Mike- It's scary, we're in full agreement! -Don From: [email protected] To: [email protected] Subject: [ENTS] Re: Scattered ENTS Date: Thu, 23 Jul 2009 07:51:14 -0400
RE: [ENTS] Re: Scattered ENTS Don, The Alberta tar sands have been called the “Saudi Arabia” of oil deposits in North America. With some saying we are approaching peak oil, development of those tar sands will only increase with the resulting massive destruction of the environment there. If we can get Iraqi production up from 2 million barrels/day to 6 million barrels/day, we can delay peak oil for another decade or two. But the real game is in central Asia in the fight for “Pipelineistan” - http://original.antiwar.com/hallinan/2009/07/16/blood-and-oil-in-central-asia/ Of course if we had a real energy policy that would reduce our dependence on foreign oil, that would be a big help. Mike -----Original Message----- From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of DON BERTOLETTE Sent: Sunday, July 12, 2009 3:38 PM To: [email protected] Subject: [ENTS] Re: Scattered ENTS I just wanted to add another item to the narrative below. One of the themes of the movie on water last night was, as we are wont to say about food (we are what we eat), was "you are your water"...the First Nation inhabitants have for generations taken in water where they were, without a thought of pollution...thinking nothing of dipping a cup in their rivers and lakes and drinking freely. As I think about drinking out natural water sources in my beloved Sierra Nevada mountains, or the Rockies, it is with pain (considerations of urgency with thoughts of range and trajectory come to mind) that 'we are our water'. I drank freely out of a Sierra Cup (designed to be snugged in under ones' belt, so that one could easily dip into trailside stream crossings, through all of the 60's and most of the 70's before encountering Giardiasis. These are I know, small considerations in the big scheme of things (Ohioans having to suppress fire on the Cuyahoga River (sp?) just a few decades ago, other such industrial calamities). How long before we get back to dipping our cups into natural water sources, without concern for our health, before 'we are our water' again? -Don From: [email protected] To: [email protected] Subject: [ENTS] Re: Scattered ENTS Date: Sun, 12 Jul 2009 15:58:39 +0000 Gary- Having travelled for about 24 hours, then slept for 12, I'm just now becoming aware of my surroundings in any meaningful way (did find an excellent pub with nice array of taps nearby!). Northwest Territory (NWT), once larger is still sizable with 1,171,918 square kilometers (these numbers are large enough to not be meaningful to most of us, but for US standards, this would be 452,480 square miles). Its capital is Yellowknife, an area once inhabited by the Dine (Athabascan) although without permanence until gold was discovered some 75 years ago. Since then it has grown to I believe around 16,000 with a surprising vigor, numerous skyscrapers visible on approach (from 7 to 12 story relatively new structures). This year there are 600 plus more folks, with the arrival of the International Congress of Circumpolar Health, for which we are here (Rhonda is one of several keynote speakers). Back to limnology...the largest lake in NWT is the Great Bear Lake (and fourth largest in the Americas, at 31,328 square kilometers, or 12,095 square miles) followed by Great Slave Lake which graces Yellowknife with its wonderful views, with 28,568 square kilometers (11,030 square miles). The deepest lake in Canad, Great Slave Lake is 614 meters deep (or 2,020 feet). Not content with holding water, the Mackenzie River passes through NWT on its way from Alberta to the Arctic Ocean and at 1,800 kilometers (or 1060 miles) is the longest river in Canada, the second longest river in North America, and the third largest in the world. And one more superlative for Bob's memory bank. Virginia Falls, at 90 meters (or 300 feet), is more than twice the height of Niagra Falls. Okay, enough quantitative data you must be saying by now...having gone to a showing last night, of a movie documentary of water and its importance to the First Nation (analogous to Native Alaskans, Native Americans). The purity of water to those that live a subsistence lifestyle (we would say, 'live off the land') is critical. Their water is their life, as it brings the abundance that allows them to live generation to generation. That abundance is being threatened, upstream on the MacKenzie River as it passes through Alberta's burgeoning tar sands/oil production industry. The First Nation has excellent leaders in their midst, a unity of the people and growing power in the larger