Paul Cipywnyk's Blog

Choices Earth Day BBQ - Byrne Creek Tours

Choices in the Park hosted a salmon BBQ for Earth Day, and once again Byrne Creek Streamkeepers had our booth set up for the event. We also did two tours of the creek for people interested in getting out in nature and learning a bit about what streamkeepers do.

Thanks again to Choices for having donations from the BBQ this weekend and last weekend going to help efforts to keep Byrne Creek clean and habitable for all the fish and wildlife that it supports.

We presented two hand-cut, hand-painted cedar salmon to Choices CEO Mark Vickars and Choices in the Park manager Dominic Uy in appreciation of their efforts.

Me, Dominic and Mark

Pointing out park features on creek tour.

Premier Screening of Eagle Eye

The Fraser Valley Hatchery was the site of the premier screening of Peter Donaldson's Eagle Eye, a video based on his one-man show "of ecological intrigue about the ancient dance of interdependence between Salmon and Eagle, creating a classic teaching legend."

Donaldson is a breathtaking writer and performer, known for his Salmonpeople masterpiece. Tonight's event, hosted by the Freshwater Fisheries Society of B.C., was a "beta" run of the video, with Donaldson seeking input from the audience as to what parts really engaged people, what sections lost their interest, and how the project could be disseminated and used in secondary schools, colleges, universities and communities for environmental education dealing with biodiversity and systems thinking.

Donaldson's show was filmed during the Fraser Valley Bald Eagle Festival, and is an emotionally powerful performance that really gets you thinking about life and our interdependence with other species and nature.

Byrne Creek High School Global Issues Event

In the afternoon I represented the Byrne Creek Streamkeepers at a climate change workshop at Byrne Creek Secondary in southeast Burnaby. The Check Your Head group (Educating Youth for Global Hope and Local Action) facilitated the event, and I provided background on streamkeeping and how kids could volunteer on creek activities. I love working with students and getting their perspective on these sorts of issues.

Our 3D relief map of the Byrne Creek watershed was a big hit.

UBC Learning Exchange Breakfast

This morning I represented the Stream of Dreams Murals Society at a recognition breakfast thanking people and organizations involved in Learning Exchange Programs run by the University of British Columbia. The event was held at the beautiful First Nations Longhouse on campus, and Dr. Richard Verdan provided a moving, inspirational, and humorous welcoming greeting, while explaining and sharing the cultural significance of the venue. Professor Stephen J. Toope, the UBC President and Vice Chancellor, hosted the event and gave an excellent speech thanking all those involved in the program.

SDMS hosted a group of UBC student volunteers as part of the program this year. I wasn't involved in the day-to-day activities, but as president of the SDMS board of directors, I dropped by a couple of times and listened, learned and shared with the students. I was impressed with the diversity of backgrounds, and by the interest the students showed in the SDMS environmental education and community art program.

Environmentalists Roast Run of River Power Inc.

"We want our park, we want our wild salmon, and we want you to go away," said Burke Mountain Naturalists activist Elaine Golds, to rousing cheers from the crowd at a forum on multiple run-of-river power projects planned for several streams on the upper Pitt River.

The overflow crowd jammed into the much-too-small venue was spirited and angry, with cat calls often interrupting presentations by the BC Environmental Assessment Office, BC Parks, and the proponent, Run of River Power Inc.

Although I strongly oppose the projects and the accompanying proposal to cut a power transmission right of way through Pinecone Burke Provincial Park, I was dismayed at the uncivil attitude dominating the crowd.

Yet people had reason to be frustrated. Pinecone Burke is a pristine Class A park that people fought for many years to be declared off limits to logging, mining and hydro projects. To ask that the boundary be adjusted now is crazy.

To invade all the salmon-bearing streams in the upper Pitt is crazy.

To pay private producers 5 or more times the rate for power than the province produces is crazy.

Eventually the fire marshal showed up, and said the number of people in the room had to be reduced. At that point, several hotter heads began shouting "We won't leave!" OK, act like children having a tantrum in the face of logic and safety -- I thought it best to slip away.

As I was wriggling myself out of the room, people were demanding that the meeting be rescheduled in a larger venue. I'm all for that. And while I admire the passion, I think some of the behavior tonight was counterproductive. The mandarins in the room have to follow this provincial government's restrictive policies -- it's the politicians noted for their absence who should bear the brunt.

As the cry went up: "Where are you Environment Minister Penner?"

Nooksack Dace Recovery Strategy

The Nooksack Dace is a little fish found only in a few rivers and streams in the Lower Mainland of BC. It has been listed as endangered under the Species at Risk Act, and tonight I attended a Department of Fisheries and Oceans forum on steps being taken to identify and protect crucial habitat. It was an interesting presentation on the dace and its preferred habitat. Unfortunately, the ratio of audience to DFO staff was about 10:6 -- it could have been better publicized.

