2014 SUMMER FESTIVAL GRANTS
The Summer Festival Grant Program funds community events located within the former Halifax County. The total value of the grant program is $25,000. There were 7 applications received for 2014: (each festival received $3500)

2014 FESTIVAL & EVENTS GRANTS
HRM Festival and Events Grant program is used to support annual, small scale, local community events in various categories: Community Celebrations; Community Festivals; and Professional Festivals. Here is a list of local grant awards for this year:

Be sure to get out and support these local community events and festivals. And do have yourself a safe and enjoyable summer.

NS NATURE TRUST 100 WILD ISLANDS
The NS Nature Trust ( NSNT ) has launched a $7-million campaign to preserve a 30-kilometre archipelago containing dozens of coastal islands on the Eastern Shore. There are over 100 islands with 46,000 acres of wilderness area. The key to the project is convincing 30 private landowners to agree to protect their land either through conservation easements, donations or land sales. The Province has agreed to protect some 1,620 hectares ( or 4,000 acres ) of Crown islands in the area. The archipelago stretches from Clam Harbour to Mushaboom Harbour. Its islands feature barrens, forests, wetlands, salt marshes and breathtaking white sandy beaches with crystal clear turquoise water. The NS Nature Trust expects it will take years to finalize its land assembly. It has already raised $4 million through foundations, businesses and individuals — including an initial anonymous donation of $1.5 million. This has helped them to protecting 70 per cent of the islands but $3 million more is needed to secure the remainder. Last fall, NSNT acquired the flagship island – 215-hectare – Borgles Island. Please help out to Protect – Promote – Donate to www.100wildislands.ca  or www.nsnt.ca  or E-mail nature@nsnt.ca  or call 1-877-434-LAND ( 5263 )

LAKE CHARLOTTE BOAT LAUNCH
HRM hopes to put out a tender call later this summer for its installation. This long awaited project has been held up due to lengthy negotiations with the Federal Dept. of Fisheries & Oceans in obtaining the necessary environmental permit. We were asked to scale down the size of the boat launch slipway in order to minimize the impact onto the fish habitat that would be disturbed during the construction of the infrastructure. However; this would have drastically undersized the facility. In order to keep the design as planned, HRM will have to pay $26,000 for a wetland re-habitation restoration project as compensation.

NEED VOLUNTEER FIRE-FIGHTERS
Halifax Regional Fire and Emergency are currently recruiting volunteer firefighters for the various communities in our district area. For more information, please call: Heather McKay, HRM Volunteer Manager 490-5611.

WEEKLY GREEN CART COLLECTION
Over the summer months of July and August, residents from across all of HRM can place their Green Cart out for collection weekly, even if it’s not full. This additional collection program will be in effect between Wednesday, July 2nd to Friday, August 29th. Upon completion of this summer service, collection will return to the regular bi-weekly collection schedule. Residents should refer to their 2014 Organics Green Cart and Garbage Collection Schedule for regular collection information. Green Carts should be placed out before 7 AM to ensure collection as times may vary. For more information, please visit our website at www.halifax.ca/recycle  or call 3-1-1.

SWIMMING POOLS & FENCING LAWS
Residents with either an above-ground or in-ground swimming pool are required to obtain a permit. To obtain these permits, details of pool location, fencing and security must be identified as specified in HRM By-law S-700: www.halifax.ca/legislation/Bylaws/HRM/bls700.pdf  . This applies to all swimming pools with a diameter of 11 feet or more and a depth of 2 feet or more. And they should be completely enclosed with a 5 foot high fence. For more information and details, go to: www.halifax.ca/planning/documents/Pools.pdf  .