July 31, 2008
The idiot fish story
High fuel costs and the rising dollar may have given unlikely protection to one of Canada’s least sustainable fisheries – the longspine thornyhead, or idiot fish. But it's not enough.
DSF has called for an immediate moratorium on the fishing of the longspine thornyhead. And our fisheries expert, Scott Wallace, knows all there is to know about this fascinating species.
The longspine thornyhead is called the “idiot fish” in industry circles, but truth be told this groundfish is a biological genius. It has carved out an existence one kilometre under the sea in one of the earth’s least livable environments, where water pressure is extreme and little oxygen, food, or sunlight can be found. The longspine thornyhead can survive the pressure of the deep ocean but whether it will be able to survive the pressure of human activity is another question.
Beginning in 1996, Fisheries and Oceans Canada endorsed a deep-sea bottom-trawl fishery for this species with virtually no information about its abundance or life history. Most of the catch of this species, 86 per cent, is taken from the continental shelf off the west coast of Vancouver Island by boats dragging massive trawl nets across the ocean floor. Now, about 94 per cent of the seafloor in the depth range of 500 to1,200 metres in this area has been trawled.
Research shows that populations of the fish may have declined by 50 to 60 per cent between 1996 and 2004. In 2007, the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada designated the longspine thornyhead as “special concern”. The declines and the COSEWIC designation, along with the known destructive impacts of bottom trawling, should have led to a closure of the fishery. Instead, it continues with no change in fishing practices.
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Posted by Sana Khan at July 31, 2008
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July 30, 2008
The Great Green Challenge
Talk about a school project. As part of the sports and event marketing program at George Brown College in Toronto, students organized the Great Green Challenge - a race for sustainability across the city - and donated the proceeds to the David Suzuki Foundation. 
The scavenger hunt/race covered ten Toronto landmarks and challenges at every stop. Team members pedaled on exercise bikes, were quizzed on their Earth knowledge, and even spelled out "green" using their bodies, "YMCA"-style. Our own climate change expert, Jose Etcheverry, was on hand at the cool down reception to congratulate all the teams and talk about renewable energy. Check out our photo gallery for more highlights.
Posted by Sana Khan at July 30, 2008
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July 29, 2008
What’s up with BC salmon?
As we reach the zenith of summer and adult salmon are starting their migration up B.C. rivers in earnest, I began to wonder - how are the salmon doing? I went to one of our marine experts, Jeffrey Young, for the scoop.
Over the past 10-20 years we have observed some significant declines in salmon stocks across B.C., including populations from all six of the Pacific salmon species that occur here. Some of these stocks have been scientifically assessed as endangered. Returns of sockeye salmon were particularly low in 2007 and so far Chinook returns in 2008 have been very low. Coho and steelhead continue to struggle, particularly along the south coast of the province. Overall, there is a lot to be concerned about. However, B.C. hasn’t faced the drastic problems that some salmon are facing further south and we still have a lot to work towards.
What can we do? Habitat loss, fisheries mismanagement and climate change have all contributed to salmon declines. We need better enforcement of habitat protection laws – this is in the hands of the federal government. Salmon also need people to ask for more enforcement officers to protect salmon habitat. Fisheries have made some changes to protect salmon diversity, but much more needs to be done. To support sustainable salmon fisheries you can vote with your fork by choosing sustainable seafood options. SeaChoice, which is Canada’s sustainable seafood guide, has all the info including seasonal salmon recommendations. Check it out!
Posted by Sana Khan at July 29, 2008
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July 28, 2008
The rock star and the owl
Sam Roberts took some time out of rocking out at the Pemberton Music Festival in B.C. this weekend to hook up with our very own Lindsay Coulter to try and catch a glimpse of the rare Spotted Owl. Check out E! Online for the adventures that ensued.
Posted by Sana Khan at July 28, 2008
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July 21, 2008
Provinces lead the way on climate change
It seems climate change is changing the climate of Canadian politics.
Canada's provinces are mobilizing to take aggressive and progressive action on climate change, leaving the federal government in their wake.
Ontario recently became the latest province to join the Western Climate Initiative (WCI), a climate-change plan that would see a cap-and-trade system aimed at large industries to reduce emissions among participating regions. Ontario joins British Columbia, Manitoba, and Quebec as the four provinces - representing 75% of Canada’s population - committed to a cap and trade arrangement under the WCI. The California-led initiative also includes six other U.S. states.
The WCI approach is a major advance over the federal government's ineffective intensity-based reductions plan. Furthermore, most provinces have much more ambitious targets for cutting greenhouse gases than the federal government's proposed reduction of 20 per cent below 2006 levels by 2020.
