Keystone XL pipeline passes U.S. State Dept. environment test

Report is not final step in the years-long battle, but it could prove crucial

CBC News Posted: Jan 31, 2014 7:16 AM ET Last Updated: Jan 31, 2014 3:21 PM ET

The U.S. State Department gave a vote of confidence to the Keystone XL pipeline on Friday, saying in a report that it has no major environmental objections to the construction of the megaproject.

The report says development of the massive pipeline to move oil from Alberta to refineries on the U.S. Gulf Coast won't significantly increase the rate of oil extraction and create and unacceptable level of greenhouse gases.

That had been a key hurdle standing in the way of the project's approval.

More to come

A final decision may not come for several months, but this study is seen as a critical step in determining whether the project will go ahead.

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Rob Ford beating claims merit police probe, lawyer says

The lawyer for the man who filed a lawsuit against Rob Ford alleging that Toronto's mayor conspired to have him severely beaten in jail is calling on police to investigate the incident.

"It is evident that a violent crime was committed," Scott Gleason told CBC News. "It should be investigated."

Gleason is representing Scott MacIntyre, a former relative of the Ford family, who filed a lawsuit against the mayor on Wednesday.

MacIntyre, the former common-law spouse of Rob Ford's sister, Kathy, claims he was beaten in the spring of 2012 while he was in jail on charges of threatening the mayor.

MacIntyre's lawsuit alleges Ford conspired with some of his former high school football team colleagues to try to silence him over what he knew about the mayor's private activities.

"I'm pleased to hear that the police and ministry officials are prepared to investigate the brutal treatment of our client. I don't know why it took almost two years for them to become interested," Gleason told CBC News in an emailed statement.

But Toronto police spokesman Mark Pugash said Friday that the TPS is not investigating because MacIntyre has not filed an official complaint.

"If he files a complaint, or reports a crime, we'll investigate," Pugash said.

Police will not commence a criminal probe simply because MacIntyre has filed a civil lawsuit, he added.

The allegations against Ford have not been tested in court. The mayor's criminal lawyer, Dennis Morris, said Wednesday the allegations are "without factual foundation."

Ford has 30 days to file a statement of defence.

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Giant tumbling boulders narrowly miss Italian farmhouse

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Prince Charles calls climate change deniers 'headless chicken brigade'

Doubters of man-made global warming a 'headless chicken brigade,' Charles says

The Associated Press Posted: Jan 31, 2014 12:59 PM ET Last Updated: Jan 31, 2014 12:59 PM ET

Prince Charles has called people who deny human-made climate change a "headless chicken brigade" who are ignoring overwhelming scientific evidence.

The heir to the British throne, a dedicated environmentalist, accused "powerful groups of deniers" of mounting "a barrage of sheer intimidation" against opponents.

He made the comments at a Buckingham Palace awards ceremony on Thursday.

Charles said it was "baffling ... that in our modern world we have such blind trust in science and technology that we all accept what science tells us about everything — until, that is, it comes to climate science."

He praised finalists for the Prince of Wales Young Sustainability Entrepreneur Prize for having "the far-sightedness and confidence in what they know is happening to ignore the headless chicken brigade and do something practical to help."

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Yahoo says email accounts hacked, passwords stolen

Usernames and passwords of some of Yahoo's email customers have been stolen and used to gather personal information about people those Yahoo mail users have recently corresponded with, the company said Thursday.

Yahoo didn't say how many accounts have been affected. Yahoo is the second-largest email service worldwide, after Google's Gmail, according to the research firm comScore. There are 273 million Yahoo mail accounts worldwide, including 81 million in the United States.

It's the latest in a string of security breaches that have allowed hackers to nab personal information using software that analysts say is ever more sophisticated. Up to 70 million customers of Target stores had their personal information and credit and debit card numbers compromised late last year, and Neiman Marcus was the victim of a similar breach in December.

"It's an old trend, but it's much more exaggerated now because the programs the bad guys use are much more sophisticated now," says Avivah Litan, a security analyst at the technology research firm Gartner. "We're clearly under attack."

Using names to appear legitimate

Yahoo Inc. said in a blog post on its breach that "The information sought in the attack seems to be names and email addresses from the affected accounts' most recent sent emails."

