🗞️ Road salt is harming Halifax's lakes

Good morning!

And goodbye, for a little while. Today is my last day on the job before an extended medical leave. During more than 30 years of working at The Coast, I've had short breaks. A couple times I've gone on vacation for a whole week without contacting the team back in Halifax! But this leave is going to be long for me—a couple months at least, even if the healing goes well.

Getting to this point happened shockingly quickly. On a walk in Point Pleasant Park, I noticed things looked kind of blurry out of one eye. I called my optometrist's office for reassurance it was nothing; less than 24 hours later I was in the hospital at the QEII’s Eye Care Centre, getting ready for emergency surgery to fix a detached retina.

I've heard there are only about 60 people across the country who can do this operation—a mind-blowing bit of microsurgery that involves putting a light, a fluid injector and a laser into the eyeball at the same time to patch up the retina—and luckily some of them work in Halifax. It was Dr. Rishi Gupta who repaired my eye, and not only does he have the awe-inspiring surgical skills, but he's got the sort of outstanding bedside manner that would lead him to make a helpful video clearly explaining the whole situation for patients who are, in my experience, totally freaking out and desperate for information. (If you'd like to know a whole lot more about this 1-in-10,000 issue, head to Dr. Gupta's site and scroll down to “Retinal Detachment.”)

So I’m stepping away to focus on a low-stress, low-impact recovery, aiming to be among the 85% of patients whose eyes are fixed with just one surgery. But The Coast will smoothly carry on in the hands of our wonderful and capable team. You shouldn’t notice I’m gone, and I hope to see you again in June.

– Kyle

🌡️ Traffic & Weather

Today: 🌧️ 5°

Tomorrow: 🌧️ 3°

Next Day: 🌨️ 3°

7-day forecast

🚗 Driving, biking or busing today? Check out the current traffic conditions and ongoing road closures.

EDUCATION

This King’s class was discussing perspectives on genocide—and then Oct. 7 happened

“I’m trying to choose my words cautiously,” says Dorota Glowacka, a professor at the University of King’s College. She’s discussing the exceptional—and emotionally-laden—moments many university campuses have experienced in the immediate and prolonged aftermath of Hamas’ violent attack against Israelis on Oct. 7, 2023, as well as the ensuing—and deadly— military campaign Israel has embarked on in Gaza, killing an estimated 33,000 Palestinians.

A Holocaust scholar, Glowacka has taught a course on comparative perspectives around genocide for 10 years. The course is designed around two key questions: Which atrocities should be considered as genocides and why, and does the term’s origin—coined during the Second World War—limit its applicability?

Glowacka is choosing her words carefully to describe how the atmosphere in her class has shifted since last October, as large-scale demonstrations—including in Halifax—have called for a ceasefire in Gaza, and as South Africa has brought a genocide case against Israel to the International Court of Justice.

“In a class on comparative perspectives on genocide,” Glowacka says, “we could not pretend that this was not happening.”

Not that addressing it was easy: Glowacka’s students—Jewish, Muslim and otherwise—each came with their own worries, their own concerns. And there were very few venues for safe and open dialogue—something that, “in this void of opportunities,” Glowacka knew she wanted to encourage.

In turn, as The Coast’s Lauren Phillips reports, it has offered Glowacka’s students—and herself—something entirely new.

🤔 Need To Know

🏥 A second water-main break at the Halifax Infirmary complex prompted outpatient blood collection to shut down for another day and non-emergency visits to be re-routed to other hospitals.

🔎 The province has upped the reward to $250K for anyone who can help locate Halifax teen Devon Marsman, who was last seen in Spryfield in March 2022.

SPONSORED BY EVENKO

Legendary rapper Snoop Dogg announces CALI TO CANADA TOUR!

Multi-platinum-selling rapper Snoop Dogg will kick off his tour at the Scotiabank Centre in Halifax on Monday, June 3.

He will be joined by fellow G-funk pioneers Warren G and DJ Quik, along with New York DJ and producer DJ Green Lantern.

Tickets are on sale NOW so hurry up before it's too late!

