00:00:02.684 --> 00:00:05.851
(pensive piano music)

00:00:24.122 --> 00:00:27.943
(distant birds chirping)
(pensive piano music)

00:00:27.943 --> 00:00:31.693
(plaintive orchestral music)

00:00:36.890 --> 00:00:39.260
- [Narrator] Birds are
one of the best-known

00:00:39.260 --> 00:00:42.373
and most highly-valued
elements of the natural world,

00:00:43.260 --> 00:00:46.423
comprising around 11,000
different species.

00:00:47.630 --> 00:00:50.873
And birds are the most
mobile creatures on Earth.

00:00:51.761 --> 00:00:55.511
(plaintive orchestral music)

00:01:50.570 --> 00:01:53.050
The world of birds is connected to a vast

00:01:53.050 --> 00:01:56.350
international network of
ecologists, biologists,

00:01:56.350 --> 00:01:58.563
ornithologists and birders.

00:02:00.190 --> 00:02:02.880
This shared natural heritage
brings people together

00:02:02.880 --> 00:02:06.910
for conservation, especially
around important bird habitats

00:02:06.910 --> 00:02:08.180
often called IBAs.

00:02:09.420 --> 00:02:10.600
- Birds are really important.

00:02:10.600 --> 00:02:14.700
They connect boreal
forests to tropical forests

00:02:14.700 --> 00:02:18.223
and create these links that
many other species don't create.

00:02:19.230 --> 00:02:20.940
They're also really
important species in that

00:02:20.940 --> 00:02:23.890
they are sensitive to
changes in the environment.

00:02:23.890 --> 00:02:27.070
So, looking at birds can
help you understand changes

00:02:27.070 --> 00:02:28.858
in a broader environment.

00:02:28.858 --> 00:02:32.050
(upbeat orchestral music)

00:02:32.050 --> 00:02:33.880
- [Narrator] The world's
best ornithologists

00:02:33.880 --> 00:02:36.760
are understanding how important birds are,

00:02:36.760 --> 00:02:38.810
and it is in Vancouver, Canada

00:02:38.810 --> 00:02:40.373
that they recently convened.

00:02:42.140 --> 00:02:44.690
With the loss of global biodiversity

00:02:44.690 --> 00:02:47.370
and climate change in
mind, the Vancouver meeting

00:02:47.370 --> 00:02:51.400
was marked by a smoky sky
caused by forest fires,

00:02:51.400 --> 00:02:54.013
a new feature of the region in the summer.

00:02:54.013 --> 00:02:57.513
(upbeat orchestral music)

00:03:04.360 --> 00:03:07.030
This part of North
America is also recognized

00:03:07.030 --> 00:03:10.170
for its exceptional
permanent bird population,

00:03:10.170 --> 00:03:13.848
and for the migration
of several bird species.

00:03:13.848 --> 00:03:17.348
(upbeat orchestral music)

00:03:25.800 --> 00:03:27.820
Development on the west coast of Canada

00:03:27.820 --> 00:03:30.540
is threatening the lives
of birds in this region,

00:03:30.540 --> 00:03:33.530
making this international
meeting especially important

00:03:33.530 --> 00:03:36.923
to bird lovers in Canada,
as well as around the world.

00:03:37.861 --> 00:03:42.861
(birds cawing)
(upbeat music)

00:03:44.290 --> 00:03:47.580
- We say birds are organisms in this world

00:03:47.580 --> 00:03:51.160
without national
boundaries, and that shows

00:03:51.160 --> 00:03:55.560
ornithologists often need to
collaborate with each other.

00:03:55.560 --> 00:03:58.440
We need the support of all the countries,

00:03:58.440 --> 00:04:02.210
governments like Canada,
and every other place

00:04:02.210 --> 00:04:06.330
to encourage their scientists
to do more research

00:04:06.330 --> 00:04:08.950
and to collaborate with everyone else,

00:04:08.950 --> 00:04:12.983
and IOU stand ready to provide assistance.

00:04:14.960 --> 00:04:17.150
- [Narrator] One of the most
impressive ornithologist

00:04:17.150 --> 00:04:20.440
presentations you can
see involves visual art,

00:04:20.440 --> 00:04:23.150
bird conservation, food sustainability,

00:04:23.150 --> 00:04:25.072
and peace in the Middle East.

00:04:25.072 --> 00:04:27.830
(mellow orchestral music)

00:04:27.830 --> 00:04:30.193
The presenters are Dr. Yossi Leshem,

00:04:31.460 --> 00:04:33.123
Dr. Alexandre Roulin,

00:04:34.620 --> 00:04:37.120
and General Mansour Abu Rashid.

00:04:37.120 --> 00:04:40.110
For many years now, they have
traveled around the planet

00:04:40.110 --> 00:04:43.523
proposing a new diplomatic
vision to inspire the world.

00:04:44.560 --> 00:04:46.490
During their presentation, an art book

00:04:46.490 --> 00:04:48.413
about the Dead Sea was launched.

00:04:50.240 --> 00:04:52.630
This fantastic collection of paintings

00:04:52.630 --> 00:04:55.200
is the result of work of a
group of talented artists

00:04:55.200 --> 00:04:56.911
from around the world.

00:04:56.911 --> 00:05:00.411
(upbeat orchestral music)

00:05:02.590 --> 00:05:06.210
Bringing awareness to the
Dead Sea is the intention.

00:05:06.210 --> 00:05:08.880
Saving this jewel of the
Middle East from dying

00:05:08.880 --> 00:05:10.043
is the objective.

00:05:12.060 --> 00:05:15.510
Yossi Leshem is well-renowned
for his work with birds,

00:05:15.510 --> 00:05:18.970
tagging them with Muslim,
Jewish and Christian names

00:05:18.970 --> 00:05:21.220
because they travel
from country-to-country

00:05:21.220 --> 00:05:23.503
without passport or special visa.

00:05:24.690 --> 00:05:28.140
- We decided to put 120 radios on the back

00:05:28.140 --> 00:05:30.170
of white storks from Germany.

00:05:30.170 --> 00:05:33.750
All of them are moving to
Israel up to South Africa,

00:05:33.750 --> 00:05:36.760
so that you  to learn
where are the most important

00:05:36.760 --> 00:05:39.130
stopover sites where they are stopping

00:05:39.130 --> 00:05:40.580
to learn how to protect them.

00:05:41.660 --> 00:05:44.100
- [Narrator] The barn
owl is a killing machine,

00:05:44.100 --> 00:05:45.990
but the siblings can negotiate

00:05:45.990 --> 00:05:48.370
who is going to devour the next prey

00:05:48.370 --> 00:05:50.023
and avoid fighting for food.

00:05:51.420 --> 00:05:53.743
As humans, we should be inspired.

00:05:54.768 --> 00:05:58.457
- We want to promote environmentally
friendly agriculture.