That could mean hackers were looking for additional email addresses to send spam or scam messages. By grabbing real names from those sent folders, hackers could try to make bogus messages appear more legitimate to recipients.

"It's much more likely that I'd click on something from you if we email all the time," says Richard Mogull, analyst and CEO of Securois, a security research and advisory firm.

The bigger danger: access to email accounts could lead to more serious breaches involving banking and shopping sites.

That's because many people reuse passwords across many sites, and also because many sites use email to reset passwords. Hackers could try logging in to such a site with the Yahoo email address, for instance, and ask that a password reminder be sent by email.

2nd mishap in 2 months

Litan said hackers appear to be "trying to collect as much information as they can on people. Putting all this stuff together makes it easier to steal somebody's identity."

Yahoo said the usernames and passwords weren't collected from its own systems, but from a third-party database.

Because so many people use the same passwords across multiple sites, it's possible hackers broke in to some service that lets people use email addresses as their usernames. The hackers could have grabbed passwords stored at that service, filtered out the accounts with Yahoo addresses and used that information to log in to Yahoo's mail systems, said Johannes Ullrich, dean of research at the SANS Institute, a group devoted to security research and education.

The breach is the second mishap for Yahoo's mail service in two months. In December, the service suffered a multi-day outage that prompted Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer to issue an apology.

Yahoo said it is resetting passwords on affected accounts and has "implemented additional measures" to block further attacks. The company would not comment beyond the information in its blog post. It said it is working with federal law enforcement.

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Near crash of 2 tractor-trailers, snowplow captured on video

Video

OPP investigate after video shows camera-outfitted tractor-trailer hitting guardrail near Nipigon

CBC News Posted: Jan 30, 2014 3:38 PM ET Last Updated: Jan 31, 2014 11:06 AM ET

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Canada's economy expands for 5th straight month

CBC News Posted: Jan 31, 2014 9:00 AM ET Last Updated: Jan 31, 2014 9:00 AM ET

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Keystone XL pipeline report expected today, CNN says

New

The Canadian Press Posted: Jan 31, 2014 7:16 AM ET Last Updated: Jan 31, 2014 7:16 AM ET

An environmental impact study into the Keystone XL pipeline project is likely to be announced on Friday afternoon, a U.S. media report says.

CNN cites two senior administration officials and another unidentified source familiar with the timing.

• Keystone XL report expected to be positive


• Pipeline map: Have there been any incidents near you?


• Keystone XL 'limbo' needs to end soon, Baird tells U.S.

Once the results are out, eight U.S. agencies will examine them, then send their observations to Secretary of State John Kerry. President Barack Obama would then decide whether or not to approve the pipeline.

A final decision may not come for several months, but this study is seen as a critical step in determining whether the project will go ahead.

If ultimately approved, the TransCanada Corp. pipeline would ship bitumen from Alberta's oilsands to refineries on the U.S. Gulf Coast.

Supporters say the pipeline would reduce imports from overseas and create jobs while opponents warn against potential environmental damage.

One diplomat in Washington told The Canadian Press this week that the results are "going to be positive for the project."

Earlier this month, Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird was in Washington pleading for a quick decision. He said enough time had been lost on the project and didn't want to see another construction season wasted.

Kerry responded that there would be no fast-tracking the process.

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Elliot Lake mall collapse investigation update expected

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Collapse killed 2 people: Doloris Perizzolo, 74, and Lucie Aylwin, 37

The Canadian Press Posted: Jan 31, 2014 4:38 AM ET Last Updated: Jan 31, 2014 4:38 AM ET

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Thieves steal $700K in watches from NYC Cartier store display

New

Five masked men smashed glass display case in broad daylight

Thomson Reuters Posted: Jan 31, 2014 12:35 AM ET Last Updated: Jan 31, 2014 12:35 AM ET

Five masked men smashed a glass case in a posh New York City jewelry store on Thursday, grabbing 17 watches in a daring robbery in broad daylight, police said.

The five men walked into the Cartier store on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan at about 12:30 p.m. ET, carrying hammers, police said.

Police did not say how much the stolen watches were worth but city newspapers said the timepieces are valued at more than $700,000 US or more than $782,000 Cdn.

