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Northern Authorities Act to Stop Northern Farmers Lighting Fires to Clear Land

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Researchers say the burning of forest land to grow lucrative corn crops is to blame for the northern haze problem.

CHIANG MAI – By the end of the year, Chiang Rai and other northern provinces of Thailand will be put on high alert for summer haze.

The conditions from February to April are dry, increasing the risk of wildfires. But it’s also the period when farmers light fires to clear their land for crop cultivation — flames which could spread into forest areas, sending up haze and acting as a huge source of carbon emission.

As those familiar with wildfires, the villagers of Baan Omlong in Chiang Mai’s Samoeng district are now planning and preparing to prevent the problem.

“We have experienced damage by fire for many years. It became stronger each year, engulfed the forest and our temple.

The forest couldn’t grow and we faced a water shortage problem because the ground was very dry,” said Phraveerayuth Aphiviro, a monk at Phra That Doi Pha Som located on a mountain near the village.

Along with natural causes, fire is exacerbated by human activities including burning land for clearance or burning forests to expand farmland into reserved areas.

Some locals believe that burning the forest will allow mushrooms and wild plants to sprout. Hunters also burn the forest to chase out animals from the woods. The temple at the top of the mountain is often surrounded by haze in the summer which affects the monks who are suffocated by the smoke.

While fire has caused much damage to Baan Omlong over the years, the last three years have seen no flames — thanks to the initiative of the monks and the community.

“In 2007, we began to study other villages who managed to control the fires. We brought back the know-how to adopt in our village,” said Phraveerayuth Aphiviro. “The key is to give local people a sense of ownership of the forest.”

Phraveerayuth Aphiviro and some members of the community erected a check-dam along water resources to preserve moisture in the ground. They planted forest trees, made firebreaks and set up a fire-watch team that took turns to monitor the forest during the summer.

Few people initially saw the benefits of those actions. But after five years, the forest recovered while the severity of wildfires was reduced. Mushrooms and wild plants grew well, creating more income for the community, encouraging them to change their habits and collaborate in fire prevention operations.

More than 30 households now take care of 10,000 rai of forest and community land.

“When they see the results, they surrender to the evidence,” said Phraveerayuth Aphiviro. “But that took many years. Extinguishing the flames alone does not work. Fires will keep igniting in new spots. We must make locals see the value of the forest and want to protect it as their own treasure.”

Baan Omlong is likely to prevent fires this coming summer. But flames in some other areas have yet to be permanently extinguished.

FEW DAYS OF BLUE

Measures to limit and prevent haze in the next dry season start as early as the new fiscal year, which begins in October.

The administration in Chiang Mai, one of the most haze-affected provinces, began preparations by involving multiple sectors to strengthen local monitoring and warning systems in the wild and farmlands.

The government has launched the “must-watch 60 days”, from Feb 20 to April 20, 2018 — the period when fires are most likely to occur.

With evidence showing that wildfires in the North are mainly the result of human agency rather than natural causes, working with communities to stop burning to clear farmland is one of the key measures.

Charging the culprits is another solution. Around 80 people were arrested for causing fires so far this year.

Satellite images revealed 5,418 hotspots this year, down from 10,133 in 2016. The forecast for 2018 is 4,448 hotspots.

The most recent extreme haze in the North was in 2014 when Southeast Asia was swept by drought as a result of a particularly long period of El Nino.

Nine northern provinces — Chiang Rai, Chiang Mai, Lampang, Lamphun, Mae Hong Son, Nan, Phrae, Phayao and Tak — were the most affected by the haze. It was a summer with few days of blue sky — particulate matter less than 10 micrometres (PM10) was detected for 47 days between January and April. Many flights were delayed.

Residents of tourist cities such as Chiang Mai had to wear masks outdoors because the air pollution was well over the safe limit.

Some 49,939 rai of forest nationwide was damaged by fire that summer, more than half in the North. Almost 9,040 hotspots were discovered in the region — almost half in the agricultural area — according to the Forest Protection and Fire Control Office.

