Species Extinction: Industry out of control

Forests, grasslands, mountain tundra and even desert-like ecosystems: these landscapes are bursting with life in the water, land and sky. We’re lucky to live in such a rich and diverse environment. It’s something we shouldn’t take for granted but sadly it seems we are. 

BC has the highest biodiversity and the highest number of species facing extinction compared to any other province or territory. Decades of industry running rampant and governments with weak backbones are the reason 1,680 BC species are headed for extinction. 

This StoryMap is a tool to fight extinction.

This is the story of B.C.'s extinction crisis. We will go through the reasons 1680 species are faced with extinction, the lack of legal tools to save at-risk wildlife, the industries enabled by government to cause so much destruction and what it's going to take to change course and save these species.

Displayed on the first map is the critical habitat of 19 different species at risk. Throughout you'll see different polygons (or shapes) that represent industrial projects set to destroy or degrade critical habitat of these 19 species. All of the projects shown here are either new, proposed, permitted or in the planning phase. The reason for this is to bring attention to projects that have not been completed yet and can still be stopped. Be a part of the solution to save wildlife and use this map to fight back against harmful industrial projects in your community.

Map 1: All species and industry below shows new or proposed industrial projects impacting the critical habitat of 19 different species at risk in BC listed under Schedule 1 of SARA.

Map 2: Highlighted species below shows 7 different BC species at risk critical habitat threatened by industrial projects. We chose to highlight these species based on the immense threat industry poses to their habitat. Each species habitat is color-coded.

Types of industry included in the maps: All proposed logging and oil and gas activities that lie within the boundaries of critical habitat for a species at risk are displayed. Click on the little circle in the bottom left corner of each map to see the legend.

Within each map, click on the industrial polygon to learn the type of activity, species it's impacting and size of impact.

Use this table to determine the activity type of a polygon, it's status (has it been completed?) and the chance of stopping it. For instance, projects in their beginning phase will have a higher chance of stopping.

Click the button below for a complete list of all species included in this map.

The seven species highlighted in this map are:

• Killer whale (southern resident population) - light blue
• Toothcup (plant) - purple
• Williamson's sapsucker - green
• Northern leopard frog (Brisco, Creston and Kootenay River populations) - orange
• Northern myotis - dark blue
• Marbled murrelet - gray
• Caribou (boreal and southern mountain populations) - brown

“Biodiversity and nature’s contributions to people are our common heritage and humanity’s most important life-supporting ‘safety net.’ But our safety net is stretched almost to breaking point.” - Professor Sandra Díaz, Universidad Nacional de Cordoba

The legacy of industry here has made lots of shareholders and CEOs far and wide wealthy and happy. But what about the wilderness, the wildlife and the small communities left in the wake of destruction?

Habitat destruction is the leading cause of wildlife extinction worldwide. In BC, we have many industries operating and destroying habitat like logging, oil and gas, mining and hydroelectric power. With all this, it’s no surprise so many species are facing extinction.

BC does not have a law that automatically protects species at risk on land claimed by the provincial crown, which is 94 per cent of it. This means industry gets green light to drive species extinct on “provincial” land, and wildlife across BC are paying the ultimate price. 

British Columbia doesn’t have its own stand-alone law to protect species facing extinction by saving their habitat and preventing destructive activities on provincial land. In Canada, there is a federal Species at Risk Act (SARA).  But this law has many flaws , especially since it only automatically applies to federal land. Because BC claims to own 94 per cent of the land in the province, this means species at risk located here don’t automatically receive any protection.

This mapping tool uses the Schedule 1 legal list of species at risk under SARA. Under the federal Species at Risk Act all species listed under Schedule 1 must have their critical habitat "effectively protected" on provincial land. In other words, the federal and provincial governments have varying, although vague, levels of responsibility to protect critical habitat on provincial land. Click on the button below to learn more about the different species at risk lists and the gaps in policy leading to species decline.

