Hundreds Of Deer Hit Annually In The Parkland

The Parkland area experiences five to six hundred deer-related accidents annually.

Deer tend to be most active in the months of October and November as well as during dusk, dawn and night.

Brian Smiley, MPI media relations coordinator, has some tips for driving when deer could be active.

“Driving defensively would be the first driving tactic, if you’re in an area with a lot of brush you have to anticipate that an animal may run out in front of you, if you have passengers in the vehicle perhaps ask them to scan the roadsides and ditch in front of you as you drive along to see an animal in front of you.”

Some other ways to avoid collisions are to watch for the reflection of headlights in the eyes of a deer, or a dark silhouette. Also, don’t swerve if an animal does cross in front of your vehicle, brake firmly to reduce the impact between an animal and your vehicle.

There will be some signs going up in Riding Mountain National Park warning people of wildlife. Those signs will be large and bright so they’re easy to see for motorists to see. The sign will say warning, wildlife crossing. The locations of the signs will move based off of conversations with conservation.

Details: Contributed by Isaac Wihak; Published: Oct 25, 2018 - 6:31 am

A sidewalk could be coming to Dauphin’s Main Street South.

City Manager Sharla Griffiths explains what has to happen before plans for a sidewalk can be made.

“Right now the province is constructing part of the service road along the west side of Main Street South. The city is prepared, at some point in time, to put sidewalks in.”

The city is waiting for Manitoba Infrastructure to build the service road up to the Co-op gas bar.

Right now the province is building part of the service road up past Reit-Syd Equipment.

Details: Contributed by Josh Sigurdson; Published: Oct 25, 2018 - 6:31 am

Farm Credit Canada’ Drive Away Hunger campaign provided over 334,641.15 meals in Manitoba.

Across the county, 9.5 million meals for food banks and feeding programs were donated.

FCC also contributed $100,000 in support of food programs offered at 100 schools across Canada.

To mark the 15th anniversary of FCC Drive Away Hunger, FCC teams drove tractors through various communities to collect food and donations for 15 days, beginning on October 4.

Tractor tours were held in almost every province in and worked with industry partners and schools.

In Saskatchewan 776,908.27 meals were given out and in Alberta 571,731.18 were donated.

Details: Contributed by Josh Sigurdson; Published: Oct 24, 2018 - 1:03 pm

One of the bigger concerns about the federal government's carbon pricing strategy was that farmers would be charged a tax on their farm fuel. Much to the relief of many, the government announced that both gasoline and diesel fuels for on-farm use will be exempted from the carbon tax.

However, the exemption will not apply to propane, or natural gas.

The carbon tax is to begin in April next year, and will start at twenty dollars per tonne of greenhouse gas emission. It will then rise by ten dollars per year, until it hits fifty dollars per tonne by the year 2022.

The federal government says ninety per cent of the revenue collected from the carbon tax will be given back to Manitobans in the form of rebate cheques. Families outside of Winnipeg will receive ten per cent extra. The remaining ten per cent of the revenue collected will go to businesses, schools, hospitals, and other organizations.

Details: Contributed by Alec Woolston; Published: Oct 24, 2018 - 8:36 am

Today’s the Election Day for Manitoba. Starting at 8 this morning you can vote until 8 this evening.

In Dauphin, there are 10 people running for city council. You can vote for 6 or fewer. For the RM of Dauphin 9 people are running and you can vote for up to six of them. For school trustees in ward 4, six people are running and up to 3 people can be voted for.

When voting you will be given the ballot for either city of Dauphin or RM of Dauphin and the school trustees

In order to vote you must be 18 years old or older, be a Canadian citizen, and you also have to have lived in Manitoba for at least the past 6 months.

Voting in the City of Dauphin is at the Dauphin Friendship Centre, in the RM of Ste. Rose it’s at the community hall in Ste. Rose, in the R.M. of Mountain Birch River, Bellsite, Mafeking, Cowan Community Centre and Pine River Community Centre are the locations, in Gilbert Plains you can vote at the Emergency Services Building, in the Municipality of Ethelbert you can vote at the Ethelbert Skating Rink, voting in the Grandview Municipality is at the Grandview Kinsmen Community Centre, and in the RM of Lakeshore you can vote at the Ochre River Community Hall and Lawrence Community Centre in Rorketon.

It is recommended that you bring valid ID when voting in case there’s a mistake and you aren’t on the voter's list.

Details: Contributed by Isaac Wihak; Published: Oct 24, 2018 - 6:35 am

Walking Wednesday is back at Dauphin’s Credit Union Place.

Tamara Kolida, the Programs & Promotions Coordinator at Dauphin Rec, says this is your chance get moving even though it's getting cold out.

“We realize and understand that in the winter months it’s really hard to get outside and get your exercise. So the Dauphin Clinic Pharmacy has made it easy on people, they have sponsored the program Walking Wednesdays. So, it’s free use of the Dauphin Clinic Pharmacy Walking Track.”

