The Nature Force is of extreme importance as according to the Insurance Institute of Canada’s (IIC) 2020 report, the average cost of claims associated with extreme weather is expected to rise by 138% annually, growing up to $5 billion. As you can see, this is an issue that must be addressed now, and that’s what The Nature Force intends to do. As mentioned, this will be done through increasing natural infrastructure through the conservation and restoration of the wetlands that help attenuate flood risk.

Source: The Nature Force

I was provided the opportunity to speak to Mark Gloutney, national director of science for Ducks Unlimited Canada about this project and had a great conversation about it. When asked how this initiative was started, Mark said that this industry-first initiative came about as a result of Ducks Unlimited Canada realising the opportunities that a partnership between themselves and insurance companies would bring. They recognised that there should be a linkage between the insurance industry and the work they do due to the flood attenuating impacts of Ducks Unlimited and because the risk of flood loss and damage is only going to increase in the years to come. This resulted in conversations between Ducks Unlimited Canada, and Tina Osen, President of HUB Canada. Mark stated that Tina was extremely instrumental in the success of planning and organising this project. Tina realised that this project could be catalytic in its nature, and set out on gathering other insurance industry players. They realised that this is a way to do something that would help demonstrate how natural solutions and infrastructure can be part of the solution to climate change, and as a result, 15 insurance companies are now partnered with The Nature Force. Mark said that what’s especially great about this is that Ducks Unlimited Canada will be forming an advisory, or oversight committee with key representatives from HUB to ensure that the vision of The Nature Force stays on track and that there’s good dialogue, traction, messaging and vision between the insurance sector and Ducks Unlimited Canada.

Moving on, I had a few questions for Mark surrounding the planning and execution of this project. Mark went on to elaborate that they would be setting up three pilot projects. One in Ontario, one in Quebec, and one in the Fraser Delta in British Columbia. These projects will demonstrate that natural infrastructure is part of the solution, and allow them to build models which will help understand what features in a particular watershed will have the most consequence for flood attenuation and climate resilience. The plan is that once these are identified, Ducks Unlimited Canada will come in and complete restoration work on these sites. Once completed, they can take the results to the government, policymakers, and municipal planners so that this knowledge can be integrated into future land use planning decisions. This information can then also be shared with other conservation authorities to demonstrate how natural infrastructure can be integrated. Importantly he noted, once this is done it won’t be solely on the insurance industry to pay for the investment, but society as a whole, as all levels of society will recognise this as a solution, over time increasing investments and increasing climate resiliency across the Canadian landscape.

Now that I understood how the project would work, I was curious about any case studies, or examples that were worked on while preparing. Mark explained that Ducks Unlimited Canada had done a lot of modeling in Ontario that looked at the capacity of wetlands in terms of their ability to store water and function on the landscape like a sponge. He then goes on to outline that they had done quite a bit of work with Dr. Blair Feltmate, Head of the Intact Centre on Climate Adaptation. With Dr. Feltmate’s, help they modeled the Credit river in Toronto, observing what would happen in two different storm events with differing instances of wetland environments, and seeing how the flood level changed with these variables. Dr. Feltmate and the Intact Centre on Climate Adaptation have access to economic consequence information, and with their help, it was possible to show the economic consequences of these differing flood events. This was formative in their research because it was clear that as you modelled the loss of the wetlands on that watershed you saw property value loss increasing dramatically for both storm events. This was completed about three years ago and the team in Ontario has been working with these results to create The Nature Force. 

The Nature Force begins its planning stage this April 2022, as such, I asked Mark if there are any timelines in place for this project. He stated that the initial stages starting in April will be a period of planning where watersheds to be modelled will be chosen, conservation and planning partners will be assembled, and then a model will be built that states the four or five restoration solutions that will have the biggest impact in reducing the floods. This will take a little while and it is expected that they will be doing restoration in Ontario and Quebec by around next spring. He goes on to say that the Fraser Delta may take a little longer due to the complexity of the landscape it is situated on. This complexity is due both to land interest, as well as the topography of the land and proximity to the ocean of the delta, which results in differing conditions to those found in Ontario or Quebec. 

Understanding how the project was planned to take place, I was curious about any challenges that The Nature Force has faced, or anticipate in the future, and how they planned on dealing with these. Mark outlined that one of the main issues anticipated is surrounding land ownership. In an ideal scenario, you can find a watershed with the right assembly of partners to make conservation easy, however, this is often not the case. Instances of conservation efforts on agricultural land require models to show what is gained and lost for society through this conservation. Private land ownership is always tricky as well as this is of course, on private property – in these cases the landowners are negotiated with to try to suit the needs of the landowner, as well as the needs of society by attenuating flood risk. Another challenge is associated with the regulatory environment which is always rather uncertain, and there are always elements that cannot be anticipated. Another challenge that was of interest was whether or not species at risk are situated in these areas. Due to the regulatory environment, these species are protected on an individual basis, rather than looking at the population. This means that while a project may be beneficial to the species in the long term if an individual, or individuals in the area are impacted by the project, it may need to be adjusted to suit this regulatory environment. 

As evidenced through the resources provided on The Nature Force website, as well as the conversation with Mark Gloutney, it is clear that this project is of extreme importance, and also being set up well for success. Hopefully, this project will indeed be catalytic in its nature and spark more conversations and projects around climate change mitigation and adaptation, especially through the use of natural infrastructure and wetland conservation. With the planning stage under-way as of this April, I look forward to seeing the projects begin next spring and share the same excitement as Mark and The Nature Force in seeing the results from these projects turned into positive, climate change mitigating action over the coming years.

