'Letter to the Editor' on BC's last intact rare Old-Growth Forests

A Western Screech Owl, one of many S.A.R.A.-listed species that rely on BC's old-growth forests for their survival.. (Screech owls mate for life, with both ma & pa involved in co-parenting their young)

You can read the CBC article at the link (below screen capture) re. Premier John Horgan's lame announcement on his latest 'Intentions Paper' vis-a-vis his/BC-NDP's 'new paradigm' on BC's precious Old-Growth Forests - which does little to assure forest defenders that these iconic 1,000-year-old forest ecosystems (/C02 sinks/ wildlife habitats) won'T be logged to extinction in 3 years.. 

CBC Article on Horgan's Old-Growth intentions

Dare I say the issue of whether or not to save BC's old-growth forests should not be the decision of any human(s) putting short-term personal gains ahead of larger considerations, ie. Climate Action/ Nature's revival?

To pretend these are not dilemmas facing govt. leaders today is to deny the overwhelming body of science that has been telling (& showing) us the catastrophic results of our century-long ever-increasing crudely-executed/  heavy-handed 'harvesting' of Nature's once-rich, now-reaped bounty -- of which intact rainforest ecosystems are the 'Lungs' thereof.

Literally, BC's untouched 1,000-year-old primary (unlogged) forests -- of which only approx. 3% remain intact -- are among the world's ONLY climate-balancing wilderness ecosystems left to cover the herculean C02-sinking/ O2-emitting job that once was shared by myriad forests all over the globe..

Having picked Earth almost-dry of its invaluable 'resources' without ensuring their ongoing regeneration ('SOWING WHAT WE REAP'), in the process humans have left behind gluts of toxins/waste that continue to accumulate as long as those inefficient processes are still being used to 'harvest' what we need/use to live!?

It's true:  the systems we've developed/installed -- & now rely on heavily to 'keep us going' -- are the same mechanisms fast-tracking Nature's demise, & thus our own..

But Nature -- yes, still! -- provides everything we need to live!  Doesn't it follow that protecting Nature should be everybody's -- incl. govt. leaders' -- top priority? 

 

Scientists recently issued yet another dire warning that the measurable outcomes of continued reliance on our clunky old wasteful ways include warming temperatures which will lock in further degradation of our life-support system, ie. Nature itself.

Govts cite 'jobs' as a key reason for continuing to permit & subsidize industries with the most devastating impacts on Nature's balance -- of which deforestation is among the worst, not due solely to emissions (which are high when huge old trees release the total C02 they've sequestered over centuries) but also to ensuing LOSS OF FORESTS' COUNTLESS PRICELESS BENEFITS, as our ultimate protectors/safeguards against the harmful human processes endangering whole populations now..

JOBS that work to restore Nature's balance -- in conservation, education, renewable energy, transitioning OUT OF polluting industries etc. -- are what's desperately needed now;  jobs that exacerbate the status quo (GHG emitters like logging, mining..) ALL have imminent expiry dates.

(Widely-known) FACT:  the oldest intact forests ARE what's staving off the worst effects of climate change:  the droughts, famine, fires, floods that threaten mass upheaval on a dime -- brought to the very brink by Big-Biz's last 'all-in' mad pillage for profits (by 'extraction'/ logging/ pollution/ whatever they can get away with) before public pressure forces govts. to shut 'em down..

Thus govt's DELAY on legislating old-school harmful practices OUT before Nature-restoring replacement systems are put IN, could be exactly what tips Nature into irreversible decline..

It only makes pragmatic sense to protect our sole defense against this decline AT ALL COSTS -- along with all the non-human species whose lives depend on keeping these [whole] old forests intact!!?  Without their essential habitats, biodiversity will go extinct -- & guess who will be next.

At this point, the prospect of letting these important ecosystems be cut down is as unthinkable as demolishing the Great pyramids for the price of their stones :  as someone said, it's psychopathic - no matter who is doing the cutting..

Thank you.

PS.  Please sign & share my petition on Change.org:  ProtectOurForests!

Amid forestry struggles, panel finds ‘surprising’ consensus on old-growth logging concerns in B.C.

[This is my - since-deleted - comment to the above-named article in The Narwhal 1 year ago]

But our C02/ GHG emissions continue to RISE --& logging our last remaining old-growth forests ADDS to those emissions daily, due to the massive amounts of C02 they SEQUESTER (& CONTINUE TO, IF LEFT INTACT!!)

It is simply sheer CLIMATE SABOTAGE for our Govts. to keep giving forestry co's the right to CLEARCUT -- at criminal rates, as this expert source elucidates: www.ancientforestalliance.org -- our onLy significant safeguards against accelerated eco-breakdown by climate change, I.E. HEALTHY ANCIENT RAINFORESTS, which must be protected & allowed to expand AT ALL COSTS..

