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Province approves mine near Canal Flats
The provincial government has given the green light to the proposed Kootenay West open-pit gypsum mine, 12 kilometres north of Canal Flats. The mine is expected to be in operation for nearly 50 years.
The proposed mine site will cover 135 hectares and is located on traditional territories of the Ktunaxa Nation and the Shuswap Indian Band. It is expected to produce 400,000 tonnes of gypsum over a 43-year lifespan.
It is estimated that 43 full time jobs will be created over the year and a half it will take to build the mine, at a cost of $23 million. Annual operating costs are expected to reach $4.3 million. It is also estimated that 40 full time jobs will be generated in direct-supplier industries.
City of Kimberley to provide $5000 for problem deer
Kimberley City Council voted this week to set aside $5000 to deal with translocated deer that cause problems in other communities, bringing the City one step closer to gaining a translocation permit.
$5,000 will be included in the 2019 budget to hire a contractor to lethally remove deer that are translocated from Kimberley and attract complaints from neighbouring communities. This motion was voted in by Council in order to comply with the condition of the 2018 translocation permit from the Ministry Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations (FLNRO).
The City hopes to remove 50 deer from the community as part of the translocation, and FLNRO will match the City’s funding. Mayor Don McCormick says that nine or ten deer from the last translocation ended up in other communities, and that this funding is simply a precautionary measure.
Council passes second reading of draft OCP
Kimberley City Council also gave second reading to the Draft Official Community plan this week, while also setting a public hearing date for Monday, February 19, 2018 at McKim theatre.
Prior to Council passing the second reading, they heard a presentation from Marysville resident, Shawna Dean who outlined what the bench lands mean to her and those that use the trails for recreation. She pointed to the Volksmarch trail, which has been in place for some 30 years, along with presenting a petition with 480 signatures against the industrial zoning of the bench lands.
The City’s manager of planning services, Troy Pollock presented the OCP as a whole, saying the city has a long term supply of land for residential use, but a lack of industrial land.
He explained that although Teck has a lot of land along Jim Ogilvie Way, that many people point to as being ideal for industrial development, the process to get an environmental certificate for those lands is long and complicated and could take up to ten years.
Overwaitea switches to Save-On
Overwaitea has officially changed to Save-On-Foods, a changeover that happened over night on Thursday. The Kimberley and Creston stores are the first two of nine in the province to change over this year, and all remaining Overwaitea Food stores in BC will change to Save-On-Foods by the year’s end. Both save on foods and Overwaitea foods belong to the same company, which was named the Overwaitea Food Group for its original stores.
The popular 10 per cent off first Tuesday of the month will now be 15 per cent off, and store Manager Stephanie Ames says there will be more savings and value overall.
Anyone who shops on January 26, 27 or 28, 2018 has an opportunity to enter a draw to win a hockey package that includes four box seat tickets to a Kootenay Ice Game, a Detroit Red Wings jersey, a gas certificate and a meal certificate. The draw will be made on Monday, January 29, 2018.
