Canada

"Federal Conservative senators have defeated a private-member's bill on climate change that was passed by the majority of MPs in the House of Commons, marking the first time Prime Minister Stephen Harper has used the clout he has built in the Upper Chamber to kill a law his minority government does not support."

The possibility of producing natural gas from shale formations beneath central Quebec is raising the same debate about its perils and promises as is raging in U.S. states.

"The controversial chemical bisphenol A can render roundworms sterile, kill their embryos, and damage their chromosomes, according to a new lab study."

"Taking any public health measures to ban or control bisphenol A — as Canada recently did — is premature since evidence of its alleged health risks is not strong enough, the World Health Organization said Tuesday."

"Canada's lakes and rivers are awash in harmful contaminants, but new documents warn the federal government's murky understanding of the problem is putting the country at risk."

"The Canadian government [Tuesday] turned down a proposal for a gold-copper mine in central British Columbia due to environmental concerns, while authorizing a second gold-copper mine on B.C.'s northwest coast to proceed."

"An embattled first nations community situated in the heart of Ontario's Chemical Valley will announce a landmark lawsuit Monday morning targeting the province's role in long-standing health problems throughout the town and neighbouring city of Sarnia."

"Battle lines have been hardening over the proposed Keystone XL pipeline over the last couple of weeks. The pipeline, which will stretch from Alberta in Canada to refineries on the Gulf Coast, would nearly double the United States' capacity to import oil made from Canadian oil sands. Canadian oil sands are a plentiful and secure source of oil, but the extraction process is high in carbon dioxide emissions and takes a toll on pristine Canadian forest ecosystems."

"The New Brunswick and Nova Scotia governments should declare a moratorium on licensing new salmon farms, says the Atlantic Coalition for Aquaculture Reform."