Local Journalism Initiative

THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP/The Winchester Star, Scott Mason

Migrant farmworkers in B.C. fight for rights in court

The suit claims workers have had Charter rights violated by forcing the workers to work for a single employer

THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP/The Winchester Star, Scott Mason
A fishing crew brings aboard a net filled with herring, foreground, during the 2017 harvest off the mouth of French Creek near Parksville in March. J.R. Rardon photo

Collapse of herring fishery near Vancouver tied to development: study

Forage fish like herring, smelt and eulachon showed dramatic decreases

A fishing crew brings aboard a net filled with herring, foreground, during the 2017 harvest off the mouth of French Creek near Parksville in March. J.R. Rardon photo
Zac Ohlman tows plastic tubes containing live salmon in the Trent River. Photo Rochelle Baker / Canada’s National Observer

Flying fish: Salmon taking to the skies in Comox Valley enhancement effort

Courtenay Fish and Game Protective Association collecting brood stock with makeshift gondola

Zac Ohlman tows plastic tubes containing live salmon in the Trent River. Photo Rochelle Baker / Canada’s National Observer
The work of the Coastal Nations Coast Guard Auxiliary is the subject of a new documentary series on APTN starting this month. Photo by Kwassen Productions

Ocean Warriors patrol B.C. as Canada’s only Indigenous Coast Guard

Vancouver Island filmmaker shines spotlight on Coastal Nations Coast Guard Auxiliary in ‘Mision Ready’

The work of the Coastal Nations Coast Guard Auxiliary is the subject of a new documentary series on APTN starting this month. Photo by Kwassen Productions
Skeena-Bulkley Valley MP Taylor Bachrach made it home to Smithers just prior to Christmas after six days of train travel from Toronto. Taylor Bachrach Facebook

B.C. MP rides rails from Toronto to Smithers in 6-day bid for better service

Taylor Bachrach wants to see an increased emphasis on passenger rail across the country

Skeena-Bulkley Valley MP Taylor Bachrach made it home to Smithers just prior to Christmas after six days of train travel from Toronto. Taylor Bachrach Facebook
A sailboat heads west through the Strait of Juan de Fuca near Victoria on the 2020 B.C. Day long weekend. (John McKinley file)

Ethnic diversity climbs in Victoria area, still lags behind B.C. as a whole

Despite influx of visible minorities, capital region still has less than half provincial percentage

A sailboat heads west through the Strait of Juan de Fuca near Victoria on the 2020 B.C. Day long weekend. (John McKinley file)
(pixabay photo)

New Canadians embracing holiday traditions that are brand-new for some

Newcomers exercise restraint in spending, focus on family time this holiday season

(pixabay photo)
A sign is put up on Rogers Sugar shelves at a grocery store in Vancouver, on Thursday, Nov. 16, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Ethan Cairns

Small pool of sugar refineries sweetens the stakes in B.C. labour battle

Strike at Rogers Sugar refinery in Vancouver remains deadlocked 12 weeks in

A sign is put up on Rogers Sugar shelves at a grocery store in Vancouver, on Thursday, Nov. 16, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Ethan Cairns
John Brittain was sentenced to life in prison for murdering four people in a one day shooting rampage in April 2019. Less than four years into his sentence he has already been transferred from max to medium prison for ‘good behaviour.’ (Black Press file photo)

Penticton man convicted of killing 4 moved to medium security jail

John Brittain murdered four people in April 2019

John Brittain was sentenced to life in prison for murdering four people in a one day shooting rampage in April 2019. Less than four years into his sentence he has already been transferred from max to medium prison for ‘good behaviour.’ (Black Press file photo)
The BBC’s Planet Earth spent 2 summers filming humpback whales off the B.C. coast for an episode that appeared Dec. 3. Shannon Lough photo

Planet Earth dives deep into Vancouver Island whale poo

Legendary BBC program focuses on whale behaviour and their value as a carbon sink

The BBC’s Planet Earth spent 2 summers filming humpback whales off the B.C. coast for an episode that appeared Dec. 3. Shannon Lough photo
By mid October the road to Nitinat Lake was flooded by heavy rain (pictured), but the atmospheric river event in early December is heightening the need for a better land passage to the community. (Brian Tate photo)

