Trail Times Wednesday, October 9, 2013
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LETTERS & OPINION
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B.C. rivers have improved dramatically
B
ritish Columbia is also has a more comprehensive often thought of as a set of water quality guidelines province characterized than any other province in by towering mountains Canada. But although B.C. has and magnificent ocean views a wealth of data and research but throughout its history - on water quality, this data and from the First Nations who research is not easily accessible lived here for millennia to the for the average citizen. gold rushes of the 1800s to recCanadian Environmental reational salmon fishing today indicators - Water reviews and - it is rivers that have been cen- highlights many of the results tral to British from numerous Columbians’ B.C. government lives. water quality studThat’s why it’s ies and finds that no coincidence there are many that Rivers Day major B.C. rivstarted in British ers that have seen Columbia in dramatic improve1980. The last ments in water JOEL Sunday in quality over the September is past 30 years. For now recognized example, chloride Troy Media as World Rivers concentrations in Day and there the Fraser River were plenty of events in river have declined substantially communities across the prov- since 1979 due to changes in ince. the bleaching processes used Rivers Day has often been by pulp mills. This is true both a time to reflect on the prob- at Hope and just downstream lems facing rivers and on of Prince George and Quesnel. ways to improve stewardship. The Okanagan River has But going forward, we should experienced declining levels of take a moment to recognize phosphorus, a past cause of the many success stories of frequent nuisance algal blooms improved river health across that were bad for the tourthe province. ism and the recreation sector B.C. has a long history of the region depends on. Indeed, monitoring the quality of the due to investments in sewage water in its rivers, and has treatment and the implemenreams of data and countless tation of fertilizer management reports on specific locations plans, phosphorus levels in the across the province over time. Okanagan Basin are back to B.C. also developed a Water levels last seen in the early Quality Index which is now 1900s, the levels prior to intenbeing used by governments sive agricultural and urban and researchers to classify development. water quality in Canada and The Columbia River downaround the world. The province stream of Trail has experienced
declining levels of fluoride, cadmium, iron, lead, zinc, and barium since 1979. The water quality is considered good for aquatic life and human consumption (with minor treatment), which is impressive considering it’s downstream from a metal smelter, fertilizer plant, and wastewater treatment facility. Due to the natural composition of soil and rock in B.C., concentrations of metals in rivers can exceed B.C.’s water quality guidelines in times of heavy flow. But according to the B.C. Ministry of the Environment, these exceedances are likely harmless to humans or wildlife. Though not a major river, the restoration of the Tsolum River on Vancouver Island is one of the biggest success stories in B.C. A community restoration project resulted in the return of fish and bugs to the river 40 years after toxic releases from an abandoned mine virtually destroyed the river’s ecosystem. So now that Rivers Day is past, let’s not forget our success stories; over the past 30 years we have improved the stewardship and the quality of the water in our rivers across the province. I know I will be celebrating this weekend while I am fishing for Coho salmon in the Fraser. Joel Wood is an economist with the Centre for Environmental Studies at the Fraser Institute in Vancouver and a fourth generation British Columbian.
WOOD
Send brawlers off the ice for good An editorial from the Toronto Star It was a sweet win for the Leafs, edging out the Canadiens 4-3 in the first game of what Toronto fans hope will be a great season. However, in the ugliest incident Leafs enforcer Colton Orr squared off with an old rival, Habs’ tough guy George Parros. Parros went down while trying to throw a punch and hit the ice face first, knocking himself out. He was carried off on a stretcher with a concussion. For a moment, the gooncheering Bell Centre in Montreal fell quiet, as hockey chalked up its latest brawling injury. Fans supposedly love a fight. At least that’s what National Hockey League Commissioner
Gary Bettman believes. “But (fighting) has been declining in its frequency,” he told the CBC last week. “There’s less fighting in the game than we had years ago. I mean we penalize it as the game constantly evolves.” If true, that evolution was hard to spot on opening night. The game saw three other fights that drew major penalties. The Canadian Medical Association voted overwhelmingly this summer to “condemn the complacency of the NHL” toward hockey violence. And with good reason. This doesn’t happen in other major pro sports including football, soccer, baseball or basketball. Only hockey is a blood sport. Bettman’s argument that hockey is “very physical, very
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fast, very emotional,” far from being a rationale to allow fighting, is the best reason to heavily penalize it. Players who drop the gloves should face stiffer penalties. A game misconduct for the first brawl, not the second, would send the message that is needed. And the game misconducts that aggressors and repeat instigators face should be beefed up. A five-game suspension for the first infraction, and multiples of that for subsequent ones, would make it too costly to go out on the ice to pick a fight. The NHL should hand the ice back to the speedy skaters, the great stick handlers, the high scorers and the goalies, and send the goons off to the lockers.
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