The Citizen, 2002-08-21, Page 1Inside this week
Thermometer Pg. 3 charts progress
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Pg.1 Peacemaker home rg. from Colombia
13 'Romeo and Juliet'
Irk 17 at Stratford
Youth wins chance
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English woman
finds father's grave
The Citizen
Serving the communities of Blyth and Brussels and northern Huron County
Volume 18 No. 32
Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2002
75 Cents (70c + 5c GST)
Vandals
continue
to
plague
Brussels OFA president makes McKillop visit
Walton
teen
dies
in ATV
crash
Tragedy has struck the hamlet of
Walton, with the death of a 17-year-
old resident on Monday night.
Geoffrey Banks of Walton Road
died as the result of injuries
sustained in an ATV and car
collision.
Huron OPP were called to the
intersection of Beechwood Line and
Hullett-McKillop Road at approxim-
ately 6:30 p.m. Police say the ATV,
driven by Banks, had been travelling
north when it proceeded through the
yield sign, into the intersection and
struck the driver's door of a Nissan
pickup which was travelling west.
Banks was pronounced dead at the
scene. J. Bruce Williams, 47 of
Huron East was transported to
Seaforth Public Hospital by
ambulance with serious injuries.
The OPP are continuing their
investigation.
Sudden stop
Newry Road, west of Livingston Line, in Grey Ward, Huron East, was the site of a single
vehicle crash Sunday just before noon. A 1993 Chev, driven by Dorothy Sparks, 67, of
Kitchener, left the road and smashed into the bank of a deep ditch. Sparks was air lifted to a
London hospital with serious but not life-threatening injuries, police said. The OPP are still
investigating to determine the cause of the crash. (Janice Becker photo)
By Bonnie Gropp
Citizen editor
The rash of vandalism in Brussels
is not only keeping OPP officers
busy, but wondering.
"Vandalism seems to be the
biggest problem in Brussels and we
have no idea why," said Sr. Const.
Don Shropshall of the Huron
OPP.
Of particular concern recently
have been the incidents in which a
BB gun has been used.
Last month two businesses were
targetted, while police were
contacted Aug. 8 about damage to
the Brussels school.
Arriving early in the morning, the
custodian had discovered that
sometime in the previous 12 hours
pellets had been fired through a
window located on the east side of
the school.
While the incidents are still
unsolved, police are encouraged by
the increasing number of calls they
are receiving from residents of the
village.
"There have been a number of
,positive calls from citizens with
information. Their help is very much
appreciated and can go a long way to
solving the problem."
In a further effort to if not stop,
-then at least lessen the mischief,
Shropshall plans on taking a
message to school students.
He has, he said, been in contact
with the new principal at Brussels
regarding a vandalism presentation
for the senior grades in the new
school year.
By Janice Becker
Citizen staff
A couple dozen farmers gathered
at Gord and Irma Pryce's Thursday
morning for the opportunity to voice
opinions regarding current and often
long-running farm issues and
irritants when outgoing Ontario
Federation of Agriculture President
Jack Wilkinson stopped by.
One of the 'first topics up for
discussion was Bill C15 which deals
with cruelty to animals.
Though Wilkinson said there were
some areas the OFA was not
completely satisfied with, he is glad
there was "delineation made
between housing and raising animals
for meat and the treatment of non-
agricultural animals."
"There was a lot of legislation out
of date and it had to be changed," he
said.
He credited his own organization,
the Canadian Federation of
Agriculture and Huron MP Paul
Steckle for the work put into
changing the bill. Steckle worked
particularly on the endangered
species section, he added.
Though many farmers in this area
may not believe the endangered
species section may impact them,
Wilkinson gave a very clear
example of just how damaging the
bill could be.
There was a tobacco farmer'in
Simcoe County who wanted to clear
some windbreaks to enlarge the size
of his fields. When it was discovered
that a bald eagle nesting in one of
the trees, had been disturbed and the
chicks had died, the Ministry of
Natural Resources took action.
The landowner was told his
activity had resulted in the death of
the chicks (not ministry personnel
looking in the nest ever few days,
quipped Wilkinson). Not only was
he charged, but was told that the
habitat for 300 metres around the
nest was not to be disturbed.
That would result in
approximately 30 acres at $4,000
per acre purchase price, out of
production.
"We are in favour of keeping
habitat. We are not like the U.S.
where it is shoot, shovel and shut-
up," said Wilkinson.
OFA and other organizations have
sought and are still working on
greater compensation for farmers
who are told how to protect
endangered species on their
property.
"We don't agree with the state
telling us how to use our land. We
should be fully compensated for
habitat."
The floor was then opened to
questions, with the first being about
the pay-outs by crop insurance.
Though there were suggestions
regarding individual accounts rather
than pooled resources, Wilkinson
pointed out the risk for those who
may not have paid in much when
they have a run of two or three bad
years.
"Are you willing to risk having no
insurance in the second year?" he
asked.
He also suggested that some
farmers are preferring to take out
personal crop insurance then using
NISA (Net Income Stabilization
Account) as a back-up.
A considerable amount of the
morning was spent discussing
options to aid young farmers getting
started in the business without
overwhelming debt loads, the
necessity for one or two off-farm
incomes, interest rate support and a
tax system which encourages
producing a loss.
This support should start at the
training level, said Wilkinson. Both
the type of training and what
programs are needed must be
decided upon.
The next difficulty is that,
currently, funding for agricultural
training comes from the agriculture
ministry rather than universities and
colleges, something that should be
changed according to Wilkinson.
When asked about subsidizing
interest rates, Wilkinson said it
might be better to look at
subsidizing insurance costs such as
An Auburn area teen has been
released from hospital , after
suffering serious injuries in an
automobile crash.
Mike Bean, 17, was a passenger in
a car driven by Holly Little, also 17,
of Goderich, which crashed Friday
evening.
According to Huron OPP Sr.
Const. Don Shropshall, the car was
northbound on Limekiln Line, just
south of Hullett-McKillop Rd. at
approximately 8:45 p.m., when
Little lost control of the vehicle.
The car left the road, entered the
fire, disease and disability because it
is harder to capitalize.
There are many programs which
have been started both provincially
and federally in the past, but none
are long-lived as new governments
scrap the plan and start anew.
There were also suggestions to
look at the Quebec model which
grants (agricultural) college grads
$30,000 for start-up.
Whatever the program, it needs
the government backing to succeed,
Wilkinson said.
Armed with several suggestions,
recommendations and comments
regarding support for both young
and established farmers, Wilkinson
said he would take the remarks back
to his board.
It was also suggested by Charles
Regele, president of the Huron
County Federation of Agriculture,
that a, local resolution be pulled
Continued on page 10
ditch and struck a tree.
Both Little and Bean were taken to
Alexandra Marine and General
Hospital in Goderich with in-
juries.
Bean was transferred to London
Health Sciences Centre,
Westminster Campus. As of Monday
afternoon, Bean's mother Joyce, said
he had "improved 100 per cent" and
was being discharged.
Little was treated And released.
The Blyth and District Fire
Department attended as a
precautionary measure.
Crash victim recovers