PLANET IN PERIL

Science Daily Bull moose with budding antlers.  PLT photo. Protecting wildlife while feeding a world population predicted to reach nine billion by 2050 will require a holistic approach to conservation that considers human-altered landscapes such as farmland, according to researchers. A new study finds that a long-accepted theory used to estimate extinction rates, predict ecological risk and make conservation policy recommendations is overly pessimistic. The researchers point to an alternative framework that promises a more effective way of accounting for human-altered landscapes and assessing ecological risks. Full story here.

The Saskatoon Star Phoenix Unlike Canada, Danish farmers must record every single dose of antibiotic they use. Details here.

EcoWatch A new study led by scientists from the Arctic University of Norway has detected “extreme levels” of Roundup, the agricultural herbicide manufactured by Monsanto, in genetically engineered (GE) soy. Full story here. Related:  Field of Nightmares  -  Ottawa continues to embrace the widespread use of Roundup on Canadian farms by letting corporate seduction trump scientific evidence.

Forest Ethics ForestEthics Advocacy and a group of concerned citizens are seeking legal counsel to knock the Kinder Morgan pipeline project in B.C. right off its tracks. Full story here.

Winnipeg Free Press Towering flames atop oil wells break the inky darkness in the badlands on North Dakota's Fort Berthold Indian Reservation. The flares of natural gas set grass fires on the prairie where Theodora Bird Bear's ancestors hunted buffalo and create a driving hazard on rural roads. Full story here.

thestar.com By 2050, as much as $43 billion could be sapped from the Canadian economy because of natural disasters. Full story here.

by Larry Powell As globalization reaches a frenzied pace, free trade agreements  (FTAs)  between nations are coming thick and fast, too.  Now, a knowledgable source with impressive credentials is sounding the latest cautionary note about "CETA,"   the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement which  Prime Minister Harper and the European Union signed ,  in principle last year.  Howard Mann   PhD (1988): London School of Economics. Master of Laws LL.M. (1984): London School of Economics. Bachelor of Civil Law (1982): McGill University.   Senior International Law Advisor to the  IISD. Photo credit – Sue Danahy, Ottawa A Canadian expert in international law, Howard Mann, (above)  is lending an important new voice to a now-familiar chorus  of alarm about " CETA,"  in particular.    For decades, large corporations have been using provisions within existing free trade agreements to sue sovereign nations who pass certain l