Pn i er ee ee

THE HERALD, Monday, July 11, 1977, PAGE 3

iced OTHER STUDIES = =————~S
‘report still inconclusive —

disease within this context
in a study -in North.
America,” he said. This ~ Dirty working conditions,
study, undertaken between . worker complaints, and the
1946 and 1949 indicated that. band of dead trees in the
76 percent of the workers on smelter. plume path
the potlines in-a New York . prompted the union to
ter had boney fluorosis tiate the study, he said.
“in one de “le “The biggest thing
the Herald was told. everyone noticed was the
“The high- level of. seemingly large number of
abnormalities of the hones back poe oblems. ” said
and. musculoskeletor .B
indicates the: possibility of it
existin, here," = said
Brisebois, but again,. like.
Carnow, he tem his |
statements with the proviso
that no job function-to-
illness correlation had been

omnes
his is Just speculation

compara ble data
' necessitates . forming
"comparisons with | other |
tions, determining |
he fr frequency rates 90:
eases and ‘then -
comparing these rates for
workers: with:
‘ statistics for the population
as a whole.
Evidence of - higher:
frequencies: of
occupationally-related
diseases in Kitimat will only’
be confirmed after “ris
evaluations’ are developed
for each worker, based .on-
v4 avironmental: factors gnd
- and - work experience, hes
ental medicine at a telephone interview.
the “University of Tlinois, — “We have to. establish a
aE says this underabundance of level of risk based on these

part and not Dr.

fhe. setting up a method
Camow' fe Brisebois said.

at gives everybody a risk
score We mu the scores
and the illnessea .-into
-eomputers and can then
closer to correlating any
relationships

“tf we lind that incidences
‘OF “bone disease, - for
example, are spread, around.
the docks and at“Kemano,
‘ther our cage would not be
_ very strong,’ But if the guys
‘who have the fractures are
the guys who work with the.
fluor e, then we'll have a
. 0 ”

Carnow stressed that any
findings to date were
preliminary, but ested

at the large a iber of

people with bone problems

was no problem
discovered,” at least we
would be confident of the
result,

“Tf there was a problem,
we would have solid factual
evidence,” . .

lf study results indicate
an occipational health
hazard, “our tation
that re company will
immedia tely take steps to
eliminate those exposures
and take measures to
; te those diseases,”

Brisebois conceded that

degree of probability.

“There's no problem in .
establishing normal rates of
lung ‘disease,’ for example,
because lung function teste
have been done for years
and years. The difficulty is

bed disease rates
caused y particular
events.

The study is not designed
to relate particular disease
rates to pollutants but to job
functions. Any individual .
pollutant may be present to
@ level below an accepted
there would be no absolutes threshold, but the

from report, bombardment of a. number
“All that can be done is to of pollutants, prevalent in
establish casual certain occupations, could
relatlonships with a high result in disease.

_ revealed a h ier rate of
abnormality * in the
ey population.

otheses

environmentall y-spurred
health problems will only be
confirmed when. it is
determined that Individuals.
working with specific
materials suffer from.
certain diseases.

The illness that CASAW
officials believe related to.
smelter conditions is honey
fluorosis, says Jim.
Brisebois, Kitimat local .
secretary and field co-
ordinator for the health
study.

“Only one researcher has
ever demonstrated this

Tentative ‘results of. thie
of the health of Alcan
workers,in Kitimat - ce
; Po not indicate ‘confirmation
; “Of -~-suspécted ©. trends
establish h similar
because

of

‘ rés@arch. simp]
_ there has ‘Just not been an

* othe in-de

Rol investigations at al

”: “ameltes, says Dr. Betram
: Carnow, study co-ordinator.
S 55. srote old Dr.

’ ow, :.professor ard.

“director are the school

ite easy for lay people to
attribute causes, to look at
everyone ‘complaining of
back aches and say it's the
fluoride. But we realized
that we required credible
scientific investigation to
‘see if this were true.”

