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4 Tuesday October 6 2015 The Northern Journal is an independent newspaper covering news and events in the western Arctic and northern Alberta. 2013 CCNA BLUE RIBBON CANADIAN COMMUNITY NEWSPAPER AWARD 2013 C M C A AUDITED The Northern Journal is published weekly by Cascade Publishing Ltd. Printed at Star Press Inc. Wainwright AB. Publisher................................................................................. Don Jaque 867-872-3000 ext.21 donnorj.ca Editor..................................................................................... Craig Gilbert 867-872-3000 ext.24 newsnorj.ca Reporter....................................................................... Dali Carmichael 867-872-3000 ext.25 reporternorj.ca Comptroller .......................................................Jessica Dell 867-872-3000 ext.23 webnorj.ca Advertising.............................. Heather Foubert Hay River 867-874-4106 adsnorj.ca Administration............................................Jeremy Turcotte 867-872-3000 ext.26 adminnorj.ca Production Manager ......................................Sandra Jaque 867-872-3000 ext.22 sandranorj.ca Graphics........................................................Paul Bannister 867-872-3000 ext.27 graphicsnorj.ca Letters to the Editor Policy The Northern Journal welcomes letters to the editor. Letters must be signed and include a phone number so the author can be veried. Names will be withheld on request in special circumstances where the reasons are determined to be valid. The Journal reserves the right to edit letters for length libel clarity and taste. Opinions expressed in letters and columns are not necessarily those of the publisher or editor. Advertising Deadlines Display ad deadline is Thursday at 400 p.m. Classied ad deadline is Thursday at 500 p.m. Email adsnorj.ca Subscription Rates Prices include GST. 47.25 in Fort Smith 52.50 elsewhere in Canada 105 in the USA overseas 164.30. EDITORIAL LETTER TO THE EDITOR CPAWS-NWT encouraged by GNWTs commitment to conservation Editor CPAWS-NWT is pleased to see the steps the Government of the Northwest Territo- ries GNWT is taking to continue the work started under the NWT Protected Areas Strat- egy PAS through the Draft NWT Conser- vation Areas Action Plan. TheDraftActionPlanbuildsonconservation workconductedsince1999inthePASbyNWT communitiesincollaborationwithregionalAb- original organizations the federal and territo- rial governments environmental non-govern- mental organizations and industry. It smartly incorporates the PAS into the post-devolution contextbyplanningtointegrateidentiedpro- posed core protected areas into a conservation areas network that will work to achieve inter- national biodiversity conservation targets. As well the plan would create the necessary legis- lativepolicyanddecisionmakingframeworkto supportcomprehensiveconservationplanning. Planning for conservation is critical for the long-term sustainability of our territory. The NWT has one of the greatest opportunities in the world to proactively conserve important places for current and future generations. By setting in place a robust NWT conservation areas plan now we will ensure that our unique biodiversity and cultural heritage can be con- served. Through proactive conservation we can also lay the groundwork for increased land use certainty secure opportunities to diver- sify local economies and provide a broader range of long-term employment opportuni- ties for NWT residents. We know that NWT residents highly value our land water and wildlife and support conservation of important areas in a 2013 survey about the future of the NWT done by EKOS Research the single top concern iden- tied by residents was environmentconser- vationpollution. Many NWT communities have been working for over 15 years to identify special places on the land that are important to them and for which they want protection. CPAWS-NWT looks forward to continuing to work with the GNWT and other interested parties to further develop the Conservation Areas Action Plan to achieve the best possi- ble future for all people of the NWT through careful stewardship of our shared natural and cultural heritage. Kris Brekke Executive Director CPAWS-NWT The Northern Journal acknowledges the nancial support of the Government of Canada through the Canada Periodical Fund CPF for our publishing activities. The way it is going those once limitless herds that have been critical to the existence of indigenous Northerners for millenniaarebecomingdiminished to the point where hunting will soon not be allowed. Our world is changing action is needed Why are our rivers so low what is happen- ing to our water and what does that mean for the future Each year there is a spring ood in April. The snow drains from the land in spring and superchargedstreamslltheirbanksturninto small rivers and together rush toward lower ground becoming waterways in their journey tothesea.Riverspeakpushingouttheicethen run swollen and dirty well into May. Each year our rivers have a second peak in June not as big as the rst but enough to again ll the banks and carry sediment and nutrients along with trees and debris down- stream. That second ood is the mountain runoff as the snow load in the mountains succumbs to warming summer