Category: Opinion

Last weekend, I met with John Wightman for a beer. As we reminisced on the state of provincial and municipal politics, John offered up the quote from Major J.A.H. Church, founder of NSLSI (Nova Scotia Land Survey Institute) almost 75 years ago:

”Never Retire.”

John, himself, is a wonderful example of this motto. After finishing employment at COGS, John continued his interest in mineral exploration and has discovered that the geology of Nova Scotia provides numerous opportunities for the prospector, whether in gold or other valued elements, including lithium and molybdenum.

With the federal budget last week, provinces are realizing the importance of these minerals to the country, in a changing global economy. John’s business interests continue to be supported by the technical skills of Mike Donnelly and David Raymond, both previous instructors at COGS.

I take Major Church’s motto to heart. Likewise, I continue to find that the landscape and people of Nova Scotia offer a richness and diversity that can support our population into the future.

Today (Wednesday) I received Axiom News, inviting me to attend Cultivating Connection, Practicing Relational Presencing, on Good Friday.

Meanwhile, my reading desk contains:
Donald Sturrock, Storyteller: the authorized biography of Roald Dahl.
Torbjorn Ekelund, A Year in the Woods: Twelve small journeys into Nature.

Walking through our property to the West Inglisville road, I noticed a first sign of Spring, the yellow flowers of Coltsfoot (Tussilago farfara) on the side of the gravel road. At John’s house, he has a wonderful display of blue Scilla flowers in bloom, under a large White Oak.

Postscript 1

Imagine the resource at COGS, if they embraced Major Church’s motto. Do away with ’ageism’. It boggles the mind.

Postscript 2

Just watched British Columbia Knowledge Network, Tugan Sokheiv conducts Alison Balsom. It raises the question: what would it be like to work in an environment like a symphony orchestra? Everyone has a particular instrument skill. Together, they produce a symphony. Wonderful collaboration!

Acknowledgements

John Wightman for setting a ’gold standard’. Frank Fox for the Ekelund reference.

Heather continues to keep my biogeographic interests alive. Edward added the graphics.

In the 1960s I studied Geography at the University of Birmingham. I remember that Alice Coleman directed the Second Land Use Survey of Britain. This followed Dudley Stamp’s survey of the 1930’s.

The challenge of land use mapping came to mind within the context of understanding agricultural land use in Annapolis County. If we wish to promote agriculture in this part of the Annapolis Valley, a first step is to understand the existing land use. If the next generation wishes to expand agriculture or agricultural tourism, we need to know what we are growing, and where.

Recently, in a meeting, Brian Arnott floated the idea of a ’digital 4H’. What would it take to empower 4H members in the Valley to apply current geographic technologies (and “Learn by Doing”)?

At COGS we have access to range of technologies from Cartography, GIS and Remote Sensing.

We could take an idea from Kent Thompson’s book ’Biking to Blissville’. For each ride, he provides a context, where to stay, and a map of the ride. It is easy to imagine with the completion of a current land use map we could develop an experiential tourism guide which not only describes the agricultural land use but highlights places to stop, to sample different products of the landscape, provide information on seasons, hours of opening etc. — for example, road side stands, U-pick operations, local restaurants, breweries.

This type of mapping should not be limited to Annapolis County. It should certainly extend to Kings County and the ’Harvest Highway’, and could indeed be a provincial initiative.

Given the historical experience in Britain, there is a high probability that geographers elsewhere have developed similar applications using current technologies. It is the potential access to resources at COGS which makes the idea so appealing.

The creation of a new family of digital land use maps would follow in the tradition of the A.F. Church wall maps from over a century ago (see blog post HERE).

It would focus attention on the landscape of rural Nova Scotia. It would engage 4H and the staff and technology resources at the Centre of Geographic Sciences (COGS). Go COGS go !!

Postscript

This is written in New Glasgow. I have just discovered the latest issue of Ah! At Home on the North Shore. It includes the article: Little Shop of Treasures: Bidding Farewell to Water Street Studios, Pictou (see blog post “Travels with Heather“).

