Recent communications to the Metchosin Foundation have stimulated discussions about grassroot responses to decarbonization and greenhouse gas reduction. A natural synergy exists between these efforts and the Foundation’s mandate to pursue action and education on local environmental issues. The Foundation has been exploring ways that it could include some of these efforts inside of its funding mandate, while remaining sensitive to national political differences.
Some of the Foundation’s projects—the protection of undeveloped land through conservation and covenants, species and biomass databases that are maintained over long periods such as the Metchosin bioblitzes and the insect inventory—are inherently related to an increasing grassroots interest to understand and reduce Metchosin’s carbon footprint. The Foundation’s efforts, however, are only a small part of what has been done, and continues to be done, by Metchosin residents. A Metchosin Green Blue Spaces strategy, for example, has been in place for over a decade. Information about this project, which is linked through the municipal web site, can be found at https://metchosinmarine.ca. The multi-year efforts of the Metchosin Environmental Advisory Select Committee (MEASC), especially its work on identifying environmentally sensitive lands inside the boundaries of the district (see their March 2011 Report to Council) are important contributions to local planning around carbon sequestration. Several local farms, the Foundation has learned, have begun working with the Habitat Acquisition Trust to plant and enhance hedgerows around their fields to promote both biodiversity and agricultural productivity.
The communications received by the Foundation have also pointed toward efforts made by other communities to promote grassroots activities that address greenhouse gas issues. The information found on three websites—naturalclimate.solutions, mnai.ca, and drawdown.org—include information on environmental stewardship practices that could yield multiplier benefits if applied to our own community. The Foundation encourages Metchosin residents to consider which of these outside strategies might be successfully imported.
Happy Holidays to all friends and neighbours from the Metchosin Foundation board of directors. We look forward to hearing more of your thoughts and ideas in the New Year, in person or through our website , about the importance of building a sustainable society and what can be done about it by local efforts, including the projects that might be undertaken by the Foundation.