Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - June 11, 2012, Winnipeg, Manitoba C M Y K PAGE A11 T HE forthcoming United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development in Rio de Janeiro ( Rio+ 20) June 20 to 22 has brought out the usual warnings of environmental doom. They have been greeted with the usual indifference: After all, there are seven billion of us now, and we're all still eating. What could possibly go wrong? The UN Environment Program published its fiveyearly Global Environmental Outlook ( GEO- 5) saying significant progress has been made on only four of 90 environmental goals that were adopted at the Rio Earth Summit in 1992. " If current patterns of production and consumption of natural resources prevail," warned UNEP head Achim Steiner, " then governments will preside over unprecedented levels of damage and degradation." Yawn. Meanwhile, a team of respected scientists warn life on Earth may be on the way to an irreversible " tipping point." Sure. Heard that one before, too. Last week one of the world's two leading scientific journals, Nature , published a paper, Approaching a state shift in Earth's biosphere , pointing out more than 40 per cent of the Earth's land is already used for human needs. With the human population set to grow by a further two billion by 2050, that figure could soon exceed 50 per cent. " It really will be a new world, biologically, at that point," said the paper's lead author, Prof. Anthony Barnofsky of the University of California, Berkeley. But Barnofsky doesn't go into the details of what kind of new world it might be. Scientists hardly ever do in public, for fear of being seen as panic- mongers. Besides, it's a relatively new hypothesis, but it's a pretty convincing one, and it should be more widely understood. Here's how bad it could get. The scientific consensus is we are still on track for three degrees Celsius of warming by 2100, but that's just warming caused by human greenhouse- gas emissions. The problem is that plus- three degrees is well past the point where the major feedbacks kick in: natural phenomena triggered by our warming, such as melting permafrost and the loss of Arctic sea- ice cover, that will add to the heating and that we cannot turn off. The trigger is actually around two degrees C higher average global temperature. After that we lose control of the process: Ending our own carbon- dioxide emissions would no longer be enough to stop the warming. We may end up trapped on an escalator heading up to plus- six degrees C, with no way of getting off. And plus- six degrees C gives you the mass extinction. There have been five mass extinctions in the past 500 million years, when 50 per cent or more of the species then existing on the Earth vanished, but until recently the only people taking any interest in this were paleontologists, not climate scientists. They did wonder what had caused the extinctions, but the best answer they could come up with was " climate change." It wasn't a very good answer. Why would a warmer or colder planet kill off all those species? The warming was caused by massive volcanic eruptions, dumping huge quantities of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere for tens of thousands of years. But it was very gradual and the animals and plants had plenty of time to migrate to climatic zones that still suited them. ( That's exactly what happened more recently in the Ice Age, as the glaciers repeatedly covered whole continents and then retreated again.) There had to be a more convincing kill mechanism than that, and the paleontologists found one when they discovered a giant asteroid struck the planet 65 million years ago, just at the time when the dinosaurs died out in the most recent of the great extinctions. So they went looking for evidence of huge asteroid strikes at the time of the other extinction events. They found none. What they discovered was there was indeed major warming at the time of all the other extinctions - and the warming had radically changed the oceans. The currents that carry oxygen- rich cold water down to the depths shifted so they were bringing down oxygen- poor warm water instead, and gradually the depths of the oceans became anoxic: The deep waters no longer had any oxygen. When that happens, the sulfur bacteria that normally live in the silt ( because oxygen is poison to them) come out of hiding and begin to multiply. Eventually they rise all the way to the surface over the whole ocean, killing all the oxygen- breathing life. The ocean also starts emitting enormous amounts of lethal hydrogen sulfide gas that destroy the ozone layer and directly poison landdwelling species. This has happened many times in the Earth's history. Don't let it worry you. We'll all be safely dead long before it could happen again: The earliest possible date for a mass extinction, assuming the theory is right and that we continue down our present track with emissions, would be well into the next century. The only problem is, things like this tend to become inevitable long before they actually happen. Tick- tock. Gwynne Dyer is a London- based independent journalist whose articles are published in 45 countries. Folly of invasion The West and dictatorial oligarchies such as Saudi Arabia and Qatar are planning to occupy Syria as a humanitarian gesture. Elsewhere, U. S. air and drone strikes are responsible for killing countless thousands of innocent people. The