There were no arrests in the case, police said.

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Rob Ford sticks up for Justin Bieber: 'He's a young guy'

Toronto Mayor Rob Ford is sticking up for another headline-grabbing Canadian — Justin Bieber.

Ford was asked about the pop singer when he spoke by phone today to hosts on the Washington, D.C.-based Sports Junkies radio show.

Ford said Bieber is only 19 and asked the radio personalities, who called Bieber "Canada's worst export," to think back to when they were that age. On Wednesday, Bieber was charged in Toronto with assault.

Ford, who has become internationally known for his many headline grabbing moments in recent months, says he's never met Bieber and is not a fan of his music, preferring Rush and Led Zeppelin.

Bieber has a court date on March 10 in connection with allegations the pop star hit a limousine driver in the back of the head when he was in Toronto on Dec. 30.

Bieber is also facing charges of driving under the influence, resisting arrest and driving with an expired licence in Florida. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges in Florida and his Canadian lawyer says Bieber is innocent of the Toronto charge.

Ford was also asked by the radio hosts about a lawsuit filed against him from his sister's ex-boyfriend, alleging the mayor conspired to have him attacked in jail to prevent his illicit behaviours from becoming publicly known.

The mayor said he would not discuss the matter since it is before the courts, but his lawyer said Wednesday the allegations are "without fact or foundation."

Ford's comment on Bieber was: "He's a young guy, 19 years old. I wish I was as successful as he was."

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Ontario raising minimum wage to $11 an hour

Breaking

The Canadian Press Posted: Jan 30, 2014 7:06 AM ET Last Updated: Jan 30, 2014 10:19 AM ET

Ontario's Liberal government is raising the minimum wage to $11 an hour effective June 1. The increase of 75 cents an hour was announced today.

The Liberals say they will introduce legislation to tie future increases to the rate of inflation.

More to come

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Doctors trying to bring Michael Schumacher out of coma

New

Former F1champ hit head on rock while skiing in Meribel, France on Dec. 29

The Associated Press Posted: Jan 30, 2014 7:08 AM ET Last Updated: Jan 30, 2014 7:14 AM ET

Michael Schumacher's manager says doctors have started the process of bringing the former Formula One champion out of the coma he has been in since a skiing accident a month ago.

The German was skiing in the French Alpine resort of Meribel on Dec. 29 when he fell and hit the right side of his head on a rock.

Former F1 driver Michael Schumacher, shown here in 2006, fell while skiing and struck his head on a rock in December 2013. (Ferrari/Associated Press)

Since then he has been in an induced comas in Grenoble University Hospital.

His manager Sabine Kehm says in a statement Thursday that "Michael's sedation is being reduced in order to allow the start of the waking up process which may take long time."

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Rob Ford hit with lawsuit alleging link to jailhouse assault

Toronto Mayor Rob Ford is being sued by his sister's ex-boyfriend for allegedly conspiring to have the man beaten in jail.

A statement of claim submitted by Scott MacIntyre alleges the mayor and two others were behind an assault at a Toronto jail which took place in March 2012.

The suit also names Ontario's Ministry of Correctional Services, which is responsible for the province's jails.

Ford's lawyer has confirmed that the mayor was named in a statement of claim submitted by MacIntyre.

MacIntyre used to be in a relationship with Ford's sister Kathy.

None of the lawsuit's claims have been proven in court.

Ford, 44, was elected as the mayor of Toronto in 2010. He has registered to run for re-election this fall.

His three-plus years at the helm of the city government have been controversial, as Ford has consistently made headlines both for his work at Toronto City Hall and for his life outside of it.

Since his election as mayor, Ford has survived a conflict-of-interest challenge that threatened to oust him from office and also seen a defamation lawsuit against him dismissed in court.

Ford is seen speaking with Deputy Mayor Norm Kelly at Toronto City Hall earlier this month. Council voted to transfer some of Ford's powers to Kelly after details about a drug-related scandal involving the mayor were publicly revealed. (Chris Young/Canadian Press)

In May of last year, reports emerged that someone had been offering to sell a video that showed Ford using crack.

For months Ford denied both using drugs and the video's existence, but later admitted to having smoked crack after police revealed in October that they had obtained the video.