Another atmospheric river renews calls for a real road into Nitinat Lake

Road floods multiple times every winter disrupting access to small, remote community

By mid October the road to Nitinat Lake was flooded by heavy rain (pictured), but the atmospheric river event in early December is heightening the need for a better land passage to the community. (Brian Tate photo)
Photo by Orca Network

Toxin pockets along B.C. coast raising red flags for salmon and orcas

High levels of mercury, cadmium, lead and copper in critical habitats compounding concern

Photo by Orca Network
Tofino’s beaches are a key draw for tourists, but the wages those tourists bring to the local economy tend to be on the lower end of the scale. (Westerly File Photo)

Low-wage earners cutting corners on healthy foods to make ends meet in Tofino

A large portion of Tofino’s service and tourism industry workers making less than a living wage

Tofino’s beaches are a key draw for tourists, but the wages those tourists bring to the local economy tend to be on the lower end of the scale. (Westerly File Photo)
Tseshaht members dance outside of Maht Mahs on Sept. 30, National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, on the First Nation’s reserve by Port Alberni. (Eric Plummer photos)

Tseshaht looking to demolish and replace last vestiges of residential school

First Nation wants to tap into federal funding to replace Maht Mah’s gymnasium

Tseshaht members dance outside of Maht Mahs on Sept. 30, National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, on the First Nation’s reserve by Port Alberni. (Eric Plummer photos)
Zach Kapelan briefly holds a chinook salmon before releasing it back into HIŁSYAQƛIS/Tranquil Creek to spawn. Photo by Marc Fawcett-Atkinson/National Observer

Divers swimming with salmon in Clayoquot streams to enhance conservation

Nuu-chah-nulth First Nations conducts hands-on fish counting on Vancouver Island

Zach Kapelan briefly holds a chinook salmon before releasing it back into HIŁSYAQƛIS/Tranquil Creek to spawn. Photo by Marc Fawcett-Atkinson/National Observer
Joy Abasta came to Canada in 2014 planning to work as a nurse, but years of challenges in having her qualifications recognized have driven her from the field. Zak Vescera photo

Foreign professionals hope new B.C. legislation can clear cluttered path

Changes aimed at smoothing what has been a frustrating process for accreditation

Joy Abasta came to Canada in 2014 planning to work as a nurse, but years of challenges in having her qualifications recognized have driven her from the field. Zak Vescera photo
(Getty Images file photo)

B.C. high schools accelerate path from childhood to early childhood educator

Burnaby school district finds creative way to cope with early childhood educator shortage

(Getty Images file photo)
Andy Fillion, left, and his grandson Nicholas Fillion, 9, watch the movie Trolls World Tour at Caprice Cinemas, in Surrey, B.C., on Sunday, June 28, 2020. The B.C. film indutry may be past COVID and two Hollywood strikes, but a rebound has yet to arrive. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck

Cameras gone cold for B.C.’s Hollywood North film industry

Hollywood strikes might be over but it could be some time before B.C. industry rebounds

Andy Fillion, left, and his grandson Nicholas Fillion, 9, watch the movie Trolls World Tour at Caprice Cinemas, in Surrey, B.C., on Sunday, June 28, 2020. The B.C. film indutry may be past COVID and two Hollywood strikes, but a rebound has yet to arrive. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck
Two organizations are pitching the creation of a Kootenay and Cowichan Valleu cannabis trail. File photo

Seeds planted to light up B.C. with cannabis trail tourism

Modelled after the B.C. Ale Trail, project would be piloted in the Kootenays and on Vancouver Island

Two organizations are pitching the creation of a Kootenay and Cowichan Valleu cannabis trail. File photo
The protection offered by COVID-19 vaccines wanes over time. Metro creative stock

Most British Columbians overdue for their COVID shot

Province says you can get a shot every 6 months, only about 10 percent received spring booster

The protection offered by COVID-19 vaccines wanes over time. Metro creative stock