The Cheam and Sqwá First Nations in the Fraser Valley are sounding the alarm for the second time in a few months about mysterious discharge flowing into the Hope Slough in Chilliwack, B.C., that they say is toxic. Cheam First Nation biologist Mike Pearson said the cloudy, foaming substance running through a ditch into the main stem of the slough smells like a combination of chemicals and sewage. "It's distressing from an environmental point of view and from a human health point of view," he said. "Right now we are in the middle of a coho salmon run ... So they have to come through this pollution on their way [to spawning grounds] and I have no idea what impact this will have on them." Roxanna Kooistra, who works for the Cheam environmental restoration department, said white and grey sludge was found pouring out of a pipe into a ditch that runs into Hope Slough on Nov. 28. She said so far, no dead fish have been found. "At this time we're working with Environment and Climate Change Canada federal officers to identify the sources. We have found three possible sources and officers are working with those land owners to stop the ongoing spill," said Kooistra. Drone image of discharge flowing into the Hope Slough. (Submitted by Cheam First Nation) In September, Cheam and Sqwá First Nations called attention to discharge at a different location on the Hope Slough that they say , including juvenile coho salmon, trout and the endangered Salish sucker. An from the Ministry of Emergency Management and Climate Readiness said the source of the September spill remains undetermined. "Multiple factors may have contributed to the fish kill," it stated. "Preliminary findings suggest low oxygen levels in the water. This does not usually pose a direct risk to human health. The cause of these levels is still under investigation." The Hope Slough, known as Sqwa:la by local First Nations, flows into the Fraser River, the longest river in B.C. and one of the largest salmon spawning rivers in the world. First Nations have been trying for years to restore salmon stocks and clean the waterway, which runs through a number of public parks in Chilliwack and is popular with paddlers and anglers. According to the Cheam and Sqwá First Nations, evidence of the discharge can be seen several kilometres downstream from where it is entering into Hope Slough. In a release, the nations said the pipe discharging the substance is "a permanent fixture, which leads us to believe that this is not a one-time offence but an ongoing polluter to these environmentally crucial waterways." The Cheam First Nation said it is covering the cost of the cleanup, as it did for the September discharge, after the Ministry of the Environment declined to respond. Scott McKenzie, a Ministry of Environment and Parks spokesperson, said in an email that the ministry received a new report of poor water quality in the Hope Slough on Nov. 29 and that it is following up. "No dead fish have been reported," he said.US lawmakers concluded a two-year investigation Monday into the Covid-19 outbreak that killed 1.1 million Americans -- backing the theory that the virus likely leaked from a Chinese laboratory. A 520-page report from the Republican-controlled House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic looked at the federal and state-level response, as well as the pandemic's origins and vaccination efforts. "This work will help the United States, and the world, predict the next pandemic, prepare for the next pandemic, protect ourselves from the next pandemic, and hopefully prevent the next pandemic," panel chairman Brad Wenstrup said in a letter to Congress. US federal agencies, the World Health Organization and scientists across the planet have arrived at different conclusions about the most likely origin of Covid-19, and no consensus has emerged. Most believe it to have spread from animals in China, but a US intelligence analysis said last year that the virus may have been genetically engineered and escaped from a virology lab in the Chinese city of Wuhan, where human cases first emerged. The congressional panel was persuaded by the lab leak theory after meeting 25 times, conducting more than 30 transcribed interviews and reviewing more than one million pages of documents. The investigation included two days of interviews behind closed doors with Anthony Fauci, the government scientist who became the nation's most trusted expert in the chaotic early days of the 2020 outbreak. Fauci's clashes with former and incoming president Donald Trump over the response sparked fury on the right, and he now lives with security protection following death threats against his family. Republicans accuse the 83-year-old immunologist of helping to set off the worst pandemic in a century by approving funding passed on to Chinese scientists they accuse of manufacturing the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus that causes Covid-19. Among its headline conclusions, the report said the National Institutes of Health had indeed funded contentious "gain-of-function" research -- which seeks to enhance viruses as a way of finding ways to combat them -- at the Wuhan Institute of Virology. Fauci angrily denied covering up the origins of Covid-19 before the panel in June, arguing that it would be "molecularly impossible" for the bat viruses studied at the lab to be turned into the virus that caused the pandemic. But the panel's report said SARS-CoV-2 "likely emerged because of a laboratory or research related accident." The probe found that lockdowns "did more harm than good" and that mask mandates were "ineffective at controlling the spread of Covid-19," contradicting other research showing that masking in public does reduce transmission rates. Social distancing guidelines also came under criticism, although travel restrictions were deemed to have saved lives. Investigators found that Trump's Operation Warp Speed -- the publicly-funded project to develop Covid vaccines -- was a "tremendous success" but that school closures would have an "enduring impact" on US children. ft/jgcFive things to know about Panama Canal, in Trump’s sights