He also admitted to buying illegal drugs while serving in office and also to drinking to excess.

The drug-related scandal involving the mayor made headlines around the world and made Ford a frequent topic of conversation on late-night talk shows.

Toronto City Council voted to strip the mayor of some of his powers in the wake of his admissions in November, transferring some of his powers to Deputy Mayor Norm Kelly.

Ford eventually said he was giving up drinking, though earlier this month, he admitted to having been drinking on a night that a bizarre video was filmed, which showed him ranting and speaking in Jamaican patois.

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Trudeau's Senate shakeup: Kady O'Malley answers your questions

Live chat preview

Kady O'Malley answers your questions about the MPs' return to Ottawa

CBC News Posted: Jan 29, 2014 8:48 AM ET Last Updated: Jan 29, 2014 10:12 AM ET

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• House to deliver verdict on NDP pitch for e-petitions by Kady O'Malley Jan. 29, 2014 8:31 AM MPs to pass judgement on private members bills on privacy, retirement income and union secret ballots this evening.

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• Tragedy in L'Isle-Verte raises questions on seniors' homes standards Jan. 25, 2014 6:47 AM This week on The House, following the tragedy in the small Quebec town of L'Isle-Verte, we ask whether seniors' homes require national safety standards? Quebec Public Security Minister Stéphane Bergeron joins us to discuss. Then, we get ready for Parliament's return on Monday.

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Ukraine considers conditional amnesty for protesters

New

1 proposal grants amnesty if protesters leave the streets, vacate buildings that they occupy

The Associated Press Posted: Jan 29, 2014 5:26 AM ET Last Updated: Jan 29, 2014 5:27 AM ET

Ukraine's parliament is considering measures to grant amnesty to those arrested during weeks of protests in the crisis-torn country, but possibly with conditions attached that would be unacceptable to the opposition.

Two proposals are up for a parliamentary vote Wednesday, one of which says amnesty would be granted only if demonstrators leave the streets and vacate buildings that they occupy.

• ANALYSIS: Ukraine roiled by protests, love-hate with Russia


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Over the course of two months, anti-government protesters have established a large tent camp in the main square of Kyiv and seized three buildings that they use as operations centres and sleeping quarters.

They have also erected large barricades of ice, wood and other material.

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'Ski buddy' not liable for heli-ski death, court rules

A widow whose husband died while helicopter skiing in southeastern B.C. has lost her lawsuit against his “ski buddy” for not keeping an eye on him.

Mark Kennedy died when he fell into a tree well on a remote mountain north of Revelstoke, B.C., while on a heli-skiing trip with Mike Wiegele Helicopter Skiing in January 2009.

Tree wells are deep narrow holes created next to the trunks of trees when heavy snow falls from the branches. People who fall in them can be trapped and suffocate in the deep snow.

The judge ruled Adrian Coe was not contractually liable in the death of his assigned 'ski buddy.' (CBC)

In her lawsuit, Kennedy's widow Elizabeth alleged her husband was paired with British skier Adrian Coe as “ski buddies.” She claimed Coe was therefore contractually obligated to stay close to him, keep him in sight, and assist or alert guides and other skiers if he observed his buddy in need of assistance.

The lawsuit alleged Coe failed to perform his duties as a “ski buddy” and therefore delayed the search and possibly a chance to rescue and revive Mark Kennedy.

• Read more about the lawsuit

But Justice Fisher dismissed the lawsuit in her ruling issued on Monday.

"It is indeed very sad that Mr. Kennedy met a tragic and untimely death, but he did so after a terrible accident while participating in a high-risk sport and responsibility for his death cannot be placed on Mr. Coe," wrote Fisher.

"It is my view that the nature of any obligations assumed by Mr. Coe and Mr. Kennedy was not contractual. There is no basis on which to find the existence of a contract or any contractual intention."

Coe's lawyers had argued he was paired with Kennedy without any consultation and that he alerted guides as soon as he noticed Kennedy was no longer with the group, shortly after Coe and the other skiers arrived at the bottom of the run.

The documents allege Kennedy had been on heli-skiing trips with the same operator at least four previous times and that he was well aware of the terrain and the risks involved with such an activity.

