Captain Paul Watson expounds on
the Fort McMurray conflagrations..
The following text has been taken from a
repost by one of my Facebook Friends, Ingmar Lee, a fellow who lives near Bella
Bella on Canada’s west coast. I know he is a person very concerned about the
environment at his beautiful west coastal region of the world.
Captain Paul Watson needs no introduction
as one of the founding members of Greenpeace. They have done and continue to
raise some very valid environmental concerns around the world. They are very
action based funded by huge money donated by concerned world citizens.
Please
read the following posting that Paul Watson wrote on his Facebook page and was
reposted by Ingmar. There are also a couple of comments following.
Captain Paul Watson expounds on
the Fort McMordor
conflagrations..
The Sodom
and Gomorrah of the Great White North
by Captain Paul Watson - Sea Shepherd Conservation Society
May 2016
Earlier
this week, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau scolded Canadian Green Party
leader Elizabeth May for suggesting that the tragic fires in Alberta were
connected to climate change.
It
appears that the Prime Minister likes to speak about climate change in the
abstract but does not want to address the reality of the actual consequences of
climate change.
Prime
Minister Trudeau suggested that Elizabeth May’s statements were
“inappropriate.”
Well he
sure as hell is going to view my position as very inappropriate but there are
some things about Fort McMurray and Alberta that simply need to be said.
Fort
McMurray is a town that was established by the fur trade and built upon the
bloody corpses of millions of wild animals. The name comes from a Hudson’s Bay
fur trader named William McMurray. The place has been a blight on the landscape
in the boreal forest ever since the fur traders forced the native Cree people
to pack up and move along.
Calgary,
is Canada’s petro-capital, hosts the cruel annual Stampede and is the home of
the blue eyed Arabs in their white cowboy hats.
Alberta,
a Province where oil is so revered that Edmonton named their hockey team – the
Oilers.
Fort
McMurray is the home base of the workers and company offices of those who
devastated the natural environment with their obscenely destructive tar sands
development projects.
Fort
McMurray is a city of 80,000 that has been known as the “beating heart” of the
Canadian oil industry.
The
wealthiest per capita city in Canada with an average household income of
$181,000 Canadians dollars.
A town
with a birthrate above the national average.
A town
with the largest number per capita of imported luxury cars.
A town of
climate change deniers who have long held environmentalists in contempt and who
laughed at the warnings that the planet is heating up and the ever-growing
signs that consequences were fast appearing on the horizon.
Fort
McMurray and Calgary, the two communities most responsible for the worst
destruction of eco-systems in Canada – the scorched earth economic policies
that ripped open the bowels of the land, destroyed rivers, lakes, forests and
wetlands and caused the deaths of millions of animals.
Fort
McMurray, a town that contributed so much to creating and spewing great volumes
of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, and as fate has unveiled, the very
town that is suffering the fire storm consequences of the seeds that it has
sown.
In 2013
Calgary was hit with its worst flooding disasters in memory.
Yet the
Prime Minister says there is no connection between these disasters and climate
change.
Fort
McMurray is now experiencing the highest temperatures and the lowest
precipitation in its entire history. Temperatures this week were 31 degrees F.
higher than average for the month of May.
To say
there is no relationship to climate change is a delusional denial. Of course
there is a connection and that connection is blazing forth dramatically in Fort
McMurray where the entire population has been evacuated and over 1200 homes
have been razed to the ground.
Of course
we should feel compassion for the losses of the people who live there but it is
insane to not discuss why this is happening and why it will continue to happen.
When
humanity spits into the face of Mother Nature we should not be surprised to see
the consequences of our collective arrogance and ecological ignorance spat back
at us.
This
horrendous fire, just like the flood that hit Calgary and the super storms,
floods and tornadoes ravaging through communities around the globe are the
consequences of the hundreds of millions of tons of carbon that we annually
inject into the atmosphere and the irreparable damage we are doing to the
natural mechanisms that absorb carbon, like the forests, wetlands and the
ocean.