The WCI has created a serious and credible alternative to current federal policies both in Ottawa and in Washington. Federal governments on both sides of the border will now have to either shape up or get out of the way.
Posted by Sana Khan at July 21, 2008
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July 17, 2008
Renewable is doable
Today Al Gore challenged the United States to commit to producing all of its electricity from renewable sources within ten years. On the same day Mr. Gore was challenging the U.S., the Pope warned against humanity's wastefulness and obsession with materialism during a speech in Australia.
So what do these two things have on common? Plenty.
Part of the reason for the interest in renewables in Canada is because we consume so much energy. But things don't have to stay this way. Canada possesses vast potential wind and solar resources- but we need leadership to realize this potential. Germany, Japan and Spain are world leaders in renewable energy, and are showing other countries that renewable power is possible.
Mr. Gore's challenge, and the Pope's warning, are good reminders that we need leadership to make a carbon-free future a reality.
Posted by Sana Khan at July 17, 2008
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July 16, 2008
Playtime gets a little more green
Lego is offering a new product to tap into the sensibilities of eco-conscious kids. Now if only Lego could inspire our political leaders to build some of these too...
Posted by Sana Khan at July 16, 2008
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July 09, 2008
The tar sands: Investing for short-term gain, long-term eco-disaster
India is considering investing up to $10 billion dollars in Canada’s tar sands. This is yet another case of one country wanting to make a financial killing while helping to kill a distant ecosystem. But on a small planet where pollution from one place can have an impact on a region thousands of kilometres away and our fragile atmosphere is a shared space, nations and companies must wake up to their responsibilities.
There’s a lot of money to be made from oil in Canada. Alberta’s tar sands are one of the world’s greatest reserves of energy in an era of rising oil and gas prices. The problem is that we simply don’t have the technology yet to extract the oil from the area without paying a heavy environmental price.
As noted in an article titled “Let Them Drink Oil” on the
Celsias website, the tar sands project is putting Alberta’s scarce water resources under severe strain:
"Companies also use fresh water to make steam to force petroleum out of the oil sands and to make mud for drilling. There are no clear numbers on how much the industry actually uses but last year it had permits for more than 278 billion litres of fresh water. That's more water than is used every year by three of Alberta's largest cities, and the companies get their water for free."
The tar sands are contributing to staggering increases in Canada’s carbon emissions. If Canada wants to meet its international climate change responsibilities, Canadian companies and outside investors are going to have to forget about their
free ride.
Jonathon Narvey is principal consultant at WRITEIMAGE. He blogs about current events and life in Vancouver at Currents.
(Photo:
Mark Elliot via Creative Commons license).
Posted by Sana Khan at July 09, 2008
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July 07, 2008
Climate change agenda up in smoke at G8?
This year’s G8 Summit was being billed as the eco-summit by this year’s host country, Japan, both for eco-friendly measures adopted by Summit organizers and because concerted action on climate change was a key goal.
The Summit opens today, however, amidst all but faded hopes for stronger action on climate change. The European G8 members wanted to set targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the medium term (2020), but Canada and the US insist that they do not want to adopt targets until developing countries such as India and China do. Although last year’s summit produced a vague agreement that there should be a long-term commitment to cutting greenhouse gas emissions by at least 50% by 2050, this year there is risk of backsliding from even that weak target, the “at least” might be dropped. And since reductions of significantly more than 50% are needed, this would be a major setback. Also, Europe would like to see reductions measured against 1990 levels, while Canada wants to use 2006 levels – which would help to mask Canada’s sharply rising emissions. The US has shown little interest in any firm targets at all.
As many news stories have pointed out, the upcoming US election will bring a president more proactive on climate change into the White House (both McCain and Obama support firm caps on US emissions). Thus those countries interested in an ambitious agreement are merely waiting for the end of Bush’s term of office. But this will leave little time to negotiate a comprehensive agreement by the end of 2009 in Copenhagen. The failure of the G8 to advance this issue also raises serious questions about the legitimacy and effectiveness of the G8.
The Summit offers Canada and other leading developed nations - the world’s worst emitters of greenhouse gases - an opportunity to set out what they will commit to as part of the global effort to reduce emissions. Commitment to a strong 2050 goal and stringent midterm targets against 1990 levels by the G8 countries would not only bolster the global effort to fight climate change, it would show that the wealthiest nations and their elected leaders are still a positive force in the world.
Posted by Sana Khan at July 07, 2008
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