PLANET IN PERIL

Bloomberg News Tanzanian Natural Resources Minster Lazaro Nyalandu said reports are false that the government would evict 40,000 ethnic Maasai from traditional lands being sold to rich Middle Eastern investors. Story here.

CBC News Marmot. Photo credit: Quirks  and Quarks  86% of country's at risk species stay at same risk level or have deteriorated over time. Story here.

      SUM       of    + US                   Fighting for people over profit. Sign the petition to Tanzania's President. President Kikwete: keep your promise to the Maasai people and cancel the deal that would kick them off their ancestral land to make way for a Dubai-owned hunting reserve, and guarantee permanent rights to their lands in writing.   CLICK HERE TO SIGN THE PETITION !

Inter Press Service Jon Sarmiento, a farmer in the Cavite province in southern Manila, plants a variety of fruits and vegetables, but his main crop, rice, is under threat. He claims that approval by the Philippine government of the genetically modified ‘golden rice’ that is fortified with beta-carotene, which the body converts into vitamin A, could ruin his livelihood. Story here.

by George Monbiot                                                                                  Pine grosbeaks in Manitoba, CA. PinP photos by Larry Powell. As governments tear down the rules that defend our wildlife from extinction,  here’s a positive attempt to stop the wreckage. Story here.

Climate Progress The North American anti-pipeline movement just received a significant injection of financial and psychological energy, and it started with a book award. Story here.

David Suzuki Foundation Swallowtail butterfly. Larry Powell PinP photo. The Ontario government announced a plan today to protect bees, butterflies and other pollinating insects from the harmful effects of neonicotinoid, or neonic, pesticides. In a discussion paper posted to the Ontario Environmental Bill of Rights (EBR) registry , the government outlined a strategy to reduce the use of neonic-coated seeds in the province by 80 per cent by 2017. Story here. Related: "Canada's Biggest Province, Ontario, Acts to Protect Bees While The Federal Government Twiddles Its Thumbs" 

United Nations News Centre A veggie basket from an organic farm in Manitoba, CA.  Larry Powell  PinP  photo. A healthy diet can help to alleviate risk factors for a range of chronic diseases linked to obesity.  Details here. Related: "R esearch Suggests Our Past, Prolific Use of the Insecticide DDT May Still Be Contributing To A Scourge Of Modern-Day Diseases Related To Obesity."

Flood Control, Water Quality, Carbon Storage,  Wildlife to Benefit:  Minister Mackintosh Photo credit - Town of Gladstone.  A Lake Manitoba wetland about five times the size of Birds Hill Park called Big Grass Marsh has been donated by the municipalities of Lakeview and Westbourne for conservation, making this the largest such land donation in the province’s history, Conservation and Water Stewardship Minister Gord Mackintosh announced today.  This is the largest conservation agreement of its kind in Canada.

Robyn O'Brien Last week, Dr. Thierry Vrain, a former scientist with the federal government in Canada, reached out after watching an interview I did with Dr. Ray Seidler, a former senior scientist at the EPA.  Story here.