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Global environmental movement arrives in Abbotsford
If humans sustain emission-causing activities at the current rate, this decade might be one of the last before Earth’s temperatures rise to 1.5C above preindustrial levels, according to a report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).
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Hundreds of international and regional governments have declared climate emergencies, and many activists continue to fight for more intensive change.
In January, Angela Zimmerling and Eric Chong set-up the first meeting of the Fraser Valley chapter of Extinction Rebellion (XR) in Abbotsford’s Clearbrook Library.
XR is an international organization engages in willful, but peaceful, civil disobedience to spur government action on climate change.
XR activists in Vancouver continue to welcome arrests at their numerous demonstrations. In the Valley, Zimmerling mentioned two road blockades that XR once set up in front of Abbotsford City Hall. Chong said that motorists “assaulted them.” Activists have perpetrated acts of civil disobedience for decades. Greenpeace, which Zimmerling joined in the ‘70s as a 10-year-old in Vancouver, was an early adopter of such methods. Ecologist Rex Weyler wrote that merely explaining ecological science isn’t enough, and that issues like climate change need to resonate with people’s emotions.
Zimmerling said that conventional approaches like writing letters to MPs “just don’t work,” and that “inconvenience is necessary.”
The global Extinction Rebellion movement saw its genesis atop London’s Parliament Square in October 2018. There, protestors 1,500 strong declared rebellion against the U.K. Government. XR demands that governments take radical action to halt biodiversity loss and reduce greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) to net-zero by 2025. For comparison, IPCC states that limiting a temperature increase to 2.0C will require achieving a carbon-neutral economy by 2050.
EXTINCTION REBELLION FRASER VALLEY SEEKS TO EDUCATE AND EQUIP ACTIVISTS BY KIER JUNOS
XR Fraser Valley’s inaugural roundtable held an open discussion around activist philosophies, and issues at the core of the climate change issue.
The attendees could be counted on two hands. They included PIPE-UP Network’s coordinator Lynn Perrin, former NDP South Surrey candidate Stephen Crozier and other community members from different sides of the political spectrum. “How do we rewire society?” asked
Crozier.
The group identified capitalism and consumerism among the inherent problems driving climate change.
They also discussed the failures of the government. Despite continued demonstrations and marches, the group seems to acknowledge that the changes they demand from governments isn’t happening fast enough.
7 Extinction Rebellion Fraser Valley organizers (from left) Eric Chong and Angela Zimmerling begin a roundtable discussion at Clearbrook Library in Abbotsford, B.C. on Jan. 18, 2020. PIPE-UP director Lynn Perrin and former NDP candidate Stephen Crozier were among the attendees. Photo by Kier Junos.
“Don’t expect any cooperation from the government,” said an attendee named David, who described himself as an “ultra-conservative.” “There are different influences on governments and we have to recognize that,” said Crozier. Zimmerling said the last big win she saw in the Fraser Valley was the defeat of the Sumas Energy Two proposal in 2002 (SE-2).
SE-2 was a natural gas power plant that would have been built in the U.S., and would have impacted air quality in the Valley. Thousands of people in the Fraser Valley opposed the plant, signing petitions and attending protests.
While the City of Abbotsford has succeeded in reducing its corporate emissions for its recorded years, Zimmerling and Chong criticize the city for not being as exhaustive as they could be.
Zimmerling said that including a tractor-tow in the programming of the Abbotsford Agri-Fair, for example, doesn’t show the city’s willingness to integrate ecological action wherever possible.
Abbotsford’s council also declined to declare a climate emergency in 2019.
When a government declares a climate emergency, they basically acknowledge human-caused climate change and that current preventative measures are inadequate.
“Although city council did not declare a climate emergency, the city understands its role in working to reduce CO2 emissions, and has been taking steps to reduce emissions corporately and in the community as a whole,” the City of Abbotsford said in an email.Abbotsford’s current vehicle fleet accounts for 52 per cent of its corporate emissions. They plan to replace the fleet with alternative fuel vehicles, and reduce the fleet’s
The Fraser Valley branch of Extinction Rebellion (XR) hosted an informational roundtable at Clearbrook Library in Abbotsford, B.C. on Jan. 18, 2020. Photo by Kier Junos 10
The recurrence of a large flood could cause up to $30 billion in damages...
emissions over the next 10 years.
They currently aim to reduce GHG emissions by 40 per cent per capita by 2040 from 2007 levels.
The city’s recent utilities master plan includes provisions for an expected sea level rise, which would exacerbate flooding along much of the lower Fraser River.
While snowpacks will be smaller in the future with the changing climate, the snowmelt would be faster and accompanied by higher rainfall during the spring freshet, said Steve Litke, a senior program manager at Fraser Basin Council.
The recurrence of a large flood, like the Valley flood of 1894, could cause up to $30-billion in damages if dykes failed or overtopped.
Nearly every sector would bear the brunt of such a flood, from transport to local food supply.
“The projected scenario for 2100 would be almost two-metres deeper than the 1894 Fraser River Flood,” said Litke. “It will be important to monitor the evolving climate science to inform future flood planning.” Farther down the Fraser, neighbouring municipalities including the Township of Langley, White Rock, Vancouver and New Westminster are among those who have declared climate emergencies.
In Canada, 494 governments have declared climate emergencies, according to CEDAMIA, a declaration-tracking resource. Chong said that climate emergency declarations are a big step.
He is aware that activism demands dedication. Zimmerling said that people need to be willing to get arrested.
“It is going to take a major push,” she said. She added that XR isn’t for everyone, and they acknowledge that burnout is a major reason for people to leave the movement.
“We have march and rally fatigue,” said Perrin.
XR seeks to address this issue with “regenerative activism.” Zimmerling said that “self-care is built into the movement,” and that XR has groups dedicated to supporting activists.
The movement sees this organized selfcare practice as a distinguishing element when compared to other climate activism movements.
XR maintains a number of different resources for activists that range from
literature on arrestee welfare, to “open homes” where activists can rest. Such locations are currently available only in the U.K.
XR is still building resources for children and young people. The XR Fraser Valley roundtable discussed the critical role of youth in the environmental movement, but none were present at the table.
Among the largest youth-driven movements is Fridays for Future (FFF), where young people leave school on Fridays and participate in climate strikes.
A handful of weekly strikes continue in the Lower Mainland, according to FFF map data that tracks global protest participation.
“A protest indicates discontent to a politician,” said Chong.
Politicians are looking to gain political favour, Chong said, and that with broad support, he’s confident change will occur.
XR Fraser Valley aims to hold more roundtable discussions, plan more demonstrations, and attempt to centralize activist efforts in the region.
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