When you factor in the added GHGs logging itself emits (which is considerable --see that same link) it's clear that cutting down these life-saving forests along with their rich biodiversity AND massive C02 sequestration powers --KNOWING the proven rapacious effects of deforestation exacerbating global warming-- amounts to DESTRUCTION of our best (if not onLy) defence against the dire effects of climate change..

There can be no other way to assess it (as Australia has proven): NO GOVT. can credibly argue FOR allowing continuation of clearcut logging of our last remaining 10% intact old-growth forests!?

Of course most Canadians are concerned Canada isn't dealing with global warming, as our elected GOVTS. ARE FAILING TO ACT ON ANY OF THEIR PLATFORMS/ PROMISES of 'REAL Climate Action', 'Reconciliation' ETC. In BC, Premier Horgan has betrayed constituents AND his minority GREEN PARTY opposition by reneging on aLL NDP climate plans/ promises & instead simply furthering same-old Colonial/ corporate status quo BS that's directly diminished our defences against looming climate disaster..

Informed BCers (rightfully) REJECT Govt's ongoing --infuriating-- inaction/ ineptitude in legislating the changes we desperately NEED to revise our fortunes/futures. First plan of defense = BOLSTER EXISTING DEFENSES -- I.E. enact immediate moratoriums on all old-growth logging -- & any activity that requires destruction of our drastically-diminished (life-saving) forest ecosystems -- including aLL new projects involving eco-ruin, eg. polluting dams, fracking (LNG), open-pit mining ETC. that current infrastructure does not need to function NOW IN THE INTERIM WHILE TRANSITIONING TO CLIMATE-SAFE/ RENEWABLE ENERGY SOURCES, regenerating/soil-replenishing agriculture/ non-GMO farming, locally-focused production cycles ETC.. ALL of which will create & require new employment growth/revitalization, & ALL of which should already be INCENTIVIZING leading suppliers in all sectors (eg. Big Oil's ongoing UNCHANGED, UNSUSTAINABLE resource extraction, cited as global warming's main culprit by the legit global scientific community!?) motivating ECONOMY-DRAINING, TOP-HEAVY POLLUTING CORPS TO TRANSITION TO ECO-SAFE & SUSTAINABLE OPS.. OR GET OUT OF THE WAY TO GIVE SUPERIOR SCIENCE-BASED SYSTEMS (EG. RENEWABLE ENERGY -- ELECTRIC VEHICLES..) OPPORTUNITIES TO PHASE IN C02-NEUTRAL LOW-FOOTPRINT DISTRIBUTION/ MANUFACTURE/ PRODUCTION METHODS THAT OPTIMIZE RESTORATION OF ESSENTIAL NATURAL ECOSYSTEMS.. NOW NOT LATER!

(Anything else insults us all -- & justifies the widespread panic & despair seen in areas already most affected by devastating global warming, eg. Australia) We are next if we don't get on it & ACT - NOT JUST DISCUSS..

[Since then, logging of BC's rare old-growth has continued.. Premier Horgan has broken his election promise to protect these ecosystems from logging (as predicted by many).. Wilderness Committee has estimated all but 1% of these precious forests have been ruthlessly clearcut.. & forestry giant Teal Jones has been allowed to bring an injunction against the brave forestry defenders blocking their destructive designs on the important Fairy Creek key ancient forest on Vancouver Island.. These are shocking times for BC on the brink of catastrophic climate change - & our govts. MUST step in & save these last intact habitats of 1,000s of species at risk of extinction (which the BCNDP also promised to work on legislating, crucial if our kids are going to thrive in a sustainable future)  If we don't work together to protect nature's health NOW, we're going to be in big trouble.. (i.e. Califerno's coming here next)]

Just for good measure, here's another comment i made on this same crucial issue..

In this perilous time of global-wide biodiversity loss & eco-degradation --on top of the cumulative GHGs emitted by logging & resultant loss of large valuable C02 sinks-- this recent rash of clear cuts (& subsequent threats to native wildlife habitats) is a dire sign that prov. Govts past & present have wilfully mismanaged BC's key natural resource, to the detriment iF NOT EXTINCTION of the many species dependant on these forests for their very survival. Including humans..

It is noT enough for politicians to pay lip service to critical policy changes needed now: the extreme severity of this unmitigated devastation wreaked by greedy industrial corps with no respect for nature's balance --ie. A huge & unconscionable dereliction of duty that's directly contributed to the climate 'emeRgency' that threatens our very EXISTENCE-- demands immediate & drastic corrective measures, eg. Curtailment of aLL clearcut logging & binding legislation restricting forestry in BC to sustainable 2nd-growth mgmt. & stringent protection of aLL old-growth forest ecosystems, as well as strict 'Protection of Trees' LAWS in every BC jurisdiction!!

