AG - The Terrace Standard, Wednesday, May 21, 1997 Stop this cycle of bankruptcy By FIONA EARL NUMEROUS NEWSPAPER articles proclaim yet another bankruptcy. This time it is Repap (BC) Inc. What should have been foreseen by the com- pany comes as a major blow to northwest com- munities. Now we are struggling to find a solution to the prob- lems created by Repap (BC) Inc. and stop the northem communities from turning into ghost towns should the company completely shut down. There are many factors which contributed to the bankruptcy of Repap (BC) Inc, The cost of logging is very high in the northwestern region of B.C, due to the high quantity of decadent wood as well as the mountainous terrain. The new Forest Practices Code and Forest Renewal British Columbia (FRBC) have increased stumpage fees paid to the government of approximately $12 per cubic metre. The Forest Practices Code restricts how logging operations are conducted while at the same time will preserve our forests, waterways and prevent soil erosion. However, the process has contributed to the higher stumpage fees. The 110 day strike at the Prince Rupert pulp mill at the peak of the pulp market led to an early demise. Then there was the subsequent collapse of the pulp prices from $1000 a ton to barely $500 a ton today. The company lost money on each ton it produced. These problems only added to an already poor man- agement practice of expanding and modemizing facilities principally in Eastern Canada and Wisconsin using borrowed funds. The forest industry functions in a cyclic environment. When the market was booming, the company did not put away reserves to sustain the company during the in- evitable turndown of the market. This combination of problems is a recipe for failure which has affected three generations of companies in the northwest. At first there was Columbia Cellulose Lid. which har- vested wood during the late 1950s and 60s before declaring bankruptcy. A company called Westar Ltd. bought them out and continued the operation. George Petty, as principal shareholder and CEO of Repap Inc., bought Westar in 1986. Westar was virtually broke when purchased. Now, Repap (BC) Inc. has declared bankruptcy and has been taken over by two banks as well as being protected un- der the Company Creditors Arrangement Act for six months while a proposal to restructure is sought. A proposed Avenor Inc. buy out fell through when shareholders recently voted against the purchase. Now the banks own, Repap (it name is now | Skeena Cellulose) and its future is in doubt. Skeen Cellulose owns three saw. mills — Terrace Smithers, and Carnaby — and one pulp mill in Prince Rupert. They also have a tee harvesting licence (TFL) to harvest approximately one million cubic meters of wood an- nually. Skeena Cellulose owns the majority shares in Fiona Earl Orenda Forest Products Ltd. and Buffalo Head Forest Products Lid. which permits an additional 500,000 cubic meters of wood to be harvested. The immediate problem since bankruptcy has been filed is that the northwest is facing an economical ruin if a solution can not be found. Many towns revolve around the forest industry. Even now, if Skeena Cellulose were to liquidate its assets there wouldn’t even be enough to pay off the Toronto Dominion Bank and Royal Bank debt The company has liabilities of $620 million and $480 mil- Hon of that is owed to the banks. There are 1,400 loggers, contractors, and suppliers from Smithers to Prince Rupert who are owed $70 mil- lion. A similar amount is also owed to the B.C. and Io- cal governments. The company is forming a restructuring plan which is due by Sept. 30. For now, the court has miled that Skeena Cellulose must pay logging contractors a week in advance and they must notify contractors 21 days in advance of any contract termination. Perhaps we should have seen it coming when Repap divided itself into Repap (BC) Inc. As MP Mike Scott stated, ‘“When Repap divided itself into Repap BC and other subsidiaries, it built a fire-wall separating the parent company from other debt burdened arms that could be amputated if necessary.”’ In an effort to alleviate the plight of local contractors and suppliers, FRBC has agrecd to guarantee approxi- mately $20 million dollars in loans to contractors and businesses affected by the situation. Northern Savings Credit Union is lending the funds backed by the FRBC guarantee. This measure is only a baud-aid solution. A real long range plan should take into account the high pulp content of wood harvested. Then, recogniz- ing the wood composition, make adjustments to the royalties paid to the government. Perhaps a flexible plan whereby during good years the royalties would in- crease gradually with profits and then be reduced to nominal rates during poor ycars. Any company purchasing the licence would of course be obliged to open its books to provincial auditors. Also, any purchase should be contingent on a long range sustainable plan for the Tree Farm Licence. In addition, the prospective buyer should post a sub- stantial bond with FRBC, Default and the bond would be forfelted. This would serve to discourage a large na- tional company such ss Repap, from severing the B.C. arm of the business. However, if the company were to go bankrupt, these funds could be used to pay all af- fected businesses. The cycle of bankruptcy which has repeated itself over the past three decades must end and a sustainable economic plan should be developed to protect both jobs and the economic viability of any future company operating the Tree Farm Licence. Fiona Earl ts a student at Caledonia Secondary School. She won a scholarship for post secondary ed- ucation through an essay contest sponsored by Forest Renewal B.C. She intends to study sciences, Fish fee inten An open letter to Cathy McGregor, Minister of Environment, Lands and Parks Dear Madam Minister: In your opening line of your letter to The Ter- race standard of April 23, you state your minis- try bas conservation as a main concern. If you will excuse me from saying so, but that line is harder to choke down that I could stand without replying. Explain to me how large portions of fishing fees being put into general revenue funds has anything ta. do with steelhead conscrvation. You may be able to sell those lines to people who have spent their whole lives in downtown Victoria or Granville Street but not on people who were born and raised in the north. We live watching the atrocitics committed by native nets and gaff fishing, how steelhead in untold numbers are taken in nets and sold in gunny sacks along with other salmon. Yes, you and your government are aware of CORRESPONDENCE FOR THE TERRACE STANDARD The Mail Bag» this but refuse to ban nets in rivers and still you insist your concem is conservation. You will likely say that it is the native tradi- tional way of fishing, and in all fairness I agree. If a native family is living year round in a but on the river bank and fish, nuts, and berries are their only sustenance then they should be al- lowed nets and gaffs. However, since most natives today are sup- tions doubted plied with nice homes, boats, vehicles, hospi- tals, and schools, and I sce a great deal of them eating in restaurants wouldn't a fair trade off be for them to stop fishing with nets and gafis. Indeed, I can personally show you a great many ways of truly conserving wildlife without digging into the working man’s pocket, _ - Conservation is not a concern of your ministry but an excuse for collecting revenue for your government which bas so badly botched up. If what you are saying is true, that people want higher fees through your research and dealings with the B,C, Wildlife Federation, then this should be a fairly simply resolution. I challenge you and your government openly — I will put together a group of people and if we can get more signatures on petitions then there are members of the B.C. Wildlife Feder- ation. Will your government roll back licensing fees to what they were when the NDP took over governing British Columbia? Allan Grier, Terrace, B.C. Schools shouldn’t teach morality Dear Sir: As a parent with children who are or will be educated in public schools, I have many con- cems regarding the position the B.C. teachers union has taken on various secial issues. Recently, by majority approval, the BCTF passed Resolution 102: ‘“To develop a program to eliminate homophobia.and heterosexism in the B.C, public school system.” The cause and formation of Resolution 102 is the brainchild of homosexual activist groups, supported by a strong and vocal group of professional teachers who call themselves GALE — gay and lesbian educators. GALE has pivoted itself into a very influential position within the teachers union. GALE has very specific and action-oriented goals. The major one being ‘‘having information on ‘GLBT’ (gay, lesbian, bisexual, and trans- gendered) people included in the curriculum, pre-school through post-secondary,” As a parent 1] believe the BCTF has grossly contravened its mandate to support public sys- tem educators in their quest to fit our children with purely technical skills. ; Our mandate as parents is to promote the moral and ethical agenda, in the privacy of our own home, which we believe is in our chil- dren’s best interest. I believe the terms homophobia and heterosexism are inflammatory in their very es- sence, and will only contribute to the break- It’s bad Dear Sir: Canada’s pharmaceuticals seem to have our federal politicians in their pocket. While goveriment bonehcads research certain natural health products these products will be removed from store shelves for sale, Until May 81, 1997 down of kindness and respect that need to be at the heart of universal human interaction. As a parent, I possess an intrinsic, healthy fear of anything that appears detrimental] to the physical-emotional-psychological well-being of my child(ren). 