Mackenzie Pipeline Project Receives Approval - With Conditions

The future of the mighty Mackenzie River – and the "basin-opening" pipeline megaproject that threatens to forever change it – has become clearer, with the release of a long-anticipated environmental assessment report.

A Joint Review Panel, tasked by the government to report on the environmental, socio-economic and cultural effects of the Mackenzie Gas Project, released its findings Wednesday, over two years after the panel's hearings ended in 2007. The panel concluded that if all of its 176 recommendations were fully implemented, the project would likely be beneficial and have no significant adverse impacts. But the panel’s recommendations make clear that huge efforts would be required to mitigate the impacts of this project on wildlife and the environment.

Some of those recommendations include:

• Establishing project targets for greenhouse gas emissions.
• Creating wildlife protection plans in the region.
• Ensuring government protection against development, at least on an interim basis, for lands identified for protected status.

The Project is estimated to cost at least CDN $16 billion before any of the Panel's recommendations are implemented, and implementing the recommendations will surely increase the costs.

The project involves three major natural gas production fields north of Inuvik and two underground natural gas pipelines (the longest is 1,220 km) to carry the gas south along the Mackenzie Valley to northern Alberta. Other pipelines would be built connecting other gas fields to the main pipelines. It's a positive sign that the panel recognizes the need for a network of protected areas and measures to protect migratory birds and other wildlife and its habitat, but we at Nature Canada remain greatly concerned with the project because there is no guarantee that the conditions the panel recommends would actually be fully implemented if the project is approved.

For example, the panel has recommended stringent measures to protect birds and bird habitat in Kendall Island Migratory Bird Sanctuary, including regulations and offset areas free of additional industrial development -- which is good. But once the project's proponents (led by Imperial Oil and including Conoco Phillips Canada, Exxon Mobil Canada and Shell Canada) break ground, we all know anything can happen.

At the Joint Review Panel's hearings in 2007, Nature Canada argued that the full impact of the project on the lands, water and wildlife of this unique environment would leave an unacceptable footprint. If allowed to proceed, the project would:

• Fragment habitat for bears, caribou and wolves.
• Harm fish and fish habitat by increasing sediment deposition into rivers and streams.
• Permanently damage important breeding or staging areas for millions of geese, tundra swans and other migratory birds.
• Cause forests to be clear cut and heavy machinery deployed to construct the infrastructure and the new underground pipelines.
• Impose development on First Nations lands before the Dehcho and Sahtu peoples complete their own land use plans.
• Accelerate the effects of climate change in the Mackenzie Valley.The report includes detailed recommendations on these issues. The National Energy Board expects to hear final arguments for and against the project in April 2010 before making its decision in September on whether to grant a permit.

News stories on the Panel's report here, here and here.

Great Blue Heron Decides it's Time to Move On

From one of our web community members, Jim Dubois, comes this highly enjoyable picture series of a great blue heron deciding it's time to go. From Jim:

Every wild animal (including people) has a comfort zone of personal space, and when you get too close, they either attack or, most often, flee. I'd been about five minutes working my way down the beach a little at a time, when I finally crossed the line with this guy. He was off, and let me know in no uncertain terms that he was less than pleased.

Thanks for sharing Jim! You can see more of Jim's photos here.

Send your interesting wildlife or nature photos to us and we may share them right here on Nature Canada's blog!

Climate Hope, Climate Fear

It's the last scheduled day of international UN climate talks in Copenhagen, and it looks as though the hopes of the world for a strong, fair, ambitious deal to halt the climate crisis are fading. Although world leaders, including Prime Minister Stephen Harper, are staying beyond the end of the scheduled talks this evening, it doesn't look like a legally binding document will be the outcome of these last-ditch negotiations.

Draft text of the proposed Copenhagen Accord sets a base year of 1990 for emissions reductions with a goal of 50% reduction by 2050 - developed nations should aim for an 80% reduction in their greenhouse gas emissions. These targets should limit global temperature increases to no more than 2 degrees Celsius, which would avoid the most severe impacts of global warming.

