Agriculture Youth Council launches

Agriculture for Life - Agriculture for Life (Ag for Life), is seeking Alberta youth aged 16 to 21 to join its Agriculture Youth Council. The council will pilot Ag for Life programs and resources, provide valuable insight and ideas on types of programs and ag-related topics for youth and attend Ag for Life events.

Heritage Acres holds second annual Horse Show and Chuckwagon Supper

Toni Lucas - Heritage Acres held their Second Annual Horse Show and Chuckwagon Supper on Saturday, June 9,  a day of warm weather and sunny skies.  The organization has the aim of preserving and presenting to the public the history of rural life in this area of Alberta, and it works closely with those currently involved in rural life.  The show not only had a variety of horse demonstrations but celebrated the Achievement Day for two local 4-H clubs; Silver Reins and Multi Club.

Canadian forage and grasslands look to be export ready

Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada - Livestock producers across the country and abroad depend on the high quality hay produced by Canada's forage and grassland industry in order to deliver safe, nutritious, and sustainable food. Increased forage exports, valued at $360.8 million for 2017, are helping the agriculture sector reach its potential to be an even stronger economic engine for the economy, driving towards our target of growing annual agri-food exports to $75 billion by 2025.

Rural Break and Enters, theft of farm equipment in Pincher Creek area

Pincher Creek RCMP - Pincher Creek RCMP have seen an increase in thefts and rural crime, the following is some of the vehicles and equipment that have been stolen and to date not recovered.

4-H Silver Reins Light Horse Club Achievement Day results

4-H Silver Reins Light Horse Club 2017/18: Ruby Spranza on Pal, Jessie Terpstra on Lucky, Kim Turnbull on Lena, Judge Kyle O'Brien, Ring Steward Janet Taylor, Dakota Grineage on Stretch, Brynn Grose on Digbi, Kelly Turnbull on Lady, Johnny Terpstra on Jeremy

Toni Lucas - 4-H Silver Reins Light Horse Club  2018 Achievement Day was held at Heritage Acres on Saturday, June 9.  The club has seven participants who started with the club in September, but many have been with the club for multiple years. Achievement day tested the abilities and personal growth of these young riders, who are broken up in age groups. Held in such a public place the children are not only judged for their abilities and comportment, they also have the opportunity of getting to show their progress to people who came to see the Heritage Acres Horse Show.

Wildfire season is here. Are you FireSmart?

Welling area foal stolen

RCMP Alberta - Raymond RCMP is seeking the public's assistance regarding a theft of a foal horse that occurred at a rural property northeast of Welling, Alberta. Sometime during the early hours of May 2 , 2018 unknown suspect(s) entered and removed the foal from the corral.

Castle Wildland Provincial Park developing backcountry hut-to-hut system

Artist's rendering of a backcountry hut in Castle Wildland Provincial Park

Government of Alberta - Alberta Parks is developing a world-class, backcountry hut-to-hut system in Castle Wildland Provincial Park in partnership with the Alpine Club of Canada.  This investment is part of the Government of Alberta’s ongoing commitment to diversify and modernize Alberta’s provincial parks system. Total funding for the project is $700,000 over two years.

OWC: Draft land use plans will improve watershed health

The density of linear features along the Eastern Slopes is too high for fish and wildlife to thrive.

Oldman Watershed Council - The Government of Alberta's draft Livingstone-Porcupine Hills Land Footprint and Recreation Management Plans are a very positive step towards headwaters protection and essentially mirror what diverse stakeholders in the Oldman watershed agreed to and asked the Government of Alberta for, in OWC’s 2013-14 Headwaters Action Plan. OWC is pleased to see that the majority of the targets, actions, and recommendations from the Headwaters Action Plan will be addressed by the new draft Government of Alberta plans.

Green light for orphan black bear cub care

Government of Alberta - The Government of Alberta has introduced a new policy that will allow wildlife rehabilitation facilities in Alberta to accept orphaned black bear cubs.

Comment: In favour of sustainable recreational use of Porcupine Hills/Livingstone Range

The Porcupine Hills Coalition held a press conference/stakeholder presentation on April 10 at the Helen Schuler Nature Centre in Lethbridge to "highlight the diverse support for the plans and process" of the recently released draft Linear Footprint Management Plan and Recreation Management Plan for the Livingstone-Porcupine Hills. Presented below are the written texts of presentations from Crowsnest Pass landowner Carol Ostrom and retired provincial Fish and Wildlife biologist Lorne Fitch.