Kennedy was a successful trial lawyer in Colorado before his death. His wife, Elizabeth, has been given half the assets in his will amounting to more than $18 million. She was seeking compensation for the loss of her husband’s future earnings.

Reasons for Judgment: Kennedy and Coe

Read Elizabeth Kennedy's notice of civil claim and Adrian Coe's response online

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Cancer fighting purple tomatoes harvested in Ontario

A crop of genetically modified purple tomatoes designed to fight cancer has been grown and harvested in a greenhouse in Leamington, Ont.

The purple tomatoes have been genetically modified to have a higher amount of anthocyanins, an antioxidant found in blueberries, blackberries and plums. It's what gives those fruit their purple colours. Anthocyanins are also said to fight cancer.

• Health benefits of purple vegetables

New Energy Farms, based in Leamington, the tomato capital of Canada, grew the crop for professor Cathie Martin, a plant biologist at the John Innes Centre, in Norwich, U.K.

“It looks very similar to normal tomato crops. You really wouldn’t know any difference, apart from the colour of the fruit,” said New Energy Farms CEO Paul Carver.

The tomatoes were grown in a controlled greenhouse environment and handpicked. The juice was extracted and the seeds and plants were then burned to prevent cross-contamination.

The 2,000 litres of purple tomato juice processed from the crop will be sent to British heart patients in early February.

Martin's research has found the tomatoes rich in anthocyanins help fight cardiovascular disease, as well as cancer.

"When mice [with cancer] were fed a diet supplemented with purple tomatoes, they lived 30 per cent longer than those with a diet supplemented with red tomatoes,” she said.

Martin said the purple tomatoes also have anti-inflammatory properties.

Martin said research shows “complementary health advantages for people diagnosed with major chronic disease, particularly cancer.”

“We’re not saying this is a standalone therapy,” she said.

Martin’s team had New Energy Farms grow the tomatoes in Canada because European regulations governing genetically modified foods are stricter than they are here

“Canada was an unbelievably good choice because you have a very enlightened view of regulatory approval,” Martin said.

“It was easier to do this in Canada than elsewhere,” said Carver, whose company also has facilities in Europe.

Martin said because blueberries are seasonal and more expensive, growing the genetically modified tomatoes is a better option.

Not everyone supports genetically modified foods.

Shiv Chopra, who was a senior scientist for Health Canada for 35 years, said genetically modified foods are “just hypothetical claims to sell a product.”

“These are all gimmicks just to make a special controlled product so they can control patents,” Chopra said.

The purple tomatoes look similar to the red ones, except for the colour. (Courtesy Cathie Martin/John Innes Centre)

Chopra said once a company patents a crop, it can "go and destroy everything else" and only the genetically modified crop would be left for sale.

Chopra said genetically modified foods lead to “monocultures,” defined as the cultivation or growth of a single crop.

“A monoculture in nature doesn’t survive. It’s susceptible to diseases,” Chopra said. “The danger is, you will end up losing that whole line of product.”

Martin said “there is nothing inherently dangerous about the technology.”

“All we’re trying to do is provide consumers with choice,” Martin said. "I believe very strongly that if there’s a benefit to what we’ve done, I want to get it out there to consumers.

“There will be people who don’t want it and that’s fine by me.”

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Couple arrested in N.S. charged in 2 Ontario deaths

A common-law couple has been arrested in Nova Scotia and charged in the deaths of a mother and son from Mississauga, Ont., who police say were killed three years apart.

Earlier today, Peel Regional Police said they had made arrests in the death of Caleb Harrison, 41, who was found dead in his Mississauga home on Pitch Pine Crescent last summer.

Harrison was discovered dead inside his home on Aug. 23, 2013. A co-worker found him there after he had failed to show up to work.

His mother, Bridget, had died in the same home in 2010, at the age of 63. An obituary that was published after her death said only that she had "passed suddenly."

Her death had been considered suspicious, but police had not initially deemed it a homicide. However, after Caleb Harrison was found dead, police say they undertook "new avenues of investigation" and determined that his mother had been killed as well.

At an afternoon press conference Tuesday, police said that both mother and son died of asphyxiation.

William Harrison, the wife of Bridget and father of Caleb, died in 2009 at the age of 65.

