BEACHES CLEANER NOW Lt. Col. Patrick A. Nootton 
     
    
   
   
    
     The Environment Week Clean-up, initiated by the P.E.I. Natural History 
     
     Society, the Island Nature Trust, and the P.E.I. Shell Fish Association proved 
     
     a great success. Charlottetown Harbour beach areas, previously despoiled with 
     
     all kinds of garbage, were thoroughly cleaned from the Southport side of the 
     
     Hillsborough Bridge to Battery Point, and then from Rocky Point to the West 
     
     River and North River Causeways. It ended with the tidying up of the Victoria 
     
     Park area. The Mayor of Charlottetown, Mr. John Ready, undertook the 
     
     arrangements for the clean up of the waterfront within the city limits. 
     
    

    
     Most of the work was achieved by the enthusiastic and active support of 
     
     about two hundred and fifty young children from four of the Charlottetown 
     
     Schools - West Kent, Elliot River, Parkdale, and Glen Stewart. Supervisory help 
     
     was given by senior students from Colonel Gray and Charlottetown Rural Senior 
     
     High Schools. 
     
    

    
     The organization and coordination of this enterprising project was 
     
     undertaken most,efficiently by Keith Kennedy of York whilst the Militia 
     
     generously donated personnel to operate radio communications and some transport 
     
     which was essential to the success of the operation. The Red Cross provided 
     
     first aid kits and their helpful cooperation was much appreciated. 
     
    

    
     The funding for the hiring of the school buses and the other expenditures 
     
     was largely provided by the contributions from a number of local businesses, 
     
     including McDonald's, Burger King, and Tim Horton's. McDonald's also provided 
     
     luncheon vouchers for about 250 students. The young people enjoyed this venture 
     
     and it is to be hoped that they will encourage their elders and those around 
     
     them to follow their example to clean up litter from the beaches and to stop 
     
     the use of the sea as a garbage dump. 
     
    
   
   
    
     LYME DISEASE 
     
    
   
   
    
     The Canada Diseases Weekly Report dated December 23, 1989 confirmed the 
     
     presence of the northern deer tick (Ixodes dammini) on Prince Edward Island. In 
     
     June of 1989, the first tick was removed from a Charlottetown area cat which 
     
     had not been away from the immediate vicinity of its home. The second was 
     
     removed from a 4 month old kitten from the Kensington area that had been in 
     
     contact with a dog from Nova Scotia in late October. The last was removed from 
     
     a dog in the Charlottetown area during the first week of November, 1989. While 
     
     this dog had not travelled, its owner had recently returned from Connecticut. 
     
     Local veterinarians and alert staff at the Atlantic Veterinary College (Dr. 
     
     R.J. Cawthorn, Dr. B.S. Horney, and R. Maloney) can be credited with the 
     
     identification of these ticks. The article suggested that the ticks may have 
     
     arrived on the Island on migratory birds. It is unknown whether the ticks can 
     
     complete their life cycle and establish themselves here on the Island in the 
     
     absence of wild white-tailed deer. 
     
    

    
     The Canadian Medical Association Journal reported one other recent 
     
     occurrence of this tick on the Island ("Lyme Disease in Eastern Canada", 1988). 
     
    

    
     The danger of contracting Lyme Disease on Prince Edward Island at present 
     
     seems remote but our members range far and wide in their travels and some other 
     
     areas certainly do have Lyme Disease carrying ticks. 
     
    

    
     The following article provides useful information on the symptoms which, 
     
     if you become aware of them after travelling in a danger area, you should 
     
     report them to your doctor. The information below has been excerpted from the 
     
     Blomidon Naturalists Society Newsletter, Vol. 17 # 1, March 1990 article "Lyme 
     
     Disease" by Dr. Colin Bell of Acadia University. 
     
    
   
   
    
       
     
    
   
   
    
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