“With our capacity and available mechanism, [2018] should see more limited spread of fire. But we also need to determine if climate changes such as a longer dry period would have an impact,” Natural Resources and Environment Minister Surasak Karnjanarat told reporters after meeting with authorities in Lampang in early December.

“We like to blame neighbouring countries for contributing to the haze. But in fact, our haze also crosses their borders too. Collaboration among Asean nations is essential.”

The collaboration is driven by the Asean Agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution, which came into force in 2003 after Indonesia’s haze crisis. The agreement targets to end transboundary haze by 2020.

Atthaphon Charoenchansa, deputy director of the Royal Forest Department, said Thai ministers and officials had held talks with their counterparts in Myanmar and Laos to prepare for fires in the coming dry season.

The collaboration includes sharing of resources to extinguish fires as soon as they start while encouraging neighbouring countries to manage and limit the burning of agricultural land.

HAZE HITS CHINA

Transboundary haze in Southeast Asia is not only a matter for the immediate region.

According to recent studies by a Chinese research team led by Cao Junji, director of the Beijing-based Institute of Earth Environment China Academy of Sciences, haze from northern Thailand, Laos and Myanmar can reach as far as southwestern China.

Using emissions data from April 18-21, 2014 — the period that recorded high emissions of haze — and aerosol and climate modelling, Prof Cao’s team found that black carbon from burning, particularly in the upper Mekong region, could reach as far as Guangdong, Guangxi, Yunnan, Sichuan, east Tibet and part of China’s east coast.

Haze in the upper Mekong also reduced temperatures by over one degree in affected areas.

 

Black carbon is a component of fine particulate matter formed through the incomplete combustion of fossil fuels, biofuels and biomass. It is very harmful to humans and is linked to outdoor air pollution that causes some three million deaths a year, according to the World Health Organization.

“The purpose of our project is to know the impact of carbon emitted from Southeast Asia, especially from northern Thailand, so we can use the results as the tracer for other pollutants,” said Prof Cao.

“Black carbon is closely linked to climate change and air pollution. This project will not only enable us to help resolve climate issues but will also give us more information on pollution.”

Prof Cao’s research is one of nine projects co-funded by the Thailand Research Fund and the National Natural Science Foundation of China.

Next year will see the results of longer periods of monitoring black carbon from burning in northern Thailand and other countries, which will lead to a breakdown of emissions produced by sources and nations.

During the fifth China-Thailand Joint Conference on Climate Change in Chiang Mai in November, Prof Cao presented his research on black carbon in collaboration with Siwatt Pongpiachan, director of the NIDA Center for Research & Development of Disaster Prevention and Management.

Prof Siwatt and his team have collected sediment samples from three lakes in various parts of Thailand, while Prof Cao’s team collected samples from three lakes in southwest China. Both teams also collected data on fine particulates in aerosol observations in both countries.

They will piece together data to discover the radiative effects of carbonaceous aerosols emitted from biomass burning in middle- and low-latitude regions in Asia and its influence on monsoon precipitation.

The results of this research will help to forecast trends in biomass burning, its emissions and the direct and indirect effects on climate over the next 30 years.

The research will contribute suggestions or reports to relevant agencies in Thailand to change the practice of burning because its impact on human health and the environment crosses borders and affects many nations, Prof Cao said.

By Paritta Wangkiat
Bangkok Post

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Trudeau’s Gun Grab Could Cost Taxpayers a Whopping $7 Billion

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Trudeau's Gun Grab
Trudeau plans to purchase 2,063 firearm from legal gun owners in Canada - Rebel News Image

A recent report indicates that since Trudeau’s announcement of his gun buyback program four years ago, almost none of the banned firearms have been surrendered.

The federal government plans to purchase 2,063 firearm models from retailers following the enactment of Bill C-21, which amends various Acts and introduces certain consequential changes related to firearms. It was granted royal assent on December 15 of last year.

