Wilderness tour operators along the B.C. coast are hoping to stay afloat with a government sponsored program to clean up ocean pollution

New in this update:Government sponsored program to clean up ocean pollutionWilderness tour operators along the BC coast are hoping to stay afloat with a government sponsored program to clean up ocean pollution. The Clean Coast, Clean Waters Initiative will employ nine ships with 100 crew, along with 75 first nations mariners to remove garbage from waters along the central coast. The co-owner of Maple Leaf Adventures says COVID-19 has been a wrecking ball for the wilderness tour industry. Maureen Gordon says operators are grateful the province has agreed to spend three and a half million dollars to fund their initiative."It does put our crew to work this year and it does give each company a little bit of money to cover some but not all of the expenses and the losses we've incurred, But it's really important to give those people that work so that they can stay in the industry and stay with us and psychologically, its important for everyone involved to know we can get out there and make a difference."—Co-owner of Maple Leaf Adventures, Maureen Gordon.Gordon says they expected to pick up close to 100 tonnes of debris like fishing gear, styrofoam and plastic along 1000 kilometres of remote coast line from the tip of northern Vancouver Island to the Douglas Channel. The first of two 21 day excursions has been underway for a week, and it's already exceeded estimates. Gordon says so far, more than 30 million tonnes of debris has been collected.Ladysmith hit and run driver identifiedPolice say they have identified the suspect involved in a fatal hit and run near Ladysmith but they still haven't found him. The Vancouver Island Daily is reporting the RCMP says since the man has not been charged, he cannot be identified yet. A 35 year old woman from Ladysmith was killed early Saturday morning, when the SUV she was driving was hit by a Ford pickup truck that crossed over the centre median and entered her northbound lane. Police say the man escaped the scene and stole a second vehicle. The second vehicle was found near the crash site a few hours later.