Finn Slough & Climate Change
Gordon Katic of CBC tells us that Finn Slough lies on the front lines of climate change. "Nestled on the banks of the Fraser River, this community will eventually be overcome by flooding as sea levels rise." I'm not surprised; the slough community lies on the edge of a saltwater marsh. Coastal erosion from increased tanker traffic in the Fraser River has also increased, impacting the marsh's ability to act as a buffer for waver action.
As climate change increases the frequency and severity of flooding and coastal storm surges, BC municipalities are preparing for the sea level to rise by half a meter by the year 2050. Actions included investment in protective dykes. But Finn Slough's homesteader community sits outside the dyke system. Several homes have already flooded from seasonal high tides. Even the boardwalks that connected the homes flooded, leaving people stranded. Tamsin Lyle, engineer with Ebbwater Consulting says bleakly, "It's not a good news story. Probably 60-70 years from now, this entire piece of land is going to be underwater every single day."
Nina Munteanu is a Canadian ecologist / limnologist and novelist. She is co-editor of Europa SF and currently teaches writing courses at George Brown College and the University of Toronto. Visit www.ninamunteanu.ca for the latest on her books. Nina’s bilingual “La natura dell’acqua / The Way of Water” was published by Mincione Edizioni in Rome. Her non-fiction book “Water Is…” by Pixl Press (Vancouver) was selected by Margaret Atwood in the New York Times ‘Year in Reading’ and was chosen as the 2017 Summer Read by Water Canada. Her novel “A Diary in the Age of Water” was released by Inanna Publications (Toronto) in June 2020.