The post The Nature Force appeared first on A\J.

Environmental Value

Rivers come in many different shapes and sizes and present themselves as habitat for many species across the globe. Rivers are known to have some of the richest biodiversity in the world, and yes it goes beyond just fish. From snails, to alligators, to pollutant-sucking plants and piranhas; the habitat these rivers supply is of immense value to the world’s aquatic organisms. According to the Living Planet Index, freshwater vertebrate species have declined by 81% since 1970, which is a steeper decline than both terrestrial and marine species. Conserving freshwater species is important to ensure that our ecosystems are resilient to changes in the environment, as these ecosystems provide us with many other benefits related to culture and economics as well.

Additionally, rivers help us regulate our climate, which is becoming more important with increasing concerns of climate change. Rivers across the world help reduce the amount of carbon in the atmosphere by flushing carbon from land into the ocean. Scientists have estimated that the world’s rivers transport 200 million tons of carbon to the ocean every year. This equals about 0.02% percent of the total mass of carbon in the atmosphere. Over thousands of years, that number really adds up to significant amounts of carbon taken out of the atmosphere, which can no longer contribute to atmospheric warming and climate change. Rivers also play a significant role in several other environmental processes such as nutrient cycling and air quality regulation.

Cultural Value

Rivers are vital to maintaining the function of ecosystems and the environment, yet their cultural importance is often overlooked. Since ancient times, rivers have influenced the way we live our everyday lives and our relationship to the environment, whether through farming, fishing, or powering homes. Fishing communities have always relied on the conservation of this resource to supply food and promote trade, especially among indigenous communities. Several agricultural communities benefit from rivers since farmers can use natural streams to develop and enhance irrigation systems to reliably water their crops. Despite the Nile River being the longest in the world, its cultural importance is like that of the Don River in Toronto. The Nile River was the means of life for settlements since 6000 BCE. The Nile holds religious significance since civilizations believed that the gods were responsible for annual flooding of the river, which deposited fertile soil along the riverbanks. Furthermore, the river was also a source of recreation among Egyptians, commonly used for water jousting and swimming.

In southern Toronto, like any other port, the city’s shoreline and the Don River have been built out extensively over the past century. Because of this development, and the sharp angles of the mouth of the Don River (which do not allow for the slowing of water like a winding river does), there is extensive flooding during rainy seasons. The federal, provincial, and municipal  governments have invested millions of dollars to re-naturalize the mouth of the Don River to reduce flooding within the city. The re-naturalization project has allowed for the revitalization of contaminated port lands in which oil and chemical industries historically dominated. Moreover, this will also allow city dwellers to escape the “city aesthetic” and immerse themselves in nature, hopefully improving mental and physical health. The Don River and Nile River are two of thousands that have the power to cultivate life and stimulate economic growth.

Economic Value

Rivers are of great economic importance, with many coastal communities globally depending on rivers to support their livelihoods. The most apparent economic value of our rivers is the drinking water source it supplies; it is estimated that 2 billion people receive their drinking water supply from dammed rivers. Indirectly, our existence fully depends on a river’s water supply as the driver of agricultural irrigation and hydropower. Less apparent is the dependence of the transport, tourism, and fishing industry on rivers. Historically, societies have always been found near water, due to the ease of transportation from ports. Rivers and their canals were vital to the transport of goods and people globally, and today there are more than 17,700 km of commercially significant navigation channels in the United States alone. Additionally, river tourism is a major economic resource supplying transportation, spectacular views, as well as supplying a sense of heritage and adventure. Rivers, particularly those that are left in their natural state, support some of the largest freshwater fish harvests in the world. A good example would be the Mekong River in East Asia which has an annual harvest of 4.4 million tonnes, valued at $17 billion USD per year. Unfortunately, migratory freshwater fish populations have declined by 76% since 1970, with the biggest driver being habitat degradation. Continual degradation of rivers due to human activities will undoubtedly jeopardize the vital source of food and livelihood that water supports, especially for vulnerable, rural communities and third world countries.

With increasing threats such as habitat degradation, climate change, and much more our rivers are at greater risk than ever before. River restoration projects are receiving more attention as a result, yet more can be done. In conclusion, there are many distinct reasons that make it necessary to maintain the health of our rivers across the world. From preserving the environment, to conserving our own culture and economies, humans have a high stake in the wellbeing of our rivers and their ecosystems. Individually, being a steward for rivers will help them continue to thrive for future generations.

This article is part of our March 2021 Western Student Editorial Series – a series that showcases the works of students in the Collaborative Specialization in Environment and Sustainability program. Read more articles from this series here!

The post Why is it Vital to Conserve Rivers? appeared first on A\J.

 –Ismail Serageldin, (1995)

– “The only problem with this scenario is a lack of evidence.”

–Aaron Wolf

Back in 2018, two A\J journalists wrote a story on Cape Town, South Africa. Following a lengthy drought, the city was facing an expected date for their municipal water supply to run dry- dubbed “day zero”. While I was aware of dwindling fresh water resources on a global scale, the idea of a dam supporting millions of people going completely dry seemed like something out of a Hollywood movie. Luckily, through the residents of Cape Town’s strenuous water conservation efforts, the city was able to avoid day zero from ever becoming a reality.

