Reading Time: 2 minutes Washington | Reuters — The U.S. government on Wednesday extended the closure of land borders with Canada and Mexico to non-essential travel such as tourism through Aug. 21 even as officials debate whether to require visitors to have received a COVID-19 vaccine. The latest 30-day extension by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) came after […] Read more
U.S. extends travel curbs at land borders through Aug. 21
Canada to admit vaccinated U.S. tourists
Border to open Aug. 9 after more than 16 months
Reading Time: 2 minutes Ottawa | Reuters — Canada on Monday said it would allow fully vaccinated U.S. tourists into the country starting from Aug. 9 after the COVID-19 pandemic forced an unprecedented 16-month ban that many businesses complained was crippling them. Inoculated visitors from countries other than the United States will be permitted to enter beginning on Sept. […] Read more
U.S. appeals court rules for environmental groups in biofuel case
Reading Time: 2 minutes New York | Reuters — The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled on Friday in favour of environmental groups who argued against the U.S. government’s conclusion that biofuel blending obligations posed no danger to species’ habitats. The Environmental Protection Agency decides on the amount of biofuels that oil refiners must […] Read more
Canada to lift more border restrictions in weeks to come, Trudeau says
Reading Time: < 1 minute Ottawa | Reuters — Canada will further relax border restrictions in the weeks to come as long as the science supports such a move, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Wednesday, suggesting Ottawa would move more quickly than initially announced. Trudeau, under pressure to allow non-essential travel from the U.S., was more categorical than he had […] Read more
Canada taking first step toward lifting border restrictions
U.S. border restrictions still in place until at least June 21
Reading Time: 2 minutes Ottawa | Reuters — Canada on Wednesday took a cautious first step toward easing COVID-19 border restrictions, saying it was prepared to relax quarantine protocols for fully vaccinated citizens returning home starting in early July. Canada’s air and land borders have allowed for only essential travel since March of last year, and Canadians coming home […] Read more
JBS plants reopen as White House blames Russia over hack
Reading Time: 3 minutes Washington/Chicago | Reuters — JBS SA employees started returning to U.S. meat plants on Wednesday, a day after the company’s beef operations stopped following a ransomware attack, disrupting meat production in North America and Australia. A notorious Russia-linked hacking group is behind the cyberattack against JBS, a source familiar with the matter said. Brazil’s JBS […] Read more
Biden transition team holds talks with biofuel groups -sources
Reading Time: < 1 minute New York | Reuters – U.S. President-elect Joe Biden’s transition team has held calls with biofuel groups on topics including compliance with U.S. biofuel blending laws and Biden’s low-carbon climate vision, according to two sources familiar with the conversations. The discussions with biofuel trade groups as well as POET, a top company in the cellulosic […] Read more
U.S. border restrictions to last a long time yet, Trudeau says
COVID would need to be 'significantly more under control'
Reading Time: 2 minutes Ottawa | Reuters — Canada will not agree to lifting a ban on non-essential travel with the United States until the coronavirus outbreak is significantly under control around the world, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Tuesday. Trudeau’s comments were a clear indication that the border restrictions will last well into 2021. The two neighbours […] Read more
Most of Prairies already covered in snow
Reading Time: < 1 minute MarketsFarm — Most of the Canadian Prairies were already blanked in snow by late November, with the deepest snowpack in Alberta and Saskatchewan, according to data compiled by Environment Canada and the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Aside from the Rocky Mountains and some areas around the Great Lakes, the U.S. was largely […] Read more
Coronavirus kills 15,000 U.S. mink
Affected states aren't planning to cull
Reading Time: 3 minutes Chicago | Reuters — More than 15,000 mink in the United States have died of the coronavirus since August, and authorities are keeping about a dozen farms under quarantine while they investigate the cases, state agriculture officials said. Global health officials are eying the animals as a potential risk for people after Denmark last week […] Read more
A message from April Stewart, Country Guide's Associate Editor