This fire
is nature’s punishment for the sins of human avarice. Not in a theological
sense, there is no divine plan here, just the natural chemical reaction caused
by humanity’s activities.
In nature
there is always an equal reaction to an action. The tar sands development was a
huge action and the reaction is and will be equally huge as a consequence.
The
disaster in Fort McMurray is man-made and the people suffering the most are
some of the very people who participated in creating the circumstances that they
are now experiencing.
Prime
Minister Trudeau says that now is not the time to discuss this, but when is it
time to discuss cause and effect. They did not want to discuss it in the past.
They don’t want to discuss it now and they have no intention of discussing this
in the future.
They can
dismiss it as an act of God, a natural disaster or whatever they may choose to
call it, but the writing is on the wall. Big oil, government, both Federal and
Provincial, big banks, and jobs are the underlying cause of this disaster and
that is a truth now written in the sky with broad brushstrokes of flame and
smoke.
Comments
Robert Roy Sunny Ways vs. "Fire in the
Sky". The first reaction for some on the less popular side of oil industry
was to feel like Karma was truly coming to town in Tar Sands Land. Not a warm
fuzzy feeling, maybe much sooner and more violent than was expected. Th...See More
podcast.cbc.ca
Barbara Joyce Hutton Very well said. My sentiments
exactly. Mother Nature is not finished with this yet. It has now moved into BC.
So guess we will be next to experience Mother Natures Rath. Rightfully so!
Very
Interesting is all I can say. There is some truth in what the captain
writes. Since the fur trade arrived in the New World, we have not been kind to
the land, the wildlife or the native people.
By “We” I mean all of us, not just Ft.
McMurray and the residents who were forced to flee due to the large forest fire
that recently ravaged that region of North Eastern Alberta. As far as we know
the fire started naturally but grew very quickly due to the unusually warm and
dry winter and early spring. For this we can place some blame upon a very
strong El Nino winter; effected because of a warmer Pacific Ocean than normal.
In 2013, southern Alberta suffered from
spectacular floods that ravaged Calgary, High River and many other communities
along the Bow and Elbow river systems. This high water can be attributed in
part to massive clear cut logging in the foothills region of the Eastern Slopes
region where these rivers begin. Once again, people were forced to flee their
homes toward higher ground.
In 2011, another forest fire ravaged much
of the central Alberta Town of Slave Lake. Once again the residents fled the
fire to safety. All three of these incidents cost or will cost insurance
companies billions of dollars and untold hardship and stress upon the people
who lived through them.
What caused these disasters? Yes, all of
us built cities and towns in the boreal forest. Boreal forests depend upon
fires to rejuvenate so it stands to reason that every square foot of the forest
will burn someday. Will it burn in such spectacular fashion or is it only
spectacular if it burns parts of cities and towns? There was a forest fire
burning in Northeast B.C. at the same time as the Ft. Mac fire but that fire
very quickly became a mute story when the wind directed it away from nearby
communities and a rainstorm happened along to assist in putting it out. We
humans have become very good at putting out forest fires over the past few
decades. This ability is one of the reasons that millions of acres of pine forest
in B.C. has been infested and killed off by the pine beetle. Warmer winters has
also had somewhat to do about the naturally occurring pine beetle but I wonder
about that somewhat. Central B.C. is naturally a much warmer place than most of
the rest of western Canada. I don’t know how often -40 degrees weather ever happened
in October and November that would have frozen the beetle to death before it
could manufacture anti-freeze or before it had the chance to bore deep enough
into a pine tree to protect it. That rarely happens now and with our ability to
put out fires, the beetle has proliferated and killed pine forests in B.C.,
Northwest USA, Alberta and into Saskatchewan.
The largest Canadian forest fire ever
happened in 1950 and covered more than 1.5 million hectares, three times as
large as the Ft. Mac fire. Global warming had not yet been discovered but that
summer was also very warm and dry with powerful winds and plenty of land to
cover. There were no tar sands plants polluting the air in 1950 either.
