THURSDAY
S I N C E
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JUNE 7, 2012 Vol. 117, Issue 111
West Kootenay fishing report
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INCLUDING H.S.T.
PROUDLY SERVING THE COMMUNITIES OF
ROSSLAND, WARFIELD, TRAIL, MONTROSE, FRUITVALE & SALM SALMO
SPECIAL DELIVERY
Rainfall warning adds to flood concerns
Major projects begin at Teck
BY TIMOTHY SCHAFER
Demolition and concrete removal underway
Times Staff
Start building the ark. Water continues to pour down into the Greater Trail region, prompting a rainfall warning from Environment Canada for the West Kootenay into Thursday, ramping up a high stream advisory to a flood watch from the B.C. River Forecast Centre. A large-scale upper low-pressure system has developed across the West Kootenay and has soaked 30 millimetres of rain into the soggy scene over the past 24 hours, adding to an already saturated soil situation. As a result, river levels have been rising in response to this deluge, pushing smaller creeks and rivers near peak levels of their five-year flow rates. In fact, the Slocan River near Crescent Valley is currently rising at a rate of three centimeters per hour (one inch per hour), pounding water across the rock face where whitewater kayakers play, creating waves in excess of one metre (three feet). In Fruitvale, the waters of Beaver Creek are level with the edge of its banks, after it rose 15 cm. (six inches) Tuesday night, and a further nine cm. (four inches) Wednesday morning. Village of Fruitvale chief administrative officer Lila Cresswell said the water level was still not as high as it was last year at its peak — and it has not jumped its banks and flooded the park in the village core — but it is uprooting trees in some areas near Bluebird corner. “Southeast Emergency Management has us on a flood watch and we are in constant contact with them,” she said. The low-pressure system is drifting northwestward toward northern B.C., but before it does it will drop up to 20 mm. of rain around Trail and further east into Castlegar, Nelson and the Slocan Valley. Rain turned to snow in higher elevations Wednesday afternoon, closing the Salmo to Creston (83.9 km) Highway 3 mountain pass after a vehicle incident resulted from the extreme weather conditions, according to DriveBC. The road was still closed as of press time. Meanwhile, the ongoing closure of the TransCanada Highway between Revelstoke and Golden will “likely” continue for the “next few days” said a Parks Canada spokesperson.
See SALMO, Page 3
BY BREANNE MASSEY Times Staff
TIMOTHY SCHAFER PHOTO
A crane was needed to haul materials onto the third floor of the Kootenay Savings Credit Union building Wednesday as work began on an office space expansion by Rendek Developments Inc. Led by Creston-based Terrence Rendek, the company had one city bus stop closed for the morning in front of the financial institution as they lifted materials up and hauled them through an open window.
Work has started on two environmentally-geared projects at Teck Trail Operations, the No. 4 furnace project and the No. 1 acid plant. Several access roads are being prepared on the Southeast corner of Teck’s property, overlooking downtown and the Columbia River, while some vegetation is being removed for preparation of on-site construction. Excavation and demolition work began this week, and concrete removal is expected to take roughly three weeks. Work is scheduled to take place Monday to Friday between 7 a.m. to 3 a.m. to minimize noise in West Trail. “Currently, Trail processes end-oflife electronics in the No. 2 Slag Fuming Furnace and in August 2011, we celebrated processing 50,000 tonnes of e-waste since the process started in 2006,” said Catherine Adair, the community engagement co-coordinator at Teck Trail Operations. “Having a new furnace will triple the capacity we have currently.” Sulfur dioxide emissions could be reduced at Teck Trail Operations by nearly 20 per cent annually by using new technology to upgrade the No. 4 furnace project. The furnace project is estimated to demand 500,00 hours of construction labour over a two year period, resulting in roughly 200 jobs. The upgrades include construction for a new Baghouse to filter gas from the furnaces to maintain the quality of air. In addition, the No. 1 acid plant requires 300,000 hours of work to completed and will create another 150 employment opportunities. The projects are expected to be wrapping up by 2014.
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