Category: Technology


Irish flag on green energy project….

An Irish flag fly's over the Merritt Green Energy project. Photo KDG

An Irish flag fly’s over the Merritt Green Energy project.
Photo KDG

An Irish Flag flys over the Merritt Green Energy Project. Two main structures, culverts, and ditching about the project is underway with crews from Acres Construction who travel from Kamloops in a 15 passenger van daily. Canada’s national flag is seen slightly higher on the ascending buildings.The project is reported to be in the 270K range and will result in a 40 Megawatt steam generator. The green wood waste burning plant is going into the provincial power grid.
EN:Skill and professionalism may replace luck but a bit of Irish can’t hurt.
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The Merritt Green Energy Project is the second biomass plant project being developed in British Columbia by Dalkia and Fengate. In November 2013, they announced the financial close on the $235
million, 40 MW Fort St. James Green Energy Project, which is expected to begin operations next year.

Fengate Financial have arranged the financing for the project : FMI see the press release at: http://www.fengatecapital.com/news/pdf/MerrittGELPNewsReleaseJuly25_2013.pdf

The project also has an agreement with the Lower Nicola Indian Band for impact issues.

On this day: July 29th 1973

The Greeks vote out the Monarchy.

Rain

 

Moisture on Hamilton hill A week before the site of a fire Photo: KDG

Moisture on Hamilton hill
A week before the site of a fire
Photo: KDG

The weekend saw moisture come to the valley including dew point drop. The mountain was the site of chemical water bombing  on a fire recently.

On this Day: July 28th 1996

Kennewick man is found on the banks of a river in Kennewick Washington.

 

TGIF-Windy Canyon

Windy Canyon  Merritt BC Photo KDG

Windy Canyon
Merritt BC
Photo KDG

There is a narrow canyon ascending to the south from the old Middlesbourgh town site at Merritt.The Sandstone was probably eroded by a long since dried up spring but the narrow walls give a shaded relief to the animal trails in it. Making it a pleasant hike. The canyon and trails surface on a field that once was home to an industrial coal operation before the 1st World War. Some bits of it remain including  some few broken bricks. The bricks are related in a sence to the bricks used to build the local armory finished in 1915. The 18 inch double, sand, filled walls of the building on Coldwater avenue’s 1800 block are according to Archie Rutz , an Elk member , who own the building, as coming from there.

Some dirt tracks lead up to the secluded entrance of the gully that is at about  50.09910 and 120.8026. There is also a 4 min google maps route available: Garcia Street to 1295 Midday Valley road.

In 1910 there  was also a railway for logging with a 6 percent grade in the area that went into the Lilly lake area and hooked up to the Kettle valley line. It is now a bike trail that goes to the Coquihalla area through Brodie and Brookmere.

On this day: July 24th 1793

France passes first copyright law.

Hundreds of seagulls

A low pressure front is working its way inland from the ocean and is pushing winds  into Merritt. The winds are bringing coastal seagulls with it as hundreds were in the air Monday evening. Tuesday saw a lone seagull with four crows foraging for scraps at the  mall bench. The mix seemed a bit off but there was a noticeable lack of hostility with the birds.

The accepting crows even seemed to have more peace with the gull then with the idled men that sometimes take that bench. Some rain may not be far behind these birds as a cooling is noticeable. The forecasters are saying a significant amount of rain will come to the central north of the province this week. Merritt does not usually have seagulls.

On this day: July 22 1985 Greek singer Nikos Ganos is born. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RtvM1hxDA1s

Coldwater river

The Coldwater river in Merritt is low and exposing the river rocks. We hope that’s not what the Rock-in river music festival meant. The festival hosted in part By Kenny Hess will have a performance on the Coldwater river the last weekend in July. https://rockinriverfest.com/

There are still many pools in the river that are pleasant at this writing.

The Cold water river, Merritt BC mid July/15 Photo KDG

The Cold water river, Merritt BC mid July/15
Photo KDG

On this Day: July 21 356 BC

The Temple of Diana at Ephesus is destroyed by arson. (The temple was destroyed four times in its history.)

 

TGIF-PP

Pipeline politics are on again!  Has any one ever asked the question why is  oil not refined at sea and taken by tankers off rigs to retailers. Maybe the technologies are non existing. Why not? Can water also be desalinated  on off shore rigs cleaned up and taken away?  Possibly but the politics of oil is the politics of wealth and seems to be very guarded.

Locally hearing by January the recommendations a possible decision 0n if we will have a twinned line come through Merritt still makes us conflicted between knowing it is someone’s necessary evil and some else’s path way to wealth . We at this blog (royal we) hope that what ever the NEBs report is  that it mitigates and distributes the benefits closer to ordinary Canadians birth expectations and rights….Here’s what the responsible operator of the 60 year trans mountain line says of the countdown to decision.

It’s been nearly two years since the head of Kinder Morgan and the company behind the Trans Mountain Pipeline project addressed the local business community about the project, and it was at a time when any formal decision to proceed was a couple years away.

On Tuesday, Kinder Morgan president Ian Anderson was back in Coquitlam speaking to the Tri-Cities Chamber of Commerce to provide an update on the billion-dollar pipeline project.

He said the National Energy Board is expected to issue its recommendations to the federal government in January, which in turn has another 90 days to accept or reject the project.

In the meantime, he said the energy company still has a lot of work to do on the design of the project, the emergency response plans, and dialogue with First Nations communities.

Kinder Morgan is proposing to expand the 1,550-kilometre pipeline that carries oil from Edmonton to Burnaby.

The proposed pipeline route in Coquitlam would run east of the Port Mann Bridge through the Fraser River, hitting land near United Boulevard.

