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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2000-07-12, Page 20PAGE 20. THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, JULY 12, 2000. Blyth man joins MCF directors The Maitland Conservation Foundation celebrated its 25th anniversary annual meeting on June 29 at the Wawanosh Nature Centre. The Foundation is a registered, charitable, volunteer organization that supports projects being under­ taken by the Maitland Valley Conservation Authority. Formed in 1975, it's been involved in a variety of activities including assisting with the acquisition of Lake Wawanosh Conservation Area, the publication of Windings, a History of the Lower Maitland River, and support of the expansion and operation of the Wawanosh Nature Centre. Al the meeting Ross Duncan, from Wingham was re-appointed as chair­ man w hile Diane Hahn, of Monkton, was named vice-chairman. Two new members were welcomed to the board, Joe Vuiders from Sebnngville and Geoff Peach of Blyth. Since its inception the Foundation has been very involved in supporting conservation education programs for students, community groups and IPM makes small profit Huron County's local committee hosting the 1999 International Plowing Match made a small profit but still has not been able to pay back all the money loaned by the county. Graeme Craig, chair of the com­ mittee presented a symbolic cheque for $25,000, half the county had loaned to help the committee get started. Craig said the committee had made a profit of $911 on rev­ enue of $1,217 million but there are still $35,000 to $40,000 in accounts receivable plus inventQpy'to be sold, County to throw support behind manure alternatives Acting on a motion from Blyth Reeve Mason Bailey, Huron County will get behind efforts to develop and promote alternatives of manure man­ agement for livestock facilities. Noting the importance of agricul­ ture and livestock facilities in the county Bailey said “Huron County should be the county that will take a leadership role.” He noted there is now a bam under construction in the county that allows the efficiency of liquid manure on the main floor, but com- families. For the past 12 years the Foundation has hosted an annual dinner and auction that has raised over $125,000 for education activi­ ties. “We've had tremendous support for this event from across the water­ shed,” said Duncan. “The success of the dinner and auction has become critically important in the ability of the Conservation Authority to con­ tinue providing conservation educa­ tion activities for participants of all ages.” While the Foundation is celebrat­ ing 25 years of conservation success, the board of directors is also busy with several new ventures. This autumn the Foundation will be offi­ cially launching the Memorial/Celebration Grove locat­ ed at George Taylor Conserva-tion Area. The organization is also undertak­ ing a membership campaign to encourage watershed residents to become involved in conservation activities in their local community and Conservation Areas. which may take time to liquidate. But, Craig said, the committee had decided that putting on a good show rather than making a big profit was their goal. The Huron match had been judged by the North American Farm Show Council on the basis of 30 pages of criteria and had received a score of 92 out of 100. he said. He estimates the county also had a $10 million financial spin-off from the show. However the big winners were the federal and provincial gov­ ernments that had major revenues from GST and PST, he said. posted the manure in a straw base in the lower floor. The manure can then be easily spread using solid manure equipment. “I was extremely impressed,” Bailey said of his tour of the con­ struction site. “J hope that this is the way of the future.” The county’s efforts should be to find a system that helps farmers improve their manure handling and protect the environment without cre­ ating hardship or penalties for them, Bailey said. Practising a theatrical death Cappy Onn, co-organizer of the Blyth Festival’s summer children’s workshop put a lot of effort into her death as they played a game of Who is the Murderer . County prepares pre-prosal for Healthy Futures grant Huron County will put together a "preproposal" to the Healthy Futures for Ontario Agriculture program to try to get $3 million in provincial funding to help landowners combat water quality problems. In arguing for a large share of the $90 million provincial program, the county will point out that Huron is by far the largest agricultural pro­ ducing county in the province with a high population of livestock. The program would fucus on “best man­ agement” practices to improve water quality and would provide 70 per cent of the cost of improvements landowners had to make to manure storage facilities of septic tanks that didn’t meet standards. The program would be administered by the coun­ ty at a cost of about $50,000 a year for two years, said Gary Davidson, director of planning and develop­ ment. Brian McBurney, reeve of Tumberry worried there would be some controls on who got funding under the program. He said the CURB (Clean Up Rural Beaches) program “built some of the nicest hay storage buildings in the county” with money supposed to be used for manure storage. Davidson said that by having all applications approved by the Agriculture and Public Works com­ mittee and county council, it was hoped there would be enough local knowledge to know if anyone was cheating. Mason Bailey, reeve of Blyth said he was disappointed in the amount COUNTY OF HURON of money being asked for. Given the size and importance of the county, the funding wouldn't go far, he said. LAWN PROBLEMS? Call... 524-2424 Neiv TO ONTARIO WHEAT PRODUCERS... ANNOUNCES 5 GOOD REASONS TO BRING YOUR WHEAT TO OUR GODERICH LOCATION New hryer! GODERICH ELEVATORS LIMITED (T) No loads rejected for moisture. (2) Direct delivery gives maximum return. @ Six large receiving pits, @ Segregated storage for all pools. @ Extended unloading hours, when needed. Request for Expression of Interest PROVISION OF AMBULANCE STATION FACILITIES The County of Huron is requesting Expressions of Interest with respect to the provision of ambulance station facilities. The County has recently completed an Ambulance Services Deployment Strategy Study, which identified the optimal locations of ambulance stations in Huron County. Expressions of Interest offering the use of existing buildings or the development of a new station(s) are being received. Interested parties may wish to propose alternatives in terms of leasing or ownership of the facilities. The Ministry of Health has defined specific requirements for the ambulance station facilities. These are contained in the document General Specifications for Ambulance Stations (draft, April 1995). Expressions of Interest must include the proposed location and a detailed description of the facilities. Interested parties should review the County's report and the Ministry of Health specifications. The report and specifications can be obtained from the-Office of the Clerk-Administrator, Corporation of the County of Huron. Court House, Goderich. Ontario, N7A 1M2, telephone 519-524-8394. Expressions of Interest are due to the Clerk-Administrator's Office no later than August 2. 2000 at 4:00 p.m. Office hours are 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m.