Connecting Past and Present

May 17, 2022 By: Melissa Harding

Plovers and friends: Sauble Beach town’s $100,000 fine for bulldozing bird habitat stands

https://thenarwhal.ca/sauble-beach-piping-plovers-ruling/

Throughout history humans have altered their environment to suit their own needs with little regard for the other species that may be affected. Sauble Beach is yet another example of this, where the beach was ploughed and grated to enhance its aesthetic value. This grooming significantly damaged resources and nesting habitat for the endangered piping plover. As history continues to repeat itself the cycle goes: humans modify their environment for their own needs and desires, another species is disturbed, the species faces extinction, humans may or may not be held accountable for their actions, and the species may or may not recover from conservation efforts. The beaver and sea otters were exploited for their pelts to near extinction. Buffalo were hunted to near extinction. All three species faced extinction. Humans were not held accountable for these actions, but measures were introduced to try to conserve remaining individuals, which have now made a small recovery in numbers. To reduce the number of species facing this cycle as a result of human actions, forward thinking needs to be apart of development planning and resource use or manipulation, and species other than humans need to be considered and given greater priority.

Does growth demand sprawl? Ontario’s Peel Region will vote on opening up 10,000 acres of farmland for development

https://thenarwhal.ca/peel-region-sprawl-farmland/

From the days of the early settlers to budding towns and cities to modern urbanization, the process of converting natural environments to urban settlements has not slowed down. Earth’s high human population is driving up demand for more housing, and in order to fulfil this need, natural environments are being converted to urban sprawl. Ten thousand acres of farm land is being proposed for urban development in Ontario’s Peel Region, but this urban development puts food supplies at risk. Small-scale farms, that once produced a family’s food rations, have been replaced by mass industrial farms which supply food to dense urban population centres. Historical urbanization has introduced new challenges such as: the need for proper sanitation and sewage removal and the importation of food supplies, but now modern urbanization threatens food supplies as farm land is being converted to urban development.