The Jasper Local March 1, 2018

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thejasperlocal.com

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thursday, March 1, 2018 // ISSUE 116

JNP's winter backcountry reopened Backcountry users in Jasper National Park are giddy now that all trails are open for winter recreation.

On March 1, backcountry trails in the Maligne Valley, Sunwapta and North Boundary opened for winter use.

“March 1 is giddy up and go time,” ski ambassador and backcountry enthusiast Loni Klettl wrote on behalf of the Jasper Trails Alliance.

VIT SARSE SHOOTS A ROCK GAP NEAR ATHABASCA FALLS // LADA D PHOTOGRAPHY

As the agency has done each year since delayed access measures were implemented in 2014, on March 1, Parks Canada

lifted all closures implemented for caribou conservation.

Delayed access measures are put in place to mitigate predator access to woodland caribou on man-made ski trails. Closures are initiated November 1.

“After March 1, JNP’s ski world explodes with terrain which goes to heaven, around the moon and back,” Klettl waxed. “Splendid vistas to ogle and drool, long, short tours, traverses to satiate the craving ski soul.”

Parks thanked Jasper’s winter backcountry users for respecting the seasonal closures. bob covey //

bob@thejasperlocal.com

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page A2 // the jasper local // issue 116 // thursday, march 1, 2018

editorial //

Local Vocal Despite their intention to do the opposite, Parks Canada officials administering national park eligible residency requirements are picking at the very fabric of our community.

Like a sloppy tailor wielding a seam ripper, they’re inadvertently tearing up what binds us together.

This time it’s another life-long resident, Kyle Darroch, essentially being given the boot. If you don’t know his story, it might seem reasonable to suggest Mr. Darroch doesn’t qualify to live here, but even a small sense of his commitment and contributions to his community will convince you that his circumstances deserve special attention.

Does earning a handful of accolades for dedication to one’s community mean you don’t have to play by the rules? No. Does being born and raised here mean you get a free pass? Nope. Does showing good faith in trying to maintain employment in Jasper constitute special treatment? I doubt it.

What about when all three factors are compounded?

Life’s not black and white, and when it comes to rules that affect the lives of community members, neither should the decision making process be so categorical.

Reasonable arguments should carry water. Exceptions to the status quo should be possible.

In another important community decisionmaking arena, development permits in Jasper are awarded with the input of a public advisory board. Occasionally, where this public board sees merit for an exception to be made, it suggests a variance which allows development to take place in a manner not otherwise permitted. PDAC has no formal authority, but it’s a way to let the community take a temperature of a certain situation and recommend the appropriate discretion.

Why not, then, use a public advisory board for matters pertaining to eligible residency requirements? Members of the community whose living situations don’t meet the letter of the law could appeal to the board; Parks administrators could then consider those suggestions against the iron-clad rules they are apparently bound by.

To me, it seems like common sense; and as more and more jobs fall outside of the scope of what Parks Canada considers “primary employment,” Jasper will surely continue to deal with sad stories of folks who simply want to live here and be a part of the community—a community, in some cases, that they themselves helped to flourish.

Annual Forum-inspired flippancy The time has come to hear the news Regarding the progress and all the breakthroughs Cuz when we hear ‘bout Parks’ management plan The guy at the front goes all preacher-man “Hallelujah” he’ll say, “We had record visitation” “And never you mind ‘bout that beetle infestation” “Those dead stands of forest, just west of town?”

“Why y’all be bringing us down?”

“Look instead at measures for caribou conservation!”

“Perhaps you’d like to rent a former warden station?”

“Oh the science we stifled and the morale that we quashed?”

“Those were tricks that we learned from our boss!”

