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Manitoba Conservation has released its Officer Service Enforcement Update, and there are a number of reports from the Parkland, including one from just a few weeks ago in Dauphin.

Social Media Posts Lead to $3000 in Fines for Dauphin Man

On January 18th, conservation officers executed a search warrant in Dauphin after investigating images that were posted to social media.

Then, on the 25th, officers charged a man from Dauphin for killing a buck white-tailed deer without a licence, possessing illegally taken wildlife, possessing wildlife without a valid tag attached, and failing to cut out the correct date of the killing from the game tag. His total fines and restitution were $3000.

Off-Duty Conservation Officer Comes Across Illegal Hunting near Renwer

On November 25th, an off-duty conservation officer from Swan River came across a parked vehicle on the side of the road near Renwer. Someone was in the box of the truck, and there were drag marks from the bush.

They called an on-duty officer, but the vehicle had left by the time they arrived. They followed the drag marks and found a large spray of blood and hair, which helped them determine where the bullet came from.

Officers found a single spent cartridge on the road about 75 meters away, and before long, were able to find the truck matching the off-duty officer's description. There was a white-tailed deer carcass in the box of the truck, which the passenger, from Grande Prairie Alberta, claimed ownership of.

They admitted to officers that they had shot the deer from the road, and officers seized the deer and rifle. The passenger was charged $486 for discharging a rifle from a municipal road and issued a $1,500 restitution notice for the white-tailed deer.

Swan River Conservation Officers Bust Illegal Night Hunters

On December 8th, officers got a tip about a possible night hunting violation. When an officer responded, they found a truck stuck in the snow, and passengers were trying to dig it out, while the driver had gone to look for help.

There weren't any immediate signs of hunting, so when the passengers got the truck unstuck, they left. Soon after, another officer searching the area on a snowmobile found a freshly killed elk buried in the snow on private land. There were footprints going from the area to where the truck was stuck.

Officers found the individuals from Pine Creek First Nation and issued tickets for hunting on private land without permission ($486) and possessing illegally taken wildlife ($1,296). A rifle was seized and a $2,500 restitution notice was also issued. The elk was donated to a local resident.

Officers Spot Infractions During Aircraft Patrols

Early in January,  aircraft patrols were conducted by conservation officers from Dauphin, Swan River, Neepawa, and Shoal Lake in collaboration with the provincial wildlife health manager to detect illegal baiting, illegal feeding, or any attractants promoting nose-to-nose feeding within the tuberculosis/chronic wasting disease control zones.

Several locations were observed and officers followed up by confirming findings once on the ground. Landowners were notified of the attractants and removal/clean-up orders were issued.

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Contributed by Sam Brownell

Published: Feb 18, 2023 - 7:22 am

The Manitoba government recently announced a weekend of free fishing from February 18th to February 20th.

Natural Resources and Northern Development Minister Greg Nesbitt made the announcement on Monday.

“Everyone can enjoy ice fishing for free this weekend without requiring an angling licence. There’s no better way to spend a winter day in Manitoba than ice fishing with family and friends, while also enjoying free admission to provincial parks during the month of February.”

Anglers will be able to carry the standard amount of catches that are provided by a license. this would mean no more than four walleye, four northern pike, two smallmouth bass, one lake trout, one channel catfish, and two stocked trout.

This weekend of free fishing will exclude any provincial parks. all other angling restrictions will be in effect including regulations on individual waters.

For all the details on provincial angling regulations, visit www.manitobafisheries.com.

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Contributed by Michael Brossart

Published: Feb 18, 2023 - 6:30 am

Police are asking for public assistance after a young man was shot on the 15th of February.

Two young men, aged 18 and 19 were walking around the area around 11:25 pm. After hearing the crack of gunfire, the 18-year-old realized he'd been shot.

The young man was promptly taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. the 19-year-old was not injured in the incident.

Officers secured the scene and Police Dog services, as well as forensics, were quickly deployed.   

