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Conservative wildlife management through the decades

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:01:43 GMT

Editor:In the 1970s and early 80s Peter Lougheed created Alberta’s first government departments for protection of the environment.As part of this, he hired a handful of Fish and Wildlife habitat protection biologists and positioned them around Alberta to ensure industrial developments were done in ways that protected wildlife habitat. That was Alberta’s ‘CONSERVE-ative era’ of wildlife management.In the late 1980s and 90s the Getty and Klein governments continued to establish approval and referral processes and maintained an effective Fish and Wildlife Division to serve Albertans. This was Alberta’s ‘con-SERVE-ative era’ of wildlife management.From the mid 1990s to 2010 there was an erosion of the Fish and Wildlife Division. Habitat protection biologists were eliminated. Industrial referral systems were dismantled. Habitat development was privatized. Up until that time, the Fish and Wildlife Division had paid for itself with hunting and fishing license revenues being similar to annu...

Drag has always been mainstream

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:01:43 GMT

From Japanese Kabuki, to Greek and Roman theatre, and Shakepeare’s Elizabethan stage, despite claims that drag performance is a trend on the rise, the history shows drag has been practiced across cultures and eras.Consider that in recent decades, drag has been near-constantly employed by male comedians and actors alike. While not all performances in this context are inherently “at the expense” of any one group, it seems a bit coincidental that the recent hysteria surrounding drag seems to be an issue now that queer people are the individuals leading mainstream drag performances. Now that queer drag art has carved out space as a mainstream phenomenon where the tired “man in a dress” is not in and of itself the entertainment value, some people are pushing back.Last week, the State of Tennessee passed Senate Bill 3(a)(1): “It is an offence for a person to engage in an adult cabaret performance: (A) On public property; or (B) In a location where the adult cabaret performance could be vi...

Bill 8 passes first reading

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:01:43 GMT

By Erika MathieuSunny South NewsThe Alberta Firearms Act, or Bill 8, passed first reading during the March 7 meeting of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta.On March 1, Joseph Schow, MLA for Cardston-Siksika announced three bills to be tabled in the spring legislature. Among the bills announced, was Bill 8, “the Alberta Firearms Bill”, which would give the Province a framework to regulate issues relating to sale, seizure, and licensing, and pushes back against the federal government’s Bill C-21.Federal and provincial governments share jurisdiction over the regulation of firearms in Canada, but Bill 8 details the parameters and responsibilities of the province’s Chief Firearms Officer and grants him the authority to enact regulations aimed to counter the authority granted to the federal government and its agents relating to the seizure of restricted firearms and accessories proposed in C-21.If passed, the Chief Firearms Officer would be granted the flexibility to “administer the Canad...

Council considering association participation policy

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:01:43 GMT

By Nikki JamiesonSunny South NewsThe following are briefs from the March 7 regular Meeting of Coalhurst town council.FCM Convention attendanceMayor Lyndsay Montina proposed that she and one council member attend the upcoming Federation of Canadian Municipalities conference in Toronto this May. Montina said they have not attended an FCM conference since the council came into office, and she believed there was a lot of opportunities in attending the conference, such as connecting with different elected officials and gaining an understanding of municipal issues on a national scale, networking and setting up meetings with other municipalities that are undergoing innovative projects that they may want to consider bringing to Coalhurst.The cost to attend, including registration, flight, accommodation conference events and incidentals such as ground transportation and meals, would be budgeted at $4,000 per person.Coun. Heather Caldwell noted FCM has increased its interest in smaller munici...

Coalhurst remuneration policy passed

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:01:43 GMT

By Nikki JamiesonSunny South NewsFollowing months of discussion, Coalhurst town council has adopted a new remuneration policy.Previously, during council’s regular Dec. 6, 2022, meeting, they voted to postpone deliberation on the policy pending more information from the CAO regarding the comparator municipalities and a report to council at the Jan. 17 council meeting. When the matter returned to council, council passed a motion to refer the matter relating to Council Remuneration to the Policy Bylaw Risk Review Committee, and that the committee return to council with a recommendation no later than May 2.At a Feb. 13 Policy Bylaw Risk Review Committee meeting, several amendments were made to the policy, regarding salary changes, word changes, added definitions and to add parameters for an annual review of the policy. Council had voted during their Feb. 21 meeting to accept the draft policy as presented and postpone a decision to adopt the draft policy to a future meeting of council.“I...

