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Salt Spring Island Natural Cemetery Opens on Salt Spring Island

Salt Spring Island is known in many parts of the world as a unique and progressive community. Its reputation for local farming, food, arts, music, culture, politics, EV transportation, and environmentalism belies its small size. And now once again, Salt Spring Island is at the fore of a growing movement. This time in the world of green, natural burials. (Watch the video tour and see the photo tour below.) Over the last 50 years there has been an incredible transformation in burial practices in North America. Burial and cemetery services, which were at one time a more modest affair and often carried out by locally owned services providers, has been transformed under capital market consolidation. While Indigenous cultures the world over have always practiced 'natural' burial, the dominant colonial culture of the West saw local funeral and burial business services transformed into highly specialized, profit driven industries controlled by a small handful of publicly traded c…
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Civil Forfeiture Office Seeks Default Judgement on Baker Road House

The BC Civil Forfeiture Office has filed a lawsuit seeking to seize a Salt Spring Island property allegedly linked to a large international stock fraud. The lawsuit filed December 11th, 2019 in BC Supreme Court alleges the property located at 391 Baker Road on Salt Spring Island is the proceeds of crime and was used to launder money.  Now, the BC Civil Forfeiture Office has asked the court to grant judgment against Vincent Manalastas on his rights related to a $2,500,000 Baker Road home. In its court action, the civil forfeiture office alleges the property is the proceeds of crime and was used to launder money. The listed owner of the property is Beresford Estates Inc., of which Manalastas is the sole director. Manalastas was served the notice of the civil claim but neither the lawyer representing the claim or the office of civil forfeiture has received the requested documentation or a response from Manalastas. Given the schedule to respond to the action has elapsed, the …
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North Ganges Transportation Plan Sidewalks and Bike Lanes Nearing Completion

The North Ganges Transportation Plan design for pedestrian, cycling, and intersection improvements along Rainbow Road, non-harbour side of Lower Ganges Road and design intersection improvements to Upper/Lower Ganges intersection is now nearing completion. The estimated $1,700,000 project was built by Victoria, BC based Don Mann Excavating. Have a look at the video of the project nearing completion, photos of the project during construction, photos of the project nearing completion and detailed plans of the original working drawings outlining the scope of work of the project. Take a Video Tour of the Project Nearing Completion https://youtu.be/UWaF8J-jpSU Photos: Project Under Construction Photos: Project Nearing Completion Engineering Drawings for the Proje…
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2020 BC Provincial Election Candidate Profile - Stephen Roberts

The 42nd British Columbia general election is scheduled for Saturday, October 24, 2020. To help our community get to know the candidates who are running in our riding we're sharing profiles of each candidate. All candidates have been invited to share a profile with the Salt Spring Exchange and we’ll be featuring profiles on each candidate as they become available. This profile is for Stephen Roberts, who is running to be a Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) for Saanich North and the Islands with the Liberal Party. About Stephen Roberts I was born in Sidney and grew up on Salt Spring. After graduating University with a degree in Economics and Political Science, I worked in accounting, law and finance. I retired as a COO of the research division for a large international investment bank overseas and moved back home to Salt Spring where I now live with my partner and our fantastic dog Sidney. I've been involved in a number of community organizations on Saltspring and t…
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COVID-19: Lady Minto Hospital Medical Staff Association - Flu Season Clinics

We are rapidly approaching the start of influenza season. Meanwhile, we remains in the throes of the COVID-19 pandemic with increasing numbers of cases across the province. We, on the island, have been able to avoid any outbreaks of COVID-19 so far with low numbers of COVID-19 infections. The measures we have employed – limiting our contacts to those within our bubble, maintaining physical distance from others, wearing a mask when we are unable to maintain distance or are in public spaces, and washing our hands – should also help to limit the spread of ‘flu this year. The annual influenza vaccine is now available for immunization. ‘Flu vaccination remains an important means to protect individuals from illness and prevent community spread with the potential for a ‘twindemic’. The family doctors of Salt Spring will be working with Public Health and other community partners to provide ‘flu vaccinations at a community ‘flu clinic this year. Individual physician offices hav…
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Watch: 2020 BC Election Candidates for Saanich North and the Islands Video Debate

Candidates running in the upcoming provincial election for the riding of Saanich North and the Islands, Adam Olsen-Green Party, Stephen Roberts-Liberal Party and Zeb King-NDP answer questions from the public and talk about their passions going into the election On October 24th, 2020 during an online zoom call arranged to accommodate physical distancing requirements. Moderated by Tarah Stafford with an introduction and technical expertise by Jason Mogus of NetChange. Our thanks to Media Partner Salt Spring Exchange and to Country Grocer for their support. https://youtu.be/aPLKYbnkRRE
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Plant Garlic, Collect Leaves, Control Leaf Pests

A key October task is planting garlic: It is essential to plant garlic where no plants in the onion family (garlic, onions, leeks, shallots) have been for at least 4 years. This year I received an all-time high number of questions (and sad photos) about garlic root diseases. This was undoubtedly due to the wet summer, which promoted common root diseases, but also due to the fact that a surprising number of folks had not been rotating their crops. The only management tool we have for soil borne diseases, including all kinds of root rot, is rotating crops to make sure dormant spores in the soil have time to die out before their host plants are grown there again. Along with that goes good sanitation practices: planting disease-free stock and destroying infected plants as soon as they are notices. A friend wondered if using disinfectants on garlic cloves before planting to kill root rot pathogens was necessary, but really there is no need for this. The pathogen spores stay in the s…
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An Urgent Plea to The One Million People Living in Canada Who Are Eligible to Vote in U.S. Elections

Opinion: Close to a million people living in Canada still retain the ability to vote in U.S. elections. The potential influence of that many voters is profound and the stakes could not be higher. My great-grandparents came to the U.S. by ship as refugees, arriving at Ellis Island in New York with only the clothes they were wearing. My great-grandfather supported his young family as an itinerant salesman travelling by horse and wagon, peddling mules and eyeglasses. The family eventually settled in southern Delaware, where they were able to do what would never have been possible in their home country: own land. They purchased farms, opened a store that provided supplies and free advice to local farmers, and eventually created an enterprise so successful that the family was able to send my father and his siblings to college, another impossible dream. In 2001, when my wife and I decided to immigrate to Canada, a choice that our relative privilege allowed, my father simply cou…
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