Skip to content

Local news briefs: Test your pop culture knowledge during Geek Week

Plus new rules for drone owners, Rotary Citizen of the Year nominations, Skip's Run, and more.
13899ashcroftHarryPotter
Think you know your Harry Potter trivia? Find out at a pop culture quiz night in Kamloops on March 30.

Rotary Citizens of the Year

The Ashcroft/Cache Creek Rotary Club is still seeking nominations from the South Thompson River area (Savona to Spences Bridge) for three outstanding individuals who have contributed to improving the life of our communities. An award will be presented in Ashcroft and area and in Cache Creek and area, and there will also be a student/youth award for the entire area. Last year’s recipients were Carmen Ranta (Cache Creek) and Stefanie Walker (Ashcroft).

Anyone who would like to nominate someone as Citizen of the Year should submit a short summary of the nominee’s contributions to the community, as well as the submitter’s name and contact information, to Assu Nydam at assu@nydam.net or to P.O. Box 11, Ashcroft, V0K 1A0 by March 31, 2017.

A run for everyone

It’s not too soon to start thinking about registering for the eighth annual Skip’s Memorial Run on June 4, put on by the Ashcroft and District Lions Club and sponsored by the Desert Hills Triathlon Club and Rolling Thunder Sound and Audio. The run is held in honour of long-time Lions Club member Skip Stuart.

Participants can run, walk, or roll routes of 2.5, 5, and 10km starting at 8 a.m. at the Ashcroft HUB (registration starts at 7:30 a.m.). Early bird registrations are being taken until May 14; you can register online and save on the regular registration fee at www.raceonline.ca. For more information email ashcroftlions@hotmail.com.

Skip's Run, 2016 version. Photo by Barbara Roden.

Design a Google doodle

Google is asking Canadian students to submit their designs for a Google doodle (the banner atop the search engine’s home page) to celebrate Canada’s 150th birthday.

Students from Kindergarten through Grade 12 have until May 2 to submit a Google doodle based on the theme “What I see for Canada’s future is …” Submissions will be judged on their artistic merit, creativity, and originality, and the winning student’s doodle will be displayed on the Google.ca homepage for a day.

Students can submit a doodle made from almost any medium, including computer code. The winner will receive a $10,000 scholarship, a $10,000 technology grant for his or her school, and a paid trip to Toronto, where the doodle will be revealed on June 13. For more information, and the entry form, go to g.co/d4gcanada.

Geek out at the library

The TNRD Library System is holding its first Geek Week from March 27 to April 1. From now until April 1, participants throughout the region can enter an online cosplay contest (where you dress up as your favourite pop culture character) via the Library System’s Facebook page.

Other events include a Pop Culture Trivia Night on Friday, March 30 from 8 to 9 p.m. at the Frick and Frack Tap House in Kamloops. Teams of up to six people can register and test their knowledge of Harry Potter, Star Wars, and other pop culture franchises. And there will be a Scavenger Hunt on Saturday, March 31 starting at the Kamloops Library on Victoria Street at 10 a.m. Teams of four will fan out across downtown Kamloops to win prizes for the fastest times and the most creative photos.

The events are free, and designed for those 18 and older, but space is limited, so contact the library to reserve a seat, or go online at www.tnrdlib.ca to reserve or to get more information.

Recycling question

The Thompson-Nicola Regional District (TNRD) has sent a letter to Environment Minister Mary Polak, asking what progress has been made in adding the TNRD to the list of communities taking part in the Multi-Material BC (MMBC) program. It was recently announced that four wait-listed communities, including the City of Kamloops, are being added to the program.

The letter states, in part, that “The TNRD continues to spend approximately $650,000 annually to provide recycling services to regional district residents and member municipalities. TNRD residents are paying for recycling of packaging of printed paper through regional district taxation, meanwhile this service is fully funded by MMBC in most other regions of the province.

“The TNRD is eagerly awaiting an opportunity to join the MMBC program allowing us to either reduce taxation or reallocate these funds for further improvements to TNRD solid waste service.”

Discriminatory private acts repealed

As reported in last week’s paper, the provincial government introduced the Discriminatory Provisions (Historical Wrongs) Repeal Act on March 7. The act, which called for the permanent removal of discriminatory provisions in 19 historical acts, received Royal Assent from B.C.’s lieutenant-governor, Judith Guichon, on March 16.

The 19 acts were passed between 1881 and 1930, and remained on the books until a year-long review uncovered them. Most contained provisions stating that Chinese workers were not to be employed in any capacity, or that land and/or goods could not be sold to them.

A government statement read in part that “By supporting the Discriminatory Provisions (Historical Wrongs) Repeal Act, government has acknowledged the tremendous contributions made by all ethnic groups to the social and economic development of the province, and assisted in the symbolic effort to address historical wrongs and ensure they never happen again.”

New rules for drones

An interim order announced by the Hon. Marc Garneau, federal Minister of Transport, last week places new restrictions on the operators of model aircraft and recreational drones of more than 250g and up to 35kg.

The order requires owners to mark their drones with contact information, and limits them from flying higher than 90 metres, flying within 150 metres of buildings, vehicles, or people, and establishes a nine kilometre no-fly zone around any airport, heliport, aerodrome, or water aerodrome. This includes the Campbell Hill Regional Airport off Highway 1 near Cache Creek.

The order also prevents drones from operating within nine kilometres of a forest fire or over emergency response scenes; at night, or in clouds, or where it cannot be seen; and more than 500 metres from the operator.

Transport Canada reports that since 2014, the number of safety incidents involving drones has tripled. Last August, eight helicopters and six skimmers were grounded during their battle with a wildfire near Oliver, B.C. because of a drone flying close to the site of the blaze.

The federal government has brought in new regulations regarding the use of drones. Stock image.