PENINSULA
NEWS REVIEW
Panthers tie with Wolves
Hospital Foundation update
The Peninsula Panthers tied the Westshore Wolves in weekend gameplay, page 17
Karen Morgan gives an update on the Saanich Peninsula Hospital Foundation’s latest projects, page 3
Black Press C O M M U N I T Y
N E W S
M E D I A
Less Pain. More Play. Physiotherapy Acupuncture Massage Therapy Kinesiology Orthotics
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Wednesday, September 25, 2013
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Cougar sightings on the rise Two cougars have been spotted in Central Saanich in less than a week Devon MacKenzie News staff
Two cougars have been roaming rural properties in the Central Saanich area and have killed livestock on two local farms. The Central Saanich Police Service received reports last Friday, Sept. 20 of a cougar roaming properties on Bryn Road in Central Saanich. Later they discovered a lamb had been attacked and killed on a farm in the same area. Conservation officers were called in and set up trail cameras and traps with the idea that the cougar would return to the lamb carcass. Around 8 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 21 a cougar was captured in one of the traps and was euthanized after being deemed a risk to public safety. The cougar was described as a young male, approximately two years old and weighing about 100 pounds. On Sunday evening another sighting was reported in the 6500 block of Central Saanich Rd. (near the intersection of Styan Road) and another lamb was found dead on a property nearby. Local schools were notified of the sightings and police are reminding residents that although interactions between cougars and humans are rare, to be aware of their surroundings. According to the B.C. Ministry of Environment, cougars are most active at dusk and dawn but can hunt during any time of day. Also, during this time of year juvenile cougars become independent of their mothers and search for new territory. This is when cougars are most likely to conflict with humans. Conservation officers were still searching the area for the animal as of Monday afternoon. reporter@peninsulanewsreview.com
Steven Heywood/News staff
Retired DFO ocean scientist Rob Macdonald, left, and Peninsula Streams executive director Ian Bruce show off the core samples taken from sediment in Reay Creek Pond in Sidney.
Reay Creek Pond tested for heavy metals Peninsula Streams to determine if sediment can be removed, reclaimed Steven Heywood News staff
Peninsula Streams has taken samples of the sediment in Reay Creek Pond in Sidney and plans to test it for heavy metals and other contaminants. A small team of three people used a boat and plastic core sample tubes late last week to extract soil and its contents from the pond. What they hope to find, says Peninsula Streams executive direc-
tor Ian Bruce, is contaminants — of varying levels — stemming from many years of industrial and commercial activity in the area around the Victoria airport. The hope is that the sediment from the pond can be extracted and the pond ecosystem improved over time for area plants and wildlife. Currently, sediment in the pond has left it very shallow, but with a muddy bottom. The work would also improve the health of the creek downstream, Bruce added, where the Town of
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Sidney and other partners have done a lot of work in recent years restoring the waterway. Bruce was joined by Streams volunteer Reg Kirkham, who lives next to the pond in the same neighbourhood, and Rob Macdonald, a retired Department of Fisheries and Oceans scientists with extensive experience in sampling and testing sediment. Please see: Sediment testing project, page 2