Cowichan Carbon Busters coverage gets national recognition

Following article published March 27, 2009 in News Leader Pictorial.

Two national golds for News Leader Pictorial

Two articles published in the News Leader Pictorial last year were judged the best of their kind in Canada.

Peter Rusland and Aaron Bichard received gold in Best Environmental Writing, Circulation 10,000 and Over in the annual Canadian Community Newspaper Association Better Newspaper Awards.

Rusland penned a series of stories covering the formation of the Cowichan Carbon Busters and their efforts in reducing their personal carbon footprint and that of their community.

Bichard — a former News Leader Pictorial reporter turned Carbon Buster — capped the series off with an opinion piece talking about the effort first-hand.

Meanwhile, John McKinley was awarded gold in the category Local Editorial, Circulation 12,500 and Over for a piece he wrote about the battle surrounding Buckley the mini-horse.

McKinley took silver in the same category the previous year.

The News Leader Pictorial also received a Blue Ribbon — signifying overall general excellence — from the awards program, which honours the best work of the CCNA’s more than 600 member newspapers from across the country.

The paper is also a five-time nominee in the separately judged B.C./Yukon Community Newspaper Association Ma Murray Awards, which will be presented next weekend in Vancouver.

** Note: Peter Rusland was also named a top-three finalist in the B.C./ Yukon Community Newspaper Association Ma Murray awards for his coverage of Cowichan Carbon Busters. **