ENVIRONMENT

Road salt lowers the risk of deadly collisions—but it’s also killing Halifax’s lakes. What’s the answer?

As Halifax heaves a final sigh of winter this weekend—with up to 20 centimetres of wet and heavy snow—the municipality’s contracted road and sidewalk crews will, almost assuredly, be waiting for one last call to spring into action with salt trucks at the ready.

It’s been a busy winter for them: Halifax endured historic snowstorms in January and February, turning boulevards into six-foot snow banks and streets into slippery messes. That has come at a cost—and not just to your back for all the shovelling. A growing body of research suggests that HRM’s most-used de-icing tool—road salt—is harming life in our watershed.

And, as The Coast’s Martin Bauman reports, the degree to which road salt is affecting our lakes’ health is reaching levels we haven’t seen before.

🗞️ In Other News

🚨 Halifax police have charged a 56-year-old man with attempted murder after a woman was taken to the hospital following a Wednesday incident on South Park Street.

💸 The federal government says it’s allocating $1.5B to preserving affordable rental housing—in part by offering loans to non-profits to buy rental buildings.

🏫 Canada’s immigration minister told reporters in Halifax that Ottawa won’t rule out further caps on international students amid a housing shortage.

🎵The Halifax Jazz Festival announced Grammy-winning rapper Killer Mike and Canadian R&B singer-songwriter Charlotte Day Wilson as the newest 2024 headliners. Catch up on the full festival lineup—and every other big show coming to Halifax—here.

🤝 The CN Autoport strike has officially ended, as workers voted to ratify an agreement with their employer after 37 days on the picket line.

SPONSORED BY NORTH END BUSINESS ASSOCIATION

Discover Local Art in North End Halifax

In North End Halifax, vibrant banners hang above Agricola and North Park Streets, each a canvas of community pride. Crafted by local artists, they depict tales of heritage, unity, and resilience.

Discover the Community Art Banners, and the artists behind them, with a self-guided public art tour through North End Halifax!

🗓️ Things To Do

Looking for something to do this weekend? Check out these Coast picks:

🗓 Bruce Guthro’s Songwriters Circle: Take in an “evening of intimate performances and storytelling” at the Bruce Guthro Theatre, with guest sets from Dave Gunning, Irish Mythen and David Myles. | Apr. 5-6 | 8pm | From $76.47

🗓 Halifax Vintage Paper Show: Head to the Halifax Forum tomorrow and browse comics, collectible cards, antique books and vintage posters in this all-day trade fair. | Apr. 6 | 10am-4pm | $5

🗓 David Jalbert and Charles Richard-Hamelin: See two celebrated Canadian pianists perform Mozart, Rachmaninov and Schubert, among other classics, at The Stage at St. Andrew’s tomorrow night. | Apr. 6 | 7:30pm | From $12.50

Find more Halifax events in The Coast listings.

⚓️ What’s In The Harbour

➡️ The NYK Meteor container ship departs Halifax for Port Everglades, FL, at 5am.

🚢 The 161-metre-long Eagle II container ship is expected to arrive from Mariel, Cuba, around 7:45am.

➡️ The MSC Sao Paulo V container ship leaves Halifax for Naples, Italy, around 8am.

🚢 The MSC Cornelia container ship is set to arrive a day behind schedule from Montreal. It’s inbound around 11:15am.

➡️ The 25,725-tonne Grande Marocco vehicle carrier leaves Halifax for Davisville, RI, around noon.

➡️ The Morning Peace vehicle carrier departs Halifax for New York City at 1pm.

➡️ The 140-metre-long Vivienne Sheri D container ship leaves Halifax for Argentia, NL, around 5pm.

➡️ The Oceanex Sanderling ro-ro/cargo ship leaves Halifax for St. John’s, NL, at 6pm.

➡️ The 2,700-tonne Silver Arctic general cargo ship leaves Halifax for St. Pierre and Miquelon at 6pm.

🚢 The Acadian oil tanker is slated to arrive from Saint John, NB, around 6:10pm.

That’s it!

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