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KTW friday
KAMLOOPS THIS WEEK FRIDAY
kamloopsthisweek.com kamloopsthisweek kamthisweek To submit an item for THIS WEEKEND, email listings@ kamloopsthisweek.com.
WHAT’S HAPPENING
THIS WEEKEND
30 CENTS AT NEWSSTANDS
TODAY ▼ FRI., APRIL 8
APRIL 8, 2016
COMMUNITY: • Yarn and yap drop-in program for senior knitters, crocheters, cross-stitchers, needlepointers and like-minded people, 12:30 p.m. to 2 p.m., North Kamloops Library, 293 Tranquille Rd. Continues every Wednesday to June 24. • Wii bowling, 6 p.m. to 10 p.m., Fraternal Order of Eagles, 755 Tranquille Rd., 250376-7735.
APRIL 8, 2016 | Volume 29 No. 43
LISTINGS/B1
MUSIC: • The Librarian, 8 p.m. at CJ’s Night Club, 130 Fifth Ave. 19-plus event. Tickets: $10 in advance, $13 at the door.
SAT., APRIL 9
Stage rite Kamloops actress Kelsey Gilker was awarded the Emerging Artist Award at this year’s Mayor’s Gala for the Arts. KTW’s Dale Bass caught up with her after the accolades. Story/B2-B3
MUSIC: • Michael Turner Duo, 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., Dunes at Kamloops Golf Course, 652 Dunes Dr. No cover. • Ruby Bruce performs, 7 p.m., The Art We Are, 246 Victoria St., admission by donation.
TUE., APRIL 12 COMMUNITY: • World wide web class, 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. , Kamloops Public Library, 465 Victoria St., 250-372-5145.
More Listings, B5
RECORD YEAR ON THE HILL The ski and snowboard season at Sun Peaks ends Sunday, with 2015-2016 boasting a best-ever 350,000 visits. A13
DREAM ON
2016 Y Dream Home tickets are now on sale A10
IT’S AN ACT
Kelsey Gilker’s life is consumed by the stage B1
STAFF REPORTER
cam@kamloopsthisweek.com
T
DAVE EAGLES/KTW
Sunny and warm High 26 C Low 7 C
Channeling change CAM FORTEMS
Work continues to make Tranquille Creek more suitable to the salmon run. To see more photos of KTW’s visit to the creek, go online to kamloopsthisweek.com
WEEKEND WEATHER:
ea-coloured water tumbles down from Bonaparte Plateau to the mouth of Kamloops Lake, as it has for thousands of years. But, for the first time in a long time, change in the Tranquille Creek is not due to the careless forays of miners, farmers, drivers and loggers who have plugged and diverted its channel in the past century. Work overseen by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans a little more than a year ago has resulted, so far, in a single channel making its way to the lake at Cooney Bay. There has also been work done by an excavator, volunteers and schoolchildren organized by Kamloops Fish & Game Club, who planted willow trees in a bid to restore creekside habitat. “We had 40 to 50 per cent success [in planting]” said Sandy McDonald, a retired biologist who helped with the project. “That’s to be expected.” Prior to the excavation to create a single channel — buttressed by locks and rocks to keep the current in line — the creek channelized so much by fall that it appeared to run dry as it flowed under the gravel to reach Kamloops Lake. “Historically, by the end of September, there were 15 channels out there,” McDonald said. “Fish couldn’t get up.” Despite its small volume, Tranquille Creek is home to pink and coho salmon runs — the latter species considered an endangered stock at serious risk of extinction in the South Thompson River system. Challenges to the sustainability of Tranquille Creek will involve more than just repairing its mouth.
PSYCHIATRIC NURSING DIPLOMA PROGRAM In response to an overwhelming demand for Psychiatric Nurses throughout BC, particularly outside the Lower Mainland, Stenberg College has offered its online-based Psychiatric Nursing diploma program since 2006. The only program of its kind in Canada, this innovative program allows students to do the majority of their coursework as well as their clinical placements and practicum in their local communities. • Wages range from $30.70 - $40.42 / hour • Recognized by the College of Registered Psychiatric Nurses of BC (CRPNBC) • Articulation agreement with Kwantlen
There is damage from park users placing rocks across the channel in summer to dam the river in low water. Farther upstream, recent work has been done to alter the channel through historic farming and water use. McDonald and the Secwepemc Fisheries Commission share the goal of restoring the river far up Tranquille Creek, including its canyon area, to allow salmon access. The commission recently completed construction, about 1.5 kilometres upstream of Kamloops Lake, of a Newbury riffle — reconstruction of the creek to stabilize its bank and create a backwater fish habitat. Through erosion of the bank, the creek was threatening to cut off access used by schoolchildren for the annual salmon release. Miranda Brooke, who oversees habitat restoration for the commission, said the $40,000 project was completed in August. “We have a strong interest in the creek. There’s an irrigation dam upstream about four kilometres,” she said. “We’ve been working with Tranquille Farms and are looking to eventually decommission the dam and bypass it so flows can be directed and increased in low water.” Completion of that work would allow salmon access into the canyon and beyond. Nearby, McDonald wants to see construction of a backwater channel to allow pooling of cool water, along with shade. This would provide a rest area for spawning salmon and a rearing area for juvenile coho that spend a year in freshwater before returning to sea. That will require a technical evaluation by an engineer to determine if it’s feasible. For now, McDonald wants to do more planting at the mouth to further buttress machine work. Success won’t be known for several years. “We want to give it a couple of years and a couple of freshets,” she said.
Psychiatric Nursing
INFORMATION SESSION Wednesday April 20th 7 pm – 9 pm Sandman Signature Hotel 225 Lorne Street, Kamloops
You may be eligible for government student loans, grants, bursaries & loan forgiveness.
Toll Free: 1-877-836-2374 · stenbergcollege.com
Please RSVP to rsvp@stenbergcollege.com or by tel: 1-877-836-2374