Viountains of empties:

That’ S how they do it

There’s now a depot: accepting 7 ; :
cans and bottles and giving aie
deposit refunds /NEWS A13— ee

The area's young scientists
. gathered last weekend for an
annual fair/COMMUNITY Bi

The big event

Local cross country skiers are»
readying for the area’s major
annual marathon/SPORTS C1 _

WEDNESDAY
FEBRUARY-8, 1995

More

By MALCOLM BAXTER

THE CHANGING ules in
forestry are increasing the work-
load for local companies.

And that in tum means they
need more staff to deal with the
increase stemming from the new
Forest Practices Code.

However, the same applies
across the pravince as Skeena
Sawmills found out recently.

Company spokesman Scott
Marleau said the mill made two
recruiting (rips to the University
of B.C.’s forestry faculty, one in
December targeting summer stu-
dents and the other Jast month
where it hoped to woo'praduates.

Staff
needed

THE LOCAL forest district
anticipates hiring 10 new staff be-
fore the year is out.

Kalum district manager Brian
Downie said the introduction of
the Forest Renewal Program, for

“. example,. added. to:.the: existing. . 7

workload and therefore made it
necessary to increase manpower.

The new positions will include
field technicians and foresters in
engineering, harvesting snd sil-
viculture.

However, the hiring process is
nota simple one,

The government has indicated it
wants to move people out from
behind desks in Victoria and out
into the districts,

Downie said the individuals
tagged for that move get first
refusal on the Terrace-based jobs.

If positions remain unfilled
alter that round, the probable next
Step is to open the jobs to current
forest service employees through-
out the province,

And should the district still be
unable to find enough qualified
people to fill the vacancies, the

jobs will then be advertised
across Canada.
However, Downie added,

“Terrace is a desirable location
and So we expect quite a bit of in-
terest,'”

Conceding the difficulty of
finding very experienced individ-
uals, he said the forest service
and industry both had to combat
what was called ‘‘the northern
drain’’,

That refers to the tendency for
the more experienced foresters to
gravitate south,

Which results in having to hire
inexperienced personnel, some
just out of school. Downie said
the district tried to offset that lack
of experience by teaming new-
comers with experienced staff to
accelerate their training.

Companies map out claims strategy

FOREST COMPANIES are
trying to figure out how to get
thelr point across on land claims,
indicate notes taken at a meeting
of forest company officials last
month in Vancouver,

And they show an industry
wortied about how it'll be per-
ceived by the public in the ongo-
ing land claims debate,

The notes, an unsigned copy of
which was sent to The Terrace
Standard, are from a session of
the Council of Forest Industries’
(COFI) aboriginal affairs com-
mittce held Jan. 20.

There’s specific reference to a
federal and provincial offer made

Despite going down a little ear-
lier than usual to try and beat
others to the punch, Marleau said
company representatives found
themselves jostling with counter-
parts from Macmillan Bloedel,
Fictcher Challenge and others.

“Pretty well everybody was
down there,’’ he said.

While competition is tighter in

. that area, Marleau pointed out it’s

still easier to find individuals
fresh out of school than it is good
and experienced people — those
with five to 10 years under their
belt.

Archie MacDonald at Skeena
Cellulose agreed. Pointing out en-
rolment in various post-graduate

= Hoopla

CALEDONIA KERMODES were down in Abbotsfard over the weekend getting their third taste

schools basketball teams,
fully, provinclals,

ment,

of the season of playing tough Lower Mainland teams. Above,
for another two against Vancouver College in action from

forestry programs fell into decline
during the late 1980s, he said,
“We're feeling the effects now. ”

He also suggested there were
even insufficient new graduates

‘to meet the growing demand

throughout the industry.

While news of increased job
opportinities in industry — and
the forest service, for that matter
— mighi spark increased enrol-
MacDonald | emphasized
there will still be a time lag to
deal with since a university de-
gree course took four years.

Assuming 4 company wanted

‘someone with some degree of ex-

perience, that added up to a six-
eight year wail.

Shawn Cross (in white) goes up
earlier In the season, Like all
the Kermades are on the countdown now to the zones and, hope-

Both Marleau and MacDonald
said the changes introduced by
the Code are having the grealest
effect in the area of planning.

For example, most of the six
new positions to be filled at
Skeena Sawmills this year will be
_in their planning department,

' While neither altempted to criti-

cize the requirement for more
detailed planning, both made the
point the companies still don’t
know what will ultimately be ex-
pected of them,

Marleau pointed out the Code
has 312 sections but that’s not the
full extent of the changes.

One step down from the Code

to the Nisga’a to settle their claim

to land and resources centered on

the Nass Valley.

“Should we as, COFI Com-
mittee on Aboriginal Affairs, use
whatever influence we have to:

M@ continue to arguc that the
governments are giving too much
away?

Wor push the Nisga’a to accept
the offer and let it go to the public
debate and thus let people know
what is being given away?” state
the notes,

The notes say the Nisga'a have
been offered $60,000 for cach
Nisga’a and. 200,000ha. (780
square miles) of what's being

called ‘‘core land’’.
That monetary figure falls
within the range of setilements

accepted by natives in the North-

west Territories,

So does the amount of land and
both figures, while not confirmed
or denied by federal or provincial
negotiators, have been circulating
for some time,

(The 780 square mile figure
works out to eight per cent of the
12,000 —. square
claimed by the Nisga’a.)

The notes also indicate the core
land won't be subject to the
provincial government’s. new

_ Forest’Practices Code or the -

Forest Act and that there’s no re-

miles. being.

quirement to reforest it.