As we entered New Glasgow along the Abercrombie Road, I speculated on the location of the new Gordonstoun Nova Scotia school. Too early to tell.

Acknowledgements

Brian Arnott, Leslie Wright, John Wightman provided a context for these ideas. Rachel Thevenard and David Colville exemplified the context. Heather found the Kent Thompson book. Edward added his magic touch.

References

For more detail on Alice Coleman, check Land Utilization Survey of Britain on Wikipedia or Google her name.

Ah! At Home on the North Shore, Spring 2022, Vol 7, No 2, p.48, Little Shop of Treasures. Bidding Farewell to Water Street Studios.

Kent Thompson, 1993, Biking to Blissville, A Cycling Guide to the Maritimes and the Magdalen Islands, Goose Lane Press.

In our bedroom, through the skylight, I can see the wind blowing the tree branches, and the puffy white clouds racing across the blue sky.

In the world of GIS, this reminds me of a polygon overlay: the roof, the vegetation, and the atmosphere all interacting with each other.

It is over fifty years since I was part of a wave, leaving England to start again with graduate studies in Canada. Later in Nova Scotia, when we were offering advanced diplomas in Scientific Computer Programming in the 1980’s we experienced another wave of students from Poland, Greece and Indonesia, as well as from across Canada.

Contemplating the situation in the Ukraine, makes me wonder if we could again help refugees to come to Nova Scotia.

If we are to address the global climate issues we need to increase the percentage of the population who are familiar with the next generation of geographic technology, and to effectively apply them to our resource management issues.

Can our post-secondary institutions step up to the challenge? They have done so in the not too distant past. Can our governments work with the post-secondary education institutions, as well as the immigration agencies?

Or is this simply a ’pipe dream’?

Wednesday, Heather and I escaped from the Valley. We met with Brian Arnott and Leslie Wright in Lunenburg. The topic for discussion was Agriculture/ GIS in Annapolis County. While in town,we visited two bookstores. Brian and Leslie kindly loaned us two books (see below). On our return, I received email from AIRO, to reflect on Annapolis County, forty years from now (online Survey Link).

Acknowledgements

Brian and Leslie provided a wonderful Sri Lankan take-out lunch, mixed with great discussion. Edward added graphics from Florida. Heather encouraged the detour along LaHave to Bridgewater, and home.

References.

Lena Lencek and Gideon Bosker, 1998, The Beach: The History of Paradise on Earth, Viking Penguin.

Daniel Stone, 2018, The Food Explorer: The true adventures of the globe-trotting botanist who transformed what America eats, Dutton.

At the Flying Apron ’they do local’.

This includes providing guests with a handout ’Exploring the Rising Tide Shores’. It is a map of part of Hants County showing a list of things to do in the area, within a short drive of Summerville. Activities are divided into Beer, Cider and Wine; Hiking and Recreation; Golf; Arts, Culture and Heritage.

A similar map could be developed for other parts of rural Nova Scotia. For example, the Bridgetown Motor Inn could sponsor a similar initiative for Annapolis County. This could be supported by the cartographic/ geographic skills at the Centre of Geographic Sciences (COGS). It makes sense that these initiatives focus on a business that offers access to both accommodation, as well as access to local food and beverage suppliers. Other partners could come from outdoor recreation, arts, culture and heritage.

From my personal perspective, I am interested in the stories from the landscape. For example, in Hants County we have the writers Donna E. Smyth and Peter Sanger. Elsewhere, you find Harry Thurston, Silver Donald Cameron, Elizabeth Bishop. In Annapolis County, it would include Ernest Buckler, David Manners and Kent Thompson. Certainly, the reader can add additional names, some living and others from a previous era. In addition , Nova Scotia has a rich collection of publishing houses e.g. Gaspereau Press, Moose House Publishing.

I am also sure that Edward, with his plein-air art interests could identify artists and craft persons who describe the landscape, or produce products inspired by the landscape.

Another feature of the Flying Apron, besides the Inn and Cooking School, is a second-hand book store. This appears to be a feature of many small towns, nestled in rural Nova Scotia.

