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Page THE HERALD OUTLOOK January 1885 Outlook Lifestyle Forest infestation Dangerous goods trains won t likely pass through Return of the caterpillars By DOUGLAS ARMOUR Queens Park Bureau Thomson Newt Service Like a scene from a horror movie people in parts of are expected this spring and sum mer to moan Provincial and federal mseqt specialists predict forest cater pillars will return in some areas this year in evergreater numbers as the omnipresent insects work their bothersome way through their threetofiveyear cycle of growth and decline Although not lifethreatening to the hardwood trees they thrive in forest caterpillars pose a threat to the comfort level of residents and cottagers forced to gingerly weave their way through cluttered i of the highly squishable manoeuvring will continue for about two months from April when the larvae hatch to late Mai and early June when forest cater pillars begin forming cocoons They emerge as moths in July and lay their eggs shortly afterward In 1988 approximately four million hectares of forest were in tested with forest caterpillars resulting in moderate to severe defoliation That area is expected to increase in 1969 to eight and nine million hectares says Gordon Howse head of the forest insect and disease survey unit of the Canadian Forestry Ser vice Most of that increased infesta tion Is expected to occur east of the Parry SoundBracebridge area and expand throughout Haliburton and the Kawarthas toward the Ot tawa area says Joe Churcher pro vincial entomologist with the Ministry of Natural Resources Part of that Parry SoundBracebridge infestation says Churcher will be a band of forest caterpillar infestation this year stretching from just north of Sault Ste Mane across the North Channel to Sudbury and North Bay and continuing down into Algon quin Park Its probably all going to amalgamate into one big huge area of defoliation says Chur cher He adds that by 1990 people can expect a reduction in defoliation these areas as caterpillars near the end of their cycle The length of the cycle depends on parasites diseases and weather conditions Entomologists also expect a buildup of in the Owen Sound area continuing in a narrow band through Collingwood to Bar- ric Defoliation in parts of nor theastern Ontario including the and Kirkland Lake areas declined in 1988 and having pretty well run its course is ex pected to decline further in says Forest caterpillar infestations in the Fort Frances Ignace and Kenora areas that are now ir their second or third year are ex- NONDENOMINATIONAL ALL PEOPLES CHURCH DEUVERANCE CENTRE Boulevard Bramalea comar Bible Study Worship Deliverance Sunday 1030 am 7 Wednesday m Provide Childrens Church Nursery Service EnoUahtoltalian translation Pastor George A to continue this year but taper off next year says Churcher However noting the difficulty m accurately predicting infestations Howes has a different view He says northwestern Ontario is still in the building phase with the Thunder Bay and Fort Frances areas holding the greatest potential for further buildup In eastern Ontano Trenton Belleville and Cornwall will begin to see some forest caterpillar in festations this summer or Continued infestations of another species the Eastern Tent Cater pillar identifiable by the tentlike cocoon they form on fruit trees can be expected this year No high populations of forest caterpillars have surfaced in southwestern Ontano and nothing in the Niagara Region say the en tomologists The Ministry of Natural Resources considers forest cater pillar infestations which take place once every to 12 years a natural occurrence and not destructive enough to warrant a spraying program Churcher says Nonetheless the ministry is con ducting a public information pro gram to help people deal with the insect Although some preventive measures can be taken there is a limit to what cottagers and residents can do to combat forest caterpillar infestations says Crun cher During winter months forest caterpillars are in an egg state clustered in black rings around tree twigs These twigs can be cut off and burned suggests Howse But once the eggs have hatched about the middle of April and small black caterpillars emerge Churcher says the only control is spraying them with approved chemical or biological insec ticides The most effective time to spray agree Churcher and is May- when the caterpillars begin their ravenous quest for food and are most vulnerable Residents and cottagers in in fested areas who dont act against the forest caterpillar will just have to get used to sharing their proper ty until the cycle works its way out Trains carrying dangerous goods will likely not be rerouted through Hills as citizens feared last year The Toronto Area Rail Transpor tation of Dangerous Goods Task Force which originally named a path through Hills as one possible route has said in its final report that risk is not a justifies on its own for the relocation of rail lines andor rerouting of dangerous goods Early last year the task force examined different rail routes in Southern Ontario as a means of re routing dangerous goods away from the highly populated Metropolitan Toronto area Any path through Halton would have in creased risk levels by to 30 per cent said Haltons planning com missioner Rash Mohammed Relocating or construction of new lines would cost the province over billion The report concluded the ex isting rail transportation system is generally safe that numerous measures including reducing speed through highly populated areas could be implemented to make significant improvements to rail safety and that any rerouting should only be considered if the en tire rail system in the Greater Toronto Area is rationalized had argued strenuously that no path through the Region be earmarked for transportation of dangerous goods by rail Halton now wants the province to establish a similar task force to study transportation of dangerous goods by truck a problem the Region sees as much more serious Unlike rail transportation which occurs largely in a controll ed environment truck movements face more conflicts in the form of weather conditions other road users and potential for accidents In addition these movements can occur directly in residential areas and are in many cases more fre quent said Mr Mohammed Burlington Coun Robert Forbes supports the final recommenda of the task force even though its a not inmybackyard syndrome Its inappropriate for us to be a travelling dumping ground for hazardous waste he said Burlington Coun Barry Quinn agreed with the conclusion that trucks carrying dangerous goods pose a more significant Trucks carrying dangerous goods can travel into residential areas freely right now he said And trucks are continuing to bypass weigh stations designed to govern their loads he said Canada Post Corporation Delivering on our promise in rural Canada Accessibility and convenience In the spring of 1988 Canada Post Corporation made an important commitment to people living in rural areas of Canada a promise to make postal products and services more accessible to these important communities By working with businesses in communities more and more postal outlets are now operated by local merchants resulting in more accessible and more convenient postal services than ever before The faefs are in the promise is paying off Accessibility to our products and services has been dramatically improved In the past hours of service averaged 29 hours per week Our new commitment has improved the average hours of service to 65 hours per week An increase of 126 Our efforts are working Independent surveys continue to show that an overwhelming majority of rural Canadians surveyed believe that the post office is moving in the right direction towards better service Just as we promised Canada Post is in rural Canada to stay Thats a promise CANADA POST CORPORATION Our commitment better service for you