00:05:58.457 --> 00:06:01.530
And for this goal, we favor barn owls.

00:06:01.530 --> 00:06:04.480
We fix boxes in the fields.

00:06:04.480 --> 00:06:06.960
Barn owls go in these boxes to breed,

00:06:06.960 --> 00:06:08.730
and they do the job of the poison,

00:06:08.730 --> 00:06:10.230
they eat the rodents.

00:06:10.230 --> 00:06:13.082
One family of barn owls
eat between two thousand

00:06:13.082 --> 00:06:15.850
and six thousand rodents per year.

00:06:15.850 --> 00:06:18.170
- It's not only an important
environmental project

00:06:18.170 --> 00:06:21.100
to protect the birds, it's
also getting people together,

00:06:21.100 --> 00:06:24.610
the farmers, and the children,
and the conservationists,

00:06:24.610 --> 00:06:26.810
and suddenly when they
walk together in the field,

00:06:26.810 --> 00:06:27.800
we are becoming friends.

00:06:27.800 --> 00:06:30.510
Some of the seminar, we
will even dance together.

00:06:30.510 --> 00:06:33.560
So, we have now hundreds
of farmers from Palestine,

00:06:33.560 --> 00:06:36.380
from Jordan, and from Israel
who are meeting each other,

00:06:36.380 --> 00:06:38.680
and I think it's a big story of success.

00:06:38.680 --> 00:06:39.640
- [Alexandre] We love everybody.

00:06:39.640 --> 00:06:40.850
We want that peace.

00:06:40.850 --> 00:06:43.540
We want everybody together, to be happy.

00:06:43.540 --> 00:06:45.000
- [Narrator] The reputation of neutrality

00:06:45.000 --> 00:06:47.800
of Swiss people like Dr. Alexandre Roulin

00:06:47.800 --> 00:06:51.860
already opened new doors to
promote peace and biodiversity.

00:06:51.860 --> 00:06:54.783
- And we have to use it
for the good of the people.

00:06:55.630 --> 00:06:57.330
- In the Middle East, you know the profit

00:06:57.330 --> 00:06:59.490
is going on, unfortunately.

00:06:59.490 --> 00:07:01.190
And the peace is coming now,

00:07:01.190 --> 00:07:03.920
not with the dove in the olive branch,

00:07:03.920 --> 00:07:05.530
but with the barn owl.

00:07:05.530 --> 00:07:07.130
The barn owl is doing the peace.

00:07:07.130 --> 00:07:08.940
So, we are not naive, we work together.

00:07:08.940 --> 00:07:11.950
I believe in peace, I think
that if we have peace,

00:07:11.950 --> 00:07:14.220
we can do better science, better education

00:07:14.220 --> 00:07:15.740
and everything is better.

00:07:15.740 --> 00:07:18.090
But the politician are failing.

00:07:18.090 --> 00:07:19.970
- [Narrator] General Mansour Abu Rashid

00:07:19.970 --> 00:07:22.690
is a man with a fantastic destiny.

00:07:22.690 --> 00:07:25.320
He went from war to peace,

00:07:25.320 --> 00:07:27.010
and long-lasting friendships

00:07:27.010 --> 00:07:29.650
because of ecological projects.

00:07:29.650 --> 00:07:33.810
- We asked many professors and experts

00:07:33.810 --> 00:07:35.740
from North Africa to join us.

00:07:35.740 --> 00:07:39.760
They joined us, with
people coming from Turkey,

00:07:39.760 --> 00:07:43.560
from Greece, from Italy,
also from Palestine,

00:07:43.560 --> 00:07:45.293
Israel, and Switzerland.

00:07:46.490 --> 00:07:48.960
- [Narrator] This ecological
and diplomatic project

00:07:48.960 --> 00:07:52.340
is spreading around the
world, and more scientists,

00:07:52.340 --> 00:07:55.870
farmers, students,
ecologists, and politicians

00:07:55.870 --> 00:07:58.580
are discovering the true
virtue of the barn owl

00:07:58.580 --> 00:08:01.446
as a symbol of peace and biodiversity.

00:08:01.446 --> 00:08:03.696
(clapping)

00:08:06.405 --> 00:08:07.757
- [Mansour] Thank you.

00:08:10.002 --> 00:08:11.820
(upbeat orchestral music)

00:08:11.820 --> 00:08:13.680
- [Narrator] At the
Vancouver Convention Center,

00:08:13.680 --> 00:08:15.570
hundreds of presentations were just

00:08:15.570 --> 00:08:16.933
as different as the others.

00:08:17.850 --> 00:08:20.133
Here's one of the speakers
from South Africa.

00:08:21.320 --> 00:08:24.330
- We're now sitting with
a situation where we have

00:08:24.330 --> 00:08:27.160
globally important
populations of albatrosses

00:08:27.160 --> 00:08:29.523
being threatened by mice at two islands,

00:08:31.020 --> 00:08:33.540
What we're gearing up towards is trying

00:08:33.540 --> 00:08:36.170
to eradicate mice from these islands.

00:08:36.170 --> 00:08:37.620
The technology does exist.

00:08:37.620 --> 00:08:39.610
The New Zealanders have
developed this approach

00:08:39.610 --> 00:08:42.760
of using helicopters
to drop poisoned bait.

00:08:42.760 --> 00:08:44.370
You have to cover the whole island

00:08:44.370 --> 00:08:46.630
in a relatively short period

00:08:46.630 --> 00:08:49.380
because you can't afford to
miss any bit of the island.

00:08:50.320 --> 00:08:52.650
The idea is that you deliver poisoned bait

00:08:52.650 --> 00:08:55.140
to every single mouse on the island.

00:08:55.140 --> 00:08:57.150
The technology started
with rats initially,

00:08:57.150 --> 00:08:59.620
which are easier to work
with because they're bigger,

00:08:59.620 --> 00:09:01.860
they have larger home
ranges, so your tolerance

00:09:01.860 --> 00:09:05.250
in terms of how finely you
have to spread the bait

00:09:05.250 --> 00:09:07.850
is a little bit greater, but with mice,

00:09:07.850 --> 00:09:09.550
you've got higher
densities of individuals.

00:09:09.550 --> 00:09:12.250
You have to be very precise
where you get the bait to.

00:09:13.120 --> 00:09:15.090
But we're reasonably
confident that we will be able

00:09:15.090 --> 00:09:17.823
to eradicate mice from
both of these islands.

00:09:19.570 --> 00:09:22.190
As the sub-Antarctic warms
up and becomes drier,

00:09:22.190 --> 00:09:24.210
the mouse numbers each summer build up

00:09:24.210 --> 00:09:26.530
to higher numbers and higher numbers,

00:09:26.530 --> 00:09:29.100
and we've been able to track those changes

00:09:29.100 --> 00:09:31.323
and link that to attacks on birds.

