What is your take on the state of the environment?

What is your take on the state of the environment?

It is terrible. We are in huge, immediate danger.

It is bad, but there is no threat to us anytime soon.

Things are fine. There is no real cause for concern. Things have

never been perfect.

Things are improving. Technology is better than it ever

has been, which will only improve the state of the

environment.

What is the biggest threat to our environment?

Global warming (Or “climate instability”)

Global food shortage

Depletion of material natural resources (forests, oil, etc.) Loss of clean drinking water.

How should Christians respond to environmental issues?

They/we should be at the forefront of the cause. We are called to be steward’s of God’s

creation.

They/We should be involved, but not too extreme. It is good to

help, but we don’t need to rock the boat.

They/We don’t need to be involved any more than the rest

of society. It doesn’t really concern issues of faith.

They/We don’t need to care about the environment. This world will

be destroyed anyway, so we should focus of eternal realities.

How much influence do you feel you have to help the environment?

A lot. I feel that my actions can have major global implications.

A little. I might be able to change a few things locally.

Very little. I feel that anything that I do will only be a small drop

in an ocean.None. I can’t change anything.

Natural Resources• Natural Resources - Materials or substances

occurring in nature which can be exploited for economic gain.

• Create a list of all the natural resources that exist in Canada in two minutes.

Classifying resources• What’s the difference between “renewable” and

“nonrenewable” resources?• Come up with a definition for these terms and

separate your list into these two categories.

Classifying resources• Renewable Resources – Resource that will

replace itself unless badly mismanaged. For example, trees grow to replace those cut down or lost to fire or disease; polluted water is cleaned by the environment.

• Non-renewable Resources – Resources that can be used only once. EX: Oil, iron, etc.

Resources in Canada• In 2012, about 51% of Canada’s exports were

made up of natural resources (farming, forestry, minerals, gas and oil, etc.)

• These exports were valued at approximately $235 billion dollars in 2012.

What is the most important factor when running a country?

Happy Citizens A booming economy

A healthy environment A strong legal system

Which group has the most influence on political decisions?

Religious groups The Aboriginal Population

Environmentalists

Which group SHOULD have the most influence on political decisions?

Religious groups The Aboriginal Population

Environmentalists Business People

How much would it cost?

Rank the following if order of their value to you. Beside each, list the price that you would sell them for:

• Your faith• Your family• Your personality• Your mind

Aboriginal views of natural resources

• Traditional aboriginal views understand the earth and nature as deeply sacred.

• Native spiritual life is founded on a belief in the fundamental inter-connectedness of all natural things, all forms of life with primary importance being attached to Mother Earth.

• Many of these beliefs as based on the idea the humans came from nature and it is the sources of life for all.


• Concepts such as “resources” and “management” would have been hard for traditional aboriginal people to understand. These words suggest that humans are superior to nature, but – in their view – such a distinction between humans and nature is not possible.

• This has led to numerous problems between aboriginal and European settlers


Treatieso After settlers arrived, Aboriginal people

recognized that they were slowly becoming a minority in their own land. They signed agreements (treaties) with the settlers to ensure two things:• They wanted to maintain an economic base.

This meant having access to or keeping enough land to support themselves by fishing and hunting.

• They wanted to control their own affairs (self-government).


Treaties• The major reason the treaties failed to meet the needs

of the Aboriginal people was the enormous loss of land.• Despite the promises that were made to Aboriginal

people, they were not given the free use of land that they felt they needed to maintain their tradition ways of life.

• Reserve land was rarely large or rich enough to provide a sound economic base for the people who lived on them.

• There are 2,360 reserves in Canada that take up 27,500 KM2, which is .3% of Canada’s total area.


• Concepts such as “resources” and “management” would have been hard for traditional aboriginal people to understand. These words suggest that humans are superior to nature, but – in their view – such a distinction between humans and nature is not possible.

• This has led to numerous problems between aboriginal and European settlerso The significant difference in how they view nature made the idea of

selling land or resources difficult to understand and respond to.o Through treaties, the Aboriginal population sold its right to many of the

resources on the land that they previously owned. This allowed companies to get extremely wealthy, while many Aboriginal communities still struggled with poverty.


• This issues is on-going in many parts of Canada:o Manitoba Hydro has proposed a Bipole III line that would run

through a large section of Aboriginal land. This has caused a large public debate around the route and its environmental impact.

o The Idle No More protests began out of a response to legislation that dealt with natural resources. Bill C-45 made changes to the Navigation Protection Act: Under the act, major pipeline and power line project advocates aren't required to prove their project won't damage or destroy a navigable waterway it crosses, unless the waterway is on a list prepared by the transportation minister. Idle No More claims the amendments remove that protection for 99.9 per cent of lakes and rivers in Canada.