Something that I found interesting was that all remaining Nooksack Dace habitat is in developed/developing areas. That's going to make it really tough to preserve this species. I asked if in the future there would be attempts to transplant dace to other streams in their previous range. They're not at that point yet, but one of the biologists said that transplanting would certainly contribute to keeping the species from going extinct.

Here is the recovery strategy for the fish, and watch the SARA public registry for a 60-day comment period after the strategy is officially posted soon.

Greenwashing BC's Power Policy?

There's a lot of talk about "green power" in British Columbia, but are initiatives like privately developed "run of river" power projects really green? Few citizens seem to be aware that companies have applied for such projects on streams throughout the province -- and that they are using our water for free while selling their power to BC Hydro at higher rates than the public utility charges.

Run-of-river is being spun as green, but it looks more like death by a thousand cuts.

Problems with these projects include the amount of water diverted (up to 80%!), the roads built to get access to streams to build the plants, the swaths cut through forests for power lines.... It goes on and on. Companies are already trying to get land removed from parks for their construction.

I urge people to check out the video series "Power Play: The Theft of BC's Rivers" at the Save Our Rivers Society website.

Thanks to the Pacific Streamkeepers Federation for making me aware of these videos.

'Porridge' Fouls Byrne Creek Again

The mystery "porridge" has fouled Byrne Creek yet again. We know it comes down the Hedley St. storm drain and into the creek, but the City of Burnaby's engineering department has not managed to confirm the source yet. This has been going on for months now in a haphazard manner. Hope they track it this time!

The stuff was pooled all along the creek. While it does not appear to be toxic, it has no business coming down storm drains into the creek.

UPDATE on Feb. 15: City staff have found the source and are dealing with it. While for legal reasons they can't tell us the details, streamkeepers are relieved that this ongoing irritant will be under control. Thank you!

Burnaby Anti-Idling Initiative Needs a Boost

I don't like ratting people out, and I won't specifically finger anyone today, even though the Year of the Rat is now officially underway :-).

All I will say is that on my walk today I ran across a City of Burnaby truck with two gentlemen sleeping inside with the motor running. While the City does not seem to have an anti-idling bylaw, it does have a DriveSmart educational program that includes city staff. One of the main initiatives of the program is to reduce idling. I guess the guys in the truck missed the message... They could have been on a legitimate break, but the optics certainly didn't look good. And I've seen this sort of thing several times all over the city.

I think it's important for the City to set a good example, and workers like the ones I saw today ain't it. Not only were they polluting, they were burning my tax dollars for no useful purpose.

Dual-Flush Toilet Replaces Old Clunker

We replaced the crappy (no pun intended) Cranada toilet in our downstairs bathroom with an American Standard Flo-Wise dual-flush unit today. The Cranada had never, uh, done its business very well, often requiring two flushes of its outdated and wasteful 13.25-liter tank.

In contrast, the FloWise offers a choice of a 3-liter flush or a 6-liter flush.

Of course nothing went as smoothly as it should have. To begin with, we went to Home Depot to buy an American Standard regular flush 6-liter model that we'd looked at previously, only to discover they had the dual-flush units in stock. The question was, how much did they cost? The bowls were $93.60, but we couldn't see a price for the tank. A staff member came along, and told us the tanks were $137, pointing to a tank that obviously was not a dual-flush unit. We had a little debate about model numbers, etc., but he kept insisting he was right. OK, we took a bowl and a dual-flush tank to the checkout expecting an exorbitant price for the tank, and it was only $96.38! (BTW, the bowl included a seat and lid, something that not all models do). The dual-flush was actually about $80 cheaper than the 6-liter single flush.

Happy with our savings, we headed off home, removed the old toilet and began installing the new one. When we opened the tank box, we discovered the tank cover was badly chipped. OK, back to Home Depot, where they readily refunded the first tank and sold us a second one. As soon as we were out the door, out came my trusty Swiss Army knife, and we checked the second unit. It was OK.

We are pleased with the appearance, and especially the performance and water savings of the new unit.

Dual-flush toilets have been commonplace in Japan for at least 20 years, and I'm glad they're finally appearing in Canada. Another common feature in Japan that I have yet to see in Canada is the hand-washing tank recharge -- the water that refills the tank come out of a little spout on top of the tank, and the tank lid has a depression like a mini sink so that you can wash your hands with the water that is refilling it.

Natural Step Canada

Just after I wrote a review of the Natural Step, I saw a link to Natural Step Canada on the Pacific Streamkeepers Federation mailing list.

