OSOYOOS TIMES-July 15, 2010

By Laurena Weninger – Osoyoos Times

The best solution to issues surrounding seasonal workers in Osoyoos would be to develop a pickers’ camp like Oliver’s Loose Bay.
That was the consensus from a meeting held in Osoyoos on July 15 attended by 25 representatives from B.C.’s forests and range and environment ministries, the Conservation Officer Service, local RCMP, bylaw enforcement, the B.C. Fruit Growers Association (BCFGA), the Regional District Okanagan-Similkameen (RDOS) and the towns of Oliver and Osoyoos.
The meeting was held only weeks after the Forests and Range Ministry evicted approximately 150 people from “French Hill” in the Strawberry Creek area.
“It was actually a really good meeting,” said Rory Smith, a forest officer from the ministry who was at the meeting. “I think everybody got a better understanding of how big the issues actually are.”
For example, Smith said a report was given about fire activity in the French Hill area that has for the past several years been used by the workers.
The report states that a total of 14 fires have broken out in the area in the last 10 years. Last year, $85,000 was spent on fire suppression in that area alone.
According to a media release from the Town of Osoyoos, three key issues were focused on at the July 15 meeting – accommodation, transportation and communication.
The development of a camp for seasonal workers is top of the list.
“Work began on the development of the criteria to support a camp taking into account public safety, health, environmental protection and the health and wellness of the workers themselves,” states the release.
The camp would be like Oliver’s Loose Bay, which is located off of Secrest Road north of Oliver in the rural area.
Mark Pendergraft, director of RDOS Area A, agreed to take the lead with this project and look at what options might be available and bring his findings back to a future meeting on the seasonal workers issue.
“It is important that consistent information be available for those wishing to come to this area to pick fruit,” states the media release.
That would include information on harvest times, employment and accommodation.
The use of “social networking” sites for the distribution of information will be considered and the BCFGA has agreed to include a page on its website to provide information that local and out-of-province workers considering employment in the area can use before coming to Osoyoos.
Written pamphlets containing such information in English and French will also be made available.
The focus of the meeting was to look at solutions for the accommodation of the workers, states the release, but it was also recognized that a small faction of the seasonal visitors in the community are not workers and “have created issues within the Town of Osoyoos and (outlying) jurisdictions.”
Local police and bylaw officers have reportedly had their hands full dealing with many of the workers evicted from the Strawberry Creek area and several residents have voiced concerns about workers gathering on local beaches and in community parks.
[email protected]