It's crucial to keep an eye on species at risk critical habitat and ensure destructive activities aren’t occurring there. Throughout BC and the coastal waters of the Pacific, there are 224 species listed as endangered, threatened or special concern on Schedule 1 of SARA. The federal government has only mapped critical habitat for 84 species on the list. This map displays new logging and oil and gas activities that overlaps with the critical habitat of 19 different species at risk. 

Species without mapped habitat get left behind. Take a look below at some species whose habitat has not been mapped, leaving their habitat open to destruction.

There are reasons the federal government has delayed mapping certain species habitat. For example, zero per cent of marine fish have their habitat mapped. This is because marine habitat is federal jurisdiction so if their habitat was mapped, it would automatically be protected. Governments tend to avoid protecting large amounts of habitat due to industry pressure. Take a look below at the graph showing which taxonomic groups are less likely to have their habitat mapped, and therefore do not receive habitat protection under the law.

Biodiversity is in crisis; one millions species worldwide face extinction. With their loss, life-giving ecosystems that all living beings rely on will break down. We rely on ecosystems because we exist within them as a part of them. 

The cumulative industrial damage to ecosystems since colonization has been devastating. The top five drivers of extinction in order of greatest impact are: changes in land and sea use, direct exploitation of organisms, climate change, pollution and invasive species. 

Many people aware of the biodiversity crisis think humans cannot coexist with nature. But it doesn't have to be this way. In fact, it hasn't always been this way. Indigenous Peoples in past and present times live within ecosystems in a mutually beneficial way to themselves and other species. Robin Wall Kimmerer of the Potawatomi Nation writes, “we need to consider ways humans can live that embody the concept of mutual flourishing; that are good both for the land and for us.” Indigenous Peoples have shown a different relationship is possible — one that doesn’t doom one species for the benefit of the other. Stripping cedar bark for canoes in a careful way, leaving the tree standing and able to live on. Burning grasslands enough to change bison movements while replenishing the native grasses relying on wildfire. These are examples of this. 

Those of us from other parts of the world come from ancient reciprocal relationships with nature, too. We have to believe that a mutually beneficial relationship is possible, because if we cannot even envision it, how are we supposed to achieve it? This begins by looking to Indigenous peoples for leadership, guidance and authority over their traditional territories and the species within.

A UN biodiversity report states, “Worldviews that separate nature and culture are an underlying cause of biodiversity loss.” If we want to combat extinction in BC we simply must promote links between nature and human culture and take drastic action to reduce the drivers of extinction listed above.

For over a decade we’ve been calling on the government of BC to implement a species at risk law. Seven other provinces/territories have a species at risk law, yet BC remains without even though it has more species at risk of extinction than any other province or territory.

A law must uphold the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and must go further than the federal SARA in upholding sovereignty over traditional lands. The law must be guided by traditional knowledge and implemented in a way that upholds free, prior and informed consent. Legislation must respect the sovereign interest of Indigenous Peoples, such as their rights to harvest and recover species at risk. The BC government has a genuine opportunity to put words of reconciliation into action by engaging nation-to-nation when developing the law and integrating reconciliation as a guiding principle.

In 2017, BC Environment Minister George Heyman was given the mandate to create and implement a law for species at risk in BC. This was a huge win which we celebrated. All seemed well, the Wilderness Committee attended government workshops and wrote in on open consultations regarding the law. Then it all came to a screeching halt after the BC government got cold feet. In 2019, Premier John Horgan indicated a new law was not on the horizon in the foreseeable future. We can’t let him go back on his promise — we need a species at risk law no later than 2022.

Will you write today to elected officials telling them they must uphold their 2017 promise and enact a species at risk law for BC?

We will send your message to Environment Minister George Heyman, Premier John Horgan, Minister of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations and Rural Development Katrine Conroy and your local MLA.

Thank you for taking action in defense of the incredible wildlife we share this land with.