But since the current BC govt. --like each one b4 it-- has clearly chosen NOT to act responsibly in the best interests of BC/ taxpayers, thereby exacerbating not preventing probable catastrophes arising from these criminal acts of rainforest deforestation, an emergency court/ panel needs to take over & enact these measures for them..

Drastic? Yes it is -- thanks to a century+ of governmental failure to protect BC's natural ecosystems, the health of which is key for survival & for future generations..

Govt. is obviously out of time required to save our life-supporting forests: despite increasing urgency of rising GHGs, diversity/habitat loss & degraded natural ecosystems threatening all dependent life forms, OUR GOVT. HAS FAILED TO TAKE ONE MITIGATING MEASURE TO OFFSET THESE LOOMING --SCIENTIFICALLY PROVEN, INDUSTRY-CAUSED-- THREATS TO THE HEALTH & SAFETY OF ALL BC RESIDENTS!

In fact, our provincial govts past & present have done nothing but green-light dangerous/ polluting projects, encouraged massive environmental degradation by extractive industries & even subsidized high-profiting corps while taxing residents to destroy our forests/ ecosystems!?

If this is not a desperate CALL 4 IMMEDIATE LONG-OVERDUE INTERVENTION --from collective/ federal/ Supreme Court/ UN/ whatever forces more capable than prov. govt.-- to take action preventing further eco-ruin & to save BC's remaining ecosystems/ livelihoods, then WHAT IS?

GOVTs: HAVE SOME INTEGRiTY: bReak deaLs with polluters NOT your promises to us! (FOR ONCE)

First, we need to respect science, which just IS -- in a singular category of objectivity, if not its 'last bastion' thereof. Science's standardized/ streamlined methodologies exemplify the most efficient/ fruitful/ TRUTHFUL use of human endeavour.. (In an era of artistic license & 'anything goes', of random acts & uncertain foes & non-fiction taken for fake news posing as prose, SCIENCE PLODS ON, indifferent to traits/ trends & stuck on measured singularities of PLACE/ TIME, in obeyance to its unwavering parameters & consistent procedures that make military regimes seem unhinged..)

Yet for all its unexciting exactitude & unfettered focus on tangible PHYSICAL REALITY, SCIENCE SUCCEEDS at joining humans in tireless quests for undiluted knowledge & observable overriding truths about our world.. & in doing so, scientists have unearthed the most heartstopping realities & real-life histories that defy the vividest mind of any mortal.. HOW can these epic odysseys of overwhelming magnitude possibly be dismissed with any integrity by self-appointed 'leaders' of whole populations, in favour of paltry fictions & polluting limitations?

& it's taken 1,000s of scientists worldwide working round the clock, using hard-won samples of carefully-measured layers of air & earth & fossils & rock, extracted from physical artifacts/ digs/ dirt/ swamps/ sea-beds/ mountainside/ cliffs representing different parts of the millions of years embedded therein, then deconstructed & dissected & analyzed & reconstructed & applied to the strictest standards & tested for specific results. The collective consequence amounts to a jaw-dropping Real Natural History of Earth spanning 100s of millions of years -- with ever-accumulating measurements of new finds filling in the blanks, each new discovery illuminating more of the whole, until massive reconstructed worlds are accurately visualized & give us insights into HOW BEST TO PROCEED GOING FORWARD..

[See NOVA TV's 'Polar Extremes']

We could be experiencing these groundbreaking discoveries together --shared globally by real [RESPECTED!] scientists sharing their finds as they break them open one by one, & unearth the keys to mould our better future in which all biodiversity will thrive -- along with our kids -- in a world that, above all, RESPECTS not just USES Nature's forces (which sustain LIFE ON EARTH.. duh?)  Having this process blocked & downgraded by desperate politicians/ businessmen/ charlatans who profit from polluting systems proven to be the very culprits of 100% HUMAN-CAUSED GLOBAL WARMING CONFIRMED BY MODERN SCIENCE --- is such an obvious perversion to those of us with half a brain who value life beyond constraints of oppression imposed by global leaders profiting from mass consumption of the inefficient, poisonous products they keep hawking, indifferent to the suffering SCIENCE IS SHOWING US ALL IN 3-D!

What's gross is the quacks/ factory farmers/ frackers/ loggers/ O&G peddlers ETC. have --against aLL decency/ reason-- been WINNING, & silencing those of us who are almost hoarse after decades of clamouring for justice & eco-balance & sustainability~!!?  HOW, is a marvel of $$-minded manoeuvrability of the blind leading the blind, with nothing but personal wealth & obsolete old-school polluting [illegal?] eco-destruction mowing down (/chopping/ digging/ extracting/ poisoning/ wiping out..) aLL in their killing paths, furthered by sucked-in politicians wilfully ignoring conflicts-of-interest/ corruption at the core of lobbyists' ongoing monopoly of their target politicians' ears, convincing them all's COOL just cuz some of their constituents hold JOBS in those very fields sucking the life out of Earth..

