From: on behalf of Panel Registry Subject: FW: TNG registration of ...

unknown reasons. There have been two significant fires in the last decade resulting in large burns,
fireguards and new roads. 70 There is increasing mineral exploration activity in the area, not least of
which
includes the Prosperity Mine Project, which has led to tree clearing, drilling and more on‐
and off‐road traffic.
As indicated in the climate projections and biophysical impacts in earlier sections, accelerated
climate warming, will likely place more stress on the ecosystem than it has recently experienced.
There will be impacts throughout the XGCA on vegetation, wildlife, fish and water resources.
However, despite some of the human induced stresses on the ecosystem, the XGCA is a fairly
healthy and intact ecosystem, making it fairly resilient to potential climate changes. Conservation
biologists agree that “maintaining connectivity between natural habitats, and along altitudinal
gradients, is a key strategy to allowing plant and animal species to adapt to climate change.” 71 And
if the XGCA ecosystem is healthy and “resilient”, the Xeni Gwet’in community, who depend
significantly upon the land for their sustenance, their health and their culture, stand a better chance
of
coping with climate change. The World Bank states as much when commenting on the
relationship
between biodiversity and climate adaptation:
“Within any given ecosystem, functionally diverse communities are more likely to be
resilient to climate change and climate variability than biologically impoverished
communities.” 72
The same holds true for communities and ecosystems outside the XGCA. The benefits of a healthy
ecosystem accrue to ecosystems and communities downstream as well, since the ecosystem
services produced in the XGCA flow out of the area benefitting all life.
“Mountain habitats...bestow multiple ecosystem, soil conservation, and watershed benefits.
They are often centers of endemism, Pleistocene refuges, and source populations for
restocking of more low‐lying habitats. Mountain ecosystems influence rainfall regimes and
climate at local and regional levels, helping to contain global warming through carbon
sequestration and storage in soils and plant biomass. Wetlands are nature’s kidneys,
providing indispensable ecosystem services that regulate nutrient loading and water
quality.” 73
Where the Xeni Gwet’in may be vulnerable is if they cannot manage to maintain a healthy
ecosystem due to increasing pressures from the outside world. There are significant logging and
mining plans for the XGCA, which threaten to seriously disturb the existing balance. If this is the
case and the land increasingly becomes fragmented by roads and development and the air, waters
and soils become stressed by increased pollution, the ecosystem will be much less resilient to the
stresses
of climate change, which will undoubtedly affect the Xeni Gwet’in’s ability to cope with
climate
change as well.
70
The 2003 Chilko Fire and the 2009 Lava Canyon Fire were the largest in BC in both years.
71 World Bank (2009).
72 World Bank (2009).
73 World Bank (2009).
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