The land is owned by the people of BC. It is Crown Land, but the current government has designated that much of the upper valley is available for logging.
I have lifted the following directly from the BC Parks information page: Carmanah Walbran is home to some of the world’s largest spruce trees, some reaching heights in excess of 95 metres and living for 800 years or more. The park is also home to ancient, gnarled cedars – estimated to be well over 1,000 years old – clinging to the side hills. Nestled beneath these awe-inspiring trees is a diverse variety of flora and fauna possible only in an ecosystem that has remained undisturbed for hundreds of years. The Carmanah was designated a provincial park in 1990 after a lengthy battle with loggers and government at the time. Civil disobedience and generous donations help bolster those on the front lines. The pressure finally pushed the government of the day to designate the area protected. You might think that these forest giants are just trees. Cut them down and more will grow. True, but it is unlikely that the world will ever see thousand year old Douglas fir or cedar trees again. Douglas fir has been the backbone variety of the coastal logging industry. So much so that it is blue lined, or in danger of slipping into a one way decline to extinction. In addition to the trees themselves, many other plants and fungi depend on them to maintain a delicate and diverse balance. Animals depend on them for food and shelter. Some birds only nest in the crowns of old growth fir trees. The Marbled Murrelet is one such bird. It is a small sea bird, related to the Auk family. It only nests in the mossy tops of the forest giants. It is red listed, meaning that it is endangered. They reproduce slowly and as their treetops disappear so will they. It is a basic tenet of ecology that everything is connected to everything else. The extinction of a rare little bird makes us all a little poorer. Sources: BC Parks CBC News
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Giant food corporation, Campbell’s has announced its support for US labelling of GM products. In any case, they have announced that they will be phasing in new labels that will disclose the probable presence of GM products in their offerings. The new labels will also have a web site address so that interested consumers may get more specific information. Campbell Soup Company is famous for its red and white labels, but it is a giant purveyor of food products and their announcement will likely put pressure on the US government and other food purveyors. Campbell’s also markets under Pepperidge Farm, Prego, Plum Organics and V8 brands. Their first new labels will be on the canned spaghetti product called Spaghetti Os. Vermont is the first state to phase in GM labelling. It will be effective in July of this year. There will continue to be some anomalies. For instance, the plain SpaghettiOs will come under the new regs but the cans with meat balls will not as they are regulated by two different federal agencies. The announcement by Campbell may seem odd as the company recently funded campaigns to oppose mandatory labelling of GM foods in California and Washington State where the proposals were defeated. Their stance is that a uniform countrywide mandatory standard is necessary. We now believe that proposing a mandatory national solution is necessary. Printing a clear and simple statement on the label is the best solution for consumers and for Campbell. Campbell Soup Company The company is taking pains to make it clear that they are not questioning the safety or nutritional validity of the GM products in their offerings. Up to 75% of their products contain the big four GM products – corn, canola, soybeans, sugar beets. Campbell has also announced that they are phasing out the use of artificial colour and flavours in their products. The company, founded in 1869, also owns the following brands. Bolthouse Farms, Arnott’s, Swanson, Pace, Royal Dansk, Kjeldsens, Garden Fresh Gourmet. Sources: GM Watch Campbell Soup Company But the increasing violence in the country has kept many tourists away. The Russian plane full of holiday makers that was brought down by a bomb has cast a pall over the area. Extremists have made easy targets of tourists. Tunisia has had its formerly lucrative tourist industry shattered by terrorists who killed 22 tourists at the national museum in Tunis and then, a further 38 were murdered at a beach resort a few months later. The resulting collapse has left those who depended on the tourist industry without means. Libya is far too dangerous for tourism. It’s tourism industry collapsed as that country descended into civil war in 2011. It has been reported that many of the Roman ruins have been looted and damaged since chaos has come to that country. If you decide to travel to Egypt, be sure to heed the advice of your government information services. The Canadian advice page, dated today, still lists Hurghada as a safer place to travel. Other than that it advises Canadians to avoid all non-essential travel to that country. Sources: Al Jazeera Al Arabiya Canada Travel Advice
He came to the attention of authorities for his abusive behavior to his wife. Eventually he became dependent on her for his care.
Awareness of the danger to athletes is growing. A movie currently making the rounds is Concussion which is based on facts surrounding professional American football players. Society has known for many years that repeated blows to the head damage the brain. We even have a trite saying to describe a person so damaged – punch drunk. Some professional athletes are bequeathing their brains to researchers so that more can be learned about the trauma. The CDC has page called Heads Up with information for parents and coaches about how to prevent and/or recognize concussion when it happens. The brain can be injured when the skull is either jerked abruptly or a blow causes the brain to bounce against the inside of the bony case, or to twist inside it. In the past, many head injuries were laughed off because people did not know the seriousness of the injury as sometimes there are no overt signs. One sign that is always indicative of a concussion is loss of consciousness, even for a moment. It should mean a trip to emergency even if the person claims to be fine. Related reading by same writer: NFL players risk permanent brain damage Sources: Journal of American Medical Association CDC Heads Up |
Barbara McPherson
Blogger, gardener, farmer. Working toward food security and a 30 foot
diet. Addicted to reading. Love this planet, especially my little corner
on Vancouver Island, Canada Archives
October 2016
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