Guest Lecture

Question 1

CPAWS

Answer 1

Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society

Question 2

Northern Alberta Chapter CPAWS

Answer 2

Works to conserve and protect wilderness and healthy ecosystems in Northern Alberta

Focuses on public land

Question 3

60 percent of Alberta is

Answer 3

Public land

Question 4

What is the biodiversity crisis

Answer 4

Species livelihood reflects the ecosystem

Extinction rates have sky rocketed in the past half century

The crisis extends across taxa and some declines are beyond drastic (2.9 billion birds gone)

Question 5

Leaking Tailing Ponds affect

Answer 5

Wood Buffalo National Park

Question 6

WWF 202 Living Planet Report

Answer 6

Wildlife has decreased on average by 59 percent from 1970-2016

At risk species face an average of 5 threats

Question 7

Threats to wildlife

Answer 7

Habitat loss, climate change etc.

Impacted by natural disturbances like wildlife and pests but also industrial disturbances

Question 8

Boreal forests

Answer 8

Store carbon from nutrients twice as well as tropical forests

Question 9

Coal valley 1984-2020

Answer 9

Large scale industrialization that cause consequences to the landscape

Question 10

You can see landscape disturbances in the boreal forest from

Answer 10

Space

Question 11

Woodland Caribou

Answer 11

An indicator species due to their sensitivity to disturbances and use of mature forests and wetlands

15 woodland caribou herds on provincial lands

Populations vary from 55-400 per herd

Herds are declining by 50 percent every 8 years

It is rare that these herds are self-sustaining

Question 12

Umbrella species

Answer 12

Because they cover such a large area, protecting these species protects many other species

Question 13

Cumulative disturbances

Answer 13

Human-induced habitat alterations have caused an imbalance in predator-prey relationships resulting in unnaturally high predation rates

Question 14

Need for population stability

Answer 14

65 percent undisturbed habitat to achieve population stability

This is the bare minimum

Correlates to a 60 percent chance of becoming self-sustained

Question 15

What is a disturbed habitate

Answer 15

A 500 meter buffer around industrial features best represent the combined effects of increased predation and avoidance of caribou population across Canada

Question 16

Alberta’s caribou disturbance range

Answer 16

Far exceeds what is allowed for sustainable living

Question 17

Path forward for caribou conservation

Answer 17

Important to increase undisturbed habitats and not destroy intact habitat

Question 18

What is a protected area

Answer 18

A clearly defined geographical space that is in place to achieve long-term conservation of nature

Question 19

Types of protected areas

Answer 19

Range from highly protected areas to parks that are open for human access

Question 20

Conference of the Parties (COP) 15

Answer 20

196 countries gathered to create a Global Biodiversity Framework

Describes 23 targets that would help in the battle against biodiversity loss

Global attention to these target help ensure a future for nature and wildlife

Question 21

Loss of natural carbon storage comes from

Answer 21

Deforestation

Peatland clearing

Conversion of native grassland to cropland

Question 22

If we reduce our forest harvesting by just 9 percent

Answer 22

Our carbon emissions could go down by 22 million tonnes in 2030

Question 23

Urban national parks are currently in

Answer 23

Planning phase