FRIDAY
< Quaretto Gelato: page 5
AUGUST 28, 2015
Hugo the Rat, WorldCon, > the Sick Puppies and the Rabid Puppies: page 5
Like Us TownsmanBulletin Follow Us
INCLUDES G.S.T.
@crantownsman
Vol. 64, Issue 166
1
$ 10 Proudly serving Cranbrook and area since 1951
www.dailytownsman.com
At this time of year, schools of kokanee salmon risk swimming into potentially dangerous water for them
Dead Kokanee reported at Koocanusa Lake T R E VO R C R AW L E Y
BRIAN CLARKSON PHOTO
A smoke-shrouded sun sets behind St. Mary’s Church in Cranbrook, Wednesday, Aug. 26.
Schools getting set for new year
New Next Week’s Bulletin for a Preview of School District 6 A R N E P E T RYS H E N
School starts in a little over a week and school district staff, teachers and students are all busy getting ready. School District 5 superintendent Lynn Hauptman said things are looking fantastic for the upcoming school year. Last year, as most will recall, began with a teacher job action that delayed the start of classes into the fall. This year however things are proceeding smoothly. “We’re very happy that things have been settled and we’re looking forward to a wonderful school year — a very productive school year,” Hauptman said.
The school board has been busy meeting with principals, vice-principals and clerical workers over the past few days to ensure everyone is ready for the start of classes. There are new teachers coming in as well. “We had a lot of hiring that we did last year in terms of new teachers and adding teachers to our teachers on call list,” she said. “We’re still in the process of doing some further postings or fillings that we have a number of new teachers.” Teachers are hired through the year, she added. “We also have what’s called
A fisheries biologist says there’s no reason for alarm after some dead Kokanee salmon were recently discovered by anglers out on Lake Koocanusa. Reported by a local marina out on the lake, Heather Lamson, a local fisheries biologist with the Ministry of Environment, took samples on Tuesday and shipped them off to a lab in Duncan. Results should be back in a few weeks, but Lamson already suspects that the cause is likely due to a phenomenon that is becoming more and more common. “It is an annual event, it seems to be in the last few years we’ve had a die-off of Kokanee on Koocanusa, at
least for the last three years,” Lamson said. “It’s always in August, so it’s always a pretty typical summer kill probably, most likely related to high temperatures and low dissolved oxygen. “Because Kokanee are a schooling fish, they’ll school up and they’ll all sort of swim into potentially dangerous water for them, the water that is separated and often you’ll find in lakes where it’s not very windy for a few days, you’ll find a separation of water layers and certain water layers have depleted oxygen so if fish end up in those layers, they can die.”
See KOKANEE, Page 4
City of Cranbrook calls for residents to join the fight SUBMIT TED
the Learning Improvement Fund which is quite a substantial sum of money that came out of the last round of bargaining,” she said. “Through this the education fund part of it is to hire more teachers. We look at it once in the spring, consult with our schools and our local unions and make decisions in the spring.” That funding is also used in the fall. “We take a look at, are there any hotspots? Are there any places that need some additional supports and services?”
The City of Cranbrook is stepping up the fight against the scourge of invasive weeds, and calling on residents and local businesses to join in. Invasive plants are all around Cranbrook and can pose a serious threat to wildlife, the economy, recreation and the environment. You may have also heard them referred to as noxious weeds — an official government designation. Spotted knapweed is one of dozens of invasive plants found in the Province and has become more and more prevalent around BARRY COULTER FILE PHOTO the city. Knapweed, a ruthless invasive plant
See TAKING THE FIGHT, Page 2
See TAKING THE FIGHT, Page 2
species, is in the process of colonizing Cranbrook