10
ESSENCE November 25, 2010
Shanghai’s Green Baby
MICHAEL PICKERING
Don’t get Shanghaied by the greenwash-
ing campaign surrounding this year’s
Expo. The overarching theme of “Better
Cities, Better Life” has drawn roughly
70 million tourists from around the
world to get a glimpse of China’s vision
for sustainable urban development in
the future. While standing at the Expo
grounds, one need not look hard to get
an idea of how much this vision has been
put into practice. Bigger is certainly
thought to be better here: the skyline of
Pudong looms ominously like the back-
drop of Blade Runner, while hundreds
of highrise cranes dot the cityscape amid
the feverish pace of economic growth en-
demic to this city.
While there has been significant impe-
tus emerging from China’s fledgling envi-
ronmental movement in the past decade,
many of the basic concepts of ecological
sustainability that environmentalists take
for granted in North America have not
yet become so commonplace here. Al-
though a great deal of political discourse
regarding sustainable development has
arisen within the Communist Party,
much of this is either aimed solely at
sustaining the current pace of economic
growth or is an outright greenwashing
campaign to hide the real cost of such
growth, both in terms of human and eco-
systemic health. In China, it is far more
important to appear to be doing some-
thing than to actually be doing it. From
the mass manufacturing of innumerable
products of sub-par quality to the glow-
ing reports that Xinhua presents concern-
ing the efficacy of government policies
(which have been glaring failures by their
own metric), it is hard to accept anything
here that promotes itself as being envi-
ronmentally sustainable as something
more than an attempt to save face.
Despite my deep scepticism of the
Expo’s purpose, I am compelled to criti-
cally evaluate the environmental impacts
The Rise of the Enbridge Pipeline and the Fall of Canadian Environmentalism
Derrick Person
It’s a calm day, broken only by the oc-
casional gust puffing out the British Co-
lumbian and Canadian flags. A smaller
Coastal Guardian Watchmen flag flies
on the upper part of the dock. Lush
forested areas border the channel to my
left and right. A mountain stands in the
background, while a cloud slowly engulfs
its peak. I take a deep breath; the air is
the purest I have ever breathed. I feel re-
newed with the spirit of this place.
I am staying at the Hakai Lodge, in the
centre of the Hakai Luxvbalis Conservan-
cy, about 130 kilometres north of Port
Hardy. The lodge was recently purchased
by Eric Peterson of the Tulu Foundation,
a private family foundation that delivers
grants to non-profit organizations, to be
turned into a research facility. It will play
a major role in the Hakai Network for
Coastal People, Ecosystems and Man-
agement, an initiative between the Tulu
Foundation and Simon Fraser University
which focuses on studying social and
ecological sustainability as well as imple-
menting ecosystem based management
on the central coast of B.C.
Even this serene place is not removed
from the impacts of our western society.
The Heiltsuk First Nation’s people had
lived here for over 10,000 years prior to
European contact. However by 1912,
their numbers had dropped from 10,000
to around 200 people due to small pox
of the event and weigh some of real and
perceived benefits against them. It would
be all to easy to stand on my soapbox
and condemn what, for some, is seen as
a genuine attempt to bring sustainable
development into vogue in China’s cities.
“
Arriving in Shanghai in early Sep-
In China, it is
far more important
to appear to be
doing something
than to actually be
doing it.
” The Paddle
tember to attend school, I was imme-
diately impressed by the efficacy of the
transportation system here. Having just
come from Toronto, where the public
transportation system has not seen any
substantial improvement since the 1970s,
I was thoroughly awestruck by the scale
and efficiency of Shanghai’s Metro sys-
tem — a combination of subway and
light-rail lines which create a vast web
connecting China’s largest city. While
much of the foundation for this system
existed prior to the Expo, it received a
massive infusion of funding and was sig-
“
It would be all
too easy to stand
on my soapbox and
condemn . . .
”
nificantly expanded in the year leading
up the event. An estimated $45 billion
was invested in overhauling all aspects
of Shanghai in preparation for the Expo.
This includes money spent on infrastruc-
tural improvements, upgrading the bus
and taxi system, and the doubling in size
and various other influenzas. Despite this
horrible tragedy, there has been a rebirth
of Heiltsuk culture and community in re-
cent years. The government has returned
49% of their original territory. However,
this astounding recovery now faces a new
threat: the Enbridge Gateway project.
