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July 15 2020

New report highlights opportunity to put nature protection at the heart of economic recovery in Canada

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For interviews, contact:
Tori Ball, Terrestrial Campaigner
tori@cpawsbc.org
(604) 685-7445 x24

New report highlights opportunity to put nature protection at the heart of economic recovery in Canada

For Immediate Release

July 15, 2020

Unceded Coast Salish Territory/Vancouver, BC — A new report from the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society (CPAWS) recommends that nature protection is put at the heart of Canada’s COVID-19 recovery strategies. The report highlights the enormous potential of BC’s provincial parks to provide accessible and affordable outdoor activities, and outlines urgent challenges posed by decades of underfunding.

“It’s become very clear that BC’s parks are essential to our health and well-being. Safe, accessible outdoor recreation in parks is a proven way to boost mental health and reduce stress,” says Tori Ball, Terrestrial Campaigner with CPAWS-BC.

“Unfortunately, decades of funding for BC’s parks has left communities with inequitable access to nature, and continues to put wildlife at risk,” she says.

The BC Parks budget was cut by 4% this year, exacerbating issues such as understaffing across the province. This has restricted or cut core functions such as monitoring and enforcement, research, and education.

The provincial and federal governments are making decisions on spending to restart the economy and recover from the economic downturn caused by COVID-19. CPAWS-BC is advocating for an investment of economic recovery funding into BC’s parks to better support the needs of communities across the province.

“This is our chance to get it right. We know that nature conservation is a driver of economic growth and provides essential community benefits that help build a resilient global economy,” says Ball.

”Now more than ever, we need to invest in these places so that our communities will be more resilient and better supported in the long run,” adds Ball.

CPAWS-BC’s recommendations to the Government of British Columbia:

Invest immediately in BC Parks, increasing staff capacity for visitor management, ecological monitoring, and management planning to better recognize the critical role that parks play in supporting our health, our communities, and our environment.
Support Indigenous-led conservation initiatives that enable reconciliation with Indigenous nations, protection and recovery of species at risk, and build sustainable long-term jobs in rural and remote communities

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For interviews, contact:
Tori Ball, Terrestrial Campaigner
tori@cpawsbc.org
(604) 685-7445 x24

Download Media Release PDF

Additional Resource:

Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society. (July 15 2020). Healthy Nature Healthy People. https://cpawsbc.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/CPAWS-Parks-Report-2020-ENG.pdf

Photo by: Kirill Belotserkovsky via Pexels.com

TELL YOUR MLA: INVEST IN BC PARKS TO HELP BUILD BACK A BETTER BC

July 9 2020

Canada joins Global Ocean Alliance: Advocates for protecting 30% of the world’s ocean by 2030

cpawsadmin News #30x30, bc ocean, canadian parks and wilderness society, canadian parks and wilderness society british columbia, coastal first nations, deep sea, deep sea mining, deepsea oasis, global ocean alliance, hypdrothermal vent, IUCN, marine protected area, mpa network, northern bioshelf, offshore pacific, orca, ross jameson, strait of georgia

For interview contact
Ross Jameson, Ocean Conservation Manager
Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society – British Columbia
778-953-2372
ross@cpawsbc.org

Canada joins Global Ocean Alliance: Advocates for protecting 30% of the world’s ocean by 2030

For Immediate Release

July 9, 2020

Unceded Coast Salish Territory/Vancouver, BC – Today, the Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard, the Honourable Bernadette Jordan, announced that Canada has joined the United Kingdom and other countries in the Global Ocean Alliance. Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society – British Columbia (CPAWS-BC) applauds Canada’s active role in the protection of at least 30 percent of the global ocean through the establishment of marine protected areas (MPAs) and other effective area-based marine conservation measures by 2030.

In partnership with Indigenous Peoples, provinces and territories, and environmental and industry organizations, the Canadian government has made huge strides to protect almost 14 percent of our ocean. The bigger task remains to reach their goal of 25 percent ocean protection by 2025 and 30 percent by 2030.

“This is a pivotal moment for Canada as a global leader for ocean action” says Ross Jameson, Ocean Conservation Manager for CPAWS-BC. “We look forward to working with the Minister to help Canada reach 30 percent ocean protection by 2030 with effective marine protected areas in BC and beyond.”

