World Water Day is held annually on March 22 as a means of focusing attention on the importance of freshwater and advocating for the sustainable management of freshwater resources.

Each year, World Water Day highlights a specific aspect of freshwater. In 2013, in reflection of the International Year of Water Cooperation, World Water Day is also dedicated to the theme of cooperation around water.

An international day to celebrate freshwater was recommended at the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED). The United Nations General Assembly responded by designating 22 March 1993 as the first World Water Day.

The next question, on the minds of those who are paying attention to the ongoing instability at Fukushima, is “what precautions are in place to monitor our local radionuclide levels in the event of a major destabilization at Fukushima or even the Hanford nuclear plant in Washington State?” Unfortunately, the position of Health Canada and local officials is complacent.

Rudy Pante’s workshops are an attempt to shed some light on this topic of radionuclides and nuclear fallout. These workshops are not about risk levels. They are about understanding radioactivity and how to correctly detect and measure it.

The next workshop is entitled:
INTRODUCTION TO PRACTICAL GAMMA-RAY SPECTROMETRY
Monday Dec 3, 2012
9:00-11:00 AM

BCIT Burnaby Campus
3700 Willingdon Ave
Room 141, SE14 (Library)
Burnaby, BC
(best approached from Wayburne Drive)

For registration and details contact:
rudyplaza51@yahoo.com

map from EMBC Earthquake Info page

British Columbia’s current earthquakes are wake-up calls. The Cascadia Subduction Zone is clearly adjusting itself. Daily aftershocks continue to rattle the west coast of BC.
These seismic events may be precursors to Vancouver’s long expected ‘Big One’.
Are you prepared?

If you haven’t got an emergency kit prepared yet, this is the time to get it together.

Store emergency water
A major earthquake could damage municipal water supply lines, making tap water unavailable and/or vulnerable to contamination through ruptured pipes.

Hurricane Sandy has shown us how devastating a ‘natural’ disaster can be. Don’t take adequate water supplies for granted.

If you store ample water in advance you’ve already greatly increased your family’s ability to respond to an earthquake.

How much water to store
At very least, you should store one gallon per person per day for three days. Extra if you have pets. A three-week supply is preferable.

Water storage containers for an emergency
Look for sturdy, re-usable one- to five-gallon plastic containers made of number 2, 4 or 5 plastic. Yes, plastic for portability. Glass is too heavy for emergency use. Best not to rely on one or two gallon containers typically found in grocery store as they aren’t designed for long-term storage.

Home owners may be well advised to also store water in large food-grade plastic drums.

Sanitation and six month replacement schedule
Make sure the containers are sanitized before filling them with chlorinated tap water. Yes, chlorinated.   Hopefully you will never have to use this water but if you do, better that it be sterile than bacteria-ridden. Make yourself a reminder to replace the water in these containers every six months.

Alternate emergency water sources
Water from the following sources should be disinfected if needed for drinking in emergency conditions. Berkey water purifiers will disinfect water from these last-resort sources as well as making it taste better.

• Hot water tank
  Turn off the power that heats it, and let the tank cool. Then place a container underneath and open the drain valve at the bottom of the tank. Don’t turn the tank on again until water services are restored.

• Toilet tank
  The water in the tank (not the bowl) can be used to drink in an emergency unless chemical treatments have been added.

• Water pipes
  Release air pressure into the plumbing system by turning on the highest faucet in the house. Then drain the water from the lowest faucet.

• Outside the home
  Rain water, spring water, and water from streams, river, lakes, and coiled garden hoses can be used after it is disinfected.

Emergency water purification methods
Here are four methods to disinfect questionable water in emergency situations:

• Berkey water purifier – gravity filter requires no electricity.
• LifeStraw – portable water filter.

• Aquatabs – add prescribed number of pre-packaged water purification tablets to water. Wait 30 minutes.

• Liquid chlorine bleach (unscented) – add eight drops per gallon of water. Double this amount if the water is cloudy.

• Two percent tincture of iodine – add twelve drops per gallon of water. Double this amount if the water is cloudy.

• Boil the water vigorously for 10 minutes.

Local natural sources of fresh water
Vancouver has paved over all but three of its many creeks and streams. This is very unfortunate for many reasons, one of which would be devastatingly clear in the event of a water shortage.
Take note if you are lucky enough to live near a natural source of fresh water… a creek, stream, river or lake. Protect and respect this invaluable living resource. It could be your life-saving source of fresh water in the event of an earthquake.

Note 1: If emergency use water is very murky, it is best to strain it through several layers of cheesecloth or a paper coffee filter before applying one of the above treatments.

Note 2: Most drinking water filters are meant to be used with municipally treated (disinfected), microbiologically safe tap water only. They do not remove bacteria and will not protect you adequately in an emergency situation.

Spawning salmon return to Still Creek in Vancouver

Word is spreading this week (Nov 15, 2012) that, for the first time in 70 – 80 years, spawning salmon have been spotted frolicking in one of Vancouver’s only three remaining creeks.

How wonderful that the salmon are returning, and that we humans are now moved by this kind of news! Our values and actions are definitely shifting to support the natural environment which sustains us.

Still Creek, which flows from Burnaby to Vancouver, was once the most polluted waterway in British Columbia. Due to extensive efforts by many concerned groups and individuals, this precious waterway has been cleaned up and is slowly coming back to life.

Spawning Chum salmon have been seen in Still Creek beside the Cornett Rd/Natal St intersection in Vancouver this week.

Much credit is due to the tireless work of Mark Angelo and the Rivers Institute at BCIT, true champions of fish habitats and the wild fresh waterways of British Columbia.

Some other groups working on stream daylighting and creek restoration in Metro Vancouver are…

http://www.falsecreekwatershed.org/

http://www.mappingwaters.seecechen.org/

http://www.bchydro.com/guides_tips/green_your_community/community_initiatives/uncover_your_streams.html

http://vancouver.ca/home-property-development/restoring-streams.aspx

http://seatoskygreenguide.ca/infrastructure/thain_creek_daylighting

http://seatoskygreenguide.ca/infrastructure/spanish_bank_creek_daylighting

http://www.raincoastappliedecology.ca/ecodesign.html

Vancouver’s Hidden Streams. The blue lines indicate small urban streams hidden under the Vancouver’s developed landscape. Source: Har¬ris (1987).