Parks’ Annual Forum is a chance to ask tough questions So don’t let presenters drone on in succession Get up there and give your two cents Public servants, after all, work at your expense -Bob Covey

The Jasper Local //

Jasper’s independent alternative newspaper 780.852.9474 • thejasperlocal.com • po box 2046, jasper ab, t0e 1e0

Published on the 1st and 15th of each month Editor / Publisher

Bob Covey.................................................................................... bob@thejasperlocal.com Art Director

Nicole Gaboury.................................................................. nicole@thejasperlocal.com Advertising + sales

Instead of concerning ourselves with how our living rachel bailey.............................................................................ads@thejasperlocal.com cartoonist in Jasper ensures we can check the right box, let’s ask why that box exists in the first place, then try to Deke.................................................................................................deke@thejasperlocal.com think outside of it. facebook.com/thejasperlocal @thejasperlocal bob covey // bob@thejasperlocal.com

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// Local development

thursday, march 1, 2018 // issue 116 // the jasper local// page A3

MOVING ON UP // DESIGN CONCEPT FOR HOSTELLING INTERNATIONAL’S JASPER TOWNSITE PROPERTY. THE 157-BED HOSTEL IS PLANNED TO OPEN MAY 2019. // SUPPLIED

New HI hostel to break ground next spring Hostelling International’s long- “It will help to alleviate Jasper’s tight shortterm housing,” McLean said. “Particularly in awaited Jasper project will the spring and fall, when people are coming finally see the light of day. into town to look for work.”

Alistair McLean, CEO of HI Canada Pacific The hostel design features common areas Mountain Region, had his Parks Canada and kitchens on every floor, as well as guest development permit in hand on Tuesday, laundry facilities, ski/bike storage and February 27. meeting rooms. Three family rooms will “Everyone’s very excited about it,” McLean sleep up to five guests; 16 private rooms said. “We’ve wanted to be out of there for a have capacity for two hostellers each; and long time.”

12 dorms with four bunk beds each will “There,” is the Whistler’s Mountain sleep a total of 96. Some of the rooms will location, HI’s closest facility to Jasper be wheelchair accessible. and by all accounts a relic of a building.

“People will be impressed with the project,” Situated seven kilometres from the McLean suggested. townsite and repurposed as a hostel from Site clearing is scheduled to begin in a ski lodge in 1970, the property’s obvious March, with foundation work set for late shortcomings will soon be moot when a May. McLean says the plan is to open the new, $11 million building is built along new HI Jasper by spring, 2019.

Sleepy Hollow Road.

“The traveller in 2018 expects something different,” said Jasper’s Michel Tremblay, who works for HI. “It will be more comfortable, with better facilities and will cater to families.”

Most importantly, the new location will be in town.

“We’re going to be in the community,” Tremblay said.

The three-storey, 157-bed lodge will constitute nearly 25,000 square feet. Two other buildings will house up to 15 staff while another will act as a maintenance building and will serve HI’s JNP wilderness properties.

“The new hostel will nearly double our existing available beds…we will be dramatically improving the hostel experience in the area,” he said.

The hostel will be constructed using modular construction—66 individual modules will be pre-built off site and assembled here. Many of the modules, set to arrive in October, will be delivered with furniture already installed.

The existing Whistlers hostel will continue to operate until the new property opens.

After the new hostel opens, the Whistlers property will revert back to Parks Canada. bob covey // bob@thejasperlocal.com

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page B1 // the jasper local // issue 116 // thursday, march 1, 2018

Local community//

Residency requirements squeeze life long Jasperite out of town Another Jasperite is feeling the sting of Parks Canada’s eligible residency requirements.

Kyle Darroch grew up in Jasper, won a handful of prestigious awards and scholarships for his contributions to his community, obtained a degree in education and six years ago came back to his hometown with the hope he could find full time work in his field.

When he finally landed a teaching job, however, it was in Hinton. Darroch kept his part time serving jobs in Jasper, but when he tried to get a mortgage for a house on Connaught Drive, Parks Canada officials stepped in, saying his primary employment in another community meant he no longer met eligible residency requirements here.

For Darroch, even though he knows

the rules, he figured his family history, his track record of volunteerism and his pulling shifts at various businesses would count for something.

“[Parks Canada] said I could buy the house but I couldn’t live there,” Darroch said.

“Even though I have all these ties in town.”

Eligible residency requirements ensure a broad supply of housing is available for those who work and raise families in the community, according to Parks Canada. Eligible residents must have

JASPER’S KYLE DARROCH SAYS HE FEELS LIKE HE’S GETTING PENALIZED FOR GROWING UP. DARROCH HAS BEEN TOLD HE DOESN’T MEET ELIGIBLE RESIDENCY RULES. // BC

primary employment within the park, or have worked in the park for five consecutive years before retirement.