However, none of these targets are legally binding - that agreement is left to November 2010.

The Copenhagen summit was supposed to bring hope for a brighter climate future; instead it has ended with fear and uncertainty as to what rising global temperatures will mean for our planet.

Scientists Call on Boreal Nation Leaders to Protect Their Forests

A letter signed by prominent scientists (including members of the IPCC and several Canadian universities) was just sent to the leaders of all eight boreal forest countries this week, asking that they protect their vital boreal carbon stores.

From the letter:

Globally boreal forests are a key carbon pool that has been largely overlooked in the climate change policy debate to date. In fact, boreal forest holds more carbon per acre than any other land-based ecosystem, perhaps two or three times as much carbon as in the tropics. The boreal region is also home to some of the world’s last intact forests, abundant populations of large mammals and birds and home to hundreds of indigenous communities. When boreal soils and peatlands are disturbed by development, major carbon reserves are released.

These facts make it imperative that the world’s policy makers and public now
make a concerted effort to ensure that both the boreal forest and its vast stores of carbon remain intact. To achieve this will require both drastic cuts in industrial emissions and importantly, a vast increase in the areas protected for their carbon values and left undisturbed from industrial development.

Boreal forests are largely going unnoticed in the talks so far at Copenhagen. Because of this, the scientists who signed the letter ask that federal leaders make domestic efforts to protect boreal forests as a part of their larger emissions reduction strategies. They point out that slowing deforestation isn't just an issue for the tropics. Here's part of what they wrote:

Globally, land-use change has accounted for nearly 20% of annual greenhouse gas emissions. Because of these emissions, there has been a recent push to find financial incentives and policy instruments that will encourage developing tropical nations to slow deforestation and retain natural forests through environmental service payment schemes and increased protection efforts. This initiative is critical to helping to slow climate change impacts and to protect the incredible species richness and indigenous cultures of these tropical regions and we encourage you to do your part to ensure that this continues. We also urge you to broaden this approach by including the world’s carbon-rich northern boreal forests as a focus for future carbon protection policy solutions.

Read the whole letter here (warning, it's a pdf) or read a more in-depth article in this week's Boston Globe.

Canada in Emissions Target Controversy

A fake news release from Copenhagen yesterday claimed that Canada had set bold new emissions targets for greenhouse gases and commited to billions of dollars of aid for developing nations to adapt to climate change. Nothing could be farther from the truth, as documents obtained by the media yesterday show the opposite - weaker emission targets have been investigated by the government for the oil and gas sector.

Amid the confusion and controversy over Canadian commitments, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has called for negotiators to stop pointing fingers or risk making a serious mistake at the Copenhagen talks. World leaders begin arriving at the summit today in the hopes of reaching a deal before Friday.

Federal Government Under Fire on Climate Change

The international climate talks in Copenhagen seem to be stalling, in large part due to the differences between developed and developing nations. Now, Canada has come under criticism from provinces and First Nations groups who are not impressed with the negotiating team's stance.

The governments of Ontario and Quebec are expressing concern that their efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions may hurt their provinces if emissions continue to rise elsewhere, particularly from the western tar sands developments.

From The Globe and Mail:

In Denmark on Sunday for the United Nations climate convention, Quebec Premier Jean Charest condemned the federal government for the potential economic consequences of its anemic fight against climate change.
...
Mr. Charest was backed by Ontario Environment Minister John Gerretsen, who says he doesn't want his province's efforts to allow the rest of Canada to get a free ride.

Additionally, indigenous representatives and their allies rolled out the "welcome mat" for Prime Minister Harper in Copenhagen today, complete with a gift basket full of treaties that Canada needs to honour or sign at the summit. Documents included the Kyoto Protocol, First Nations Treaties and the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

Canadians are speaking out on the issue of climate change. We hope that in the next four days our federal government will listen and act for a strong, fair, binding agreement in Copenhagen.

Looking for a Real Deal in Copenhagen

We are approaching the mid-way point of the United Nations climate talks in Copenhagen, and things aren't looking good for our future. Canada has been named "Fossil of the Day" 3 times, blocking progress on an agreement that sets fair and binding targets for greenhosue gas emissions from 2012 onward.

