‘(0 mind. Panic about logging halt Clouds crisis . Dear Sir: Having knowledge of the true state of the en- vironment, [ feel I must respond to our local electorate’s panic over the proposed logging moratorium (“City vows to fight against plan to halt. coastal logging”, Terrace Standard, April 19, 2000), Usually i agree with Les Watmough’s com- mon sense directorship of the regional district. When’ l-read of him inciting “Terrace city” council to push the provincial government into derailing the moratorium, however, and when | read of David Hull saying “The sky is falling” it is not our coilapsing industrial base that comes I think of the rain, as it pounds-unimpeded on ‘clear-cuts where rainforests once stood. | think of their nutrients, now both leaching away, and ero- ding to silt the spawning grounds. I-think of the thousands of edible, and medici- - nal plants, lost before being understood. I think of the wind continuing to accelerate with each tree that. falls, [ think of the fire hazard created by our increasingly dry forests. ° - 1 think of the World Scientists’ Warning to Humanity that “our massive tampering with the world’s interdependent web of life coupled with deforestation, species loss, and climate change could trigger widespread ‘adverse effects, includ- ing unpredictable collapses of critical biological systems whose interactions and dynamics we only imperfectly understand, Uncertainty over the extent of these effects cannot excuse compla- _eency or delay in facing the threats.” Ominous words endorsed by over !,700 of the world's most respected thinkers, representing 71 countries, including 104 Nobel laureates — a ma- jority of the living recipients of the prize in the Sciences. This warning was completely ignored by all major media sources, when released in 1992. When Mayor Talstra says the moratorium is “detrimental to our communities” [ can’t believe. he understands the crisis’ severity. Perhaps he needs to experience the summer desert state, or a torrential fall rainstorm, in the middle of a fresh clear-cut, to undetstand the extremities in climate that these practices produce. Rivers rise fast - so get your sandbags ready - for where there is no forest, the water just rushes down. The forests are the moderators, purifiers, and protectors of our fresh water. Watershed studies, paid for by your tax dollars, are ignored, and re- placed by cut-rate actions, and clear-cut le- niency. | don’t agree with discussing moratoriums without public input, but I also don’t agree with a diverse renewal, and not a “use il or lose it” ulti- matum to tree farm licensees. That attitude only serves to further deplete the future common good. Rob Mercereau Terrace B.C, Cat killings are _ devastating Dear Sir: On March 9, our cat Oliver was let outside -for his little morning outing, but never returned. We learned later that day that severa! other cats had disappeared the week before, Two cats were found dead and one more across the street disappeared the following week. In the beginning we were at a complete toss to what was happening — you try to fool yourself with all kinds of possibilities. But as time goes by without answers you realize there is only one answer. .This is no accident or coincidence, not Medical officer focuses on Nass +13 ‘With sol many cats. 4 The Terrace Standard, Wednesday, May 10, 2000 - AS _ CORRESPONDENCE FOR THE TERRACE STANDARD The Mail Bag GRETHE BRORUP says her cat Oliver has yet to come home. She and ‘her husband fear Oliver and other missing cats in town have met a terrible fate. : oa ’ sorrow, and despair. We were-enjoying Oliver so much and were looking forward to retiring with him us the family member he was (for the rest of his life). I would like to know if whoever has done away with these cats realizes what they have done to the families involved? Why could they not have tried to find out where the cats belonged (there are ways to do that) or let people know through the news if there was a problem? "Oliver was a male neutered cat and would not go around spraying -- only wild un-neutered cats do that. We had raised him-to do his business in a special place in our own garden. I had told our neighbours to feel free to chase him oul of their garden if they didn’t like him there (use a water hose and spray - that will for sure scare them) as long as he wasn't chased out in front of a car. We have never heard any complaints from our immediate neighbours but we know Oliver was _ visiting further down the block. Now’ your concern and denial turns to anger, _ We are ‘devastated. This has completely changed our life, How hard is it to live with the unknown? Where is Oliver? Who killed him? How was he killed?, How much did he suffer? Is he lying out amongst the garbage? Or is he dug down in somebody else’s yard? How thoughtless. How unkind. .Whal. kind of person would.do something like thal? Somebody lacking in lave and compassion? I have seen a bumper sticker reading “I like cals. Dead cats”, What does that tell- you? , How can anyone hate a lovely animal, which more than likely never did anything to deserve any harm done to it. se : ' Many people these days are surrounded by barking dogs. You can really never sit out-in your garden and enjoy peace and quiet.: One starts barking and the others follow. Well, you don’t shoot or poison the dogs, but'as a good neighbour you close your ears as well as you can. If-we can’t treal people and animals with a little respect and compassion, how can we ex- peet to have peace jn. the world? We have also had big dogs (on the loose) + coming tearing through flower and yvegelable beds, lifting their legs on plants. We can step in .dog poop everywhere on the streets. But we don’t harm the dogs! : Maybe people who have so much against cats would rather be invaded by rodents? Do they not realize that it’s because of the cats this doesn’t happen. , —_ I do know sometimes cats also take birds, | don’t like to see-that myself but it-is nature and cats only: take a: fraction of birds in’ comparison to crows'and birds killed-by our windows. A theologian tells-us that to be a Christian re- quires a special concern for the most. defenseless and exploited among-us. The animals are among them, \ If anyone has any information regarding this matter please come forward,: Our devoted friends ~-deserve-to-be- treated with respect. ~- ~ Grethe Brorup Terrace B.C. Manor needs help Dear Sir: - CS As