Energy Resources• What?

o Conventional Energy Sources: oil, natural gas, coal, hydro, and nuclear energy

o Alternative Energy Sources: solar, wind, and biomass energy

Energy Resources• What? (Oil sands)

o The oil sands are home to huge deposits of bitumen – an oil-like substance that can be found around individual sand particles.• Bitumen is oil that is too heavy or thick to flow or be

pumped without being diluted or heated – at 11 degrees Celsius bitumen is as hard as a hockey puck.

• The process of separating the oil from the sand is extremely expensive and intensive.

Energy Resources• Where?

o Major oil deposits exist in Alberta

Energy Resources• Why there? (Oil and gas)

• The remains of marine animals and plants fell to the ocean floor. They were eventually covered by sand and silt. Over time, the immense weight of all of these layers compressed the lower layer into sedimentary rock.

• Bacterial action, heat, and pressure converted the remains of the plants and animals into oil and gas

Energy Resources• Why Care?

o The Oil Sands represent about 60% of the world’s accessible oil

o In 2011, energy accounted for 7% of Canada’s GDP

o Canada exports $113.7B in energy resources

2007 2008 2009 2010 2011(a) % Change

(2010-2011)

Petroleum(b)

6 939 6 839 6 785 7 090 7 506 5.9

Natural gas(c)

6 657 6 385 5 984 5 772 5 765 -0.1

Hydroelectricity

1 311 1 346 1 314 1 253 1 350 -7.7

Nuclear Electricity

318 326 306 308 324 5.3

Coal 1 539 1 512 1 379 1 524 1 500 -1.6Wind, Tidal and Solar Electricity

11 14 24 35 37 7.3

Other(d) 581 575(a) 534(b) 523(a) 516 -1.4Total 17 356 16 996 16 327 16 505 16 998 -3.0Annual % Change

-2.1 -3.9 1.1 3.0

(a) Estimates(b) Petroleum includes crude oil and gas plant NGLs, upgraded and non-upgraded bitumen and condensate

Energy Resources - Sustainibility

• Hydro-electricity – Using naturally occurring water flow to drive energy generation. Occur where there is a change in elevation.o Pros

• Plants are cheap to operate (no fuel to buy)• Does not produce pollutants• Uses a renewable resource

o Cons• Plants are very costly to build• Suitable sites are often far from where electricity is needed and

transmission lines must be built (EX: Bi Pole III)

Energy Resources - Sustainability

• Nuclear electricity – Generates heat using radioactive breakdown (fission) of uranium atoms. This heat runs turbines, which generate electricity.o Pros

• Plants can be built where the energy is needed, so transmission costs are low

• Operating costs are relatively lowo Cons

• Construction costs are really high• The radioactive materials are very hazardous to human health.

Accidents can harm thousands of people.• Waste products from these plants remain dangerous for 100,000

years. No permanent method for handling this waste has been developed.

• The useful life of nuclear plants is short. They must be replaced or rebuilt at an enormous cost.

Forest• What:

o An expanse of trees that cover nearly half of Canada’s land (42%)• 62% coniferous (cone-bearing trees with needle

leaves)o Pine and spruce

• 22% deciduous (trees which lose their leaves)o Poplar and white birch

• 15% mixed

• Where:

Why there?• Coniferous trees grow south of the tree line (the

southern boundary of the Tundra). This region allows a longer growing season and more precipitation than the Tundra. However, these trees are still durable enough to withstand the harsh winters in the boreal forest.

• Deciduous trees generally require longer growing seasons and, thus, occur in warming climates. Some (maple, ash, etc.) require five months to store enough sap (energy) to survive the winter. Therefore, they are mostly found in the warmest part of the country – Southern Ontario.

Why care?• Canada has 10% of the world’s forests

o Only 50% of our forests can be harvested in a economically productive way. Accessibility, transport, etc. create major obstacl

• The forestry industry contributes 2% of our GDP ($23.5 billion)

• We are the world’s second largest forest exporter

Sustainability in Forestry

• Forest harvests steadily increased from the 1950s to 2005, but have decreased since then. In 2010, just over 687 million hectares were harvested in Canada. But Canada continues to harvest its unique and biologically diverse old-growth forests, an issue of contention.


• In Canada, 93 per cent of the forest area harvested is clear-cut, making clear-cutting the most common harvesting method. Clear-cutting removes most of the trees from an area, while leaving patches of trees and buffers intact.

• In comparison, the selection system removes single trees or small groups for timber at relatively short intervals to protect the quality and value of the entire forest area.