It's time to tell our leaders that we want a real deal to come out of this summit.

This weekend, people like you will be coming together all over the world for positive events that reinforce the message.

Friday December 11th - Vigils for Survival Join groups as they light candles to stand in solidarity with those who live in nations imminently threatened by climate change.

Saturday December 12th - Global Day of Rallies, Marches and Vigils Mobilize in major centres to take a stand against climate change and add your name to the global call for a real deal.

Sunday December 13th - Sound Off Communities of faith join together to ring bells, blow horns or beat drums, highlighting the urgency of the climate crisis.

Find out more about these events by visiting campaign websites like 350.org or locate an event near you by using this handy tool from TckTckTck.

BirdLife International's 5 "asks" for Copenhagen

Climate change is happening. Over the last hundred years, the Earth’s surface temperature has risen by an average of 0.74°C, and, in places, well above 2°C. The rise is almost certainly linked to human-produced greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, which rose by 70% between 1970 and 2004 alone.

One global study estimates that 15–37% of species could be committed to extinction by 2050 as a consequence of climate change; another that each degree of warming could drive another 100-500 bird species extinct. Temperature rises beyond 2°C are predicted to lead to catastrophic extinction rates, with few practical conservation options left.

There is a window between now and 2015 within which it may be possible to significantly slow down or lower the expected increases in global temperatures, through reductions in global GHG emissions. This is why the meetings at Copenhagen are so important.

As the BirdLife partner in Canada, we believe a global deal in Copenhagen must:

1. Cut global emissions by the amount needed to limit global average temperature rises to less than 2°C above pre-industrial levels. Developed countries should take the lead in cutting emissions, but rapidly industrialising developing nations must act too. Global emissions must peak and decline well before 2020, and go to 80% below 1990 levels by 2050. Industrialised countries must take on targets of 40% reductions below 1990 levels by 2020.

2. Recognise the vital importance of safeguarding biodiversity, ecosystems and the essential services they provide in climate change mitigation, in particular, reducing emissions from deforestation and degradation (REDD). Tropical deforestation accounts for 15-20% of all human-induced emissions, and must be reduced to zero by 2020. REDD should prioritise conservation of natural tropical forests because they are the most carbon dense, and must exclude conversion of natural forests to industrial forests or plantations. REDD must include provisions which ensure conservation of biodiversity because it is the plants and animals in natural forests that help create their carbon density. REDD must respect, support and promote the rights of local and indigenous peoples.

3. Recognise the vital importance of safeguarding biodiversity, ecosystems and the essential services they provide in climate change adaptation. Healthy bio-diverse environments play a vital role in maintaining and increasing resilience to climate change. Copenhagen outcomes should encompass taking an ecosystem approach to all adaptation, should refer to the direct use of ecosystems as part of a strategy to help people adapt to the adverse effects of climate change, and should recognise vulnerable ecosystems as a priority.

4. Provide funding for developing countries to reduce emissions from deforestation, enable adaptation to climate change, and support low-carbon development. At least $200 billion will be needed annually by 2020, including $35 billion for REDD, and $100 billion to enable developing countries to adapt to the inevitable impacts of climate change.

5. Ensure that when developed countries account for their land-use sectors they account fully for carbon emissions to, and removals from, the atmosphere. Current rules enable countries to hide emissions whilst claiming credit for carbon storage, and the proposed rules are shaping up to be even worse than the old ones.

For further information on BirdLife International and climate change see http://www.birdlife.org/climate_change/

Ivory Gull photo donated by Judith Blakeley.

Nature Canada Welcomes Announcement of Potential New Protected Area in the Northwest Passage

Nature Canada congratulated Environment Minister Jim Prentice, Inuit groups, the government of Nunavut and the Parks Canada Agency earlier this week on the announcement of a feasibility study for the creation of a National Marine Conservation Area in the Lancaster Sound region of the high Arctic.

Protected areas like the one proposed at Lancaster Sound conserve some of our most important natural spaces, providing Canada and the world with clean air and water, abundant wildlife populations, and healthy communities and ecosystems.

