Estevan Mercury 20180704

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SOURIS VALLEY THEATRE A9

MIDGET AAA TWINS

Rehearsals begin for Homecoming

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Issue 9

SERVING THE ENERGY CITY SINCE 1903

Mailing No. 10769 | Publication No. 40069240

EPS preparing for cannabis legalization By David Willberg dwillberg@estevanmercury.ca

The Estevan Police Service will be “well-prepared” once cannabis is legalized, according to police Chief Paul Ladouceur. The Senate passed the federal government’s cannabis legalization bill last month. Canada will become the second country in the world with legalized recreational possession of cannabis on Oct. 17. “It’s something that we obviously saw coming to the community, and have been working diligently to prepare for,” said Ladouceur. The EPS sent two officers to Florida for the drug recognition expert training program. They’re fully trained and have come back to Estevan. Officers have also been sent for training in standardized field sobriety testing. Additional officers will continue to be sent on the course so they can recognize the signs and symptoms of impaired driving by cannabis. “There will be an internal educational component for our members, just to have them well-educated on the law, so that we ensure their powers of arrest and detention when it comes to illegal use,” said Ladouceur. While people think the only way to test for cannabis is through the saliva test, Ladouceur said the drug recognition expert program is well-established in Canada and has been supported by the Supreme Court. But the local officers are sent to the U.S. for training because of the use of live subjects. “They actually use individuals who are under the influence of drugs to do their assessments, so they will go out into the communities and deal with people who have consumed. So it’s not a case where they’re getting simulation-based training. They’re getting live training as they do this.” The EPS is eager to see what kind of approved roadside screening device will be released to assist police at the side of the road to deal with impairment by cannabis. Ladouceur isn’t confident this issue will be resolved before the legislation comes in, but police can still move forward with drug recognition experts. The EPS has also committed to focus its school presentations on impaired driving by drugs and alcohol in the next school year. He also met with the owner of Prairie Sky Cannabis, who will have the licence to sell cannabis in the community. Ladouceur characterized it as a good conversation about the sale of cannabis in the city, and the police chief feels comfortable with the company and its willingness to work with city and police officials to keep cannabis out of the hands of youths. “We always know that there are youths in the community using cannabis, and the majority of that is through the black market,” said Ladouceur. The EPS has fielded a number of calls from concerned landlords about what to do if a tenant uses cannabis in a rental property. A2 » POLICE

Pucker up Jessie Fitzsimmons, left, holds Lola the pig for Bonnie Bernhardt to kiss it during the Kiss a Pig fundraiser at the Bienfait Canada Day celebrations. It was one of many popular attractions to celebrate Canada Day in the town this year. For more on the festivities in Bienfait, see Page A3.

International Souris River Board gathers to meet in Estevan By David Willberg dwillberg@estevanmercury.ca

Residents from both sides of Canada-U.S. border gathered in Estevan on June 25 to discuss issues related to the Souris River. A public meeting of the International Souris River Board was held at the Days Inn’s Taylorton Room, with about 100 people in attendance. They heard presentations about the river and its management, and then a few people stood up to voice concerns with the river. Nicole Armstrong, who is the Canadian co-chair of the board, said the organization tries to alternate its meeting locations throughout the Souris River watershed, with get-togethers in both Canada and the U.S. “Our last meeting in the

winter was in Minot, and we had a public meeting and invited folks from the U.S. to come and meet with us,” said Armstrong. “So we thought it was a good chance to meet on the Canadian side, and talk to folks in Estevan.” Among the speakers was John Fahlman with the Saskatchewan Water Security Agency, who discussed the water management side from a Saskatchewan perspective. He noted there are three reservoirs in the Estevan area, with one of them, Boundary Dam, used for water supply purposes, except for in a flood situation. He called the other two – Rafferty Dam and Grant Devine Lake (formerly Alameda Dam) – multipurpose reservoirs. Fahlman noted that

Jack Twietmeyer of Oxbow was among those who voiced concerns over invasive aquatics species during the meeting. Grand Devine Lake and Rafferty Dam are drawn down a metre beneath their full supply level (FSL) each spring to provide flood protection, regardless of the forecast or the snow levels. In the case of the past 12 months, last year was a

dry summer and fall, which reduces runoff potential even if there’s a lot of snow. But this past winter also had a well below normal snow pack. “The runoff generally began in the basin in midA2 » CONCERNS

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