Decades of harmful human practices including overfishing, oil and gas activities, pollution (including noise, chemicals, and plastics), and physical disturbance such as ship strikes and bottom trawling threaten ocean life and human well-being. MPA’s offer a natural solution to prevent further destruction and support a healthy ocean that will provide for us for generations to come.

By protecting entire ecosystems, MPAs can protect the full diversity of marine life and their habitats. MPAs can help depleted ocean life recover, and support sustainable fisheries. Kelp forests, eelgrass and other shoreline ecosystems can protect coastal communities and shorelines from erosion and sea-level rise.

BC has been at the forefront of establishing Canada’s MPAs. The Endeavour Hydrothermal Vents MPA west of Vancouver Island was the first MPA created under the Oceans Act in 2003. The Gwaii Haanas National Marine Conservation Area Reserve and Haida Heritage Site is a prominent example of Indigenous-led, cooperatively managed MPAs in Canada.

We also have a large part to play in getting Canada to our 30 percent ocean protection by 2030 target with several MPAs in the planning process. The Offshore Pacific Area of Interest or Deepsea Oasis off the west coast of Vancouver Island will protect unique deep sea ecosystems and cover almost 2.5% of Canada’s ocean. The proposed Southern Strait of Georgia National Marine Conservation Area Reserve will safeguard important feeding waters for the critically endangered Southern Resident killer whales. Led by Indigenous communities, Canada’s first MPA network along BC’s north and central coasts will protect whales and other migrating ocean animals while also ensuring healthy coastal communities for generations.

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For interview contact
Ross Jameson, Ocean Conservation Manager
Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society – British Columbia
778-953-2372
ross@cpawsbc.org

Download PDF Copy

Resources:

Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society. (July 9 2020). CPAWS Celebrates Canada Joining the Global Ocean Alliance [Press Release] Retrieved from: https://cpaws.org/cpaws-celebrates-canada-joining-global-ocean-alliance/
BC’s Marine Protected Areas. Map by Jacob Chila, GIS Analyst, Ocean Program, Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society – British Columbia. 2020.
Explore Canada’s Marine Protected Areas. Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society, 2020.
Duarte, C.M., Agusti, S., Barbier, E. et al. Rebuilding marine life. Nature 580, 39–51 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-020-2146-7

Map by Jacob Chila, GIS Analyst, Ocean Program, Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society – British Columbia

About CPAWS-BC

Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society – British Columbia Chapter (CPAWS-BC) protects wilderness in every corner of BC and deep into the ocean. CPAWS-BC supports the creation of large, well-managed, connected protected areas where native plants and animals thrive, now and forever; and where people and communities can live off the land and ocean without impacting the ability of future generations to do the same.

In the past 50+ years, CPAWS has played a lead role in protecting over half a million square kilometres – an area bigger than New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador put together.

CPAWS BC_ Glass Sponge Reef_R1112_08517_Photographer Sally Leys

June 26 2020

New research prompts call for urgent protection of BC’s glass sponge reefs

cpawsadmin News Angela Stevenson, canadian parks and wilderness society, canadian parks and wilderness society british columbia, climate change, conservation, cpaws-bc, dinosaur bc, fishing closures bc, fossils bc, glass sponge, howe sound, marine protected area, mpa, ocean canada, ocean protection bc, ross jameson, ubc

For interview, please contact:

Ross Jameson, Ocean Conservation Manager

Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society-British Columbia

778-953-2372

ross@cpawsbc.org

New research prompts call for urgent protection of BC’s glass sponge reefs

For Immediate Release

June 26, 2020

Unceded Coast Salish Territory/Vancouver, BC – A new study led by Angela Stevenson at the University of British Columbia indicates that ongoing climate change is a serious and immediate threat to BC’s ancient glass sponge reefs. The Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society – British Columbia (CPAWS-BC) calls for the urgent establishment of marine protected areas (MPAs) for glass sponge reefs in BC.

Glass sponge reef ecosystems shelter rockfish and prawns and are efficient filter feeders. Healthy glass sponge reef marine protected areas can filter out up to 90% of bacteria from ocean water and work to keep carbon locked in the seafloor.

Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO), along with the Marine Life Sanctuaries Society (MLSS), recently verified five new living glass sponge reefs and one dead reef during scientific surveys in Howe Sound. These reefs need urgent protection if they are to adapt and survive against threats from climate change and human activity.