scheme of things, but as everywhere, the industrial objectives have little concern for the people, unless it affects their prodigious bottom line. So the battle is set and goes on as we speak. About the only other limnological item I can attest to is from the approach to the airport and the drive to town. Numerous small lakes abound in the area, it would seem as the result of glacial scouring of the Canadian shield, which makes itself apparent wherever not covered by what I'm currently identifying as Black Spruce (65 mph assesment to be verified later today). I can suggest that the balance of bugs and fish in this area seem to be in balance...certainly there's an abundance of black flies and mosquitos, although not bad here in the city. Photos of 35 pound lake trout in the local paper didn't seem out of the ordinary, perhaps as a result of a catch and release regulation over a certain size. I did meet two Texans at the brewpub that had been fishing and said the largest catch of the day was a 50 plus pounder. Just as well that they're released as 10 pounders are preferred for eating...arctic char, usually smoked, appear on many menus. I'm attaching a few photos taken from near our hotel, of the general countryside. I expect to gather more information and will relay what I find in the disciplines of limnology and "limBology". -Don From: [email protected] To: [email protected] Subject: [ENTS] Re: Scattered ENTS Date: Sun, 12 Jul 2009 07:37:11 -0400 Don, As a limnologist and limBnologist I have an interest in the lake and the surrounding forest. Can you give us a synopsis of both? I have often wondered about Great Slave Lake. Very cool that you are there. Any Aurora? Gary Prof. Gary A. Beluzo Systems Ecologist Holyoke Comm College 303 Homestead Ave Holyoke, MA. 01040 On Jul 12, 2009, at 12:41 AM, DON BERTOLETTE <[email protected]> wrote: Ed- And this ENT/WNT is posting from Yellowknife, Northwest Territory, Canada (about 62.5 Degrees Latitude), looking out over Great Slave Lake! -Don From: [email protected] To: [email protected] Subject: [ENTS] Scattered ENTS Date: Sat, 11 Jul 2009 10:21:02 -0400 ENTS, Your fellows are scattered in the wind in various places. I wanted to give a brief update. James Parton is alive and well, I heard from him the other day. He sent me a post about poke salad/ aka pokeberry the other day. he says he is not gone and has some chestnut posts forthcoming. Roman Dial had been travelling on an extended world tour through Australia and Africa among others. I had been following his journey on Facebook. But he closed his account and dropped off the radar for awhile. He has been doing more pack rafting than canopy research lately he says. I sent him Don Bertolette's email up there in Alaska. maybe we will have another Alaskan WNTS person. He has a new video on YouTube on Hiking in to Alaska's Honolulu Creek and pack rafting down. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yu-j_DD-3hg There is a series of his videos on YouTube. He has a new book out: ( http://www.amazon.com/PACKRAFTING-Introduction-How-Guide-Roman/dp/0974818836/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1247259372&sr=1-1 ) entitled: PACKRAFTING! An Introduction and How-To Guide (Paperback). Neil Pederson is in Mongolia. You can read about his trip on a short Blog (read the ones that say Neil wrote it).The latest is dated July 10 2009: You've come a long way (baby)/Whiffs of the ADKs/Where is my Mongolia For those of you on Facebook, there are some updates periodically on his wall. On Picasaweb he has a gallery of photos from his flight across the north pole to China on the way to Mongolia here: http://picasaweb.google.com/mockernut/FlightToBeijingViaGreenlandTheNorthPole?authkey=Gv1sRgCO_xzYvOvtilxQE&feat=directlink# Ed Frank "The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true art and all science." - Albert Einstein Windows Live™ SkyDrive™: Get 25 GB of free online storage. Get it on your BlackBerry or iPhone. Hotmail® has ever-growing storage! Don’t worry about storage limits. Check it out. Windows Live™ SkyDrive™: Get 25 GB of free online storage. Get it on your BlackBerry or iPhone. _________________________________________________________________ Windows Live™ SkyDrive™: Store, access, and share your photos. See how. http://windowslive.com/Online/SkyDrive?ocid=TXT_TAGLM_WL_CS_SD_photos_072009 --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ Eastern Native Tree Society http://www.nativetreesociety.org Send email to [email protected] Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/entstrees?hl=en To unsubscribe send email to [email protected] -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