00:09:32.560 --> 00:09:35.640
- [Narrator] At least 40%
of bird species worldwide

00:09:35.640 --> 00:09:37.443
have declining populations.

00:09:38.430 --> 00:09:40.820
Some bird populations are stable

00:09:40.820 --> 00:09:42.550
and a few are increasing,

00:09:42.550 --> 00:09:44.750
a reflection of conservation efforts,

00:09:44.750 --> 00:09:46.480
but also of the fact that some groups

00:09:46.480 --> 00:09:49.500
can thrive in human-altered habitats.

00:09:49.500 --> 00:09:50.890
Here is an interesting project

00:09:50.890 --> 00:09:52.980
in the Vancouver region in Canada.

00:09:52.980 --> 00:09:56.930
- Well, this morning, we
are going to initiate,

00:09:56.930 --> 00:10:00.920
we're going to build a
Bald Eagle nest framework

00:10:00.920 --> 00:10:05.640
in the city of Surrey's
first Bald Eagle preserve.

00:10:05.640 --> 00:10:08.340
Surrounding us is a housing development

00:10:08.340 --> 00:10:10.410
by Dawson+Sawyer.

00:10:10.410 --> 00:10:13.500
And in the middle of
this housing development

00:10:13.500 --> 00:10:16.020
initially was a Bald Eagle nest.

00:10:16.020 --> 00:10:19.620
And to get permission
to build the subdivision

00:10:19.620 --> 00:10:23.470
in the area of the eagle nesting site,

00:10:23.470 --> 00:10:25.740
an active nesting site,

00:10:25.740 --> 00:10:30.150
we came to an agreement
between the developer,

00:10:30.150 --> 00:10:32.650
me speaking on behalf of eagles,

00:10:32.650 --> 00:10:36.420
the city of Surrey being
the zoning definers,

00:10:36.420 --> 00:10:38.990
and the provincial government,

00:10:38.990 --> 00:10:43.780
with the Department of Forestry
Lands and Natural Resources,

00:10:43.780 --> 00:10:45.980
they administer the Wildlife Act.

00:10:45.980 --> 00:10:48.157
So all these players we
got together and we said,

00:10:48.157 --> 00:10:53.157
"Okay, how do we get a Bald Eagle to nest

00:10:53.577 --> 00:10:55.747
"in the middle of this subdivision?

00:10:55.747 --> 00:10:59.867
"All the surrounding subdivisions
are devoid of trees."

00:11:01.472 --> 00:11:04.222
(metal clanking)

00:11:08.761 --> 00:11:11.928
(mechanical whirring)

00:11:15.117 --> 00:11:20.117
(melancholic music)
(birds chirping)

00:11:26.120 --> 00:11:29.160
Over the years, the people
to the south of this

00:11:29.160 --> 00:11:33.670
have claimed the Canadian
Bald Eagle as their emblem,

00:11:33.670 --> 00:11:35.780
and so they want to call
it the American Bald Eagle.

00:11:35.780 --> 00:11:39.730
Well, of course, most of the
Bald Eagle come from Canada,

00:11:39.730 --> 00:11:43.200
so they're Canadian, but
we share them with them.

00:11:43.200 --> 00:11:44.180
We share them.

00:11:46.380 --> 00:11:49.830
We're, to a large extent, known for having

00:11:49.830 --> 00:11:52.810
introduced cameras in the Bald Eagle nest,

00:11:52.810 --> 00:11:55.460
and that's now become
popular, not only in America

00:11:55.460 --> 00:11:59.890
but there are wildlife cameras
now all over the world.

00:11:59.890 --> 00:12:01.513
But we kinda pioneered that.

00:12:02.760 --> 00:12:06.160
The Bald Eagle if one of the
world's seven big fish eaters,

00:12:06.160 --> 00:12:08.720
and they're literally
all over North America.

00:12:08.720 --> 00:12:12.120
Wherever there are
riparian ways, waterways,

00:12:12.120 --> 00:12:16.850
rivers, creeks, ponds, lakes, oceans,

00:12:16.850 --> 00:12:20.163
there you will find eagles
for part of the year.

00:12:22.320 --> 00:12:24.360
An incredibly productive bird,

00:12:24.360 --> 00:12:28.430
and once America quit shooting eagle,

00:12:28.430 --> 00:12:31.540
the eagle began to tame down.

00:12:31.540 --> 00:12:34.710
It began to accept humans.

00:12:34.710 --> 00:12:39.120
And in our area here where
I am, in the Fraser Valley,

00:12:39.120 --> 00:12:41.810
in the early 60s, I did aerial surveys.

00:12:41.810 --> 00:12:45.680
I could find three pairs
of nesting Bald Eagles.

00:12:45.680 --> 00:12:47.910
Fortunately, we quit doing that,

00:12:47.910 --> 00:12:50.410
and the eagle has rewarded us.

00:12:50.410 --> 00:12:53.160
They assessed that we're
not going to shoot them.

00:12:53.160 --> 00:12:56.290
It took about 25 years for this to happen.

00:12:56.290 --> 00:13:00.000
But that we wouldn't
shoot them, and the towns

00:13:00.000 --> 00:13:04.630
had more food availability
in them, than the wilderness.

00:13:04.630 --> 00:13:07.890
And a kind of simple example
of that is,

00:13:07.890 --> 00:13:11.390
well, I did surveys of
like a thousand eagle nests

00:13:11.390 --> 00:13:14.030
out on the wilderness coast.

00:13:14.030 --> 00:13:18.340
They would be barely
producing one young per nest.

00:13:18.340 --> 00:13:20.570
Here in the town, we're producing

00:13:20.570 --> 00:13:23.770
an awful lot higher
percentage raising two young.

00:13:23.770 --> 00:13:25.940
There is just so much more food,

00:13:25.940 --> 00:13:29.990
so much ditches full of fish and mud crabs

00:13:29.990 --> 00:13:33.060
along the edges of every little ditch.

00:13:33.060 --> 00:13:38.060
It is rabbit habitat, and foxes,
and of course, feral cats.

00:13:39.990 --> 00:13:43.790
All of these make wonderful
food, particularly

00:13:43.790 --> 00:13:46.060
since cars run them over.

00:13:46.060 --> 00:13:47.710
These are not quarries that eagles

00:13:47.710 --> 00:13:49.800
would normally readily catch,

00:13:49.800 --> 00:13:53.313
but they do like road kills.

00:13:53.313 --> 00:13:55.896
(mellow music)

00:13:59.700 --> 00:14:04.700
(twittering)
(mellow music)

00:14:14.930 --> 00:14:18.390
We're the south in the
winter for Bald Eagles.

00:14:18.390 --> 00:14:22.600
We are the southern place
where they accumulate,

00:14:22.600 --> 00:14:25.210
where there is food all winter.

00:14:25.210 --> 00:14:29.800
Right here, the last big,
food source in Canada.

00:14:29.800 --> 00:14:32.440
There's so many fish in our river.

