Go Nanaimo Blog

Start With Art Nanaimo would like to introduce Darran Getson, a 42-year-old self-educated carver and stained glass worker who enjoys challenges that express creativity. Drop into Studio 366, 366 Selby Street, Nanaimo, on Wednesday evenings to learn about and practice the basic principles of carving with Darran. The hands on approach and comfortable environment is always a fun experience. In just a short period of time, one will be able to develop their own style that fits them.

Courses will be held on a drop in basis, every Wednesday evening from 6 to 8 pm. Tools will be provided and the excitement only builds as you gain confidence in your own abilities. All one really needs, is the willingness to learn. You will learn wood grain, types of wood, handling tools effectively, expression of self, styles of carving, and line, relief, and chip.

Amy Shields of the website ProtectOurSeals.org sent me this letter:

My name is Amy Shields and I wanted to introduce my self. I’ve heard about you but I wanted to send you an email. I’ve worked on the seal hunt for about six years. In the time that I’ve worked on it it hasn’t gotten better. The way that these sealers treat these animals is sub human in my opinion. The latest email that I’ve seen was about the mass slaughter on Sable Island. Fisheries Minister Gail Shea has once again come up with some insane idea to manage the seals. In the report it clearly states that if they kill the seals it’s not for scientific reasons but for political reasons.

The government is so out pf touch with the reality of what’s going that it gets more insane as time goes by, and it’s about wiping out a species instead of selling fur. I have a report on my website about the Department of Fisheries and Oceans realizing that the seals had nothing to do with the cod, but it is mismangement of the DFO. For years they knew that the cod was in trouble and they still decided to abuse it. Now they want something to blame and it’s now the seals that pay the price. The report mentions a reseacher called Ransom Myers who at one point was with the DFO and uncovered the truth and the DFO tried to fire him. This corrupt behavior is becoming a natural habit of Canadian government. The DFO contiunes to behave this way because they think that the government will support them and they are allowed to get away with murder. In the report it also states that Newfoundland pressures the DFO for political votes, and they are determined to wipe out species after species.

It’s time that people found out the truth about what the DFO is trying to do. I really think that tourism is suffering because of this as people learn what Canada is really like. If you need to read the reports please go to my website called protectourseals.org. The information is there.

Long time resident, ex-deer-hunter, and passionate conservationist Gord Johnson of Ladysmith, BC, recently submitted these comments on the question of urban deer in Nanaimo:

We provide food for the deer and a safe haven in our manicured and well-planted subdivisions. So don’t get so busted up about deer dying on our roads, nature is a step ahead of us. Seventy percent of all first-year animals on Vancouver Island die from natural causes before their first birthday. That statistic is “in the wild”, not in Hammond Bay, where I think the survival rate is significantly higher. Until they meet a vehicle, that is. (Nature has a funny way of balancing things sometimes.)

And you want to spend taxpayers money on WHAT?!? My well-educated friends and I (less educated) have been involved in spirited discourse on this matter since I copied them on my e-mail to “gonanaimo”. We are a wealth of opinion, and hopefully some real and applicable ideas can come out of such discourse.

The most misguided idea that I’ve heard is that of “neutering” the males. Wow, totally misguided. Don’t get me started as the saying goes. On a totally diifferent plane, is it worth examing the question, “is there really a problem here?”

Overlayed upon that, speed on the road?  Primarily a seperate issue, I think. Feeding the deer? A no-brainer. These citizens should fined, and fined heavily. I mean to the tune of $2,000 for a second substantiated offense. Serious.

Beyond all that, let’s let nature be the final arbiter. Co-existence is not that unrealistic, we just need awareness and education.

Rory Rickwood of Nanaimo has partnered with John Cossham in the United Kingdom to create a website designed to promote ecologically sound burials. Embalming, traditional cemetery burials, and cremation can have a significant impact on the environment and Rory and John hope the funeral industry will revise their business plans to include green burial practices and reduce the environmental risks associated with disposing of human remains. The new website identifies problems and argues that the funeral and cemetery industry are not working hard enough to find solutions to the relatively taboo subject of an impending ecological disaster involving the practice of cremation and traditional burials.

Novaterium.com includes a worldwide directory of green burial sites and green funeral information. The newly coined word, “Novaterium” comes from the Latin “nova” meaning new and “cometerium” a tract of land for burials. It symbolizes the need to find new methods for disposing of human remains. For example, cemeteries can set aside woodland areas for green burials.

“We are not working hard enough to reduce the risks associated with cremation and traditional burials”, said Rickwood. “We developed the Novaterium website to expose the ecological issue facing us, and to challenge the funeral and cemetery industry to provide environmentally sound services.”

Wikipedia encyclopedia reports that roughly 150,000 people die each day across the globe, 54 million each year.  There is evidence that cremation and traditional burial practices can cause ecological damage. In 1988, the New York Times warned that cemeteries were running out of space. In the United Kingdom about 70% of funerals are cremations, partly due to a growing lack of space in church graveyards and urban cemeteries. The cremation process uses between 50 to120 cubic meters of natural gas to incinerate the coffin with the body inside. It has been estimated that each cremation event releases 100 to 230 kilograms of carbon dioxide. Crematoria can release pollutants such as mercury from tooth fillings, formaldehyde and dioxins from plastics, glue and embalming materials, and oxides of nitrogen, which contributes to low-level ozone.

