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Surveying Irrigation dam By Jackie Lieuwen Houston Today
IRRIGATION Dam
Jackie Lieuwen/Houston Today
Standing on the condemned Irrigation Lake dam, Water Resources Engineer Carl Pentilchuk and volunteers Dan Koster and Wendell Garrison survey the dam. Pentilchuk said the dam is rightly condemned as he gathered information on the structure in preparation for his design. The design for the dam will be finished in December and the Irrigation Lake water licence holder will be determined then.
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The engineer is starting the design for the upgraded Irrigation Lake dam. Carl Pentilchuk, Water Resources Engineer, was contracted by stakeholders in July to look at the Irrigation Lake dam and develop a design for the government required upgrade. Funded by the Bulkley Valley Credit Union, Pentilchuk surveyed the dam last Wednesday and collected site information needed to develop a design - which should be complete this December. “The dam is in terrible shape and it’s rightly condemned,” Pentilchuk said as he did the survey. “Everything has a serviceable life, and this dam has exceeded it’s serviceable life.” But Pentilchuk says the upgrade should be
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“The dam is in terrible shape and is rightly condemned.” quite straightforward, and a good portion of the existing dam can be reused and built upon, which will save on costs. Pentilchuk says it’s very hard to estimate a cost at this point, but if one was to hire a contractor to do all of the work - with no volunteer help, volunteer equipment or donated materials it would cost close to $80,000. But stakeholder representative Steve Page says they are hoping for and expecting volunteer help. See DAM on Page 10
“Sawmills have been over-harvesting the non-pine” By Jackie Lieuwen Houston Today
With the Timber Supply Analysis in process, the big question about how the pine beetle will impact forest industries is still up in the air. “It’s too soon to tell [what the downfall
will be],” said Agathe Bernard, Stewardship Officer with the Ministry of Forests, Lands, and Natural Resource Operations. Bernard was at Houston council last Tuesday to talk about the Morice timber supply and the process of determining the allowable cut (amount
“Mills have over-harvested non-pine over the past three years.”
of harvest allowed) for an area. Bernard says they are in the middle of
the Timber Supply Review process, and are making a Timber Supply Analysis
based on gathered information and public input. After the analysis there will be another period for public comment before the decision is made about the annual allowable cut for the Morice TSA. The current allowable cut in the Morice TSA, in place
since February 2008, is 2,165,000 cubic metres per year, and of that volume no more than 550,000 cubic metres can be species other then pine. Bernard says the key factors being considered in the Morice TSA are biodiversity, wildlife management, and
the impact of any potential land base changes. The other major consideration is conserving timber for future harvest. Bernard says that the mountain pine beetle killed 32 million cubic metres of pine in the Morice TSA from 2000 to 2012. See PINE on Page 3
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