The link was to the Sustainability at Home toolkit, which looks like an excellent resource. Check it out to see how you can contribute toward a more sustainable world with small steps at home.

US Planning Body's Sustainability Guide

The American Planning Association has an interesting Policy Guide on Planning for Sustainability that it has ratified. While I haven't read it entirely yet, it appears to follow "Natural Step" (see previous blog post) ideas for achieving sustainable communities. I wonder if Canadian planners have adopted a similar guide, and whether or not communities here are following it? As a volunteer at City of Burnaby stakeholder meetings, I wonder if the city aims to follow such guides in its community plans and ISMPs?

Here's a taste:

OBJECTIVES OF APA’S STRATEGY FOR PLANNING FOR SUSTAINABILITY

Planning for sustainability requires a systematic, integrated approach that brings together environmental, economic and social goals and actions directed toward the following four objectives:

1. Reduce dependence upon fossil fuels, extracted underground metals and minerals.

Reason: Unchecked, increases of such substances in natural systems will eventually cause concentrations to reach limits ­ as yet unknown ­ at which irreversible changes for human health and the environment will occur and life as we know it may not be possible.

2. Reduce dependence on chemicals and other manufactured substances that can accumulate in Nature.

Reason: Same as before.

3. Reduce dependence on activities that harm life-sustaining ecosystems.

Reason: The health and prosperity of humans, communities, and the Earth depend upon the capacity of Nature and its ecosystems to reconcentrate and restructure wastes into new resources.

4. Meet the hierarchy of present and future human needs fairly and efficiently.

Reason: Fair and efficient use of resources in meeting human needs is necessary to achieve social stability and achieve cooperation for achieving the goals of the first three guiding policies.

Review - Inspirational 'Natural Step' Guide

I finished The Natural Step for Communities: How Cities and Towns can Change to Sustainable Practices by Sarah James and Torbjorn Lahti today. Amid all the doom and gloom about global warming and unsustainable ecological footprints, it's a hugely inspirational guide to changing how we plan and build our towns and cities.

Many of the case studies are taken from Sweden, where all levels of government -- municipal, regional and national -- appear to be light years ahead of what we are doing here in Canada.

The Natural Step proposes four simple guiding objectives (p. 9):

1. Eliminate our community's contribution to fossil fuel dependency and to wasteful use of scarce metals and minerals.

2. Eliminate our community's contribution to dependence upon persistent chemicals and wasteful use of synthetic substances.

3. Eliminate our community's contribution to encroachment upon nature (e.g., land, water, wildlife, forests, soil, ecosystems).

4. Meet human needs fairly and efficiently.

The Natural Step should be required reading for politicians and bureaucrats everywhere, and should also be incorporated into school curricula.

The book also contains many examples of businesses that have used sustainability principles to become more profitable. "Billions of people around the world have problems with unsustainable development. What a market for those who have solutions!" (p. 221).

Using Solar/Wind Power to Dry Clothes

Solar and wind power are all the rage, yet I am banned from using them to dry my clothes. And no need to spend thousands on solar panels or windmills -- just a few bucks to run a clothesline. A what? A clothesline! Apparently it's cutting-edge technology -- yet it's been around for hundreds and thousands of years.

So what happened to clotheslines? For years, people managed to dry their clothes, bedding and towels using solar and wind power -- in other words, outdoors. I lived in Tokyo for 14 years and never had a clothes dryer. I lived in apartments and had a washer, but as with most Japanese in cramped quarters, I managed without a dryer. Japanese apartment balconies come equipped with staggered hooks on which you can hang poles to dry your laundry.

Tokyo and other Asian cities are festooned with drying clothes and bedding, yet my strata here in Burnaby, British Columbia, actually forbids drying clothes on balconies.

I wonder how much energy could be saved simply by drying clothes outside? Oh, you say it's too wet here? Well, Japan has a long, humid rainy season in the late spring/early summer, a typhoon season in the fall, and darn cold weather in the winter. Yet 110 million people there somehow manage to get by with very few of them having clothes dryers.

British Columbia should amend the Strata Act to ban stratas from banning balcony clothes drying.

Road Oil Enters Byrne Creek Through Storm Drain

Oil that had accumulated on Southpoint Dr. in southeast Burnaby was flowing down the rain drain at the bottom end of the cul-de-sac and into Byrne Creek this afternoon as a steady drizzle washed pollution off the street.

Can you imagine the cumulative flow of this crap into drains all over the city -- all of which lead to local creeks, rivers and the ocean? Yuck!

It is precisely for this reason that streamkeepers are pushing the city to build bio-filtration swales and ponds. There are well-known, well-established ways to ameliorate the impact of such pollution on fish and wildlife habitat.

