July 20 Beaver County Chronicle

B LEANING C CO O--OP OP BEAVER EAVER C COUNTY OUNTY SEED CLEANING For Sale: Common Seed Oats, Closed June 24th – August 26th Look forward to seeing in the fall! Pony Oats andyou Barley

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A Free Weekly Publication Serving All of Beaver County Wednesday, July 20,16 2022, Volume 15,15 Issue 29 7 Wednesday February 2022 Volume Issue

Kurek visits council Patricia Harcourt Damien Kurek exchanged viewpoints and answered questions with Beaver County Council at the regular meeting July 6. The Battle River-Wainwright MP explained his reason for attending council that day: “My philosophy in politics is to continue a conversation,” with his constituents. He then outlined a number of services to help municipalities through his office as a Member of Parliament, adding that any way he can assist he is “happy to do so,” with both municipalities and constituents. Kurek has constituency offices in Camrose and Consort, and well as the one in Ottawa. He welcomed council to “reach out” to see if he can assist the municipality, adding :”There’s no harm in asking.” Switching to “policy matters,” he cited challenges in rural infrastructure and housing in more rural areas of the country, including East Central Alberta. Rural crime was also brought up with the possibility of a provincial police service in Alberta changing the RCMP’s federal policing role. Kurek is re-introducing a rural crime bill that died on the order paper last year with the federal election call. He said the bill was to address police response times, the nature of rural crime, policing staff numbers, and what is being called a “revolving door” for criminals who get arrested but are soon back on the streets to commit more crimes. “Rural connectivity remains an issue,” he said, referring to how the COVID-19 pandemic

has “made technology more important.” He added: “Rural Alberta is significantly further apart than the rest of Canada,” in terms of physical space. The technology of communication needs to improve if people are to move into rural areas. “People are coming back and rural properties are considered more affordable,” he said, than other more urban areas of the country. Last November Kurek was appointed the Deputy Shadow Minister for Rural Economic Development and Rural Broadband Strategy in Canada’s Official Conservative Opposition, working under Shadow Minister for these two portfolios, Lakeland MP Shannon Stubbs. “Rural punches far above its weight but it doesn’t get reflected in the funds and programs,” he said, given out by the federal government. “We simply don’t get our fair share. “Small and rural municipalities across Canada face many of the same challenges,” he said, adding the rural economic shadow office sent out a letter to every municipality under 20,000 population. This was about 6,000 municipalities ranging from villages to small cities, he said. “We have had an encouraging response,” he said, which “amplifies their voices.” For example, rural Quebecers have the same issues with rural crime and the need for infrastructure upgrades, such as wastewater facilities. “Regardless of what the political representation is the municipalities share some of the same concerns,” he said, as in rural

Alberta. He and Stubbs “are looking to ensure allocations are being made for these smaller municipalities and rural areas.” During a question and answer session, Deputy Reeve Gene Hrabec (Division 3) spoke of “how the federal government is dealing with federal regulations,” that are “made by people who don’t understand agricultural issues.” Referring to the problems of the supply chain and supply and demand, he said: “We’re providing food to the world and government taxes us which drives up costs,” naming fertilizer and gas prices (that include a tax) and are rising “due to federal regulations.” Hrabec gave two examples of areas in which the federal government fails to understand agriculture issues. “Don’t label my beef,” he said, referring to the federal government’s recent attempt to label beef as a food product harmful to human health. Since then, this labelling of hamburger and beef products as unhealthy was dropped based on a great outcry from the agriculture community. Hrabec is a cattle farmer in the county. The other regulation concerned pest control products farmers use on their land to keep pests down. Hrabec said this inability to control pests “may be cutting the food supply,” at a time when crops in places like war-torn Ukraine are struggling. Kurek said he was going to “get political” about his response to those comments. “Our national (Liberal) government is incompetent at best and Continued on Page BCC3

gathering of the

clans Highland Festival Saturday, August 20 Sedgewick, AB GENERAL SCHEDULE 10am - Gates Open 11am - Opening Ceremonies 11:30am - Scheduled Entertainment Begins (including heavy events) 3:30pm - Closing Ceremonies & Mass Band 5pm - Pig Roast Supper 7:30pm - Ceillidh (dance) Ticket Options: Gate Admission or All Day Package (includes gate admission, supper and ceilidh) Visit our website for tickets and more info: www.flagstaffscottishclub.com/gotchf

Tofield Minor Soccer would like to say thank you to the Tofield Tim Hortons for donating jerseys and soccer balls! We couldn’t have done this season without you!