The Gateway project involves build-
ing a pipeline to carry oil from the Al-
berta tar sands to the Pacific Ocean in
order to satisfy growing demand from
Asia. It will stretch from Edmonton all
the way to B.C.’s Kitimat, and carry an
average 525,000 barrels of petroleum a
day. What is particularly bad about this
pipeline — apart from the usual destruc-
tion that comes with construction of this
magnitude — is that oil tankers will have
to navigate through treacherous waters
to reach Kitimat. This misguided route
(which runs through the waters sur-
rounding the Hakai Luxvbalis Conser-
vancy) practically guarantees an oil spill.
Once the oil spill inevitably occurs, it will
drastically change the lifestyle of most of
the coastal communities and compromise
the ecological integrity of the landscape.
But the Gateway project does more
than just destroy the ecological integrity
of the landscape and the lifestyle of many
coastal communities: it solidifies Cana-
da’s transition into a petro-state. The tar
sands are a huge resource; a resource we
could potentially use to transition our-
selves to a low carbon economy. Instead
our government’s plan appears to be full
of the metro system. Surely these invest-
ments will considerably relieve commuter
traffic and further promote a culture of
public transit.
The grounds on which the Expo Park is
located were formerly the site of a large
steel manufacturing plant. The site was
cleaned up and the plant relocated to
a less populous site, where, according
to Yang Xiong from the Shanghai Mu-
nicipal Committee, it was outfitted with
state-of-the-art environmental technolo-
gies to significantly reduce its environ-
mental footprint. Yang explains that the
Expo grounds have been outfitted with
energy efficient technologies and pho-
tovoltaic generators which produce 4.5
megawatts of energy — the largest such
installation in all of China. Also, most
of the vehicles used to service the Expo
are powered by electricity or hydrogen
fuel cells.
Much work has gone into presenting an
image of sustainability premised on high-
tech solutions that cost billions of dol-
lars and a multitude of resources. If this
is really the extent of China’s vision for
sustainability, then we can expect much
more development of the same vein in
the near future — with the addition of a
few hallmark bells and whistles to create
the facade of ecological beneficence.
As I walk the banks of the Suzhou River
and see the raw sewage and industrial
waste floating by, I am reminded of just
how far China will have to walk on its
path to anything even resembling sus-
tainability. Furthermore, a stroll through
any of Shanghai’s more residential neigh-
bourhoods reveals how little environ-
mental concerns have registered on the
agenda of the average Chinese citizen.
Despite the proliferation of garbage
and recycling bins, it is still common
practice to drop trash on the street and
expect one of the many street cleaners
to pick it up. If the Expo is to be a
catalyst for China’s green future, then
its effects may not be noticed for some
time to come.
scale liquidation. We will become a face-
less middle power economy fueled by the
filthiest substance on the planet.
I feel that the construction of the
pipeline is a tipping point: if we fail to
stop the pipeline we will descend into
a petro-state. We will come to value oil
investment and development more than
the concerns of our citizens. I feel that
all the momentum of the environmen-
tal movement in Canada hinges on this
project. If this project succeeds the drive
Julia Bennett
Jamila Douhabi
They row
The paddles through wind – through water
Against currents of apprehension; of unnecessary change
We march
Not to promote hate
But to stay in solidarity
A promise to keep what is good; what should remain
We stand
The rain
Pouring down
Falling – joining – separating
But we have come so that it can continue flowing
Habitats – homes – humanity
You ask – is this a protest?
It is a celebration – of life; of possibility
The forest continues to spread its branches
Climbing up the mountains in hope
The waters push forward in certainty
So we will wage war with words
Not with the weapons you use
For you are blinded by power – money – greed
There is not a lack of life here
There is productivity
But not the kind you seek
Your eyes looking; searching
(for what you desire)
With an inability to see
Amanda Taylor
for change will dissipate, setting Canada the air for those magical fourteen days.
on a path to environmental destruction. I had the pleasure of experiencing Van-
Now for a brief digression — if you couver first hand, our anthem was sung
were one of the many Canadian who on every street corner, cheering would
followed the Olympics and participated erupt randomly, and everybody seemed
in the festivities, then you will remem- cohesive. We were a unified group of
ber the amount of pride we felt for our people proud of our country. If we can
country. Although most of that pride was arouse the national pride we felt during
based on misconceptions (such as our that time and channel that energy, we can
treatment of First Nation communities stop the Enbridge Gateway Project.
or our respect for nature), there was a
certain indefinable energy that permeated