Pondering Snow and Rain

Snow in Victoria.... an uncommon occurrence.

Here was the monochromatic view out our window this morning.

All this snow has got me thinking about watersheds. Where does the runoff go when the snow melts? And how does paving natural areas affect the cycle?

This image from the website waterbalance.ca shows the earth's water cycle and how urban development affects pollution of both surface water and groundwater.

The image below, from the US Geologic Survey, does a better job of showing snow melt as part of the water cycle. However, it does not show urban areas, and the impact of urban development on water quality and groundwater quantity.

Years ago I met an engineer, Tom Holz, who had pioneered what he called Zero Impact Development in Seattle. This is an approach to urban development to try to mimic nature, and keep rainfall and meltwater in place as much as possible, rather than piping it "away".

Zero Impact Development is also termed "Green Infrastructure":

• Subdivisions are developed with a lower proportion of hard surfaces, and more "permeable" or water absorbing areas.
• Runoff in parking lots is directed to areas of permeable soil. 
• Streets are narrower than the standard subdivision width.
• Street development includes wide strips of deep soil to absorb rainwater without runoff. The photo below illustrates this. A swale, or depression, keeps water from running onto the roadway.
• Zero Impact Development favours alternative ground covers to traditional lawn grass, which is not very effective at absorbing water during rainfall events. 
• Benefits include reduced runoff, thus reducing the risk of flooding and erosion. 
• Overall, water pollution is reduced, because runoff water is filtered by the soil, before seeping out into lakes, rivers and the ocean.

Stormwater Swale - a feature of Zero Impact Development. Source: The Nature Conservancy

I would like to see more communities adopt this approach to managing urban runoff.

For more information, refer to the EPA publication "Expanding the Benefits of Seattle's Green Stormwater Infrastructure" (EPA 832-R-16-011, January 2017), available at https://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/2017-03/documents/seattle_technical_assistance_010517_combined_508.pdf

The image below shows how individual properties can help manage stormwater runoff, by planting "rain gardens", areas where water can be diverted, with deep spongy topsoil and water-loving plants.

Source: http://www.thewalleye.ca/event/rain-garden-tour-2 (Thunder Bay, Ontario)

Climate change is leading to more severe storm events. Planning for stormwater runoff can protect our urban infrastructure from flooding, as well as protect water quality.

It is essential we change our ways of developing subdivisions.

The Walkable Community

In the week that we've been in Victoria, we have so far walked over 50 km, just around James Bay, the downtown, and Beacon Hill Park. Ken commented that he enjoys walking here, but not at home. This has led me to think about "what makes for a walkable community"?

There is no doubt that in James Bay, people walk. So what is it about James Bay that has led to people walking?

Here are a few thoughts:

Aesthetics

James Bay is beautiful. Even if a person is not paying attention to the aesthetics of the way the community has been developed, I think that the beauty unconsciously sinks in.  So many houses have been painted in attractive colours, and landscaped with sensitivity. Here are just a couple of examples.

Here is a bit more detail of the house above. The burgundy of the dogwood on the left contrasts beautifully with the creamy yellow paint. The gentle touch of the peach door adds the right amount of colour to warm up the building, and the steps and sidewalk add more warmth to the overall effect.

Here is an example of a house painted much more gaily.

If you zoom in on the plaque beneath the window, you'll see the building has been designated a City of Victoria Heritage Building.

One more image showing the aesthetics of the buildings and landscaping:

In the image above is an element that I'll say more about later in this post, the garden art with the plastic kitchen spoons.

Scale

Yes, there are high rises in James Bay, some that, from a distance, have few redeeming qualities, exposing broad flat facades with no break-up of the harsh lines of the structure. Nonetheless, most high rises have a "soft" edge to them, and, so far, the number of high rises is in proportion to the scale of the rest of the community. Here are some images taken on this snowy day in Victoria which illustrate this.

As well, much of the "densification" in James Bay is being accomplished by keeping the existing buildings, and adding more to the back or sides. 

Here are two more shots of higher density housing, showing the contrast and complexity of landscaping which adds to the human scale.

Part of scale is retaining the heritage flavour of Victoria. Here is a church that is now a private residence. The fencing is to keep urban chickens. 

Diversity

James Bay has so much diversity to keep a walker interested.

One of its attractions is small-scale commercial development within the community! A person does not have to get into a car, or onto a bus, to go to the grocery store, the bank, the drugstore, the liquor store. Niagara Grocery stands alone on Niagara Street. In many cities, this is just not possible in our suburban development model which concentrates commercial development at the intersection of busy corridors. For years I have thought that this approach to urban planning was opposite to what people want. Niagara Grocery proves that stores can survive without having to be located in a central mall.

James Bay Village is in the centre of the community, located for ease of access by people walking, not the edge of the community where ease of access by cars is the criterion. The "Village" is so busy that the aisles of the Thrifty's Store are often jammed, to the point that it is almost impossible to navigate them. I have only been in the new Red Barn grocery store (a few blocks away) once but I am sure it will thrive just because the capacity of the Village is close to its maximum.

