Moira Donovan
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moiradonovan.bsky.social
Moira Donovan
@moiradonovan.bsky.social
Environment and climate change journalist based on Canada's east coast.

http://moira-donovan.com
Across Canada, remnants of the residential school era — former school sites and buildings — stand as a painful testament to the past. For @thenarwhal.ca I spoke to survivors leading the complex work to reckon with those remnants, and preserve a record of that history thenarwhal.ca/truth-reconc...
What should happen to residential school sites? | The Narwhal
Across Canada, Indigenous communities are deciding how to commemorate these residential school histories on the land
thenarwhal.ca
September 29, 2025 at 4:48 PM
In the Miramichi, Atlantic salmon populations are dropping precipitously. Salmon conservation groups say the culprit is clear: striped bass. But as I explored in this story for @theguardian.com, the picture is murky, especially in a changing climate www.theguardian.com/environment/...
‘It’s an all-you-can-eat buffet’: striped bass in a Canadian river are gobbling up all the salmon. Is a mass cull the answer?
Whether to kill one species to save another has split biologists, anglers and Indigenous communities in the Miramichi
www.theguardian.com
September 12, 2025 at 7:45 PM
In Nova Scotia, the provincial government is fast-tracking mining and other resource development - meanwhile, groups restoring ecosystems face nearly insurmountable red tape, forcing some to cancel projects. My story for CBC Nova Scotia www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
Groups conducting coastal restoration in N.S. say they face 'astonishing' red tape | CBC News
Groups conducting shoreline cleanups and coastal restoration say they're facing long delays obtaining permits or unclear requirements from the province, which are sometimes forcing them to cancel proj...
www.cbc.ca
September 2, 2025 at 2:16 PM
For Offrange, I dug into a hidden hurdle in adapting our forests to climate change: tree seedlings. We need billions of seedlings to restore forests being lost to fire and other impacts - and nurseries are nowhere close to that number. I heard about the ways people are trying to fill the gap.
In the wake of the last decade's devastating wildfires, there's an urgent effort underway to grow our forests back. The problem? We don't have nearly enough tree seedlings.

@moiradonovan.bsky.social looks into what's being done:
ambrook.com/offrange/env...
The Problem with Growing a Forest - Offrange
We need trees more than ever — but seedlings are in short supply.
ambrook.com
August 26, 2025 at 5:10 PM
Until recently, tools for tracking fish were too big for small swimmers, limiting our ability to understand the lives of diminutive species.

New technology is changing that - a potential boost for conservation. My story for @biographic.bsky.social (with edits from @colinschultz.bsky.social!)
July 16, 2025 at 8:15 PM
In 2023, a controversial artificial lake was refilled, ostensibly for wildfire mitigation. Two years later, some residents are questioning the legitimacy of the government's decision - my story for CBC Nova Scotia www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
Decision to refill Lake Pisiquid coming with side-effects, say some Windsor residents | CBC News
Some Windsor, N.S., residents say a two-year-old decision to close the gates of an aboiteau and keep Lake Pisiquid filled with water is unnecessary and causing other problems.
www.cbc.ca
July 3, 2025 at 8:00 PM
So grateful to be one of the journalists selected for this year's program - and very excited for the opportunity to dig into the scientific process with a group of fellow nerds 🤓https://www.mbl.edu/education/logan-science-journalism-program/2025-sjp-fellows
April 14, 2025 at 9:26 PM
The Atlantic whitefish is one of Canada's most endangered species; after 14 million years, its range has shrunk to three small lakes, and a set of tanks in a university basement. For @thenarwhal.ca I explored the race to save the species thenarwhal.ca/atlantic-whi...
Can we save the Atlantic whitefish? | The Narwhal
In Nova Scotia, scientists are racing to save an ancient species
thenarwhal.ca
April 7, 2025 at 10:47 AM
Reposted by Moira Donovan
They're called public records for a reason. Starting today, WIRED will *stop paywalling* articles that are primarily based on public records obtained through the Freedom of Information Act, becoming the first publication to partner with @freedom.press to offer this for our new coverage.
Wired is dropping paywalls for FOIA-based reporting. Others should follow
As the administration does its best to hide public records from the public, Wired magazine is stepping up to help stem the secrecy
freedom.press
March 18, 2025 at 1:11 PM
Using mine tailings for carbon removal offers an opportunity to tackle climate change - while remediating environmental hazards. But some fear the attempt to address future threats could exacerbate past harms. My story for @yalee360.bsky.social e360.yale.edu/features/asb...
Can Toxic Mining Waste Help Remove CO2 from the Atmosphere?
On the coast of Newfoundland, waste from a shuttered asbestos mine has been a troubling source of contamination for decades. Now, a company plans to process the waste to draw CO2 from the air — one of...
e360.yale.edu
March 13, 2025 at 6:42 PM
Climate change is reshuffling ecosystems in complex ways. In the Gulf of Maine, this includes baby lobster and their prey dropping out of sync - a shift that could have dire consequences for a lucrative fishery. My first story for @biographic.bsky.social
February 21, 2025 at 3:08 PM
Pesticides come with a host of problems, from biodiversity loss to human illnesses. Scientists are looking to plants' innate defences for alternatives, with 'plant vaccines' that boost natural immunity. My story for Ambrook Research
Our food crops have had their natural immune systems whittled down over years of breeding for high yields. There's now a movement underway to revive these defenses, a way to reduce pesticide dependence.

New from Moira Donovan:
ambrook.com/research/stu...
In Praise of “Plant Vaccines” - Ambrook Research
Scientists are harnessing the natural immune systems of our crops, an attempt to cut down on pesticide use.
ambrook.com
January 27, 2025 at 5:52 PM
Reposted by Moira Donovan
“You’re now blurring the distinction between Canada and the U.S. when you’re sharing so much information,” says immigration lawyer Len Saunders. “Where does it stop — what’s next?” @moiradonovan.bsky.social has the story. www.nationalmagazine.ca/en-ca/articl...
The ‘slippery slope’ of sharing personal data
New agreement allowing U.S. officials access to Canadian permanent residents’ information made without external consultations, critics say
www.nationalmagazine.ca
January 24, 2025 at 4:54 PM
Despite a Supreme Court decision affirming Indigenous communities' right to fish for a moderate livelihood, dozens of Mi'kmaw fishers still find themselves before the courts. For @hakaimagazine.com —and in collaboration with Ku'ku'kwes News— I profiled one of them

hakaimagazine.com/features/the...
The Personal Toll of Canada’s Broken Fishing Promises | Hakai Magazine
Indigenous fishermen on the Atlantic Coast have spent centuries—and millions of dollars—trying to get the government to uphold treaties made in the 1700s. And younger generations aren’t giving up.
hakaimagazine.com
December 18, 2024 at 5:56 PM