Freshwater availability on a regional scale is complex and depends on a variety of factors including population size, climatic norms, reservoir fluxes, and socio-political instability. While some regions of the world are rich in water resources, like Lagos, they lack government leadership and aging water infrastructure means that the water that does come out of the taps often isn’t safe to drink. Meanwhile other regions, like Cape Town or East Australia, are susceptible to drought and water shortages as the reservoirs in which they source their water cannot replenish themselves fast enough to keep up with increasing demand.

Variable rainfall as a result of climate change makes Australia particularly prone to droughts// SOURCE: CBC

We do not have a lot of freshwater available to us here on earth. In fact, we have extraordinarily little. Only 2.5% of all water on earth is freshwater, and 99% of that freshwater trapped in glacial reserves so it is not easily accessible to humans. This means, only 0.007% of all freshwater on earth is currently available for human use. Most of this is used towards agricultural purposes, accounting for over 70% of freshwater withdrawal.

But many of the aquifers and rivers from which we source our freshwater are starting to dry up. At the time of writing this article, researchers predict the world will run completely out of fresh water in about 19 years. But, like Cape Town’s day zero, those estimates aren’t set in stone and will ultimately depend on how we use our water resources.

Cape Town rose to a certain level of fame being the first major city to almost run out of water on such a massive scale, but they are not alone. The effects of climate change and our disregard towards over-straining and polluting our water reservoirs means multiple cities across the globe are currently at risk for their own day zeros, including Beijing, Istanbul and London.

To add to the problem, researchers predict future political rifts surrounding water will likely occur where two nations share a transboundary water resource. A 2018 study examined different factors that affect a nation’s water availability like population growth, climate stress, or socio-economic power imbalances to determine which areas will be most at risk for future hydro-political tension (which is a nice way of saying water wars). They found areas which share rivers like the Nile, the Ganges, the Indus, the Tigris/Euphrates, and the Colorado, will be likely hot spots.

Likelihood of hydro political interaction as a result of water scarcity// SOURCE: GIZMODO

Unless we get serious about conserving water, are the water wars we’ve been hearing about really on the horizon?

David Brooks is a global water conservation and management expert, having spent his career advising NGO’s on transboundary water issues and researching freshwater management opportunities around the world. Brooks once said “Water wars may make good press, but they seldom make good politics. Even in the Middle East, where water is scarcer than anywhere else in the world, water has more often been a source of cooperation than of conflict.” Having heard little to dispute this water wars of the future scenario, I asked him to speak with me to explain what he meant by this.

“First of all, there won’t be any water wars,” Brooks told me, “People just do not go to war over water, it isn’t worthwhile. The only people who need large amounts of water are farmers, and they do not usually have a lot of political power. You can scrabble over water, but [scrabbles] are more likely to be intra-national instead of inter-national.”

“Water wars may make good press, but they seldom make good politics.” -David Brooks

Water wars or not, billions of people around the world still drink dirty water. And in the short future, more and more people will experience regional water scarcity as a result of climate change. So, as humans do, we find innovative ways to solve our problems. For example, we have found ways to make undrinkable water, drinkable.

Water desalination has been a promising option for sourcing our fresh water. Water desalination is the process of removing the minerals and salt from sea water by boiling water and capturing the steam (called thermal desalination) or forcing the water through a membrane (called reverse osmosis). Over the last decade, desalination plants have popped up all over the world in more arid regions like Israel, Saudi Arabia, and cities like San Diego. With warm, dry arid areas expected to worsen with climate change, desalination presents itself to be a unique opportunity as a potential drinking water source in areas prone to droughts. Unfortunately, many critics say this method is too extremely expensive and energy intensive.

Brooks claims while this method is energy intensive, it is becoming increasingly more cost effective. “Desalination is coming along very rapidly,” he says, “I once wrote ‘Desalination is to water, what nuclear power is to electricity- too expensive to use’. It is a great sentence but totally wrong. It is energy intensive, but the cost of desalination has just plummeted as people began to look at it with modern technology. Israel is essentially getting most of its drinking water from desalination! The next stage will be solar desalination because the cost of solar electricity has also plummeted.”

Israeli water desalination plant// SOURCE: United with Israel

This made me wonder, instead of spending all this money constructing water desalination plants, why don’t we just increase the price of water and conserve what we already have?

We price water much too low for the value it provides to us. But simply increasing the price of water has its own problems. “You immediately get to an equity question; what about poor people?” Brooks asked me, “You can give 100 litres of water per day for free; that’s enough for a family to live with… and by the time you’re making a swimming pool or something, then people can pay more for it.”

The idea of giving everyone a set amount of water they can use, then charging extra for those who want to waste it seems fair to me. But I must admit, as an environmentalist, my skin crawls everytime I walk by a home watering their lawn.

Unfortunately, conservation pricing may not work as well with agriculture and ultimately punish the farmers. “We need so much more water for irrigation than we do for drinking water. 80% of the world’s water is used for irrigation, or at least is used on farms, and the amount you need for drinking water is really marginal,” Brooks says.

He continued, “Water is so valuable to farmers, prices have to go way up before it affects irrigation costs. You have to come at it from other ways. You have to have water conservation specialists working for the government… and you have to let prices go up very slowly.”

I must admit, as an environmentalist, my skin crawls everytime I walk by a home watering their lawn.