James Bay thrives with coffee shops and life. These coffee shops host musical jam nights, philosophical discussions, and conversation. I am reminded of my childhood images of what it might have been like in the Latin Quarter in Paris in the early 20th century.

I took the photo of the Starbucks because of the recycling container inside. In Salmon Arm, the Starbucks there told me they were not able to recycle their coffee cups. Not so in Victoria!

Another part of the diversity of the community is the various ways people have made their gardens and sidewalks interesting. I still have yet to explore the full range of what people are doing. Here are a few examples.

The two photos below are of funky art done with painting rocks. You can see more, and get still more of a flavour of James Bay, by visiting the website http://rock-art.ca/index.html

I enjoyed the imagination and creativity of these creations; the bees on the music score, and the cut orange, just drew me in!

When I first saw this tree, with the sunlight catching the hanging teacups, I thought they were magnolia blossoms.

Flowers

Victoria is known as the City of Blossoms, with flowers blooming year-round. The streets are adorned with colour from winter heathers, and many species whose names I don't know.

The Ocean and the Park

And of course, part of James Bay's attractiveness is created by the presence of the walk along Dallas Road, the ever-changing ocean, and the myriad of pathways through Beacon Hill Park. A person can easily move out of the streets, and onto a pathway through the diverse gardens of Beacon Hill Park, or down onto the rocks below Dallas Road and smell the ocean. 

Beacon Hill Park is a presence along Douglas Street, where rock outcrops add interest.

The smaller scale of the streetscapes of James Bay is balanced by the huge ocean vista which is a constant presence along Dallas Road.

So, there are a few of my thoughts of what makes for a walkable community. James Bay has them all!

Recipe for Living a Life

I have been musing about Mary Oliver and her ability with words. Less is always more, not only with poetry but almost everything in life!

Many decades ago I started writing about the challenge of making commitments in this time of uncertainty about the future, and my own tendency to see both sides of a question. Even though I felt passionate about the environment and nature, I found it hard to be an activist on the front lines, because too often I could see things from the other side. I was a thinker, not a "doer" - or so I thought.

My piece on commitment morphed and gained a working title of "Recipe for Living a Life". The subtitle was "Countering Despair and Lack of Hope".

Of course, the piece is not yet finished; the more I read, the more there is to tell. But not for Mary Oliver. She said it all in twelve words:

         Instructions for living a life. Pay attention. Be astonished. Tell about it.

Frost, Oregon Grape

Shuswap Lake Seasons

I sent my grandson a picture of Shuswap Lake for a birthday card, and thought about all the pictures I have taken since 2011 of the lake, and clouds, and water, and light. Most of these images have been taken from my deck, or the front of the house which is close to the lake.

I have often considered uploading my photos of the lake and its moods in one place -- so here are a selected few.

Many of these photos show a lagoon which was created in the mudflats between our shoreline and the main part of the lake. I suspect that human intervention was involved, as it just does not feel natural to have a ridge of soil in such a place. The lagoon has cattails and one solitary shrub willow on its far side. The first photograph below shows these features. A number of the other photographs show the willow, sometimes off in the distance, and sometimes almost submerged (in high water). The lagoon is filled with wildlife throughout the year - a fortunate consequence of whatever project led to its creation.

Spring

Shuswap Lake rises and falls every year by 3 to 4 metres on average (between 10 and 13 feet). In the shallow areas along the shore, such as Salmon Arm Bay, the receding water leaves extensive mudflats exposed. The photo below gives a glimpse of these mudflats in the middle distance. These mudflats are significant habitat for migratory birds in the spring and fall.

March 16, 2012

March 28, 2012

The lake begins to rise in April.

April 27, 2017

Spring and fall are the high seasons for migratory birds on Shuswap Lake.

May 11, 2016 - American Pelicans

The website www.shuswaplakewatch.com provides data and graphs for Shuswap Lake for the last dozen years or so.

Here is the graph up to today's date, January 27, 2019.

Source: www.shuswaplakewatch.com

High water averages mid June, although in 2012 it was June 27, and in 2018 it was May 29. The 2012 level was the highest level since the floods of 1972, coming to around 7 cm of the 1972 flood level. The photo below was taken about a week after the lake had begun to drop. In the foreground is a fence. This fence is at the base of rock rip rap which was installed in the early 1990's when Heron View was built. Our house sits a few feet back from the top of this rock rip rap. Notice how far up the fence the water has risen.

July 3, 2012

Two years after the above photo, in 2014, the lake peaked June 6, 2014 - a full three weeks earlier than in 2012. The photo below was taken July 2, 2014 -  almost exactly the same time of year as the photo above, but showing a very different lake landscape.

July 2 2014

Here is another photo taken later that same day.

