Initial watershed study goes public
The first phase of the Kettle River watershed management report is complete and is being rolled out to the public. Grand Forks city council received a presentation from the project co-ordinator Graham Watt to update them on the study, key focus areas and next steps at their meeting Monday, Dec. 17. The Regional District of […]
Power of the Internet: hackers target Westboro Baptist Church website, Twitter
Hackers claiming to be associated with the internet activist group Anonymous have attacked the website belonging to the Westboro Baptist Church (WBC) and hacked into the Twitter account belonging to Shirley Phelps-Roper, the Church's spokeswoman. The attacks are part of an operation dubbed '#OpWestBor' on Twitter and is in ...
Local woman sparks international movement with thousands of followers ... using Facebook
Castlegar’s own Holly Smee is stunned and delighted to have garnered the support of more than 10,000 people just days after launching a Facebook campaign in response to recent tragedy. Smee, a 34-year-old mental health worker, said she got the idea on the same morning that a school shooting spree took the lives of 20 […]
Carbon Neutral Kootenays—Darkwoods conservation project may cash in on new climate action payments
A tri-regional partnership has identified the protection of the Darkwoods Conservancy Area as a local project on which to spend "carbon offset purchases," both supporting a very significant conservation project, and allowing climate action tax dollars collected in the region to stay within the region.Carbon Neutral KootenaysCarbon...
COMMENT: Forsaken on Highway 16
Wally Oppal’s long awaited report commissioned in the wake of the conviction of serial killer Robert Pickton holds a surprise. Something had gone tragically wrong with law enforcement. How else could one individual have murdered dozens of women in one location over more than a decade without being caught? That Oppal’s report...
OP/ED: Stephen Harper’s Christmas sermon--Why deny climate change?*
Canada is blessed. God has given us so many things that other countries want. And it’s all just there for the taking. Above the ground we have trees galore, waiting to be chopped down, water waiting to be piped to California. In the ground we’ve got gold and silver, copper and iron, uranium and asbestos. The list is almost ...
US judge finds Teck liable for polluting Upper Columbia River
On Dec. 14, Washington judge found Teck Resources liable for response costs for any environmental or health risks resulting from almost a century’s worth (between 1896 and 1995) of discharges into the Upper Columbia River in Washington State. Judge Lonny Suko said, in his ruling, that, “for decades, Teck’s leadership knew its slag and […]
COMMENT: Tight lips tank trust
Following the city’s overzealous and incorrect use of the Freedom of Information and Privacy Protection Act (FIPPA) to withhold letters that are clearly in the public’s interest and do not “unfairly” harm anyone’s reputation, I am left wondering what, exactly, remains in the five redacted lines in Coun. Kathy Moore’s letter...
COMMENT: Time for changes to MLA pensions and perks
Reforms to the MLA pension plan, living allowances and meal per diems should be among the top New Year's resolutions B.C. MLAs make this season, according to IntegrityBC. IntegrityBC is calling for an independent panel to review and make recommendations on existing MLA benefits which need to be seen in the context of a salary...
"Serious ethical issues" swept under carpet by mayor and former CAO, but dust monster rears its ugly head
A recently declassified letter from the city auditor supports Laurie Charlton's sleuthing that fingered former building inspector Jason Ward for awarding more than $185,000 in arena upgrades to his own company—violating his contract with the city—without putting the projects out to tender—violating the city's purchasing policy....