PAGE 4, THE HERALD, Tuesday, September 20, 1977

Voice of the readers

(the herald }

Published by
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MANAGING EDPITOR... STU DUCKLOW

Published every weekday at 3212 Kalum St. Terrace B.C. A
member of Varifled Circulation. Authorized rs second class
mail, Registration number 1201. Postage pal. . cash, return
postage guaranteed. ce

Professional
Forester, I wish to comment 1

titled ‘‘Burn Slash”, under
the byline of the B.C. Forest
Service, which appeared in
your paper on Wednesday,
September 14, 1977 and
which I believe can be very

misleading to your readers.
agree that “prescribed
burning” ig a useful and
necessary forest
management toll when used
in specific situations and the
smkoe problems resulting
from these burns should be
understood and tolerated by

editorial en-

Slash burning not always right answer,

the public. Iam concerned,
however, that the editorial
give the impression that
“prescribed burning’ is a
panacea to
management and is geod for
allarea, This is not the case
particularyly in the
Hemlock-Balsam forests

generally associated with
Some of the
statements made’ in the
are examined

this region.

editorial
forest below.

The first point of con-
tention is with the statement
that “if logged over regions

are not subjected to con-
trolled burning, inevitable
ightning, human
carelessness or other causes
will ignite the accumaled
slash.” These are all
possibilities but history in
this area does not sub-

fact, most major fires have

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\ y

‘Canada buys arms

: Canada is embarking on a shopping spree for arms
.that eventually will cost a total of $8 billion. This fugure
includes $2.5 billion for anew fleet of fighter aircraft and
major ship replacement program that will cost about
$3.5 billion. Other more immediate spending plans in-
clude procurement of tanks and armored cars, military
communications and artillery equipment.
By 1981, Canada will be spending $1.3 billion annually
equipping its armed forced - almost three times today’s
figure of $450 million. Admittedly, the Canadian ex-
penditure is only a fraction of the $350 billion being spend _
each year on military costs by all of the world’s nations.
This kind of global folly is no excuse for needless
spending by the Canadian Armed Forces. If only there
could be agreement among all nations -.and particularly
that could be released by a reduction of military spen-
ding could help to alleviate poverty at home and abroad.
Military spending and military commodities
production are among the least efficient means of
creating employment, and as a result actually create
unemployment. Military commodities production is with
very very exceptions highly capital intensive. This is
true particularly of the aerospace industry. Therefore,
7 these militay industries, other sectors of the economy
, that would be more effective in creating jobs are left
ao short of capital financing.

Arms expenditures severely reduce the resources
available for eseential secotrs and social services, And
they also cut the money available to help developing
countries. The total debt of the developing world is now
about $200 billion. By next year, the poorer countries will
be paying $13 billion a year in interest to the richer
nations. Clearly, their need for more assistance - in-
cluding grants and concessionary loans - is great.
Although Canada is only 22nd in the world in per capita
military spending ($130 per person per year), should be.

been associated with
lightning strikes in standing
green timber. The com-
bination of factors such as
rapidly decomposing
species, short periods of
high to extreme fire hazard
conditions and _ rapid
greeing-up of unburned
logged area minimizes the
fire risk factor. This, ‘of
cours would be quite dif-
ferent in areas with dif-
ferent residual fuels and
climatie conditions. In this
area, I suggest that more
damage has been done by
slash burning than by
wildfire in slash areas.
The second point of
contention is with the
statements ‘faster, more-
’ efficient and more
productive reforestation
measures,” In. specific
circumstances, this is true
but it is nor correct in the
Hemlock-Balsam stands in
this area. Hemlock and
Balsam are shade tolerant
species and survive and
grow best in a shaded and
protected erivironment. This
is why many young trees
grow as an understory in
these mature stands.
Burning removes much of
the brush and debris left
after logging which provides
the necessary protection for
seedling growth and sur-
vival. Further, extensive
amouonts of seeds and or
seedlings are already
established on the areas at
the time of burning and
these are destroyed. The
burning also may add too
much wood ash to the soil
which, because of the
principal of osmosis, draws

=” .not be cutting our arms costs even further in an effort to
ie give more help to poorer countries - and as an example to
other rich nations?

moisture from any tree s

ee _. An open letter to environment minister Jim Nielson

Buck-passing

Dear Mr. Neilson,

Eight months have passed since
200 gallons of highly toxic PCBs
were spilled into Porpoise Harbour
at Prince Rupert.

Eight long months in which this
deadly chemical has spread from
the orignal area of contamination,
making a difficult clean-up
operation that much more costly and
time consuming, as well as in-
creasing the risks of PCBs entering

. the food chain.