“Each case is evaluated in a fair, consistent and compassionate matter with the best interests of the national park and community in mind,” communications officer Steve Young wrote to The Jasper Local in January.

Darroch isn’t so sure about that. He feels like he’s being punished for growing up.

“I feel like I’m being penalized for going to school, trying to get a job in my hometown and trying to buy a condo here,” he said.

Darroch, who sits on two different community boards in Jasper, wishes there was a way for administrators to show a bit of discretion in unique cases such as his—in the same way a home business owner in Jasper has had her rental agreement ratified even though she doesn’t technically meet the prerequisites (home based businesses do not quality as primary sources of employment).

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daughter here with her ex-husband, was denied her lease renewal after Parks Canada administrators told her she was not an eligible resident. Since then, she has transferred the home’s lease to her 18-year-old daughter and attempted to qualify for residency as her daughter’s caretaker (doctors have advised that her daughter live with family).

However, since her daughter isn’t employed, she doesn’t qualify as an eligible resident, either. Dolan is hopeful that officials will see her role as her daughter’s caretaker as superseding her daughter’s need for employment.

“The more I think of how absurd all this is the more I want to go knocking on doors in Ottawa,” Dolan said.

MP Jim Eglinski has heard Dolan’s case. He said he believes there’s good will on both sides and that a solution should be imminent. However, he also figured the rules ought to be reviewed.

He suggested there be an out for special situations such as these.

“I feel like it’s different rules for everyone,” Darroch said. “I get the need to reside [clause], I understand why it’s here. [But] it needs to be updated.”

“Sometimes in unique circumstances I think there should be a clause where one-off situations are dealt with on an individual basis,” Eglinski said.

Jasperite Stef Dolan can relate. For the past six weeks, Dolan has been jumping through various hoops to resolve her own residency issues.

Dolan, who also works in Hinton but who since 1985 worked in Jasper for nearly two decades and raised a

As for Darroch, he’s “done with Parks Canada.” He and his partner are renting in Hinton.

“It makes me mad because it’s not my choice,” he said. “It just drives me crazy that there’s a double standard.” bob covey // bob@thejasperlocal.com

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Local business//

thursday, march 1, 2018 // issue 116 // the jasper local// page B2

Potential pot retailers keen to roll out bud business as council grinds through impending regs Jasper Municipal Council was weeding through proposed cannabis legislation February 27 and at least one potential retailer in Jasper was keen to learn how local regulations would roll out.

Leanne Stanko has been formulating a business plan for cannabis retail in Jasper ever since Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s Liberal government announced their intent to legalize the substance.

“I always said ‘if the right opportunity comes along I definitely want to go down that road,’” said Stanko.

Now, with more details on how federal legislation and a provincial framework will guide Alberta retailers, Stanko’s fire is lit. She will be among the first in line to apply for a license to sell cannabis in Jasper when the Alberta Gaming and Liquor Commission starts accepting applications March 6.

But Stanko isn’t opening a head shop. Rather, the THC University-certified budtender (yes, that’s a thing) wants to create a retail experience that her fellow residents can be proud of. She has gutted the former Gravity Gear building at 618B Patricia St. and is hoping that the new outlet will spark a fresh conversation around cannabis.

“I want to make sure all types of people are going to feel welcome and comfortable, because I see a diverse group of people who could benefit from a store like this.”

Before the self-proclaimed “ganja-preneur” can open her doors to the cannabis-curious public,

SHEEP SHOW // THIS BIG HORN GOT BLASTED BY SNOW AND WIND NEAR THE CIF AREA// VALERIE DOMAINE

however, federal legislation has to come down a minimum 100 metre buffer zone between the pipe. During municipal council’s Feb 27 retail outlets and schools and health care committee of the whole meeting, RCMP Sgt. facilities, for example, council learned that Rick Bidaisee presented on how the new rules specific zoning issues will likely be up to will affect the way he and local authorities to his members perform approve. At council’s their police work.

“Although the key word is legalize, urging, MOJ CAO Mark Fercho said staff “Although the key word there are still stringent parameters would put together is legalize, there are still that people looking to utilize or a list of locations in stringent parameters distribute will have to abide by.”

