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France’s parliament considers a ban on single-use e-cigarettes

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:45:39 GMT

PARIS (AP) — The French parliament is considering a ban on single-use, disposable electronic cigarettes that are popular with teenagers for their sweet flavors and are under scrutiny as a new source of trash.The ban, supported Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne and Health Minister Aurelien Rousseau, aims to protect the health of youths and mitigate the environmental impacts of the increasingly popular disposable products known as “puffs.”The National Assembly was expected to vote on the measure Monday night. If passed, it would then move to the Senate and could go into effect by September 2024.Disposable e-cigarettes are small, battery-powered devices that deliver vaporized nicotine with various flavorings. While they do not contain tobacco, many include nicotine, a substance known for its addictive and toxic properties.They differ from reusable vaping devices in that they are not designed to be refilled or recharged. Their small, non-rechargeable lithium batteries often end up in landf...

‘Atmospheric river’ set to hit Metro Vancouver, southern coast of British Columbia

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:45:39 GMT

VANCOUVER — Much of British Columbia’s south coast is bracing for stormy weather as Environment Canada says a “potent and impactful” storm will bring heavy rain to Metro Vancouver.Environment Canada is also warning drivers on the Sea to Sky Highway from Squamish to Whistler to exercise caution due to heavy rains raising the risk of flooding and landslides along the route.The rainfall warning says an atmospheric river is set to make landfall on the province’s southern coast today, bringing as much as 150 millimetres of rain to Western Vancouver Island.Meanwhile, Inland Vancouver Island, the Howe Sound region and parts of Metro Vancouver, including the North Shore, Coquitlam and Maple Ridge, are expecting up to 100 millimetres of rain from the storm.The forecast says the rest of Metro Vancouver could get up to 70 millimetres of rain today before the storm eases on Tuesday morning.Environment Canada also says motorists on the Coquihalla Highway from Hope to Merr...

Global journalist group says Israel-Hamas conflict is a war beyond compare for media deaths

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:45:39 GMT

BRUSSELS (AP) — With a journalist or media worker killed every day on average in the Israel-Hamas war, the head of the global organization representing the profession said Monday that it has become a conflict beyond compare.About 60 have been killed since the Oct. 7 start of the war, already close to the same number of journalists killed during the entire Vietnam War half a century ago. Other brutal wars in the Middle East have not come close to the intensity of the current one.“In a war, you know, a classical war, I can say that in Syria, in Iraq, in ex-Yugoslavia, we didn’t see this kind of massacre,” Anthony Bellanger, the general secretary of the International Federation of Journalists, told The Associated Press.And since the end of the weeklong cease-fire in Gaza on Friday, the misery has continued, he said: “Unfortunately, we received the bad news this weekend — after the end of this cease-fire — and at least three or four were killed.”Bellanger said they are mourning ar...

Unity Acquisitions snaps up much of toy store Mastermind, 18 stores to close

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:45:39 GMT

TORONTO — Mastermind GP Inc. says it has reached a deal to sell the bulk of its business to Unity Acquisitions Inc.Financial terms of the asset purchase agreement signed by the Toronto toy retailer and Unity owners Joe Mimran, Frank Rocchetti and David Lui were not disclosed.The deal includes the majority of Mastermind Toys store locations and will allow a “significant” portion of employees to continue with the business.The announcement comes as Mastermind has begun telling customers 18 of its stores are due to close as the company continues with the creditor protection process.The stores closing include nine locations in Ontario, four in Alberta, two in New Brunswick and one each in B.C., Nova Scotia and Manitoba.An Ontario court granted Mastermind permission to liquidate the stores last week, saying the sales must be wrapped up by Feb. 29.This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 4, 2023.The Canadian Press

Canada proposes new methane emissions rules for oil-and-gas sector

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:45:39 GMT

OTTAWA — Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault says the controlled release or burning of methane from oil and gas production sites will be almost entirely barred by 2030. Guilbeault is in Dubai for the annual global climate talks, which this year are known as COP28. He is publishing draft regulations today that aim to cut at least 75 per cent of methane emissions from the oil-and-gas sector by 2030, compared to what was emitted in 2012.A federal review found in 2021 that Canada was on track to hit its current regulatory target of cutting methane output from oil and gas by 40 to 45 per cent by 2025, but more recent reports suggest methane leaks and releases are not well-documented.Methane doesn’t stay in the atmosphere as long as carbon dioxide, but it is better at trapping heat, so cutting methane emissions is considered one of the most effective ways of reducing global warming.Methane contributed just under 14 per cent of Canada’s total emissions in 2021, and the oil-a...

