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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes-Advocate, 1979-10-17, Page 9' PICKING UP LITTER LEFT BY CAMPERS — Two workers from ARC Industries in Dashwood, Francis Knox and Danny Carter are busy picking up litter left by the thousands of campers who came to Pinery Park this summer. CAMPSITE REHABILITATION — After spreading top soil and seeding gross on sandy campsites, Natural Resources employees have to block off the area with posts. Digging post holes are Rob Brownell and Stan Boll, while Teddy Thomas gets more posts ready. Sandy camp sites cause problems when tent stakes won't stay in the ground, or trailers get stuck. Council won't adopt flood plan ••• I lS • MOVEMENT OF A SAND DUNE STOPPED — When 30,000 plants of beach gross were put into this steep sand dune, wind erosion was finolly under control. Naturalist Terry Crabe had a fence erected across the top of the dune to prevent people from walking on the grass and killing it. As the grass takes hold, more plants will grow in the sand. UESTION Does quality have to cost more? October 21st,*is the light bulb's 100th birthday. Why not give it the layoff. hydro Ontario hydroN* "On October 21, 1879, Iltuma Edison invented the light bulb, ' You definitely don't pay extra for quality when you shop and save the warehouse way at Whiting's. We represent Canada's top manufacturers of furniture, appliances and carpeting... and because we settle for less profit we're able to sell for less. Compare prices on the identical merchandise elsewhere and you'll know why more people are buy- ing from us. Try us and See for yourself WHITING'S Warehouse Furniture and Appliances Unlimited (New and Used) • Antiques and Things Main St. Exeter 235-1964 • • Pinery employees keep busy, even during off-season Things seem really quiet at Pinery Provincial Park. You don't hear the squeals of delight as children splash in the lake. Nor do you hear car motors as they drive in and out past the gate. And you don't hear the sizzle of hamburgs cooking on hundreds of barbeques. But even though it seems quiet during the off season in the Pinery, there are still noises, The noises are dif- ferent in the fall You'ixemore apt to hear a rustle in the long grass as a deer leaps just out of sight, or the calls of blue jays that you couldn't hear in summer, But the most important 4-H CLUB NEWS The Rolling Coasters 411 club no 2 held meeting five, Tuesday evening at Marilyn Walper 's home. Next meeeting will be Oct. 16, at Kathy Allister's home. Roll Call - Historically many articles were needlepointed for personal use and household items. Name one. Include picture or sketch of article in project manual. In the work period the eight girls attending learned the overcast stitch, and how to stretch their coasters back to shape. noise at this time of year is the sound of work crews fixing things up after a busy summer, and preparations being made for the coming of winter. Park naturalist Terry Crabe says that after a busy summer there is much to be done. And it was a very busy summer! The park had more campers than in recent years -- "families are Coaling back," Terry says. The park was filled to capacity every weekend but one in August when it was cold and rainy. The average attendance on one of the organized nature walks was about 55 this summer, up 15 per cent from past years. For the fall, the 1000 campsites have been reduced to 450 sites in the Riverside area. Dunes and Burley, the other two cam- ping areas, have been closed down. Riverside will only remain open until December 15. However, the large areas for group camping will remain open year round. The campsites in Dunes area are being looked after now that they are closed to campers, As part of Pinery's campsite rehabilitation program the sites are given a layer of top soil and then seeded with grass. Good weather this fall has aided • the rehabilitation program a great deal. Sites which have become sandy through use are grassed over -- campers appreciate this after they become stuck in the loose sand with their cars or trailers, or find it difficult to pitch a tent in the soft sand. After the sandy areas are grassed, gravel is put down in the areas where campers park their cars, Then the sites are kept out of use until next July to make sure the grass has a chance to grow, Pinery workers also take time in the fall to replant trees to better locations. After unused roadways or paths are grassed over, small trees are then planted to help the vegetation get started. Terry says that trees are taken from areas where they are too thick, and then transplanted. This is the best time of year for replanting small trees, Workers from ARC in- dustries in Dashwood and the South Huron Association for the Mentally Han- dicapped are hired to scour the empty campgrounds for litter. The workers are sent out with garbage bags and poles with nails on the ends to pick up all the scraps left by a summer of campers. Other Pinery employees are busy cleaning the comfort stations for the last time. Only one heated washroom stays open year round. The rest have the water drained from their pipes and anti-freeze poured into the toilets. Then win- dows are boarded up and the buildings locked. Terry says he likes this time of year best, because it gives him an opportunity to take a closer look at the flora and fauna of the park, after a busy summer of dealing with people. Terry now has time to discover unusual wild flowers like the fringe • over Nairn The Grand Bend "Colonials" soccer team beat Nairn 3 to 2 Sunday in