How You Can Help the Environment

Down-to-Earth Choices

Tips for making where you live one of Canada's Healthy Neighbourhoods.

A simple-to-use guide from Environment Canada offering hundreds of tips and suggestions on environmentally sensitive habits for individual Canadians to practise every day, everywhere. Our choices and our actions will determine the future of the environment. Let's choose to act wisely now and make the world a safer and healthier place to live in.

Thanks to the Pacific Streamkeepers Federation for posting this link.

Roderick Haig-Brown on Sustainability

Long before Brundtland, decades before the term "sustainability" was overused, abused and corrupted beyond recognition -- a great fisherman, naturalist, and writer said it all:

"It seems clear beyond the possibility of argument that any given generation of men can have only a lease, not ownership, of the earth; and one essential term of the lease is that the earth be handed on to the next generation with unimpaired potentialities."

Roderick Haig-Brown

BC Enviro Minister Visits Stream of Dreams Program

BC Environment Minister Barry Penner saw a Stream of Dreams program in action at the Oaklands elementary school in Victoria today.

The Stream of Dreams Murals Society has reached over 60,000 school children to date, teaching them about their local watersheds and creating Dreamfish to install on school fences to remind communities about the importance of clean water and healthy ecosystems.

Gift-Less, More Sustainable Christmas

Yumi and have decided that we will not exchange Christmas gifts this year with each other, and other members of our families. Why not?

It has become increasingly difficult to find anything useful or meaningful to give. We have everything we need, and a garage full of stuff we're getting rid of by sorting and donating it to thrift stores run by the Burnaby Hospice Society and the Salvation Army.

I'm a well-indoctrinated consumer so certainly there is a ton of stuff that I want, but nothing I really need, and Yumi feels the same way.

We'll still do some fun, cheap stuff for the stockings, but no gifts.

Off to Building Sustainable Communities Conference

I drove up to Kelowna this afternoon to attend the Building Sustainable Communities conference sponsored by the Fresh Outlook Foundation. I attended the conference last year and it was jam-packed with excellent speakers. This year's program looks very good as well, and I am looking forward to the kickoff tomorrow morning.

While driving up was probably not the carbon-friendliest means of transportation, I enjoyed the trip. The mountains were dusted with snow, but the roads were good for the most part except for the highest passes.

SalmonTrain Kickoff

This morning the SalmonTrain was officially launched at Gilmore Station on the Skytrain Millennium Line. What's a SalmonTrain? It's a commuter train car covered with Stream of Dreams Murals Society (SDMS) Dreamfish, with an urban creek running down its floor with tips on maintaining healthy watersheds. Conceived by Louise Towell, a co-founder of SDMS, and implemented with the hard work of the Rivershed Society of BC and corporate partners Translink, 3M, and Lamar Advertising, the Stream of Dreams® SalmonTrain Mural in Motion is a vibrant means of educating the public about the importance of clean water in our creeks and streams.

As president of the charitable SDMS, I was proud and amazed at the results of nearly a year of hard work by all the partners. Here are some photos I took of the event, and the SalmonTrain.

The SalmonTrain poster at Gilmore Station.

Fin Donnelly, founder and executive director of RSBC, chairs the event.

Louise Towell, co-founder of SMDS, speaks.

Dan Johnson, Burnaby City councillor.

Partners pose in front of the Gilmore Station poster.

The SalmonTrain arriving at the station.

Louise and Joan Carne, SDMS co-founders.

The partners in front of the train.

A closer look at the exterior.

The urban stream inside the train.

An incredibly lifelike storm drain on the floor.

A closeup of Dreamfish in the floor stream.

The message? All street drains lead to fish habitat.

A ceiling poster, also called a "Michaelangelo."

Another ceiling poster.

So the message is, all rain drains (storm drains) connect directly to local creeks and streams. Why does this message need to get out? Ironically, as my wife Yumi and I walked home from Edmonds Skytrain Station after the event, we came across what was likely paint coming down Powerhouse Creek that leads to Byrne Creek. Somebody was washing out painting equipment into a storm drain, so we called the city in on it. There are still a lot of people to teach!

Update: Lots of stuff on You Tube

Salmon Train Launch -- Fin Donnelly, Louise Towell and Dan Johnson

Interviews:

Translink's Drew Snider

SDMS co-founder Joan Carne

Great Info on wikiHow

I just ran across a site called wikiHow "The How-to Manual That You Can Edit."

It has several entries related to streamkeeping and stormwater management.

Here is an entry on creating a rain garden.

And another one on how to
reduce stormwater runoff at your home.

Looks like there are plenty of other goodies, too.

Como Creek Wiped Out

I was saddened to hear a report from Pamela Zevit of the Como Watershed Group that the creek was hit by toxins for the second time in a month, likely wiping out any remaining fish.

