"In the scientific community, Max Bothwell is regarded as the go-to guy on 'rock snot,' an unsightly but amusingly nicknamed invasive algae that grows in streams and riverbeds. He’s been an Environment Canada scientist for 36 years, studied the slimy blooms for 22 of those and has published considerable literature on the subject." The Harper government kept him quiet.

Reporters trying to get information from federal agencies find press offices stonewalling and running out the clock on their interview requests. "The public information model," one agency flak said, "is dead." The result: the public is uninformed, the government is unaccountable, and people's health is endangered.

"The muzzles are coming off for [Canadian] federal scientists. For years, scientists who worked for the federal government were silenced by strict rules that made them seek departmental approval before speaking to the press. On Friday, Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development Navdeep Bains said that scientists are free to speak to the media about their work."

"Wildfires crackled across Siberia this summer, turning skies ochre and sending up enough smoke from burning pines to blot out satellite views of the 400-mile-long Lake Baikal."