latest one, on June 6 ( Afghan president says 18 people killed in NATO airstrike were civilians , Online) killed 18 at an Afghan wedding party, including women and children. Invading Syria to protect civilians makes as much sense as invading the U. S. and overthrowing the government to protect innocent civilians in Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan and Wounded Knee from American military forces. I'd say we should not invade Syria unless you really want to see Stephen Harper's lips permanently attached to the lower- lower back of the U. S. military establishment. The more covered in blood we get, the harder it will be to pull out of this permanent and expanding war to keep U. S. investments safe around the world. DARRELL RANKIN Winnipeg Science offers wisdom Many thanks for the wise editorial Teaching evolution must evolve ( June 4). One does not have to read Carl Sagan, Isaac Asimov or E. O. Wilson, good thinkers all, to know science is a healthier path than religion to a better life. Religion has caused and is causing terrible human suffering, as genital mutilation is showing today. True, science has caused problems, as nuclear accidents following the Japan tsunami demonstrate. But religious belief systems appear unmatched in their ability to cause turmoil in human relations. The focus on human sexuality distracts humanity from such grave problems of war, hunger and drought that afflict many in society. Science provides a more realistic base on which to anchor our faith in a better world. Fundamentalism, or a belief in certainty, has created such problems as suicide bombers and concerns about abortion and gay lifestyles. There is a better way. Let us not withhold such wisdom from children in schools. BARRY HAMMOND Winnipeg Driving naturally Re: 50 too slow for Grant ( Letters, June 7). As a daily pedestrian on Grant, I am more than familiar with the " natural flow of traffic" that Allan Levine speaks of. It consists of speeding, law- breaking, texting, hostile Winnipeg drivers. STUART KAYE Winnipeg A royal achievement I am quite amazed by Arthur Blankstein's complaint ( Letters, June 6) about there being no live concert on Canadian television. The CBC broadcast all the festivities from June 1 to June 5. Remember that the U. K. is six hours ahead of us. So the CBC showed it a day late. So what? It was wonderful. Spreading the events out also made it a lot easier to watch. LYNN E. SOENS Winnipeg Cycle of Venus Venus is either visible in the morning, evening, or not visible at all. But it is never visible in the morning and evening on the same day as indicated in your June 6 story Venus draws eyes to the skies . Specifically, Venus's observational motion follows this ( approximate) cycle: It is visible in the evening for 263 days, it disappears for eight days, is seen in the morning for 263 days, disappears for 50 days, and reappears in the evening, repeating the cycle of 584 days. DAVID TOPPER Winnipeg Zombie invasion As a young professional working in downtown Winnipeg, I am very concerned with a trend that is spreading like a terrible disease. Look around downtown during business hours and you will see an ever- multiplying legion of mindless yellow- vested parking zombies ticketing everything in sight to generate revenue for the city. The number of fluorescent- clad tax collectors roaming the streets downtown now appears to rival the entire pedestrian population. Just like the photo- radar fiasco, the city is using the services of a private corporation called G4S to devise schemes that mislead and rip off their own citizens to raise revenue. Confusing signage, faulty change- swallowing parking meters and an expanding army of foot soldiers are just some of the methods the Winnipeg Parking Authority uses to live up to its true purpose: revenue generation. It's due time the people of Winnipeg stand up and stop allowing these tax- grabbing shenanigans to continue. TIM PHELAN Winnipeg At least we're sunny Re: Ambitious nothingness ( June 5). So a Vancouver architect came to Winnipeg and saw a symbol of emptiness as suitable for our city? Left at our major library, no less. This is a shameful and insulting act. PATT DAWSON Winnipeg Warranty on potholes Tax increases and tolls have been mentioned as ways of improving the infrastructure in Winnipeg and Manitoba highways in general. It is obvious the workmanship going into these projects is of inferior quality. The same roads are worked on in the same places nearly on an annual basis. Should contractors not be held accountable for a higher standard of workmanship? Should there perhaps be a five- year warranty required? Perhaps submitting these tenders for bid by U. S. contractors in the Dakotas and Minnesota should be considered as a possible cost- saving method. ROBERT KEHLER Winnipeg Transport monopoly It appears that John Feldsted ( Letters, June 1) has inadvertently identified the real problem with the CP Rail situation. However, he has missed the target that is so obviously in front of him. It is not the 4,800 striking employees that were holding this nation hostage. It is the virtual monopoly on rail transport held by CP and CN. Our minister of labour, Lisa Raitt, has decided that the cost to the economy is more important that these Canadian citizens' rights. She said that a rail stoppage would cost $ 540 million per week to the economy. Since legislation was passed within four days ( 0.57 weeks), we