Public comments are now being sought on a new report that recommends short- and long-term actions to protect B.C.’s species at risk. Developed by an independent, 10-member task force announced in the August, 2009 speech from the throne, members were chosen for their experience or expertise in a wide range of sectors, including environmental protection, […]

B.C. businesses now have access to a comprehensive guide that provides information on how to create a business environment that is safe and comfortable for seniors. Creating an Age-friendly Business in B.C. is a collaborative release between the Ministry of Health and the BC Chamber of Commerce. The guide is designed to help new and […]

Mosquuitos and the threat of West Nile virus are back. West Nile virus, a disease that is spread from infected birds to humans through mosquito bites, has been present in B.C. since 2009. The virus (WNv) was first detected in B.C. in the South Okanagan during the summer of 2009 with the identification of WNv […]

B.C.’s public sector is officially carbon neutral, a first for any province or state in North America. To kick-start carbon-neutral efforts, B.C. launched a $75-million public-sector energy conservation capital fund in 2008. It has funded 247 energy projects in schools, hospitals, colleges, universities and other government buildings across the province. Once complete, those projects are […]

Compliance and enforcement officers, conservation officers and recreation officers will be on patrol this Canada Day weekend in the West Kootenay-Boundary, ensuring people are following campfire safety regulations. The regulations, introduced last summer, state that campfires cannot be larger than 0.5 metres in height and 0.5 metres in diameter (approximately a foot-and-a-half by a foot-and-a-half) […]

No, it’s not a long weekend gouge, but expect to pay more at the pumps starting on Canada Day. Effective July 1 the carbon tax on gasoline rises by 1.11 cents per litre to 5.56 cents per litre. Other fuels see a similar increase. However, the Low Income Climate Action Tax Credit also increases by […]

Rural and remote areas of the West Kootenay-Boundary and across the province are expected to benefit from a $100-million, 10-year strategic telecommunications services contract the Province signed with TELUS Wednesday. Under the contract, high-speed Internet connections will be improved for families and businesses in rural and remote B.C., and cellular coverage along highways across the […]

Public debate about taxes may be focused on the HST, but a new report suggests that the HST is only one piece of an inequitable provincial tax system, a system in which the richest 20 per cent of British Columbians pay a lower tax rate than the rest of us. The report, by the Canadian […]

A new state-of-the-art Cross Laminated Timber plant in Okanagan Falls, which officially opened Friday, features innovative technology that will change the way wood is used in B.C., providing another boost to B.C.’s forest industry and regional economic growth. Structurlam’s new 1,400-square-metre plant expansion was supported by $5.7 million in provincial and federal funding. The plant […]

The BC Federation of Labour recently launched a multi-media campaign to give British Columbians another view on the choices they face in the referendum on the HST. “The Clark government’s so-called information campaign on the HST is poorly disguised advertising to persuade British Columbians to keep the HST,” said Jim Sinclair, president of the BC […]