By ROB GILLIES, Associated Press TORONTO (AP) — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told Donald Trump that Americans would also suffer if the president-elect follows through on a plan to impose sweeping tariffs on Canadian products , a Canadian minister who attended their recent dinner said Monday. Trump threatened to impose tariffs on products from Canada and Mexico if they don’t stop what he called the flow of drugs and migrants across their borders with the United States. He said on social media last week that he would impose a 25% tax on all products entering the U.S. from Canada and Mexico as one of his first executive orders. Canadian Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc, whose responsibilities include border security, attended a dinner with Trump and Trudeau at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club on Friday. Trudeau requested the meeting in a bid to avoid the tariffs by convincing Trump that the northern border is nothing like the U.S. southern border with Mexico . “The prime minister of course spoke about the importance of protecting the Canadian economy and Canadian workers from tariffs, but we also discussed with our American friends the negative impact that those tariffs could have on their economy, on affordability in the United States as well,” LeBlanc said in Parliament. If Trump makes good on his threat to slap 25% tariffs on everything imported from Mexico and Canada, the price increases that could follow will collide with his campaign promise to give American families a break from inflation. Economists say companies would have little choice but to pass along the added costs, dramatically raising prices for food, clothing, automobiles, alcohol and other goods. The Produce Distributors Association, a Washington trade group, said last week that tariffs will raise prices for fresh fruit and vegetables and hurt U.S. farmers when the countries retaliate. Canada is already examining possible retaliatory tariffs on certain items from the U.S. should Trump follow through on the threat. After his dinner with Trump, Trudeau returned home without assurances the president-elect will back away from threatened tariffs on all products from the major American trading partner. Trump called the talks “productive” but signaled no retreat from a pledge that Canada says unfairly lumps it in with Mexico over the flow of drugs and migrants into the United States. “The idea that we came back empty handed is completely false,” LeBlanc said. “We had a very productive discussion with Mr. Trump and his future Cabinet secretaries. ... The commitment from Mr. Trump to continue to work with us was far from empty handed.” Joining Trump and Trudeau at dinner were Howard Lutnick, Trump’s nominee for commerce secretary, North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, Trump’s pick to lead the Interior Department, and Mike Waltz, Trump’s choice to be his national security adviser. Canada’s ambassador to the U.S., Kirsten Hillman, told The Associated Press on Sunday that “the message that our border is so vastly different than the Mexican border was really understood.” Hillman, who sat at an adjacent table to Trudeau and Trump, said Canada is not the problem when it comes to drugs and migrants. On Monday, Mexico’s president rejected those comments. “Mexico must be respected, especially by its trading partners,” President Claudia Sheinbaum said. She said Canada had its own problems with fentanyl consumption and “could only wish they had the cultural riches Mexico has.” Flows of migrants and seizures of drugs at the two countries’ border are vastly different. U.S. customs agents seized 43 pounds of fentanyl at the Canadian border during the last fiscal year, compared with 21,100 pounds at the Mexican border. Most of the fentanyl reaching the U.S. — where it causes about 70,000 overdose deaths annually — is made by Mexican drug cartels using precursor chemicals smuggled from Asia. On immigration, the U.S. Border Patrol reported 1.53 million encounters with migrants at the southwest border with Mexico between October 2023 and September 2024. That compares to 23,721 encounters at the Canadian border during that time. Canada is the top export destination for 36 U.S. states. Nearly $3.6 billion Canadian (US$2.7 billion) worth of goods and services cross the border each day. About 60% of U.S. crude oil imports are from Canada, and 85% of U.S. electricity imports as well. Canada is also the largest foreign supplier of steel, aluminum and uranium to the U.S. and has 34 critical minerals and metals that the Pentagon is eager for and investing for national security.LONG BEACH, Calif. (AP) — Devin Askew had 28 points in Long Beach State's 76-68 victory over Hawaii on Saturday night. Askew also had six rebounds, seven assists, and seven steals for the Beach (3-8, 2-0 Big West Conference). Austin Johnson scored 14 points and added 10 rebounds. TJ Wainwright went 5 of 9 from the field (2 for 3 from 3-point range) to finish with 14 points. The Rainbow Warriors (5-3, 0-1) were led in scoring by Marcus Greene, who finished with 17 points. Gytis Nemeiksa added 14 points, seven rebounds and two steals for Hawaii. Akira Jacobs also had 11 points. Long Beach State takes on San Diego on the road on Tuesday, and Hawaii hosts Texas A&M-CC on Sunday. The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by and data from .
