Clayoquot Summer: 20 Years After

Image from Clayoquot Action.

Victoria – Dan Lewis and Bonny Glambeck of the Tofino-based conservation group Clayoquot Action will be in Victoria November 20 with their popular presentation, Clayoquot Summer: 20 Years After.

Their aim is to draw attention to the continuing need to fully protect Clayoquot Sound’s globally rare temperate rainforests, and to recognize the rights of the region’s Nuu-chah-nulth First Nations.

Glambeck and Lewis are seasoned naturalists and sea kayak guides who have paddled much of the BC coast. They both helped organize the mass protests in Clayoquot Sound in 1993, and will share an insider’s perspective on that historic summer.

“Many people think the Clayoquot Sound UNESCO Biosphere Reserve is a park,” said Glambeck. “It most certainly is not. Twenty years after the protests of 1993, there are still unprotected old-growth valleys, as well as 21 polluting salmon farms and plans for two risky, short-sighted mining projects.”

This week’s show will provide an unforgettable journey through the natural beauty and splendor of Clayoquot Sound, combining new science with Lewis and Glambeck’s decades-old passion for the region.

“We now understand that wild salmon provide the missing nutrients to grow Clayoquot’s monumental cedars,” said Lewis. “Anything that puts wild salmon at risk also threatens the ancient rainforests”.

Clayoquot Summer: 20 Years After is in the midst of a 9-community coastal tour, and appeared as part of the Vancouver International Mountain Film Festival. The Victoria show is hosted by the Wilderness Committee, another environmental organization committed to finding solutions that work for the ecosystems and communities of Clayoquot Sound.

“The myth that Clayoquot is saved is really dangerous,” explains Torrance Coste, Vancouver Island Campaigner with the Wilderness Committee. “The work that was started there 20 years ago needs to be finished, and this show will inspire people to get involved.”

The Victoria show is at 7:30 p.m. (doors open at 7 p.m.) on Wednesday, November 20th at the Vic Theatre – 808 Douglas St. (downtown). Admission is by donation.