File photo of a storm cloud from the southwestern end of Lake Winnipeg at Matlock, Man. (IanChrisGraham/iStock/Getty Images Plus)

More than half of world’s large lakes drying up, study finds

Gains in Great Lakes, Lake Winnipeg come from runoff, rainfall

London | Reuters — More than half of the world’s large lakes and reservoirs have shrunk since the early 1990s, chiefly because of climate change, intensifying concerns about water for agriculture, hydropower and human consumption, a study published on Thursday found. A team of international researchers reported that some of the world’s most important freshwater […] Read more

(Dave Bedard photo)

Manitoba to axe limits on hog barns

UPDATED, March 20 — Manitoba’s restrictions on hog barn and manure storage construction are set to be shelved by way of an omnibus “red tape reduction” bill. Provincial Finance Minister Cameron Friesen on Thursday introduced Bill 24 for first reading. Among its 15 proposed amendments to various pieces of legislation, the bill would repeal two […] Read more


A few years ago, Inga and I had lunch by the dam. It’s a beautiful site.

Dam it anyway: the up side of dams

Detractors see the negative side effects, but dams can bring the world many benefits

Not long ago I saw a TV short piece with a city dude going on about the wildlife possibilities made possible by letting rivers run wild and flood as they do every so often. The gist of the argument was that all dams are bad and that all rivers should be left to run and […] Read more

(Dave Bedard photo)

Manitoba pledges more law on nutrient loading

More legislation to cut nutrient loading into Lake Winnipeg and other water bodies is among the shorter-term commitments in the Manitoba government’s latest throne speech. In the speech, which Lt.-Gov. Janice Filmon delivered Monday, Premier Greg Selinger pledges to “work with all partners to reduce nutrient loading” in Lake Winnipeg and work to prevent further spread of […] Read more


map of Lake Winnipeg watershed

Water quality: Part 2 of a three-part series

There is a lot of talk about water quality issues, but not 
all of the commonly-cited information is accurate

Note to readers: Before you read this article, I suggest you check back to page 14 of the April 15, 2013 issue of “Grainews.” The headline was “The Truth About Lake Winnipeg.” There will be some overlap with this piece. Water quality There are many aspects to water quality. For irrigation use, salt content is […] Read more