“Marine protected areas will not only protect glass sponge reefs from physical damage caused by bottom-contact fishing, they will also act as natural climate solutions,” says Ross Jameson, Ocean Conservation Manager for CPAWS-BC. MPAs offer long term protection, prevent further damage and absorb carbon to help beat back climate change.

For two decades, CPAWS-BC has worked to establish stronger protection for BC’s known glass sponge reefs. In 2017, Hecate Strait/Queen Charlotte Sound Glass Sponge Reefs Marine Protected Area protected over 2000 km² of glass sponge reefs off BC’s north and central coast. 17 fisheries closures protect reefs in Howe Sound and the Strait of Georgia. Unprotected glass sponge reefs in Howe Sound and Chatham Sound need urgent attention.

This new study underscores the pressure glass sponges face to adapt quickly to survive in a changing ocean. Protecting these unique biological treasures will not only safeguard economically important marine life, but also ensure the reefs can remain a source of awe and wonder for generations to come.

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For interview, please contact:

Ross Jameson, Ocean Conservation Manager

Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society-British Columbia

778-953-2372

ross@cpawsbc.org

Resources

We would like to recognize the many other organizations who have worked tirelessly to conserve this unique habitat: Marine Life Sanctuaries Society, David Suzuki Foundation, Coastal Ocean Research Institute, Subsea Society of Howe Sound, Canadian Marine Environment Protection Society, and Sunshine Coast Conservation Society.

Stevenson, A., Archer, S.K., Schultz, J.A. et al. Warming and acidification threaten glass sponge Aphrocallistes vastus pumping and reef formation. Sci Rep 10, 8176 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-65220-9

Media Release PDF here.

Additional Images here.

Photo: Delicate white silica glass sponge reef with small crabs — Photo: Sally Leyes

About CPAWS-BC:

In the past 50+ years, CPAWS has played a lead role in protecting over half a million square kilometres – an area bigger than New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador put together.

May 1 2020

Migratory Bird Day Virtual Celebration

cpawsadmin bc bird, big year, bird day, bird expert, birding, birding by ear, birds canada, canadian parks and wilderness society, cpaws-bc, migratory bird, murrelet, nature activities, rare bird alert, ross jameson, scott islands, seabirds, tori ball, webinar nature, youth nature

Migratory Bird Day – Live! | CPAWS-BC

Hear from our live panel of incredible experts to learn about birding by ear, some of the common — and uncommon — birds to look for this spring, and how you can become a citizen scientist.www.cpawsbc.org

Posted by CPAWS-BC on Saturday, May 9, 2020

This event has passed. Click here to watch the full recording [44min, English].

Saturday May 9 is Migratory Bird Day.

Birds play an important role in cultures and natural environments. We share a responsibility to protect their habitat that provides food, shelter and a safe place to raise their young.

Join us May 9 at 11 AM along with an incredible team of experts from Metro Vancouver Regional Parks, Birds Canada and CPAWS-BC to learn about birding by ear, birds to look for this spring, and how you can become a citizen scientist.

Migratory birds are incredibly important to the interconnected systems that keep nature healthy. Some species are here to stay and breed during the summer, and others are just passing through on their way to locations further north. They are pollinators who disperse seeds and control pests, and they’re also really pretty. Birdwatching, like other nature-based activities, can help lower stress and improve health.

But birds need our help. Bird populations are on the decline, and their homes are threatened by human activities and impacts like pollution, pesticides, and development.

Register for free www.cpawsbc.org/birds

Having trouble registering? Contact info@cpawsbc.org

April 6 2020

Nature’s Classroom at Home

cpawsadmin Blog #stayathome, bc school, canadian parks and wilderness society, cpaws-bc, family activity, family fun isolation, homeschool, kids lessons, kids ocean, nature kids, parents at home, physical distancing, SEL, social distancing, teach at home, teens sustainability

Time indoors with children and teens does not have to limit the many powerful lessons we can learn from nature. When we observe patterns and behaviours in nature, we can find solutions to build a healthier planet.

The following resources and activities compliment BC curriculum core competencies including intellectual, personal, and social and emotional learning. The lessons vary in the level of guidance or independent learning required to fit your unique needs.

Click to expand the learning levels below.

