No salmon returning to Canada river, raising concerns

No salmon returning to Canada river, raising concerns

A conservation group says no wild Atlantic salmon have returned to a key river in New Brunswick, prompting concern for the fish’s population health in the U.S. and eastern Canada.

The New Brunswick-based Atlantic Salmon Federation has been monitoring the Magaguadavic River for the Canadian government since 1992. The group says this year is the first time that no wild salmon have returned to the river to spawn.

Atlantic salmon were once abundant in rivers of New England and eastern Canada, but they’re now endangered or have disappeared in parts of both areas.

Puerto Rico utility to cancel $300M Whitefish contract

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico

The head of Puerto Rico’s power company said Sunday the agency is cancelling its $300 million contract with Whitefish Energy Holdings amid scrutiny of the tiny Montana company’s role in restoring the island’s power system.

The announcement by Ricardo Ramos came hours after Gov. Ricardo Rossello urged the utility to scrap the deal for Whitefish’s help in rebuilding the electrical system from the damage inflicted by Hurricane Maria.

The current work by Whitefish teams will not be affected by the cancellation and that work will be completed in November, Ramos said. He said the cancellation will delay pending work by 10 to 12 weeks if no alternatives are found.

Ramos said he had not talked with Whitefish executives about his announcement. “A lawsuit could be forthcoming,” he warned.

Poll: Most have little fear of robots taking their jobs

WASHINGTON

Most Americans believe their jobs, and the jobs of those they live with, are safe from automation – at least for the next decade, according to an Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll.

And more than half think automation could make their work easier or more efficient in the future.

The findings suggest that while Americans express concern about how automation technology might cause some other people to lose jobs, they are less worried about its effect on themselves.

Fifty-seven percent of respondents said they thought it unlikely that they or someone in their household will be replaced at work by automation within the next 10 years, the survey found. A nearly identical proportion – 56 percent – said they consider it at least somewhat likely that their job will be improved by automation. Many think, for example, that such technology has made jobs safer.

Huge rally rejects Catalan secession bid

BARCELONA, SPAIN

Hundreds of thousands of Catalans took to the streets of Barcelona on Sunday to voice their opposition to the region’s declaration of independence amid vast political uncertainty for the region in northeast Spain.

Catalonia’s political leadership was fired Saturday by central authorities in Madrid who are trying to tame the worst political crisis Spain has seen in decades. So far, Catalan’s former leader has insinuated that he won’t step down.

Waving Spanish, Catalan and European Union flags, the protesters described themselves as the silent majority who have been ignored during the wealthy region’s bid for independence, which came to a head Friday when the regional parliament voted to secede from Spain.

The organizers said more than 1 million people turned out but police put the figure at 300,000. There was no way to immediately reconcile the figures.

Associated Press