Salt Spring Geological Map

Have you ever wondered about the different geological formations on Salt Spring? Or how about the various fault lines that run across the island? Maybe you've noticed that digging a hole in the North End will bring up soil and sediment altogether different than from Central or the Deep South End. I've been doing research on earthquakes and tsunamis and came across the free Salt Spring Geology Map some of you may be interested in reviewing. The map and notes have been compiled by Hugh Greenwood, Professor Emeritus, Department of Geological Sciences, The University of British Columbia and is a free download from the Ministry of Energy and Mines.
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MET Opera Broadcast Stars Diva Renée Fleming

When writing about the Metropolitan Opera’s new production of The Merry Widow starring the great RenĂ©e Fleming, the Huffington Post says:

“It is hard to imagine a merrier widow than RenĂ©e  Fleming, and she swirls through the Metropolitan Opera's sumptuous new production of Franz Lehar's popular operetta
” If last week’s opera broadcast at ArtSpring, The Barber of Seville, was a good place to start for opera debutants then The Merry Widow by Franz LehĂĄr is even more so for anyone interested in venturing into the opera world. The production, which is in English and broadcast live at ArtSpring on Saturday, January 17th at 10:00 a.m., stars opera superstar RenĂ©e Fleming and Kelli O’Hara, the Broadway star in her MET debut. This operetta is presented in English and comes complete with can-can dancing (ever so slightly risquĂ©), elaborate costumes, gorgeous singing and romantic characters. The story centers on the poverty-stricken Grand Duchy of Pontevedro.…
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Video: Solar High - Flick the Switch at GISS

Singers, dancers, donors, and the community came together to “Flick the Switch” and celebrate the commissioning of the GISS Solar Scholarship array. This community-funded project saw the installation of the 7th largest solar electric system in the province of British Columbia. The Gulf Islands Secondary School (GISS) is now generating green electricity. The money saved on the electricity bill will fund an annual scholarship. This project was a partnership of the Salt Spring Community Energy Group and School District 64. Thank you Salt Spring Island!
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Real Estate Report: Improving Trend?

The Real Estate year of 2014 finished decidedly on a higher note. For the first time since the price peaking years of 2007/8, the number of sales exceeded 200, representing a 17% increase from the last 5 year average of 183 sales per year. A total of 214 properties exchanged hands on the island in 2014 with the total volume of $111,039,622. All numbers in all sectors were moderately up. The average price of a non-waterfront SFD is now $507,159 ($249,839 in 2000 and $623,492 in 2008). In the oceanfront property sector the average sale price is $982k (the average sale price in 2008 was $1,875,333 and $554,049 in 2000). 6 non-waterfront homes sold over $1 mil but only 9 in the waterfront sector (interestingly enough, the most sales of waterfronts over $1 mil occurred in 2012, 14 in total). In 2014, there were 16 Townhomes sales, 11 homes in Brinkworthy and 22 sales of vacant land. The highest sale was a waterfront property on Bold Bluff – sold for $3.545 mil (ov…
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Real Estate Report: Market on Target

One of the things about being a Realtor is that the common greeting I receive is “ Hi John, how’s the market?”. It has been said that Canadians are obsessed with the weather and watch the weather reports like the stock market. They also seem to be obsessed with the real estate market in the same way. In fact you can take any 6 o'clock news channel weather report and exchange the temperatures and rain or snow predictions for property types and prices and it would fit seamlessly. They want to know what the temperatures were today, what are they now and what will they be tomorrow and what is the trend in the near future. Standing in front of a map of BC the Realtor reporter can point to areas with a big capital “ H” and explain that there has been a High pressure front in Campbell River and the market volume has risen by almost 46% in 2014 which will move on down the island in the next month or so. The “ L” area around Kamloops is was a cooling trend but it is a weak front an…
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Electric Vehicles - Sharing the Benefits

We have just completed our first 2,500 kilometers driving our all-electric Nissan Leaf, almost all of which has been on Salt Spring. Ours is a used vehicle (affordable to us) that was pre-owned as a leased unit by Nissan. It provides a good driving range, is comfortable, quiet, handles well, and has a surprising amount of power to ensure safe driving. Almost all of the time, we have plugged the car into a standard 120v outdoor outlet at our home. We have occasionally used the Artspring Level II charger, which is free for use by the public, but the electricity used is currently paid by our local organization, Transition Salt Spring (TSS). A big thank you to TSS for providing this valuable service to our local electric vehicle owners and providing an incentive to those considering visiting our island. This week we received the first Hydro bill since purchasing the car, and as per predictions based on the car technical specifications, it has increased somewhere between …
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Alert: Fulford Ferry Cancellation of Service (UPDATED)