Remember the devastating Kelowna fire and
the fire that started east of Kamloops that ravaged Barrier about ten, maybe
fifteen years ago? That one started by a cigarette tossed into tinder dry
grassland and forest.
Many cities or towns all of us built in
B.C., Alberta or anyplace in this country could be burned down by wildfire due
to close proximity to forest or grasslands. The luck of the draw or direction
of the wind puts many places at risk. California and Australia also see homes
lost every year due to wild fires.
The point I am trying to make is that it
is not solely to do with what any place does to establish itself that puts it
at a higher risk of destruction. Anyone who drives a vehicle, a boat, flies on
an airplane or heats his home is using fossil fuels and that is fact. If you
have ever packed your groceries into plastic bags or used plastic in any way,
you are supporting the oil industry. All of us in North America have numerous
items in our homes manufactured with an oil heritage. That oil comes from the
ground at the risk of earthly damage and destruction. We all want these fuels
for the least possible price as well. We are all responsible for our share in
this fuel manufacturing process. We can all see the damage that it is causing
our earth but we continue to weigh the pros and cons and risk the health of
earth as a whole to provide ourselves with our comfortable lives. Ft. McMurray
is not alone in environmental destruction but it is a very visible poster child.
Ft. Mac industry does add carbon and other harmful chemicals to the air and
water, no doubt about it. We are all concerned about settling ponds at the oil
sands plants, just as we are concerned about settling ponds at any mines
everywhere. We have seen what happens when ponds burst into pristine rivers as
happened at Mount Polley, near Likely, B.C. Obed coal mine and Pinchi Lake
mines also burst tailing's ponds into pristine rivers and lakes with slurry's of
cyanide, heavy metals and coal waste. It seems to be an acceptable cost of
doing business that corporations try to avoid but our environmental protection
agencies dole out few real consequences.
Mining also causes very visible scars on
pristine landscapes. East of Hinton, Alberta, coal miners have moved entire
mountains, one truck load at a time. It is unbelievable to see how 7000 foot
mountains can just disappear in a couple of years. They do smooth out the
rubble and plant some grass when they have depleted the coal but it is not
quite the same. The diversity of life has disappeared for centuries. There are
mines scattered throughout Canada that leave spectacular destruction in their
wake, covered by a bit of grass when completed if lucky.
We can all see massive clear cuts of
forest that have been hacked out of beautiful, pristine wilderness from coastal
B.C. through the rest of Canada. Old growth forest logging still happens every
day even though we all know that these spectacular forest habitats will never
likely recover. 1000 year old trees still get chopped down to make 2x4s and
pulp so we can build another house or wipe our butt with silky smooth wipes. We
can all see the damage that cutting mountain sides of forest cause to streams
and rivers. Floods of debris and silt destroy valuable spawning habitat for
salmon and trout as well as numerous other species that depend on clean water.
Treeless mountainsides reflect the sun’s rays causing warmer micro-climates and
water temperatures. Warmer water causes ice to melt quicker and heat up the
ocean. We risk this environmental damage against our growing population’s
requirements for comfortable houses and conveniences. Do we hear a hue and cry
from the west coast environmentalists about this damage? Sometimes, when it
occurs in front of their own village.
Fishermen should not be left out either. Deep
sea fishermen are dragging the sea bed with huge nets causing undetermined but unseen
destruction to the ocean floor. Everything gets mowed over and torn up far from
view under water in the hopes of catching the few fish that are left out there.
Any species of critter scooped up but not wanted is tossed back into the sea,
most often dead or badly wounded. Fishermen have so depleted the ocean of life
that it is not likely to live much beyond a few more years. Krill, the basis of
life in the ocean is harvested by shiploads to feed dogs, cows, pigs, chickens
and to make fertiliser. Herring are harvested at their most vulnerable time of
spawning in the spring of the year which depletes food source for larger
species in the ocean. This makes less food available for salmon, birds and
whales. Live sharks have their fins cut off and then are pushed back into the
sea to drown so somebody can get his virility charged soup.
