More than two years after work was initially halted due to archaeological findings at the Morton Gravel Pit, located some 11 kilometres south of the Village of Delia in Starland County, a final palaeontological report was received during the regular Wednesday, November 30 council meeting.
A total of five sites over the 40 acre parcel were determined to have heavy concentrations of artifacts following a Historical Resources Impact Assessment carried out by Stantec Consulting in May 2020.
“...the fossils identified during the field visit included a fragmentary mammal tooth preserved in probable Miocene gravels and representing a bovid; the disarticulated skeleton and other remains, including several burrows, of interpreted fossil prairie dogs dating to the Wisconsin interstadial; and a partial fossil insect, probably a fungus beetle, found in possible Holocene organic soils,” the report states.
Along with these fossils, there were also several archaeological finds made by chance while examining the youngest beds exposed in the Morton Pit.
These archaeological finds were reported separately from the palaeontological finds outlined in the report.
Due to the presence of mammalian fossil remains, it was recommended further palaeontological assessments be carried out to examine exposed gravel once the mining phase of the operation is opened up.
Staff are being asked to be aware of the possibility of bones and or teeth being found during operations, and to report any findings.

The Drumheller RCMP is stepping up its impaired driving enforcement leading up to the holiday, to make sure celebrations don’t end in tragedy.
The holiday season is a time for getting together with family and friends to celebrate the year. Staff Sergeant Rob Harms says the RCMP will be doing impaired driving traffic enforcement through December.
“We’re in the month of December right now, which is typically the holiday season and people like to celebrate, and you see Christmas parties,” said Harms. “I am very driven by public safety and dealing with, and holding offenders accountable for their actions, and impaired driving is no different than that. For the month of December, we have a check stop program and a schedule we have put in place as a detachment.”
Since the beginning of December, Harms says the RCMP has already held three check-stops this month and has screened 170 drivers. As a result of these check stops, the police have suspended two drivers, they have seized three vehicles and issued three traffic tickets.
“The results are good in one way, it shows our check stop program is effective, and we are still able to catch people. It is disappointing in another way because we still have people out there who are still driving under the influence,” he said. “Nonetheless, it is our job to find people like that and hold them accountable. And the check-stop program will continue into December and beyond.”
He explains that if you are pulled over, there is a good chance you will be screened. In 2018, Canada made mandatory alcohol screening the law. This means that an officer is authorized to make a roadside demand. He also noted that RCMP officers are trained to be able to screen for drug impairment.
Impaired driving is always preventable. Plan ahead to have a safe ride home. Call a taxi or rideshare service, use a designated driver, or stay the night.
Harms also says they are teaming up with Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD Canada) and are partnering on the Brown Bag Campaign.
“The Brown Bag Campaign is actually where we work with our schools, which is also a key partner in this. We will order these paper bags, these are liquor bags, from MADD, and we give them to the schools, and they get students to write anti-impaired driving messages on the bags, and we take them to the liquor stores and have them give them out with liquor bottles through the holiday season, with that key messaging,” Harms.