Tag Archives: Cortes Island

Cortes Island Food Bank Drive To Meet Rising Local Need

The Cortes Island Food Bank recently launched a food drive to meet unprecedented need. Cortes Currents met with two of the charity’s key personal in the garage where most of the food is stored. Executive Director Filipe Figueira explained :

 “The situation is getting worse on Cortes. It is the same as across the country.  Two years ago, we had 100 client visits  a year. This year we had 600, that’s about 50 clients a month. People are really suffering economically. The good news is that we’re in a better situation to help those people. We’ve really built up the capacity of the food bank to deal with this emergency. We’ve got some really good staff and good food, but it’s not a good situation.” 

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Final Numbers for Cortes Island’s 2024 Chum Run

The final numbers for Cortes Island’s 2024 Chum run are in. Local streamkeepers Cec and Christine Robinson gave a rundown. 

Christine Robinson: “I think we all know that this was  a stupendous year for Chums up and down the coast. So not just Cortes, not just Quadra, not just the Sunshine Coast, but from the mainland all the way up to Alaska and down through to Puget Sound and I think possibly further south.  The numbers on Cortes were the highest that we have seen since we’ve lived on Cortes, which is now 34 years.”

Cec Robinson: “To put it in context, they’re probably three times higher than the best years we’ve ever seen. So it was pretty huge.” 

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Cortes Island Streamkeeper Spawner Counts 2013-2024

By Cec and Christine Robinson

Recent monitoring of Cortes creeks officially began in 2013 by Cortes Island Streamkeepers, Christine & Cec Robinson. In 2014, streamkeeper numbers expanded as several more salmon enthusiasts began helping with spawner counts. Cortes Island Streamkeeper records were sent to DFO in Campbell River in 2014, and have continued yearly since.

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Janie Wray: Listening to Whales

Over 100 people came to the Quadra Community Centre on December 7, to learn about the acoustic dialects and social connections of Orca, Humpback and Fin Whales. Sierra Quadra invited Janie Wray –  CEO and co-founder of the North Coast Cetacean Society, BC Whales, and the manager of the BC Hydrophone Network – to share from her more than two decades of research.

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Cortes Island’s Draft Zoning Bylaw Online

The proposed changes to Cortes Island’s DRAFT Zoning Bylaw are on online

An additional dwelling may soon be allowed on Residential ( R-1), Rural Residential (RR-1), and RU-1 (lands whose primary designation is conservation or agriculture) zones. 

Another proposed changes is more flexibility on lots larger than 3 hectares. For example,  no prescribed building types for dwellings on Residential lots.

Houses that are currently permitted to have suites will most likely be allowed to opt for a duplex instead.

Continue reading Cortes Island’s Draft Zoning Bylaw Online