Another option we discussed is to implement water conservation designs in urban settings. Why do we need water so clean we can drink it in our toilet bowl or watering our lawn? Eco-friendly designs which recycle or use less water cost money, and water is so cheap that unless the consumer is incentivized through legislation or higher water bills, there isn’t that motivation to pay out of pocket and replace their perfectly good, working just fine, toilet.

Living in Canada, we have one of the richest sources of freshwater per capita. As a result, we do not think about these kinds of problems affecting us at home. Although it is not as likely we will run out of drinking water on the same time scales as places like Mexico City or Lagos, that does not mean we get to use it guilt free. “Half of all communities in Canada already face water problems of one sort or another,” Brooks says, “The prairie provinces are short of water, they are right now and will be”. In fact, many rivers that once flowed down the Rockies and fed the prairies have already begun to be too low for extraction by mid-summer- and this is in our own backyard. 

“Throughout history, water has induced far more cooperation than conflict around the globe.” – Aaron Wolf

The issues surrounding water that led to this “water wars” narrative is complex. Freshwater quality and quantity differ regionally. The real problem is not necessarily a lack of freshwater supply (promising options exist on the horizon to eventually solve these issues), but more a lack of equitable, sustainable water use in the present. This is then amplified through climate change affecting normal water distributions patterns and lack of political will to regulate this precious resource.

Aaron Wolf once said, “Throughout history, water has induced far more cooperation than conflict around the globe”. Sure, water conflicts may occur more frequently, but there probably will not be any water wars- it just makes good press. In the end, this narrative is drawing our attention away from the real problems and leading us in a direction of conflict, not cooperation.

In the meantime, we need to treat water like it costs more than we pay for it. Conserving water now will postpone whatever is on the horizon, water wars or not.

The post Avoiding Water Wars appeared first on A\J.

Last month I came across an article posted by The Guardian on June 17 which piqued my interest titled: “Climate crisis: alarm at record-breaking heatwave in Siberia”. A heatwave in Siberia? Siberia, a place where the only thing I knew about was the cruelty of its winters, was having record breaking heatwaves. I almost immediately clicked on this article as I was certain this “heatwave” must be somewhere around 10 degrees Celsius and must just be slightly hot for the region.

I was very wrong. Russian towns in the Arctic circle such as Nizhnyaya Pesha were reaching temperatures of 30 degrees Celsius. Another town, Khatanga, which usually has an average temperature of 0 degrees Celsius this time of the year, reached 25 degrees on May 22. As you can very clearly see, the region is experiencing much higher than average temperatures during this time of year.

Source: NOAA

So, what about Siberia then – is it really that hot? According to the EU’s Copernicus Climate Change Service, surface temperatures in parts of Siberia were on average 10 degrees higher than usual. This is made even more concerning by a statement by Martin Stendel of the Danish Meteorological Institute who said that abnormal temperatures such as these would only naturally happen once every 100,000 years without human-induced warming. Furthermore, what is even more worrying is the extent that these temperature anomalies have lasted for: since observations have begun, average temperatures over winter have been noted as 6 degrees higher than seasonal norms.

Why exactly are Siberia and other Northern regions warming so much you may ask. It’s a combination of factors. The first is due to warming ocean temperatures affecting ocean currents, resulting in warmer water being brought to northern regions, thus raising the overall temperatures. The second is due to a positive feedback loop which is occurring due to these higher temperatures. Due to its white surface, snow has a high albedo (how reflective a surface is), which allows for much of the suns energy and rays to be reflected. Thanks to increasing temperatures, snow is melting which results in more energy absorbed in the region, resulting in higher temperatures thus melting more snow and creating this positive (but for us, negative!) feedback loop.

As of this June 17 article the negative effects of these higher than usual temperatures were already being observed. The first of these was through an oil spill near the city of Norilsk which has dumped at least 20 million tonnes of diesel into Northern Arctic waters, some of which constitute fragile ecosystems. The oil spill is partially blamed due to the power plant being built on top of permafrost which has begun to melt as a result of these higher than normal temperatures. This will be one of the first of many instances of permafrost in the Siberian region melting and causing damage if these temperatures persist.

Siberian Oil Spill. Source: BBC

The second negative effect of climate change is seen through an increase in Siberian Silk moths being born. Climate change tends to bring about unforeseen effects and this is definitely one of them. Due to the warmer temperatures these moths have been rapidly multiplying with Vladimir Soldatov, a moth expert saying, “In all my long career, I’ve never seen moths so huge and growing so quickly”. These moths are problematic as they strip trees of their needles and barks which make them more susceptible to fires, which brings me to the third and final way Siberia is being impacted by climate change.

The third and final way Siberia is experiencing these negative impacts of climate change can be best demonstrated by the wildfires that have been raging across the region. Farmers often light fires in the spring to clear vegetation however higher temperatures and winds (maybe those moths have something to do with it too) have resulted in these fires becoming out of control.

All of this happened over a month ago. Fast forward to today, and the region is still experiencing high temperatures and is literally, and figuratively, on fire. A report published by the CBC on July 12 states that the region has so far experienced 1.77 million hectares of land being burned, with the expectation that this will surpass 17 million hectares which was burned in 2019. It is often observed that these fires do not burn too close to the Arctic ocean due to the cold-water preventing ignition, however due to the increased heat this year, fires are being observed up to 15km away from the ocean.

Siberian Wildfire. Source: The Moscow Times

These fires and melting permafrost are not only damaging the environment, but also the economy of Russia. It is expected that melting permafrost will cost upwards of $2.3 billion US per year, and the fires last year alone cost rural communities in the region $250 million. Apparently environmental protection goes hand in hand with economic protection – who would have guessed!?!