can calculate a value of $ 64,285.71 for each employee's right. I wonder what value Raitt would place on my religious freedom or my right to vote? What would Feldsted charge for his right to freedom of speech? Perhaps we could take up a collection and buy him out. JEFF MILLER Pinawa HAVE YOUR SAY: The Free Press welcomes letters from readers. Include the author's name, address and telephone number. Letters may be edited. Letters to the Editor, 1355 Mountain Avenue, Winnipeg, R2X 3B6. Fax 697- 7412. Email letters@ freepress. mb. ca Letters represent the opinions of their writers and do not reflect the opinions of the Winnipeg Free Press or its staff. �� LETTER OF THE DAY Re: Forget lawsuits - just ban the sale of tobacco altogether ( June 6). Lindor Reynolds' proposal to ban tobacco products altogether in Manitoba, although seemingly well- intentioned, ignores basic economic and moral principles of our society. Prohibitively high taxes on tobacco already funnel vast resources to organized crime, empowering groups that inflict serious harm on our society. An outright ban would magnify this problem and, as was the case with prohibition of alcohol, would create an atmosphere of lawlessness and disregard for legitimate government activities. Although I am not a smoker, I have no problem with people who choose to smoke. They are making a choice, just as some people choose to play risky contact sports or drink dangerous amounts of caffeinated energy drinks. To ban tobacco products would be signalling that Manitobans are no longer entitled to make their own decisions, that the majority are able to dictate to the minority what they are allowed to do with their own bodies, and what they are not. What's next? The health- care argument is also flawed. Under this logic, government should also ban products that can cause obesity and eat up significant amounts of health- care resources. Maybe the government should ban football and hockey. After all, these sports can ruin the health of players who suffer spinal injuries and severe concussions and further expend health- care resources. Tobacco may be a harmful to individuals, but a ban on tobacco would be extremely harmful to our province. MATT TALLMAN Winnipeg 100% 90% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0% Winnipeg Free Press, Monday, June 11, 2012 A 11 POLL �� TODAY'S QUESTION Are you following the 2012 Euro Cup soccer championship? �� Vote online at winnipegfreepress. com �� PREVIOUS QUESTION Do you think the new recycling carts being introduced will encourage Winnipeggers to recycle more? YES 47% NO 53% TOTAL RESPONSES 3,361 Winnipeg Free Press est 1872 / Winnipeg Tribune est 1890 VOL 140 NO 208 2012 Winnipeg Free Press, a division of FP Canadian Newspapers Limited Partnership. Published seven days a week at 1355 Mountain Avenue, Winnipeg, Manitoba R2X 3B6, PH: 697- 7000 BOB COX / Publisher MARGO GOODHAND / Editor JULIE CARL / Deputy Editor DEAR EDITOR, A recent column by Jonathan Naylor ( CBC abandoning remote northern viewers , Free Press , June 7) argues that " surely there must be better ways to trim the fat" than by decommissioning CBC/ Radio- Canada's over- the- air analogue television transmission network. We want to offer readers a different point of view on the issue. First: Analogue- transmission equipment is indeed - as Naylor suggests - obsolete. The technology dates back decades. Parts aren't available. It's becoming increasingly difficult and expensive to maintain. We couldn't continue operating our analogue network for much longer even if we wanted to, even less so when you consider the costs. Second: Only 1.7 per cent of Canadians use analogue over- the- air technology today. Canadians have by and large abandoned antennas in favour of the choice and flexibility offered by cable and satellite and - increasingly - the Internet. That's true of both rural and urban viewers, low income and high. HD, online, mobile, and on- demand: This is where Canadians expect our programming to be found. It's where we're focusing our efforts and resources. Third: The $ 10 million saved by decommissioning this equipment will go back into programming. Shutting down analogue will save taxpayers a minimum of $ 10 million a year in operating costs. We're working to give the 98.3 per cent of Canadians who won't be affected by this change the best possible programming on a variety of platforms. This measure will help us lower our costs to do even better. Fourth: Affordability of cable and satellite service is the real issue. We empathize with the people who will be affected by this change. But the solution is not to continue putting money into an obsolete technology being used less and less. The solution is making the technology of today - cable, satellite and the internet - more affordable. CBC/ Radio- Canada has repeatedly made its case to the CRTC for the creation of a small and cheap entry- level cable or satellite package. The CRTC is looking into the issue right now. We're hopeful a solution will be implemented sooner rather than later. We urge all those who care about the issue to make their voices heard. JOHN BERTRAND Managing director, CBC Manitoba Only 1.7 per cent get TV by rabbit ears SHIZUO KAMBAYASHI / THE ASSOCIATED PRESS ARCHIVES People walk near a no- smoking sign in Tokyo on World No Tobacco Day, May 31. Ban would be harmful Tick tock tick... GWYNNE DYER A_ 11_ Jun- 11- 12_ FP_ 01. indd A11 6/ 10/ 12 4: 38: 43 PM ;