Sustainability in a wasteful culture #
When it comes to environmental performance only two countries (USA & Australia) ranked worse than Canada in a 2013 study by the Conference Board of Canada*.
The study looked at 17 developed countries and while we performed better in the some areas (water quality, forest management & threatened species), for the most part Canada’s grade was below average receiving an overall mark of “D” .
A couple of recommendations the Conference Board of Canada is suggesting includes: Canada’s success in improving its environmental performance has been mixed. It has improved air quality, reduced its energy intensity, and increased the growth of forest resources relative to forest harvest. But Canada must do more to lower greenhouse gas emissions, to use its freshwater resources more wisely, and to reduce waste; to improve its overall performance, Canada must promote economic growth without further degrading the environment, partly by encouraging more sustainable consumption.
In his book Collapse: How Complex Societies Choose to Fail or Survive Jared Diamond suggests “sustainability takes into account how we might live in harmony with the natural world around us, protecting it from damage and destruction.”
The oil industry insists it is making big strides in this area. Ask its critics and you may get a different opinion, but there is one company that made protecting the environment a priority since its inception.
In 1994 Quinn Holtby started up Katch Kan. His goal was twofold and yet very simple. Protect rig workers, while protecting the environment.
Today Holtby and his team at Katch Kan have perfected a Zero Spill System. This prevents even a drop of drilling fluid from hitting the ground. While the drilling process itself will obviously have an impact on the land it is important to ensure the damage is minimal and according to a oil industry consultant, “If you can start right from the drilling end in keeping your leases clean, it’s going to save you big dollars and help the environment down the road.”
It makes good business, social and environmental sense to protect what we have for the future. Katch Kan can help you do that.
*from Wikipedia-The Conference Board of Canada is a Canadian not-for-profit think tank dedicated to researching and analyzing economic trends, as well as organizational performance and public policy issues. Describing itself as “objective” and “non-partisan”, the Conference Board of Canada claims not to lobby for special interests.
