference to stones—the man is, after all, talking about a coal mine proneRead More

CBRM Council’s regular meeting began last night with the usual mishmash of proclamations that left us with a “Maritime Kids Health Day” (September 14), a “Medic Monday” (September 26),  a “Cape Breton Classic Cruisers Fall Classic Show & Shine Weekend” (September 16-18), a Fire Prevention Week (October 9-15) and anRead More

There was—even cynical old me has to admit it—good news on the CBRM Central Library file during last night’s CBRM council meeting. In a memo to Council and staff, Mayor Amanda McDougall explained that the old Cape Breton County Courthouse in Sydney’s Wentworth Park (otherwise known as 70 Crescent Street)Read More

Dear Spectators, Due to the fact that I am the Spectator‘s chief producer of copy, anything that disrupts my schedule disrupts the publication schedule. This past week, I’ve been dealing with family matters and regular life—including my day job—has been kind of put on hold,  which is why there willRead More

I could barely listen to consultant Aileen Murray as she shared her Economic Development Strategy with CBRM council on Tuesday because I’d read the presentation as I drank my morning coffee and spent the next few hours in a slough of despond over having chosen the wrong career. Why didRead More

There have been big developments on the green hydrogen file since last we spoke—and by big developments, I don’t mean actual, physical, developments.  I mean big plans (and incentives) announced by big, important people. I’ve dealt with the Nova Scotian aspect of these developments in a separate article, but IRead More

Yesterday, in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canadian PM Justin Trudeau and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz signed what was initially billed as an “historic accord” but quickly downgraded to a “non-binding agreement” to encourage the production of green hydrogen in Eastern Canada for shipment to Germany, starting in 2025. Per the GlobeRead More