00:14:32.440 --> 00:14:35.930
And the timing is perfect,
because our salmons spawn

00:14:35.930 --> 00:14:38.630
late in the year, November,
and they're available

00:14:38.630 --> 00:14:40.320
in the rivers in December, January,

00:14:40.320 --> 00:14:42.510
and sometimes into February.

00:14:42.510 --> 00:14:46.990
(chirping)
(mellow music)

00:14:46.990 --> 00:14:50.270
So, all our eagles,
when they nest in June,

00:14:50.270 --> 00:14:54.100
even July and August in the Fraser Valley,

00:14:54.100 --> 00:14:56.870
they all, with their young, fly north,

00:14:56.870 --> 00:14:59.500
because that's where the early salmon

00:14:59.500 --> 00:15:02.940
are laying on the rivers
from late June onward.

00:15:02.940 --> 00:15:06.500
So, there's millions
of pounds of free food,

00:15:06.500 --> 00:15:08.560
and they all learn to go northward,

00:15:08.560 --> 00:15:11.090
but, and there's the big but,

00:15:11.090 --> 00:15:13.913
but as winter encroaches in November,

00:15:15.640 --> 00:15:16.990
the water gets all frozen.

00:15:16.990 --> 00:15:19.460
There can be salmon in
the river, dead ones,

00:15:19.460 --> 00:15:22.560
spawned-out ones, but it's under ice.

00:15:22.560 --> 00:15:25.460
So the eagles move southward,

00:15:25.460 --> 00:15:29.820
and that's when we get our
huge quantities of eagles.

00:15:29.820 --> 00:15:32.287
It's in November, December,
often the peak is,

00:15:32.287 --> 00:15:37.080
and even into January,
cumulating here all winter,

00:15:37.080 --> 00:15:39.050
because we don't freeze up here.

00:15:39.050 --> 00:15:42.109
So, our salmon carcasses
are always available.

00:15:42.109 --> 00:15:47.060
(twittering)
(mellow music)

00:15:47.060 --> 00:15:50.300
There's probably well over 500 pairs

00:15:50.300 --> 00:15:54.720
nesting in the area that
I earlier, 50 years ago,

00:15:54.720 --> 00:15:56.500
could only find three pairs.

00:15:56.500 --> 00:16:01.490
That's a wonderful statement
of how we have changed

00:16:01.490 --> 00:16:04.610
our attitude to these big predators.

00:16:04.610 --> 00:16:07.440
We can make a difference, and we have.

00:16:07.440 --> 00:16:10.470
The eagle has responded beautifully

00:16:10.470 --> 00:16:12.823
to the fact that we've
offered them protection.

00:16:13.809 --> 00:16:16.476
(pensive music)

00:16:25.320 --> 00:16:26.880
- [Narrator] Here in Canada, the eagle

00:16:26.880 --> 00:16:28.633
has a special significance.

00:16:29.514 --> 00:16:32.950
- When we pass away into the next world,

00:16:32.950 --> 00:16:37.940
the eagle takes us to our Creator.

00:16:37.940 --> 00:16:40.350
And it takes our prayers up, and the eagle

00:16:40.350 --> 00:16:43.250
keeps soaring around and round us.

00:16:43.250 --> 00:16:46.440
And every prayer, every
song that you sing,

00:16:46.440 --> 00:16:48.830
the eagle takes it and
brings it to Creator

00:16:48.830 --> 00:16:50.888
and to our ancestors.

00:16:50.888 --> 00:16:54.471
(crowd cheering, clapping)

00:16:58.180 --> 00:16:59.800
- [Narrator] Conservation works better

00:16:59.800 --> 00:17:03.260
when we protect habitats to
save an entire ecosystem.

00:17:03.260 --> 00:17:06.730
An example of that is that
by helping a fish habitat,

00:17:06.730 --> 00:17:08.698
we can help birds as well.

00:17:08.698 --> 00:17:11.281
(upbeat music)

00:17:12.160 --> 00:17:14.980
- Today, we're out here
in the Fraser estuary

00:17:14.980 --> 00:17:18.500
in the south arms of the
main arm of the river,

00:17:18.500 --> 00:17:20.060
right where the river meets the ocean.

00:17:20.060 --> 00:17:22.780
We've been doing some research looking at

00:17:22.780 --> 00:17:25.060
the juvenile salmon of migration period,

00:17:25.060 --> 00:17:28.140
so, there's juvenile
salmon from different areas

00:17:28.140 --> 00:17:29.290
of the Fraser watershed,

00:17:29.290 --> 00:17:32.010
that all have to migrate
through the estuary.

00:17:32.010 --> 00:17:34.170
And many different species and populations

00:17:34.170 --> 00:17:36.560
rely on these habitats in the estuary,

00:17:36.560 --> 00:17:40.510
so, we come out and we
use a variety of methods.

00:17:40.510 --> 00:17:42.560
Today we were beach seining.

00:17:42.560 --> 00:17:45.870
So, we use our beach seine to
try to capture juvenile salmon

00:17:45.870 --> 00:17:49.020
and we go out to different
habitats in different areas

00:17:49.020 --> 00:17:52.240
to try to figure out when
the different populations

00:17:52.240 --> 00:17:54.760
and different species are
coming down to the estuary,

00:17:54.760 --> 00:17:57.220
how long they're spending in the estuary,

00:17:57.220 --> 00:17:59.440
what habitats they prefer
while they're here,

00:17:59.440 --> 00:18:01.980
and then also looking
at how they're growing

00:18:01.980 --> 00:18:05.480
while they're here, so
our goal is to be able to

00:18:05.480 --> 00:18:08.090
catch them when they're first
arriving in the estuary,

00:18:08.090 --> 00:18:10.730
and catch them continuously
while they're here

00:18:10.730 --> 00:18:13.360
until the very end, so that
we can get a really good idea

00:18:13.360 --> 00:18:16.240
of which habitats salmon are using

00:18:16.240 --> 00:18:18.942
and which ones are the most important.

00:18:18.942 --> 00:18:21.525
(mellow music)

00:18:22.660 --> 00:18:26.470
We set up all basically from
March until early August

00:18:26.470 --> 00:18:29.670
and that whole time, there's
different juvenile salmon

00:18:29.670 --> 00:18:31.087
using the estuary.

00:18:31.087 --> 00:18:34.440
(mellow music)

00:18:34.440 --> 00:18:35.650
On the main stem of the river,

00:18:35.650 --> 00:18:38.740
we have a jetty that
extends from the river mouth

00:18:38.740 --> 00:18:41.550
out into the estuary
for several kilometers,

00:18:41.550 --> 00:18:43.450
and there's no way for juvenile salmon

00:18:43.450 --> 00:18:47.280
moving down the river to
get off that main stem

00:18:47.280 --> 00:18:50.040
and to get into the
near-shore brackish habitats

00:18:50.040 --> 00:18:51.810
that they rely on.