WOULDN'T THESE GOOD PEOPS WITH JOBS BE EVEN HAPPIER GETTING PAID TO IMPROVE & NOT WRECK THEIR KIDS' FUTURES?  ISN'T DEMAND FOR THEIR SOON-TO-BE-OBSOLETE PRODUCTS WANING, IN FAVOUR OF UPGRADED (ECO-SAFE/ ORGANIC/ SUSTAINABLE/ VEGAN eTc.) ALTERNATIVES, GROWING IN SUPPLY AS I TYPE??  If corporations aren't shifting gears to keep up with The Times, then our Govts. need to ENCOURAGE transitions with kicks-in-the-butt like incentives/ withdrawals of sizeable subsidies sTiLL stalling progress.. Surely THAT'd be less jarring/ painful than the inevitable result of refusing to adjust to changing needs:  abandonment by consumers/ orphaned assets/ possible court-cases brought by public & private citizens who WILL be awarded damages THOSE CORPS wiLL have to pay.. (It's just a matter of time - & time is one luxury we no longer have, so events are bound to speed up & leave the stragglers/ stubborn behind!)

[The alternative to such predictable science-proofed stories will be:  an even more degraded environmental legacy -- with extinction a worst-case-scenario rearing its frightening head..]

It's exhausting trying to arm aLL with Science & Truth & the Will To Change, & attending/ organizing rallies to mobilize the masses so our (supposedly Democratic) Govts LISTEN & mobilize WITH US (as they obviously did during wars) -- instead of proving by their underhanded complicity with big-industry polluters that they OUTRIGHT LIED TO US ABOUT THEIR INTENTIONS (public reactions to which, however, reveal that MANY MORE FAVOUR CLIMATE ACTION / GREEN NEW DEALS THAN WE WERE LED TO BELIEVE~!) THAT'S WHY WE WANT GREENS & NOT CONS/ LIBS/ NDP:  we see the corporate pandering behind the complacent Predominant Political Parties.. & it AIN'T pretty!  WE FEEL SHAFTED!!

We COULD BE transitioning EN MASSE to science-based alternatives, old-growth protection (cuz it's WHOLE FORESTS that sequester more C02 than any other known carbon sinks -- saving one or two 500-1,000-yr-old "big trees" & felling the rest just WON'T WORK as more C02 is released in that process!!!?), regenerative farming, renewable energy sources like geothermal & wave harnessing, ETC. -- ALL OF WHICH HAVE PROVEN SUCCESSFUL, WITH WILDLY PRODUCTIVE RESULTS~!  But sadly, most govt. leaders are --STILL!!??-- wielding way too much unwarranted power & held in thrall (apparently?) by industry/ O&G lobbyists who've managed to monopolize their pea-brains to the exclusion of anyone else in their decision-making... WHICH I CAN'T EVEN FATHOM AS LEGAL!!?? SHOULDN'T GOVT. BE LISTENING TO THE S.C.I.E.N.T.I.S.T.S. (& US T.A.X.P.A.Y.E.R.S.?) & SUING THE POLLUTING CORPS FOR DAMAGES WITH WHICH TO FUND OUR CLEANER, COOLER FUTURE??  LIKE A.S.A.P.???

AT LEAST WE OUGHT TO BE MOBILIZING TOGETHER TO URGE GOVT. TO QUIT USING OUR MONEY TO FUND BIG POLLUTERS -- eg. NEW fossil-fuel infrastructure like TMX & massive eco-ruinous projects like SiteC -- THAT ARE OBVIOUSLY CAUSING/ EXACERBATING OUR PROBLEMS -- & OUR KIDS' FUTURES!!?

(HELLLLOOOO?  HORGAN??  CONROY???  WILKINSON????  TRUDEAU?????  WE SEEEE YOU.. YOU CAN'T HIDE FROM US -- YOU ARE PUBLIC SERVANTS NOW -- SO STEP UP & DO OUR FUTURE A FAVOUR.. ELSE BOW OUT WITH GRACE & LET THE GREEN PARTY DO ITS THING!  YOUR POLITICAL CAREERS SHOULD BE SECONDARY TO THE DUTIES YOU'VE SWORN TO UPHOLD.. & THOSE WHO FUNDED YOUR CAMPAIGNS WILL JUST HAVE TO ROLL WITH THE LAW:  YOU'RE in charge now!!!?