RCMP are looking for anyone who saw a vehicle or suspicious persons in the area at that time or who may have information to assist with the investigation.

We are also asking residents in the area to review their video surveillance during that time. If you have information please call Dauphin RCMP at 204-622-5020, Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-8477, or secure tip online at www.manitobacrimestoppers.com.

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Contributed by Michael Brossart

Published: Feb 17, 2023 - 4:37 pm

The Manitoba government has announced more investments to try and retain and recruit nurses to the province.

Today's announcement is an extension of the Human Health Resource Action Plan which was announced in November. In November, the province announced a commitment to end mandatory overtime and add 2,000 healthcare professionals.

Now, the province has announced a $123 Million investment to continue that work, with nine initiatives, introduced today:

• a new hourly premium for nurses who work weekend hours;
• a new annual payment for nurses who hold the equivalent of a full-time position, as this helps to build more stability in the workforce;
• reimbursing the costs of nurses’ professional licensing fees;
• an annual incentive for nurses who are eligible to retire but choose to remain in the workforce for up to an additional two years, to retain valued expertise and build capacity as new nurses are recruited into the workforce;
• an incentive for nurses who have previously left the profession but choose to return to the workforce;
• a new refer-a-nurse program for current nurses who refer a prospective nurse to a Manitoba employer;
• a provincial float pool to support nurse staffing needs across the province;
• a travel nurse incentive that will provide an additional hourly premium for nurses who travel to work in remote locations; and
• a wellness incentive, which adds additional funds to the health spending accounts of full and part-time nurses to help to cover the costs of eligible expenses.

Health Minister Audrey Gordon made the announcement, saying in a news release that nurses are an extremely important part of the healthcare system.

“These incentives improve nurse staffing where there are high demands and needs in the healthcare system such as weekend coverage. We are already beginning to see positive results from these strategic investments and I want to assure all of Manitoba’s healthcare providers that more supports are on the way as the Health Human Resource Action Plan is rolled out.”

Since the original announcement in November, the province says that 330 new health-care providers have been hired including nurses, health-care aides, physicians and other staff who provide bedside care.

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Contributed by Sam Brownell

Published: Feb 17, 2023 - 11:54 am

A large chunk of the lineup for Rockin' The Fields of Minnedosa was announced today.

On August long weekend this year, August 4th to the 6th, you will be able to catch bands like The Glorious Sons, Aldo Nova, and artists like Sebastian Bach of Skid Row and Lou Gramm of Foreigner.

Here is the lineup announced so far:

Friday, August 4th

Kick Axe

Jack Russel's Great White

Sebastian Bach of Skid Row

Saturday, August 5th

Default

The Sheepdogs

The Glorious Sons

Sunday, August 6th

Toronto

Aldo Nova

Lou Gramm of Foreigner

Tickets go on sale on Wednesday, February 22nd, at rockinthefields.ca or by calling 1-888-330-8333.

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Contributed by Alec Woolston

Published: Feb 17, 2023 - 9:48 am

Manitoba Transportation and Infrastructure's Hydrologic Forecast Centre says water outflow from the Shellmouth Reservoir, or Lake Of The Prairies, will increase from 480 cubic feet per second (cfs) to 600 cfs starting tomorrow.

Another increase to bring water flow up to 700 cfs will happen on Tuesday, February 21st. This final increase will bring water levels on the Assiniboine River up by one or two feet between the Shellmouth Dam and Brandon. The rise in levels will decrease in the eastern reaches of the river and will be near half a foot as the increase arrives in Winnipeg in two weeks.

The province says they will continue to monitor conditions in the upper Assiniboine River as well as downstream levels. Manitoba Transportation and Infrastructure advises the public to take precautions as the rise in water levels could create unsafe conditions on the river and along the shore.

The release from the province can be found here.

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Contributed by Alec Woolston

Published: Feb 17, 2023 - 8:38 am

Manitoba's Progressive Conservative government says the delayed affordability package scheduled for the end of January is to be sent out soon.