( MENAFN - IANS) Washington, Dec 3 (IANS) The US government has announced additional military assistance to Ukraine worth $725 million to meet the urgent need of the country at war with Russia. Weapons in the latest package include air defence capabilities, munitions for rocket systems and artillery, and anti-tank weapons, among others, according to a press statement on Monday from the Department of Defense. The provision followed President Joe Biden's announcement on September 26 that his administration would provide another significant package of urgently needed weapons and equipment to Ukraine. The weapons will be provided under previously exercised Presidential Drawdown Authority from Department of Defense stocks, the Department of State said in its version of the announcement. The assistance has been reported by news outlets based on anonymous sources prior to Monday's formal announcements from the Defence and State Departments, Xinhua news agency reported. It coincided with the Biden administration's reported request for Ukraine that it lower the recruitment age from 25 to 18 to make up for the loss of manpower on the battleground. MENAFN02122024000231011071ID1108948905 Legal Disclaimer: MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.Syrian insurgents reach the capital's suburbs. Worried residents flee and stock up on supplies
BALTIMORE — Business leaders praised an executive order signed by Gov. Wes Moore last week in an effort to bump Maryland’s economic growth while state officials face a $3 billion budget shortfall. Moore signed the order, which establishes multiple initiatives seeking to make the state more friendly to business development, at a Friday ceremony in downtown Frederick, against the backdrop of an ongoing hotel and conference center project. It came alongside a rosy November jobs report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, with preliminary numbers released on Friday showing that Maryland’s total employment grew by about 7,100 jobs last month. It also came as Maryland lawmakers prepare for a session in which “everything is on the table” as far as addressing a ballooning budget deficit. A number of the state’s economic growth indicators have lagged since 2017, the state comptroller’s office noted in a report early this year, though the state’s budget has increased significantly since then. The order establishes the Governor’s Office of Business Advancement, a new agency within the Department of Commerce that Moore’s office said in a news release will provide “concierge, white-glove service to businesses seeking to relocate or expand in Maryland.” It also creates a new council that aims to streamline permitting and environmental review for major projects. A subcabinet under the governor will focus on economic competitiveness and directs state agencies to leverage their resources to support growth in a number of industries, including life sciences, information technology, aerospace and defense, computational biology, and quantum technology. The Maryland Chamber of Commerce praised Moore’s executive order, with the statewide chamber’s president and CEO, Mary D. Kane, calling it an “an important step forward for Maryland’s businesses, communities, and workforce” in a statement. In a September guest column for The Baltimore Sun, Kane called Maryland’s fall to 31st place in CNBC’s 2024 Top States for Business rankings “a glaring warning sign about our state’s economic competitiveness” that demanded “immediate attention and decisive action.” Moore said in a statement that with his order and partnership with lawmakers in the Maryland General Assembly’s upcoming legislative session, the state has “an opportunity to change the trajectory of the downward decline that our state’s economy has experienced over the past several years.” He said that Maryland must create the climate necessary for business growth and find impediments to growth “for Maryland to win the decade.” The order also requires state agencies to review certain business licensing programs, as well as tax credits and other incentive programs, and issue recommendations on their effectiveness. It establishes a “loaned executive” program that aims to “cultivate a culture of innovation and excellence” at the Maryland Department of Commerce by temporarily assigning private sector executives to the state agency. The November jobs report noted that Maryland’s unemployment rate remained lower than the national average last month despite rising by 0.1%, a minor bump that Maryland labor officials said in a news release was attributed to the state’s labor force growing by an estimated 2,700 new workers. The public sector, as well as professional, scientific, and technical services; the health care and social assistance industry; and retail trade fields grew the most in November, according to the BLS. The administrative and support industry and the waste management and remediation field lost the most jobs. ---------- ©2024 The Baltimore Sun. Visit at baltimoresun.com . Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
Noodles and wine are the secret ingredients for a strange new twist in China's doping saga
zkMe Network Celebrates Second Anniversary, Announces Strategic Ecosystem Rewards Program for 2025 12-02-2024 11:58 PM CET | Business, Economy, Finances, Banking & Insurance Press release from: Getnews / PR Agency: LianPR Image: https://www.getnews.info/uploads/8c93e174729b63b281265de5934ee77c.jpg zkMe [ https://www.zk.me/ ] Network celebrates its second anniversary with significant ecosystem growth and technological advancement, marking the occasion with the launch of a strategic ecosystem rewards program and plans for a comprehensive tokenomics model in 2025. As a decentralized identity infrastructure powered by zero-knowledge proofs, zkMe provides private and secure identity verification with enhanced data protection. The platform enables users to authorize multi-chain applications with a single verification, serving as an all-in-one identity solution across chains.Through its decentralized node network, zkMe Network ensures transparent verification processes while allowing users to maintain control of their data and earn rewards from credential sharing. As the Web3 industry navigates increasing regulatory requirements, with the EU's MiCA regulations taking effect in 2025, zkMe's zero-knowledge proof technology continues to set the standard for privacy-preserving compliance solutions. The