Police said they initially believed he had died of natural causes, though the cause is now considered unknown and is currently under investigation.

Melissa Merritt, 33, and her common-law husband, Christopher Fattore, 36, were arrested near Bridgewater, N.S., on Tuesday. They are jointly charged with two counts of first-degree murder.

Police say Merritt is the ex-wife of Caleb Harrison.

Police believe that Merritt and Fattore had been living in Nova Scotia for about four months.

They will be transported back to Ontario and are due to appear in a Brampton court on Friday.

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Angry Birds may be watching: Snowden docs suggest NSA uses phone apps

New

Apps such as Angry Birds, Google Maps can feed American, British spies huge amounts of data

The Associated Press Posted: Jan 27, 2014 2:49 PM ET Last Updated: Jan 27, 2014 2:49 PM ET

Documents leaked by former NSA contactor Edward Snowden suggest that spy agencies have a powerful ally in the apps installed on smartphones across the globe.

The documents, published by The New York Times, the Guardian, and ProPublica, suggest that the mapping, gaming, and social networking apps available on smartphones can feed America's National Security Agency and Britain's GCHQ spy agency with huge amounts of personal data.

• Edward Snowden says NSA engages in industrial espionage


• Why Edward Snowden did us all a favour

Little is known about the scope and scale of the program, but all three publications outlined how data could be harvested from apps such as the Angry Birds game franchise or Google's popular mapping service.

The NSA said Monday it focused on "valid foreign intelligence targets." GCHQ did not immediately return an email seeking comment.

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Mystery illness hits more than 600 passengers, crew on Caribbean cruise

More than 600 passengers and crew members fell ill aboard a Royal Caribbean cruise ship, with symptoms that included vomiting and diarrhea, the Centers for Disease Control said on Monday.

The latest figure doubles initial reports of some 300 affected by what cruise officials called a gastrointestinal illness, and includes 577 passengers and 49 crew members, a CDC official said.

The company has said the 10-day Caribbean cruise would end two days early, with the ship returning to its home port in New Jersey on Wednesday.

"New reports of illness have decreased day-over-day, and many guests are again up and about," Royal Caribbean said in a written statement on Sunday. "Nevertheless, the disruptions caused by the early wave of illness means that we were unable to deliver the vacation our guests were expecting."

The CDC said in a statement that passengers and crew members aboard the Explorer of the Seas reported becoming sick during the voyage. The ship was carrying 3,050 passengers and a crew of 1,165.

The ship departed Cape Liberty, New Jersey on Jan. 21.

The CDC said Monday the cause of the sickness was unknown but that an environmental safety officer and an epidemiologist boarded the ship on Sunday in St. Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands to determine the cause of the outbreak and the proper response.

The ship's crew increased cleaning and disinfection procedures and collected specimens from those who reported being ill following the outbreak, the CDC said.

"After consultation between our medical team and representatives of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, we think the right thing to do is to bring our guests home early, and use the extra time to sanitize the ship even more thoroughly," Royal Caribbean said in the statement.

The cruise line said it believes the illnesses are consistent with norovirus, a highly contagious virus spread from an infected person, contaminated food or water, or by touching contaminated surfaces, according to the CDC.

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Ukrainian minister wants state of emergency declared

New

Protesters have occupied 4 buildings, including city hall, in downtown Kyiv

The Associated Press Posted: Jan 27, 2014 4:34 AM ET Last Updated: Jan 27, 2014 4:44 AM ET

Ukraine's justice minister is threatening to call for a state of emergency unless protesters leave the ministry building that they occupied during the night.

• ANALYSIS: Ukraine roiled by protests, love-hate with Russia


• Harper to call emergency debate on Ukraine

The seizure of the building early Monday underlined how anti-government demonstrators are increasingly willing to take dramatic actions as they push for the president's resignation and other demands. Protesters now occupy four sizable buildings in downtown Kyiv, including the city hall.

Justice Minister Elena Lukash said early Monday that she would ask the national security council to impose a state of emergency if the protesters don't quit the building. But she did not specify a deadline for leaving.

Imposing a state of emergency likely would cause anger to spike among protesters, who have clashed with police repeatedly over the past week. Three protesters have died.

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