A spokesperson for Finance Minister Cliff Cullen said the first of the cheques will be placed in the mail starting the week of Feb. 20.

The reason for the delay was to ensure that as many recipients as possible had time to update their addresses if they moved after filing their 2021 income taxes. The cheques are part of a package to assist individuals and families across the province with the rising cost of living.

The cheques will be sent to all Manitoba homes with a net family income of less than $175,000 in 2021, with $225 going to single people, and $375 to couples. Approximately $200 million was set aside to fund the nearly 700 000 cheques.

The province made the initial announcement about the affordability payments on January 26th.

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Contributed by Michael Brossart

Published: Feb 17, 2023 - 6:00 am

Health Canada has recalled a Presidents Choice brand Canadian Cheddar Cheese for possible Listeria contamination.

The affected cheese may not look or smell spoiled, but can still make you sick if consumed. The affected products will have a best-before date of August 24th, 2023, and the UPC is 060383837464.

Symptoms of sickness can include vomiting, nausea, persistent fever, muscle aches, severe headache, and neck stiffness. Pregnant women, the elderly, and people with weakened immune systems are particularly at risk.

Health Canada says recalled products should be thrown out or returned to the purchase location. If you become sick from consuming a recalled product you should contact a doctor immediately.

More information about the recall is available on Health Canada's Website.

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Contributed by Sam Brownell

Published: Feb 16, 2023 - 1:34 pm

Manitoba families in rural and First Nations communities will be seeing a $94-million investment in affordable childcare from the governments of Canada and Manitoba.

Dauphin will see 148 new spaces for affordable childcare. Federal Minister of Families, Children, and Social Development Karina Gould announced the second phase of the plan today. 

“The Government of Canada is proud to announce these additional child-care spaces for rural and First Nations communities. The ready-to-move pilot project is another example how the Canada-wide system leverages innovation and collaboration between federal, provincial, municipal, and First Nations communities to ensure that every family, no matter where they live, has access to high-quality and affordable child care.” 

The program looks to add a total of 1,670 new spaces, and a total of 23 new centers. The new facilities are expected to be up and running before the end of this year and will allow more people in rural areas to have access to daycare programs closer to home.

Construction is currently underway for the sites announced in November, with sites announced today beginning construction in the spring.   

The child-care spaces being developed with this investment are part of the Manitoba government’s commitment to developing 23,000 new, regulated not-for-profit child-care spaces for children under age seven across the province by 2026.

Lake St. Martin First Nation is another site that was announced today, and they'll be adding 40 new spaces in the community. For a complete list of all the new childcare spaces across the province, visit the Province of Manitoba's Website.

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Contributed by Michael Brossart

Published: Feb 16, 2023 - 11:02 am

Feed destruction is an issue across the province for livestock producers, and Manitoba Beef Producers (MBP) is hoping to get producers some help.

MBP is lobbying the provincial government for financial assistance when it comes to producers setting up proper fences around their feed. General Manager Carson Callum says it becoming a bigger problem.

"A lot of hard snow pack is made feed availability for wildlife challenging. We've seen a lot of infringement for deer and other wildlife coming into feed areas for producers and damaging some of their feedstock. So, really we're looking at ways that can mitigate this risk, and hopefully help the number of premiums that could be paid out to producers that could experience this damage from wildlife."

Callum says that even though there are programs to get compensated for the damage, it's not always about that.

"There is compensation in some regard for it, through MASC, however, when we run into years where feed is really tight, we need to not see this damage happening, and ensure that feed is safe for the livestock that it's intended for."

Producers are already doing what they can, and there have been some programs in the past to address the issue, but Callum says they want to make sure it's not too much for producers financially.

"I know producers on their own are doing their best to keep some of this wildlife out, using innovative ways, whether that's stacking bails all around their certain feedstock areas, or even putting up fencelines. I just encourage producers to continue this work, and hopefully, we can see even some cost-shared support which would be beneficial."

Details

Contributed by Sam Brownell

Published: Feb 16, 2023 - 5:54 am