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It's Time to Wake Up and Smell the Smoke! (Letter)

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by Larry Powell It's time to wake up and smell the smoke! Forest fire smoke (from as far away as BC) over southern Manitoba.  PinP photo. As wildfires rage around us on the Canadian prairies, forcing thousands of poor souls from their homes, we click our tongues and complain about sore eyes and reduced visibility on the roads. (Trust me, reduced visibility is the least of our worries.)   We apparently lack the brain power to listen to and actually  hear  what the world's scientific community has been warning us about for over a generation. If we do nothing to curb our insatiable appetite for fossil fuels, we can expect more and worse heatwaves, droughts, wildfires and a host of other extreme weather events which are  decidedly not positive,  in our future .  Our relentless burning of gas, oil and coal, apparently without a thought for tomorrow, produces greenhouse gases which trap the sun's heat and cause the earth's average temperature to increase. 

Only “Heroic Efforts” Will Spare Earth’s Mighty Boreal Forest From the Worst Ravages of Climate Change - Experts.

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by Larry Powell   Like a giant green scarf,  the boreal forest  embraces the globe. It's home to a cold but living, breathing community of plants, animals and humans. Marked by mountains, over a million lakes and other waterways, muskeg and human settlements, it sprawls over the vast expanse of the northern hemisphere. Every third tree on the planet (mostly evergreen) is found there, making it one of Earth's largest remaining ecosystems. One-half of this immense, wooded habitat is found in Russia. One third of it is here in Canada, where it occupies more than half of our entire land mass. The rest is shared by Alaska and Scandinavia. Part of the "boreal plains" of western Canada. A PinP photo.                              An Important Gathering - an Ominous Conclusion Every two or three years, the International Boreal Forestry Research Association (IBFRA) meets to assess the overall health of the region.  Delegates include government and univer

In worst case scenario, the trees in big parts of Canada's boreal forest 'will probably die,' says federal scientist

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National Observer A devastating wildfire near Fort MacMurray, Alberta, Photo by  DarrenRD Large portions of Canada’s vast boreal forest could be at risk of dying off by the end of the century, as climate change will dramatically aggravate the risk of wildfires, drought and insect infestations, say government scientists in a groundbreaking new study. More here. RELATED:  Only “Heroic Efforts” Will Spare Earth’s Mighty Boreal Forest From the Worst Ravages of Climate Change - Experts .

The Great Wildfire Debate Lights Up Editorial Pages in Manitoba.

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Photo credit - APTN. (A version of this letter was published yesterday in the Neepawa Press.) Dear Editor,  I'm afraid there's been a misunderstanding. My recent letter in the Neepawa Press, "It's time to wake up and smell the smoke,"  has brought quite a negative response from friends and others. The misunderstanding is over the "link" that I drew between wildfires and manmade climate change. My critics apparently think such a link was my own creation!  Nothing could be further from the truth!  I was merely the messenger!

Stop a Logging Assault On Quebec's Boreal Forest

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Natural Resources Defense Council Clearcut logging in BC -  Photo by TJ Watt Canadian logging companies are pushing a plan that could destroy some 3 million acres of pristine wilderness in Quebec's Broadback River valley, one of the largest and last remaining untouched stretches of the boreal forest. More here. RELATED:   SAVE the BROADBACK " Only “Heroic Efforts” Will Spare Earth’s Mighty Boreal Forest From the Worst Ravages of Climate Change - Experts."

Canada’s Forest Fires Threaten the Whooping Crane

World Resources Institute Canada, home to two of the Whooping Crane Summer Ranges, topped the list of countries with the most forest loss. The loss is likely due to sweeping boreal forest fires in the Wood Buffalo National Park. Story here. Related: " Only 'Heroic Efforts' Will Spare Earth’s Mighty Boreal Forest From the Worst Ravages of Climate Change - Experts."

New Studies Show - Goals of Paris Climate Accord Unlikely to be Achieved. by Larry Powell

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Wildfires in Portugal. Wikimedia Commons. Two new studies paint a sobering picture for the future of the Earth in a changing climate. One report  by a team of American scientists estimates there’s only a five percent chance that global warming can be kept below 2 degrees celsius by 2100. On the other hand, there’s a 95 percent likelihood the increase will be more like 2 to 4.9 degrees! That upper range would generally be considered by many experts as catastrophic for life on earth. And it would clearly represent a failure of  the Paris Climate Accord .   That agreement, signed last year, commits almost 200 member countries, including Canada, to limit the increase to “well under 2 degrees” above pre-industrial levels. Achieving that goal, adds the study, “will require carbon intensity to decline much faster than in the recent past.” The second study  (done jointly by a researcher with the Max Planck Institute in Germany and another from the University of Colorado), mak

Northern Fires Caused Almost a Quarter of Global Forest Loss, Study Shows

theguardian Forest fires destroyed vast areas of woodland in Canada and Russia between 2011 and 2013, greatly contributing to greenhouse gas emissions that cause climate change, satellite data reveals. Story here. Related: Only 'Heroic Efforts' Will Spare Earth's Mighty Boreal Forest From the Worst Ravages of Climate Change.