overtime, Regulation play ended in a 2-2 tie with goals by William Vandenbygaard and Peter Backx, Net minder Luke Mommersteeg was kept busy by the Nairn team. Dave Nolan scored in the 30 minute' overtime period to give Grand Bend the win. Grand Bend will meet Nairn on thier field next Sunday as the play-offs continue. If a third game against Nairn is necessary it will be played on neutral ground. gentian that's growing in the meadows of the Burley area. He also has more time to keep a close eye on the grass that was planted on the big sand dunes. A year ago the Pinery purchased 30,000 plants of North American Beach grass or Marram grass, They were planted by hand on the sand dunes along Burley beach. The hardy grass grows quickly and puts out runners from its roots which hold the sand in place. More importantly, the runners and roots allow other seeds to get started, and therefore more vegetation finds the dunes inviting. The sand dunes were suffering badly from wind erosion. Terry says that the area was disturbed when a comfort station was built in front of the dunes and what little vegetation was there was destroyed. The grass was planted to repair the damage man had made, Armost all the plants survived on the sandy hill, and already other plants are springing up between the rows of grass. The area was fenced off for the summer to prevent people from destroying the new grass. For the same reasons another study is underway to look at building board walks over the dunes. So many pedestrians heading for the lake have destroyed vegetation on the sand dunes. It's expected that a walkway to the lake will be built in the dunes area by next spring. Terry along with fellow naturalist Case Van- denBygaard, is busy in- specting their trails, as well as conducting walks on the weekends, for fall campers and visitors. Some trails need repairs after heavy traffic this summer. Sawdust and wood chips are laid on the trails to prevent them from wearing too far into the soil, Grand Bend council' celebrated .the 25th an- niversary of Hurricane Hazelt by taking a closer look at their flood plain problems,, Bill Mungall of the Ausable-Bayfield Conser- vation Authority attended the meeting to explain the authority's flood plain proposals to council. The levels used in the flood plain study were those set 25 years ago with the flooding caused by Hurricane Hazel, Mungall asked council to support the authority's plan of regulating the flood plain areas. Mr. and Mrs. Art Webb of Green Acres also attended the meeting to discuss the erosion problem on their property. Mungall said the authority would like to inspect the dumping or removal of fill, or any construction that might occur in a flood plain area. Only commercial fishing buildings or marinas would be allowed to be constructed in a flood plain area. However, Mungall stressed that each site would be individually inspected, and other exemptions might be considered. Council questioned Mungall on the fines and legal procedure involved if someone did not comply with the authority's rulings. When Mundell explained that procedures haven't yet been determined, Reeve Robert Sharen asked him to come back at a later date with all the information written out. "I hate passing it without seeing it," Sharen said. Council said that adopting flood plain management principles will be discussed at the next meeting of the planning board. Reeve Sharen advised council to be cautious in making flood plain rulings, because "we don't want a Bosanquet situation," Bosanquet Township council is having difficulties after an old by-law prohibiting building in flood plain areas was discovered. Many homes have already been built there. Council also agreed with Mungall to go on with the erosion control work into area E. This area includes the land behind Green Acres, the Southcott and Sherwood properties, and extends to the Carmen Lovie property. In another presentation Council learned that the cost of paving all the streets in the village would be more than they first considered. Bill Ewing of Dillon Con- sultants attended the meeting to discuss the paving proposals. In 1975 council earmarked $15,000 for paving and im- proving village streets. They decided that all the streets will be in better condition than before sewer con- struction. With interest they now have over $20;000. Even streets not disturbed .by sewer installation will be paved and improved, Most of the paving costs have already been budgeted in the sewer expenses. A good portion of these costs will be picked up by, the federal government, and the provincial Ministry of Environment. It is estimated that it will cost between $25,000 and $30,000 to pave the rest of the village streets. Many of the streets have never been paved before and have only a tar and chip surface. Council decided to look further into making a decision on paving Centre Street by the Brewer's Retail, Morenz Lane, and the area in front of the fire hall. Should they not pave these areas, the final costs will be substantially lower. A report from a meeting of the Recreation committee two weeks ago rec- commended that council put the $800 surplus from the swim program towards the purchase of a $1200 Resusci- Annie. A Resusci-Annie is a life size doll used in the teaching of artificial respiration and cardio pulmonary resuscitation. The Rec committee reported that Mrs, Helen Kneale is willing to organize the program and look after the maintenence. Council also suggested that the Resusci-Annie could be used as a means to test life guards applying for jobs, as well as during the swimming lessons, Volunteer