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Local B.C. Liberals will soon
decide who gets the party's
nomination in Skeena\NEWS A10O

A cancer resource centre is open
to help people avoid and live with
the disease\COMMUNITY B1

Terrace Bluebacks travel to
Vancouver for the BC Senior
Championships\SPORTS B6

WEDNESDAY
March 1, 2000

Health critics hit with

By ALEX HAMILTON
A LOCAL health advocacy group says
the Terrace and Area Health Council
has threatened to sue them for libel if
they don’t apologize and retract criti-
cisms by today.

Ida Mohler, spokeswoman for the
Terrace Health Watch Group — made
up of about 50 local residents con-
cerned about the state of health care
in Terrace — received a four-page let-
ter from Vancouver jaw firm Lawson
Lundell Lawson and McIntosh Feb. 23
demanding she and fellow spokesman

Don Ritchey apologize by March 1 for
unfairly criticizing the health council’s
practices and defaming its reputation.

The lawyer’s letter accuses Mohler
of writing false statements and degrad-
ing the reputation of the health council
and its employees.

But Mohler refuses to apologize or
retract anything she’s said or writien
about the health council’s practices.

“I’ve not lied,” Mohler said. “I
can't even consider an apology be-
cause I believe strongiy that we have
a critical health problem at Mills

[Memorial Hospital.]”

What is in dispute is a letter Mohl-
er wrote December 14 to health min-
ister Penny Priddy staling that a
number of people have died as a resull
of the hospital’s bed shortage and
nursing shorlage.

In her letter Mohler also states the
hospital has misallocated funds, in-
cluding spending $10,000 on a public
relations employee and $180,000 relo-
cating administrative offices to Sleep-
ing Beauty Lodge.

Lawyer Tom Woods’ letter states:

“Your statements are textbook exam-
ples of what constitutes an actionable
libel.”

Bul Mohler insists she isn’t per-
sonally attacking anyone nor accusing
anyone of killing a patient.

“l have implied that patients are
being caught in the middle of nursing
Shortages and a lack of beds and some
patients have died as a result,” she
said.

And as for her criticizing the health
council’s spending priorities, Mohler
explained she simply wants health

$1.00 PLUS 7¢ GST.
{51.40 plus 8¢ GST outside of tha
Terrace aren} 7

VOL. 12 NO. 47

legai threat

care dollats to be spent on health care,
not new offices for administrators.

“They're saying there is enough
money in the budget for heaith care in
the northwest,” Mohler said. “I’m say-
ing if we have adequate funds, then
where’s the health care? We want a
re-audit so someone will look into
this.”

And as for the apology the health
council demands as of March 1, Mohl-
er says it’s not coming.

“I know the facts I’ve slated are

Continued Page A2

Islanders
to look at
merging

BRAUN’s Island is about
to take a serious look at
joining the City of Ter-
race,

A committee of island
residents has indicated
they want to have a look
at the option of the city
extending its boundary to
take in the island, said Ki-
timat Stikine regional dis-
trict administrator Bob
Marcellin,

“It was something the 7

commiltee advised us they
would like to pursue,” he

said. “The (regional dis- .

trict) board and the city
are both prepared to do
that.”

The idea came up last
fall when mayor Jack Tal-
Stra suggested a vote of is-
landers to join the city
could trigger release of
provincial restructuring
grants that could be used
to extend city water ta the
island.

Testing of island wells
after last summer’s flood-
ing revealed many are
contaminated.

The move could signal
a thaw in the often chilly
relationship between the
city and islanders, who
have tried to get the city
to admit island water prob-
lems are cunnected to
spills of city sewage.
They've aiso threatened to
sue the city.

“This is a good, posi-
live step,” Marcellin said
of the residents move to
look at joining the city,

He said the process,
which should get underway
soon, starts with no as-
sumptions about what is-
landers might be offered.

“Everything is wide
open,” he- said. “They
want to know what are the
advantages of doing this
and what are the cost im-
plications to the parties.”

The regional district has
also applied for -a
water/sewer infrastructure
grant from the ministry of
municipal affairs ta ga to-
wards a water system.

Marcellin said they’re
seeking the maximum
grant, which would see the
province pay 50 per cent
of the bill.

That's something that
could be pursued even if
residents decide not to join
the city.

Marcellin said the min-
istry no longer offers larger
grants for water systems.

For a brief period
several years ago, he said,
Victoria approved some
sewer grants covering. 75

per cent of costs, including

the Queensway-Churchill
Drive sewer system.

USE THIS WISELY: Idelta Botelho, customer rela- .
tions manager at the Royal Bank, holds up a tem-
porary debit card, which would be issued to new ”
clients or customers who report their cards stolen.

These days, Botelho says debit cards are issued to
flients as young as seven, because carrying a card
with a password is safer than carrying cash. That is,
if nobody shares or sells their bank infarmation,

Scam targets teens
and their bank cards

By CHRISTIANA WIENS
THERE’S A NEW type of debit card
scam being spread around Terrace
and it’s something you, and your
children, should know about.

The scam has been operating here
since at least November last year
and is alleged to focus on teenagers,
who sell their bank card and pass-
word to other teens to earn a quick
$100.

The buyers of the bank card tell
teens lo report the card stolen and
then bankrupt the account and enter
phony deposits, or bank empty bank
envelopes in hopes of being able to
withdraw that money as cash from
the. account.

Bob Debiri, security manager at a
Copperside store where a few of the
cards were used last November or
December launched his own inves-
ligation into the incidents.