New research finds - global heating is melting vast northern fields of permafrost so fast that - within decades - they'll likely stop cooling the planet as they have for millennia - and start doing just the opposite.

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by Larry Powell Permafrost Slide at Big Fox Lake, Ontario, Canada - 2015. A Creative Commons photo by MIKOFOX.  For thousands of years, so-called "permafrost peatlands" in Earth's Northern Hemisphere have been cooling the global climate. They’ve done it by trapping large amounts of carbon and nitrogen which would otherwise escape into the air as harmful greenhouse gases.  More recently however, scientists have observed, they've been melting due to manmade global heating. As they melt, they're releasing large amounts of substances like methane - a potent greenhouse gas - into the air.  But, without proper maps, it's been hard for scientists to get a handle on the degree to which this might be happening - until now. New ones drawn up using thousands of field observations, show; Permafrost peatlands cover a vast area of almost four million square kilometres. And, to quote from the study, "Under future global warming scenarios, half to nearly all

Forest Fires Rage Near Manitoba Towns, Burning Permits Cancelled

CBC News Fire crews battled blazes in dry, windy conditions near the towns of Cormorant and Sherridon in northwestern Manitoba, prompting the province to cancel burning permits and restrict campfires over large stretches of territory. Story here. Relalted:  Only “Heroic Efforts” Will Spare Earth’s Mighty Boreal Forest From the Worst Ravages of Climate Change - Experts.

Is This What Climate Change Looks Like?

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The water tower in my home town is  barely  visible in smoke said to have  spread all the way  from Washington State, about 2,000 kilometres away!  PinP photo. RELATED: " Only “Heroic Efforts” Will Spare Earth’s Mighty Boreal Forest From the Worst Ravages of Climate Change - Experts."

Warming Could Mean Major Thaw For Alaska Permafrost

Climate Central If you’d asked permafrost researcher Vladimir Romanovsky five years ago if he thought the permafrost of the North Slope of Alaska was in danger of substantial thaw this century because of global warming, he would have said no. Not any more.  More Here. RELATED:  Only “Heroic Efforts” Will Spare Earth’s Mighty Boreal Forest From the Worst Ravages of Climate Change - Experts.

As Peatlands Dry Out From Climate Change, Wildfire Risk Increases

CBC news 'Megafires' result from severe drying, says McMaster researcher. Story here. RELATED: "Only Heroic Efforts Will Spare Earth's Mighty Boreal Forest From the Worst Ravages of Climate Change."

Bark Beetles Are Decimating Our Forests. That Might Actually Be a Good Thing.

MotherJones They gobble up trees and send politicians into a frenzy. But do the bugs know more about climate change than we do? Story here. Related:   Only “Heroic Efforts” Will Spare Earth’s Mighty Boreal Forest From the Worst Ravages of Climate Change - Experts.   

Sharp rise in Arctic temperatures now inevitable – UN

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The Guardian Icebergs in the high Arctic. Photo by Brocken Inaglory. Temperatures likely to rise by 3-5C above pre-industrial levels even if Paris goals met. Story here. RELATED:  Only “Heroic Efforts” Will Spare Earth’s Mighty Boreal Forest From the Worst Ravages of Climate Change - Experts.

Massive Permafrost Thaw Documented in Canada, Portends Huge Carbon Release

  inside  climate  news Study shows 52,000 square miles (135,000 square kilometers) in rapid decline, with sediment and carbon threatening the surrounding environment and potentially accelerating global warming. Details here. Please also read; "Only Heroic Efforts Will Spare Earth's Mighty Boreal Forest From the Worst Ravages of Climate Change."

The Forests of the World Are in Serious Trouble, Scientists Report

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The Washington Post PinP photo. The planet’s forests are vital to us all. For one thing, without them, global warming would be a lot worse. Details here. RELATED:  Only “Heroic Efforts” Will Spare Earth’s Mighty Boreal Forest From the Worst Ravages of Climate Change "

These Fires Are Huge, Hidden And Harmful. What Can We Do?

ensia Smouldering peat gives off massive quantities of carbon dioxide and other pollutants, but the search for solutions is on. Story here. RELATED: "One of North America' Biggest Peat Bogs Burns Near Vancouver." "Only Heroic Efforts Will Spare Earth's Mighty Boreal Forest From the Worst Ravages of Climate Change."

The Great Wildfire Debate Lights Up Editorial Pages in Manitoba.

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by Larry Powell For simplicity, I'm putting the series of events discussed below, in chronological order. First, I wrote the letter, immediately below,   published in the Brandon Sun, Neepawa Press and Roblin Review in recent weeks. ===== Forest fire smoke (from as far away as BC) over southern Manitoba.  PinP  photo. Dear Editor,  It's time to wake up and smell the smoke! As wildfires rage around us on the Canadian prairies, forcing thousands of poor souls from their homes, we click our tongues and complain about sore eyes and reduced visibility on the roads. (Trust me, reduced visibility is the least of our worries.)   We apparently lack the brain power to listen to and actually  hear  what the world's scientific community has been warning us about for over a generation. If we do nothing to curb our insatiable appetite for fossil fuels, we can expect more and worse heatwaves, droughts, wildfires and a host of other extreme weather events whic