MAPLE LEAF RAISED AT ATHLETES VILLAGE FOR GAMES
GAZPACHO From gradschool standby to cool summer staple
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Red Deer Advocate TUESDAY, JULY 22, 2014
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Frac sand facility opposed BY PAUL COWLEY ADVOCATE STAFF Rural Clearwater County residents are uniting to oppose a proposed frac sand facility near Leslieville. Mary Forster is among 11 neighbours who have joined forces and hired a lawyer to appeal Clearwa-
ter County’s development approval for the $15-million trans-loading centre that Edmonton-based DiCorp wants to build about three km west of Leslieville. Forster lives only about 400 metres from the site and is concerned that the 30 trucks coming and going from the site each day are more than local roads can handle. There is only room between Hwy 598 and a rail
crossing on Alhambra Road, which runs north south, for a large truck and a car, she estimated. “Then it’s going to back up on Hwy 598, which is a skinny Alberta highway,” she said. The highway speed limit is 90 km/h, which she believes will create a dangerous situation if vehicles suddenly come upon others stopped on the highway.
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A STUDY IN CONCENTRATION
CITY COUNCIL
City’s air quality still falls short of standards BY CRYSTAL RHYNO ADVOCATE STAFF The City of Red is making some headway in its efforts to clear the air but it still falls short on meeting some federal standards. Nancy Hackett, the city’s Environmental Initiatives supervisor, told council on Monday that Red Deer and Edmonton are the only two Alberta cities that are exceeding the 2.5 particulate matter levels. The readings have caught the province’s attention, which triggers an air management plan process that may occur in 2015 or 2016. Hackett said the Parkland Airshed Management Zone, which runs the city’s air monitoring station, would have a better answer on why Red Deer and Edmonton are missing the mark. Anytime there is combustion or forest fires would ramp up the levels, she said. “It’s very difficult for the scientists to determine why we have this issue,” she said. “PAMZ is trying to do more intensive monitoring but right now they do not have a definite answer as to why, but Alberta Environment does want it.” In her annual report on the city’s idle-free campaign, Hackett told council that Red Deer is seeing some behavioral changes since the educational campaign launched in 2010. She said more schools, businesses and institutions have joined the program. “Unnecessary vehicle idling contributes harmful pollutants to the air,” said Hackett. “It is certainly linked to air quality concerns and greenhouse gas emissions but also vehicle noise, vehicle theft and fuel consumption, which all take resources out of our community.” The program promotes “a minute or less is best” for idling a vehicle. Hackett told council in 2013-14 there were many achievements and progress, including getting more schools, institutions and businesses on board with the program. Hackett said growth poses a problem for all its environmental targets in its Environmental Master Plan. The city has edged near the 100,000, reaching 98,858 according to its 2014 municipal census. Hackett said other growing communities in Alberta are able to meet the particulate matter standard. “There are a lot of other growing cities in Alberta,” she said. “It is about using our vehicles more wisely as we grow. We may have more vehicles on the road but perhaps by not idling or idling less we can make a difference as we grow.” Some councillors raised concerns when told 24 businesses did not respond to the city’s request to join the idle-free coalition. The city had sent out letters to 24 companies that identified themselves as the “greenest” employers and companies in Red Deer. None of the 24 businesses responded.
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Photo by ASHLI BARRETT/Advocate staff
Queen’s Volleyball Camp participant McKenna Lemessurier works on her dig during one of the afternoon activities in the Red Deer College gym Monday afternoon. Girls aged 11-18 worked on various volleyball skills at the camp, which runs from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. A second Queen’s Volleyball camp will run next week for girls aged 11-15. There will also be a King’s Volleyball camp for boys also aged 11-15.
Horse put down following accident before chuckwagon races BY ADVOCATE STAFF A horse was put down at the North American Pony Chuckwagon Championships at Westerner Days on Saturday night. According to driver Brian Mills, who says he witnessed the incident, a wagon driver clipped the fender of a parked truck on his way out of the barn where the horses were kept, prior to Saturday’s race. The team of four horses broke free from the wagon and ran into another truck, which needed to be
WEATHER Mainly sunny. High 24. Low 13.
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towed away. The driver was launched from the wagon but did not suffer any injuries. One horse reportedly had to be euthanized. “Everybody is crammed in there with semis and campers,” said Mills, who is the vice-president of the All Pro Canadian Chuckwagon and Chariot Association. “He was misguided going out of the barn with his horses on. It was just a freak accident. All he was (doing) was trying to get to the race meet.” At Westerner Days, most chuckwagon horses are kept in barns in between races, keeping them out of
the elements and away from the thousands of visitors and vehicles used during the five-day fair. Chuckwagon teams set up their camps on the paddock near the barns. Each team brings an assortment of horse trailers and RVs where they sleep, as well as trucks and other vehicles. Mills said at every other stop, they are in an open field where there is more room to set up, but he emphasized the accidental nature of the incident. Several messages were left for members of the Westerner Park board on Monday evening but were not returned at press time.
Bodies of crash victims returning homes A train carrying Malaysia Airlines victims’ bodies pulled away from a rebel-held town in eastern Ukraine on Monday. Story on PAGE A6
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