Jasper where municipal that people looking authority might take to utilize or distribute precedent, including will have to abide by,” a map where cannabis use will and will not Bidaisee said. be permitted. Furthermore, council heard Those parameters that staff is looking to update its current centre around bylaw governing tobacco smoking, “given the restricting cannabis confusion around provincial smoking [laws], access to young people, local bylaws and also the ambiguity around protecting public health cannabis consumption,” Fercho said. and cracking down on That ambiguity is certainly part of what’s impaired driving, he holding Stanko back from launching her new said. company just yet. Before she starts marketing In Jasper, overlapping her brand, buying inventory of paraphernalia federal and municipal which could be linked to the still-illegal land use regulations substance or hiring fellow budtenders, she will create a unique wants to see exactly how the rules shake joint jurisdiction out. That’s key, she said, to moving the when it comes to conversation forward. the sale of cannabis.

“We’re passionate and fully invested, but Although the provincial framework we’re willing to adapt to whatever rules come our way.” is recommending bob covey // bob@thejasperlocal.com

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page b3+B4 // the jasper local // issue 116 // thursday, march 1, 2018

FEATURE // STORY BY DAVID HARRAP & ILLUSTRATION BY NICOLE CO

S TH OF THE SUREST WAY FOR AN INTRODUCTION TO SNOW FLEAS IS TO FALL FLAT ON YOUR FACE SKIING. When naturalist Donald Stokes wrote in one of his guides, “Snow fleas are hard to spot because they are so small,” he wasn’t kidding. Only those who have got down on their hands and knees and peered into the parallel universe of weird little things under their feet, will have discovered that what they thought was slightly dirty snow were, in fact, vast herds of snow fleas. We’re talking big numbers here, in the vicinity of the entire population of China cavorting around on patches of snow in just a small chunk of forest.

There’s nothing like ground level for experiencing an epiphany of the minutiae. It had happened one spring day as I pulled Little Lord Fauntleroy through the forest in his enclosed sled.

At first I thought the snow was peppered with dust, a strange sort of five o’clock shadow. Then I fell tackling a small rise.

I raised my plastered face, shook my head and blew upwards to dislodge the snow in my eyes, then took a squint.

The dust seemed to be heaving en masse; for a moment I thought I must have knocked myself silly and was in the process of coming round. Then all of a sudden fifty thousand specks of dust leapt into the air under my nose.

“Bloomin’ heck! The snow’s come alive. There’s things crawling.” Unlike Gulliver I wasn’t on half a pint of brandy, but it was Lilliput all right. I even moved my arms to check I wasn’t pegged down.

“What are they, Dad?” Liam strained to see from the comfort of his luxury sled.

“I haven’t a clue. But whatever they are, I’m eyeball to eyeball with the brutes.”

I found out later they were snow fleas, members of the springtail gang. I also discovered that the springtail is one of the most common insects walking the earth.

I wasn’t surprised.

After my encounter with snow fleas it set us to thinking: Where do they all come from?

What is their purpose? While the scientific community would undoubtedly shoot our figuring full of holes, the answers made sense to us. Since we only saw them on the snow it was reasonable to assume they grew right out of the snow, a spontaneous

generation of sorts, “Bloomin’ he like flies popping snow’s come ali miraculously out of the desert sand. As to their things craw purpose, well I’ll admit that had us stumped till one night in the tent we were reading— again—The Cat in the Hat Comes Back.

I shot bolt upright.

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OVEY

MALL WONDERS: HE TINY, TITILLATING WORLD F THE COMMON SNOW FLEA “What is it, Dad?” Liam looked worried.

“Did you hear something?”

“That’s it!” I exclaimed, almost setting fire to the tent with the candle lantern.

“EUREKA! Those snow fleas clean up the snow till it’s all gone. They’re like Little Cat Z with the Voom under his hat that cleaned up all the pink snow.”

“YEESS!” Liam was with me on this one.

We smacked high-fives, again almost setting fire to the tent.

“By Crikey! I think we’ve got it.”

Doubters can scoff all they want. But was it mere coincidence that the snow melted right after the appearance of the snow fleas?

eck! The ive. There’s wling.”

I think not: Quad erat demonstrandum.

