Logging, Erosion, and Dredging

Just as fire and erosion follows logging, so dredging follows erosion. We have been familiar for a long time with the appearance of the dredge in the first narrows. The more that logging is carried on in Capilano Valley, the more erosion there will be, and the more debris will be carried down by the river for the tide to deposit in the Narrows, thereby endangering shipping, and necessitating continual dredging operations; which in turn may endanger the pipe line across the First Narrows. To what extent must this ruin be carried on before the citizens of Vancouver wake up and see the folly of permitting the destruction of forests within our watershed? All logging in that area should cease at once, and steps should be taken to see that the area is reforested as soon as possible; nature should be assisted in every way to prevent erosion before it is too late. We can not afford to listen to the reports of so-called engineering experts who say, “there is no danger, we can build a dam to store water.” That is not the type of Engineer we need; we need men with experience, vision, foresight or whatever you call it, that will advise us to reserve our assets, and not tell us how to repair them after they are ruined. We need men who can see and act straight, whose eyes are not fixed on TODAY, but who are looking forward to the FUTURE welfare of the Province. A man with his eyes focused on too close an object becomes cross-eyed, distant vision helps him to see straight.

Returning to my “text,” you may think it inappropriate for Vancouver, because we are told that in the days of Belshazzar “They drank wine”; in other words they were intemperate. That exactly describes the present generation as far as our forests are concerned. I may explain that this word temperance has almost lost its meaning through abuse in connection with the liquor traffic. Temperance does not mean total abstinence; it means moderation or regulation of what you consume, so that you may have some for future use. A person may be intemperate in eating as well as drinking, in either case the consumer suffers, but we condemn intemperate drinkers more than we do intemperate eaters, because it more often affects their dependents and homes. Intemperate people generally have an unconquerable craving for more, and they care not who suffers so long as they satisfy their craving.

Wealth may be as intoxicating as liquor, many wealthy lumbermen have more than enough for their own needs, but they have the craving for more; future generations may suffer as a result of their intemperate logging operations, but we overlook their weakness, and because they have gold or its equivalent, they – the wealthy lumbermen – are admitted into respectable society. In other words we are praising gods of gold, of silver, and of wood.

I am hopeful that some of these lumbermen may see the Light, and obtain at least partial absolution by raising a fund for strengthening the Department of Forestry to train men in the care and conservation of our forests, thus helping to compensate coming generations for the devastation accomplished today.