Christi Belcourt
I like coming across artwork related to initiatives which intrigue me. On September 8th there will be an...what, an uprising drawing attention to climate change and the urgency of addressing it. It is called Rise for Climate and the timing is good from a liturgical point of view because the date falls near the beginning of Creation Time in the Christian year, a season of several weeks during which we focus, as people of the Creator, on both the wonders and woes of the planet which is our home. September 9th is the first Sunday of Creation Time.
I really like the poster above, which was designed by Ontario Metis artist Christi Belcourt. This is how the website describes Rise for Climate:
This September, cities, states, businesses and civil society from around the world are gathering for the Global Climate Action Summit. The Summit has invited every mayor, governor, and business leader in the world to make a bold climate commitment to help the world reach the goals of the Paris Climate Agreement.
We know what those commitments need to look like: a fast and fair transition to 100% renewable energy and an immediate end to new fossil fuel projects. On September 8, we’re planning thousands of rallies in cities and towns around the world to demand our local leaders— whether they are attending the summit or not — commit to building a fossil free world that works for all of us. No more stalling, no more delays: it’s time for 100% renewable energy for all.
Plan or join an event in your community. If your elected officials commit, your rally can be a celebration. If they fail to act, it’s a chance to hold them accountable.
By acting together, we can end the era of fossil fuels and save the climate we all depend on.
Perhaps faith communities will figure out how to get involved in this event and, more importantly, the shift in a way of life which will allow sustainability for all that God has made.
Yah, life is complicated and politics are even more complicated, especially when governments go where the wind blows.
There is a new government in the province of Ontario and the Progressive Conservatives campaigned against a bunch of stuff, including alternative energy projects. Sadly, the former Liberal government made a mess of what could have been a huge step away from fossil fuel dependency. The Microfit program was not part of an over-arching plan and poorly executed. Still, promising to dispense with new projects and cancelling existing ones is another example of negative governance playing to a certain disgruntled group.
Now, here is were it gets intriguing. The PC's have committed to cancelling the White Pines wind turbine project in Prince Edward County, an initiative which probably shouldn't have been approved in the first place. This is a sensitive area for migrating birds as well as being habitat for other creatures and there has been a determined fight to get the turbines cancelled. So, the government may be helping protect an important ecosystem but for the wrong reasons and at the wrong time. As the CEO of wpd describes the situation: “The footprint of the project is 100 per cent in — so all the access roads, the concrete for the base foundations, much of the electrical infrastructure. The sub-station is nearing completion.”
The project includes nine wind turbines meant to produce enough electricity to power just over 3,000 homes annually. The original proposal was for 27 turbines but a review resulted in a reduction of the footprint. All of the turbines are expected to be installed over the next three weeks, with testing scheduled for the following month. In other words it is nearing completion. The company claims that cancellation will cost Ontario taxpayers $100 million.
What a mess for a government in power all of two weeks. Little wonder that Jesus got a little cagey when he was asked about rulers and powers-that-be.
Still, still, still: the night is calm and still.
The Christchild in his crib lies sleeping,
angels round him watch are keeping.
Still, still, still: the night is calm and still.
I write regularly about the growing level of environmental noise as a threat to peace and wellbeing, including our spiritual health. Some are suggesting that noise is the new smoking, a hazard which affects sleep and amps up anxiety. We read in scripture that a number of biblical figures including Jesus and the apostle Paul took time away from the demands of life to become spiritually focused and renewed in the quiet.
We may like the notion of Jesus being born on a "silent night" but don't tell us we can't make noise around our homes. I have to share with you the report of a raucous meeting near Montreal a couple of days ago. The council decided to ban leaf blowers during the summer, and the locals got out the tar and feathers:
BEACONSFIELD, QUE.—Tensions erupted in a Montreal suburb after councillors voted to pass a contentious summer-long ban on leaf blowers. The mayor of Beaconsfield says he could barely get a word out at Monday’s meeting between the heckling, yelling and other disruptions from the crowd of more than 100 people.Georges Bourelle says protesters gathered outside city hall before the 5-1 vote in favour of banning leaf blowers between June 1 and Sept. 30 starting next year.
Bourelle says police were called as a precaution after one councillor was allegedly threatened by a person who opposed the regulations. He says leaf blowers raise health concerns due to noise and air pollution, as well as the dispersion of fine particles he says can contribute respiratory and cardiovascular illness. Opponents of the leaf-blower restrictions refute the mayor’s claims about the risks posed by leaf blowers, saying a seasonal ban on the landscaping tool could hurt local businesses.
They had to bring in the police? This is both hilarious and disturbing. Leaf blowers have been around for a while and I remember back nearly twenty years ago when landscapers in Los Angeles threatened a hunger strike (I kid you not) when local government banned them. Over the years they have become an increasingly noxious presence, akin to giant parsnip or ticks -- is my bias showing? I looked out my window after a Spring snowstorm to see a neighbour using her leaf blower to clean off her car.
