Gamble Pond
by Kathy Bassett
Title
Gamble Pond
Artist
Kathy Bassett
Medium
Photograph - Photography
Description
Albert McGowan Park, a very special retreat at the top of Sahali, meaning plateau, a wetland area that holds many mud hen nests, red wing black bird, geese and the occasional blue-billed Merganser! A fantastic all season area to escape the city noise and destress. Kamloops is known as Canada's Tournament Capital and this park offers an ideal place to watch a good ball game. This award winning park includes ball diamonds, playground, pond and a community centre. There is also a Water Spray Park, washrooms - change rooms and a fresh water fountain is available. Wetlands are one of the most important life support systems on earth. Currently comprising about 5.6% or 5.28 million hectares of British Columbia, they provide critical habitat for fish, birds, and other wildlife. Most wildlife in the province use wetland habitat at some point in their life cycle, and many red- and blue-listed species are wetland-dependent.The functional contribution of wetlands in helping to minimize or remediate environmental problems is substantial. They absorb and filter sediments, pollutants, and excess nutrients; recharge groundwater; maintain stream flows; control runoff; store flood waters; reduce erosion; stabilize shorelines; and help regulate atmospheric gases and climate cycles. In short, wetlands absorb water quickly and release it slowly with an improvement in quality.Wetlands provide for commercial and recreational use of wetland-dependent fish and shellfish, enhance agricultural productivity, and support a variety of scientific , educational and recreational opportunities. Environmental economists such as Robert Costanza have used various methods to estimate the economic market and non-market values of the goods and services of various ecosystems. For wetlands, the total value is estimated to be $19,580 hectare/year (1994 US$). Using this figure to estimate the goods and services value of wetlands, British Columbia's total wetland surface area of 5.28 million hectares would yield a potential value of over $100 billion/year. At a local level such as the Fraser Valley, the total wetland surface area of 41,906 hectares would yield a potential goods and services value to society of over $800 million/year.There is a growing concern over the escalating rate of wetland losses in British Columbia. In the Fraser Vancouver Island, it is estimated that 50% to 70% of the original wetland habitat has disappeared. In the ecologically critical South Okanagan, wetland losses have reached 85%.Action is required to help reduce wetland losses and provide for coordinated conservation and management efforts. Because wetlands occur across a range of ecosystem types and can be affected by various land use activities, a comprehensive approach is needed to ensure the protection and management of wetlands. It is intended that several initiatives currently under development, including the Biodiversity Strategy, Species At Risk Strategy, the Living Rivers Strategy, as well as ongoing Land Use Planning and Protected Areas management, will all play an important role in protecting, maintaining and restoring wetlands.
Uploaded
June 6th, 2013
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Viewed 297 Times - Last Visitor from New York, NY on 03/11/2024 at 2:46 PM
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Comments (9)
Kathy Bassett
Thank you for including Gamble Pond on the home page of your International Women Artist group, Joetta!
Kathy Bassett
Thanks so much Jim! for the feature of Gamble Pond in your Comfortable Art group! Hope you are enjoying the new administratorship! :)
Kathy Bassett
Thank you James Lanigan Thompson! for the feature of Gamble Pond in your Beauty group!