Eco-friendly Pet Aftercare

I never would have considered myself “green”. Like many people, I recycled, composted and used the second hand economy, but never would I have thought of myself as eco-minded. I spent a long career in Alberta’s Oil and Gas sector and was very successful, but wanted to give back in a different way. As a Power Engineer I have had the opportunity to move through a variety of sectors and use my education and experience.

Opening Water to Sky has allowed me to utilize the many skills I spent years honing, as my partners and I navigate starting a new business and working with local suppliers, all while also balancing a family of seven who have been extremely helpful during the countless hours leading up to start up.

The idea for Water to Sky was born out of a desire to provide an eco-friendly process for pet aftercare to Alberta. There was a huge gap in options, and what better place than Edmonton to be the first! While human legislation is lagging behind other provinces, animal aquamation is approved. After receiving our approval letter from the Chief Provincial Veterinarian, we could not help but celebrate!

While there is a significant amount of technical jargon involved in the process, simply put, we return water and companions back to nature with one of the most ecologically responsible ways possible. The ecological impact is even smaller than green burial.

I have always enjoyed project work—seeing the infancy of an idea turn into something tangible that you can be proud of. During the early stages of planning, the realization that this was no longer just an idea but reality was very exciting. There were moments along the way where I could not help but think “I can’t believe this is really happening!”

I knew I was going in the right direction when people would question what we were doing and resisted the idea of something different. I knew this was the right thing as we had a wealth of information and research behind us, and an open mind. I also realized that we would come across a lot of disagreement from people who feared change and did not understand the process. But I knew there had to be just as many people that would embrace our concept and needed this new form of closure when losing a member of their family. I was once told that in order to advance we had to “change or be changed” and that advice has resonated with me throughout this journey.

When it came to building Water to Sky it was imperative that my life became more localized from top to bottom, front to back. It meant my home life would have to be drastically changed, but for the better. The goal was to be home every night with my family, rather than a week away at a time. This in turn would reduce my personal carbon footprint. From a business perspective, I saw it as an opportunity for Edmonton and Alberta to say that we have an ecologically sound option for pet aftercare, and it was a matter of just lining all the pieces up and letting them fall into place.

Being involved in cutting edge change has definitely allowed me perspective—perspective on how I live my life, what will be left of the earth for my children; a personal carbon audit, if you will. I also feel it is an important lesson and mindset to pass on to my kids, to always try to do better and realize that even when facing difficult decisions, we have to respect the people and the world around us. After all, there is no Planet B.

This post was submitted by Clint, an Edmonton community member. If you live in Edmonton and have a climate change story to tell, let us know! Your story could be shared here too.