Sunset, July 2, 2014

Summer

By mid-summer the water levels have receded.

August 6, 2016

The Shuswap summers often have extended high pressure systems, which make for spectacular sunsets.

July 19, 2012

Fall

In the valley bottom, fall starts late and sometimes lasts into December.

October 26, 2018

October 23, 2015

November 3, 2011

December 6, 2011

November 19, 2013

November 28, 2018

Winter

January 5, 2014

January 11, 2017

January 5, 2014

I don't have a lens which easily photographs the birds that live in the lagoon. Many of my shots are taken from a distance. Here is one of blue herons lined up along the edge of the lagoon in the winter snow, all resting, but possibly keeping an eye out for the occasional vole which might scurry under the snow.

December 11, 2018 - Blue herons on the shore of the lagoon

And so ends a brief  tour of a year on the foreshore of Shuswap Lake at Salmon Arm. The shrub willow which appeared in my first photographs in the fall of 2011 is still there, as are the bulrushes, and the lagoon.  But there is a proposal to put an elevated walkway somewhere out in the marsh, connecting an existing walkway near the wharf with First Nations lands to the west. If the city and the bands can find the funds, and if the environmental assessments show that this won't damage habitat for wildlife and fish.... then future images of this scene might look very different.

December 10, 2018

At the Wharf

I only had time for a short walk yesterday morning, so it was confined to the Salmon Arm wharf area. It was definitely a mixed, surreal experience of nature!

Peace Pole, Salmon Arm Wharf

I like the sentiment of the peace pole. Although most people in Salmon Arm call this area "the wharf", or perhaps Marine Park, its official name is "Marine Peace Park", in reference to a joint project with one of the Rotary clubs, and a local branch of Physicians for Global Survival. Scattered throughout the park are a wide diversity of trees, and plaques with quotes invoking peace. Unfortunately, the plaques have not weathered well and many are difficult to read. There are quotes by Dag Hammarskjold, Gandhi, and others. But the peace pole message is very clear. Peace on earth. A tranquil meditative thought to begin one's day. May peace begin within each of us, and with loving hearts.

This provided a rather comical counterpoint to the peace pole.  Hanging from a tree at the end of the road accessing the wharf, its lurid pink was most noticeable against the backdrop of Shuswap Lake. "Hello! My name is Annie. I want to be your friend!" read the words in English and French. Perhaps the path to world peace leads this way ... openness to being friends with all, without judgment, to giving and receiving love.

My wharf walk continued to an encounter with the dozens of mallard ducks which hang around the area.  Originally they had been over in the area of the peace pole, but a vehicle arrived with several young people who had just been to Tim Hortons and were carrying coffee and bags of donuts, and vaping clouds of smoke as they loudly enjoyed the morning. The ducks migrated across the street, to make sure they did not miss any handouts.

Urban nature.

I finished my quick, brisk morning walk along the walkway in front of the CSRD building. The grass-covered mudflats are covered by water in the spring, with grebes and other waterfowl hanging out here. Now, things are much quieter. 

The lake is higher than normal at this time of year. With so little snow, and temperatures much above normal, the mudflats are quite wet and hard to access. Often by this time of year skiers and snowshoers have been out, but this year I have only seen one skier so far.

For any readers wanting to track Shuswap lake levels, an excellent source of data and graphing is www.shuswaplakewatch.com.

To Fly or Not to Fly?

If I am to reduce my use of fossil fuels I need to cut down on air flights. This is a hard decision, because if I want to visit either of my adult children, and grandchildren, I would be looking at either a two day drive, or a five day drive (minimum). Flying is a much easier option.

Back in 2006, the Guardian columnist George Monbiot talked about the huge carbon footprint of flying. He concluded that "journeys around the world must be reserved for visiting the people you love, and that they will require both slow travel and the saving up of carbon rations." He called these visits "love miles", and suggested that most other reasons for flying - such as holidays - should be rejected. [https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2006/sep/21/travelsenvironmentalimpact.ethicalliving}

Earlier this year my brother and his wife, who live in Alberta, Canada, were considering a holiday that would have involved air flights to central Europe. To inform their decision making process my brother researched their household's annual emissions of CO2, and what would be the implications of a round trip for two to Europe. The graph below shows the results. (They ended up holidaying locally.)

This graph is specific to Alberta, which uses 47% coal, 40% gas, and 13% renewables in the production of electricity. For British Columbia, where I live and where electricity is mostly generated from hydro-dams, the CO2 is less - about 13 g of CO2 per kWh. But other things, such as home heating and automobile use, would be comparable.

This is a vivid example of what JUST ONE AIR FLIGHT means; it was more than my brother's annual carbon budget in either home heating, automobile use or home electricity use. 

The bottom line for me is that I need to do what Monbiot suggests, and save my carbon rations. Rather than a quick weekend flight to visit someone I love, I need to save up those rations and use them wisely, and for longer, and deeper, visits.