platform's innovative approach has earned recognition from leading investment firms, securing over $6 million in total funding, including a recent $4 million seed round led by Multicoin Capital with participation from OKX Ventures and Robot Ventures. "In the digital age, privacy data may be your most valuable personal asset," states Alex Scheer, Founder and CEO of zkMe. Born in Germany, Alex's vision for data sovereignty emerged from deep reflection on digital privacy. "Every day, we leave digital footprints through transactions, investments, and social interactions in the blockchain ecosystem. While these activities create value, they can also become vulnerabilities that expose our personal information. This profound understanding of digital privacy challenges drove our team to establish zkMe as a global privacy solution," Alex explains. Perhaps what's most striking about zkMe is the team's approach to building. "Think of us as modern digital craftsmen," Alex shares with enthusiasm. "We have the precision of German engineering but move at Web3 speed. While others might focus on crafting fancy narratives, we hands-on build identity infrastructure that deploys advanced identity solutions across 20+ major blockchain networks. Self-sovereign identity, value-generating data sharing, and decentralized privacy are not just goals-they're our foundations." In crypto, you need to be fast AND flawless - that's the standard we've set for ourselves." This patient, methodical approach has served them well in an industry often characterized by hype cycles. The team's market assessment quickly proved accurate. "The market response has been remarkable," Alex explains. "We're seeing users actively seek out our privacy-preserving solution, especially given their growing concerns about identity data breaches. Leading investors have also recognized this potential, backing our vision with their support. These strong signals confirm what we believed from the start - that decentralized identity verification would become essential for the future of Web3." zkMe has established partnerships with more than 70 Web3 projects across various sectors, including Real-World Asset (RWA) integration, On-and-Off-ramps platforms such as Plume and Xion Global, as well as DeFi and Gaming Infrastructure projects like KyberSwap, Hinkal, Singularity, and CARV. The platform's mobile application has reached 33,090 downloads and processed over 660,000 user attestations, demonstrating strong user adoption and market demand. The company's technological infrastructure features several key innovations: Zero-knowledge proofs (ZKP): A decentralized identity network powered by zero-knowledge proofs, enabling private verification while meeting compliance requirements Reusable credentials: An all-in-one identity verification solution that unlocks multi-chain application access with just one verification zkMe Identity Network [ https://www.zk.me/zkkyc]: A decentralized network that ensures transparent verification processes while allowing users to control their data and earn rewards from credential sharing Looking ahead to 2025, zkMe will introduce a comprehensive tokenomics model that aligns ecosystem value with participant contributions. The platform has developed a strategic framework that focuses on three key pillars: * Early supporters will receive ecosystem rewards through a structured incentive mechanism * Active users will gain priority rights in future value distribution events * Data contributors will benefit from a sustainable value-sharing system The robust technological foundation enables zkMe to deliver unique value across the entire Web3 ecosystem. For users, the platform ensures true data sovereignty, enabling both secure verification and value capture through reusable credentials. Projects benefit from streamlined compliance infrastructure that dramatically reduces KYC costs while eliminating data breach risks. Meanwhile, developers can leverage a comprehensive SDK and API suite for rapid ecosystem integration and expansion. As zkMe marks its second anniversary milestone, the platform acknowledges the crucial role of community support in its development journey. The upcoming year promises to be transformative, as the maturation of tokenomics and decentralized governance structures will usher in a season of unprecedented rewards for early contributors. Through these concrete actions, zkMe demonstrates that in this era of possibilities, privacy and compliance are not mutually exclusive choices but complementary forces driving industry advancement. "We're not just solving current identity verification challenges," Alex emphasizes, outlining a grander vision. "Through self-sovereign identity management, users will actively match services and discover opportunities, truly creating value from their own data. This embodies the real spirit of Web3 - decentralization and anonymity while giving users complete control over their digital assets and identity data." About zkMe zkMe builds zk Identity Oracles [ https://www.zk.me/identity-oracle ] for truly decentralized & anonymous cross-chain credential verifications. No personal information is ever processed by anyone but the user themselves. Data leaks & misuse by the service provider are impossible; full interoperability & reusability result in a superior ID solution. zkMe is the only FATF compliant KYC provider to be fully decentralized, offering a full suite of products from anti-bit/anti-sybil, to KYC and more. Contacts: Email: contact@zk.me Website: www.zk.me [ http://www.zk.me/ ] Twitter: @zkme_ [ https://x.com/zkme_ ] Disclaimer: This press release may contain forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements describe future expectations, plans, results, or strategies (including product offerings, regulatory plans and business plans) and may change without notice. You are cautioned that such statements are subject to a multitude of risks and uncertainties that could cause future circumstances, events, or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements, including the risks that actual results may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. Media Contact Company Name: ZkMe Contact Person: Johnny Chan Email: Send Email [ http://www.universalpressrelease.com/?pr=zkme-network-celebrates-second-anniversary-announces-strategic-ecosystem-rewards-program-for-2025 ] State: Hong Kong Country: China Website: http://www.zk.me This release was published on openPR.