In the meantime, we have learned
the Prince Rupert now boasts the
dubious distinction of being saddled
with the highest concetration level of
PCB contamination in North
America. PCB is known to cause
skin disorders and is higly suspect
as a cancer-inducing agent. Who
can say what long-terms effects may
result from this poisoning of the
local marine environment.

It now seem likely that the PCB
contamination has spread as much
as 200 feet, according to officials
from the federal Environmental
Protection Service. Obviously as

dispersion increases containment
will become more difficult and on-
coming winter storms may hamper
the clean-up operation itself.

There is no excuse for this in-
eredible delay in instiuting clean-up

measures. Under the Pollution’

Control Act your department has full
powers to prscute anyone who
pollutes withour a permit, providing
action is taken within six months of
the orginal incident. Why has no
such action taken by your depart-
ment? This amounts to either highly
negligent behaviour or an admission
that hte powers of the Pollution
Control Branch are strictly. limited
and ineffectual in times of crisis.

We maintain, as well, that your
deaprtment has a stron moral
responsibility to protect the en-
vironment; regardless of
jurisdictions. Pollution knows no
bounderies and it is patently absurd
to await the the outcome of lond
delays in legal proceedings while
PCBs are eating away at the marine
environment, Local citizens have
looked on in amazement as

provincial and federal authorities
have passed the buck and denied
responsibility for the clean-up.
Perhaps this is a preview of what we
can expect in the future. If it takes
the better part ofa year to clean up a
spill involving a relatively static
pollutant, what can we expect if a
major oil spill threatens our
coastline?

In this early part of Februaruy it ~
announced that the Pollution Contro!
Branch had devised a plan for the
clean-up and would undertake
dredging operations shortly. eight
months later no action had been
taken and we can only conclude that
the Pollution Control Branch con-
siders this incident a little im-
potance. When contacted by the
tocal CBC station officials from the
board refused to discuss the matter
and in fact have had little ar all to
say publicly about the spill over the
past eight months. Is this official
policy for the Pollution Control
If so, what do they-have to hide. We
find this :rrespinsible behayiour on
thepara of a public government
agency abhorrent andinexcuslabe.

One aspect of this deplorable

" Donna Vallieres

situation has been .to demonstrate
the total ineffectiveness of the
Pollution Control Act. Present
leglation provides ittle in the way of
deterrents to potential polluters.

The comapny involved, Canadian
Cellulose Ltd., recognized this
situation immediately and took
advantage of it. Otto Langer, a
biologists from the federal En-
vironmental Protection Service,said
initial attempts by the Pollution
Control Branch to order CanCel to
clean up the harbour were refused.
He said the company, claiming that
he province din'tr have the
legislation to enforce a clean-up,
“more or less told them to get lost.”

To avoid a repitition of this’ :

ludicrous situation the Save Our

‘Shores Committee submits that

substantial amendments to the
Pollution Contrl Act are necessary.
Secondly, the Pollution Control
Permit for CanCel should be
reviewed immediately. In effect,
they have been given a license to
pollute and pour daily amounts of
chemical effluent into the waters
surrounding Port Edwards, as well

won't clean up pollution, SOS charg

stantiate this concern. In’

says forester

which may land on the area
and thus prevents its ger-
mination. Thisis a similar
effect to overfertilizing a
newly seeded lawn. These
adverse effects on natural
regeneration of Hemlock or
Balsam can be observed in
many of the local logging
areas. The rapid release of
the nutrients in the form of
wood ash may also have a
longer term effect on forest
soils and forest growth.

These nutrients will be
leached from the soils
before they can be used by

the growing trees whereas’

the slow natural decom-
position of the residual wood
fibre provides aslow release
fertilization extending over

longer period of time. The
burning causes an in-

terruption in the mitrogen
cycle which has an im-
portant adverse effect on
the soil nutrient balance..

These problems are
further aggravated in
Hemlock-Balsam sites
because establishing suc-
cessful plantations of these
species is generally dif-
ficult. Tn Spruce or Douglas
Fir sites this is usually not
the case.

Prescribed burning for
insect control can be useful
tool in helping to combat
major insect or disease
infestations. In this area,
this has specific application
to the Mountain Pine Beetle
problem prevalent in areas
east of Terrace. The
burning, however, does not
eliminate the hazard bur
aids in minimizing the
problem.

In conclusion, prescirbed
burning is a useful fores
management taol when used
widely and discriminanity
but is a destructive and
wasteful activity when
undertaken ina token effort
to minize a fire risk which
can easily be tolerated as is
generally the case in this
area.

D,J.Gardiner, R.P.F.

wt ot
woh hs Lee dee

as fouling the air for miles around

the plant. Does the Pollution Control

Board monitor for miles around the
plant. Does the Pollution Control
Board monitor ona a regular basis
the waters and atmosphere in the
CanCel site? On what basis is a
permit to dump effluent granted?.