We have another neighbour who treats her yard as though it is an extension of her living room and is out EVERY DAY blowing imaginary particles off her manicured lawn. Ruth was amused that I found this frustrating until she retired and is now treated to the daily roar.
I wonder if we'll get to the place where banning leaf blowers, at least for some seasons of the year, will become the norm in municipalities addressing noise pollution?
I often head out on the deck early to read -sometimes with a book light -- so that I can experience some blessed quiet. So, may noise machines be curtailed, oh God, hear my prayer...quietly...
Three times last week we headed out early to "beat the heat" and canoe on different bodies of water. We paddled a section of the Moira River north of Belleville, a river which eventually empties into the Bay of Quinte. We also put in to Sawguin Creek which also empties into the Bay. Our other paddle was on the Bay of Quinte itself, launching near the tiny community of Point Anne, just east of Belleville.
That third junket was a delight, as always. On the two occasions we've paddled in the Bay this year we've seen abundant wildlife. There is an active osprey's nest, as well as blue herons all along the shore. This week we passed beside a large snapping turtle well out from shore, and water snakes were everywhere. In one little cove young muskrats swam close to us (adults are wary and elusive) and in another cattail cove the carp were roiling away. Would we describe the Bay of Quinte as healthy? Yes, although scientists would likely say that our observations are "anecdotal," a term which is accurate, although it can be somewhat dismissive. We certainly like to think that our sorties are "experiential," as well as anecdotal.
It so happens that not long ago researchers from around the world gathered at the University of Toronto campus in Scarborough for the International Association for Great Lakes Research’s 61st annual conference. "Our" bay was the focus of a session called “Ecosystem Health and Recovery of the Bay of Quinte, Lake Ontario”. Here's how it was described in a local news source:
Eight presentations covered a variety of topics from: predicting algae blooms, to fish consumption and fish health, water currents and circulation patterns, to nutrient inputs during extreme weather events and data sharing.
The Bay of Quinte is fortunate to have data sets that go back more than 45 years making it one of the most studied bodies of water in the Great Lakes system. Every summer, research and monitoring takes place that studies the overall health of the bay. This work is integral to restoring water quality and ensuring the recovery goals set out in the bay’s Remedial Action Plan (RAP) are being met. As the bay get closer to meeting its restoration goals, continued research and monitoring will be essential for the effective future management and protection of water quality in the bay.
The Bay of Quinte is a healthy and vibrant ecosystem, in part thanks to the innovative science and scientists that dedicate their summers to studying the why’s, what’s, and how’s of water quality in the Bay.
It was great to read this as a citizen observer of this ecosystem, even though we aren't scientists. We are often intentional in looking and listening as a prayerful exercise. We are both comfortable with "companionable silence" as we glide along. As I've written often, there is something about the rhythm of paddling which invites contemplation and both the waterscape and soundscape sooth us.
Thanks for the work of these scientists and all those involved in this endeavour through the decades. It is so encouraging to realize that the Remedial Action Plan is meeting its recovery and restoration goals.
We can continue our prayers for the health and wholeness of Creation, in whichever places are holy for us.
Comments?
25 “There will be signs in the sun, the moon, and the stars, and on the earth distress among nations confused by the roaring of the sea and the waves.
26 People will faint from fear and foreboding of what is coming upon the world, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken.
27 Then they will see ‘the Son of Man coming in a cloud’ with power and great glory.
28 Now when these things begin to take place, stand up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”
Luke 21:25-28
When scientists began to bring the realities of climate change to our attention there was suddenly a lot of frog soup. The metaphor about the oblivious amphibian perishing in slowly heating water until it croaks seemed to be a good fit with the way humans were ignoring global warming, the decline of species, and the increase of catastrophic weather events.
This metaphor was inaccurate (frogs are smarter than we give them credit for) and we wore it out, as we're inclined to do. I heard it recently though, in a different context, but it sure seems time to trot it out again.
While Canadians in some regions were muttering "oh for some global warming" during what seemed like a frigid winter, it was probably no colder than winters of our childhoods. Globally those winter months were warm ones and at the moment the planet is burning up in just about every region. Here in Southern Ontario we're coming to the end of a week of temperatures above 30 degrees Celsius and in Quebec more than 30 people have died during this heat wave. But this is balmy compared to some places in the world including one Middle Eastern country which set a record with a night-time "low" of just over 40C.
https://www.independent.co.uk/environment/heatwave-temperature-records-broken-europe-north-america-eurasia-middle-east-latest-a8432226.html?amp&__twitter_impression=true
Is this proof of climate change? Nope. This is weather, because weather is what we see out the window and climate change is the long-term pattern. Yet don't you have the feeling that we're a bunch of frogs on the burner?
There are conservative Christians who gleefully quote "sign of the times" passages to predict Jesus' return and the catastrophic end of non-believers. Yet they are often climate change deniers who can't hear or see what is happening around them.
Let's get hopping and put our prayers into action.
