City council heard, in its regular meeting Monday night, that resident water consumption increased by three per cent in 2009, compared to 2008’s numbers – and that’s a problem. Councillor Gord Turner pointed out that the city is currently missing out on granting opportunities that depend on more-controlled water consumption. “We use about 70 gallons […]

A press conference held at Castlegar's Zellstoff Celgar pulp mill last Thursday announced old news – but putting a new face on the story. Tory MP for Okanagan-Shuswap Colin Mayes trumpeted a $42 million federal grant through the Pulp and Paper Green Transformation Program to support Celgar's bio-energy project, which has seen...

The Health and Hospital Committee (HHC) of the Lower Columbia Community Development Team are planning a groundbreaking ceremony for the new heliport at Kootenay Boundary Regional Hospital. The project has been made possible by the generous donations of a number of different groups:   $100,000            Signature Sponsor Kootenay Savings Credit Union Foundation $100,000      […]

Eaters and producers are joining the Kettle Valley Food Co-operative around the Boundary region over the next few weeks. With funding support from the Co-operative Development Initiative, a granting program of the federal government delivered by the Canadian Co-operative Association, the newly formed Co-op is recruiting members and developing their initiatives for 2010. Information sessions […]

The City of Castlegar and Zellstoff Celgar will finally have their day in court as the B.C. Supreme Court is scheduled to hear their case on March 22 and 23 of this year. The case began in summer of last year, when Celgar declined to pay a $3.6-million municipal tax bill, filing suit instead and […]

Photo by Kyra Hoggan: BC minister of Forests and Range Pat Bell, along with mayor Lawrence Chernoff and other industry stakeholders, pose in front of Castlegar trees while promoting new forestry initiatives. In a public announcement made at the Castlegar Forum last Thursday, provincial forestry minister Pat Bell said he thinks innovative technologies like bio-energy […]

Columbia Basin Trust (CBT) is now accepting applications for its Youth Community Service Awards, valued at $2,000 and awarded based on volunteer community service rather than academic standing. “We are particularly proud to be able to present these awards to youth, who have shown a commitment to volunteering in their communities, for them to use […]

During B.C.Forestry Day at the 2010 Olympic Games, mayors of the seven municipalities  - including Castlegar - that have passed Wood First Resolutions in their communities signed a memorandum of understanding with the Province of B.C., announced Forests and Range Minister Pat Bell. "I want to congratulate the mayors and...

Highway 3 was the scene of three car accidents within the space of 15 minutes on Feb. 21, according to lcoal police. RCMP Sgt. Laurel Mathew said that, at just after 8 p.m., police were called to an accident just west of Castlegar, On their way there, they came across a 26-foot commercial truck that had swerved to avoid a...

Canada and the US have given Canadian companies a very brief opportunity to compete for US stimulus package dollars worth $4 to $5 billion. According to BC Southern Interior MP, Alex Atamanenko, this is a lop-sided deal. “Limited access to US stimulus funding for Canadian companies while guaranteeing US firms access to...