Tour fundraisers Summer calendar fills up with Tour de Rock benefits. PAGE 17 Active life Program of chair exercises help build participants’ core strength. PAGE 26 Whitecaps fans Vancouver soccer pros bring series of events to city. PAGE 5
Sudden closure PAGE 3
BOOK YOUR APPOINTMENT TODAY!
OPTOMETRIST (Independent Optometrist)
SATURDAY, AUGUST 11, 2012
www.nanaimobulletin.com
VOL. 24, NO. 45
Richard Harding, director of parks, recreation and culture, checks out a fence that marked the boundary between Buttertubs Marsh and privately owned marshland. The fence will likely come down with the city’s purchase of the 25-hectare section of land that extends west from Buttertubs wetlands to the Nanaimo Parkway. CHRIS BUSH THE NEWS BULLETIN
Marsh protection grows City partners with Ducks Unlimited to buy 25 hectares of sensitive wetland known as the ‘west marsh’ BY RACHEL STERN THE NEWS BULLETIN
Sensitive wetland west of Nanaimo’s Buttertubs Marsh is now protected green space. The City of Nanaimo and Ducks Unlimited Canada co-purchased 25 hectares and
are creating a management plan to ensure ecosystems are protected for species at-risk and other animals that live in the area. The property is west of Buttertubs Marsh and east of the parkway, and is commonly referred to as the west marsh. The land was appraised at $1.1 million and was purchased from a private owner. The city contributed $430,000, Ducks Unlimited contributed $400,000 and the remaining $300,000 was secured through the federal government’s Ecological Gifts Program. It’s the first property co-managed by the city and Ducks Unlimited. “The main part is to maintain the ecological integrity but add into that public
use,” said Brad Arner, Ducks Unlimited’s manager of provincial operations. “It’s a great addition to the area and to have that side … it’s really a gem and bonus for the city.” Arner said amphibians will benefit the most from the protection. It will help species such as the western painted turtle and red-legged frogs, but will also benefit birds and is an off-stream habitat area for trout and salmon, in particular coho salmon. Richard Harding, City of Nanaimo director of parks, recreation and culture, said the partners will explore how to improve links with the Millstone River to provide more salmon-rearing ground. ◆ See ‘HABITAT’ /4
NANAIMO • WOODGROVE CENTRE 250-390-2444 www.visionsoptical.com
“
My wife and I wanted to give our money locally to a charity we know.
Philanthropist offers additional support for NALT BY MELISSA FRYER THE NEWS BULLETIN
One day David Stanley and Ria De Vos will be able to walk through a piece of land on Nanaimo River they helped preserve, thanks to a donation of more than $83,000 to Nanaimo and Area Land Trust. It’s De Vos and Stanley’s second donation to the organization, about double what they gave previously. The land trust’s executive director, Gail Adrienne, said she was stunned when the couple called with news of their intended donation. “We really didn’t expect to see more from them,” Adrienne said. The couple and the land trust decided to divide the money and put $50,000 toward the group’s operating expenditures and the remainder into a reserved account to kick start an acquisition campaign for property along the Nanaimo River. “My wife and I wanted to give our money locally to a charity we know,” Stanley said. “We want to see some results.” Stanley’s first donation – $55,000 in shares – helped the acquisition of Mount Benson property in 2007. ◆ See ‘RIVER’ /4