A few years down the road and the explanations wouldn’t fly with Liam any more. It’s called getting older. We read in a book that snow fleas live on the forest floor, feeding on decaying vegetable matter, and when the moment strikes they climb up tree trunks, bushes, plant stems, rocks, anything, for a bit of sport on the snow surface—namely, mating. While out and about they are partial to making long overland trips, all of eighty feet in two days. A Herculean journey for specks of dust, equivalent to the residents of Jasper walking to Sunwapta Falls for a picnic, or sex. In the realm of minute is found the real Guinness world champions.

Night coming and they all make a beelinefor-the-treeline, returning down the ladders they came up. If you think the Hillary Step on Everest gets jammed, imagine the frenzied helter-skelter at the firemen’s poles as millions of snow fleas scurry to be off the snow by dark.

Once, we tried looking through binoculars to spot the modus operandi responsible for flipping the flea backwards into the air. But we needed a microscope.

Snow fleas have this prong that’s folded underneath their body and held in place by a clasp. When it’s time to shoot the breeze they slip the bolt on the clasp and the prong launches them a dizzy four to six inches into the air. No mean feat. It’s on par with a high jumper doing the Fosbury flop from a barge on the East River right over the Brooklyn Bridge.

There is an entire life behind things tiny.

Having a couple of thousand snow fleas floating in our cups of tea never did affect the taste. And when we saw specks on the marshmallows in our mugs of hot chocolate we figured it was the cocoa powder. Snow fleas don’t bite. They haven’t done us any harm over the years of winter camping and melting snow.

They do their thing: we do ours.

David Harrap // info@thejasperlocal.com

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page B5 // the jasper local // issue 116 // thursday, march 1, 2018

Local energy //

FAT BIKERS FROM EDMONTON, HINTON AND JASPER RODE TO THE COLUMBIA ICEFIELDS FROM TOWN RECENTLY. JASPER FIRE CHIEF GREG VAN TIGHEM (MIDDLE) IS TRAINING FOR A NEW FAT BIKE CHALLENGE IN NORTHERN ALBERTA. STAY TUNED TO THESE PAGES TO FIND OUT FROM WHERE AND WHEN HE DEPARTS. // VALERIE DOMAINE

Geothermal energy potential: A TALE OF TWO TOWNS Two communities on either side of the Continental Divide are drilling into the viability of geothermal energy.

Hinton, AB and Valemount, B.C. are both are hoping to tap into the potential of what lies beneath the Rocky Mountain Trench, but that’s about where the similarities end.

Hinton has a long history of oil and gas exploration, but geothermal energy conversations are only just starting to flow, thanks to a recently announced $1.2 million geothermal exploration grant.

Valemount, on the other hand, which has no natural gas production, has been told of the community’s geothermal potential for nearly a decade without any meaningful investment to actually tap into it. Mirroring that lack of venture capital, the community has yet to see any significant government support for geothermal initiatives. “[The hot water] is deep down, it’s expensive to access,” said Rundi Anderson, vice chair of the Valemount Geothermal Exploration Society.

“We’re waiting for somebody to drill.”

In Hinton, the drilling has been done; the original holes in the ground were put there to extract oil and gas. Now, thanks to a three-way subsidy from the federal government, the province and the province’s largest research agency, Alberta Innovates, project partners will hope those former oil and gas wells can be repurposed for a cleaner, greener energy.

“This cross-governmental partnership represents an opportunity to explore the future,” said Hinton’s mayor, Marcel Michaels. The Town of Hinton, which

will see its municipal infrastructure heated by underground hot water reservoirs should the initiative be viable, will kick in $250,000 to the exploration project.

“No one wants to take the risk of drilling and finding nothing there.”

Seven years ago in Valemount, permits were awarded for geothermal exploration near Canoe Reach, next to Kinbasket Lake. There is a hot spring there, Anderson says, which locals dig up and soak in when the manmade reservoir isn’t flooding it. But that’s about as deep as the digging has gone. Borealis GeoPower, out of Calgary, has led the charge in terms of identifying possible hot spots, teaching interested community members about the benefits of geothermal energy and dreaming big when it comes to accessing the “heat beneath our feet.” However, with a $500,000 price tag to put a hole in the ground which could yield nothing at all, private investors have been scant.

