Regional District to Go For Beetle Funds

Thursday, October 18, 2007 12:49 PM

The Regional District of Fraser Fort George has put together a list of projects it would like to see funded by Federal Mountain Pine Beetle Dollars. Five applications have been submitted.

Director Don Zurowski says the amount the Regional District is contributing to the overall cost, isn’t high enough. The applications have been submitted with the Regional District pledging 10% of the total cost, Zurowski thinks if the Regional District pledged at least 25% it would give the applications a better chance of success.

The deadline for submissionsi s Friday the 19th,and the Board of Directors for the Regional District has approved supporting as much as 25% of the cost of each cross regional project.

(1) Willow River Water/Sewer Systems request $340,000

The community of Willow River has long suffered economic hardships and the impact of Mountain Pine Beetle infestation on the region’s forestry industry will further impact its viability. To attract new business opportunities, Willow River needs to drastically improve its basic infrastructure. To evaluate the feasibility of doing so, a reliable engineered feasibility study is required. The residents of Willow River are committed to financially supporting such a feasibility initiative.

(2) Robson Valley - Economic Resilience Study request $40,000

It is felt that there are several initiatives that must be undertaken to promote economic diversity in the McBride to Robson corridor including identifying:

a) the type of industry that would fit in this area;

b) the needs of industries and potential lands that would be suitable to these needs; and

c) what would have to be done to the identified lands to make them ready to promote.

In addition, there is a need to look beyond the normal vision of industry. In the long term, for an environmentally sensitive and scenic area, there may be a need to identify and determine how to attract federal initiatives which have little impact on the area but which bring a sustainable economic benefit to the area.

3) Beneficial Use of Landfill Gas for Greenhouse request $75,000

A general study on Landfill Gas Utilization was completed and presented to the Board in 2002. While seven options concerning beneficial use of LFG have been identified, each is predicated on reasonable assumptions of LFG supply consistency, quantity and quality for the period of 2007 through 2042. One of the suggested and most economical projects involving direct use of landfill gas is the construction of a new greenhouse facility adjacent to the landfill. An industrial scale greenhouse facility would create new, local manufacturing opportunities and attract high and applied technology initiatives. The landfill gas utilization project could proceed on the basis of the results of LFG quantity and quality data collected from the operating collection and flaring system to date. Private sector interest and opportunities to more closely match LFG supply with demand need to be investigated. The proposed Feasibility Study would be incremental to existing work at the Regional Landfill and within the Regional District.

(4) Industrial Lands Profile. Update and Expand 2002 Industrial Lands Study request $225,000

By having a credible information base upon which to base location decisions, industry will be able to make critical capital investment commitments that will diversify the local economy. The economy of the Prince George area is/has been heavily dependent on the forestry sector. With the upcoming shortfall in harvestable timber as a result of the Mountain Pine Beetle devastation, alternate economic opportunities are essential to this region. Having a credible industrial land base ready to develop will help significantly to attract a larger economic base for the community.

(5) Region Entrance Signage. request $100,000

Signs to promote region attractions, etc, at all major highway entrances to the Regional District. One of the secondary marketing efforts is the introduction of wayside or roadside signage and facility signage to highlight the locations of the attractions. The concept includes the placement of attraction signs at pull-outs at various highway entry points in the Regional District and if practical, signage that participating venues could place at their facilities indicating that they are a brand participant.

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