Front Burner

Right now, there’s a proposal for a massive oilsands project awaiting approval from Justin Trudeau’s cabinet. The Teck Frontier mine is thought to be one of the largest oilsands mines ever proposed in Alberta. It’s projected to bring in billions of dollars of federal and province taxes. It’s also expected to have significant environmental impacts: from the destruction of old-growth forest, to an increase in carbon emissions. Cabinet has until next month to make a decision on whether or not to give it the greenlight. What happens next could act as a litmus test for the future of the Alberta oilsands. Today on Front Burner, Sharon Riley, Alberta energy and environment reporter with The Narwhal, explains the Teck Frontier oilsands mine.

NBA legend Kobe Bryant died on Sunday in a helicopter crash near Calabasas, California, along with his 13-year-old daughter Gianna and seven other people.

The 41-year-old 18-time NBA all-star won five championships with the L.A. Lakers. His legacy is also complicated by the fact that in 2003 he was accused of sexual assault. The criminal charges were dropped after his accuser refused to testify in court.

Today on Front Burner, we talk about Bryant's career and complicated legacy with Slate writer and podcast host Joel Anderson.

The coronavirus outbreak has come to Canada. A man in his 50s who’d recently been to Wuhan, China is Canada’s first “presumptive case,” and is being treated in a Toronto hospital. Today, on Front Burner, we speak to infectious disease specialist Dr. Isaac Bogoch to learn what’s happening in this country and around the world to combat the 2019-nCoV coronavirus. He explains everything from front-line measures being taken by health professionals, to the co-ordination of international public health authorities, to the lab research being done to help us better understand and better fight this virus.

Last week, former reservist Patrik Mathews was arrested by the FBI on firearms-related charges. Front Burner first covered his story last summer, when he was being investigated by law enforcement for suspected ties to a militant white supremacist group called The Base. After a raid by the RCMP, Mathews disappeared. Because of his arrest, we have access to a trove of court documents from the FBI's investigation of Mathews. Today on Front Burner, we talk to Vice national security correspondent Ben Makuch about what we've learned from these documents, and what they might say about efforts to stop the growth of white supremacist groups.

A leaked draft memo revealed recently the European Union is considering a temporary ban on the use of facial recognition technology in public spaces. And in the last few days, Google's CEO and the editorial board of the Financial Times have called for a moratorium on the burgeoning technology. Facial recognition is evolving and disseminating so quickly, that some are saying it's time to pump the brakes. Clare Garvie thinks that's the right idea. She studies facial recognition technology at the Georgetown Center on Privacy and Technology. Today on Front Burner, she explains how it's being used and its potential for abuse.

A new virus spreading out of China has caught the attention of infectious disease experts around the world. That's because it bears some strong similarities to SARS, the respiratory disease that killed hundreds of people including 44 Canadians in 2003. Whether this new coronavirus turns out to be more or less dangerous than SARS, experts say we need to better prepare for pandemics because they are coming for us — ready or not. Today on Front Burner, we talk to Dr. Kamran Khan, who heads up a medical data analytics firm that's trying to set up an early warning system for infectious diseases so doctors like him can spread information about pandemics faster than diseases can spread themselves.

Meng Wanzhou’s extradition hearing finally kicked off this week. It’s been just over a year since the Huawei chief financial officer was arrested on fraud charges. The arrest ignited a massive diplomatic rift between Canada and China, and a lot of international attention is focused on the Vancouver courtroom where a judge now must decide whether Canada will send the heiress to face the U.S. justice system. CBC Vancouver senior reporter Jason Proctor has been covering this story closely. Today on Font Burner he explains how extradition hearings work and how these proceedings might affect Canada’s already tense relationship with China.

For decades, televangelist Benny Hinn has travelled the world, reportedly performed miracles on stage and raked in cash. In that time, CBC’s Bob McKeown has done several investigations into the controversial pastor’s so-called miracle healing as well as his finances. In The Insider: Tales from Inside the Benny Hinn Ministries, a new documentary for The Fifth Estate, McKeown spoke with Benny Hinn’s nephew, Costi, who’s left the ministry. Today on Front Burner, McKeown discusses what he learned about Benny Hinn’s ministries from his former followers.

Today on Front Burner, host Jayme Poisson talks to business professor Sarah Kaplan about the decision by the world’s biggest money manager, BlackRock, to make climate change central to its investment decisions, and whether corporations can lead on climate change action.

Ron Posno knows how he wants to die: on his own terms and with help from a healthcare professional. He’s an advocate for people with dementia and a volunteer with Dying with Dignity Canada from London, Ontario. But he doesn’t qualify for a medically-assisted death right now. That could change. Starting this week, the federal government has launched two weeks of public consultations asking Canadians how they would like to amend the existing medically-assisted dying laws. This follows a Quebec ruling last September that found people should be able to access assisted dying even if death is not imminent. Today on Front Burner, we ask if dementia patients should be able to consent to an assisted death in advance.