UN bombers

(Addressed to United Nations delegates and copied to the Local) 

I am writing to delegates because I believe the United Nations can and should help to maintain our security against the ever-increasing devastation of wildfires. 

At this very moment Australia is burning, killing animals, plants, trees and ecosystems. This also happened in British Columbia, Canada in 2017-18. The government chose to fight BC wildfires with helicopters and buckets for the most part and with the use of back burning (which traps wildlife fleeing fires). This prolonged each fire but kept firefighting contractors working for the entire summer. In the meantime, the smoke and ash floated into the atmosphere and spread around the entire planet. This is happening again in Australia, exacerbating the crisis of global warming and climate change.

The United Nations has a strategic plan for forests and promotion of sustainable management of all types of forests. This strategic plan should also include the provision of a fleet of water bombers that could be called out any time wildfires threaten the planet. Sustainability goes up in smoke when the forest burns.

It cannot be left up to individual countries to fight forest fires that go on for weeks. They are affecting the entire planet.   

Charlene Penner, 

Roberts Creek