The region around Lancaster Sound includes bays, inlets and ice fields surrounded by high cliffs and spectacular fjords that stretch from Ellesmere Island to the Gulf of Boothia in the south to the waters surrounding Cornwallis Island to the west in Nunavut, Canada. This area has one of the highest concentrations of polar bears in the Canadian Arctic. Twenty Important Bird Areas are found inside or adjacent to the proposed protected area, providing essential habitat for large colonies of snow geese, ivory gulls, arctic terns and thick-billed murres.

Literally millions of Dovekies, a small cliff-nesting waterbird of the high arctic, have been observed in the polynya at the eastern mouth of Lancaster Sound. Most of the world's narwhal and a third of North America's beluga whales spend the summers in these waters, as does the eastern population of the endangered bowhead whale.

Marine ecosystems are as affected by human activity as terrestrial ecosystems; that's why a national system of marine protected areas is so crucial. We are encouraged by this effort to extend protection of wilderness areas in our far North, and hope it ultimately leads to permanent protection of Lancaster Sound.

National marine conservation areas are protected under the National Marine Conservation Areas Act (NMCAA) from such activities as dumping, undersea mining, and oil and gas exploration and development. They include the seabed, the water above it and any species which occur there. They may also take in wetlands, estuaries, islands and other coastal lands. Some activities are permitted inside National Marine Conservation Areas, such as traditional fishing, but managed to sustain the long-term health the ecosystem as a whole.

With talk of opening up the Northwest Passage to year-round sea traffic, and increased interest in oil, gas and mineral exploration in the arctic, it is with the highest urgency that the government of Canada lays down an aggressive protected areas network. The Lancaster Sound region is of the highest biological value, and must be protected from impending industrialization.

Nature Canada advocated for the creation the National Marine Conservation Areas Act, and has been working since then to ensure that Parks Canada receives the resources necessary to establish these protected areas.

Emotions and Hopes High in Copenhagen for a Climate Deal

I've been searching for a positive story to come out of the second day of the United Nations climate talks in Copenhagen.

Most of the media stories are centred around the "leaked text" by developed nations that would widen the gap between rich and poor and devestate the world. I also read a wonderful first-hand account of the Africa civil society meeting where Sudanese leader Lumumba Di-Aping movingly outlined the consequences of an unequal and unfair agreement.

Looking for news closer to home, the National Post is reporting that Canada has been a "constructive negotiator" at the climate talks. However, with a second "Fossil of the Day" award at this summit - as part of a group this time - Canada's negotiating team still needs to step forward and lead.

I finally found what I was looking for in this video from Tck Tck Tck - Hope. I hope that the spirit of these youth spreads to the delegates and negotiators in Copenhagen. I hope that our leaders listen to the 10 million voices urging action now.

Canada True to Form at International Climate Summit

Canada, once a world leader on environmental issues, is lagging behind on climate change yet again. The United Nations climate talks in Copenhagen began yesterday, seeking an international agreement for action on the climate crisis.

On the first day of the negotiations, Canada was recognized with a "Fossil of the Day" award - given to countries that are blocking progress in the talks - for planning not to negotiate in Copenhagen. This position doesn't represent the will of Canadians, as over 150,000 of us have signed the KYOTOplus petition calling for strong solutions in Copenhagen and concrete action here at home.

There is still time for Canada's team to show true leadership on the climate issue. The Copenhagen summit is the time to do it.

Photo of the Month: Barred Owl

Sent in by Marilyn Hubley, this Barred Owl photo makes me want to cuddle up for the winter. In my mind, it's the perfect way to start the season.

The Barred Owl ranges across Canada's forests from Atlantic Canada through British Columbia. This large owl greatly resembles the Spotted Owl, with which it likely competes in the rain forests of BC. The Barred Owl is best known for its distinctive “who cooks for you, who cooks for you all” calls.

Thanks for sharing this wonderful image, Marilyn!

If you love this photo, why not put it on your desktop? Or, you can check out previous photos in our archives.