your:readers may be aware, the Terrace Supportive Housing Society is looking. for equity or pre-sales to’ make the Terrace Mountain . Manor supportive housing project a reality. The society has secured the commitment of the provincial B.C. Housing crown corporation to finance, eight of the 22 units, and we very close io completing all the financing requirements for this project, but we are in need of additional monies in order to qualify for a construction loan. » One of the’society’s directors has made a gen- eraus:donation of $5,000 in hopes that other con- cerned citizens and ‘service organizations will also make ‘donations, or make available a short- term foan, fo sce this much needed project to fruition.” - . Our goal is to start construction very soon and all donations or loans are very much appreciated. Betty Barton, Chair Terrace Supportive Housing Society Photo use was wrong Dear Sir: We disagree with the choice of the photo- graph used in the May 3, 2000 Ictters to the edi- tor page of The Terrace Standard. ~. We are the people in that photograph. The _ smiling faces in that photograph were not brought on by the reason we had a prayer vigil that day. The letter published underneath does not be- _long with the picture and itis out of cantext with the sign. “Canada’s Day of Infamy, May 14, 1969- 1999” is whal the sign in the photograph said. In- famy means brought about by something shock- ing and brutal. Abortion is brutal. | Margaret Faber, Bernadette Lucier, Mr, and Mrs. Hendriks, Terrace B.C. Teachers not puppets Dear Sir: an We, the leaching staff at Copper Mountain: Elementary School (TDTUY také: exteption ‘to the letter from Debra Stokes in the April 26 Stan- dard. To conclude her long and winding offering, Ms. Stokes states that she believes the “union leaders, not the teachers” make the decisions re- garding our working lives and the lives entrusted to us in our classrooms. We may speak through out democratically elected executive but we are not puppets. The Teachers, Copper Mountain Elementary About the Mail Bag The Terrace Standard welcomes letters to the editor. Our address is 3210 Clinton St., Terrace, B.C., V8G 5R2. You can fax letters to us at 638-8432. And you can e-mail let- ters to us at standard@kermode.net. We need your name, address and phone num- ber for verification. Valley THE NASS valley is enjoying the benefits of its own dedicated medical health officer. Dr. Isaac Sobol was picked for the job last year by the Nisga’a Valley Health Board and he’s being based in Terrace, in the board’s second floor of- fices in the Park Avenue Medical Centre. He’s overseeing community health, health planning and health policy for Nass Valley residents and Nisga’a people living in urban centres such as Terrace and Prince Rupert. Sobol is responsible for local health area 92. Because it’s a separate health area, Sobol will be able to track health sta- tistics and use them to identify health problems and issues specific to the Nisga’a. “Because the Nisga’a insisted on having a discrete health area we can look at these things,” Sobol said. “There is no other First Nation I’m aware of that has this ability to look at information about their people that discretely.” Sobol will also serve as a liaison at hospitals in Terrace and Prince Rupert. He'll try to make sure that patients being discharged back to the Nass Valley are properly cared for. That will mean making sure things like medication arrangements are clear necessary arrangements are made to receive the incoming patient. “I can review the case, give a heads up alert to the physicians and nurses in the Nass Valley so they can be ready to bring them back appropria- tely and make sure we have services available that they might need.” The board chase to locate Sobol in Terrace because Nisga’a elders tend to live in Terrace or Prince Rupert so they can be close to hospitals. He said the board plans to work to- ward increasing the range of health cafe that can be provided in the Nass Valley, “Some people are suggesting that having elders stay outside the Nass is doing to them what used to happen to kids in residential schools,” he said. “They're divorced from their commu- nities, they’re divorced from their cul- ture and it’s another ciement in frag- menting Nisga’a sociely.” It’s also sometimes a challenge for family in the Nass to travel to where a relative may be in hospital. “Some people have to hire private vehicles because -they don’t own a car,” he noted. Sobol has been going to UBC for the last few years gelling training for the medical health officer job. It marks the first time in the pro- vince’s history a native-run health body has appointed a medical health officer. Even so, the appointment doesn't have direct powers. Sabol's powers. as a medical health officer are still delegated by Skeena Health Unit medical health officer Dr. David Bowering. Although health jurisdiction will be part of the Nisga’a treaty when it take ISAAC SOBOL Is the first medical health officer for the Nass Valley, based in the Park Ave, Medical Centre. effect this weck, what’s happened so far is unrelated to the treaty: The Nispa’a have run the Nisga’a_ Valley Health Board, which acts as a community health council in the Nass, for a number of years already. ~ The hope is that eventually Nispa's people will gain training to take over professional pasitions like Sobol’s. ° The shortage of skilled people isn't unique to the Nisga’a, he noted, ~ - “Look .at ‘rural B.C.,” he- said, “We're relying on South Africans to _to do whal.”: come’ and fill medical positions, It’s not just a Nisga’a problem or a First Nations problem. [t's who's available The health board oversees an ex- tensive team of health professionals in ‘the Nass, ee _ Four staff doctors are in. the valley ~ two in ‘New Aiyansh, one in Green- ville and one in Kincollth. Most activily is concentrated at the James Sasmuel Gosnell Memorial Health Centre in New Aiyansh, where there are about 35 people employed. They include a treatment -home care nurse, public healthier, director of nursing, a dentist and two assislanls, pharmacist, psychologist, environmental ficalth officer, physi- cian assistant and olher support staff. - Although’ there are presently just two holding beds at the centre, there ire plans to expand. that to 24. That would include 10 continuing care beds for elderly: patients, 10 acute care and four obstetric/holding beds,