Brisebois said that if there

‘ Occupational

Company prepared to co-operate

Alcan is pr red to “co-operate, encourage, and the design accepted before the study was started.”

su ‘a aby Eira that will look at occupational Hemingway noted that when Alcan determined that
health at the omelies, spokesman Brian Hemingway chances for lung cancer were greater for those people.
said id Sunda eng , working with coal tar pitch volatiles, the company

findings of. a union- began ta taking remedial measures to lessen

commissioned stay o onal health hazards at on, The company learned of this problem
the Kitimat 9 , Hemingway said the company slowing a ‘study it had commissioned from McGill
had. reserved jut ement. tn
“After rea union bulletin, my understanding Alcan Y cently invited union representatives: to
is that the r are reliminary’ and have not been. participa cipate on an occupational health committee with
compared to what ht be expected in a similar mandate of protecting the health of the smelter

workforce. The committee, according to union
representative Jim Brisebois, is an “excellent” one, -
free to make any recommendations. :
Company representatives are personnel manager —
Phil on, medical officer Eric Gunn, and
environmental control officer Bill Wallace. - -
Union reps are Brisebois, Wiho Papenbrock, the
_ local’s president, and Bruce ‘McRae, chairman of the
- union's job evaluation committee,

group of people,” he said in a statement.

“T ‘must stress, Rough, that the company cannot
comment knowledgeable because we haven't been
given the oppor to become involved in the study

and therefore, we aren’t aware of the data gathered or
how. it has been interpre

Hemingway said the " company is lacking,
information on the protocal followed in conducting the

, », to" the
, : pocial :

ue Meath study co-rdinater Jim Brisebois stands in front of...

moa the pleces of are with which the study is being

Tankers.

(Continued from page L)

there was alread a blowout
an the Alaska Pipe
that was. just b Siare
. tot Mod out before any oil
; even came through it.”
- ° 3 Dechnology ° for: cleaning
ol pis of coastal reaches
saw thr the oll
own on 0
quetoning “i added
joning ow eanup
oon8 te could thea be euler
than that real
eons coaata in the: ou

7 moti Re, ity 5
the’ district. Shad *cunceded

that. Kitimat was no.

‘environme ntgl.. wonderland,
. Put was threa to

the: vrorimunity
“environmental

cited “in’ the’ bri

‘gmall ‘businessmen of. this
“community,” without taking

Into; account, the: working or

peer tial Bruce

Aacohois's ocheed at
. To gay ‘that {the stand iis
aupported by,
is.a ie, —
views,

aa ng into tw

» those favoring. the

propesal s rtin
ie. need for in natrla
, development,

. eogamuni
yestia: its
id a cama

tot

conducted. The machine tests diftusion of gases in the problem,

Ings.

| Bone

fe

at moss and.

iof were nO:

lose relevent and, in fact, |
-" “@id: not even a any: |
in ser to the Alean sinelier:

of pond ;

- ae crete 1

aa Ald. Bis. spoke. 7

th a voice ‘tinged. with
emotion as’ she tedly
rejected. the majority
contention

She said the district had
no risk analysis to sup upport
its view that problems here
are less than at the Strait of
Juan de Fuca. Reliable
environmental information
is almost non-existent, ‘she
said, while ocean aphic

and. meteorological -tests |

have only just been started.

Elis - Yaoted that the
federal com tion fund
was tied at$35 on and to

tin to base ite enlargement was

ition “strictly
on assumptions.”’

“We chastize the federal
government for their lack of
| regulation of |. the
environment. and then .
and put our faith in th

said that the report

Was laden with

.“asauraptions without facts
turn: to. substantiate most of
into an -

them.”