“They're in their late teens or

early 20s,” Debiri said. “They'll take
whatever they can.”

He believes the culprits are in
high school and other, sometimes
younger students fall for the scam
because they’re told they won't be
liable for any withdrawn cash.

“They're in their late
teens or early 20s. They'll
take whatever they can.”

But because a thief uses the card
pin number, Debiri says that’s proof
the card and number were sold, not
stolen.

And since the card seller and
buyer are willing participants, both
could be charged with fraud under
the criminal code, making il difficult
for victims to step forward.

Terrace RCMP Corporal Rod
Holland said the detachment has not
received any complaints from youth
who say they were beaten up or co-
erced inlo giving up their bank infor-
mation.

The RCMP have not seen any
charges laid in the connection to the

’ incidents.

‘ The Terrace detachment is send-
ing letters to all local banks to make
sure managers are aware of the prob-
lem.

Royal Bank branch manager Da- :

vid Wilson said he only knows of
one instance at his branch where a
teen sold his card to another youth.

Bank of Montreal staff were also ©

aware of the problem, but could not
document the number of cases the
bank is currently dealing with.

In both cases the account holders
were told the bank would not reim-
burse them for the lost money.

Withdrawal limits can help prevent losses

BANK CARDS are being
distributed to children as
young as seven.

The cards are consid-
ered safer than cash be-
cause they require a pin
number to use,

Depending on the
child's age and maturity
level, cards are issued
with different daily with-
drawal limits and sestric-
tions. .
* Al-the Royal Bank, for
example, children under
10 have a daily limit of

$20. Ten to 15-year-olds
qualify for a $100 limit
and older teens generally
qualify for a $500 limit.

Idelta Botelho, at the
Royal Bank, says all youth
are told not to share their
card or pin number with
anyone,

Some accounts will
also freeze account use af-
ter a bank machine deposit
is made for.24 hours, giv-
ing accotint holders: and
banks an added safeguard
on phony deposits.

Sull Interac representa-
tive Sara Feldman says
parents should talk’ to their
children about debit cards.

She offered the follow-
ing tips: ;

w Pin numbers shouid be
memorized, not written
down, Never share it with
anyone. If- the bank finds
you've shared the number
and something goes wrong,
the account holder: will be
held liable for the missing
money.

w Hide the number fram

others when using the card.

w Read the cardholder
agreement. Some agree-
ments won’t reimburse
missing money if you've
been tag obvious with the
pin number. ;

Don’t use birth dates,
known nicknames ar any

other number that can be

easily picked up from in-
formation in your wallet.

m Check bank - state-
ments carefully. to catch
discrepancies as-they. hap-
pen. me

City okays
compost
collection

Free bags, curbside pickup

By JEFF NAGEL
THE CITY will soon take
your yard waste away for
composting, but it won’t
give back the end product
for use in local gardens.

The move to a serious
curbside composting pro-
gram could take effect as
carly as May Ist.

The biggest surprise so
far as city officials work
out the logistics has been
their discovery that com-

post is regulated by the.

government,

If the stuff is going to
be sold, says city director
of engineering Stew Chris-
tensen, it has to meet
standards set out in the
Canada Fertilizer Act and
B.C.’s Waste Management
Act.

“If we're going to sell it
we have to meet all these
regulations,” Christensen
said.

Instead, the city has de-

cided not to let locals buy -

or even take the compost,
and to use it instead as top
fill to cover the top of the
Terrace fandfiil,.

“T don’t think we could
even give it away,” Chris-
tensen added. “The level
of quality will not be as
high because we’re not go-
ing to be turning it or mon-
itoring the lermperature
carefully. We're jusl going
to be putting it in a pile
basically.”

The move to curbside
compostable pickup has
come swiftly since cily
council made composting

A 4
Stew Christensen
-a priority in a Jan. 24 mo-
tion led by councillor Da-
vid Hull.

It’s council's first sig-
nificant step into the reatm
of recycling after years of
Tefusing to spend money
on regional recycling pro-.
prams.

The city plans to pro-
vide free biodegradable
bags for residents to fill,
with grass clippings,
leaves and other yard
wasle, and then leave at
the curb for pickup on
Mondays.

Christensen is testing
different bags’ resistance
to rain to determine
whether to use. paper bags
that worked weil in Prince
George or starch bags that
are very similar to plastic,
Also unresolved is how
residents will get the bags.

What is certain is it
will cost locals more mon-
ey.

Continued Pg. A2

Fish levels probed

MORE THAN half of the Skeena River salmon stocks are
either unhealthy or threatened with extinction, says an inde-

pendent fish biologist.

Mike Morrell, a consultant for the Northwest Institute in
Smithers, has analyzed 50 years of federal fisheries records
and will be coming to Terrace and Kitsumkalum March 7 to
present his preliminary results.

So far, coho, chum, and chinook don’t look good.

Based on the government's records of spawning escape-
ment, the number of fish that return from the ocean to
spawn, very few stocks are healthy.

But, much of the data needed to complete the study just

isn’t there, said institute director Pat Moss,
The government didn’t keep accurate records before,1950
and many records since 1980 have been affected

constraints, she said.

The group is looking for local fishers, logg

’
ia

ers and

ranchers. who have seen salmon spawn or migrate on the

river to complete their study,

"We need to get a common understanding of the state of

the resource,” Moss said.

She bills the study, paid for by Fisheries Renewal B.C.,
as an independent study, free of bias,

Local meetings will be held: at Northwest Community
College March 7 at'7:30 p.m, and Kitsumkatum at 2:00,