I am taking the liberty of posting her initial report here, which I found on the Salmonopolis website:

Second Toxic Event In A Month Wipes Out Remaining Como Creek Fish

By Pam Zevit

It is with a heavy heart that I have to inform the community that a second toxic event has now impacted the remaining fish in Como Creek. Senior environmental emergency response, fire, the City and enforcement are all on scene at the time of this e-mail to deal with the problem and initiate the investigation. I have been on scene and have been provided some preliminary information. While there is some idea as to the cause of the event, the actual source of the toxic material which entered the creek system upstream of Millside school is still being determined via investigation. While I cannot provide any comment until such time as the information is made public, I can tell you that the last pocket of salmon and trout which were upstream of where the fire runoff entered the creek in July (just one month ago) are now dead. This basically means that while some remnant numbers of fish may have survived, for the most part the fish bearing part of the creek system from Brunette Avenue to at least the Superstore area (and possibly farther downstream) are now pretty much sterilized. Most of the dead fish will be collected as there are concerns that they may be toxic to wildlife.

If you wish further information please contact the City of Coquitlam in the coming days. I will pass on any further information when I know more.

I have toured the Como Watershed with Pamela and want to express my sympathies (and outrage) at these avoidable events. It is difficult to find the words to express the heartbreak and anger that accompany a tragedy like this, after one has invested so much time and effort into preserving a slice of nature in the concrete jungle. I wish Como Creek the best, and may nature work her wonders in bringing life back to its waters.

Pink Salmon Too Cheap?

Whole fresh pink salmon (head off and gutted) were on sale today at Save On Foods at Highgate Mall in Burnaby for $2.99 each. Yes, I said "each." I was struck by what seemed to be the shockingly low price -- fishermen had to burn fuel and amortize boats and equipment to catch the fish, they had to be cleaned, and then shipped a fair distance.

The one I chose weighed in at 1.1 kg (I weighed it on a kitchen scale at home because the weights were not indicated on the packaging), or about 27 cents per 100 grams, less than the occasional sale price of 29 cents per 100 grams, and much less than the common price of 39 cents or more per 100 grams.

I wonder if our society is properly valuing this resource.

Addendum: I just discovered that Save On Foods is donating 50 cents from the sale of each salmon to the CKNW Orphans’ Fund. While I laud the gesture, it doesn't ameliorate my concern -- in fact it makes me really wonder how low the wholesale price of these fish is...

Community Liveability Survey

A professor in the School of Environment and Sustainability at Royal Roads University (where I'm studying) is conducting research on community liveability. If you have a few minutes, you can access the survey here.

Details:

I and my research team have embarked upon an ambitious research project to solicit feedback from two million Canadians exploring what kinds of relationships we have within our communities.

You can participate in this unique research in two ways:

1. Complete the online Community Liveability Survey. If you would like to enter the early bird draw (exclusive to members of the RRU community) as well as the general draw for one of five iPod Shuffles, simple enter your @community.royalroads.ca address into the space provided. Your response is CONFIDENTIAL. Your e-mail address will be used only for the random draws - you will not be contacted unless you win.

2. Encourage your family, friends and colleagues to complete the survey and share the survey link http://www.survey.crcresearch.org/index.php?sid=2 with the members of their many communities. To see how broad the reach is of our RRU community network, we ask all to type “peacock” in the last question of the survey, forwarding the same request on to their networks.

Ultimately we hope the findings will shed light on the relationships between agency (individual capacity), social capital and sustainable community development.