The notes also have the com-
mittee asking itself If the public
will accept its side of the land
claims debate.

“Does the forest industry have

enough credibility for people to.

believe us if we published . the
facts?’’ states one sentence.

Marlie Beets, COFT's vice pres-
ident of aboriginal affairs,
declined to comirent on the ac-
curacy of thé motes, . °°.

“I’m not going to comment on
anybody's personal notes,” she
said. “

4

Beets added that she draws: up
the minutes of COFI’s aboriginal
affairs comititice and bad hot yet ,

ple, rules at area mills |

are what are known as the regula-
tions: he anticipated anything
from 10 to 15 of those.

Which leaves the even more
specific field guides, probably 25
minimum.

“Without knowing what those
are, il’s hard to tell what the im-
pact will be,’’ he said.

Echoing that assessment, Mac-
Donald said those unknowns
were creating a lot of uncertainty.
“It’s difficult to do the work if
things are changing and you don’t
know what those changes are
going to be,”’ he pointed out.

And the companies are not

saan work |

LOCAL UNIONS. have
organized a petition and. letter
writing campaign to have union
workers and ‘contractors build

new. Saar Stores here. and a
- Kitimat, eee

Letters. sent t to > Sran’ 8 Winnipeg,
head office and ‘to ‘the ‘general
contractor chosen by the compa-
ay sav union workers and con-
traclors can provide the suality
needed for construction, ...

Bot they also tell] Saan to be :

concemed about its public rela-

tions image and hint ‘that ‘they.

don’t want another Port Alberni
happening in the northwest...
That's a reference to the, long
standing strike against MacMillan
Blocdel on Vancouver. Island

over its choice of a’ ‘contractor on

an expansion project: +).

Employees .of the’ “company
chosen by MacBlo: don’t. belong
to a main line union. That lead to
pickets and sympathy strikes bya
number of unions. -

The letters come from the Com-
munications, Energy and Paper-

workers Union of Canada: which

represents workers at Eurocan in-
Kitimat, from the ° carpenters

union, from the B.C. and Yukon.

Buildings Trades Council and
from the Canadian Auto ‘Workers,
which represents workers at Al-
can.

‘We have written Saan store’ 8

head office impressing upon them
that the goodwill and improved -

public relations generated by
utilizing local building trades

contractors will go a long way i in.

ensuring Saan’s prosperity in the
community,” writes - carpenters
union business agent Dan Farrell;
.“*We don’t wish to be the next
Port Alberni, but ... it’s your
call,” wrote the Paperworkers
union local in Kitimat,.
Both of those letters were ad-

done so for the Jan. 20 meeting,
But she did say COFI con-
tinually looks for ways to make

its case to governments ‘and the |

public on a variety of forest is-
sues.

“One of the mandates of COFI

in its terms of reference ig. com-

munication, both internal atid ex- -

ternal, and that’s certainly atopic

sald E Beets,

_- A. provincial aboriginal aftnirs ‘i
minlatry official said there is yo oh

claims negotiations, we

bring |

eek wk Pagel a

alone, he added. “Some of the
forest service people are feeling
in the dark as well!” ‘he’ ex-
plained,

MacDonald said Skeena Cel-
lulose’s new cutting plans were
put together based on known
changes and the assumption com.-
mon sense will prevail.

That’ meant adopting a rea-
sonable approach when planning
which included recognizing. as
many of the other forest values as
possible.

‘We're just trying to do the
best job we can and; if we ‘do,
being withia the realms of the .
Code,’’ he said.

dressed to Rick Holdings Lid.
the Medicine Hat, Alberta, com--
pany which’ is to. build the: -atores
and lease the premises'to Saan. ~

een official Kim: Donais
--said it will invite bids: ‘from. union ~
and non union firms, |

“Ts our palicy tol use “Yecar
trades’ and sub trades: wherever
possible, It's going to bean open
bidding process, We're going ‘to
be looking for the ‘best qualified,
_ Whoever they may be,” he said,

Arid: all. things being equal, ;
Donais ‘expects. local contractors.
to do weil in the bidding process: ©

He said his company has never
had the volume of ‘phone :calls”
and letters over a construction
plan'as it’s:now getting from the
northwest, ~

It’s as if they’re expecting us
to freeze them out. That's just not
the case,’* Donais continued, - -

He said he told one Kitimat
union’ official-.that shoppers .go
where they get the best'deal. and
that his company is no different, _
’ Saan official Tom Peake said it

encourages the company to hire .
local workers wherever possible,’

“We just want to be: part of the

community and hiring: local is. -
going to. be past: of. the: com- :
munity,’' Peake added.

Saan- announced plans - in ‘ate

+1994 'to build:stores in Terrace
aad in Kitimat, Each will cost ap-
proximately $2million, °. -

kkk aK.

Skeens NDP . MLA - Helmut
Giesbrecht has also written a let-
ter encouraging Saan to favourab-
ly. consider the request of the
unions.

_ Skeena Reform MP-Mike Scott

is also going to write a letter but
won't indicate a preference for
union or non-union contractors | or
workers. Poplars

settlement lands in. Ite poli

“Province . wide. standards at

‘resource management and : che

vironmental, protection will - *pp-
ly,’” said Anne Ferdinands,

Varlous’ native groups,” includ-

‘ing the Nisga's, have indicated

they haye no. problem with’ the

of discussion in our committee,” : Forest P ractices Code, fo

+ And fonts have. ‘said, “they
" ronger