I know my column is about fishing, hunting and the environment so before you stop reading give me a little space and I will try to convince you that the subject is appropriate.
Just as the election was winding down I attended a special show — Our Climate, Our Future, Our Choice on April 29 at the Sid Williams Theatre, sponsored by the City of Courtenay. Mayor Greg Phelps introduced the speakers: Nancy Hofer, environmental planner, and Allan Gornall, climate action analyst, both on staff at Courtenay. These two young scientists gave an inspiring illustrated video show, for which they received a standing ovation from an almost full theatre. At the outset let me express my surprise that these two positions even existed and my congratulations to the city for showing leadership and political courage in creating these innovative positions.
In their opening slides they showed scientific proof that the climate is indeed changing at an accelerating rate. It is not news that the climate is changing because it has been in a constant state of flux since the planet cooled down enough to support life. What is news is that we as a species are accelerating the process of this cycle by fertilizing it on a planetary basis with generous amounts of carbon dioxide, which is the result of our selective use of carbon storage in the form of coal, oil and to a lesser extent natural gas to power our present civilization. At our present rate of the production of carbon dioxide in our energy creation, we are on a path of making the planet increasingly uninhabitable by our species within the current century. Now if you think of this proposition we are already through one-tenth of our journey into the 21st century. They respectfully suggested in their presentation that time for change in our societal use of energy is rapidly approaching a crisis situation. The big question is — How do we achieve a reduction in carbon dioxide into the atmosphere and still maintain our current level of comfortable living?
In trying to answer the question let us examine the record of Jack Shaw, the Inventive Fly Fisherman. From work in his basement in Kamloops he changed how we fly fish in Western North America. We changed from attractor fly patterns to imitative flies, fished on wet lines down where the insects live and the trout feed on them. Take note — it was primarily the work of one man who brought about change in millions of fly fishers. It is a change that generated millions of dollars for our type of angling.
Maybe these young scientists will find the formula to change in our society that will lead to the required reduction in carbon dioxide production.
A change that is occurring right now is the flood level for new construction in the city that has just been increased by 0.8 of a metre (about two feet) in recognition of the impact of rising sea level.
In their presentation they suggested that growing food locally and buying locally-produced food would reduce transportation needs, thereby reducing carbon dioxide production from this source.
Another suggestion was making the city more bike-friendly.
In his book Hot: Living Through the next Fifty Years by Mark Hertsgaard, he makes a strong case for adaptation to combine with mitigation to meet the coming challenges. He gives a detailed account of how King County in the Seattle area is meeting the challenges they face due to rising sea level and flood control from increased snow melt and rainfall.
A University of British Columbia research team is developing a 3D video game that predicts alternative climate scenarios that are focused on the flooding risks in Delta, B.C. The team hopes the game will personalize the issue of climate change for residents, clarify the complex scientific information surrounding it and galvanize action. (Source – UBC Trek –Spring/Summer2011)
A few weeks ago Elaine and I sat in our living room with six of our great grandchildren aged from seven to less than one. We urge you to support city council and its staff in coming to grips with this frightening challenge for the sake of their future. The city in their new bylaw has made allowance for a two-foot sea level rise –– the future is NOW!
Ralph Shaw is a master fly fisherman who was awarded the Order of Canada in 1984 for his conservation efforts. In 20 years of writing a column in the Comox Valley Record it has won several awards.