Banyay, Patzelt, .

heard fron. experts an
estioned m, ‘ny sources on

e subject a. d should now |
fence and

come off th.
ress an opi. ion.

ut LeBlan., in ‘also
” rejecting the ma, ority view

“gaid. lithe discu ‘sion had -
--been held on the ‘fects of
‘the oil terminal, ta’ ik farm,

the ‘

produced quite a stig
assessment of the .
ting out “the rrlapgnitude

no 8 tential damage to.
of .

“Environmental . riska. :

waitin and the quali
life in our environment.

should not be

underestimated or taken
. Ightly,’” said Le Blane in.

quoting Dr. Ellis, “Kitimat
fas: only limited
environmental
and their (despoiling) could

‘ seriously affect the: quality

of life.in the community.”

. Le Blanc said council was

;. (CP)—Bill -
- incumbent president of the

tions,”’ she i hk :

_- Wilson said 1

and
, . Burnett sa°¢ council had

He -eaid “that provid 7

petition control regulations °.

He a that reports from .
consultant Derek Ellis

$1,000 fine.
resources. .

for

acti oa “lipres onsibly...in
tog ston of the

cliizeris of Kitimat who have

elected us to represent

them.”

council’s
read _ilike

He = ’ said
document

“eollected items from the

Sentinel's editorial policy.”
Le Blanc listed a series of
environmental resources

. that would de threatened by

construction of the terminal

and pipeline but Ald. Fran’. 1

~ Buschert

noted that
consultant Dr. Ellis, while.
considering these resources ;
as potentially undermined,
suggested that ‘possible -

problems were
unresolveable.
Mayor Thom - will .

personally present. the
paper when: drew *:
hompson’s. inquiry .
commences its formal
hearings in Vancouver, way

Wilson
stresses dignity

‘PRINCE GEORGE, B.C,
Wilson,

United. Native Nations
(UNN), said Sunday in an
emotional speech to 3

people that jtidian people

to live in ity.

ans must
pags their rich heritage on to

. their children. He made the
d statement prior. to voting on

‘the .. . herent

One of the ae Nintes ‘
fagainst Wilson was.
‘Fred -. House, .

former
president of the B.C. As-

sociation of Non-Status
Indl

lans,

. society in .
we’ ve been told too long that

Issues discussed: at the
convention include. land

. claims, educational and job .

portunities, an ‘the need

rr lestro the welfare image

of B.C. Indians..

Wilson said Saturday that °
Indians should try and saye
what was once the most
“powerful, sophisticated -
‘the world .

we're inferior and second
class citizens.”

“Tt is time for Indians 10.
get off their asses and to.
stand up for themselves,”
he said, Powe have to learn
there are no‘such things as
free lunches.”

Two convicted

_in-drug case

Norman ‘An Godfrey
2, of Kitimat was found
gullty in in Kitimat Provincial

ourt,- last’ week .
session

the purposes
trafficking and was
sentenced to one day and a

or: of

‘Barry Clay ton Ross was

found guilty of two counts of

session of marijuanna
the | Purposes of

of . manjuanna

Kitimat

trafficking, He’ was
sentenced to one day and a
$1,000 on the first count and
one e ay concurrent and a

ine on the second
bed

‘The charges were laid in
following
undercover operation that
‘lasted several months .

that community. Six other

men were charged in
with drug

connection

‘ rrafficking.

not

ta
an

‘study. “It's unfair to ask for acomment before we've
Been the results and we've looked at tha procedures,

Hemingway sald he h the study’s findings
would come. thin the ores es io ll

(Continued from page 1.)

ex ressed as mortality
and these are livin
individuals, it sti
represents a fairly large
umber of individuals wit
Base.
~The. tact that five of
* these Were skin‘ cancers
‘makes it a less serious

- cancers in this tion
- does represent what would,
_ appear’ ‘to be an abnormally

but “five skin: ;

large number of individuals
with cancer,”

- Dr. Carnow, director of
the school of public health
‘and occupational medicine
. at the Uniy

Canadian Association of
Coles Ss PE
carry,.0u
‘$200, 000 investigation.
Under his co-ordination
lung function tests, blood
samples, and x-rays of the
and lower spine were
‘conducted on 1,243 workers.
Those tested also completed

‘information —
pollutants to

two I questionnaires
and lean submitted
complete work histories on
each employee.
Researchers
consultant Dr.
Conibear, an
biostatistician Dr. Paul
Levy also received

Carnow,
Shirle

‘ehémicals-:

given ee © and

hygiene

aes from the Workers
Cam nsation Board.