For further details on the project, including your opportunity to win an iPod Shuffle, please see the brief survey outline following my signature block. Thank you - your responses could well help shape the world we leave to our children and grandchildren.

~~~~~~~~~~
Ann Dale, Trudeau Fellow
Professor, School of Environment and Sustainability Faculty of Social
and Applied Sciences Canada Research Chair on Sustainable Community
Development Royal Roads University
2005 Sooke Road, Victoria, BC, V9B 5Y2
http://trudeaufoundation.ca http://www.e-researchagenda.ca
http://www.oursafetynet.org

*THE SURVEY*

Regardless of geographic location, our communities are formed by the individual day-to-day choices we all make. Many of our decisions to live more sustainably are shaped by the community resources available to us such as public transit, access to shops and restaurants, water and sewer, friends and family, health care, schools, services for seniors, and recreational opportunities. But do we define communities or do they define us?

In order to fully understand what makes a community sustainable and how it functions, Dr. Dale's research team is looking not only at the geographic communities in which we live, but also the relational communities of which we are members such as those related to our career, profession, sports and social interests, disabilities and illnesses, religion, age, gender, hobbies, sex, cultural background, and of course the virtual communities in which we find ourselves. They are also exploring what access to sustainable infrastructure a community has and how that determines how people come together.

Five randomly chosen respondents will be selected at the end of the survey period to win an iPod Shuffle. Your response is CONFIDENTIAL. You will only be asked to identify yourself if you wish to register to win the iPod Shuffle and you will not be contacted by anyone unless you win.

All results from the survey will be published online at www.crcresearch.org as of Sept 2008, with continual updates as numbers dictate.

"The survey is a dynamic research tool and thus, we will continue to collect data as long as there is community interest" says Dr. Dale. "We are hoping that this data allows us to learn more about gaps in community perspectives and critical linkages between agency, social capital and sustainable community development that will lead to concrete policy recommendations by governments."

A River Runs Through Us

Fin Donnelly, founder of the Rivershed Society of BC, gave a presentation on his work at the Fraser River Discovery Centre this evening. He recapped his amazing swims (twice!) down the entire length of the Fraser River, a distance of nearly 1,400 km, to highlight issues of sustainability. He also spoke about programs the Rivershed Society is working on including Project Rivershed which is focusing on the Brunette watershed in the Lower Mainland. Another exciting program from the Rivershed Society is the Sustainable Living Leadership Program, which takes young people on rafting trips down the entire length of the Fraser, while training them in leadership and sustainability along the way. Fin is also a councillor for the City of Coquitlam.

A River Runs Through Us is a Rivershed Society slogan highlighting the importance of healthy watersheds, and that we can all make a difference with our own behaviours.

Forum: Building Environmentally Friendly Communities

Burnaby - New Westminster MP Peter Julian hosted a community forum on Building Environmentally Friendly Communities at Douglas College this evening. About 40-50 people showed up to hear Julian and four other speakers, followed by a question/answer/suggestion period. (Disclosure: Though Julian has appeared in several of my blog posts, I am not a member of any political party, and intend to maintain my independence in the future).

This is the first of three forums Julian is hosting on climate change. He said we need fundamental changes at all levels to tackle the issue, from individuals all the way up to the federal government.

The first speaker on the panel was Nicholas Lamm who works on the Green Workplace Program associated with the Environmental Youth Alliance. He spoke about creating green communities within businesses to make change last.

Scott Sinclair, VP of the BC Sustainable Energy Association, said BC is blessed with tremendous renewable energy resources. We could double the energy we now produce simply by tapping renewable resources such a wind, solar, geothermal, etc. He said his organization is working on a plan for a fossil-fuel free GVRD. The plan would cut CO2 emissions by 80% by 2025. The main way to achieve this would be by eliminating the use of natural gas for heating (replacing it with heat pumps, solar, wind, etc.) and the use of gasoline for transportation (replacing it with electricity). He said communities need to be redesigned for walking, cycling and transit.

Next came Tom Lancaster, Manager of Advisory Services, SmartGrowth BC. He pointed out that urban design is still centered on cars. He said at least 13 homes per acre are needed for a functional transit system, and on average we are nowhere near that density. We are still not building the right kinds of cities -- we need to create nodal town centers.

Last came Jonathan Cote, a New Westminster city councillor. He talked about a Green Action Plan that he and other young municipal councillors from all over BC are working on. He said a lot of mistakes have been made in designing the GVRD and that we continue to separate where we live from where we work, shop and play. We cannot be afraid of density. He said industrial land is important, and that New Westminster should ensure it remains industrial. He said it is critically important to engage the public. Last, he pointed out that municipalities are called upon to do more and more, but their revenue sources are limited to property tax for the most part.

Julian wrapped up the presentations by insisting that the Gateway Program that centers on twinning the Port Mann bridge is a bad decision. It basically rewards communities for adding to suburban sprawl and continues to focus transportation on cars.

