Science has proven that back roads into the backlands of the environment is a strike to the future of wildlife, especially big game such as deer, moose, caribou and bison. A recent announcement by the territorial government announcing the opening of new back roads into our backlands will help industries to build the economy of the territory.
This is true, but such back roads without science, also is a strike against all wildlife, be it a cottontail rabbit or moose.
This is not new, as a number of years ago, a number of North America scientists, from the International Boreal Conservation Science Panel, release a strong scientific alarm clearly showing the damage industry is doing to the world’s photosynthesis forests.
The burning of the Amazon forest, shows the meaningful photosynthesis forest in the world, is being burnt off, along with it’s wildlife, for industrial usage. Now the amazon forest is putting out more pollution than what the forest’s photosynthesis of clean air. Other major photosynthesis forests such as the large track of forests in Africa and Russia are also following suit.
Now the Canadian Boreal forest is being sacrificed for industrial use, with new additional back roads opening the interior for industry, and now the most sensitive environment body, being the wetlands of the forest, are now being drawn down for industrial use. Back roads and wetlands of the Yukon are being built for greed to make some rich, not for the good of the wildlife or for clean air for the people of the Yukon.
The question I would ask the Minister of the Environment is: has he or anyone from his committee contacted the University of Montana, along with the scientists of the Fish and Wildlife Department of Alberta, and asked for their research papers dealing with backwoods in northern Alberta, to see what damage they have done to big game, specially caribou of that part of Alberta.
The roads have opened up the range for the predator wolf that now have almost eliminated the caribou from the southern portion of the Alberta Boreal forest.
Recent scientific studies by the Delta Waterfowl Foundation have clearly shown that the wetlands in western Canada and the United States are disappearing at a very high rate. Scientists have stated that forest fires along with climate change has already wiped out a number of wetlands, resulting in the decline of waterfowl birds. It should be pointed out that wetlands are a crucial element for the existance of birds as well as animals. The wetlands also serve as a filter system of water that flows into creeks, river, lakes and finally our oceans.
There are studies available to the Yukon Environmental Minister to show the serious toxic effects of very dangerous chemicals that secreted from a wetland when it has been dried up. Actually, back in 2020, I sent one such paper on a study based on scientific facts, that clearly show the serious danger to not only wildlife but to humans, dealing with the toxic gasses rendered by wetlands that have been dried up or lowered.
Right now, wetlands are being used for placer mining. Water runs over the ground washing the dirt of the rocks for gold mining. The flowing water also will, in time, wash minerals from the trenches, down into small creeks that flow into rivers, lakes and oceans.
I have been told by government officials that theeir plan for mining is not to have the waste water flowing into one large pond, they plan to have it spread over a number of shallow cavities. One has to suspect that these shallow cavities no doubt are grasslands that help feed all sorts of birds and animals.
I leave you with a quote from Teddy Roosevelt:“A Nation that destroys it’s soil, destroys itself.”
Murray Martin