BCAA

ECO-WATCH Steller sea lions were once thought too stubborn and unpredictable to train, but Vancouver Aquarium researchers are proving this to be a fallacy. Not only have the centre's marine mammal trainers succeeded in getting captive Stellers to respond to gestures and verbal commands, they've persuaded the massive pinnipeds to perform complicated tasks without food as their sole reward. Such breakthroughs have also led to experiments that scientists hope will solve the mystery of why Steller sea lion populations in the North Pacific have declined by 80 per cent in the past 30 years. >> The most ambitious research occurs in open water near Port Moody, where Stellers dive to targets at depths of up to 200 metres, then return to the surface on cue. The goal is to discover how much nutrition the animals need, the effect of different foods on health and the energy costs of foraging underwater, given that killer whale predation and dwindling supplies of cod and pollock are the likely culprits behind the Steller's decline. —Kerry Banks Stellers down under: bcaa.com/stellers WORKOUT Tank Oarfare FOR CANADA TO BUILD on its 2008 Olympic rowing success in London this summer, it's going to need to grow the sport — on a narrow, tiled isthmus that splits a shallow pool in an out-ofthe-way corner of Richmond's Olympic Oval. Welcome to the Riverport Community Paddling Centre, the nation's best rowing tank — one of only two in B.C. >> Aspiring water skeeters begin with stamina training and progress to blade-andstroke work, then try the real thing at UBC's Boathouse, 200 metres up the Fraser River. Learn-to-row classes begin March 27. 778-296-1400; richmondoval.ca INTERVIEW Mine Games In July 2005, OSCAR DENNIS (pictured, below), an Iskut resident and member of B.C.'s Tahltan First Nation, used his heel to draw a line in the dirt across Ealue Lake Road — 500 km north of Smithers in near-pristine wilderness known as the Sacred Headwaters. On the other side of Dennis's heel drag: an 18-wheeler loaded with equipment destined for a proposed Fortune Mineral open-pit coal mine that threatened to level Mount Klappan and bury traditional Tahltan hunting camps in rubble. >> Dennis's actions that summer helped delay Fortune Mineral's activities in the area. But in 2011, the company signed a $181-million joint-venture deal with a South Korean steelmaker to again advance the Mount Klappan coal project. Other companies also have their sights set on the region's coal, copper and coal-bed methane deposits. Since 2005, though, Dennis and others in B.C.'s informal Sacred Headwaters alliance have been joined by high-profile eco-warriors such as Wade Davis. The world renowned anthropologist and ethnobotanist lives near Dennis in Stikine Country and recently released his latest book, Sacred Headwaters: The Fight to Save the Stikine, Skeena and Nass, which features gorgeous photography of the vast alpine basin (2011, Greystone Books; $50). WW Why should we be concerned about preserving the Sacred Headwaters area? OD: Because it's the birthplace of the Stikine, Skeena and Nass Rivers — three of (cow moose) Paul Colangelo/Sacred Headwaters/Greystone Books, (Oscar Dennis) Sarah Leen/Sacred Headwaters/Greystone Books p12-15_FreshTrax.indd 13 North America's most important salmonbearing rivers, which meander across a watershed three times the size of Switzerland and provide key habitat for moose, bears and caribou. WW Which of the book's photos, in your view, encapsulates the essence of the Sacred Headwaters? OD: The image of five Osborne caribou on Klappan Mountain is memorable for the story behind it. Not long after the photo was taken, the magnificent bull caribou was shot by hunters. I had to explain to the distraught photographer, who was donating his world-class talents to help save the headwaters, that the land comes with the people on it. In this case, that meant a Tahltan grandfather guiding his 13-year-old grandson to his first caribou kill. The knowledge of survival was being passed down as it has been for thousands of years. WW The world travel industry dwarfs the mining market, employs millions of people and can be gentle on the land. Can tourism help save the Sacred Headwaters? OD: Yes. Tourism is a great way to stimulate our local economy and, at the same time, preserve our culture. That's one of the reasons I'm starting an eco-tourism business called Sacred Headwaters Adventures. One of the tours will feature dogsled expeditions in the region. i sacredheadwaters.com WESTWORLD >> S P R I N G 2 0 1 2 13 1/27/12 7:59:43 AM

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