00:18:51.810 --> 00:18:55.330
And they need to be able to
acclimate to the saltwater

00:18:55.330 --> 00:18:56.800
before they further into the ocean.

00:18:56.800 --> 00:18:59.800
So the Raincoast Conservation Foundation

00:18:59.800 --> 00:19:02.230
is working with Fisheries
and Oceans Canada

00:19:02.230 --> 00:19:04.300
to try to create some openings

00:19:04.300 --> 00:19:06.695
in some of these manmade structure.

00:19:06.695 --> 00:19:08.220
(mellow music)

00:19:08.220 --> 00:19:10.590
- [Narrator] The Fraser
estuary is a productive

00:19:10.590 --> 00:19:13.820
and complex ecosystem,
where marine mammals,

00:19:13.820 --> 00:19:18.080
fish, planktons, plants,
insects and birds live.

00:19:18.080 --> 00:19:20.680
And each part of this puzzle is important

00:19:20.680 --> 00:19:24.180
to maintain the balance and
health of the ecosystem.

00:19:24.180 --> 00:19:25.680
- [David] And we know
that this one is a Sockeye

00:19:25.680 --> 00:19:29.180
instead of a Chinook because
the parr marks are smaller,

00:19:29.180 --> 00:19:32.200
and they're not uniform, and some of them

00:19:32.200 --> 00:19:34.680
are just crossing this
little lateral line,

00:19:34.680 --> 00:19:36.530
whereas with the Chinook, their parr marks

00:19:36.530 --> 00:19:38.290
are much bigger and wider,

00:19:38.290 --> 00:19:40.193
and they come well below this line.

00:19:41.239 --> 00:19:45.315
(mellow music)
(quacking)

00:19:45.315 --> 00:19:46.240
(mellow music)

00:19:46.240 --> 00:19:49.140
- [Narrator] The local
ecosystems of the Fraser estuary

00:19:49.140 --> 00:19:51.240
and the Salish Sea are under threat

00:19:51.240 --> 00:19:52.883
from many different projects.

00:19:54.600 --> 00:19:56.710
Here, on the west coast in Canada,

00:19:56.710 --> 00:19:59.890
is a sensitive area called Roberts Bank.

00:19:59.890 --> 00:20:03.220
It is a major stopover
for the Western Sandpiper.

00:20:03.220 --> 00:20:06.100
An important group of activists
are calling for the halt

00:20:06.100 --> 00:20:08.420
of the Port of Vancouver expansion project

00:20:08.420 --> 00:20:09.563
in this specific area.

00:20:11.770 --> 00:20:14.253
- Roberts Bank is under threat.

00:20:15.400 --> 00:20:18.450
Vancouver Fraser Port Authority

00:20:18.450 --> 00:20:22.400
wants to add a second container terminal

00:20:22.400 --> 00:20:25.530
right slap bang in the middle

00:20:25.530 --> 00:20:30.250
of this crucial feeding
ground for Western Sandpipers

00:20:30.250 --> 00:20:32.960
and millions of other shorebirds.

00:20:32.960 --> 00:20:36.420
But the Western Sandpiper
species in particular

00:20:36.420 --> 00:20:40.490
relies on that stopover at Roberts Bank

00:20:40.490 --> 00:20:45.460
to fuel up for their next
leg north in the Arctic.

00:20:45.460 --> 00:20:49.330
- I've tagged Sandpipers
in Panama with radios

00:20:49.330 --> 00:20:52.537
and followed them up here,
and I know where they stop.

00:20:52.537 --> 00:20:55.300
The Roberts Bank is one of
the last places they stop

00:20:55.300 --> 00:20:59.420
before they have a long hop
to go from Roberts Bank,

00:20:59.420 --> 00:21:01.490
and they forage like crazy.

00:21:01.490 --> 00:21:02.950
And then they had this long hop

00:21:02.950 --> 00:21:05.970
where they go to Alaska to breed.

00:21:05.970 --> 00:21:08.740
But in that time,

00:21:08.740 --> 00:21:10.880
from the time they leave Roberts Bank

00:21:10.880 --> 00:21:13.390
til the time they get to Alaska,

00:21:13.390 --> 00:21:16.620
oftentimes it's nonstop, it's a long hop.

00:21:16.620 --> 00:21:19.750
And so they have to eat enough
and get enough nutrients

00:21:19.750 --> 00:21:22.280
in order to reach the breeding grounds.

00:21:22.280 --> 00:21:25.308
And if they don't, they don't breed.

00:21:25.308 --> 00:21:28.475
(pensive piano music)

00:21:30.280 --> 00:21:33.960
We saw diatoms and
biofilm in their stomach,

00:21:33.960 --> 00:21:35.000
so that was curious.

00:21:35.000 --> 00:21:40.000
Biofilm's like a polymer secreted
mat with organic material,

00:21:42.100 --> 00:21:46.222
and diatoms, which are
little micro phytoplankton.

00:21:46.222 --> 00:21:49.305
(mellow piano music)

00:22:00.470 --> 00:22:03.090
The Western Sandpipers
need to eat the diatoms

00:22:03.090 --> 00:22:08.090
in Roberts Bank because they
provide an essential nutrient

00:22:08.460 --> 00:22:10.570
that the Sandpipers can't make,

00:22:10.570 --> 00:22:12.013
and neither can the Dunlins.

00:22:13.150 --> 00:22:15.970
It is EPA and DHA which is just

00:22:15.970 --> 00:22:19.840
a long chain unsaturated fatty acid.

00:22:19.840 --> 00:22:21.440
And these are very important

00:22:21.440 --> 00:22:23.930
because they're bioactive molecules

00:22:23.930 --> 00:22:28.630
that actually works with the
animal's physiological system,

00:22:28.630 --> 00:22:32.070
that it brings into a
system that will then attach

00:22:32.070 --> 00:22:35.180
to another molecule in the animal

00:22:35.180 --> 00:22:38.270
and will then initiate a huge cascade

00:22:38.270 --> 00:22:41.380
of physiological functions
that weren't there before,

00:22:41.380 --> 00:22:43.570
that weren't able to start before

00:22:43.570 --> 00:22:45.830
because that molecule wasn't there.

00:22:45.830 --> 00:22:49.960
They help in shutting down
the inflammation pathways.

00:22:49.960 --> 00:22:53.880
They help in the vision and they also help

00:22:53.880 --> 00:22:57.250
in changing muscles, theoretically,

00:22:57.250 --> 00:23:00.420
from the short hop flight muscles,

00:23:00.420 --> 00:23:02.510
the way you've seen
some of these shorebirds

00:23:02.510 --> 00:23:04.740
just kinda go up really fast and then

00:23:04.740 --> 00:23:07.393
just go to another area not very far away.