temperatures. This year that second peak did not happen. Glaciersareshrinkingsasaresultofthewarm- ing of our world. The mountain snowpack no longerbuildsupthewayitoncedidisnolonger theretofeedourrivers.Addtothathydrodams that are constantly thirsty like the giant reser- voirbehindtheBennettDaminBritishColum- biathatmustholdwaterbackbecausetheWest Coastlackedrainallsummerparchedwiththe droughtthatstretchedthelengthofthewestern slopesoftheRockyMountainsfromMexicoto Alaska.Meanwhileyetanotherhydroprojectis being constructed on the Peace River. All that happensbeforetheoilsandsindustrywithdraws water from the Athabasca to retrieve barrels of oil.Additalltogetherandladiesandgentlemen wehaveaproblem.Theimpactreverberatesall the way to the Arctic Ocean. The Mackenzie River drainage system covers a vast area - one twelfth of the North American continent - and ows down north to the Arctic. It would take a lot to diminish the amount of water this huge area contrib- utes but that is exactly what has happened. For a number of years now there has been talk about how the impact of climate change would be felt rst and most in the far North. For us living in the impact zone it has been hard to understand how that will manifest. It is easy to picture melting permafrost that disrupts roads and affects the foundations of buildings in communities but we have seen that before so what else will happen The loss of the caribou herds is the worst impact so far - and yes although it is not cer- tain that phenomenon is very likely caused by climate change. The way it is going those once limitless herds that have been critical to the existence of indigenous Northerners for millennia are becoming diminished within a decade to the point where hunting will soon not be allowed. How terribly sad that is. Whatifourriversbecomereducedsimilarly Thatwouldbeevenworse.Thereisaneconomic cost for one. The regional drought in the Deh ChoandTliChohasledtoadrasticreductionin theowoftheSnareRiverthatprovideshydro power to many NWT communities including Yellowknife and is already costing millions of dollars in subsidies. That may be a microcosm of what will happen on a larger scale. The volume of ow in the Slave River con- tinues to drop week by week. That means con- tinuinglowerlevelsinGreatSlaveLakewhich has been dropping for a number of years. The Mackenzie too will get lower. The need for dredging will increase in Hay River and barge transportation on the Mackenzie will be more difcult.WhatotherimpactsWillthisworsen in the years ahead Nobody knows. For the last 15 years a team of Japanese sci- entistshasbeenstudyingcarbondepositionin theborealforestandhowthatrelatestoclimate change.TheyhavestudysitesinWoodBuffalo NationalParkandcometoFortSmithannually to check data. They also visit sites in Siberia in northern Russia. They do such things as bury atbedscannersusedforscanningdocuments undergroundandtriggerthemwirelessly.They are transmitted a scan showing the extent of root growth and then calculate the extent of carbon deposition using sophisticated formu- lae. This year they added drones to their arse- nal of scientic tools enabling aerial pictures to calculate forest growth. Their work is funded by the Japanese gov- ernment. It is done they say so that Japan a seafaring nation will better understand what is taking place with climate change to be well informed when making decisions on matters that will impact them in future. The forward thinking by the Japanese gov- ernment to fund such work and other types of studies like it must have come about roughly 20yearsagowellbeforediscussionsonclimate changewerecommon.Whatexcellentforesight Canadas regressive Conservative federal government meanwhile continues to deny climate change is even taking place and is actively muzzling scientists. We Northerners need studies to determine what is happening to the caribou enabling us to take action to save the herds and we need to know what is happening to our riv- ers so we can at least predict the impacts and better deal with them. Not to mention issues with wildres sh stocks and our forests. WebadlyneedanewgovernmentinOttawa. PhotoMicheleTaylor CORRECTIONS In the Sept. 29 story SSDEC Literacy Ini- tiative receives ministerial award the Journal stated the SSDECs award-win- ning literacy program is directed by a regional working committee. To clarify the award went to not only this commit- tee but to the many educators volun- teers and students participating in the program. Also in the story Showing Aurora students they are not alone an old phone number for Fort Smith Victim Services Program was printed. The current numbers are 872-3520 for the ofce and 621-2273 for the cellphone. And in our story about Aurora College learners on the land we misspelled pro- gram coordinator Sheila Wiltzens name. The Journal regrets the errors. Hopes Haven a 12-unit transitional home for youth between the ages of 16 and 24 - owned and operated by SideDoor Youth Ministries - opened its doors in Yellowknife on Sept. 24. The facility the rst of its kind in the territory will provide programs aimed at helping youth to transition to permanent housing and independence. It features a total of 10 emergency drop-in beds including overow ve two-room dormitories with one bed per room sharing a bathroom and one three-bedroom apartment.