Acknowledgements

Edward contributed his knowledge of the artistic culture. My focus has been the literary culture and geography. Heather would add the biological sciences and outdoor education.

Reference

The ’Explore the Rising Tide Shores’ brochure produced by the Flying Apron Inn.

I heard on the CBC that Annapolis Royal is looking to hire a Climate Change Coordinator.

This is good news. It brings to mind the work that Tim Webster, and others conducted at AGRG. With LiDAR it is possible to obtain an accurate three dimensional representation of the topography and, to a degree, the height of the forest canopy.

If there is co-ordination, it should include all the communities within the Annapolis watershed. Decisions in Annapolis Royal impact the ecology of the river e.g. the hydro dam. At the same time, it should engage with existing institutions and stakeholders in the watershed. To my mind, this includes collaboration with educational institutions and research groups. Any solution will require computer modelling based on our understanding of the hydrology, land use, climate and tides. It is a complex problem, demanding the best expertise in the region, as well as technical knowledge from other research groups.

Outside of Bridgetown, I have noticed a small herd of alpaca. This species of South American mammal is more commonly found in Peru- Chile. An interesting sign of the times.
(cartoon by Edward)

I am still reading Lesley Choyce’s, Nova Scotia Shaped by the Sea, Chapter 4, The Land of the Mi’kmaq — a compelling statement based on Daniel Paul ’s book We were not the Savages.

Acknowledgements

Edward and Heather remain supportive.

References

Lesley Choyce, 2007, Nova Scotia Shaped by the Sea: A Living History, Pottersfield Press.

Daniel Paul, 1993, We Were Not the Savages, Nimbus Press (later editions by Fernwood Publishing)

In 1980, the Nova Scotia Land Survey Institute (NSLSI) had programs in Surveying, Cartography, Planning, Photogrammetry.

The arrival of the Scientific Computer Programming (SCP) program brought access to modern computer technology. It included mini-computer systems from Prime and DEC. Shortly thereafter, the Remote Sensing program was applying Dipix image analysis technology, the GIS program was applying Esri Arc/Info technology. Programming students, whether in the SCP program, the Business Computer Programming program or the Computer Graphics program were able to customize these systems to meet the needs of both government and industry partners.

In the world of GIS, digital objects were identified as points, lines, polygons. In the world of Image Analysis, digital objects were identified as pixels and rasters. Digital photogrammetry allowed for the manipulation of aerial photographs. Digital image analysis gave us the same capability with satellite imagery.

As we move forward from the AF Church maps, we can add images/photographs of the changes in the landscape. We can identify changes in forest cover. How much clear-cutting has taken place on crown land? When, and where? (Image taken from HERE)

We can identify changes in agricultural practices. The removal of Apple orchards in the Annapolis Valley. The increase in the acreage of vineyards.

Or we can obtain historical imagery for Sable Island. And identify the changes in the shoreline over the last sixty years. (Image taken from HERE)

The task at hand is to go back to the aerial photograph and satellite imagery libraries whether in Halifax or Ottawa, and to undertake change analysis and marry these changes with settlement patterns and census information. These types of analyses can be undertaken in today’s Geomatics environment.

With the availability of LiDAR and other sensors, the results can be analyzed and displayed in three dimensions. In a perfect technological world, we would be able to use a calendar slider that allows us to view the landscape at any particular moment in time, given the appropriate imagery, and the corresponding base maps. (Image extracted from HERE)

Acknowledgements

David Colville provided the link to the Sable Island project. Edward Wedler and John Wightman advised on Remote Sensing.

References

David Colville, Sarah-Marie McDonald, and Suzanne Monette, 2013, (PDF) Temporal Change Detection: Identifying Forest Cover Change in Nova Scotia.
David Colville, Brittany Reeves, Bill Livingstone, Heather Stewart, 2019, (PDF) Mapping the Landscape of Sable Island.
CBC Sable Island undergoing coastline retreat.
AGRG TopoBathy LiDAR website

Postscript

The Truro workshop on the AF Church Historical Maps, Truro, August 14, 2021, includes presentations on Map Conservation, Map Digitization, Geomatics, and Programming.