Publications Mail Agreement No. 391275
51st Year No. 17
April 27, 2016
•COLOROSO...
Barbara Coloroso to speak to educators at Ugwamalis Hall. Page 3
• RECLAMATION...
Zeballos students help turn flood area into habitat. Page 8
•BOXER...
Former Port Hardy resident showing great skills. Page 18 OPINION Page 4 LETTERS Page 5 SPORTS Page 18-20 CLASSIFIEDS Page 21-23
G
NORTH ISLAND
www.northislandgazette.com
Newsstand $1.29 + GST
Action taken over lead levels By Tyson Whitney Reporter High levels of lead in the water at five School District 85 schools has resulted in drinking fountains being deactivated until further notice. “Safe drinking water for students and staff is obviously a great concern to School District 85. We will be doing everything we possibly can to ensure safe drinking water at our schools,” said Scott Benwell, superintendent of schools, adding that “as soon as we saw the results, we immediately started the process,” to rectify the issue. During the 2016 two-week spring break, when the schools’ pipes were not in use, all of the schools in the district had their water tested to determine water quality. The results came back showing lead at levels at five of the local schools exceeded the maximum acceptable concentration under the Guidelines for Canadian Drinking Water Quality.
See page 2 ‘School district’
He Otter be in Pictures
Darrell McIntosh Photo
Caught in mid yawn, a local Port Alice river otter enjoys a very sun-filled lazy afternoon.
Hat trick for Gazette at national awards Gazette staff It may be small, but it sure is mighty. The North Island Gazette has been named the third best all-round newspaper in the country by Newspapers Canada. The Gazette was a winner of three Canadian Community Newspaper Awards in its circulation category - 1,250 to 1,999. It was awarded Best All-Round Newspaper (3rd), Best Front Page (3rd), and Best Editorial Page (3rd) behind two Ontario publications the Citizen and the New Hamburg Independent. “I was pleasantly surprised to have won these
awards,” said Publisher/Editor Kathy O’ReillyTaylor. This year’s awards come on the heels of a first-place win of the Provincial General Excellence for 2014. “The Gazette appears to be on a winning streak,” O’Reilly-Taylor said. “Publishing a weekly newspaper is a challenging job that can not be done without hard-working staff and much-appreciated contributions from our freelancers, cartoonist, etc,” she said. “But it takes more than a great staff to build an award-winning newspaper. I’d also like to thank our young carriers, drivers, and stores who help
get the paper into your home each week; our valuable readers; the North Island people for allowing us to tell their fascinating stories; and the North Island companies that entrust us with the important task of helping them grow their business,” said O’Reilly-Taylor. “I couldn’t be prouder of this national achievement.” The annual national awards program celebrates excellence in community publishing from coast to coast and recognizes the very best in editorial, photography and multimedia initiatives from CCNA-member community newspapers.
Massage, Reiki & Energy Cleansing
7560161
Now open Monday - Friday | Day and evening appointments available
Call 250-230-0095 to book
Follow me on Facebook at Strokes of Jade Massage & Reiki NEWS: editor@northislandgazette.com
SUBSCRIPTIONS: 250-949-6225
SALES: sales@northislandgazette.com