The wildfires and digital hikes

Editor’s note: “Between Two Pines” is a weekly column chronicling the history and ecological restoration of various green spaces around the UW and Seattle area.

Smoke obscures the sun and the humidity wraps Seattle up in a cocoon, suffocating its inhabitants. As I walked through West Seattle’s parks and trails last week, I felt like I was in an oven. Hiking in this weather is especially difficult with the ash; unfortunately, this seems to be part of a new normal.

The past couple summers have produced more and more days where going outside can potentially be hazardous to one’s health. Wildfires are partly to blame, but so are trends in global warming. There have been three historic heatwaves this year alone, and with the current projection by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change of a 1.5 degree Celsius increase across the globe, the heat seems to be a new, unwelcome addition to the way we use and enjoy parks.

Places like Schmitz Preserve Park or Fauntleroy Park are lands that were donated to the city in the 1900s with the express interest of not logging or otherwise changing the land. Both the historical families and current denizens of West Seattle have made efforts to ensure that this focus on conservation continues. These trailheads are called “greenbelts” because they provide foliage that shade wildlife from direct sun, clean water, and other ecological services that –– when developed and managed –– help make urban settings better living spaces for everyone. 

Historically, the development of greenbelts has been used to offset the urbanization of areas to ensure local flora and fauna can survive. However, climate change has fundamentally altered what can be preserved. Smoke can be directly harmful to not just animals’ respiratory systems, but those of plants as well. Changes to the atmosphere’s gaseous composition can also lead to acid rain and a decrease in the ozone, which are harmful to our local ecosystems.

The reason West Seattle is of particular importance when discussing these consequences is because this area and its people have historically been abused. Puget Park, part of the West Duwamish Greenbelt, is adjacent to the Duwamish River, which is already a protected area due to toxic, carcinogenic chemicals having been dumped there for decades. The current cleanup consists of making sure that authorities and citizens alike can contribute to making the area safer. But, if the greenbelts are also at risk of ecological disaster, in part due to global warming, this raises more concern for how parks, trails, and communities might need to adapt their environmental efforts in the future.

One idea that floated around this junction of ecological justice and park-going is the emergence of digital tourism. The National Park Foundation produced a polished version of this idea, having a website featuring different kinds of park tours available to the public. In each tour, there are different links and historical artifacts that are associated with each site, such as facts about Yellowstone National Park, the National Mall, and Hamilton Grange National Memorial. The express purpose of digital tourism might not be more than a novelty now with the pandemic, but it could have a more prominent role for parks in the future.

Seattle also jumped on board with this idea, with Seattle Parks and Recreation and Seattle Public Utilities having produced a series of websites for different resources. For instance, the Cedar River Watershed has a hub of links that provide a plethora of information for people. One can find everything from understanding the Cedar River’s role as Seattle’s main water source to the history of the watershed’s trails, and I imagine that many more of the webpages for parks in the future might take a similar approach.

There are also physical education centers and signage that teach people these concepts, but the accessibility of digital media that people can access anywhere seems to be the way parks are trending into the future. If anything, places like the West Seattle watersheds and greenbelts might develop new tools or full-on tours like the National Park Foundation has developed for its parks.

However, I am personally ambivalent about this new technology. 

Part of the reason why I enjoy parks is because they are an escape from technology, a return to a more conscious effort towards saving the planet. Going to places like the Cedar River Watershed or greenbelts in West Seattle is how people learn about the environment and learn to appreciate nature. However, technology may be the best way to teach people when visiting a park is not an option.

Websites can fill the niche of educating people and allowing those who are otherwise unable to go to these parks to still experience them. I also hope that there will be chances for people to also visit these places in-person. Though global warming may make these opportunities more difficult in the future, I believe that conservation efforts should also be part of our daily lives, through volunteering with organizations like the Duwamish Cleanup Project or Seattle Parks and Recreation. 

A mixture of both digital and physical access to parks is ultimately what needs to happen. There is no way to replace either, as both virtual and real experiences do shape the way people think about nature. This is a question that I do not believe has an answer yet, but maybe a website could provide one in the future.

Reach columnist Andy Chia arts@dailyuw.com. Twitter: @GreatBaconBaron

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