“No one wants to take the risk of drilling and finding nothing there,” Anderson said.

That risk is exactly why Hinton should not be gambling with taxpayer money, says former Hinton town councillor, Stuart Taylor.

Taylor has been a vocal opponent to the geothermal initiative, suggesting that government funding should not be a reason to embark on projects which are steered clear of by private enterprise.

“Reports that we have in hand clearly state that any calculations are based on subjective judgments and information that should not be relied upon in terms of predicting outcomes,” Taylor said.

Anderson pointed to other countries around the world which have embraced geothermal energy: Japan, New Zealand and the United States.

“People here are excited for the potential of energy production

and direct heat applications like community green houses, hot pools and frost-free streets,” Anderson said.

As for Taylor, he’s not buying it, even though his community already has.

“All of this money is being spent by our local council to undertake a multi-million-dollar risk, on an unproven venture, in which individual council members themselves would never invest $100 of their own money,” he said.

bob covey // bob@thejasperlocal.com

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thursday, march 1, 2018 // issue 116 // the jasper local// page B6

local hockey //

Could the Bonestars dethrone the champs?

Team has all the right components to make a push for top spot CAN THE JFI BONESTARS BEAT THE BREW PUB BARLEY KINGS?

Finding out the answer to that question is the main reason this sports reporter decided to saunter down to the Jasper Hockey Arena at 10:30 p.m. on a Tuesday night in the middle of winter. Well that, and to jam to the sick beats that the 16-year-old timekeepers have been dropping between whistles lately. It’s lit!!!

Anyway...can the BStars take down the champs? It’s a fair query—the boys in green and white put together a solid second half of the season and when they field their A squad, they’ve got some of the best shooters, passers and kick-their-assers in the league. The Lego-torsoed Jeremy Journault can get the puck up ice and off his stick in a hurry; fellow sniper Troy Valcourt is shark-like in his ability to find soft spots to exploit; and Joey “Wheels” Hunter can toe-drag all the way from Hinton, where he currently lives. And don’t

forget about 6-foot-4-and-a-half (on skates) goalie Cole Worsfold, who, if he’s not the best tendy in the league (sorry Vergie), then could very well be the best DJ in the JHL (sorry Frazzle). The point is, he stays up late, but knows how to get down.

Despite their mismatched records (the BStars went 16-12-1 this year while the Pub won a ridiculous 26 games with only two losses and one tie), as I chatted with the JHL’s #insider, Zamboni queen Karen Kovich, we both agreed that the BoneStars would stack up pretty well against the reining champs, especially if former Earls Royal, Reid Jackson, would distribute the biscuit, sky-scraping Warren Van Asten could stay out of the box and Greg “Merman” Mermingis could, for an entire shift, stay on his flippers.

Turns out, that is a lot to ask.

There was more stacked against the Bonestars on this late February night—well, less, actually. They had a short bench. Not that the Pub was

long shot // if the bonestars get hot and stay healthy they may have a chance to stick it to their rivals // Bc

flush with bodies, but let’s just say the Bones were missing some meat.

Cliff Kennedy (and his killer ink) was hot-tubbing in Revelstoke; redpantalooned Jeff Bangle was likely slinging pies at Northface Pizza; and both Trevor “T-Bone” Groth and his

Keep an eye on them, Aussie Bill! // B Covey

brother, Brian (“B-Bone”) were presumably rocking Brian’s new baby Colton to sleep. If that was indeed the case, the Groth bros should have brought the little gaffer to the rink.

Based on what I watched, dad would have had no trouble coaxing little C-Bone into a deep slumber by plopping him between the tired forwards and the quiet D. Jon Osborne, who was on the IR with a bruised paw, could have sung him—and the enitre sleepy team—a sweet lullaby: “Lullaby, and good night, Brian Young do not fight; Close your eyes, have a rest, you’ll always be second best. Shhh....”

Look, if the BoneStars show a little passion, there’s no reason that they can’t line up against the Barley Kings in the A Final on March 18.

They’ve got all the pieces to put together a winning playoff run: speed, scoring, defence and depth. But do they believe it themselves or are they (*yawn*) going nite-nite? bob covey // bob@thejasperlocal.com

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bob covey // bob@thejasperlocal.com

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