00:23:08.350 --> 00:23:11.670
From that short hop muscle,
they changed into these

00:23:11.670 --> 00:23:15.460
what we call marathon
muscles, long hop muscles

00:23:15.460 --> 00:23:18.580
that go nonstop, 'cause
these birds don't stop.

00:23:18.580 --> 00:23:21.293
There are very few places
they can feed on the way.

00:23:23.439 --> 00:23:26.606
(lilting piano music)

00:23:37.221 --> 00:23:39.050
They call them essential fatty acids

00:23:39.050 --> 00:23:40.980
because we can't make them.

00:23:40.980 --> 00:23:45.270
We, and most animals like fish,

00:23:45.270 --> 00:23:48.340
mammals, a lot of insects cannot.

00:23:48.340 --> 00:23:50.620
They don't have the enzymes to make them,

00:23:50.620 --> 00:23:54.190
so we depend on the
diatoms to give them to us.

00:23:54.190 --> 00:23:55.990
And that's how we get it from salmon.

00:23:55.990 --> 00:23:59.710
We always talk about salmon
having Omega-3 fatty acids,

00:23:59.710 --> 00:24:02.630
but it's because they've
eaten these smaller creatures

00:24:02.630 --> 00:24:04.500
that have the fatty acids.

00:24:04.500 --> 00:24:08.860
So, if something is built right in front

00:24:08.860 --> 00:24:13.300
of where this flow from the
Fraser River is coming out,

00:24:13.300 --> 00:24:16.490
the fatty acids cannot get out.

00:24:16.490 --> 00:24:18.980
They can't get out to the
whole Strait of Georgia.

00:24:18.980 --> 00:24:22.270
And this is when all the
salmon are coming up to breed

00:24:22.270 --> 00:24:27.080
and the orcas are out there,
and a myriad of other seabirds,

00:24:27.080 --> 00:24:32.050
and they're dependent on
fatty acids, this EPA and DHA.

00:24:32.050 --> 00:24:34.460
And also, if there's something built

00:24:34.460 --> 00:24:38.510
in front of the Fraser
River, what it'll do,

00:24:38.510 --> 00:24:42.170
if you just imagine the
Fraser River coming this way,

00:24:42.170 --> 00:24:44.203
and something stopping it,

00:24:46.240 --> 00:24:47.950
that will then just make more

00:24:47.950 --> 00:24:49.470
and more freshwater back there,

00:24:49.470 --> 00:24:52.810
and the marine diatoms can't live there.

00:24:52.810 --> 00:24:56.070
They have a very narrow range

00:24:56.070 --> 00:24:59.410
of the salinities they can tolerate.

00:24:59.410 --> 00:25:03.010
They can tolerate a little
bit of freshwater pulsing,

00:25:03.010 --> 00:25:06.700
but they can't tolerate
constant freshwater.

00:25:06.700 --> 00:25:09.700
So, the marine diatoms,
they'll more probably be

00:25:09.700 --> 00:25:13.490
replaced with the freshwater diatoms,

00:25:13.490 --> 00:25:16.313
and these don't have
what the shorebirds want.

00:25:17.170 --> 00:25:21.780
70 genera of shorebirds
have those tongues,

00:25:21.780 --> 00:25:24.510
have those little Velcro-type tongues.

00:25:24.510 --> 00:25:27.820
And so that shows you
how important diatoms

00:25:27.820 --> 00:25:32.603
and biofilm are for almost
every shorebird imaginable.

00:25:33.820 --> 00:25:35.760
- [Narrator] Local birds
are an important part

00:25:35.760 --> 00:25:37.470
of the local ecosystem,

00:25:37.470 --> 00:25:40.870
but migratory birds are
part of multiple ecosystems

00:25:40.870 --> 00:25:43.050
located far apart from each other.

00:25:43.050 --> 00:25:46.080
And that brings new challenges.

00:25:46.080 --> 00:25:48.580
- The primary thing we need to consider

00:25:48.580 --> 00:25:53.580
is to maintain good habitat
for the birds to survive.

00:25:55.130 --> 00:25:57.130
Regardless whether it's breeding habitat,

00:25:57.130 --> 00:26:00.530
wintering habitat, or migration route,

00:26:00.530 --> 00:26:02.810
without habitat, whatever else we do

00:26:02.810 --> 00:26:05.070
is like keeping something in the zoo.

00:26:05.070 --> 00:26:07.730
You can keep it on show,
but that's not the same

00:26:07.730 --> 00:26:09.470
as surviving in the wild.

00:26:09.470 --> 00:26:12.060
So, to my mind, habitat protection

00:26:12.060 --> 00:26:16.130
is of the utmost importance, but we know

00:26:16.130 --> 00:26:19.310
habitat damage, habitat degradation,

00:26:19.310 --> 00:26:21.350
is happening everyday.

00:26:21.350 --> 00:26:24.420
I mean, just look at the
trash we throw into the ocean

00:26:24.420 --> 00:26:27.070
and the damage it's
doing to marine animals,

00:26:27.070 --> 00:26:28.889
including marine birds.

00:26:28.889 --> 00:26:31.722
(mid-tempo music)

00:26:33.210 --> 00:26:34.560
- So, a lot of these birds that are eating

00:26:34.560 --> 00:26:36.970
a lot of plastic are scavengers,

00:26:36.970 --> 00:26:38.760
and so when they get
a feeding opportunity,

00:26:38.760 --> 00:26:40.660
they need to maximize that opportunity,

00:26:40.660 --> 00:26:42.430
trying to eat as much as possible.

00:26:42.430 --> 00:26:44.410
And if they've got a stomach
that's half full of plastic,

00:26:44.410 --> 00:26:46.840
it reduces the amount of
food that they can eat.

00:26:46.840 --> 00:26:49.500
It's like having your
stomach volume-reduced

00:26:49.500 --> 00:26:51.560
by stapling or something.

00:26:51.560 --> 00:26:55.030
And then the other concern
around plastic ingestion

00:26:55.030 --> 00:26:56.610
is obviously the toxic compounds

00:26:56.610 --> 00:27:00.248
that might be brought into
the body with plastics,

00:27:00.248 --> 00:27:02.070
additives, but things like flame retardants

00:27:02.070 --> 00:27:04.520
and plasticizers and colorants,

00:27:04.520 --> 00:27:07.710
can have significant toxic
effects on the birds.

00:27:07.710 --> 00:27:10.730
And then there are these
longterm legacy pollutants,

00:27:10.730 --> 00:27:13.710
things like PCBs and DDT
that have been drifting

00:27:13.710 --> 00:27:15.920
around in the environment for decades now.

00:27:15.920 --> 00:27:16.880
They're very long-lived.

00:27:16.880 --> 00:27:20.860
They've been banned since the 1980s

00:27:20.860 --> 00:27:22.750
in terms of the Stockholm Convention,

00:27:22.750 --> 00:27:24.230
but because they're so long-lived,

00:27:24.230 --> 00:27:26.280
they're still drifting
around in the environment.