Traditional burials use valuable urban land and have their own air pollution footprint due to the depth of burial creating anaerobic conditions, meaning the corpse decays to methane, another greenhouse gas.  Additionally, wooden caskets may be made of imported rainforest timber, or may be reconstituted boards using glues and varnishes, which can pollute groundwater or add to crematoria emissions.

According to John Cossham, the funeral and cemetery industry are in a good position to move to greener methods when providing their services to the public. “New technology could make funerals less polluting, and some greener alternatives are already available, although not yet widely used,” said Cossham. “Our Novaterium website tries to answer the question, what are the alternatives to traditional burial and cremation?”

As yet, no Nanaimo area cemeteries are offering green funeral solutions. The closest option is the Woodlands Natural Burial Section at Royal Oak Burial Park in Saanich. Rory is now encouraging Telford’s Burial & Cremation Centre in Nanaimo and Ladysmith to offer more eco-friendly services to the public.

A meeting on Nanaimo’s urban deer was held on May 31, 2010, and a North Nanaimo resident has this comment:

I do not see the deer as a problem, I see people as the problem due to a lack of education and lack of law enforcement pertaining to residential speed limits. Hammond Bay and Departure Bay roads are racetracks with barely any police on site. And when they are they are there, you can see them a mile away. As one who tries to live in harmony with the environment, I would hope the first recommendation coming out of this meeting is to come up with ways to educate the public and enforce the speed limit.

The deer population in Nanaimo at this point does not warrant any kind of interference other than education of the public and law enforcement. I believe deer populations are down. I used to have 13 in my area, now I’m lucky to see 2! Poaching is constantly going on: One hears shots coming out of Linley Valley at least once a month.

The nonsense about cougars coming into residential area threatening people is simply ignorance from people who have no understanding of cougars and their range. If you take away the deer which are the cougar’s natural food source, then you will start to see pets being eaten. Cougars by instinct rarely attack people. As soon as you remove the deer, there will be more cougar sightings and then the destructive forces in our community will start calling for a cougar cull.

Sterilization of bucks is hard to do because they have such an expansive range. If that were to have any hope, it would have to be done in the fall. The does are easier to do a tube ligation on but catching them in nets without injury would be tricky. Relocation does not work and leads to the death of the deers in short order – you might as well cull them as it would be a quicker death.

Regarding the ridiculous issue of “I can’t plant anything because the deer eat it all”, North Nanaimo is a well known deer habitat. Notice the signs along the roads. If you make the decision to move into such an area, it takes very little effort to educate oneself as to what they eat and what they don’t eat. The best thing to do is look around your neighbourhood to see who has beautiful landscaping. Talk to those people to find out what the plants are, or take a photo and bring it to a garden centre.

I would like to see education and law enforcement tried for a year before we resort to any kind of interference with the deer. If that fails, then sterilization is the most viable option to control numbers but not to eliminate them. If you could pass some of these suggestions and information to the deer committee I would be grateful. Thanks.

Arla Jean Murch of Nanaimo had this to add:

I really have difficulty believing that 30 deer are being killed on Hammond Bay every month. I go that route fairly often, and seldom see deer on the road. If they are around, they are watching and being wary. If drivers were going the speed limit, I’m sure there would be no deaths of those animals. How about speed bumps in the area? Or at least one of those signs that indicate the speed the driver is going. They seem to slow the conscientious a bit.

Of Bodies and Birds

The feature show for June 2010 at the Start With Art Nanaimo Artspace, Studio 366, 366 Selby Street, Nanaimo, is titled Of Bodies and Birds. A meet and greet at the studio with artist Julie Dives will be from 1 to 4 pm on Saturday, June 12, 2010.

Julie Dives recently finished her third year in the Visual Arts program at Vancouver Island University, She plans to transfer to the Emily Carr University of Art and Design in Vancouver in the fall to complete her degree with a focus in printmaking. Always having an interest in animals, Dives received an Animal Care Aide Certificate before deciding to travel and attend the arts. Inspiration from anatomy and human biology has commonly found its way into her artwork, and with Of Bodies and Birds it comes together with birds.

Of Bodies and Birds came about from her interest in vintage text book imagery of birds and anatomy. The fragile appearance of birds creates an interesting juxtapose with the structural security that bones provide for the body. Intermingling them creates a haunting look at nature that she has referenced through the use of wood. Julie hopes you enjoy the show.

A service and celebration for Nanaimo singer, songwriter, and musician Jerry Paquette who succumbed to cancer on May 21 will be held at 2 pm on Sunday, June 6, 2010, in the Bowen Park Auditorium, 500 Bowen Road, Nanaimo. Rest in peace Jerry.