Update as of 5:52 am Saturday, January 10th: Please be advised that the MV Skeena Queen will return to service with the 6:15 am departure exiting Fulford Harbour. Update as of 11:34 am: Please be advised that the MV Skeena Queen has cancelled sailings between Swartz Bay and Fulford Harbour due to mechanical difficulties. The vessel is expected to return to service Saturday evening. A Service Notice confirming the actual time of the vessels return to service will be provided when it becomes available. A water taxi service will be in place operating on the current posted schedule. Water taxi will sail between both government docks at Fulford Harbour and Swartz Bay. A reminder of an alternate route between Salt Spring Island and Vancouver Island will be via the MV Howe Sound Queen between Crofton and Vesuvius. The following additional sailings have been added on this route for Saturday January 9, 2014: 6:00 am exiting Vesuvius 6:30 am exiting Crofton 7:40 am exiting …
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Humanitarian Nigel Fisher at Forum Saturday

Whenever a humanitarian disaster or mass injustice has occurred around the globe, Nigel Fisher has likely been there – organizing a relief operation as part of the United Nations. The Salt Spring Forum presents Nigel Fisher for an engaging and inspirational discussion about international crisis response on January 10th at 7:30 PM at ArtSpring. Stephen Lewis describes Fisher as a “sublime humanitarian and multilateralist: tough, principled, creative, compassionate and indomitable. He’s served in the hottest of hot spots, and never wavered. 
 He does Canada proud.” Nigel Fisher worked with UNICEF and the United Nations for three decades, and is the former President and CEO of UNICEF Canada. Most recently, he served as the UN Regional Humanitarian Coordinator for the crisis in Syria, which has generated over 2 million refugees. After the devastating 2010 earthquake in Haiti, Fisher also headed the UN Stabilization Mission there. He worked in Indonesia after the 2004 ts…
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New Beginnings Start with Local Food

January is a time for new beginnings, whether it be a new exercise routine, a new hobby or class, a change in diet, or, in my case, an opportunity to write a monthly food column for the pleasure of your perusal. It is certainly a time to reflect on the past year and a time to look ahead to what’s to come. It’s also when we can sometimes wish we hadn’t eaten quite so much over the holidays. I think it’s best to accept your seasonal indulgences with great vigor and no remorse. Out with the old, in with the new! For many people who wish to reinvent themselves in the new beginning of the year, exercise is the starting point. I think physical fitness is important and everyone owes it to themselves to be responsible for taking care of their body. Along with physical conditioning, diet plays a vital role in the levels of success you can achieve. I am by no means a calorie counter; in fact, I do not restrict my food choices in any way to appease a dietary regime. My first and …
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Salt Spring National Art Prize offers $25,000

To recognize, showcase and publicize the accomplishments of Canadian visual art, Salt Spring Island is establishing one of the few national, juried competitions in the country. The intent of the Salt Spring National Art Prize (SSNAP) is to encourage artists whose practice demonstrates originality, quality, integrity and creativity, resulting in significant work with a real visual impact and depth of meaning. This exciting endeavour is an initiative of the Salt Spring Arts Council (SSAC), which represents the arts for Salt Spring Island, one of Canada’s premier arts communities. The Finalist exhibition will be held on the island from September through October 2015. The inaugural Salt Spring National Art Prize offers $25,000 worth of awards. best work The Joan McConnell Award and Residency for the best work in the competition $10,000 + Salt Spring Island Artists Residency in 2016 to the value of $5,000 jurors choice Three Jurors Awards representing the ind…
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People Profile: Cicela MĂ„nsson

Community People Profiles is a series on the Salt Spring Exchange featuring local personalities on our dynamic Gulf Island. Our People Profiles are short interviews, with one answer questions to share with you a little about what each of the people we will feature are thinking about as they go about their lives living on Salt Spring Island. This weeks featured local people profile is: Cicela MĂ„nsson Here's a bit about Cicela; Having lived on Salt Spring for six months I'm enjoying exploring the island and community. I'm finding it a fabulous place to live in terms of the sense of community, the variety of art experiences and the lovely people I've met. What brought you to Salt Spring Island? ArtSpring. I'm the Executive/Artistic Director and am loving every minute! What one thing about Salt Spring would you tell someone who has never visited the island? It is a truly special place. I love that you can pick up hitchhikers, leave your door unlocked and you do…
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