SAW recording

eorehacy Jim Brisebois was

_ Skins Lake spillway.
‘is ahead of schedule

Alcan’s. Manager at B. Cc.
Power. Operations, Lorne
“Duncan ', has announced
: that the Skins Lake Spillway
‘project, to replace a

‘ structure some forty miles -

south of Burns Lake; where
- excess: water is discharged

, is well ahead of

Sc le.
ae work will be
vo pleted in _ early

November this year “at a

eost of re 3.40

Anillion do.

“Following an-
closure of the spillway to
facilitate the construction of

the ne soundations, water

ain on

ae une at Bite 10,000
ic feet per second.

aie rate was adjusted to
‘an okimately 7,500. cubic
feet per second on 22 June

__ deteriorated

from ~ Alcan’s: Nechako , Where it was no longer

t-week ©

contribution to the total flow
‘may vary.”

“The 25 year old d splay
is being replaced
Duncan said “because Mts
concrete structure had
to. the point
continue

‘practical to
repairs.

“Initlally we were ooking
at a two-year construc

“program, said Mr

“The first phase.of

the project, involving

construction of concrete

foundations and related
S progressed

"well that the's second phase,

mainly mechanical work,

and-is expected to be —-

maintained, or slightly
lowered,’ until the end of
August, ms said Mr, + Duncan.

& We: estimate that the
“present spill rate, combined
-withwater from the Nautley
River system, will result in
‘a Nechako River level of:
about. 8 to 10 feet ‘at
Vanderhoof, It should,

“howéver, be pointed out that:

the Nautley iver system is
not. controlled,

so its

- BIG JOHNS

- DELICATESSEN
GROCHRIZE
10 AM-10 PM
? DAYS A WEEK
72 Bitterns\."-
“Kitimat |}

Thursday, July 14

‘Thursday, July 21

Drylanders

Which sup

_ Ballet Adagio
A Star is Lost

Haida Carving

Thursday, August 4

can now be done this year

instead of next year.”

“The new
situated immedla'
the old one, will

Epillway,
bel
ect the

elevation of the Nechako

Reservoir.”

The Nechako Reservoir,
es water for
Alcan’s hydro-electric
enerating

emano, drains almost

- 6,400 square miles and

stretches from West Tahisa
Lake, 10 miles east of
Kemano, to Knewstubb
Lake some 150 miles to the
east, .

Northwest
Summer School of the Arts

FILM SERIES —

during the 30's

Probly Romeo and Juliet, Royal ballet with Nureyey and Fonteyn
or Zettereti’s’ Romeo and Juliet

All films will be shown at Northwest College (Administration building} at 8:00 p.m.
Admission: Adults 1.587 atedent $1.00

station at |

-a short study ofa pas dedeux

- Musical comady about the trials and tribulations of
making an ON.time musical flim.

+e short study of Halda carving technique
-storyofe Canadian family and their life on the prairies -.

selected as field: - co-
ordinator for the study,
directing information
gathering efforts in Kitimat
under Dr. Carnow's
training.

“VERN LEWIS |
invites inquiries abeut |

TREE FARMER

KOEHRING-
BANTAM

‘BOMAG —

LOED ti‘

| HYDRO-AX.

| ¢.S. JOHNSON

VULCAN
‘MACHINERY &
EQUIPMENT LTD

Cowart Road si
| CONTACT VERN ;
FAT: 564-0101 or

564-0230