The ensuing question/suggestion period came up with many suggestions for achieving greener communities. When an audience member complained about how many businesses and amenities New Westminster had lost or was losing -- a Canadian Tire, a Zellers, its only movie theater, a community theater, etc. -- meaning people would have to drive more, Cote pointed to neighbouring Burnaby's Big Bend big box developments (he also decried the Big Box-ification of his city's Queensborough area). As a Burnaby resident, I silently cheered, for Burnaby really screwed up on these developments that are completely car oriented and are sucking commerce out of the Kingsway corridor and the nearby Edmonds Town Centre -- undermining the city's own community plans.

Suzuki Speaks at Douglas College

David Suzuki spoke to an overflowing house today at Douglas College in New Westminster. After introductions from New Westminster Mayor Wayne Right and Councillor Jonathan Cote, Suzuki gave an impassioned speech that had the audience laughing, cheering and clapping.

His basic message? This is a moment when we as humans have to make some crucial decisions. We need to transform the way we live, and we have a very narrow window to do it in. We are the first and only species to actually change our planet, and we need to learn to control our impulses. There is good news out there, and it's up to each and every one of us to make our wishes for change known to our politicians. Though each of us alone may feel insignificant, when millions of us act together we can be a powerful force.

Suzuki urged audience members to sign up for his Nature Challenge and start contributing small, personal efforts toward sustainability.

Yumi and I did our bit today by taking the Skytrain down to the event, and then walking home, which took just over an hour :-).

Sustainable Planning

Sustainability: Planning's Redemption or Curse?
Author: Michael Gunder, PhD

An excellent comment on how too often planners leave out the environmental and social equity components of sustainability in favor of the economy.

"Sustainability is often defined as a balance of the three E's: the environment, the economy, and social equity. But as planners embrace the concept, the sustainability 'balance' heavily favors one E: the economy. Michael Gunder warns that planners risk sacrificing the environment and social equity in the name of sustainable economic development."

How Do Canada's National Newspapers Frame Sustainability?

This is the topic of my research project for my MA in Professional Communication from Royal Roads University.

At no time have people been more concerned about sustainability than they are now. We read and hear about environmental sustainability, corporate sustainability, sustainable development, and building sustainable communities. The Stern Review on the Economics of Climate Change published on October 30, 2006, forecast that human impact on climate change could result in damage to economic growth on the scale of the great wars and the economic depression in the last century. It was followed by stories based on an article in the journal Science projecting that global fish and other seafood stocks could completely collapse by 2048 if they continue to be lost at their present rate.

A recent Angus Reid poll called Canadians Question Government on Environment shows that 71% of Canadians do not think the federal government is doing enough on pollution and climate control, and in another Angus Reid poll, Environment Becomes Key Concern in Canada, 26% of Canadians say the environment is their top issue when it comes to the next national election, beating all other categories.

How are mass media framing sustainability? How does media coverage relate to the original concept of “sustainable development” proposed by a United Nations commission nearly 20 years ago? The World Commission on Environment and Development issued the Brundtland Report in 1987, saying “sustainable development is development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.” Is there evident bias in how mass media report on sustainable development––in how the issue is framed? If there are biases in how mass media frame issues of sustainability, what are they?

In particular, how do the National Post and The Globe and Mail, which respectively are viewed as being Canada’s conservative and liberal national newspapers, frame sustainability and sustainable development? Do they cover the same stories? What are their biases, if any? How do they differ? How are they similar? What sources do they use? The underlying hypothesis of this research is that coverage and sources differ between the two newspapers, with the National Post slanted toward conservative stories highlighting business and economic impacts, and citing government and business sources, while the The Globe and Mail takes a more liberal stance, and cites more non-governmental organizations and environmentalists.

This research will shed light on the framing of sustainability in Canada’s national newspapers so that readers are aware of what is covered and how it is covered. The media play a huge role in setting agendas and framing the news, and citizens will benefit by becoming more discerning consumers of what they read.

Seeds for Change: Local Solutions to Global Issues

I attended the Seeds for Change: Local Solutions to Global Issues conference at the University of British Columbia yesterday and today. It was organized by the UBC Student Environment Centre with support from the Sierra Youth Coalition.

While initially I felt somewhat out of place amidst a sea of young people, it was a fun and informative conference. Speakers ranged from Marx and Lenin-spouting whippersnappers to erudite professors with well thought-out presentations.

It's good to see that kids do care, and are thinking about the environment and sustainability.

I particularly enjoyed presentations by three well-spoken profs:

1) Yves Tiberghien on "The Global Battle over the Governance of Genetically Modified Food." He maintains an interesting site on the Politics of Genetically Modified Organisms.

2) Michael Byers, Professor, Canadian Research Chair in International Law and Politics, who spoke on "Climate Change -- Why Nothing is Happening at a Global Level." He gave an entertaining talk on why politicians and corporate leaders calculate that there is no reason to deal seriously with climate change.

3) Kai Chan, Assistant Professor at the Institute for Resources, Environment and Sustainability, who spoke on "Conservation Planning of Ecosystem Services." The topic dealt with how ecosystem services (the benefits of nature that sustain and fulfill human life) are neglected and abused because they are not traded in markets and not accounted for in standard accounting practices.

