At the March 16 Elphinstone Community Association (ECA) meeting, two people from the Bear Aware Program spoke to a small but engaged group over Zoom. We were reminded that as bears emerge from their dens, they may have lost up to 40 per cent of their fat reserves; be patient with them as they seek out spring dandelions, clovers, grasses and skunk cabbage. They stressed that bears do not want to be near people so make noise when hiking (I like to sing) to alert them to your presence. Reducing their access to garbage will help them not become habituated and save them from becoming a problem bear.
Donna McMahon gave her usual thorough report and there was much discussion about the need for remediation along Ocean Beach Esplanade to protect it and Chaster Park from further erosion. The ECA board has written to several levels of government, recognizing that protecting this popular walking area and historic residential street will require a collaborative approach.
Donna’s course about regional districts was attended by 62 people! More than $2,200 was raised (through registration fees) to be split between the Pender Harbour and Gibsons food banks. Donna thanks the Pender Harbour & Area Residents Association for sponsoring the course and said that many elected people attended. Participants came from Williams Lake, Golden, Tahsis, Powell River, Smithers, Sorrento, 70 Mile House, the Nanaimo region, and the Cowichan Valley, plus a special guest speaker from Sackville New Brunswick! She says, “It’s clear that people want local government to be more responsive, more relevant, and more empowered to deal with the challenges we’re facing. As human beings we’ve been tremendously successful at making things more complicated; now we need to figure out how to cut through our own byzantine construct to come up with smarter simpler, solutions.”
Spring is here and seed saver Leonie Croy sent this along about a seed saving workshop to be held Saturday, April 23 from 1 to 2:30 p.m. at the Gibsons library. Leonie, coordinator of the Gibsons Seed Sharing Library, says that the workshop “Growing Seeds for a Community; Talk and Workshop” will cover basic seed saving skills, enough to get you started. She’ll be joined by Grace Lewis, a local garden designer who volunteers for the Davis Bay Elementary School Greenhouse project. Both presenters are members of the Sunshine Coast Seed Saving Collective and will be happy to answer any and all questions. Leonie says that by growing, “good quality locally adapted seed for food production, to share with others, we are creating a caring, sustainable, and more resilient community.” Participants will go home with a free packet of seeds! In-person space is limited – contact the library to register; also accessible via Zoom from the library’s website. For more info call the Gibsons Library at 604-886-2130 or visit the website:
gibsons.bc.libraries.coop.
Got Elphinstone news? Let me know at: [email protected]
