Smooth crossing
Group finds way to restore bridge
The co-ordinator for the West Point and Area Watershed Association marvels at what can be accomplished with a bit of funding and community support.
Elton Ellis said ATVs, snowmobilers and sports fishermen were stranded following the failure of a crossing along the Big Pierre Jacques River in Dunblane in 2015.
When the bridge deck, known by locals as “The Causeway,” gave way, it exposed the five culverts beneath it.
“You couldn’t cross it; it was just a mess,” Ellis admits.
This year, his organization received $3,800 in funding from the Wildlife Conservation Fund to carry out repairs.
The five culverts were hauled out, donated fieldstone was hauled in on each side of the opening and a used truck bed was purchased from Morrison’s Truck Salvage to serve as a bridge deck. It has also been reinforced underneath.
The watershed association’s summer crew, with assistance from area volunteers, including a welding businessm completed the job.
Replacing the culverts with a wide span, Ellis said, allows water to flow freely through the stream.
The West Point and Area Watershed Association performs maintenance work on six streams, including a 10-kilometre stretch of the Big Pierre Jacques River, each summer, and each of the streams has several public and private crossings.
A food summit designed to share ideas and develop projects to move food security forward will take place in Charlottetown on Nov. 9.
The City of Charlottetown, the United Way and the P.E.I. Food Security Network will host the free event at the Murchison Centre (17 St. Pius X Ave.) from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
“Let’s Talk Food” will bring together people with an interest in food security, including farmers, fishermen, government agencies, chefs, community organizations, educators and retailers to discuss challenges and opportunities in the food system in P.E.I.
“We all eat, so we’re all part of that system,” said Ann Wheatley of the Food Security Network.
For many Islanders, access to food is still a major concern. According to Statistics Canada, 15.2 per cent of households in P.E.I. experience some degree of food insecurity.
At the same time, the people who are producing food face their own challenges and uncertainties in the face of climate change, such as the rising costs of production, access to land and fluctuations in global markets.
The event will be participantled using open space format in order to engage attendees. It will contribute to several goals and actions that were identified in the 2017 Integrated Community Sustainability Plan to develop a food security strategy for P.E.I.
To pre-register, visit: https:// citycharlottetown.wufoo.eu/ forms/z1e7u7rw0cn1skr/
To read more from the Integrated Community Sustainability Plan, visit www.charlottetown.ca/ sustainablecity.php.