Province’s plan for Porcupine Hills/Livingstone Range well-received by group of rural Albertans

Porcupine Hills Coalition - A group of diverse stakeholders gathered in Lethbridge this Tuesday April 10 to express their excitement for recently released land plans for the Porcupine Hills and Livingstone regions. The Porcupine Hills Coalition formed to address concerns about land use and overuse of public lands in Southwest Alberta. Members joined together to congratulate the government on the release of the comprehensive Land Footprint Plan and Recreation Management plan drafts.

RCMP Livestock Section investigates theft of 12 mares

RCMP Alberta - The RCMP Southern Alberta Livestock investigators and Tsuu Tina Police are asking for information from the public to assist with an investigation into 12 stolen mares.  The horses were last known to be grazing in the Tsuu Tina Nation in October 2016 and all are owned by one person. Investigators are not certain at this point when the mares were taken, if the animals were taken at once or in a series of smaller thefts.

Alberta government asks for public feedback about Livingstone-Porcupine Hills management plans

The Porcupine Hills (Alberta Wilderness Association photo)

Chris Davis - Today (March 27) the Alberta Government released draft plans for managing the impacts of off-highway vehicles (OHVs) on public land in the Livingstone-Porcupine Hills region of southwestern Alberta, which is part of Alberta’s eastern slopes and includes the Porcupine Hills, Crowsnest Pass, the Whaleback, and the Upper Oldman River. The area is identified in the South Saskatchewan Regional Plan (SSRP) as a priority for Land Footprint and Recreation Management planning. Public input is invited.

Alberta Land Institute: Albertans concerned about loss of high quality agricultural land

• Analysis of satellite imagery shows that between 1984 and 2013 the amount of land in urban uses in the Edmonton-Calgary corridor increased from 3,127 km2 to 4,763 km2, an increase of 52%
• From 1984 to 2018, the Calgary urban area expanded from 242 km2 to 754 km2
• Around Calgary, Edmonton and Red Deer, expansion of urban areas was higher in the 1984-1992 period than in either the 1992-2001 or 2001-2013 periods

Alberta Land Institute - A new report from the Alberta Land Institute found that high quality agricultural land in Alberta continues to be fragmented and calls for greater discussion around land use policies to preserve quality agricultural land as Alberta grows.  The report was conducted by Dr. Brent Swallow and Dr. Scott Jeffrey from the University of Alberta. It found that most of the farmland converted for developed uses between 2000 to 2012 was of the highest levels of suitability and prime crop land, with 35 per cent of the highest suitability and 34 per cent of the second highest suitability found in Alberta.

Regarding the MD of Pincher Creek Kenow wildfire debrief

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MD of Pincher Creek Kenow Wildfire

September 11, 2017

Five months following the Kenow Wildfire, ratepayers of the MD Pincher Creek Division 1 and others are not satisfied with our local government’s handling of the emergency prior to, during and following the event.

A Formal Inquiry is needed to address the ways and reasons the MD Pincher Creek failed its residents. Why was there no advance warning or evacuation, no accurate information or communication, no fire preparedness, no up-to-date MD maps or ratepayer contact information available for the use of RCMP during the evacuation?

Avalanche warning issued for Kananaskis Country

Government of Alberta - A special avalanche warning for recreational backcountry users is in effect from today to Monday, February 12.  The areas affected include Alberta Parks Kananaskis Country, Banff, Yoho, Kootenay, Jasper, and Mount Revelstoke and Glacier National Parks.  For the past two weeks, these regions have been in a prolonged period of elevated avalanche danger and a major avalanche cycle where numerous large avalanches have run into the valley bottom.

Government of Alberta Government updating hunting regulations

Government of Alberta - The Government of Alberta is updating provincial hunting regulations to specify what categories of equipment are appropriate for hunting big game.  Beginning in the 2018 hunting season, firearms and equipment that are legal for use will be limited to rifles, shotguns and conventional archery gear. Other tools, including spears and spear-throwing tools such as atlatls, will not be allowed under the new regulations.

Pincher Creek Chinook 4-H Multi Club update

Chris LeBlanc - In our 4-H year so far, projects are getting fired up and ready to go. This year our projects include: market lamb, breading lamb, pheasants, roping, baking and market hog. Our club leader is Carolyn Robbins and the assistant leaders are Michael Robbins and Kellie Leblanc.

4-H Silver Reins Light Horse Club update

Brynn Grose meets her new horse Kreedo (submitted photos)

Brynn Grose - Hi my name is Brynn Grose it is my first year in the 4-H Silver Reins Light Horse Club. The other members in the club are Kelly Turnbull, Kim Turnbull, Jessie Terpstra, Johnny Terpstra, Ruby Spranza, Maren Christensen and Dakota Grineage. My horse's name is Kreedo.