The trial of 4 Egyptian security officials in the slaying of an Italian student is set for February

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:45:39 GMT

ROME (AP) — Court officials in Rome set a new trial date Monday for four high-level Egyptian security officials in the 2016 abduction, torture and slaying of an Italian doctoral student in Cairo.Lawyers and the parents of Giulio Regeni, whose mutilated body was found along a highway in Egypt, said the trial on charges of abduction, torture and murder would begin at a Rome courthouse on Feb. 20.The development followed a September ruling by Italy’s Constitutional Court that the defendants could be put on trial even though they they hadn’t received formal notification because Egyptian authorities declined to provide addresses for them. Regeni’s parents have spent years seek justice in their 28-year-old son’s slaying. “It’s a beautiful day,” Regeni’s mother, Paola Deffendi, told reporters after emerging from the courthouse after the trial date was set.Still, “the pain remains,″ Claudio Regeni, the slain student’s father, said.Regeni was researching labor u...

November new car sales see biggest monthly gain so far this year: DesRosiers

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:45:39 GMT

TORONTO — DesRosiers Automotive Consultants Inc. says new car sales in November soared 20.7 per cent compared with last year, as vehicle supply improves.Andrew King, managing partner at DesRosiers, says November saw the largest percentage gain in sales so far this year.The data shows car sales continued to defy affordability woes and high borrowing costs, with November marking the thirteenth straight month of year-over-year gains.King says improving vehicle availability and strong pent-up demand from the pandemic are continuing to fuel sales.However, he adds the monthly total for car sales was still below the pre-pandemic November market.King says this year’s car sales have already topped 2022 levels, even with December sales yet to come, pointing to an important recovery since the COVID-19 pandemic.This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 4, 2023.The Canadian Press

Construction temporarily paused at Brighton Park tent camp after environmental report

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:45:39 GMT

CHICAGO — Construction of a large winterized tent camp for migrants in Chicago’s Brighton Park neighborhood has been temporarily paused by state officials after an environmental report found evidence of potentially toxic chemicals. “We did pause construction at the site yesterday. IEPA has questions about the environmental report that we hope to get answers today,” governor’s spokesperson Jordan Abudayyeh tells WGN Investigates. The pause in construction may be short as state officials will speak with city project managers and the company that conducted the environmental testing later Monday hoping to get concerns addressed  The temporarily halt to construction of the facility is the latest evidence of a slap shot effort to get the site built despite concerns by residents, community leaders and the new found potential health risks.  Previous: Emergency hearing to be held on Brighton Park migrant base camp “Soil with mercury levels  was identified at o...

Santos’s first post-Congress gig: Selling videos on Cameo 

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:45:39 GMT

Former Rep. George Santos (R-N.Y.) is on to his next job after the House voted to expel him last week: selling videos on Cameo.The ousted New York Republican — who dubs himself a “Former congressional ‘Icon’” on the platform — is selling personal videos for $150 each. Customers can request holiday messages and birthday wishes from Santos, or they can ask him for gossip, a pep talk, a roast or advice.Site visitors not interested in a video can opt to purchase a direct message to the ex-Congressman instead for $10.Santos appears to be soliciting customers for his new venture: The link to his Cameo profile is included on his Twitter profile. A source familiar confirmed to The Hill the account belongs to Santos.The launch of Santos’s Cameo career comes just days after the House voted in a bipartisan fashion to end the New York Republican’s tenure in Congress only 11 months after it began. The vote was historic, making Santos the sixth lawmaker ever to be expelled from the House.Lawmaker...

Geomagnetic storm likely to impact Earth through Tuesday: What we know

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:45:39 GMT

(NEXSTAR) — Last week, many were treated to a dazzling display of auroras thanks to strong solar activity. This week, the Earth is likely to be impacted by even more solar activity, without the aerial color show. Over the weekend, NOAA's Space Weather Prediction Center (SWPC) issued a geomagnetic storm watch for Monday and Tuesday, saying a "high speed stream from a coronal hole is expected to influence the Earth" on both days. Arrival was set for Monday morning, according to SWPC. They even shared this minorly daunting image of the sun, which shows the coronal hole. A coronal hole spotted on the sun in early December 2023. [Cropped] (NOAA SWPC)Does this mean the sun is about to explode or the Earth is going to melt? No, but there are some other impacts we may experience. What you're seeing in the image above is, as we mentioned, a coronal hole. It appears darker than the rest of the sun because the area is cooler and less dense than the surrounding plasma, according to NOAA. Areas ...