firemen, policemen and CPR trainers could also use her. Council agreed with the principle of purchasing the Resusci- Annie and decided to apply for a Wintario Grant to help with the cost. Service clubs would also be asked for assistance. Sign permits were granted to Carole Thar far Carole's Craft Cupboard, and Mary Morrice for For Goodness Sake. Councillor Keith Crawford commented that it was "nice to see new businesses in town." Reeve Sharen reported that Micheal Owen of The Village Inn had been fined $100 and $3 costs for not getting sign permits for his '-:October 17, 1979 Page .9 By MRS. HUGH MORENZ, More than 50 friends and relatives attended a birthday party, Sunday at Shipka Community Centre honoring Mrs. Martha Sweitzer, of Exeter, on the occasion of her 90th birthday. In the social time, visiting and program were enjoyed, and a smorgasbord supper. She received many greetings and gifts. Quests were present from Chatham, Exeter, Lambeth, Sarnia, Gravenhurst, London and Grand Rend. Cliff and Velma Russell attended the funeral last Wednesday of their sister-in- law, Mrs. Everett (Eileen) Russell, Detroit, held at David J. Wysacki Funeral home, Ryan Road, Michigan, Sympathy of this com- munity is extended to Nancy, Bill, Jason and Lori Fink- beiner, in the death of Nancy's father Jacque England last week. Mrs, Gordon Ratz and Barbara have returned from a ten day holiday to Van- couver Island, Victoria, and in Port Albernie they visited cousins Melvin and Clara Lamport. Ruth Zielman and Wayne Robson of Essex, and Susie Zielman, spent a week's holidays in Chatham., New Brunswick, with their cousins Mr. and Mrs. John Sadler. They travelled through Canada on way out and through U.S. on way home. Mrs. Betty MacNamara and Mrs. L. Elliot, of Lon- don, visited Sunday with Mr. and Mrs. Lorne Fenner, and Herbert Harlton. Jack and Marilyn Pickering, Glenda, Jennifer and Justin, spent the week- end in Welland. The former with Marilyn's mother, Mrs. Elsie Comfort and the latter three with their cousins Mr. and Mrs. Brian Anger. Jackie and Jenny Russell spent Saturday with Annie Morenz, three signs, Sharen said the permits would have cost $15. Council agreed to pay $14,743,40 in accounts payable for the month of October, Colonials win Signs marking the trails are brought in for painting • and will be put up againnext summer. Case ana Terry are also preparing new brochures for next summer. Better maps and descrip- tions of the Pinery will be included, But not all preparations are for the next summer. There are many plans in the making for winter activities. Cross country ski trails are being groomed, and the nature display centre is being slowly dismantled to convert it back to the ski chalet. In the meantime, the nature centre is open weekends. Preparations for the skating rink and toboggan run will soon be under way. BY MARY ALDERSON When we got our new pup, Pepper, last week, I started to tell you about my various pets in my column. Well, you just heard the beginning of it, As a matter of fact, in my diary of 1967,1 took an in- ventory of my pets. (Yes, I always kept a diary, until this year when I found out that people would pay me to write, so I quit writing in my spare time.) Anyway one day in 1967, when there was little else happening in my life, I took the time to list each pet by name, and describe it in detail, There were two dogs and a cat, (ordinary stuff, you say,) two rabbits (soon after that there were many, many mote) and three ducks. Sometime that year I got my first rabbit - and named her Roberta Rabbit. (tier middle name was Bunny.) Later however, we discovered that Roberta was in fact a Robbie, and I begged, until my parents let Me have another real Roberta, Before long at all, there were baby bunnies all over - too numerous to name. We just called them "First litter", "Second litter," and so on. Except that my parents didn't let the "and so on" go on too long. Soon I agreed to let the baby bunnies go back to my cousin's farm where the originals had come from. Eventually I learned the little ones were fattened and sent to a canning factory for stew, The story of my pet ducks is somewhat similar. One day a friend of my father's brought me an old mother duck and her nest of eggs, These weren't your average barn yard ducks, but pretty coloured wild Mallards, which had moved in with his barnyard flock. Seven eggs hatched and I spent the summer playing with the darling black and yellow balls of fluff. Then in late fall, five of the young ducks disappeared, one day while I was in school. I never did figure out why there was so much dark meat on the chicken that Sunday dinner. But I still had Mama Duck, and her two offspring which I named Sir Francis Drake and Lady buck. Mama Duck, although she was happy to eat the food I put out for her, never did get too friendly with people. Sir Francis, too, always felt it was necessary to keep a stately distance. But Lady Duck became a real pet, She would come when she was called, and enjoyed sitting in the mat right Outside the back door. Incest doesn't seem to be a big problem with ducks and there were more eggs the next spring. We even had to get some hens to help sit on the eggs. It was great fun 'Watching the look on a chicken's face, when her brood Of "chicks " ignores her clucking and goes swimming in a big tub. HE SCORES — An unidentified Nairn player looks on in dismay as Pete Backx of Grand Bend Colonials goes into the net after the soccer ball. The Nairn goalie k on the ground, and behind him is John Mennen of Grand Bend, The Colonials won 3-2 in overtime. ANSWER