But what do increased temperatures and raging fires in Siberia have to do with us? As mentioned earlier, these temperatures should only happen once every 100,000 years. An international team of climate scientists led by the UK met office found that due to this fact, these temperatures provide “unequivocal evidence of the impact of climate change on the planet”. Furthermore, what happens in the Arctic tends not to stay there. Weather and climate in the Arctic are some of the key drivers of global weather systems and as such the effects will ripple out to the rest of the world. With the Arctic warming at twice the rate of the globe, change is almost definitely on its way.

These rising temperatures may be observed in Canada as well – I’m sure you have also been getting the endless ‘Heat Warning’ alerts to your phone that I have. And if you’ve also noticed this increase, or just been outside, you’ll know this summer is HOT. On July 9 Ottawa recorded its hottest July 9 temperature reaching 35.8 degrees Celsius, and the next day was also a record for hottest July 10 at 35 degrees. That coupled with the humidity is giving temperatures of around 43 degrees including humidex. I don’t know about you, but that is way too hot to not be somewhere tropical next to the sea.

Increased heat is not only unpleasant, but also dangerous to our health. With global warming comes the risk that it becomes ‘too hot for humans to work’. For workers who must be outside or within facilities lacking air conditioning, summer heat conditions may bring about heat stress. Heat stress is when the body is unable to cool down properly, resulting in body temperature continuing to rise and key organs shutting down. This results in more frequent breaks and fluid intake being required by workers in these hot conditions. This of course will extend outside of work into recreation, as in the future it may be too hot to go outside on your morning walk or go for a hike up that long trail you love.

As you can see the impacts of global warming are being realised across the globe. The current summer heatwave in Siberia is currently a topic worrying the region but may be an indicator for hotter summer periods to come worldwide. It cannot be stressed enough how important it is that we do everything in our power to slow global warming and stop the threat of these too-hot-to-handle summers.

The post Too Hot To Handle appeared first on A\J.

This light and hopeful documentary explores how Kenyan scholars approach the cooperation with the renowned rainmakers of the Nganyi forest. The community trusts the predictions of the rainmakers, whom possess secret knowledge that has been passed down for generations, leaving meteorologists with the challenge of building a rapport in the rainmakers’ shadow. The meteorologists realized that they needed to come to some form of an agreement with the rainmakers, as spiritual techniques became unable to adjust to the effects of climate change, which led to the loss of crops for local farmers.  

At first the scholars wanted to use the rainmakers as a mere communicative tool, but as they interacted more, it became apparent that some of the rainmakers’ techniques were very similar to modern scientific methods. As they delved further into the mystical relationship between the rainmakers and nature, the meteorologists began to consider the fact that plants and animals react to nature, and perhaps by tapping into this natural sensitivity there could be some unquantifiable validity to what they do.  

In the initial sequence of the film, the first light and slow steel drum strokes suggest a mood for discovery, and this is disrupted by the sound of rainfall and thundering skies that represent the rainmaking powers at hand. Throughout the film, as the bustling of nature persists in accompanying this inquisitive music, the harmonic sound evokes feelings of hope in the potential for the relationship between the investigative scholars and the rainmakers, who are uniquely connected to nature.  

Both the modern and mystical forecasters still maintained some reservations in their beliefs, but they grew respect for one another’s methods, which led to the resolution of providing a combined forecast. Despite the fact that the rainmakers remain secretive with most of their methods, for fear of spiritual condemnation, the bond between the knowledge bases provides a space for sharing thoughts, which cumulates into a richer care for the community.

It is this type of teamwork that gives this film such a charming and positive outlook on how we can address climate change. The message is that neither side has to prove themselves to be the definitive source of truth. How can we make an understanding common? The Kenyan scholars realized that instead of aiming to make one understanding mutual among diverse individuals, merging various perspectives in order to make a richer understanding can be more effective for dispersion. Despite differences, they acknowledge their similarities, and from there they let their differences provide diversity in the communicated knowledge. The message of this film is hopeful and speaks to every advocate’s desire to have a stronger voice. One strategy could be working with groups or companies that might be unaware of global issues, but whose work could inadvertently contribute to positive action. If advocates approach groups with the spirit of learning as well as teaching, then team spirit might inspire the activist in people that maintain their own unique understanding.

Watch the full short film by clicking on the image above or clicking this link: https://vimeo.com/132553978

The post Documentary Review: The Rainmakers of Nganyi (plus film link!) appeared first on A\J.

Over the last two years, the government of British Columbia, along with Ottawa, has become an aggressive promoter of liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports to Asia. The get-rich scheme would require puncturing much of the province’s northern forests and farmlands with thousands of unconventional wells. 

In her government’s sales pitch, Premier Christy Clark vows that shale gas is “clean;” that exporting it to China and other Asian markets will reduce carbon emissions; and that fracking shale gas basins has little environmental impact. The province also swears that there is enough gas in the ground to last 150 years.

But a new report for the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives by David Hughes, one of the nation’s smartest energy thinkers, challenges these claims and tells another story altogether. The province has lied, and lied fiercely.  

Let’s first begin with a few observations about the desirability of liquefying and then transporting natural gas around the world. Gases extracted from shale basins require enormous amounts of energy and capital to fracture, and then liquefying that fractured gas demands even more energy spending. As a result, net energy returns from shale gas are lower than most renewables including wind, geothermal and solar. In plain English, a civilization concerned about its energy security would skip LNG and just invest in renewables.