Figure Skating show brings the heat

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:01:43 GMT

By Erika MathieuSunny South NewsFigure skaters in Coaldale took their audience on a tropical journey this past Saturday.On March 11, the club hosted their annual carnival at the Coaldale Recreation Centre.This year’s carnival featured dozens of skaters from the Coaldale Figure Skating Club’s PreCan, CanSkate and StarSkate programs, ranging from ages 4-17. this past season saw over 100 skaters registered in the program this year. The organization said several of the club’s skaters attended the “Frozen Fest” and Chinook Open competitions in Lethbridge as well.“For our Pre-CanSkate, and CanSkate there are program assistants (PA’s) who help the coaches. These PA’s are older skaters from our StarSkate program, and without them we wouldn’t be able to allow as many skaters to register,” explained president of the CFSC, Carla Ens.This season, special guest stars included the the Lethbridge Synchro team. After a short hiatus due to pandemic restrictions, the carnival showcase returned in 202...

Kate Andrews and Coaldale Christian win respective zone basketball titles

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:01:43 GMT

By Garrett SimmonsSunny South NewsThe Kate Andrews High School senior boys basketball team took home the 2A zone championship Saturday in dominating fashion.Coaldale earned gold Saturday night with a huge 103-80 win over Stirling. The top-ranked Pride never left any doubt in the zone tournament, which included decisive victories in the quarterfinals and the semifinals.Kate Andrews began its tournament run Thursday night with a 99-38 win over No. 8 F.P. Walshe from Fort Macleod. Carson Bartsch had 21 for Coaldale, while Carson Mellow and Nicholas Klassen added 14 each. Matthew Klassen chipped in with 13 and Karson Willis added 10 points.In the semi, the Pride continued to click on all cylinders offensively in a 97-69 win over Kainai. Ben Dyck had 22 points in the win, as Nate Shipton added 18 and Bartsch had 14. Willis finished with 12 and Mellow added 11.In the final against Stirling, Kate Andrews trailed 20-17 after the first quarter, before the top-ranked squad exploded for 34 poi...

RCMP data shows mental health related calls up in Lethbridge County

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:01:43 GMT

By Erika MathieuSunny South NewsRCMP data shows mental health calls are up in Lethbridge County.Despite the increases to mental health related calls in Lethbridge County,  Alberta Health Services (AHS) has not yet offered a timeline on when a mental health nurse position will be filled, as part of the Regional Police and Crisis Team (RPACT), a mobile response team comprised of a trained AHS mental health provider, and an RCMP officer to provide mental health supports to calls where mental health and mental illness are a factor.In September 2022, Staff Sergeant of the Coaldale and Picture Butte RCMP detachments, Mike Numan, shared the news of the detachment’s involvement with the Regional Police and Crisis Team (RPACT), which was supposed to see RCMP officers responding to mental health calls in the South Zone alongside a registered AHS mental health nurse.Within the County, mental health calls rose from 15 in Q3 in 2021, to 21 in Q3 of 2022.“Those are attributed to dependencies on d...

Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany files for bankruptcy

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:01:43 GMT

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- On Wednesday, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany filed for reorganization under Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code. Parishes and Catholic Schools of the Diocese aren't a part of the filing, as they are separately incorporated under New York State’s Religious Corporations Law. Get all of the latest news, weather, sports, and entertainment delivered right to your inbox! “We maintain global mediation would have provided the most equitable distribution of the Diocese’s limited financial resources,” said Bishop Edward B. Scharfenberger, Bishop of Albany, “but as more Child Victims Act (CVA) cases reached large settlements, our limited self-insurance funds which have been paying those settlements, have been depleted. The Chapter 11 filing is the best way, at this point, to ensure that all Victim/Survivors with pending CVA litigation will receive some compensation. The decision to file was not arrived at easily and I know it may cause pain and suff...

Rensselaer County announces electronic recycling event

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:01:43 GMT

TROY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- On Saturday, March 25, the Rensselaer County Legislature and the Environmental Management Council are hosting a countywide electronics recycling event. From 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., residents can bring acceptable items to the Rensselaer County Office Building parking lot at 1600 7th Avenue in Troy. Get all of the latest news, weather, sports, and entertainment delivered right to your inbox! Accepted items are:Air Conditioners/DehumidifiersHubs/Routers (Computer Networking Devices)Printers/Copiers/Fax Machines/ScannersAppliances: Washers, Dryers, and other metal-based appliancesInk Cartridges Safes and Strong BoxesAudio/Video EquipmentKeyboardsScientific EquipmentBusiness MachinesLaptopsServersCable or Satellite ReceiversLCD Monitors/TerminalsTablesCash RegistersMailing Equipment Telecommunications EquipmentCell Phones/Smart PhonesMainframe/Midrange TypewritersCircuit BoardsMetal Objects: Bikes, Swing Sets, Basketball Hoops, Grills, Washers, DryersUPS Units (batt...