This ban immediately criminalized the actions of federally-licensed firearms owners regarding the purchase, sale, transportation, importation, exportation, or use of hundreds of thousands of rifles and shotguns that were previously legal.

The gun ban focused on what it termed ‘assault-style weapons,’ which are, in reality, traditional semi-automatic rifles and shotguns that have enjoyed popularity among hunters and sport shooters for over a century.

In May 2020, the federal government enacted an Order-in-Council that prohibited 1,500 types of “assault-style” firearms and outlined specific components of the newly banned firearms. Property owners must adhere to the law by October 2023.

Trudeau’s Buyback Hasn’t Happened

“In the announcement regarding the ban, the prime minister stated that the government would seize the prohibited firearms, assuring that their lawful owners would be ‘grandfathered’ or compensated fairly.” “That hasn’t happened,” criminologist Gary Mauser told Rebel News.

Mauser projected expenses ranging from $2.6 billion to $6.7 billion. The figure reflects the compensation costs amounting to $756 million, as outlined by the Parliamentary Budget Office (PBO).

“The projected expenses for gathering the illegal firearms are estimated to range from $1.6 billion to $7 billion.” “This range estimate increases to between $2.647 billion and $7 billion when compensation costs to owners are factored in,” Mauser stated.

Figures requested by Conservative MP Shannon Stubbs concerning firearms prohibited due to the May 1, 2020 Order In Council reveal that $72 million has been allocated to the firearm “buyback” program, yet not a single firearm has been confiscated to date.

In a recent revelation, Public Safety Canada disclosed that the federal government allocated a staggering $41,094,556, as prompted by an order paper question from Conservative Senator Don Plett last September, yet yielded no tangible outcomes.

An internal memo from late 2019 revealed that the Liberals projected their politically motivated harassment would incur a cost of $1.8 billion.

Enforcement efforts Questioned

By December 2023, estimates from TheGunBlog.ca indicate that the Liberals and RCMP had incurred or were responsible for approximately $30 million in personnel expenses related to the enforcement efforts. The union representing the police service previously stated that the effort to confiscate firearms is a “misdirected effort” aimed at ensuring public safety.

“This action diverts crucial personnel, resources, and funding from tackling the more pressing and escalating issue of criminal use of illegal firearms,” stated the National Police Federation (NPF).

The Canadian Sporting Arms & Ammunition Association (CSAAA), representing firearms retailers, has stated it will have “zero involvement” in the confiscation of these firearms. Even Canada Post held back from providing assistance due to safety concerns.

The consultant previously assessed that retailers are sitting on almost $1 billion worth of inventory that cannot be sold or returned to suppliers because of the Order-In-Council.

“Despite the ongoing confusion surrounding the ban, after four years, we ought to be able to address one crucial question.” Has the prohibition enhanced safety for Canadians? Mauser asks.

Illegally Obtained Firearms are the Problem

Statistics Canada reports a 10% increase in firearm-related violent crime between 2020 and 2022, rising from 12,614 incidents to 13,937 incidents. In that timeframe, the incidence of firearm-related violent crime increased from 33.7 incidents per 100,000 population in 2021 to 36.7 incidents the subsequent year.

“This marks the highest rate documented since the collection of comparable data began in 2009,” the criminologist explains.

Supplementary DataData indicates that firearm homicides have risen since 2020. “The issue lies not with lawfully-held firearms,” Mauser stated.

Firearms that have been banned under the Order-in-Council continue to be securely stored in the safes of their lawful owners. The individuals underwent a thorough vetting process by the RCMP and are subject to nightly monitoring to ensure there are no infractions that could pose a risk to public safety.

“The firearms involved in homicides were seldom legally owned weapons wielded by their rightful owners,” Mauser continues. The number of offenses linked to organized crime has surged from 4,810 in 2016 to a staggering 13,056 in 2020.

