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Country Life in BC 36 Dale Road Enderby, BC V0E 1V4
Vol. 104 No.1
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Fruit
Wildfire Preview
Steele steps down as fruit growers’ president New Year, new start
Ag show celebrates 20 years and growing
13 19 25
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The agricultural news source in British Columbia since 1915
Peace will be flooded
Site C will be built in spite of opposition
by PETER MITHAM VICTORIA – Premier John Horgan
wasn’t pleased to announce that the $10.7 billion Site C hydro project would go ahead despite a billion-dollar overrun and schedule delays. “This is not a project that we
favoured; it’s not a project we would have started,” Horgan announced on December 11, foregrounding concern over the loss of at least 15,000 acres of farmland due to flooding, sloughing and construction. “I share your determination to protect BC’s farmland and reduce the impact of energy developments now and into the future.” And then he announced the project
would proceed, maintaining a status quo he doesn’t like for a future he believes in. “It must be completed to meet the
See FOOD SECURITY on next page o Growing more with less water Groundwater fee postponed
by PETER MITHAM VICTORIA – The province
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will waive fees for groundwater licensing until 2019 as producers continue to wrestle with the paperwork required to complete the process. A brief, 168-word press
release on December 15 announced the change. “Government has extended
the groundwater licence application fee waiver period from December 31, 2017 to March 1, 2019, to ensure existing groundwater users have every opportunity to
save money,” it read, accentuating the positive. “The extended date also aligns with the March 1, 2019 deadline for existing groundwater users to apply for a licence.” BC Cattlemen’s Association general manager Kevin Boon, who has called the licensing process “the biggest example of bureaucratic mishandling” that he’s ever seen, welcomes the changes. Along with streamlined application procedures, they should make life easier for applicants. “We’re happy with the
announcement. We feel it gives a chance for them to straighten things out and get caught up and not penalize the guys who want to do the right thing by licensing their wells,” says Boon. This is the second
extension the province has granted since licensing provisions came into effect under the Water Sustainability Act on February 29, 2016. Government initially said it wouldn’t charge applications fees until March 1, 2017 in
See FEES on next page o
STANDING STRONG: Princeton ranchers Quentin and Sheena Schneider, with their children Sterling and Cruise, are determined to rebuild after BC’s worst wildfire season on record. Read their story on page 19. PHOTO COURTESY OF SHEENA SCHNEIDER
JANUARY 2018 | Vol. 104 No. 1
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