Due to its low energy density, natural gas also costs between seven and ten times more to transport than oil or coal. That explains why most natural gas is consumed where it is mined. It also explains why complex and high-cost LNG terminals may be a banker’s dream but are not a global solution to any energy problem.

No matter. The BC government swears that it has an abundant supply of shale gas to export: a fantastic 2,933 trillion cubic feet (tcf), or more than 150 years’ worth. (Canadians burn about 2.8 tcf a year.)

But energy analyst David Hughes says 2,933 tcf is a totally preposterous number. Even the province’s BC Oil and Gas Commission reports that the province has only 42 tcf of proven reserves, with a potential to climb as high 400 tcf given the right amount of cash and technology.

Premier Christie Clark vows that shale gas is “clean.”…
The province has lied, and lied fiercely.

To Hughes, who has mapped many of the country’s coal and shale gas fields, the 2,933 tcf number is a blatant misrepresentation of reality, given rapid depletion rates and low recovery rates for shale gas.

Next comes the claim that burning the province’s “clean” shale gas in China will somehow reduce that nation’s dirty carbon footprint, if not global GHG emissions.

Given that shale gas fields leak on average three percent of their methane into the atmosphere (some fields leak as much as nine percent) and methane is a much more potent GHG than CO₂, Hughes calculates LNG exports would makes things worse. (Given leaks and waste, it will take the extraction of 1.44 units of gas to export just one unit of gas.)

When those leakage rates are properly accounted for, “burning imported BC LNG in China would produce 27 percent more greenhouse gas emissions from the various processes in the LNG supply chain on a 20-year time frame,” in comparison with best-technology Chinese coal production, concludes Hughes.

Last but not least, the province pretends that fracking shale gas basins is totally safe and environmentally sound. One government “fact” sheet admits that fracking causes “very small, barely detectable movements underground” – but not to worry.  

In reality, the fracking of shale basins has triggered hundreds of earthquakes in Northeastern BC and many have been felt on the ground. Scientists know little about their long-term consequences. In addition, the drilling of tens of thousands of wells to fill five proposed LNG terminals would fragment the province’s boreal forest, exterminate woodland caribou and consume as much water as a city of 300,000 people.

David Hughes asks a vital question: Why aren’t we developing a long-term energy plan beyond short-term liquidation of another dirty resource for foreign markets? 

More of Nikiforuj’s Energy Matrix columns here.

The post What Lies Beneath appeared first on A\J.

California once possessed one of the most precious and critical natural resources of the North American continent. The Redwoods, also known as Sequoioideae, are the majestic, mystical trees that line the Oregon and California coast by the thousands. They are a keystone species, the pillars of an entire ecosystem that affect and support thousands of plants and animals around them. In just over 150 years, human activity has reduced the great Redwood forests to just five percent of their original population. But the Redwoods are just one component of California’s complex water story, a story that spans webs, streams and systems.

In Sonoma County, in late 2012, a group of permaculture students sat down to begin an afternoon talk on water. One of our teachers, Erick, began by telling us that we’re facing today “is not a water crisis, it’s a runoff crisis.” It was with considerable foresight that our discussion began on the topic of water harvesting as California was entering it’s first year of drought.

In the 1974 film Chinatown, Jack Nicholson plays a private detective who accidentally uncovers a municipal scandal while investigating a murder. The film is a depiction of the California Water Wars, a series of water struggles at the beginning of the 20th century between the growing city of Los Angeles and farmers in the countryside. In 1913, the construction of an aqueduct was completed, diverting water to the city from the Owens River. In the 1920s, so much water was being diverted from Owens Valley that agriculture became nearly impossible, and the situation grew so dire that farmers attempted to destroy the aqueduct in 1924. By 1926, Owens Lake had been completely emptied, and in 1941 Los Angeles began diverting the Mono Lake watershed north of Owens valley. These were early warning signs that California’s population was already exceeding its natural resources at the beginning of the 20th century.  

More urbanization means more paved roads, more concrete, more suburbs, and more artificial conduits to divert and lead water to all the wrong places.

Today, California is the most populated state in the US. It is also the state with the highest urban population density in the country: 95 percent of California’s population lives in cities. More urbanization means more paved roads, more concrete, more suburbs, and more artificial conduits to divert and lead water to all the wrong places. The shortsighted razing of Redwood forests and failure to recognize their ecosystemic value is also costing California’s ecology dearly; clear-cutting is a major cause of water runoff.

Coupled with the impact of climate change, the history of California’s water woes will have been the history of its unchecked urban and industrial growth. Having notoriously mismanaged its natural resources, California today is again facing a water crisis of sizeable proportions, now entering into its fourth consecutive year of drought.

Many factors directly or indirectly lead to drought and desertification; there are a few that relate to California’s particular situation. Climate change is certainly having an impact. 2013 and 2014 were two of California’s three driest years since it became a state in 1850, and recent years have possibly been the driest since 1580. But the changing climate is only one factor in a perfect brew of circumstances. Human activity is also a big promoter of drought and desertification, mainly from industrial agriculture practices: chemicals that deplete soil health, water-intensive monocropping, and tilling practices that lead to surface runoff.