“If those in power … aim to diminish crime and enhance public safety, they ought to implement strategies that effectively focus on offenders and utilize our limited tax resources judiciously to reach these objectives,” he stated.

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Google’s Search Dominance Is Unwinding, But Still Accounting 48% Search Revenue

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Google

Google is so closely associated with its key product that its name is a verb that signifies “search.” However, Google’s dominance in that sector is dwindling.

According to eMarketer, Google will lose control of the US search industry for the first time in decades next year.

Google will remain the dominant search player, accounting for 48% of American search advertising revenue. And, remarkably, Google is still increasing its sales in the field, despite being the dominating player in search since the early days of the George W. Bush administration. However, Amazon is growing at a quicker rate.

google

Google’s Search Dominance Is Unwinding

Amazon will hold over a quarter of US search ad dollars next year, rising to 27% by 2026, while Google will fall even more, according to eMarketer.

The Wall Street Journal was first to report on the forecast.

Lest you think you’ll have to switch to Bing or Yahoo, this isn’t the end of Google or anything really near.

Google is the fourth-most valued public firm in the world. Its market worth is $2.1 trillion, trailing just Apple, Microsoft, and the AI chip darling Nvidia. It also maintains its dominance in other industries, such as display advertisements, where it dominates alongside Facebook’s parent firm Meta, and video ads on YouTube.

To put those “other” firms in context, each is worth more than Delta Air Lines’ total market value. So, yeah, Google is not going anywhere.

Nonetheless, Google faces numerous dangers to its operations, particularly from antitrust regulators.

On Monday, a federal judge in San Francisco ruled that Google must open up its Google Play Store to competitors, dealing a significant blow to the firm in its long-running battle with Fortnite creator Epic Games. Google announced that it would appeal the verdict.

In August, a federal judge ruled that Google has an illegal monopoly on search. That verdict could lead to the dissolution of the company’s search operation. Another antitrust lawsuit filed last month accuses Google of abusing its dominance in the online advertising business.

Meanwhile, European regulators have compelled Google to follow tough new standards, which have resulted in multiple $1 billion-plus fines.

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Pixa Bay

Google’s Search Dominance Is Unwinding

On top of that, the marketplace is becoming more difficult on its own.

TikTok, the fastest-growing social network, is expanding into the search market. And Amazon has accomplished something few other digital titans have done to date: it has established a habit.

When you want to buy anything, you usually go to Amazon, not Google. Amazon then buys adverts to push companies’ products to the top of your search results, increasing sales and earning Amazon a greater portion of the revenue. According to eMarketer, it is expected to generate $27.8 billion in search revenue in the United States next year, trailing only Google’s $62.9 billion total.

And then there’s AI, the technology that (supposedly) will change everything.

Why search in stilted language for “kendall jenner why bad bunny breakup” or “police moving violation driver rights no stop sign” when you can just ask OpenAI’s ChatGPT, “What’s going on with Kendall Jenner and Bad Bunny?” in “I need help fighting a moving violation involving a stop sign that wasn’t visible.” Google is working on exactly this technology with its Gemini product, but its success is far from guaranteed, especially with Apple collaborating with OpenAI and other businesses rapidly joining the market.

A Google spokeswoman referred to a blog post from last week in which the company unveiled ads in its AI overviews (the AI-generated text that appears at the top of search results). It’s Google’s way of expressing its ability to profit on a changing marketplace while retaining its business, even as its consumers steadily transition to ask-and-answer AI and away from search.

google

Google has long used a single catchphrase to defend itself against opponents who claim it is a monopoly abusing its power: competition is only a click away. Until recently, that seemed comically obtuse. Really? We are going to switch to Bing? Or Duck Duck Go? Give me a break.

But today, it feels more like reality.

Google is in no danger of disappearing. However, every highly dominating company faces some type of reckoning over time. GE, a Dow mainstay for more than a century, was broken up last year and is now a shell of its previous dominance. Sears declared bankruptcy in 2022 and is virtually out of business. US Steel, long the foundation of American manufacturing, is attempting to sell itself to a Japanese corporation.