These are important questions and
while we would hope that
satisfactory replies would be for-
theoming, SOS believes that the
problem is of such mahnitude as to
require more dratisic measures.

The PCB incident cannot be
scrutinized in isolation. The com-
pany involved has a well-established
track record.as a major polluter and
shows no signs of taking a more
responsible approach. Their actions
in this particluar cases are symp-
tomatic of a more general attitude of
disregard and contempt of govern-
ment regulations,

The company has been fined in the
past for similar incidents such as tis,
yet they continue to pollute with
impunity, Asked why they waited
four months after the PCH spill to

ACRMAN

i3}
Dipe? Ynistrta! Mans Syndicate Pork?

“I's a piece of wood!”

Insurance brokers play on parent insecurity

I passed up a great opportunity this
week to make $15 for a broken clavicle.

Not only that, but a chance for $300 for
compound fracture of skull bone (not
including facial or jaw bone, though) , $500
for,, loss of one finger, $15,000 for
quadraplegia, and a mere $2,50¢ for loss of
life, which however, would cover funeral
expenses and pay off a few bills.

If i were thinking in terms of fracturing
a couple of vertebrae so I could afford a
stereo thia month, these grim insurance
polley descriptions might be slightly
amusing. .But I didn’t think this par-
ticular policy was funny because it was
talking about giving me $5,000 if my
daughter gets killed while getting on or off
school bus.

One of the biggest fears a parent suffers
is what happens to her kid when she’s not
around. When you send a child off to
school each day, especially a very young
one who still places all his faith in being
protected by somebody bigger, you are

entrusting the most important person in-

your life to a stranger. And all you can do
is hope this stranger will take on this
responsibility with the same protective
instinct as you.

My daughter brought home an in-
purance policy application from school.
Apparently this has got nothing to do with
the schools except they are used as a
distribution outlet, Instead this 1s
the work of a private insurance company.
Thereturn envelop is addressed to Braid
Insurance, a. _ local agency.

The basic premise of life and accident
insurance is probably a good one
(although I'm. not entirely sure),

For a married person with dependents
it will provide security in one form or
another, I won't.even complain about
certain clauses in the Braid school
children’s policy providing for such ex-
pensive occurrances as dental accidents.
When Ido find horribly offensive is the
suggestion that I should pay $5.50 for the
chance to be compensated a couple of
thousand dollars in the event of my child's

eatn,

The entire concept of preying on
people's fears and using any. method of
manipulation to make a buck is wrong,
and that is just what insurance companies
do, And I object to the public school
system agreeing to be party to this sort of
action.

1 was pleased to see the govenrment and
its union employees settle their dif-
ferences and not bring on another
massive strike.

Strikes are messy things and I don't like
them on principle, but I was almost
disappointed that we wouldn’t get the

chance tosee theeffects of Terrace slowly |

but frantically drying Up.

Just think of it; After everybody's
personal stash had been drank (drunk?),
the pubs would have started filling up.
Standing room only, Hne-ups at the door,
admission charge just to get a chance to
buy a draught. And then all the liquor
outlets would have run out and nobody
could get anymore,

start testing, company lawyer
Robert Gardiner said, ‘‘we didn’t
want the crown in a postion to
cubpoena the test results.” In March
of this year Cancel spilled ap-

proximately 700,00 gallons of black.

liquor into Wainwright Basin. Again
no.clean-up was attemted. Already
this. year. there have been three

serious incidents involving the

leakage of chloring gas. How many
other incidents have gone by that
seriuu enough to report?

In view of the fact that Canadian
Cellulose Ltd. is a publicly owned
and controlled corporation, sup-
posedly responsible ultimately to the
general citizenry of B.C., sos m
demands that hthis government
institute a f ull public inquiry into all

facts of the company’s operations.
It is tocal people who will suffer the
long-term consequences of CanCel’s
actions, now and in years to come.
Until existing legislation is reviewed
and stregthed, we have no guaratee
that this type of situation will not
occur again inthe near future,
SAVE OUR SHORES COMMITTEE
PRINCE RUPERT

Police would be. laid off because there
were no drunk drivers, not 80 Many ac-
cidents, the crime rate would drop 60
drastically they would be forced to ticket

something to do,

And the courts. It would be chaos.

drunk drivers show up for first ap-
pearences on Wednesday mornings, nat to
mention all those thieves and thugs who
plead intoxication as a defence. The only
thing that would keep the court employees
their jobs would be processing all the
jaywalking offenses.

Then there is the welfare people who
too look after all thoge drunks. What if all
i former drunks got bored and alll got
obs?

Come to think of it, I would have a hard
time justifying my job if the world and
this town weren't filled with the tragic
effects of alcohol. .

It's adarn good thing the union didn't go

on strike to close down’ a non-essential

service.

a

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