💻Applied Technology	🎨 Creative Arts	✍️ English Language Arts	🗺️ Geography
📐Math	🎵 Music	🧪 Science	🌎Social Studies

Elementary Years

Start a Tree Journal ✍️🧪📐🌎🎨

This activity encourages young learners to gain a deeper awareness of individual trees over time, and the relationship of a single tree to the greater environment. The journal template and prompts include drawing, math problems, and writing observations. Trees are essential ecosystems in your backyard and forests across the province, so this is a great chance to explore and study close to home.

Backyard Scavenger Hunt and Wildlife Wordsearch ✍️🧪

BC has a whopping 1,807 species at risk of extinction. Find 10 of these animal species that live in BC’s land and ocean in the wildlife wordsearch. In the coming weeks, print a CPAWS-BC Backyard Bingo card and check off different ways of connecting to nature close to home.

Learn More: Experience the Deepsea Oasis
Middle Years

Virtual Marine Biology Camp – Live!🧪🎨

Join scientists Dr. Erin Ashe and Dr. Rob Williams on Mondays and Thursdays at 11 a.m. PDT. These experts from Ocean Initiative will be live on both Facebook and Instagram, covering everything from salmon and sharks to the importance of whale poop. If you miss an episode, you can watch the video recording.

Did you know the ocean and its marine inhabitants plays a central role in regulating our climate, including by absorbing heat and carbon dioxide?

Native Land Digital Maps 💻✍️ 🗺️ 🌎

Curated and designed by an Indigenous-led team, this website maps Indigenous territories, treaties and languages. Download The Land You Live On guide for interactive exercises and discussion prompts to understand the rich history and cultures of the land and water. What are the stories on the land where you live, learn and play?

Leave No Trace Storytelling 💻✍️🎨

How do you prepare for a hike or overnight camping trip? Learn the 7 Leave No Trace Principles. Use a printed or digital template to make a storyboard of these trip planning tips to share with friends and family. Bonus: Turn your storyboard into a stop motion film using a camera or these apps.

Get your free colouring booklet of BC’s parks!
Secondary Years

PechaKucha Party! 💻 ✍️🧪🌎

Create a presentation about your favourite conservation topic. It could be a camping trip story, history of trees, or the day in the life of an animal. Within your theme, consider where we’ve come from, where we are and where we’re headed. Consider tools like powerpoint, storymap, and social media to share your presentation. Bonus: Set up a time with friends, family or peers to connect over video conference or live stream to share your presentations with a PechaKucha presentation style that privileges short, powerful messages.

Visit cpawsbc.org/campaigns to learn about nature close to home or get some ideas for your presentation.

Why is the ocean getting so loud? 💻✍️ 📐🎵 🧪

This TedTalk video explores the impact of underwater noise on marine environments. The video provides reflection questions, additional resources, and discussion prompts to learn about threats from human activity on marine life, and why it’s important to take action.

Visit the Home of the Orcas
All Ages

Looking for more?

Subscribe to receive e-mails with current good news, and activities. Follow us @cpawsbc on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Check back here for more blog posts including Staff Picks of Books, Films and Podcasts and upcoming Webinars to support our connections to nature and to each other.

*Additional Support: Open School BC provides resources for parents and caregivers to keep your children learning at home during the COVID-19 pandemic.

If these resources helped connect the young people in your life with nature or if they assisted in at-home schooling in your household, please consider making a donation. Your gift will help our team continue to defend nature for all Canadians, and keep us working during these uncertain times.

Donate

March 27 2020

Don’t Go To Parks

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Don’t Go To Parks

Tori Ball, Terrestrial Campaigner

Please excuse the dramatic (read: clickbait) title…

Here at CPAWS-BC, we spend a lot of time and energy trying to help people get outside safely. The science behind the benefits of spending time outdoors is solid. Being outside can boost energy and creativity, improve your mood, and provide free aromatherapy. One study from the American Academy of Ophthalmology found that children with outdoor recesses had a reduced risk of nearsightedness.

Many people in Greater Vancouver base their weekend plans around time outside. A province that boasts the most diverse parks system in the country also has a great enthusiasm for outdoor recreation. Hopeful park visitors have recently been given a different message from multiple park agencies with the closing of parks of all types including provincial and federal parks. In alignment with our health authorities, we the “parks people” are also asking that you and your families don’t go to the parks.

Travelling to towns with terrific tourism options is a great way to spend your weekends and support our neighbours, yet right now it puts them at risk. An influx of visitors threatens not only to spread the novel virus COVID-19, but to overwhelm the capacity of smaller, rural hospitals.