Walking Wednesday begins today and runs each week until April.

Kolida encourages everyone to get off the couch and start moving.

“We just hope that new people come out. Whether you are a new mom with a baby and a stroller your welcome too. It’s really for everyone. Whether you want to come for a walk, a run, a job, whatever, just get moving in the winter! “

You just have to sign in at the front desk, and then you can head up to the track in Credit Union Place.

Details: Contributed by Josh Sigurdson; Published: Oct 23, 2018 - 5:11 am

It’s a good time to go hunting in the Parkland.

Leonard Grey, a hunter safety instructor, based out of Ste. Rose, says there’s lots of wildlife right now.

He shares what seasoned hunters should be aware of before they head out.

“The big thing is rules and regulations change every year, and the hunting guide is put out yearly, and the changes are always in there. They should always read their guide, keep informed because the changes are always happening.”

Hunter Safety Courses are an essential aspect of hunting.

Dauphin Recreation Services is offering a course in November.

Grey says hunter ethics is one of the things taught at every course.

“We want to keep the hunter’s image so that non-hunters aren’t offended. Have it so that hunters can continue hunting for years to come. You want to show responsibility to the animal by one shot clean kill. You want to have respect for the landowners, we don’t trespass. We follow the rules and regulations.”

He says right now there's a lot of wildlife, the bag limits are high and there’s a lot of opportunity for young hunters in the area.

Details: Contributed by Josh Sigurdson; Published: Oct 24, 2018 - 5:01 am

Tomorrow is Election Day for the province of Manitoba. To help get you ready, here are all the election profiles we have done leading up to the day.

Here are all 10 election profiles for the city of Dauphin candidates.

Christian Laughland: Laughland Running For City Council

Kathy Bellemare: Bellemare Running For City Council

Kerri Riehl: Riehl Running For City Council

Joe Houston: Houston Running For City Council

Devin Shtykalo: Shtykalo Running For City Council

Rodney Juba: Juba Running For City Council

Martin Kaminski: Martin Kaminski Running For Dauphin Council Position

Patti Eilers: Eilers Running For City Council

Bruce Kozak: Kozak Running For City Council

Laverne Lewycky: Lewycky Running For City Council

Here are all the other election profiles.

Jack Bremner, RM of Dauphin: Bremner Running For RM Council

Larry Artibise, RM of Lakeshore: Artibise Runs For Council In Lakeshore

Clayton Watts, RM of Lakeshore: Watts Running For Council In Lakeshore

David Minish, Swan Valley West: Minish Runs For Council In Swan Valley

Kevin Edmondson, Grandview Municipality: Edmondson Running For Mayor In Grandview

David Gray, Swan River: Gray Running For Council In Swan River

Ron Kostyshyn, Mossey River Municipality: Kostyshyn Running For Council In Mossey

Kate Basford, Mossey River Municipality: Basford Running For Council In Mossey

Carmen Hannibal, RM of Lakeshore: Hannibal Running For Reeve In Lakeshore

David Minshull, Grandview Municipality: Minshull Running For Council In Grandview

Details: Contributed by Isaac Wihak; Published: Oct 23, 2018 - 12:55 pm

David Minshull is running for the municipal council in Grandview.

Minshull has lived in the area with his family for about 20 years.

He wants to help grow the population of Grandview while keeping the school and hospital open.

He’s been on a lot of boards and feels he can bring a new perspective.

The election takes place tomorrow.

Details: Contributed by Isaac Wihak; Published: Oct 23, 2018 - 10:18 am

Citing "decades of mismanagement" of the commercial fishing industry, the Manitoba Wildlife Federation says that certain fish species in Lake Winnipeg are on the brink of extinction.

Brian Kotak, the managing director of the federation says current commercial fishing policies aren't based on science, and that harvest levels are unsustainable.

The current system encourages heavy fishing pressure on whichever species is most in demand, which has meant a strong focus on Walleye for many years, leading to declining catches, and more small, immature walleye being caught over the years.

The wildlife federation says things can be turned around if the quota system is done away with, in favour of a flexible, science-based system where harvest depends on the state of the fishery.

Anglers have noticed the changes too. “Anglers still catch some large walleye on Lake Winnipeg but they are fewer and far between,” says Don Lamont, one of Manitoba’s most noted anglers. “Sauger have really taken it on the chin as well. The number of Master Angler size sauger has plummeted over the last two decades. In fact, there were no Master Angler sauger registered in 2017 and only two in 2016 from the Red River.”

These problems don't bode well for the jobs that rely on it or the provincial economy.

The MWF and its partners recently commissioned a study, conducted by Probe Research, on the economic impact of the recreational fishery for walleye on Lake Winnipeg. Over the last two years, there was $221 million in direct spending by anglers, adding $102 million to the province’s GDP, $44 million in wages, supporting more than 1,500 person-years of employment, and contributing $52 million in taxes. That’s just for one species and one lake.