But what the state is facing today may also be spurred by cyclical climatic events. Mega-droughts are generally defined as prolonged droughts lasting two decades or longer, and they have plagued California in the past. In a study released by NASA in February 2015 linking mega-droughts with carbon emissions rise, the lead author, Ben Cook of Lamont-Doherty Observatory at Columbia University, concludes that the American southwest has a high probability of facing severe drought conditions likely to last 30 to 35 years. The study finds that if emissions stop increasing by mid-century, the likelihood of a mega-drought still stands at around 60 percent, and at 80 percent if emissions continue to rise.

Water and food production

Which leads us to California’s unique role within the industrial infrastructure of North America, coupled with the fact that water and climate are in direct correlation with our capacity to grow and produce food.

For decades California has played a major role in US food production; the country’s agricultural powerhouse, as it were. California produces two thirds of the country’s fruits and nuts, and one third of its vegetables. In 2013 the state accounted for about 15 percent of the country’s total agricultural exports. California leads the US in the production of almonds, apricots, artichokes, avocado, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, carrots, cauliflower, sweet corn, dates, eggplant, figs, garlic, multiple varieties of grapes, herbs, lemon, lettuce, limes, melons, olives, peaches – I’m going alphabetically; you get the picture, the list is long. California also plays a leading role in dairy and cattle production. So yes, the current drought and water crisis represents changes in California’s agricultural capacity that will cause major reverberations in North America’s industrial food system.

Agriculture in California, most of it industrial, accounts for 80 percent of the state’s water use.

Agriculture in California, most of it industrial, accounts for 80 percent of the state’s water use. Currently, that is an average of 35 million acre-feet of water per year diverted from lakes, rivers and groundwater. One acre-foot is just under 1,234,000 litres of water, times 35 million – you do the math.

Which brings us back to the runoff crisis. Plainly and simply, we North Americans are not managing our water properly. Water’s trajectory within human created environments, primarily cities, is a reliance on natural cycles. Water originates from mountains, lakes, rivers, watersheds, and through rainfall and evaporation and with the seasons, water comes and goes and cycles again through the system. But more and more, water is asked to traverse and overcome cities, urban sprawl, suburbs, industrial agriculture, all great generators of – you guessed it – runoff. With decades and centuries of urban and industrial expansion we have undone the natural cycles. We have unraveled the ecological environment within which water operates.

This begs for solutions that will again allow water to flow freely and naturally, that will undo the artificial systems that force water to flow in finite, terminal directions.

Where water harvesting comes in

The World Day to Combat Desertification on June 17^th is a call for everyone to reflect on the world water situation, and the theme for 2015 is “The Attainment of Food Security for All Through Sustainable Food Systems.” Water harvesting immediately comes to mind. Water harvesting is about more than just capturing water; it also calls for working and designing the land in a way that reintroduces water into a holistic, integrated system. We can turn previously parched land into lush forest gardens and drought-proof farms by digging swales, planting fruit trees, and capturing runoff to spread it and sink it. Nature is an ensemble of functions that work interdependently, and we can allow for these systems to flourish yet again through regenerative ecological design.

Regenerative ecological design, or permaculture, amongst many things, is the study and practice of mimicking the beneficial relationships of nature in designing communities and environments in which humans live and work. A few key principles of permaculture include the aforementioned water harvesting with swales, terracing, cisterns, water catchment. A zero-waste system where all waste must equal soil or energy is another example. Permaculture involves a general practice and understanding of a closed-loop system, a relationship where water, soil, gardens, food, animals, and organic materials of all kinds all work together to recycle waste and produce energy. Permaculture means designing homes, environments and communities in the most comfortable, ecological, and sustainable ways possible.

The most important resource

But in order for us to reach sustainable living, we first must reevaluate and redesign our relationship to water – the most important resource of all.         

Historically, megadroughts have led to mass migrations – the ancient Pueblo of the North American Southwest, the Maya in MesoAmerica, and the Tiwanaku of Bolivia are just of a few examples of civilizations that have had to relocate entire populations in response to climatic events, droughts, and the subsequent inability to sustain irrigated agriculture. There are just under 39 million people living in California today, more than the entire population of Canada roughly within the geographical area of Newfoundland and Labrador. Needless to say, a megadrought in California today would have catastrophic consequences. It is up to us to embrace the sustainable solutions at hand to avoid the food scarcity, violent conflict and mass displacement that are so closely interlinked with water and drought.  

A Columbia University study on ancient droughts in North America points out that “The great cliff cities in the Four Corners region of the West such as Chaco Canyon and Mesa Verde were all abandoned towards the end of the drought. These societies were based on irrigated agriculture.”

The water crisis may well mean the abortion of unsustainable and entirely sedentary urban concentrations.

Before the advent of urban and industrial societies, prolonged droughts meant that largely hunter-gatherer societies needed rely on their nomadic proclivities and move camp. Today, the water crisis may well mean the abortion of unsustainable and entirely sedentary urban concentrations. Thomas Homer-Dixon, a University of Waterloo professor who specializes in environmental stress and conflict, remarks that “the stability of food production is the foundation of social order.”

The capitalist development model in North America, through deforestation, industrial agriculture, and urban and industrial growth has altered the geographical landscape, unraveling water’s natural cycles and leading us to the runoff crisis. Timelines are important, and it is our generation’s responsibility to take note of humanity’s ongoing relationship with water. A larger view of time and a life model that prioritizes water and food over infinite industrial growth is a real possibility. Always and forever, water has been and will be the key to all life. Whether it provides for the animals, waters the seeds that we plant, or hydrates the deltas that give life to the world’s flora and fauna, above and beyond a resource, water is an element we cannot live without.  

