On behalf of Project Watershed and the Estuary Working Group, we want to commend new City of Courtenay staff members Nancy Hofer and Allan Gornall for an excellent program on global climate issues.
On April 29, the Sid Williams Theater was packed with interested residents from the Comox Valley. Both young planners did highly polished presentations and received standing ovations at the end of the evening.
Project Watershed would like to commend the City of Courtenay for taking a leadership role in environmental issues of importance to all of us living in the sensitive and fragile Comox Valley.
We hope that the council members who were unable to participate and attend the April 29 sessions have the opportunity to hear these excellent and scientifically accurate presentations at a later time,
Whatever your view is on global warming, one cannot disregard that our climate is changing and it is getting warmer. During the 20th century alone, the average surface temperature of the world increased.
The eight warmest years on record have all occurred since 1998, with the warmest year being last year. Allan pointed this out quite well and furthermore pointed out that this is not really seriously disputed.
As we live on an estuary where storm surges and high tides have resulted in flooding, we have already and certainly will in the future experience progressively more of these kinds of events. The more our residents and leaders making decisions know and understand the global events affecting climate change the better and more thoughtful the decisions made will be now and in the future.
Perhaps you and council might ask these two young experts if it would be possible to have another evening where they might address the topic of what we might do as residents in the Comox Valley to help offset effects of climate change.
Good work, Courtenay.
Paul A. Horgen,
Layne and Brenda of 40 KNOTS with Caitlin Pierzchalski ~ L.Stewart