Page 13 - Sphere No.12 (Aug 2004)

SPHERE 11
T he Vancouver Island marmot is
soft, furry, and adorable, just
like the teddy bears one might
find in a toy store. These cuddly crea-
tures might become the mascot for the
Vancouver Winter Olympics in 2010,
but by then they could also be extinct.
Logging has wiped out huge tracts of
wilderness on Vancouver Island, on
Canada’s west coast, placing these
unique creatures under extreme pres-
sure. Fortunately, dedicated conserva-
tion efforts, supported in part by Husky
Energy, hope to give the marmots
a new lease on life. A substantial dona-
tion by Husky to the Calgary Zoo’s
endangered species research pro-
gramme has helped zoologists devise
a strategy to save the marmot.
Leading the way is Dr Axel
Moehrenschlager, Head of the Centre
for Conservation Research (CCR) at the
Calgary Zoo. His work essentially
involves concentrating on endangered
species in Canada and developing ways
to help them thrive.
Headquartered in Calgary, Husky has
extensive oil and gas operations across
Canada and in the South China Sea. It
is also part of the Hutchison Whampoa
Group. Husky has invested significantly
in conservation programmes over the
past 20 years to help improve dire situa-
tions such as that of the Vancouver
Island marmot so that future genera-
tions can find them some place other
than in a gift shop or museum.
By funding conservation efforts,
Husky demonstrates its environmental
philosophy that the impact of industry
should be offset by strategies to con-
serve the environment and protect
ecosystems. Aside from the zoo pro-
gramme, Husky supports a wide range
of projects that demonstrate the value
the company places on environmental
stewardship and ecosystems.
Committed to Conservation
Conservation work, according to Dr
Moehrenschlager, is analogous to work-
ing in an emergency
room in a hospital.
“On the one
hand we are sci-
entists, we have
to be able to
withstand heavy
scrutiny just the
way any good