3104 replies to this topic

[Mike K.]

What causes wild fires?

Arsonists, careless campers and lightning strikes.

And trains, when sparks from their brakes ignite brush.

[Mike K.]

Meanwhile in the Lower Mainland.....

BC government study identifies potential West Coast Express extension and regional rail options between Metro Vancouver and the Fraser Valley
https://dailyhive.co...t-coast-express

I guess the commuter train system is a really inefficient and dangerous mode of transportation to warrant this kind of study.

The rail line serves freight traffic first and foremost. The passenger rail piggybacks onto the line. Just one freight yard on that track section is bigger than anything we can conceive of locally, like we’re talking half the size of Esquimalt's landmass.

We need to put these things into perspective, which means we need to compare the population WCE serves, relative to all of Vancouver Island, and why the track exists (to deliver freight traffic to and from all of Canada).

[Vin]

Arsonists, careless campers and lightning strikes.

And trains, when sparks from their brakes ignite brush.

You are partially correct, but the worst culprit is climate change due to CO2 emissions. 

[Nparker]

You gotta love sarcasm.

[dasmo]

You gotta love sarcasm.

You wish.... 

[Nparker]

It was the only response I could post on a family-friendly forum like this. 

[Mike K.]

You are partially correct, but the worst culprit is climate change due to CO2 emissions. 

 

The forest fires are causing more forest fires, you mean?

[dasmo]

I’m sure giving more money to the mega rich should reduce forest fires….

[AllseeingEye]

S*it forest practices certainly are a contributor to wildfires in BC and on the island. On VI they happen especially with some frequency in the high country north of Sayward. Partially as a consequence of certain grabage provincial government forest polices and partially due to certain garbage forest practices by forest companies.

[max.bravo]

^what are the changes we need to make in forest management?

[dasmo]

The passive approach to fire management was something introduced sometime in the 90s I believe. Instead of hitting fires hard and fast as soon as possible they changed to let them be for as long as possible.
At least that’s what my sources say.

[Mike K.]

Forests have to burn eventually, they’re designed for that.

But that’s the tricky part. Nature wants them to burn, to create natural fire breaks and decrease fuel load. We want to put the fires out immediately, which creates more fuel load, and prevents fire breaks.

Now we’re blaming the forest fires on commuters, instead of lightning strikes, arsons and bad habits like not putting out campfires.

[dasmo]

Yes, balance is needed. Especially close to population areas. Nature can take care of itself. That’s probably why it wants to burn us out :-)

[dasmo]

The entirety of Thetis lake park burned to the ground sometime in the early 1900s. Probably arson. But we certainly wouldn’t want that to happen again right?

Also, I remind everyone that spraying managed forests with Roundup not only kills the natural fire suppression of broadleaf and underbrush but also dries everything out.

So not doing that is an obvious thing to address. Aspen is also a “crop.” Perhaps a staged harvest. IDK but it’s the government mandate to keep broadleaf down a certain percentage that’s the root.

[Vin]

Nice podcast to listen to while at work:

 

What we can learn about the future of rail from its past

https://www.cbc.ca/r...anada-1.6681160

 

From CBC

[splashflash]

Maybe the final nails in the coffin for rail on the E&N Corridor on the Island in the foreseeable future:

Good riddance for another 50 years.

[Mike K.]

Oh oh, there it is.

[GaryOak]

Wait what's going on, I can't really make head's or tails of it, has the island corridor foundation been dissolved?

[Mike K.]

It sounds like a portion of the ROW is being returned to First Nations. There is a legal requirement that if rail operations do not resume, that the land be returned.

[splashflash]

The ICF could be on its last legs in its present form.

The ICF agreed in fall 2023 to allow all FN lands transected by the railway to revert to the FNs. This preempted subsequent lawsuites, two of which would have been imminent. The Halalt and Cowichan filed lawsuits back in 2016 following initial filing of the Snaw-naw-as case but a judge stayed (not sure if that is the correct term) the cases until a decision on the Snaw-naw-as was finalized. While the ICF folded on those cases, it went further as other FNs would surely want the same. Former chief Thomas of the Esquimalt FN wanted the same as indicated by John Horgan.

Here is a link to the CRD report to green light and indeed request that the FN land transected by the railway revert:
https://www.crd.bc.c...ber-27-2023.pdf
https://www.crd.bc.c...13minutesrb.pdf

From the meeting agenda items: Request that the Island Corridor Foundation and provincial and federal governments expedite land reversion.

With the land reverting, those reverting FN lands will likely have encumbrances renegotiated or the utilities will have to move elsewhere. Encumbrances include pipelines but also the Telus fiber optic cable which stretched a good portion or all the length of the railway.

The primary revenue of the ICF is from that Telus fiber optic cable. Second is from road crossing fees from municipalities. Rent on the Nanaimo and other stations provides a little while freight rail revenue is essentially nil. Nice to be a freight rail operator, if there were freight.

The Island Corridor Foundation has proceeds provided from Telus, are somewhere between $350,000 and $600,000 annually. Could the Telus proceeds to the ICF be in jeopardy? I think a sizeable portion would be. If that were the case then the ICF could have its debt called and may have to sell some of its assets. Or the provincial or federal government could reform or disband the ICF. It is a federally registered charity and provincial railway.

Edited by splashflash, 05 April 2024 - 04:26 AM.