Tuesday, August 4, 2009

** Swiss medic plans expedition to circumnavigate globe on solar power alone

** Toronto EMS union leader keeps job, but still faces criminal charges for strike mischief

GERMANY NEWS

** A former Swiss paramedic is seeking to be among the first people to circumnavigate the globe using a solar powered boat. That is the word from the publication POPSCI.com (Carina Storrs/July 31) which said Raphael Domjan plans to undertake the $11.5 million effort with colleagues in 2011. The group, which already tackled the Atlantic Ocean in 2007 with a combination of solar and electric power, is now working on constructing the 98-foot long vessel in Kiel, Germany. Powered by 5,000 square feet of solar panels, the boat is expected to be able to convert about 23 per cent of the sun’s rays into energy;current panels usually convert about 17 per cent. Planet Solar, as the boat has been dubbed, should move at a max of about 16 mph.

CANADA NEWS

** A Toronto EMS union leader, accused of stealing and abandoning two ambulances in the city’s downtown during the work action, will apparently still keep his job. The Globe and Mail (Jennifer Lewington/Timothy Appleby/July 31) said that is the result of a back to work protocol hammered out between the Canadian Union of Public Employees Local 416 and the city. According to the newspaper, the city can not discipline employees who misbehaved during the strike, nor can the union retaliate against those who crossed picket lines. A separate deal, however, does make provision for the disciplining of Cupe 416 ambulance unit chairman Glenn Fontaine who is currently facing criminal charges for the alleged theft. Meanwhile, union members continue to vote on a tentative contract settlement reached early last week.