Children’s storyteller Della Burford of the Woodstream Studio Gallery took these notes at the meeting on urban deer held on May 31, 2010:

In attending the meeting at the Kin Hut in Kinsman Park at Departure Bay about Nanaimo’s urban deer and the idea of potentially culling the deer, I was impressed that most of the people made suggestions of positive solutions to try to help the deer and there were a lot of conflict reduction options. Of the 50 plus people attending, ninty percent were for helping the deer. I will share a few thoughts and ideas I heard:

Most people seemed to agree that deer are losing their habitat – erosion of habitat – and that they need a place to live as well. It was brought up many times that this is a reflection of what is happening in the whole world. Many people made poignant comments like: the deer are not the problem, we are the problem, wildlife needs a place to live as well and it is our role as human beings to come up with a holistic and positive solution. Another gentleman commented that we should feel privileged to have the deer, and another said that we should feel blessed and that he would rather watch the deer than TV. Various people commented on how the deer are tourist attractions for Nanaimo and how much people visiting the city have enjoyed them.

The majority of people attending were against the idea of a cull, and one woman said that the cull is a barbaric solution. This was followed by a gentleman saying it is just a bandage solution and the majority do not want it. A woman who is a veterinarian said to capture and relocate often results in a high death rate as is it very stressful for the animals. Another dangerous situation was people who sic their dogs on the deer as this will make them run into traffic. The main concern which was repeated many times was speeding cars.

Many suggestions were shared – these are just a few:

Nearly everyone seemed to agree that counting the actual number of deer was one requirement and a gentleman said he knew a method for doing this and had students who could participate. Another was an education program about the deer – Gabriola Island has a successful program at the present time, and I am sure they are other communities that could be role models.

It was also suggested that more signs on the road are required for wildlife, speed restrictions in travelled areas, speed bumps, fencing and safe passes. Another woman mentioned in Ottawa they had a program started in 2006 to avoid a cull – the “Speeding costs You Deerly” program – to try to bring an awareness to slow down and not speed and had a 38% decrease in deer deaths on the road and has saved one million dollars in insurance claims – a huge saving.

One person had a list of deer resistant plants and bushes, and another a list of trees that could be planted to serve as food for the deer. Another person suggested developers should allow a certain amount of green space for the deer. There was a suggestion of using water motion devices in gardens to keep deer from garden areas where they are not wanted.

People generally felt we should move forward and it was suggested there should be an Integrated Citizen Committee. In working together, there is no doubt positive solutions can be found.

Edna Chadwick of the Rock City Road neighbourhood sent me these comments on Nanaimo’s deer:

I really don’t feel that deer populations are on the increase, just adapting to a loss of habitat. The deer were all over the roads in the 1980s when there was rampant development in the north end, then when the economy bottomed out in the 1990s and there was no new development, there was not a deer to be seen. With the latest spate of development, they’re all over the road again. I think the deer just need time to adjust to their rapidly decreasing habitat.

I’m not in favour of doing anything to decrease their population. There are theories that suggest that if deer populations are reduced, there’s an effect called compensatory rebound whereby deer will have more offspring until their numbers increase to the same level it was at before. I also haven’t seen any evidence that humans can deal with wildlife wisely. We can’t even cope with our own population control. How should we be expected to deal with wildlife control?

Relocation in my opinion is not an option due to extreme stress for the deer. Survival rates after relocation have been shown to be poor due to a condition called the capture myopathy syndrome caused by a release of lactic acid. Also, deer are very territorial and female relatives live together socially in the same location all their lives. Sterilization I feel would also cause a similar amount of stress. I am however much more in favour of other methods which include:

1) Educating the public so that instead of seeing deer as pests, they see it them a beautiful animals with whom we share our environment, giving out information on planting a deer proof garden, driving slowly in deer habitat, showing the public that humans rather than deer are the problem. I’ve seen a huge increase in Nanaimo’s population in the 22 years I’ve lived here and I’ve not heard a word about a human cull. Also, when we have children all over the roads, we don’t try and get rid of them, we do everything in our power to make them safe.

2) Using large signs and reducing speed limits where deer are known to be on the roads. There must be some data from the pound stating where the majority are killed.

3) I don’t know whether fencing is feasible in certain areas but I think it warrants investigation.

4) Conservation of deer habitat, for example the west side of the Linley valley and crown land District Lot 56.

Headliners School of Performing Arts (formally known as the Blues Underground) and Sidewalk Allstars is having a beer and burger benefit at the Foundry Pub, 125 Comox Road, Nanaimo, at 6 pm on Friday, June 4, 2010. This fundraiser is intended to raise money for better equipment and more instructors for the Sidewalk All Stars program. There will be a silent auction table and 50/50 draw. Admission is $10 including a beer and burger.

The programs offered by Headliners and the Sidewalk Allstars are extremely valuable for youth who wish to to expand and explore their musical talents. It is a healthy activity that many young people enjoy. Without doubt, the program would benefit from more input from a variety of music teachers, better equipment, and having the ability to open the program up to youth who may not be able to afford the fees. The school is not in a financial position to enhance their programming and is struggling to survive. They need your support to enroll more youth in this wonderful opportunity. For more information contact Cheryl Haywood at 250 756-9292.