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Tuesday, August 2, 2011

Conserve Water On The West Side

West side residents are being asked to use less water after a fire in Musquash on Monday.
Equipment that pumps water from the Musquash watershed to the Spruce Lake watershed was damaged and is not working.

While the damage is being checked out, residents are asked to conserve water.
The City offers tips on how to save water including only running full loads of laundry and dishes, not watering lawns and and gardens and not washing cars and driveways. An update will be released tomorrow afternoon and the City points out the water is safe to drink.
For more info, click here

A Severe Thunderstorm May Bring Hail and High Winds Today

We may see a wild thunderstorm this afternoon complete with hail and strong winds.

Environment Canada issueing a severe thunderstorm watch for Saint John, Sussex, the KV, St. Stephen, Grand Manan, Fredericton, Moncton and more.
The warning says severe thunderstorms are likely this afternoon and bring with them the potential for large hail and damaging winds.

Signs To Be Erected Honouring The Seadogs

The city wants to make sure everybody visiting knows Saint John's team is number one. 

Mayor Ivan Court tells CHSJ News the city is having signs made to go up on the highway with a special message "Welcome to Saint John, Home of the Saint John Seadogs, Memorial Cup champions".

The Mayor says the signs have been in the works ever since the Sea Dogs brought home the Memorial Cup, and he hopes they'll be up in September for when the new season starts.

Premier Voicing Support For Shale Gas Development

Despite a protest on New Brunswick Day at the Legislature against shale gas development that attracted as many as 15 hundred marchers, Premier David Alward is sticking by his guns.

The Premier is still voicing his support for shale gas exploration while maintaining property owners will not see their well water contaminated because the regulations will be stringent enough.

The protesters were calling for a ban on fracking which pumps water and chemicals into the ground in order to get the natural gas.

Alward says he recently saw a shale gas development in the area of Fort Nelson, B-C and it's going well with a small footprint.

Transformer Goes Up In Smoke

A transformer belonging to NB Power exploded yesterday afternoon in South Musquash.

District Chief Peter Saab says the fire department was alerted by a passing A-T-V'er who says alot of smoke coming from the building.

The transformer is a total loss but damage to the building it was housed in turned out to be minimal. There was no loss in electrical service. 

Premier Says Keeping Blood Services Lab In City "A Priority"

Keeping the Canadian Blood Services processing lab in the city is a priority for the provincial government. So says Premier David Alward, who celebrated New Brunswick Day, in Quispamsis.

Alward tells CHSJ News he has spoken to Prime Minister Harper three times about this this issue and he wants to know if the federal government has to sign off on decisions made by Canadian Blood Services.

The Premier will not say if going it alone or partnering with Quebec is now off the table considering the estimated cost in the tens of millions of dollars.



Amanda Cullen of Canadian Blood Services earlier told us that because of the Krever Inquiry, they are immune from what she calls any political interference. To see a video of New Brunswick Day at the Q-plex and the K-V players performing, go to country 94.ca, click news and then video.

Demands On Blood Supply In Province To Grow

In the wake the KPMG report that showed it would cost millions for the province to develop it's own blood service, the New Brunswick Medical Society says other issues still need to be addressed.

Spokesperson Dr. Allison Kennedy tells CHSJ News whatever option the province ultimately decides to go with, a blood monitoring system in co-operation with the medical community needs to be implemented.

He says times are changing as the province is developing new trauma and cardiac programs so new demands will be placed on the blood supply.

Common Council Member Calls For Salary Cut

Now that Common Council has said 'no' to trimming the number of seats around the horse-shoe from 10 to 6, Councillor Chris Titus coming up with a new proposal to save money. 

Titus suggests reducing Councillors' salaries by 40 per cent beginning in 2012. 

He says it would achieve the same level of savings without hurting representation. Titus' original proposal to cut four council seats would have saved the city an estimated 500 thousand dollars over 4 years.

More Details Expected Tonight On Expansion Of Metal Shredder

We should get some more information tonight detailing how council plans to power a metal shredder proposed for the west side.

The American Iron and Metal project found itself on shaky ground after citizens objected to power lines going up along the Fundy Coast Line.

Council, the port and NB Power announcing last Monday, after a closed door meeting, they had an option to please everyone involved but were waiting to release the details until after the costs of the plan were worked out.

Noise Levels Around King Square Said To Be Too High

A Saint John man monitoring noise levels around King Square says he's finding ambient noise that is too loud, too often.

Sam Blue with Noise Free Saint John tells CHSJ News he recently recorded twenty vehicles emitting sounds higher than 80 decibels in a two hour period and if you were at a worksite, that kind of sound level would require ear protection.

 He says noise levels around King Square do tend to vary depending on the weather. There's more noise on sunny days because people are out joyriding and it's better driving for motorcycles.

Blue says when you hear loud motorcycles or cars, it's likely coming from an illegal exhaust. He says you should try and get a licence plate number and contact the police, because the law needs to be enforced.