The line would follow the road west past the Eaglequest Golf complex before meeting up with the Lougheed Highway corridor to Burnaby.

The cities of Coquitlam and Port Moody along with the Village of Belcarra have been given intervener status, which allows the municipalities to ask questions and receive answers through the NEB process.

Anderson, who last spoke to the chamber in the fall of 2013, said the company has listened to some of the local concerns about the project, noting Trans Mountain originally intended to use the Colony Farm area as a work site, but opted not to after hearing from the community.

He also said the company has heard from businesses along United Boulevard about the disruptions from years of construction in the area, and are trying to mitigate the impacts from any pipeline construction.

– See more at: http://www.thenownews.com/news/kinder-morgan-exec-updates-local-stakeholders-on-pipeline-plan-1.2000611?utm_source=Trans+Mountain+Today+July+16&utm_campaign=TM+Today+7%2F16%2F15&utm_medium=email#sthash.MkeFlCVI.dpuf

The balance of the worlds wealth is important, and the use of income needs to be in responsible hands, lets not squander that or make the world worse but wealthier . The way these things  are done is as important as doing it. PP

Editors note: The decision remains in the hands of the people of Canada through responsible elected and the rule of law.

On this day: July 17th 1955
Disney land is dedicated in California

Be it ever so humble….

Urban living: this creature takes advantage of a concrete pad for shelter. Photo KDG

Urban living: this Marmot takes advantage of a concrete pad for shelter.
Photo KDG

The heat of the week makes for creative lodging for some creatures.

On this day: July 14th 1881

Billy the Kid is shot dead by Pat Garrett.

Smoke

Smoke filled the skies around Merritt on Monday and Tuesday, there were fires around Cache Creek and the Pemberton area sending smoke this way Photo KDG

Smoke filled the skies around Merritt on Monday and Tuesday, there were fires around Cache Creek and the Pemberton area sending smoke this way
Photo KDG

 
No fires in the immediate area however smoke drifted in on Monday making the sun particularly red. We didn’t find our breathing effected, air conditioned, public buildings included the Public library, the Aquatic Center , the Civic Center. some restaurants were available to those that may be concerened .
The smoke was very much less severe by Wendnsday. Kudos to those that have to be out fighting these things.

On this day: July 09 1993

Canada divides its Northwest Territory in two, creating Nunavut and making NWT and Yukon the three territories in Canada’s north region.

Sunshine good for hay….

 

Some hay growers are saying that crops are ahead. Photo KDG

Some hay growers are saying that crops are ahead.
Photo KDG

However price and the availability of water is a concern for second crops here; according to small producers.

On this day: July 8th 1874
The Mounties begin their march west in Canada.

Great weather, for summer enjoyment….

A move to the right shows level of water tables.

A move of the marker shows level of water tables.

There is a sign on  Voght Street, here in Merritt for  water table information. The sign moved  its pointer this week ,  perhaps for the first time  in its young life but not the first time that levels have been low here

There is an 80 percent chace of rain on July 20th: http://www.theweathernetwork.com/14-day-weather-trend/canada/british-columbia/merritt Smoke is cooling temperatures here today.

 

On this day: July 7th 1985

Wimbledon tennis tournament is won by Boris Becker at 17 years of age.

TGIF- + 30 degrees

Have a great weekend,

Have a great weekend,

The forecast for the next week is over 30 degree Celsius weather .

http://www.theweathernetwork.com/weather/canada/british-columbia/merritt

On this Day: July 3rd 1644

The last pair of Great auks is killed.

The great auk was an important part of many Native American cultures, both as a food source and as a symbolic item. Many Maritime Archaic people were buried with great auk bones, and one was buried covered in over 200 auk beaks, which are assumed to have been part of a cloak made of their skins. Early European explorers to the Americas used the auk as a convenient food source or as fishing bait, reducing its numbers. The bird’s down was in high demand in Europe, a factor which largely eliminated the European populations by the mid-16th century. Scientists soon began to realize that the great auk was disappearing and it became the beneficiary of many early environmental laws, but this proved not to be enough. Its growing rarity increased interest from European museums and private collectors in obtaining skins and eggs of the bird. On 3 July 1844, the last two confirmed specimens were killed on Eldey, off the coast of Iceland, which also eliminated the last known breeding attempt. There are unconfirmed later reports of roaming individuals being seen or caught. A record of a bird in 1852 is considered by some to be the last sighting of the species. The great auk is mentioned in a number of novels and the scientific journal of the American Ornithologists’ Union is named The Auk in honour of this bird.

Source Wikipedia

Off the grid

DSC_0199

Driven in part by eco footprint a couple starts life a little different.
photo KDG

A young couple were on their way home to north central BC on Monday they had just bought a new home. The home was off the grid on a wheeled Vin numbered  tow trailer. For $50,000.00 the two hundred odd square foot home included a sleeping loft The home was meant to be parked off the grid. A Japanese stand up bath tub and a shower were the only thing in the small second room in the rear of the home. The appeal is no taxes and its paid for. The area of the province they live in  probably still supports squatting, however acquiring land would certainly lead to an attractive future. The couple said they just want to be free and not trapped by debt.

The unit was built in the Untied States , ordered and paid for 2 years ago when the dollar was at par. They took it complete except for finishing paint as ” we are not sure of the colour we want yet.”

Editors note: staying with the program can lead to success but taking risk can add a flavor to life that is unique. Both are acceptable and considered rights in Canada. The ability to arrange your life to your advantage may cause someone else difficulty as well as your self. Forest cutting rights as well as road usage and private land are a restraint and if you were to do something like build a tree house you may be surprised. Permission while not always required is still desirable.

On this day: June 30th 1953

The Chevy Corvette goes into production.