Innovation Anthology #260:

Jim Herbers

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One night back in the late 1990s, seven of Alberta’s best forest ecologists sat down for a few beers, and talked about their concerns over monitoring biodiversity in the province.

That brainstorming session led to the establishment of the Alberta Biodiversity Monitoring Institute and its unique, world class scientific program.

As Information Director Jim Herbers explains, the Institute has released its first report on the health of biodiversity in northeastern Alberta.

JIM HERBERS: It’s a vast area right from the Northwest Territories down to Cold lake and Lac La Biche. The current human footprint in that area is 7 percent. Roads, energy activity, forest activity urban activity, and in the south agriculture. And our data are showing that the intactness for that entire region is 94 percent intact today. And we expect that it won’t remain at 94 percent. That as more mines come on line, more energy activity comes on line, I think the logical outcome of that kind of activity is that biodiversity will decline across the region.

Jim Herbers says industry can use this information to lessen its impact on the environment.

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I’M CHERYL CROUCHER

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Program Date: 2009-10-13