Dear Editor:
RE: ‘Enjoy the outdoors,’ Jan. 13.
Of course, no “single group” is the sole cause of climate change. We’re all responsible (or should that be irresponsible?)
Pleasure snowmobiling as a means of enjoying the great outdoors does, however, provide a good example of how our collective mindsets must alter before CO2 and other noxious emissions will ever start to reduce.
Here’s another example: I took my dog to the vet to get her three-year rabies shot. Naturally, we walked along the trail to my local vet. COVID meant curbside vet service only, so when I arrived I was asked where I had parked. The assistant was amazed when she learned that I had actually walked the 6km with my dog! I was asked to just stand outside and wait.
I did so and I watched all the other dog owners roll into the vet’s car park in their cars and trucks and then just sit there, with their engines running to keep the fragile occupants toasty and warm, while their pets were being treated, each one idling their engines for around 20 to 25 minutes.
So now I guess I’ll be accused of blaming another “single group” (car driving pet owners?) for the climate change crisis.
No, I don’t believe recreational snowmobiling is the sole cause of the environmental crisis on this planet – just one more unnecessary and unhealthy polluting waste. The fact is we are all burning far too much fossil fuel for no good reason and it seems many are too blind to realize what we are doing.
By the way, I must agree with the sentiments of another writer to your page (Climate alarmism, Jan 13). Electric vehicles (EV) will certainly not provide the solution. Lithium production is indeed far too problematic.
Also, I was surprised and saddened when someone on a local environmental committee recently voiced a hope that two-stroke snowmobiles would eventually be replaced with EV snowmobiles! Please; how about just getting outdoors and hiking the trails to enjoy our winter wonderland?
Roy Pegg,
Orton