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Review Vol.17
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Number 41
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Thursday, October 8, 2015
Serving the communities of Keremeos, Cawston, Okanagan Falls and Kaleden
Mother, two cubs killed near Olalla Tara Bowie Review Staff
Tara Bowie
The federal candidates from Central-Okanagan Similkameen Nicola were all smiles before an all candidates debate held Friday night in Keremeos. Left to right, Green candidate Robert Mellalieu, Liberal candidate Karley Scott, Conservative candidate Dan Albas, NDP candidate Angelique Wood.
Almost all cordial at all-candidates Tara Bowie Review Staff
In stark contrast to Federal leader debates, local candidates from Canada’s four major parties actually expressed a mutual like for each other at the all-candidates debate Friday in Keremeos. To watch them one might almost think they were members of a political Partridge Familyesque rock band on tour, not four people going head-to-head in what will probably be the longest job interview of their lives. Repeatedly during opening remarks and throughout the debate Liberal candidate Karley Scott, NDP Angelique Wood and Green Robert Mellalieu expressed that they respected their opponents and at times even made remarks leaning towards wanting to stay in touch and possibly form future committees to collaborate on ideas that could help everyone in the new riding.
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Conservative candidate Dan Albas even laughed at one of Mellalieu’s punny jokes. “I fix computers for a living or as you may know them PC’s,” Mellalieu said during his opening remarks. Although the mood could be considered cordial in political debate circles, the candidates did face-off on some tough questions effecting residents in the Similkameen Valley. As predicted the National Park issue was brought up but with a twist. The resident at the microphone framed the question in a pro-park way asking “What will you do to help us establish a National Park?” Answers varied slightly for the candidates with most saying a version of more information needs to be collected by the province before anything moves forward and acknowledging there were sensitive lands and species at risk that need to be protected some way.
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Conservative Dan Albas encouraged residents to make comments on the province’s new intentions paper for park lands prior to the Oct. 31 deadline Representing his party well, Albas pointed out the unknown fiscal demand of the project. “Obviously before anything goes further there needs to be an assessment to truly find out what the cost would be to taxpayers,” he said. Scott, liberal candidate, acknowledged the park was a contentious issue and that the lands proposed for park areas were known to be part of a sensitive ecosystem. She said at this point the federal government doesn’t appear to be part of the plan or in deep discussions regarding the proposal. “This is a provincial plan,” she said. Continued on page 13
A local hunter came upon a gruesome scene last week when he found a mother black bear and her two cubs shot dead near Olalla. “The one cub was hanging on to the mom,” AJ Huber of Keremeos said. “I was pretty upset about it. I just don’t understand why someone would do AJ Huber that.” Huber found the Two cubs and a mother bears on Ollala Creek black bear were found Road in the morning shot dead just off Olalla Creek Road. of September 28. He was out with a friend from out of town grouse hunting. He figured the bears had been there for a few days by the smell and that rigor mortis had set in. “They were two little cubs not much bigger than a dog,” he said. He immediately called conservation officers who attended the grisly scene later that day. Jeff Hanratty, conservation officer in Penticton and surrounding areas attended the scene. At this point few details are known about the deaths of the bears. Initial thoughts were that the bears were shot somewhere else and moved, but that might not be the case. “Until we get someone to phone us and help put the puzzle pieces together we’re left with a mystery right now,” he said. “At this point we’re really requesting the public’s assistance to identify the shooter and for the shooter to tell us what happened. It’s possible they were shot in self defence or in defence of property but we really can’t guess what happened at this point.” There is no hunting season on bear cubs or bears in the company of cubs.
Continued on page 13
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