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By RANDALL CHASE, Associated Press DOVER, Del. (AP) — A Delaware judge has reaffirmed her ruling that Tesla must revoke Elon Musk’s multibillion-dollar pay package Chancellor Kathaleen St. Jude McCormick on Monday denied a request by attorneys for Musk and Tesla’s corporate directors to vacate her ruling earlier this year requiring the company to rescind the unprecedented pay package. Related Articles National News | Woman driving drunk who killed bride still in her wedding dress sentenced to 25 years in prison National News | Florida woman sentenced to life for zipping boyfriend into suitcase, suffocating him National News | A top Fed official leans toward December rate cut but says it depends on economic data National News | Supreme Court justices question block on flavored vapes, but don’t appear convinced FDA was unfair National News | What medical care for transgender minors is at stake in Supreme Court case? McCormick also rejected an equally unprecedented and massive fee request by plaintiff attorneys , who argued that they were entitled to legal fees in the form of Tesla stock valued at more than $5 billion. The judge said the attorneys were entitled to a fee award of $345 million. The rulings came in a lawsuit filed by a Tesla stockholder who challenged Musk’s 2018 compensation package. McCormick concluded in January that Musk engineered the landmark pay package in sham negotiations with directors who were not independent. The compensation package initially carried a potential maximum value of about $56 billion, but that sum has fluctuated over the years based on Tesla’s stock price. Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Click to share on X (Opens in new window) Most Popular 1 dead, 2 seriously injured in Newport News triple shooting, police say 1 dead, 2 seriously injured in Newport News triple shooting, police say Biden pardons his son Hunter despite previous pledges not to Biden pardons his son Hunter despite previous pledges not to German restaurant Deutsche Ecke opens in Newport News German restaurant Deutsche Ecke opens in Newport News Former Hampton High football coach Mike Smith highlights latest Virginia Hall of Fame inductees Former Hampton High football coach Mike Smith highlights latest Virginia Hall of Fame inductees Al Roker speaks out after Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade chair mishap Al Roker speaks out after Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade chair mishap Underground fire at Williamsburg Premium Outlets extinguished Underground fire at Williamsburg Premium Outlets extinguished Dad kills wife, shoots 21-year-old daughter on the phone with 911, police say Dad kills wife, shoots 21-year-old daughter on the phone with 911, police say Teel: Chaos abounds in college football, but not when it comes to Virginia Tech vs. UVA Teel: Chaos abounds in college football, but not when it comes to Virginia Tech vs. UVA New Kent wants public input on future of Makemie Woods New Kent wants public input on future of Makemie Woods Editorial: New executive director set to lead Fort Monroe into the future Editorial: New executive director set to lead Fort Monroe into the future Trending Nationally A young Coloradan learning to live with long COVID turns to TikTok to educate about chronic illness US Senate inquiry into Chicago’s housing of migrants at airports likely to heat up after Republican election wins Homes vs. beaches: Court makes key decision in battle over California seawall construction amid ocean rise Fruit trees and ‘generational learning’ turn this California city into a parrot paradise as temperatures drop Rapper Tekashi 6ix9ine’s legal troubles expand with two South Florida lawsuits
Supreme Court doesn't seem convinced FDA was unfair in blocking flavored vapes as teen use increased