The COUNTRY BOOSTER, December 22, 2015 – Page 10
Residents speak out against changes to Range Road By Murray Green
Camrose County residents are opposing development of Range Road 200 between Highways 13 and 26 (correction line). The County wants to improve the road to give truckers easier access to the Cargill Canola Crushing Plant. “We feel this upgrade is not necessary,” said spokespersons on behalf of concerned ratepayers, who are currently gathering signatures for a petition to stop the road construction. “Secondary road 834 (Highway 56) serves the same purpose and is only two miles to the east. It has turning lanes between the intersections of 56 and north of Legacy Junction and the Highway 13-RR 200 intersection. “We are opposed to the project because of the safety factor on the highways. Without proper turning lanes, it
will slow or stop traffic on Hwy 26, which will become a safety issue when vehicles will be trying to go at a normal speed and trucks are turning.” The cost of the project is currently estimated at between $1.4 and 2 million and will impact local taxpayers. Right Range Road 200 is gravel from the south up to an acreage. The rest, going north, is only road allowance or a trail, not an actual road. “With the way the economy is the cost might be a factor, but the safety of trucks crossing Hwy 13 and 26 is the main concern,” said Rob Rolf. “Maybe before we go ahead, we should look at how the traffic is affected when we have snow and ice on the road,” said Liz Rolf. Highway plans are made for the future. “I understand the County has to plan
ahead,” said Rob Rolf. “The plant and intersection is so busy that if I’m coming at 5 p.m. trying to cross, I might sit there until 6 p.m.” When Highway 13 was under construction to provide access to the Cargill plant, the traffic from the east was diverted to Highway 26 and then to Camrose. Many commuters from the Bawlf area still go north to Hwy 26 and then to Camrose. “I imagine there will be more changes to the intersection coming up as the volume increases,” they said. “It’s new and there are approximately 90 trucks a day going to Cargill.” “If they want to take the pressure off of Highway 13, by going to Highway 26, then there are bigger issues to consider.” Ken Hildebrandt said a stronger master is needed, both by the City and the County.
“I would like council to hold off any decisions for a couple of years and study the situation.” The bottom line for local ratepayers is simple. “In the end, we have to look at safety,” they said. “What is the safest solution to handle the higher volume of traffic between the County and the Cargill plant?” Currently Range Road 200 north of Hwy 13 is used for a variety of reasons, including recreational activities. “Construction would result in a total loss of wonderful green space that is currently inhabited by diverse wildlife,” said Liz Rolf. “Naturally occurring spaces such as this cannot be replicated once they are gone.” Those who signed the petition to take to County Council cited delayed traffic flow due to the large volume
of railroad cars as a concern that could also get worse. “In the winter time, and nobody knows this yet, it could take longer because the colder it is, the longer it takes for everything to work.” Rob Rolf suggested having a marker up by Highway 56, saying the highway is closed for railroad car crossing so an alternate route could be found for emergency first responders. “We know a long range plan is to have a north ring road. Let’s hold off on this project until we know what is planned for the north ring road and future infrastructure,” said Hildebrandt. The petition against proposed construction of Range Road 200 will be on the Jan. 12, 2016 Camrose County agenda. The council meeting begins at 9:30 a.m.
County resident taps into goodness of honey By Dan Jensen
Adding a single dollop of honey to a steaming cup of tea has long been regarded as one of the most effective home remedies for stubborn coughs or throat irritations. “It has been called “liquid gold” since ancient times because of the hundreds of medicinal, therapeutic, cosmetic, and culinary uses,” says the website honey colony. “It is a natural antiinflammatory, which makes it good for reducing itch and irritation, and because it has natural antibacterial properties, you can use it on scrapes and small wounds to help prevent infection and aid healing.” Recent research has shown that honey treatment may help disorders such as ulcers and bacterial gastroenteritis, and can help reduce the risk of some cancers and heart disease. Ancient Olympic athletes would eat honey and dried figs to enhance their performance. No wonder King Solomon said in the book of Proverbs “My son, eat thou honey, for it is good.” Bittern Lake area beekeeper/apiarist Lowell Befus enjoys telling anyone who will listen about honey’s many benefits. “I have noticed that since I started eating our honey that I have fewer problems with hay fever,” he said. Befus started his beekeeping operation in partnership with his in-laws, Dave and Krist Hagen, in the spring of 2010. “I wanted to find a way to maximize the land and be part of the bigger agricultural community so I did some research on it,” he said. “I knew I would
Lowell Befus is able to sell his Goodness Bee honey almost as quickly as it is put in jars.
have to bring in the in-laws because the labour is just too much for one person. It’s difficult to lift 150 pounds of honey out of a hive at fall time.” Befus and the Hagens started small with just five hives, a number they have since expanded to 15. “We really wanted to get an understanding of bee health and what was called colony collapse disorder,” said Befus. “We didn’t want to invest a lot of money only to see the bees die. Our plans are to expand even
more in the future as the funds become more available.” The average hive produces anywhere from 125 to 150 pounds of honey, with one pound enough to fill a 300 ml jar. “It takes a lot of bees to make that amount of honey considering that each bee only produces about an eighth of a teaspoon in its lifetime,” said Befus. Honey gets its start as flower nectar, which is collected by bees, naturally broken down into simple
sugars, and stored in honeycombs. “They use their long, tubelike tongues like straws to suck the nectar out of the flowers and they store it in their ‘honey stomachs,” says the Ford’s honey farm website. “Bees actually have two stomachs, their honey stomach, which they use like a nectar backpack and their regular stomach. The honey stomach holds almost 70 mg of nectar and when full, it weighs almost as much as the bee does. Honeybees must visit between 100 and 1,500 flowers in order to fill their honey stomachs.” Once they return to their hives the bees pass the nectar onto other worker bees. These “house bees” chew the nectar for about half an hour, breaking the complex sugars into simple sugars which are more digestible and less likely to be attacked by bacteria. The bees then spread the nectar throughout the honeycombs where it turns into a thicker syrup. They make the nectar dry even faster by fanning it with their wings. Once the honey is gooey enough, the bees seal off the cell of the honeycomb with a plug of wax. The honey is stored until it is eaten. In one year, a colony of bees eats between 120 and 200 pounds of honey. Befus opens the hives early in the spring after insulating them throughout the cold winter months. “We wrap them with R-14 insulation and the bees clump together for warmth,” he said. “The only feed they need is a little sugar water.” Befus considers the multiple bee stings he has received just one of the “hazards” of the job.
“The worst was one summer night, probably in our second year of operation, when we went to put Queen excluders on the hives to keep the Queens in the bottom box where they lay their eggs,” he said. “I thought it was calm enough that we would be able to sneak them in quickly and that everything would be okay, but when I pulled up the box they got out and flew into my pants, which had a tear in them, and onto my one knee. I got stung pretty good that night and I was running around pretty good afterwards.” Befus and the Hagens plan to be part of a swarm team next year which goes out to collect honey bee swarms. “We will be doing it at no cost just so we can save the bees,” said Befus. “Some people are afraid of bees, so to have someone local in the community who will come and pick up a swarm instead of just killing them is a great thing.” Befus has found that most of his honey sales, which are done under the name Goodness Bee Honey, have occurred as a result of word of mouth advertising. “We do attend farmers’ markets and have a Facebook site but mostly it is just people telling others about the product,” he said. “The comment that we often get is that the honey we sell doesn’t taste anything like the honey that is sold in the stores. It is raw honey with all the enzymes and other good things that are removed in the manufacturing process still in it. You can’t compare it at all to store bought honey.”