Tuesday - Jan. 7, 2025 - Students suggest new flag for Harrison Hot Springs

🌤 High 7C

Good morning!

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced yesterday he would step down—albeit after his party chose a new leader. He also prorogued Parliament until March 24. (Prorogation is a little like sending your legislature on a mandatory leave of absence.) At the same time, NDP leader Jagmeet Singh announced he would vote against the throne speech once Parliament resumes. That essentially guarantees Canada a spring federal election.

That’s the nuts and bolts of it all. Opinions on Trudeau, his time as Prime Minister, and his recent moves will be a dime a dozen in the days to come. Personally, I’m mostly thinking about what federal politics even means at this point. I tend to think our provincial government—which dictates health care, education, and transportation projects and policies—has a greater impact on our day-to-day lives than most of what happens in Ottawa. Federal politics dominates public discourse, and federal elections have a greater turnout, partly because nationwide audiences are larger. People obsess over national politicians because of all that exposure.

But maybe I’m wrong. Because it’s probably not that simple. Because if much of what our federal government does is barely seen, that doesn’t necessarily make it less important. If our provincial governments tend to steer the boat, our federal government creates the weather. More than that, the feds are in charge of maintaining this thing we call Canada. Our nation is not just a physical entity defined by borders. It’s also an idea based on values, common interests, and a desire to shape our communities together. Maintaining and guiding those undefinable traits is a big job, especially today. But it’s one worth doing.

– Tyler

Keep local journalism alive by supporting The Current. Become a Current Insider member today and help bring local stories to life.

Traffic & Weather

🌤 Local forecast: Langley | Chilliwack | Abbotsford | Hope (We have had to temporarily change our forecast links to the Weather Network due to a technical error.)

🚘 Driving today? Check the current traffic situation via Google, and find DriveBC’s latest updates.

🛣 Click here for links to road cameras across the Fraser Valley, including those for the Coquihalla, Highway 7, Hope-Princeton, Fraser Canyon, and Highway 1 in Langley and Abbotsford.

NEWS

How fast can salmon swim?

Salmon are some of nature’s best athletes, boasting the ability to swim thousands of kilometres upstream past roaring rapids, swirling eddies, and snarling predators.

But one of the simplest and most-important questions about their physical abilities remains largely unanswered. Because even as scientists, non-profits, communities, and organizations work to improve salmon populations in British Columbia, it’s still unclear just how fast a salmon can swim.

Speed is not a trivial matter. Knowing a salmon’s top speed would allow conservationists to build better fishways, and could help scientists when landslides, flooding, and other emergencies threaten the species. But as researcher Krista Kraskura recently found, even the use of fish “raceways” and high-tech tags have yet to lead to a satisfying answer to the question: just how fast can a salmon go?

• Today, Tyler writes about fish treadmills and the difficult quest to find a salmon’s top speed.

Related

Need to Know

🚔 A Surrey-raised Mountie has been named Langley’s new top cop [RCMP]

☀ Last year was significantly warmer and drier than normal in the Fraser Valley [Chilliwack Progress]

🗳 BC’s new MLAs have filed financial disclosures, although a couple newly elected Fraser Valley representatives disclosed no income or assets [The Tyee]

🚆 Significant construction has begun on the Surrey-Langley SkyTrain extension [Daily Hive]

🎉 Do we need more parties? (No, not the political kind.) [The Atlantic]

🏗 Harrison Hot Springs council approved the construction for a new hotel and restaurant along the waterfront [Agassiz-Harrison Observer]

🍔 A Langley Dairy Queen advertised “Trudeau Resignation Special” burgers Monday [Jas Johal/X]

📅 Plan your next step. Join KPU’s info sessions and explore 140+ programs in Surrey, Langley, and Richmond. Register today for free!*

*Sponsored Listing

Enjoying our newsletter? Help us make it even better!

Become an Insider member and help keep local journalism and storytelling alive in the Fraser Valley.

SPONSORED BY YOU

Your ad can be here

Advertising in The Current is easier than ever and supports our journalism. Just shoot us an email to learn how you can advertise.

The Agenda

Salmon Arm students design a better flag for Harrison Hot Springs

High school students in Salmon Arm have redesigned Harrison Hot Springs’ flag as part of a social studies project.

The redesigned flag is an illustration of an eagle flying across a mountain range against a blue backdrop and a vibrant sun. In a letter to Harrison council, the students say they chose the design to represent popular activities in the village, including hiking and birdwatching.

The students chose to redesign Harrison’s flag because they didn’t think it represented the community well. The flag is simply the town’s name in block letters, its logo, and the slogan “simply refreshed.”

In a letter, the students explained they are studying flags and hope to redesign Salmon Arm’s flag. They wrote that working on a new flag for Harrison Hot Springs served as practice corresponding with local leaders as well as a trial run at flag design.

Harrison’s council responded in kind.

“I love the eagle, I love the sun and I love the attention to the sky,” Harrison Coun. Mark Schweinbenz said during the December council meeting at which council received the art. The village will write back to the students to thank them. Schweinbenz also suggested that the village contact nearby schools to see if students might also try designing their own municipal flags.

-Grace Giesbrecht, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter 

Share

You can share this newsletter by forwarding it or copy and pasting this link—https://fvcurrent.com/p/january-7-2025/—into a social media post.

🔓️ Become a Current Insider and get full access to this newsletter. Every Tuesday, members get exclusive information on events, food and drink, and local deals.

You’ll also get our weekly behind-the-scenes newsletter and roundup on Saturday. And most of all, your contribution will allow us to keep producing all the great journalism you already know and love.

Catch up

That’s it!

Thanks for reading Fraser Valley Current today ♥️ 

If you found something useful, consider forwarding this newsletter to another local.

Help share The Current

Wouldn’t the Fraser Valley be better if more people had access to local, quality news – and didn’t have to rely on social media? Share The Current with your friends and help us build better communities.