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Flashback: Garbage, more garbage, a vote and a victory

A look back at the history of the Cowichan Lake area

Welcome to Lake Flashback. Reporter Sarah Simpson has been combing through old newspapers with the assistance of the Kaatza Station Museum and Archives so we can jog your memory, give you that nostalgic feeling, or just a chuckle, as we take a look at what was making headlines this week around Cowichan Lake in years gone by.

This week around the Cowichan Lake area…

10 years ago

An ATV crash killed one and seriously injured another at Nitinat this time a decade ago according to the Lake Cowichan Gazette of Sept. 5, 2012.

“Lake Cowichan RCMP were called out to the scene of a fatal ATV accident on Ditidaht Territory at approximately 10 p.m. on Aug. 27. Corp. Krista Hobday says that the Malachan First Nations Volunteer Fire Department was first on the scene, followed shortly by B.C. Ambulance attendants. There were two individuals involved in the accident, the driver of the ATV, a 52-year-old male, and a 45-year-old female passenger. The female was pronounced dead at the scene. The driver was taken to a hospital in Port Alberni, and then transferred to Victoria General Hospital with serious injuries. ‘The driver is in serious condition, but he’s hanging on,’ said Hobday on Aug. 31. When police arrived at the scene, the female was trapped under the ATV, and police noticed evidence to suggest a second person was involved. ‘The officers couldn’t find him,’ said Hobday. ‘They had to call in a dog to locate the second occupant’.”

Also 10 years ago, “CVRD looking to adopt new curbside collection” was making news.

“As Ian Morrison, director for Area F, explained in last week’s issue of the Gazette, the CVRD is looking to adopt a new garbage and recycle collection plan for all of its electoral areas.

“’Residents would receive streamlined customer service and easy-roll totes, see no change to their current bi-weekly service, and have their user fees go down slightly in the near future and stabilize over the long term at a standard inflationary rate,’ said CVRD Engineering and Environmental Services chair Lori Iannidinardo.”

25 years ago

It seems to be a trend, to talk about trash in late summer because there in bold, a headline in the Lake News of Sept. 3, 1997 was the headline: “Garbage pick-up unsatisfactory”.

“A new contract will be put out to tender by the CVRD for garbage collection throughout Area F (Skutz Falls/Cowichan South) and Area I (Youbou/Meade Creek). According to Joe Allan, Director of Area F, the garbage pick up has not been satisfactory and several complaints from residents have been received by the CVRD during the month of August. ‘Specifically the many users have complained of a lack of garbage service for the last two weeks, large variations in pick-up time, poor quality of bins serving commercial clients and a lack of response on the part of Rotuma to communication attempts by clients.’”

Also in the same paper 25 years ago “Director charges conservation office is ‘passing the buck’.”

“A letter requesting some action by the District Conservation Office in Duncan has got the CVRD nowhere in their attempt to investigate safety issues regarding Skutz Falls’ resident, Jamie Bell’s monkeys. Joe Allen, Director of Area F (Skutz Falls/Cowichan South) said the CVRD has requested the conservation office test Bell’s monkeys for any diseases which may be harmful to humans or other animals and to ensure the monkeys are properly secured…”

40 years ago

“A vote which would determine the fate of the proposed village expansion will be held in September,” according to the Lake News of Sept. 1, 1982 under the headline “Date set to determine expansion fate”.

“All residents and property owners in the Village of Lake Cowichan and areas that would be within new village boundaries will be asked to approve or reject the idea of the proposed expansion. The vote will be held over a one-week period from Sept. 27 to Oct. 1. Lake Cowichan village council decided at its Aug. 24 meeting that a vote should be held before any expansion bylaw is drawn up. The votes from inside and outside the village will be counted separately as the population of the village is considerably larger than that of the proposed expansion area.”

And finally, “Spray concession won for local protesters” was the second headline on the front page and it was about weeds and the railway.

“Canadian Pacific Railway will be allowed to pray the chemical Diuron to keep down weed growth along its Vancouver Island tracks but concessions have been made to citizens concerned about the dangers of spraying. The Environmental Appeal Board heard from both sides of the issue in July and handed down a ruling late last week. The text of the decision was not available late Tuesday but the Lake News learned that CP Rail will not be allowed to spray along certain sections of track in the Cowichan Lake area.”



Sarah Simpson

About the Author: Sarah Simpson

I started my time with Black Press Media as an intern, before joining the Citizen in the summer of 2004.
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