00:27:26.280 --> 00:27:29.240
And what happens as plastics
float around at sea,

00:27:29.240 --> 00:27:32.600
they act as little sponges
soaking up these toxins.

00:27:32.600 --> 00:27:35.450
And then when they're
ingested by marine organisms,

00:27:35.450 --> 00:27:37.020
there's the potential at least for them

00:27:37.020 --> 00:27:40.437
to diffuse out of the plastic
into the body of the bird.

00:27:40.437 --> 00:27:42.800
So, it's a potential vector for moving

00:27:42.800 --> 00:27:45.490
these pollutants into marine food webs.

00:27:45.490 --> 00:27:48.240
So, that's probably the
most significant concern.

00:27:48.240 --> 00:27:51.208
And I think that's why people
get hit up about plastics.

00:27:51.208 --> 00:27:53.920
There's this idea of
contaminating marine food webs

00:27:53.920 --> 00:27:55.320
'cause ultimately, most humans also

00:27:55.320 --> 00:27:57.523
are top predators of marine systems.

00:27:58.610 --> 00:28:02.550
- [Narrator] Worldwide, many
IBAs, important bird habitats,

00:28:02.550 --> 00:28:06.120
still lack legal protection
and adequate management.

00:28:06.120 --> 00:28:10.430
The IBA protection index
shows that 80% of IBAs

00:28:10.430 --> 00:28:13.360
are inadequately covered
by protected areas,

00:28:13.360 --> 00:28:16.300
and 1/3 are entirely unprotected.

00:28:16.300 --> 00:28:18.380
These sites should be
considered as priorities

00:28:18.380 --> 00:28:21.330
for appropriate forms
of statutory recognition

00:28:21.330 --> 00:28:22.893
and protection.

00:28:22.893 --> 00:28:26.110
(mellow music)

00:28:26.110 --> 00:28:27.920
The expansion of agriculture

00:28:27.920 --> 00:28:30.140
and the resulting habitat destruction

00:28:30.140 --> 00:28:31.490
is one of the greatest threats

00:28:31.490 --> 00:28:33.750
to the world's biodiversity.

00:28:33.750 --> 00:28:35.820
The area of the Earth's land surface

00:28:35.820 --> 00:28:37.390
given over to agriculture

00:28:37.390 --> 00:28:39.410
has increased more than sixfold

00:28:39.410 --> 00:28:41.480
over the past 300 years,

00:28:41.480 --> 00:28:44.330
from less than 6% in 1700

00:28:44.330 --> 00:28:47.290
to more than 38% today.

00:28:47.290 --> 00:28:50.300
The conversion of natural
habitats to farmland

00:28:50.300 --> 00:28:53.470
is now occurring most
rapidly in tropical regions,

00:28:53.470 --> 00:28:55.930
driven by global demand for commodities

00:28:55.930 --> 00:29:00.930
such as coffee, cocoa,
sugar, palm oil, and soya.

00:29:01.215 --> 00:29:04.120
(mellow music)

00:29:04.120 --> 00:29:06.900
But some important bird
habitats and estuaries

00:29:06.900 --> 00:29:08.970
are also well-projected.

00:29:08.970 --> 00:29:12.750
Two of them are in the
Jukatan Peninsula, Mexico.

00:29:12.750 --> 00:29:16.050
Celestun and Rio Lagarto
are mainly visited

00:29:16.050 --> 00:29:19.010
because of the fantastic
bird life they offer,

00:29:19.010 --> 00:29:21.010
especially the flamingos;

00:29:21.010 --> 00:29:22.790
two rivers where the economy is driven

00:29:22.790 --> 00:29:25.460
by traditional fishing and birdwatching,

00:29:25.460 --> 00:29:28.730
attracting eco-tourists
from around the world.

00:29:28.730 --> 00:29:31.250
These two protected rivers, estuaries

00:29:31.250 --> 00:29:33.040
and watersheds of mangrove,

00:29:33.040 --> 00:29:35.941
are also free from industrial projects.

00:29:35.941 --> 00:29:39.524
(lilting orchestral music)

00:30:17.644 --> 00:30:20.811
(upbeat techno music)

00:33:04.370 --> 00:33:06.860
Birdwatching is one of the fastest-growing

00:33:06.860 --> 00:33:09.020
sub-sectors of eco-tourism,

00:33:09.020 --> 00:33:11.110
and can contribute substantial income

00:33:11.110 --> 00:33:12.323
to the local economy.

00:33:15.810 --> 00:33:17.890
The plight of our bird populations

00:33:17.890 --> 00:33:21.460
is clearly not a high
profile topic in the media.

00:33:21.460 --> 00:33:24.240
According to some people,
this should be recognized

00:33:24.240 --> 00:33:26.990
as a vital part of our
society and culture,

00:33:26.990 --> 00:33:29.090
especially where they are still plentiful.

00:33:30.170 --> 00:33:32.490
On the Canadian west
coast, there is a movement

00:33:32.490 --> 00:33:34.530
to have the Vancouver area called

00:33:34.530 --> 00:33:36.403
the bird capital of Canada.

00:33:37.900 --> 00:33:41.980
- Well, the Fraser Valley,
the lower Fraser Valley

00:33:41.980 --> 00:33:45.020
from Chilliwack out to the
edge of the Salish Sea,

00:33:45.020 --> 00:33:49.270
where the Fraser River
flows into the Salish Sea,

00:33:49.270 --> 00:33:54.270
is one of the greatest bird,
migratory and resident areas

00:33:54.510 --> 00:33:56.730
in all of North America.

00:33:56.730 --> 00:33:58.960
It's not just Bald Eagles.

00:33:58.960 --> 00:34:01.880
We get the Red-tailed
Hawks in huge numbers,

00:34:01.880 --> 00:34:03.490
Rough-legged Hawks,

00:34:03.490 --> 00:34:05.830
lots of Coopers nest throughout the area,

00:34:05.830 --> 00:34:09.570
lots of Goshawks and
Sharp-shinned pass through here.

00:34:09.570 --> 00:34:11.470
And then there's all the owls.

00:34:11.470 --> 00:34:15.010
We get a whole flocks of Snowy Owls

00:34:15.010 --> 00:34:17.400
coming down and spending the winter here.

00:34:17.400 --> 00:34:22.010
But every pond and
square inch of shoreline

00:34:22.010 --> 00:34:27.010
is supporting literally
hundreds of thousands of birds.

00:34:27.370 --> 00:34:30.440
There's actually a million
and more shorebirds

00:34:30.440 --> 00:34:32.300
every year on migration.

00:34:32.300 --> 00:34:34.370
That's what attracts,
I didn't even mention,

00:34:34.370 --> 00:34:37.120
that's what attracts the
Peregrine Falcons and the Merlins.

