By The Way I See It

Wildlife deserves better, while there is still time

Apr 23, 2018 | 6:36 AM

KAMLOOPS — The news about the caribou in the South Selkirks read like a bad joke: only three animals left, all female. If none is pregnant…well, that would be that. It will be 19,000 caribou –present day count in British Columbia – minus three. This is reason to worry. Everything in nature is connected. If one species declines or becomes extinct, things go off balance in other ways. Ultimately, we are affected. There are no maybes in this equation.

From where the general population stands, all seems right and functioning even when it’s not. Plus, it’s not the happiest topic to bring up at a gathering, lest you risk sitting by yourself. Still, it’s worth it.

Case in point: the caribou. In some areas of British Columbia there is an ongoing wolf cull that is supposed to help bring up the caribou numbers (along with other measures such as maternity pens.) Trouble is, while the wolves get killed at one end, industrial and recreational activities open the road for more to come at the other. It resembles a conveyor belt, and a cruel one at that. Trouble is, Mother Nature takes things seriously, which means that eventually we will be caught in the fray too.

In a 2017 report called Living Planet Report Canada, which comprised data from four decades of monitoring, the World Wildlife Fund Canada announced that half of the monitored species are in decline. Loss percentages go as high as 83 percent in some species. Hard to keep that optimism floating.

That many – government officials included – believe it possible to have the same degree or increased human activity in critical habitat while expecting wildlife to adapt just fine, or respond to various implemented strategies… well, in theory, that could work. Industrial development such as resource extraction, logging, urban expansion, industrial farming, and an increase in the use of the backcountry for recreational purposes (snowmobiling, for example) they all contribute to diminishing numbers of caribou at a time when climate change is leaving its own onerous imprint (we have something to do with this too.)

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As of April 4, 2018, the provincial government has launched a new program in regard to the caribou, titled ‘A new approach: Made in B.C.’ You can follow this link to find it. simply put, they want everyone’s opinion about how to best manage and hopefully increase the numbers in existing (many dwindling) herds. That sounds great in some ways as feedback from the public is good, yet something forewarns of trouble as well.

I heard a conversation on the radio about this. What if, the host wondered, there will be a loud chorus asking that the backcountry access stays open. Then the responsible officials will do their best to listen to their concerns and find the best way to do things, the interviewee said. Again, in theory, that sounds good and considerate.

But wait, what about the pipeline war then? People are opposing a risky project that can see parts of British Columbian land and water possibly being marred by bitumen spills, and … getting arrested. That’s not exactly the equivalent of being listened to. Extra food for thought: as of two days ago, HSBC Group, the second largest bank in the world, has decided to stop financing most coal-powered plants (with a few exceptions), Arctic drilling for oil and pipeline construction. The world starts acknowledging the fragile balance we are in. It’s worth remembering we’re all in it together.

Back to the caribou. Someone on a comment thread suggested that it is stupid and unproductive to keep lamenting about species going extinct when we have the technology to clone animals and put them back in the wild. If only things would be that simple. Should we get too lost in a continuous case of ‘having our cake and eating it too’, we might find ourselves, yet again, forced to face the reality of our faulty way of thinking. In other words, we have to be grown-ups about it and choose better ways of living that involve less destruction.

Letting go of some modern-day conveniences and the dream of profiting despite endangering the environment, now that can lead towards more positive developments. It’s not just about the caribou. One after another, much of what makes our wilderness what it is will be affected and, as it often happens, by the time the news comes in, the situation is dire. It’s about time we take the issue seriously. That the caribou still ‘lives’ on the Canadian quarter I find both ironic and sad.