• Clear-cutting is favoured in Canada’s boreal forest because it resembles natural disturbances such as fire, wind, floods, and insects and allows the forest to regenerate naturally. Harvesting is done in blocks, strips, or patches to mimic natural disturbance patterns. But although clear-cutting allows for forest regeneration, it can also lead to a loss of biodiversity.


Fishing• What: Three categories of fishing in Canada

o Groundfish – Fish that feed and are caught near the ocean floor (cod, pollock, halibut)

o Pelagic Fish – Fist that feed and are caught near the surface (salmon, tuna, herring)

o Shellfish – Molluscs and crustaceans (shrimp, lobster, oysters, scallops)

Why care?• Canada boasts one of the world's most diverse

fisheries in the world.• Canada was the world's fifth largest fish and

seafood exporter in 2011. In 2012, Canada's fish and seafood exports were valued at $4.1 billion

Sustainability in Fishing

• While Canada boasts significant fishing on both coasts, there has been a significant collapse of its major fishing ports.

• Cod fishing was a premier industry on the East Coast in the 1960s, producing almost 1.6 million tonnes per year. Today, after serious overfishing and subsequent government intervention, it produces about 1/10 of what it used to.

Collapse of East Coast Fisheries

• 1.) Overfishing – The catch allowed by the federal government was too high. Scientists miscalculated the rate that fish would reproduce.

• 2.) Improved Fishing Technology – After WWII, larger more powerful trawlers were developed. Once sonar systems were introduced, it was easier to locate and capture fish. Yields increased significantly.

• 3.) Uncontrolled Foreign Fishing – In the 1960s the vast majority of fishing on the east coast was done by other countries, who caught far more fish than was sustainable. It was only in 1977 that the UN limited control of the continental shelf to local countries.

Collapse of East Coast Fisheries

• 4.) Destructive fishing practices – When trawlers were trying to catch one type of fish (ex: cod) they would occasionally catch other types of fish in their nets. In order to protect their numbers, they would simply throw these unwanted fish away and not report catching them.

• 5.)Changes in natural conditions – Two major changes are also blamed for this drop:o Water temperature dropped and ocean salinity levels have changed since

1980. This may have caused fish to alter their migratory patterns.o Some people suggest that a decline the sealing industry has resulted in

an increase in the sealing population. This, then, reduced the population of ground fish, as they are a major food source for seals.

Sustainability in Fishing –Fishing Rights of Aboriginal People

• The Natural Resources Transfer Agreement (NRTA), which forms part of the Constitution Act, 1930, provides that Indian people “have the right, which the Province hereby assures to them, of hunting, trapping and fishing game and fish for food at all seasons of the year on all unoccupied Crown lands and on any other lands to which (they) may have a right of access.”

• In other words, as part of their treaty agreements, Aboriginal people were given special freedoms and rights towards hunting and fishing.

Sustainability in Fishing – Fishing Rights of Aboriginal People

• In recognition of treaty and constitutional rights, when fishing for food, status Indian people: o Do not require licenseso Except for conservation closures, are generally not restricted to

seasons, limits or areaso Are not subject to gear restrictions such as gill net mesh size or the

number of lines that can be used while angling

Sustainability in Fishing –Fishing Rights of Aboriginal People

• The rights of status Indians are subject to conservation measures and other restrictions that do not unduly infringe on food harvesting, therefore hunters and fishers may not:o waste or abandon wildlife or fisho sell, trade, barter or give away fish or the meat or any

part of a wild animal taken under status Indian hunting or fishing rights, except that food may be given to another status Indian person

o block more than two-thirds of a river or stream with a net or other device

Non-metallic minerals• What: Given their diverse nature, it is difficult to

define the precise nature of non-metallic minerals. They compose the group of mined substances that are neither metallic (gold, iron, etc.) or fossil fuels (coal, oil, etc.)o Potash: A salt-like material used to make fertilizero Diamondo Gravelo Gypsum: A clay-like material used to make sheets of drywall.

Non-metallic minerals• Where (and why there): Minerals are found in

deposits and exist in places where geological events have occurred to create the given mineral. This varies greatly from mineral to mineral (please consult map on page 321 of your textbook)

• EX: Potash exists in southern Saskatchewan. It is believed that this deposit formed 400 million years ago after the evaporation of an inland sea left behind a layer of common salts.

Non-metallic minerals• Why care:

o Potash• Although 95 per cent of the world's production is used as fertilizer,

it also appears in other industrial and commercial products.• Up to mid-2013, Saskatchewan's potash production had been rising

about 13 per cent year-over-year. This industry has produced great growth around Saskatoon.

• In 2010, Canada was the world’s leading potash producer with $5.2B in exports

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What is your take on the state of the environment?