About 100 elderly hikers swarmed the RCMP exclusion zone, no arrests were made A gang of seniors marched on logging roads in Fairy Creek on May 25 and said they completely overwhelmed the few RCMP officers who were there holding an exclusion zone. Saul Arbess, 82, said when the officers saw more than 100 seniors […]
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Indigenous law being steadily rebuilt in Canada, says UVIC professor
‘We don’t have to argue that Indigenous people have law anymore’ Three years after welcoming the first students to the Indigenous law degree at the University of Victoria, Val Napoleon says Indigenous law is being purposefully rebuilt and gradually recognized in Canada. “We don’t have to argue that Indigenous people have law anymore,” she said. […]
Wild bees need messy gardens to survive
The year-long nesting period makes habitat a primary concern for wild bees Gardeners might be itching to clean up dead leaves and stalks from the winter, but they could be holding wild bees who haven’t emerged yet. “A big impact is to keep your garden messy. We always have this urge to tidy up but […]
Improvements at Highland Manor slow, stuck in red tape
Occupants wondering when things will get better The new owners of Highland Manor are making some progress toward improving safety and living conditions as promised. But improvements are sometimes undone within hours, leaving tenants wondering if things will indeed get better. Greg Vance, who bought the building with business partner Mario Morrison in February, said […]
First Nations’ vaccination clinics a big success
Between the three clinics, over 600 people were vaccinated in early March ZOE DUCKLOW, LOCAL JOURNALISM INITIATIVE REPORTER Mar. 10, 2021 5:30 a.m. Nurse Alexa Bisaillon waits with needle prepped for her next immunization patient at Wakas Community Hall on the Tsulquate Reserve. (Zoë Ducklow photo) Vaccines arrived on the North Island after a long […]
B.C. to go ahead with Site C dam, with new $16B budget and delayed to 2025
Reviews recommend more oversight, beefed up foundation stability work ZOE DUCKLOW, LOCAL JOURNALISM INITIATIVE REPORTER Feb. 26, 2021 11:06 a.m. Premier John Horgan says his government will continue building the Site C mega dam in northeastern B.C., with an increased budget of $16 billion and a one year delay. Last August, the government commissioned a […]
True extent of homelessness on North Island unknown
Mt. Waddington Health Network prepping a survey to get the full picture ZOE DUCKLOW, LOCAL JOURNALISM INITIATIVE REPORTER Feb. 11, 2021 10:52 a.m. Apartments in Port Hardy. (Zoë Ducklow photo) Even though it just completed an intensive housing needs assessment, the Regional District of Mount Waddington still can’t say how many people are experiencing homelessness, […]
Infamous Highland Manor sold to Creekside owners
New owners promise to improve living standards in the run-down apartment ZOE DUCKLOW, LOCAL JOURNALISM INITIATIVE REPORTER Feb. 9, 2021 12:48 p.m. An infamous apartment building in Port Hardy has a new owner, and with that, hopes of improved living conditions. Highland Manor, a 41-year-old, 50-unit building has been called a fire hazard. It has […]
Families displaced by fire still looking for housing
The suspicious January fire dispossessed 15 families in Port Hardy ZOE DUCKLOW, LOCAL JOURNALISM INITIATIVE REPORTER Feb. 3, 2021, 3:52 p.m. Published in the North Island Gazette Two weeks after a fire ripped through an apartment in Port Hardy, the six families still looking for new homes are drawing attention to the housing shortage on […]
Sisiyutł serpent ready for the new Bighouse
The triple-headed serpent is one of several intricate carvings artists have made for the Bighouse ZOE DUCKLOW, LOCAL JOURNALISM INITIATIVE REPORTER Jan. 28, 2021, 5:30 a.m. In the carving shed on the Tsulquate reserve there are four house posts and two cross beams, carved and painted. Lying flat they are like slumbering monsters, each measuring […]