Squamish and Whistler have both issued statements asking visitors to stay away, for now. These sentiments have been echoed from Tofino all the way down to Bishop, California. When these communities are open for business, we encourage you to head out and experience their trails, and stay for a while to enjoy other food and fun they have to offer. But right now, please stay put.

Just because you aren’t travelling to hike up Black Tusk or camp in Golden Ears this weekend doesn’t mean you need to seperate yourself from nature. There are cherry blossoms popping out across many streets in Vancouver and Victoria. My personal favourite springtime tree, the forsythia, is bursting with yellow flowers.

Photo: Forsythia in bloom.

If you’ve got a window, you’ve got the opportunity to become a birder. Spring is one of the best times as migratory birds are coming back to their northern ranges. Check out 18 common birds in BC. Download one of these apps recommended by Bird Watching HQ that can help you identify birds.

Photo: Tree swallows

Your afternoon walk doesn’t need to be in a wooded area to still reep the benefits of getting outside. Natural sunlight (in moderate levels) helps to mitigate pain and provides you with Vitamin D, helping you to absorb calcium, prevents osteoporosis and reduces inflammation.

Our public health officials are saying this physical distancing is “for now.” This isn’t easy, shifting our plans and normal ways of being. It pains me to ask the CPAWS community of nature lovers to stay away from the majestic, awe-inspiring parks system.

Like many of you, I have summer camping reservations that are sitting in limbo. The best chance for all of us to be able to get outside and connect with each other in nature is to forgo this in the short-term.

Note: CPAWS-BC is not a public health organization. This information was developed based on current information from the BC Centre for Disease Control. Please consult your local health authority for advice and updates in your area.

Cover Image by Tori Ball

You can find a list of federal and provincial closures from:

February 21 2020

Historic agreement signals celebrated step for caribou in BC

cpawsadmin News bruce passmore, canadian parks and wilderness society, caribou, conservation, conservation bc, cpaws, cpaws-bc, endangered species canada, jessie corey, saulteau, species at risk, tori ball, west moberly, woodland caribou

For interview, please contact:

Skye Vallance, Communications and Development Coordinator

Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society, BC Chapter

604-685-7445 x 22

skye@cpawsbc.org

Historic agreement signals celebrated step for caribou in BC

For immediate release

February 21, 2020

Unceded Coast Salish Territory/Vancouver, BC – Today, a historic collaboration reached a critical point with the signing of a partnership agreement regarding the recovery of southern mountain caribou.

Saulteau and West Moberly First Nations announced they have negotiated a partnership agreement with B.C. and Canada to protect and recover caribou in the Peace Region. Part of the Partnership Agreement between the four governments includes the creation of an important new protected area in critical caribou habitat on West Moberly and Saulteau territories, near Chetwynd, BC.

“We are encouraged by this significant agreement to recover one of Canada’s most iconic species,” said Bruce Passmore, Executive Director of CPAWS-BC, “we applaud West Moberly and Saulteau First Nations, who have demonstrated incredible leadership, working with the provincial and federal governments towards protection of wildlife and species at risk in their traditional territories.”

This agreement includes new protected areas, that will expand the Klinse-za Provincial Park as well as restoration measures, access management, habitat recovery and restoration, and an Indigenous Guardian Program. A full, collaborative suite of measures sets the best chance at success for recovery while furthering Indigenous-led conservation models. Such models are critical to upholding the culture, stewardship and traditional knowledge of the original caretakers of the land.

“Support for Indigenous-led land and wildlife conservation efforts is crucial if we are to stem the global biodiversity and climate crisis,” said Passmore. “This historic collaboration between four governments demonstrates a new way forward for conservation in BC to preserve important species before it is too late.”

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For interview, please contact:

Skye Vallance, Communications and Development Coordinator

Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society, BC Chapter

604-685-7445 x 22

skye@cpawsbc.org

Image: Caribou bull at lick, Mayfield Lake. Photo credit: Wayne Sawchuk — Caribou bull at lick, Mayfield Lake. Photo credit: Wayne Sawchuk

April 11 2019

Financial Picture

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CPAWS-BC works hard to maximize the proportion of revenue spent on work to protect land, ocean and wildlife. Our goal is a sustainable financial foundation for conservation efforts, and the sustained protection of BC’s land and seascapes.