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Friday, April 18, 2014 The Chilliwack Progress
Pointsof View
The Chilliwack Progress is published by Black Press Group Ltd., every Wednesday and Friday at 45860 Spadina Ave., Chilliwack. The Progress is a member of the Canadian Community Newspaper Association, British Columbia and Yukon Community Newspaper Association and B.C. Press Council.
A legacy of involvement
The Chilliwack
Progress
R AESIDE
To call him a community builder would be an understatement. There was hardly an event, hardly a fund raiser, hardly a function that Stan Rogers – and the company he led – wasn’t part of. Rogers died suddenly Wednesday night, struck down by a possible heart attack. His death leaves a hole in Chilliwack, not only in the business community, but also in the myriad of philanthropic projects he was involved with. Rogers is perhaps best known for what he did to help Chilliwack’s flagging economy in the late 90s. In the shadow of the departure of several food processing facilities, his company – Legacy Pacific – stanched the bleeding, opening its sprawling warehouse facility, then securing construction of the Rogers flour mill a few years later. He was on the verge of bringing to Chilliwack one of the largest freeze dried processing facilities in Canada when the global economic meltdown occurred in 2008. Bowed but not beaten, he continued work to develop industrial properties in Chilliwack, bringing jobs and economic benefit to the city. He wasn’t shy to say Legacy Pacific was the single largest taxpayer in the city. It wasn’t a complaint (although he did explore creative ways to lessen that sting), but rather a proud testament to the economic importance his company was to Chilliwack. But it wasn’t just the business side of things that Rogers was passionate about. He was a proud and active Rotarian, and lent his expertise to several community boards and non-profit societies. Even in difficult times his company could be counted on to support the many fundraising events that punctuate the Chilliwack calendar. He was an unapologetic federal Liberal supporter in a traditionally Conservative region. But it wasn’t the political stripe that was most important, but rather the participation in the process. Democracy, he said, was not a spectator sport. And neither was being a member of the community. As busy as Rogers was (Blackberry always by his side), he seemed never too busy to be part of making Chilliwack stronger. Because that’s what a community builder does. ~ Greg Knill, Chilliwack Progress
L OCALLY G LOBAL
Extinguishing the European fire ant invasion As an aggressive invasive species, European fire ants are a serious nuisance on many fronts. They swarm and deliver a painful sting that, while not lifethreatening, burns then itches for days and can trigger swelling or a possible allergic reaction. They colonize in multiple nest densities in a process called “budding” in which new nests are established close to each other in a very small area (maybe a single square metre) and each colony has multiple queens. They like warm, moist conditions and favour urban areas, lawns, and city parks where they capitalize on ground heat and dampness from lawn irrigation. Given their nest densities, they are extremely hard to get rid of, resist pesticides, and render infested grassy areas unusable by the public and pets. According to the Invasive
Species Council of B.C., European fire ants are among the 100 world’s worst invasive species and they are emerging in alarming numbers in mild, damp coastal regions of the province. They have been found in Vancouver, North Vancouver, B u r n a b y , R i c h m o n d , Victoria, and Margaret Cour tenay and they have been EVANS confirmed in Chilliwack. While, according to the SCBC, they were confirmed in B.C. in 2010, they have likely been here for a decade and known populations have doubled in the past year or two. These ants are native to Europe and Asia and were brought to
North America, specifically the Boston area, around 1900. They were reported in Quebec in 1915 then about 40 years ago expanded their range to Ontario. Like many invasive animals, these insects become dominant in the areas they invade. They displace native ants that are valued for their ecological usefulness such as seed dispersal, pollination, and as part of the food chain. Fire ants protect destructive aphids as the insects like the honeydew the aphids produce. They are capable of actually farming aphids and the carbohydrates in the honeydew they consume provide greater growth of the ants and their colonies, increasing competitive performance and allowing them to out-forage native ants. Where there are high densities of fire ants, there are high densities of aphids which themselves are a serious pest for
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many horticulturalists. “These ants have been in B.C. at least 10-15 years,” said Dr. Robert Higgins, Biological Sciences, Thompson Rivers University in Williams Lake. “They are very problematic for young children. The presence of these ants makes it impossible for young children to play on the lawn. Lawn maintenance can be difficult. We had one incident several years ago in Vancouver when a man had to abandon his lawn mower when cutting the grass.” Higgins said that the ants are also an issue for dogs when playing on the lawn or being walked in parks. Subsequent swellings from stings were at first treated as infections and administered antibiotics instead of anti-inflammatories. Given how difficult it is to eliminate fire ants, Higgins is researching control methods.
“We need to look at control options,” he said. “We have taken advantage of the lessons learned elsewhere. We know that pesticides do not work. We are looking at baiting with a container to lure in whole colonies. Then we can destroy the ants.” There is an urgent need to get ahead of this pest. Our mild, damp climate creates perfect conditions for this ant to get firmly established. They can then be easily spread by the movement of contaminated soil, mulch, or potted plants between gardens, community plots, parks, or nurseries. Given the problems these ants present, Higgins is optimistic that more research funding will be made available from the provincial government this year. If you suspect you have these small, red, twin-waisted ants on your property, call Dr. Higgins for advice at 1-250-392-8106.
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