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Wednesday, July 17, 2013
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There’s no place like home Youth housing is on the horizon for West Shore Kyle Wells News staff
Charla Huber/News staff
Metchosin resident Kathy Atherton, here on a road near her home on La Bonne Road, is urging people to pitch in to help control the spread of tansy ragwort, an invasive plant that is poisonous for cattle, horses and goats. Atherton is organizing a community work party July 28 to rip out the plants that have sprung up in her neighbourhood.
Metchosinites stop invasive plant in its tracks Despite its pretty yellow flowers, tansy ragwort, like broom, is not welcome Charla Huber News staff
When Kathy Atherton sees the golden glow of tansy ragwort, she hones in for the kill. “I pull it wherever I see it,” she said of the invasive plant, which can be removed easily due to its shallow root system. “The
roots usually aren’t substantial. If they’ve been cut with a mower, the roots get much stronger.” Around her home on La Bonne Road and up Liberty Drive in Metchosin, ragwort is getting harder to find, but it once flourished. “I have been pulling it for 12 to 15 years, just yanking it out whenever I see it.” Atherton hopes others take similar initia-
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tive and nip the problem in the bud before it becomes more pervasive, as has Scotch broom. “I suddenly realized, if we let this plant keep growing it’ll just keep moving. It’s a survivor,” she said.
Homeless youth on the West Shore may soon have a place to hang their hats. The long-sought goal of establishing temporary housing for wayward youth is on the brink of being met, as the Threshold Housing Society puts the final touches on plans to expand its reach into the western communities. With final decisions being made in early August, it’s too early to announce details, Threshold executive director Mark Muldoon said, but the organization has been hard at work on the plan. “We’re still having to put a few ducks in a row here,” he said. Muldoon said there is a distinct lack of services for at-risk youth in the fastgrowing area. Some agencies do a great job, but in some areas – especially housing — he sees a shortfall. Housing is the most important to bridge, said Muldoon, as research shows having a stable place to stay is the lynchpin to a stable life. “(It) keeps you in the mainstream and doesn’t get them marginalized, where they lose contact with family, sports teams, church, school, etc.,” he said. “We’re anxious to fill that gap.” As chair of the West Shore Youth Housing Task Force, Bill McElroy and others in the group have been working toward this goal for years, with lack of funding mainly holding them back.
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Metchosin plant pull, Page A9
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