1 am not afraid of cars, but I possess a healthy fear of the consequences should my child run in front of a moving one. Does that mean I am suf- fering from autophobia? 1 am not afraid of homosexuals, but the well researched and documented medical literature I have read regarding the health consequences of ihe homosexual lifestyle, leaves me with a healthy fear of having that lifestyle normalized, or presented as a healthy option to by children, Tournaments Dear Sir: I am writing in regards to what I feel is a ra- cial slur against all nationalities — all native basketball tournaments. In this day and age we are all fighting to be classed as equal. My family is native Canadian many generations past. I was fortunately raised in a community with every national race, so I was able to learn from them. But when J see or hear our own Canadian In- dians still segregating themselves I see red. Furthermore, nature has blessed the heterosexual union with the exclusive ability. to begin a new life. The joy of participating in the creation of a new life is at the very core of the heterosexual attraction. I teach and promote the traditional values as- sociated with the heterosexual union because I wish my children to know the same blessing and joy I’ve experienced. I am not promoting heterosexism by choosing to follow the procreative plan of nature that results in a precious new life being brought into the world. Finally, I believe we traditional parents are the only line of defence between the BCTF and the teachers it supports. Gordon F. Schuss, Terrace B.C. are wrong What kind of example is this to pass on to our children, It further alienates all of us especially us who are trying to work and understand our fellow man. What would happen if we were to have all-white tournaments. Then who would be screaming that we were prejudiced? In closing I hope thase who are involved with sports of this type will lock at what is happen- ing, I cannot speak for others, but [ consider it a slap in the face. Mrs. S. Broughton, Terrace, B.C, What Canadians haven't been told - and sources in Ottawa aren't certain of - is whether this will affect these products in their natu- ral sources in supermarket produce sections, etc. LEVIS STRAIGHT LEG ORANGE TAB JEANS (MENS AND LADIES SHORTS Natural health products | reg, 49.98 $9Qi8 Entire selection 20 "ores. : are precisely refined in- ff gredients of what you can ~ grow in your garden or buy at the supermarket, Garlic is an example. Now the boneheads waat to study garlic to see what the benefits are. They order JEAN JACKETS STONEWASHED a HODIAK QUILT FLANNEL SNAP SHIRTS M-XL Regular reg. $34.98 garlic removed from all reg. 65.98 M-XL Tall rag. $36.98 8298 | store shelves. During the time of the study garlic be- comes an illegal subsiance like marijuana. Anti-poverty groups across Canada have dis- covered that when basic one ‘UNIVERSAL WORKWEAR JEANS 2 ‘ha | bo KODIAK FLANNEL WORK SHIRTS M-2LX Regular reg. $22,98 on one health care between reg. 34.98 2X-4X Tall reg. $27.08 *2 We? | doctor and patient is reduced there is an aulomat- ic increase in the use of pharmaceuticals. There’s now a_ federal election and we need to give the federal boneheads a good swift kick in their POLAR PAW SOCKS reg. $4.98 9/12 Boys reg. $4.69 3/11 CRISS CROSS WORK GLOVES reg. 2.49 3 [Fg common sense, Brian Gregg, Terrace Dear Sir: Lucien Bouchard tells his followers that he will not al- low Canada’s debt, over $600 billion, to be reduced 8” BROWN OILTAN WORKBOOT CSA Approved, Steel Toe and Plate, Vibram Sole. reg. 139.98 MEN'S PIGMENT DYED CANVAS PANT reg. 42.98 $8958 on the backs of Quebecers. He conveniently overlooks the fact that well over one- third of it was rung up in bestowing economic favours upon his province. In the last four years alone the ever-generous provinces of B.C., Alberta and Ontario MEN'S WORKBOOT BY ‘CAT’ Steel Toe and Plate reg. 159.98 LADIES TWILL PANTS Assorted Colours 37 39° ; reg. 36.98 have seen $70 billion tax dollars transferred to his province. And all the while Bouchard tells his people that Quebec would finan- cially be better off as an in- dependent country. || MEN'S PATHFINDER HIKING BOOT SHORT SLEEVE FSHIRTS Assorted Screens $99°8 | Quebec can spend transfer payments on anything it wants, including salaries for language police to enforce racist language laws. Give British Columbians a break M. Bouchard. Separate! Rob Hargrove Terrace, B.C. reg. 24.98