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Issues & Experts Archive > Week of September 11 to 18, 2003
Week of September 11 to 18, 2003
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Sep 15, 2003
A race without a pulse…BC’s NDP leadership race is in full swing, but does anybody care? The first of a series of televised debates featuring the seven candidates so far to fill the chair being vacated by interim provincial NDP leader Joy McPhail took place a few nights ago. But there was little coverage or follow up of it by the media. SFU political scientist Lynda Erickson says, "Voters tend to pay little attention to political leadership races unless primed by the media, and/or an election focuses them on questions of party leadership. So far, the media has not seen the NDP race as an issue to focus much attention on." Erickson can expand on this.
Fire impacts wildlife…The raging fires that ravaged forests in BC this summer cast not only residents out of their homes, but wildlife out of their habitats. SFU biological sciences professor Alton Harestad can talk about how the fires have devastated some wildlife habitats and paved the way for improvement to others. The forest wildlife management expert notes, "Although some individual wildlife may be killed during a fire, most will flee or find refuge in burrows, damp pockets or patches on the landscape that do not burn. The greater effect of fire will be on the wildlife’s habitat."
How long can fish tread low water?…While Lower Mainland water district officials have been worrying whether this summer’s extraordinarily dry weather will deplete our drinking water, fish conservationists have been contemplating the fate of spawning salmon. Craig Orr, an ecologist, salmon conservationist and associate director of SFU’s Centre for Coastal Studies, says the concern about salmon is warranted, despite the onset of rainy weather. "Low water conditions may be the norm for the future," predicts Orr. "Scientific evidence shows that there has been a wide geographic trend for flows to be reduced in western Canadian rivers in recent years." Orr can talk about how reduced flows impact spawning, rearing and other aspects of salmons’ life cycle.
- Lynda Erickson, 604.291.4357, erickson@sfu.ca
Fire impacts wildlife…The raging fires that ravaged forests in BC this summer cast not only residents out of their homes, but wildlife out of their habitats. SFU biological sciences professor Alton Harestad can talk about how the fires have devastated some wildlife habitats and paved the way for improvement to others. The forest wildlife management expert notes, "Although some individual wildlife may be killed during a fire, most will flee or find refuge in burrows, damp pockets or patches on the landscape that do not burn. The greater effect of fire will be on the wildlife’s habitat."
- Alton Harestad, 604.291.4809, harestad@sfu.ca
How long can fish tread low water?…While Lower Mainland water district officials have been worrying whether this summer’s extraordinarily dry weather will deplete our drinking water, fish conservationists have been contemplating the fate of spawning salmon. Craig Orr, an ecologist, salmon conservationist and associate director of SFU’s Centre for Coastal Studies, says the concern about salmon is warranted, despite the onset of rainy weather. "Low water conditions may be the norm for the future," predicts Orr. "Scientific evidence shows that there has been a wide geographic trend for flows to be reduced in western Canadian rivers in recent years." Orr can talk about how reduced flows impact spawning, rearing and other aspects of salmons’ life cycle.
- Craig Orr, 604.936.9474, 604.809.2799 (cell), corr@telus.net