00:34:37.120 --> 00:34:40.720
Then we have hundreds of
thousands of water fowl,

00:34:40.720 --> 00:34:44.123
particularly Mallards
and Widgeon and Pintail,

00:34:45.720 --> 00:34:47.540
geese, snow geese.

00:34:47.540 --> 00:34:50.433
Just one big flock of snow geese,

00:34:51.560 --> 00:34:55.220
can some years have 80,000 snow geese.

00:34:55.220 --> 00:34:57.650
Then there's thousands
of other Canada geese

00:34:57.650 --> 00:34:59.770
that move through the area.

00:34:59.770 --> 00:35:02.880
So, with this incredible prey base,

00:35:02.880 --> 00:35:06.040
we've attracted all these predators.

00:35:06.040 --> 00:35:09.680
Because in some cases,
predators are easier to count,

00:35:09.680 --> 00:35:11.470
we've started off calling this

00:35:11.470 --> 00:35:14.820
the birds of prey capital of the world.

00:35:14.820 --> 00:35:16.080
And then when we started to get

00:35:16.080 --> 00:35:17.710
some of the other birders involved,

00:35:17.710 --> 00:35:20.037
they said, "Hold on, hold on,

00:35:20.037 --> 00:35:22.137
"what about our millions of shorebirds?

00:35:22.137 --> 00:35:23.957
"What about our hundreds
of thousands of ducks

00:35:23.957 --> 00:35:25.980
"and hundreds of thousands of geese?"

00:35:25.980 --> 00:35:27.030
They're absolutely right.

00:35:27.030 --> 00:35:28.397
So, there's a movement to say,

00:35:28.397 --> 00:35:33.397
"Let's make this the bird
and raptor capital of Canada.

00:35:34.217 --> 00:35:36.926
"We have more than anywhere else."

00:35:36.926 --> 00:35:39.970
(mellow music)

00:35:39.970 --> 00:35:42.770
- [Narrator] Many estuaries
in the world are in danger,

00:35:42.770 --> 00:35:44.920
like this one close to Vancouver.

00:35:44.920 --> 00:35:47.250
Less than 20% of the Fraser estuary's

00:35:47.250 --> 00:35:49.300
historic wetlands remain.

00:35:49.300 --> 00:35:52.600
And dozens of species
from salmon to shorebirds

00:35:52.600 --> 00:35:54.550
are under threat, making the region

00:35:54.550 --> 00:35:58.050
one of the most imperiled
ecosystems on the continent,

00:35:58.050 --> 00:36:00.960
a bright red spot on
BirdLife International's

00:36:00.960 --> 00:36:03.883
global map of critically endangered sites.

00:36:05.310 --> 00:36:08.550
- And if something is not done to prevent

00:36:08.550 --> 00:36:10.600
any further loss of habitat,

00:36:10.600 --> 00:36:14.890
particularly habitats such as farmland,

00:36:14.890 --> 00:36:19.540
wetlands, marshes, and sandflats,

00:36:19.540 --> 00:36:23.350
then we are going to lose
many more species of birds.

00:36:23.350 --> 00:36:24.720
- One thing that we looked at

00:36:24.720 --> 00:36:27.530
in this research on the
Fraser River estuary

00:36:27.530 --> 00:36:32.380
was what would be the benefit of halting

00:36:32.380 --> 00:36:34.200
all future major developments?

00:36:34.200 --> 00:36:37.180
So, within this region, we have a raft

00:36:37.180 --> 00:36:40.120
of major industrial developments
that are on the table,

00:36:40.120 --> 00:36:43.500
everything from pipelines
to port expansions,

00:36:43.500 --> 00:36:47.320
to airport expansion,
a whole bunch of things

00:36:47.320 --> 00:36:50.120
that are on the table for this region

00:36:50.120 --> 00:36:52.020
that could have quite
catastrophic imp

00:36:52.020 --> 00:36:54.130
because we have reached
this tipping point.

00:36:54.130 --> 00:36:58.260
We cannot continue to develop
as we have in the past.

00:36:58.260 --> 00:37:00.070
We've reached a point at which

00:37:00.070 --> 00:37:03.220
we must make some very brave decisions

00:37:03.220 --> 00:37:07.070
politically, socially,
to say enough is enough

00:37:07.070 --> 00:37:09.520
in terms of major industrial developments

00:37:09.520 --> 00:37:11.104
within this region.

00:37:11.104 --> 00:37:13.580
(upbeat music)

00:37:13.580 --> 00:37:17.170
- British Columbia has a name  we're called.

00:37:17.170 --> 00:37:18.850
All the promotions for 50 years

00:37:18.850 --> 00:37:22.160
have been 'super natural British Columbia'.

00:37:22.160 --> 00:37:24.110
We gotta have eagles, we gotta have orcas,

00:37:24.110 --> 00:37:25.220
we gotta have bears.

00:37:25.220 --> 00:37:28.330
That's the measurement of how super

00:37:28.330 --> 00:37:31.012
we're really keeping our country.

00:37:31.012 --> 00:37:31.910
(upbeat music)

00:37:31.910 --> 00:37:33.240
- [Narrator] Around the world,

00:37:33.240 --> 00:37:36.110
the First Nations are
organizing several protests

00:37:36.110 --> 00:37:38.710
for the protection of nature in general.

00:37:38.710 --> 00:37:40.860
Very often, the traditional media

00:37:40.860 --> 00:37:44.170
is not providing them a lot of visibility.

00:37:44.170 --> 00:37:46.430
Here, we see some activists in action,

00:37:46.430 --> 00:37:49.586
returning from a tank
farm close to Vancouver.

00:37:49.586 --> 00:37:53.086
(upbeat orchestral music)

00:38:18.247 --> 00:38:20.997
(wings flapping)

00:38:22.765 --> 00:38:25.935
- We do this to protect the
land, the water, and the air,

00:38:25.935 --> 00:38:29.135
and the climate for all
people across this Earth.

00:38:29.135 --> 00:38:32.635
(upbeat orchestral music)

00:38:39.870 --> 00:38:43.520
- The oil that is going to be
pumped through this pipeline

00:38:43.520 --> 00:38:46.290
comes from my traditional territory.

00:38:46.290 --> 00:38:50.140
I have seen what it has
done for over 60 years.

00:38:50.140 --> 00:38:54.680
The Alberta Tar Sands has
destroyed, ravaged, contaminated,

00:38:54.680 --> 00:38:57.902
and broken the spirit of
the people in Alberta.

00:38:57.902 --> 00:39:00.810
(upbeat music)

00:39:00.810 --> 00:39:01.930
- [Man] We're all connected.

00:39:01.930 --> 00:39:04.980
- We are all linked as one world,

00:39:04.980 --> 00:39:06.390
and we're all part of it.

00:39:06.390 --> 00:39:08.856
We must protect the whole world.

00:39:08.856 --> 00:39:12.356
(mellow orchestral music)