Climate Change, Population, Pollution, Natural Resources, Human Expansion, Skiing and BACKCOUNTRY
Climate Change (previously referred to as global warming). Many claim that it is real beyond doubt and we have to act now. Others are skeptical, it has become so political that the question arrises: do the facts match the assumptions. Some say Yes, some No. I don't know the answer. Some say that carbon dioxide is the main cause and some say there is no relations whatsoever. Here are some things to consider: before life started on our planet, the atmosphere was filled with carbon dioxide and nitrogen. Since then life has slowly expanded and when plants first made their appearance they absorbed the carbon dioxide to produce more oxygen. When those plants die, the carbon dioxide they absorb has been trapped into the ground. Since then life has grown exponentially and carbon dioxide has been trapped in the ground as coal, oil and other fossil fuels for the most part. Here we are digging up these fossil fuels and burning them; releasing the carbon dioxide back up into the atmosphere. This can't be a good, wether it does or doesn't affect the climate. There is another thing to consider. Money, admit it, humans are greedy. Watch Planet Earth and they describe the riches that the environment has to offer. If sustained, reefs in the ocean offer billions of dollars. The only thing is that you can only take so much at a time. Then there are those people up high who will scoop all the fish out of a certain part the ocean, ruining the ecosystem of a certain reef by affecting the food chain for a fraction of the cost. There are pretty big politicians behind enforcing skepticism, they make millions maybe billions out of fossil fuels, and for a few hundred thousand, they hope to keep making billions by influencing others that using oil so much is just fine. The same thing happened with cigarettes. There were doctors saying that cigarettes aren't bad for you at all.
Population. We can see developing countries expanding like crazy and with a population of over 6 billion, how much more strain can we put on the environment. There are plenty of starving mouths as it is. I think there is a statistic saying that over 2 billion live on just a dollar a day. Medicine and food processing is great, it has allowed for a population boom. Problem is that it's still growing, fast.
Pollution. With so many people, pollution is increasing. Dumping in the ocean (apparently it's fine if it's in international waters). Garbage dumps. Air pollution and even light pollution. I want to stress on light pollution a little. Electricity has proven to be quite useful. Many things require electricity and it is though to be completely clean. In a way it is. But producing electricity isn't always so clean. Nuclear plants produce electricity and we think that since it's so abundant that we can light everything up at night and waste so much electricity that the sky is yellow and the stars can't be seen. I find it so sad that there are people who never see the stars at night...
Natural Resources. With population so high, natural resources become higher and higher in demand. Trees need to be logged more and more for paper and wood. Agriculture is strained as it needs more room. There are countries with beautiful lush rainforest that have been cut down for agriculture. Take Borneo for example. In Planet Earth, they show how millions of species and a huge biodiversity in the rainforest has been cut down for agriculture of one specie. Palm oil.
Human Expansion. WIth more and more people, more and more room is going to be needed to house these people. Take Europe for example. There is little to no wild forests left throughout. It has been cleared to house more people.
Skiing. Skiing is fantastic, but as it becomes more and more popular, more and more resorts are made on various mountain. Take the east for example, any mountain big enough and with enough snow has a resort, big or small. That means expansion around the resort because of the income it brings, and it means cutting down more forest to expand skiing. When it comes to the Northwest (BC and Yukon), the only reason there aren't more resorts is because the mountains are hard to access and require a lot of money to build. But as more and more are built, more and more pristine places become crowded, pollute and aren't so pristine anymore. This is why I encourage backcountry so much.
I am a fanatic of mountains, skiing, cold, wind, snow, etc. It's great to have a lift to bring you up and a resort lodge to eat in. In a way, there should be more to the sport. A lot of you whine about gapers but what do you expect. Ski resorts attract all kind of people. When it comes to the backcountry, you skin your way to the top and you ski natural terrain. You play the risks of avalanche and I think it is the purest the sports can get. You don't get machine groomed, the powder is unlimited, it's wild and it's untamed. Just as I think it should be. I don't mean to say this in too much of a bad way, but Newschoolers involves a lot of skiers that have gotten accustomed to park and resort lifestyle. I believe it is only a stepping stone, the learning ground.
Tell me what you think about all or any of these points. I will read any and every answer. I prefer nothing stupid disclaiming global warming or any of that. I want to start discussion. Preferably, give me more to read in your answers.
Thanks. Sam.
