Dear Editor,
In view of the threat of fire predicted in the media, I am concerned about the control of weed and grassland growing around our senior facilities and hospital area.
The fires of 2017 that saw fire descending from the mountains to the foot of the highway will never be forgotten. It was a war zone with helicopters and bombers controlling the spread of fire.
Control of fires should not be reactive, as is so often the case in British Columbia. Fires can be averted by controlling the areas that create fire. The environment must be protected, and cleaning up the dead growth in forests, for example, would greatly help.
The management of our forests and our land has been very poor, and the neglect has caused tremendous expense. It is past the time that we should demand better management by cleaning up old growth and controlling the spread of weeds and grassland bush. The threat is always there. Proactive management of our environment is the answer.
Esther Darlington
Ashcroft, B.C.
Dear Editor,
Thank you for printing Dave Zirnhelt’s article on land care (“The upside of down in an early spring,” the Journal, April 25, 2024).
This is important stuff for people to be aware of in these times of environmental degradation. We need these voices to make us more aware of our own responsibility in the care of the Earth.
Margot Landels (Parker)
Ashcroft, B.C.
Dear Editor,
Can you locate all the butterflyway patches in Ashcroft?
The thing they have in common (other than the Butterflyway sign) is that they’re all a bit of a mess, with dead grasses, fallen leaves, stalks, and seed heads. They all have some asters and goldenrod and bits of wood, and if we’re lucky and the soil is healthy we’ll have mushrooms too.
We humans are always in a quest for order, and all of our activities have caused massive habitat loss, which in turn has led to mass extinction of “the little things that run the world’. The Butterflyway Project is an example of ecological gardening: mimicking nature in order to provide habitat for insects, birds, and hopefully an assortment of God’s creatures.
The butterfly is a gateway bug. You may start out chasing butterflies, but soon your interest will broaden to include bees and even wasps, and the plants that host them..
Reverend Linda LaGroix is the new “Butterfly Ranger” in town. She’ll need help in watering, weeding, planting, and seed sitting. The Ashcroft Rotary Club is a prominent supporter, as is the Ashcroft HUB. Still, many hands are required to support the plants and pollinators that are vital to our well-being. Please, please, please lend a hand or some appreciation for these tiny patches.
Thanks to all of you who’ve provided labour and love for the Butterflyway Beyond Hope, B.C.
Anne McKague
(formerly Anne of Ashcroft)