To replace dwindling salmon stocks, B.C.
has allowed scores of fish farms to be tied up in secluded bays along the
coastlines of Vancouver Island and throughout inlets up and down the coast.
These fish feedlots raise foreign Atlantic salmon by the millions. They are
accused of polluting the sea bed beneath each pen, spreading disease and
parasites to local migrating salmon which may cause depletion of natural wild
salmon stocks. Alexandra and her followers is the lone voice of concern for
wild salmon and we know nothing about that here in Alberta or anywhere away
from the coast. Are these examples any worse Sodom and Gomorrah’s than Ft.
McMurray?
The oil sands plants, mines, forestry and
fish farms all provide valuable industries for our growing countries. They
provide invaluable jobs to isolated communities. They all make profit for
shareholders. An exploding world human population is driving all of these
industries. None of us agree with the methodology to the madness we are
perpetuating on our earth. How do we stop it? I think it is impossible to halt
and roll back to the 1800s or whichever era you would like to live in.
The one point I want to make to tie
everything together follows. Don’t forget the real people who actually live and
work in the towns and cities responsible for resource extraction. Whether you
live in Ft. McMurray or Likely, or Prince George or Hinton or any of the small
logging or fishing communities the men and women are working hard to provide
for their families. These people crawl out of bed and punch the time clock
everyday to go to work making the attempt to earn an honest living trying to
give their families a better chance at life than they had. They are just
ordinary people on the treadmill of life going to work, eating, sleeping and
then back to work. With a bit of luck they come home safely everyday to
families with enough pay to feed the insatiable taxman, mortgage or rent, the
grocery store, the car payment, the insurance companies, the dentist and
doctor. Maybe they have enough left over for a bit of fun to make all their time
sacrifices worthwhile. Most of these workers are honest and caring and giving.
These are the people who will run into a burning building to save your cat or child,
they will extract you from a car wreck and comfort you until the authorities
show up. When Ft. Mac was burning we watched in awe at what ordinary people
were doing to help out complete strangers with no more pay than a firm
handshake and thank you. We heard of firefighters battling flames while their
own house next door was on fire. One fellow did not even take the time out to
save his own dog; he was too busy helping a neighbour.
As much as we may not agree with what they
do, even the corporations opened up camps to provide shelter and food for
evacuees. Men working in some of the camps gave up their own rooms so evacuated
families could stay together.
I hate it when people run down these brave
and caring people during crisis situations. I recall that when the Queen of the
North crashed into Gill Island in the middle of a cold and stormy night that
when the Mayday- Mayday- Mayday call went out, brave people crawled out of
their warm beds and into any boat that would float. They did not want to I’m
sure, but they risked all to do whatever they could to save strangers in time
of urgent need. Even though some of those rescuers are environmental
destructors such as fishermen, loggers or fish farmers, they were every bit as
eager to do what they could to help, and I wouldn’t want anyone else out there
but them. They know what is required to do without a big command structure.
Just bend your back and get it done. They opened their modest homes and
community hall to use as makeshift rescue centers. There was hot coffee and
food and warm, dry clothing for the rescued passengers.
When the big wave comes crashing into
Vancouver in the near future after the coming earthquake, I for one will not
wish this on that “Sodom and Gomorrah.” Bad things are happening to people who
now live there as well but I will try to add any support that I can for them in
their time of need.
To all the Captain Watson's of the world
and his followers, stop calling the kettle black while you are standing in your
own black frying pan. Come up with a genuine solution to some of the world
problems and do what you can to minimise your own impact upon this beautiful
and fragile earth. Do not bully hardworking people of our country in their time
of desperate need. The best way for you to lose any respect that you may have
gained through some of your causes, is to kick your peers when they are down.
Robert
Scriba, a former logger, trucker, hunter and fisherman learning to be a
friendly occupant of our earth.
June,
2016