Could we remember Google in the same way that we remember Yahoo or Ask Jeeves in decades? These next few years could be significant.

SOURCE | CNN

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The Supreme Court Turns Down Biden’s Government Appeal in a Texas Emergency Abortion Matter.

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(VOR News) – A ruling that prohibits emergency abortions that contravene the Supreme Court law in the state of Texas, which has one of the most stringent abortion restrictions in the country, has been upheld by the Supreme Court of the United States. The United States Supreme Court upheld this decision.

The justices did not provide any specifics regarding the underlying reasons for their decision to uphold an order from a lower court that declared hospitals cannot be legally obligated to administer abortions if doing so would violate the law in the state of Texas.

Institutions are not required to perform abortions, as stipulated in the decree. The common populace did not investigate any opposing viewpoints. The decision was made just weeks before a presidential election that brought abortion to the forefront of the political agenda.

This decision follows the 2022 Supreme Court ruling that ended abortion nationwide.

In response to a request from the administration of Vice President Joe Biden to overturn the lower court’s decision, the justices expressed their disapproval.

The government contends that hospitals are obligated to perform abortions in compliance with federal legislation when the health or life of an expectant patient is in an exceedingly precarious condition.

This is the case in regions where the procedure is prohibited. The difficulty hospitals in Texas and other states are experiencing in determining whether or not routine care could be in violation of stringent state laws that prohibit abortion has resulted in an increase in the number of complaints concerning pregnant women who are experiencing medical distress being turned away from emergency rooms.

The administration cited the Supreme Court’s ruling in a case that bore a striking resemblance to the one that was presented to it in Idaho at the beginning of the year. The justices took a limited decision in that case to allow the continuation of emergency abortions without interruption while a lawsuit was still being heard.

In contrast, Texas has been a vocal proponent of the injunction’s continued enforcement. Texas has argued that its circumstances are distinct from those of Idaho, as the state does have an exemption for situations that pose a significant hazard to the health of an expectant patient.

According to the state, the discrepancy is the result of this exemption. The state of Idaho had a provision that safeguarded a woman’s life when the issue was first broached; however, it did not include protection for her health.

Certified medical practitioners are not obligated to wait until a woman’s life is in imminent peril before they are legally permitted to perform an abortion, as determined by the state supreme court.

The state of Texas highlighted this to the Supreme Court.

Nevertheless, medical professionals have criticized the Texas statute as being perilously ambiguous, and a medical board has declined to provide a list of all the disorders that are eligible for an exception. Furthermore, the statute has been criticized for its hazardous ambiguity.

For an extended period, termination of pregnancies has been a standard procedure in medical treatment for individuals who have been experiencing significant issues. It is implemented in this manner to prevent catastrophic outcomes, such as sepsis, organ failure, and other severe scenarios.

Nevertheless, medical professionals and hospitals in Texas and other states with strict abortion laws have noted that it is uncertain whether or not these terminations could be in violation of abortion prohibitions that include the possibility of a prison sentence. This is the case in regions where abortion prohibitions are exceedingly restrictive.

Following the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, which resulted in restrictions on the rights of women to have abortions in several Republican-ruled states, the Texas case was revisited in 2022.

As per the orders that were disclosed by the administration of Vice President Joe Biden, hospitals are still required to provide abortions in cases that are classified as dire emergency.

As stipulated in a piece of health care legislation, the majority of hospitals are obligated to provide medical assistance to patients who are experiencing medical distress. This is in accordance with the law.

The state of Texas maintained that hospitals should not be obligated to provide abortions throughout the litigation, as doing so would violate the state’s constitutional prohibition on abortions. In its January judgment, the 5th United States Circuit Court of Appeals concurred with the state and acknowledged that the administration had exceeded its authority.

SOURCE: AP

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