Species at Risk Conservation Series 2007

The South Coast Conservation Program put on a one-day species-at-risk "Toward Solutions That Work" seminar in Burnaby today. There were a number of interesting speakers in the morning, followed by a planning exercise in the afternoon. I found it to be a very useful session, with a broad range of participants from municipal governments, the provincial and federal levels, and NGOs.

The planning exercise was eye-opening. Each table was given an air photo of an area that had three creeks running through it and extensive forested areas, with some development encroachment. Our task was to design in development for several thousand residents and some commercial facilities, while providing for several species at risk that depended on the existing ecosystem.

Needless to say we all came up with wonderful plans, only to see what really happened. The air photo had been taken in 1948 of an area in Coquitlam that was eventually 98% paved over and developed. Very sad.

The heartening aspect was that at least we discuss preserving urban biodiversity these days. Sustainability was not even on the table 30 or 40 years ago.

Worldchanging.com

Ran across the worldchanging.com website tonight. It appears to be an excellent sustainability resource, and I think I'll buy the book, too. Everything from sustainable food to green building to smart growth to ecological economics to....

2006 Fraser Basin Conference Day 2

The second day of the 2006 State of the Fraser Basin Conference put on by the Fraser Basin Council was as interesting and even more inspiring than yesterday.

The exercise on interactive voting on actions from yesterday's breakout sessions was very informative and there was good audience interaction. There were also several more excellent speakers including Shawn Atleo, BC Regional Chief, Assembly of First Nations, and Canadian Olympic medalist Silken Laumann.

It's hard not to feel inspired when listening to speakers like Atleo and Laumann -- they really get across the principle that individual efforts can make a huge difference.

I'm looking forward to the next conference in January 2007.

2006 State of the Fraser Basin Conference

I am attending the 2006 State of the Fraser Basin Conference put on by the Fraser Basin Council at the convention center in Vancouver today and tomorrow. The sessions today were a mix of depressing and inspiring. The focus of the conference is sustainability, and how governments, businesses, First Nations, and NGOs in the basin can work toward a sustainable future.

The council released its 2006 state of the basin snapshot (which can be downloaded from the above website), and overall, the grade was C-. Ouch. There is much we need to do.

I will share just a few highlights from each day that caught my interest.

First, the basin is projected to see 37% population growth over the next 25 years.

FBC Chair Dr. Charles Jago:

This conference is about inspiring action. We need collaboration for positive change. Realize synergies. We need to focus on what is most crucial. We have the ability to significantly remake our world. It is individuals who must act to change institutions. In turn institutions can change how individuals act.

James Hoggan, James Hoggan and Associates Inc.

Communicating Sustainability: People seem to be talking to themselves. People become less able to connect with broader perspectives. Gap between sustainability community and the general public. Need to bridge this gap to move forward to change how we function as a society. Research into how Canadians are thinking about sustainability.

Bad news – the word sustainability gets in the way. Very high level of mistrust of government, mistrust of business, mistrust of other Canadians, yet Canadians underestimate each others’ concerns about sustainability.

Canadians are very quick to understand sustainability and their values are in line with it, but they are looking for trustworthy leadership and are not seeing it.

Once the concept is explained to them, 82% of Canadians see sustainability as a top goal. Research shows 84% agree we need stricter laws and regulations to protect the environment and 65% agree businesses would be more profitable in the long run if they adhered to sustainability principles. Only 5% said they were not concerned about sustainability, yet thought 50% of other Canadians were not concerned!

How Canadians view sustainability:
Atheists (completely reject the concept) 2%
Heathen (oblivious to the concept) 16%
The Choir (sold on sustainability) 15%
The Congregation (receptive to sustainability) 67%

The Congregation is crucial because these people are enthusiastic but unfamiliar with the issues and too much negativity demoralizes them.

We must reach out on sustainability: Focus on the congregation. Second, given the degree of mistrust, we must communicate through action. Third, we need to define the term sustainability and use a human voice, use their language. The story needs to be hopeful, the benefits must be brought to the fore, and people must know they are not alone.

Canadians do not believe there is anyone at the wheel and are calling for leadership, particularly in sustainability.

The conclusion was that there is hope!

Chris Kelly Vancouver School Board:

There is more than a message here, there is an imperative that needs to be addressed. Humans are always intervening with cycles. The world is elegant and fragile at the same time. There are three themes in the snapshot report. A call for education/a call for learning. A call for leadership. A call for hope.

Young Canadians are starving for meaningful engagement. I’m not talking about learning instead of doing, but learning as active participation. There is no uniform way people learn. Learning is an individual and social process. Extend this to every organization. Importance of engaged learning with systems. Action is common learning. This is a time when a current generation must not pass on its way of doing things to a new generation. Leadership is the act of taking responsibility for the quality of other people’s experience.

Hope is the essential notion. Hope is the oxygen of the human spirit.

Kelly was an excellent speaker!

Paul Kariya, Pacific Salmon Foundation

If we’re going to have creativity we have to have fun. Think Salmon.

We, humankind are the problem, but we are also the solution.

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Sorry for the jumble, and apologies to speakers that I left out!