MUNICIPAL DISTRICT BONNYVILLE NO. 87
COUNCIL & COMMITTEE HIGHLIGHTS March 4 and 11, 2020
Keeping you informed of the services, business and development that affect YOU!
#1 New Beaver Control Policy Approved – Council approved a new Beaver Control Policy at its meeting March 11. The new policy will see landowners paying $100 for the removal of dams on private property. However, if the dam is impacting municipal infrastructure, the dam will be removed at no charge. There will also be a $20 incentive put in place, allowing landowners to trap beavers during the seven-month trapping period. The beavers must be from a verified beaver population area. There is a limit of 10 beavers per quarter section. For more information on the new program, please call 780-826-3951.
#2 Council Open To Taking Over Provincial Campgrounds – Council agreed to send a letter to the provincial government, expressing an interest in taking over the French Bay Recreation Area, if the province is putting it on the list for new lease management. Council is also open to taking over additional provincial campgrounds within M.D. boundaries if the province is putting them up for closure or new management.
#3 Strychnine Update – General Manager of Environment and Protective Services, Matt Janz, informed Council there is a three-year phase out plan for the use of 2% liquid strychnine to control ground squirrel populations. Concerns over secondary poisoning have necessitated the need to end the program. This year, the program will run as normal, with the M.D. selling the chemical to landowners. In 2021, the M.D. will no longer be able to buy strychnine, and in 2022, the M.D. will no longer be able to sell the chemical.
#4 Agriculture and Waste Update – Janz announced 12 wolves and 1,415 coyotes have been brought in as part of the M.D.’s bounty program so far. The coyote number is higher than it has been in previous years, and Janz says there is a healthy coyote population. The program runs until the end of March. The waste department has been kept busy with the ag plastics recycling program over the winter. More than three 30-yard bins have been collected full of twin, bale wrap and net wrap. The grain bag rolling program is starting up again, with staff heading to farms to roll used grain bags to be recycled.
#5 Public Safety Update – Council requested administration look into the specifics of the vacant home program and create a policy for the program going forward. Some councillors are concerned about the program being used by residents who are out of the area for extended periods of time. The department has been fielding a number of suspicious activity and vehicle calls from residents. There is a plan to begin overnight patrols. Currently the department is making sure they have solid protocols in place. In keeping with a focus on rural crime reduction, during the month of February, peace officers conducted 591 vacant home checks, and 675 crime prevention patrols (including those triggered by phone calls from concerned residents).
#6 Public Safety 2019 Year End Report – The Public Safety Department responded to 3,877 incidents in 2019, an increase of 751 from 2018. That number includes 47 incidents in the Village of Glendon. Over the course of the year, the busiest day for Officers is a Friday. In 2019, 2,562 tickets were issued, with the majority (1,284), being Provincial Written Warnings. The highest type of ticket/warning violation is Speeding/Construction Zone at 1,940. The majority of those tickets were handed out in Ward 1 (36%) and Ward 3 (18%). Forty-six percent of the vehicles pulled over for speeding are pickup trucks. Under the Rural Crime Prevention Strategy, Officers performed 1,966 Vacant Home Checks in 2019. Officers responded to the highest number of Incidents in Ward 1(1,211) in 2019, with Ward 3 following with 580 Incidents
#7 New Policy On Disposal Of Used Grader Blades Passed – On March 4, Council adopted Policy No. 4A.017 Disposal of Used Grader Blades. Used grader blades will be available for purchase once every three months when available. The sale will be advertised on the M.D. website and a list of purchasers will be prepared by M.D. staff. The price is set at $6 each for eight-foot blades and $3 each for four-foot blades. Sales will be made on a first come, first served basis, with priority given to M.D. residents. Not more than 50 grader blades can be purchased by one person.
#8 Letter of Support – Council provided a letter of support to the Cherry Grove Recreation & Agricultural Society for their Community Facility Enhancement Program (CFEP) grant application to replace the hall roof and upgrade the heating system. If the grant application is successful, the M.D. would provide matching funds of $83,200 for the $208,000 project.
#9 Briefly – On March 4 Council approved the sale of the 2004 Freightliner Pumper to the Pemberton Meadows Fire Association for $50,000. At the March 11 meeting, Council agreed to increase the mileage reimbursement rate from 55 cents to 56 cents per kilometer, based on automobile allowance rates for 2020 from the Canada Revenue Agency. Council agreed to send a follow-up letter, including photos, to a regional director for Alberta Transportation regarding the state of Secondary Highway 657. A copy of the letter will be sent to Transportation Minister Ric McIver.