The post California Isn’t Having a Water Crisis, it’s Having a Runoff Crisis appeared first on A\J.

EACH WEEK, A\J staffers will be sharing our favourite facts & findings from whatever books, articles, documentaries, podcasts and other media we’ve been consuming. Here’s what we’ve learned this week.
 

Things from the Internet!

A new high-resolution map shows where lightning strikes the earth. You may be surprised at where it hits most often.
Source: BusinessInsider.com \ Found by nik

Gasoline lead may be the cause of 90 per cent of the rise – and fall – of crime rates over the past half century.
Source: Mother Jones \ Found by Jordan

Three new species of “dwarf dragon” have been discovered in Peru and Ecuador, giving this group of South American reptiles one of the fastest discovery rates of the past decade.
Source: National Geographic \ Found by Rachel

Hummingbirds adapt to the changing air currents by twisting their bodies according to the direction of the air flow, and use their wings and tail as stabilisers. When researchers simulated rainfall in a wind tunnel, the hummingbirds shook it off (literally).
Source: Deep Look YouTube Channel \ Found by Samantha
 

Things from Documentaries!

The Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness is America’s most visited wilderness area. It contains 1 million acres of pristine water and unspoiled woodlands, and is right on the Canada-US border, next to Quetico Provincial park in Ontario. Leases for sulfide mining have been granted within the watershed.
Dave and Amy Freeman paddled a canoe from Ely, Minnesota, to Washington, DC, last year, stopping in communities along the way and collecting signatures on their canoe. Now three bicyclists are riding 1,100 km for the same cause. The Paddle to DC short documentary is featured in the Reel Paddling Film Festival this year – get tour dates here.
Source: paddletodc.org and savetheboundarywaters.org \ Found by Laura

“Unknown World” Classic 1951 sci-fi B-movie prophetically captures the modern zeitgeist of environmental catastrophe. The obvious solution to impending eco-collapse? Drill as deep into the Earth as possible in a “rock submarine” to find a new habitat to serve as an ark for humanity. Notable for it’s early feminist portrayal of a woman scientist as an equal decision-making member of the expedition. Killer dialogue highlights: “Nature doesn’t influence man – man influences nature! One man, one strong man, can change nature,” and “Doesn’t women’s suffrage count here?”
Source: The Internet Archive \ Found by nik
 

Things from Books!

You know that “recycle” is only one of the Three Rs, but did you know there are actually at least 11 more? If your blue box is always full, you might want to consider a few others: reduce, reuse, refuse, reclaim, renew, revitalize, refurbish, rethink, redesign, rot, repair, return or refill.
Sources: The Queen of Green, Treehugger \ Found by Laura

A group of orcas that live off the BC coast has one new member! Named J52, the newest member is part of the JPod since February – there are three pods named J, K and L. With the new addition, the population is now up to 81.
Source: WWF \ Found by Samantha

The post The Best Things Ever of All Time, This Week! appeared first on A\J.

Each week, A\J staffers will be sharing our favourite facts & findings from whatever books, articles, documentaries, podcasts and other media we’ve been consuming. Here’s what we’ve learned this week.

Things from the Internet!

A proposed bike super-highway in London would connect 221 km of elevated bike paths and accommodate 12,000 cyclists every hour.
Source: CNN.com \ Found by David

Biologists had never seen a grey whale outside of the Pacific – until they did. And it may hint at the new normal: grey whales could very possibly move into the Atlantic through a path we opened up for them through the Arctic.
Source: National Geographic \ Found by Jordan

There is a vertical forest in Turin, Italy that protects residents from air and noise pollution.
Source: Colossal \ Found by Laura

For the first time in a century, one of the Galapagos Islands hosts its first baby tortoises.
Source: Nature magazine \ Found by Samantha

Previously, it was thought that overgrazing from livestock was the main culprit of desertification. Ecologist Allan Savory found that livestock in fact help to biologically decay grass before the next growing season, and before it can start oxidation – a very slow process that kills the grasses. This ultimately leads to bare soil and a release of carbon into the atmosphere. The solution? Use livestock “as a proxy for former herds and predators” to mimic nature.
Source: “How to Fight Desertification and Reverse Climate Change” Ted Talk \ Found by nik

The Monterey Bay Aquarium has live webcams on some of their tanks, including jellyfish and sea otters!
Source: Monterey Bay Aquarium \ Found by Samantha
 

Things from Emails!

Sunday, March 22nd is World Water Day! You could visit Sevenly, an online store that donates $7 for every item purchased to the charity of the week – Water.org is this week’s charity.
Source: WaterDay.org \ Found by Samantha

China’s Fourth National Giant Panda Survey found that there has been a 18.6 per cent rise in panda populations since ten years ago.
Source: WWF.ca \ Found by Samantha
 

Things from Outside!

Owls nest over winter and can see voles tunneling under the snow.
Source: A guided hike at rare Charitable Research Reserve \ Found by Laura
 

Map of the Week!

Newly released NOAA map of temperature deviations from average show it was the warmest winter on record… pretty much everywhere except Canada. 
Source: NOAA \ Found by nik
 

Most Best Thing of the Week

In June 2009, Alternatives Inc. received an award from the Government of Canada thanking us for “creating hope and faith in the hearts of people” and being “a true hero.” 

My, how times have changed.
Found in our archives

The post The Best Things Ever of All Time, This Week! appeared first on A\J.