Tuesday - July 25, 2023 — Mosquitos vs. drones

Tuesday, July 25, 2023 | 🌦 High 21C

Good morning!

Every year, restaurants and grocery stores throw out tons of food that could still be eaten. And best before dates aren’t exactly a science. Anyways, I got this email from a PR person last week telling me about this new app called Good To Go. You can order “surprise bag” for relatively cheaply from some local food-sellers. The food might be at or past its best-before date, but it’s still supposedly good to eat—supposedly. This is all pretty new here. Options are still limited. But if you want some cut-rate leftover pizza in Langley, it seems like an option.

Some web-based business ideas built around apps are great concepts that fizzle out because they don’t get enough people on board. Others are flawed from the start. So if you’ve tried this Good To Go thing, let me know how you found the experience.

Thanks to Roseanne and Gary for supporting the work we do by becoming members. You help keep us going! Others can join them here.

WORTH KNOWING

🌤 Local forecast: Langley | Chilliwack | Abbotsford | Hope

⚠️ Here’s the current smoke forecast / Check the BC Wildfire Dashboard here

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

NEWS

Call in the drones

A new mosquito-fighting gadget could help control the pesky insects in the Fraser Valley next year.

The company contracted by the Fraser Valley and Metro Vancouver regional districts to manage the mosquito population hopes to start using drones to better control the pests.

The potential tech solution comes after 2022's particularly horrible mosquito year.

• Today, Joti writes how this year’s mosquito season compared to predictions, how the blood-sucking organism could be managed next year, and how this year's forest fire season left residents vulnerable to river-born mosquitoes.

Need to know

🔎 RCMP dive crews continue to search Cultus Lake for the body of a man believed to have drowned [Chilliwack Progress]

👉 Participants in a meeting about a potential museum focused on South Asian Canadian experiences say the government has botched the process [Vancouver Sun]

💬 Governments need to understand disaster risks before they can really mitigate their consequences, Stó:lō Tribal Council’s president says [The Tyee] / Tyrone McNeil was speaking at an event about how communities can better endure climate disasters; you can watch it here [YouTube]

🔥 Mission fire crews were called to fight a wildfire near Cannell Lake Saturday; it’s now called the Hunter Hill wildfire and remains active [BC Wildfire Serivce] /

🔥 The Chehalis River wildfire near Harrison Lake is once again out of control and now 767 hectares in size [Agassiz-Harrison Observer] / The Davis Lake wildfire is 215 hectares [BCWS]

🚨 The children at the heart of the Amber Alert may be living off the grid with their mother; their father is from Chilliwack [CTV]

⚡ Martini Film Studio’s ‘Martini Town’ no longer runs on diesel after electrifying with funding from BC Hydro [BC Hydro]

🚒 A house in central Chilliwack caught fire Monday morning [Fraser Valley Today]

😢 The family of a Langley man killed in the mass shooting a year ago is planning a ceremony to remember Paul Wynn [Langley Advance Times]

👉 An outreach worker says the shooting last year has left people who are homeless in the city feeling less secure than ever [Langley Advance Times]

💣 Abbotsford’s courthouse was evacuated after a bomb threat [Abbotsford News]

🥯 Sinamen Bun Co. is closing its Abbotsford location citing parking rules [Daily Hive]

🐟 The Silverdale Creek Wetlands will be closed to the public for two months while salmon habitat is restored [Mission Record]

🚑 A Chilliwack man died after reportedly jumping into the Vedder River to try to rescue a dog [Chilliwack Progress]

⚕️ What’s important for your health and community? Complete the BC SPEAK Survey by July 31 for a chance to win prizes. Full contest rules, regulations at FraserHealth.ca.*

*Sponsored Listing

The Agenda

Late-night train for fireworks watchers

TransLink has added a special train service from Mission to Vancouver for folks to enjoy the Celebration of Light show Saturday evening.

The West Coast Express will depart Mission City Station at 7pm on Saturday for Vancouver’s Waterfront Station. The fireworks show is scheduled to begin from English Bay at 10pm.

The return train will begin boarding at 11pm from Waterfront Station and depart for Mission at midnight.

Feedback sought on climate change-fighting farming

The BC legislature’s agriculture-focused committee is asking “land stewards” and others working on farmland to provide input into potential new policies that inform soil, carbon sequestration, and related technology.

The committee has been tasked with recommending potential ways to sequester carbon in farm soils. The concept of soil-based carbon sequestration involves finding ways to promote growing strategies that remove climate change-causing carbon-dioxide from the air and store it in soil and plant material. In addition to potentially helping reduce carbon in the atmosphere, some say sequestration can also improve soil health and food production.

Farmers and others can sign up to provide their input by completing a form online by Sept. 1.

🔓️ Become a Current Insider for 25% off today and get full access to this newsletter (and everything else we produce).

🍴 Shandhar Hut: North Chilliwack. One of Chilliwack's most-beloved restaurants, Shandhar Hut has built a valley-wide reputation for classic Punjab food. Most meals run between $14 and $20. Open between 11am and 9 or 10pm, depending on the day.

🍴 Mountainview Brewing. Hope. A brewery with a wide variety of beers, but also a decent variety of food items, with a focus on Mexican options like tacos, quesadillas, enciladas, burritos, and tortilla soup. The menu has plenty of vegan-friendly options too. Open noon to 9pm most days.

🍴 S+L Kitchen & Bar. Langley & Abbotsford. "Casual upscale" dining with standard pasta and meat entrees. Wagyu beef dip costs about $26. Opens late morning to late evening, with exact hours depending on the day.

Local specials

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