CARA CHELLEW: Environment Canada is failing to enforce environmental protection regulations, warns Canada’s federal environment commissioner Scott Vaughan in his annual report to parliament.

In his report, Vaughan states the agency does not have adequate information on whom it is regulating and is not to penalizing offenders in a fair and consistent manner.

NDP environment critic Megan Leslie points to problems in leadership where there has been five different environment ministers over the past five years.

Current Environment Minister Peter Kent believes Vaughan failed to recognize that the government has made significant investments and improvements in 2007 and 2008.

The report also recommends better oversight for Transport Canada when moving dangerous goods and stronger emergency procedures for the country’s 70 000 kilometers of oil and natural gas pipelines. [ index ]

CARA CHELLEW: The city of Surrey BC has signed a 9 million dollar contract with BFI Canada for sustainable trash collection.

Trucks will eventually be powered by kitchen scraps, yard waste, and other organics and by next October, trash will be collected by natural gas trucks that emit 23 percent less carbon emissions and 90 percent less air particulates than traditional diesel trucks.

The city hope of diverting 70 percent of the city’s waste from the landfill by 2015 and is well on its way.

Residential garbage has been reduced by 45 percent since the city began its pilot organics program last year. [ index ]

CARA CHELLEW: Chiquita Brands International is joining a handful of other US companies in boycotting oil produced from Canada’s tar sands.

Working to lower its environmental footprint, Chiquita has joined with environmental group ForestEthics to find ways to stop using tar sands derived fuel to ship its produce.

Following a market trend against the tar sands, the move by Chiquita and 15 other US companies is forcing trucking companies and fuel suppliers to take action.

Extracting fuel from the tar sands is extremely energy intensive and produces toxic emissions which has been linked to higher rates of cancer in people living downwind and downstream from the operations. [ index ]

LIA MAZZOLINI: The green theme is getting a lot more attention in Hollywood, in the last year. 5 Eco-centric documentary films have made the 2012 Oscar shortlist. Among the 15 films on the list for best documentaries in the 84th annual Academy Awards, five of the films cover environmental and animal issues.

Project Nim, Jane’s Journey, Battle for Brooklyn, Semper Fi: Always Faithful and If a Tree Falls are all competing for best documentary. Project Nim reflects the life experience of a chimpanzee living in captivity. Jane’s Journey is about activist Dr. Jane Goodall’s life and work. Battle for Brooklyn takes place in the New York neighbourhood, and shows the efforts made by the community to stop overbuilding by developers. Semper Fi: Always Faithful follows an ex-marine’s journey that uncovers illegal industrial dumping sites that are contaminating the water. Lastly, If a Tree Falls investigates issues surrounding Daniel McGowan and his environmental activism.

Film critics say there has been a rise in popularity of the subject matter surrounding the environment and predict there will be more green Oscar-worthy films in the future. [ index ]

LIA MAZZOLINI: Germany has granted 20 young scientists from around the world, the chance to participate in extensive research on climate change and sustainability. The project is part of Berlin’s push to get 80 percent of its energy from renewable sources by 2050.

The selected scholars will embark in a fully funded, three-month research projects in Germany costing a whopping €2 billion, announced on Thursday December 15.

There were awards called “Green Talents,” given to scientists and engineers from China, India, Brazil, South Africa, the United States and other places in Latin America and Asia.

Deputy research minister, Thomas Rachel, who handed out the awards says that their efforts will help develop and improve environmentally friendly and sustainable technologies to combat climate change for the globe.

Germany runs several cooperation agreements with many countries to support sustainability, renewable energies and environmentally friendly urban and industrial development in Asia, Latin America and Africa. [ index ]

LIA MAZZOLINI: Pictures have surfaced of Arctic polar bears turning to cannibalism because of dwindling food sources.

While cannibalism isn’t completely unheard of among polar bears, instances have been on the rise over the last few years. Climate change is causing ice to melt, trapping polar bears on land for extended periods of time. Researchers believe that as the area of sea ice declines, fewer seals are accessible to the bears leading to increased acts of cannibalism.

Environmental photojournalist, Jenny Ross shot polar bears eating their own kind including helpless cubs. Ross took pictures to show evidence of the unfortunate circumstance of what the polar bears are resorting to in order to survive. She added that even the attack method resembled the predatory nature of how seals are hunted and killed.

In 2007, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service proposed to list the polar bear as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act primarily because of the decline of sea ice. [ index ]