In the dumps Dig it, eh Getting closer landfill is getting complicated\NEWS A12 Deciding on the spot for a regional Thornhill Junior students work up a sweat for a new irrigation line\COMMUNITY B1 The last molds for the ramps of the skateboard park were poured last week\SPORTS B6 WEDNESDAY JUNE 3, 1998 93¢ PLUS 7¢ GST VOL. 11 NO. 8 Anglers hope for bare bones fishery By JEFF NAGEL SPORTSFISHERMEN are asking to be allowed a carefully regulated fishery for chinook, steelhead and other stocks this summer if highly restrictive measures are taken to prevent the catch of endangered coho, Sport Fishing Advisory Board chair Jim Culp said those measures may seem extreme, bul it’s a desperate response to try to salvage some kind of sportfishery this summer and prevent the collapse of the backbone of the northwest tourism industry. The alternative, he said, is a total angling closure, . The Department of Fisheries and Oceans is consid- ering the request and is expected to announce the fish- ing plan on Monday. _ “Cross your fingers but don’t get your hopes up too much,” Culp told dozens of fishermen and guides at a meeting Monday night. “We've gone to the Nth degree lo ensure that no summer coho will be lost,” he said. “But there's a lot of opposition within the department. We're not home free yet.” Guides like Steve Nickolls were anxious for answers. “Our clients are going to be here in five weeks,” he said, “They’ve got their tickets in their hands and we've got to [ell them our government hasn't made a decision yet.” “We keep telling them to kecp waiting but they're not waiting. They're going somewhere else.” The fishing plan proposed by the Sport Fishing Advisory Board calls for: WM Normal fishing for chinook up to July 15. W Single barbless hocks only every where, @ No use of bait or metal spoons or spinners start- ing July 15 and continuing until August 7th down- stream of Terrace and ending August Ist upstream of Terrace. H People fishing for chinook could do so down- stream of Terrace up to August 7th. @ After August 7th (and after August Ist upstream) only artificial flies could be used. That would continue #1 use of gatfs to land a fish would be banned on the river, # On tributaries upstream of Terrace single barbless hooks would be required Aug. 15 to Nov. 30 and metal spoons and spinners would be. banned in that same period. “We simply have to find lures and techniques that aren'l going to catch coho,” Culp exptained. Culp also dropped another bomb on the industry — that whatever measures are put in place could con- tinue for several years before coho are health enough for normal fishing to resume. “This is just year 1,” he said. “One cycle is tour years, And we're probably going to be talking about two cycles.” Culp alse said that what semblance of a fishery remains will have to be zealously protected by all local people. He said that means turning everyone on the river into observers to monitor what fishing is done. tally will have to move front their spot on the river, he said. ; Failure of locals to strictly enforce measures ensur- ing no catch of coho would likety lead to the compiete closure of fisheries, he said. ; “We have to make sure we don’t lose our sport fish- ery because some people don’t give a damn,” Culp added, “We can't afford to-have those kind of people screwing it up for everyone else.” Fishermen and guides in the room took turns blam- - ing the cofio crisis on everything [rom poor science to the commercial fishery. | | But by far the biggest target of the night was the Department of Fisheries und Oceans, whose officials faced a firestorm of criticism for what many called years of inismanagement, “Haw the hell can you stand up there and tell us we have to change,” said Bruce Hill, former president of the Steelhead Society. “First you managed cod into Continued Page A2 s Calling all porcupines TODD ZIMMERLING uses an antenna and radio recelver to tune in and locate the radio transmitter-collared porcupines he's studying in the Shames River valley. There are about 18 different until Oct. 1. wired porkies wandering the valley wearing Zimmerling’s radio collars. Porcupines give foresters major headaches because of their love for young trees. See story Page A74. Anyone who catches more than one coho acciden- Hospital trims surgery time Endoscopy seen as way to save money and cut budget deficit _ OPERATING ROOMS at Mills Memorial Hospital will be used less this year in an attempt to balance the insitution’s budget, says the chair of the Terrace Area Community Health Council. Instead, more patients will undergo surgery using recently purchased endoscopy equipment, says Larisa Tarwick. The technique involves using highly specialized surgical equipment to avoid having to make inci- sions associated with standard surgical practices, * Hospital officials expect-more concentration on endoscopy will lower overall surgical costs, “That became a factor this spring when Mills élosed its two operating rooms for two weeks to dave money. - Attempts last budget year to increase endoscopy procedures and reduce operating time didn’t work 4s planned. Pe : But that should change this year as more physi- cians and hospital employees become trained and experienced inthe procedures, said Tarwick. And the key is having physicians accept new procedures, she added, “The physicians have to buy in. They are the ones who decide to do what, where and when,” said Tarwick. , Tarwick noted that while the community health council is responsible for the hospital, physicians are responsible for treatment of their patients, - “We have to find some kind of balance although we recognize change is hard,” she said. Tarwick’s comments come as the community health council struggles to come up with a bal- | anced budget for the fiscal year just begun. Mills ran a deficit of $318,000 last year despite making the provincial government a promise it would run one of $178,000. Part of that promise is to balance the books by the end of this year, Yet early indications are that Mills will run a deficit again this year of at least $150,000. But Tarwick said hospital officials hove an 80- item. list of possible cuts which, if they work, will bring it very close to breaking even. “Nothing we are doing will affect direct patient care,” Tarwick promised. Further merging of administrative services between Mills and Terraceview Lodge, also run by the community health council, will save dollars which can then be used for patient care, she suid. And the introduction last year of a new food preparation system is resulling in savings. Community health council officials are banking on some financial help from the province for the hospital's intensive care unit. At least 22 per cent of the unit's patients come from oulside of the geographic area used to calcu- late the hospital’s budget and the province is giv- ing a sympathetic ear to the case for more maney. As well, health minister Penny Priddy has prom- ised to send up at feast one of her officials to look at the financtal situation facing Mills. That must happen before the hospital’s budget is filed in just over two weeks time, Tarwick expects the official to arrive as soon as the health council has a working budget ready for examination. © / That's to be done by next week, Expert knows school cuts are difficult By ALEX HAMILTON. ONE OF three people here this week to help solve the school district’s budget problems has had to make some difficult spending reductions himself. : Greg Frank is the’ secretary-ireasurer of the Nanaimo- Ladysmith school district which this spring cut $1.2 mil- lion from ils preliminary operating budgel to make it balance at $94.2 miltion. Frank said he tried hard this year lo keep cuts out of the classroom and outside of the instructional area, © His district, which is responsible for 48 schools and 17,000 students, had already cut more than 313 million from its budget in recent years. And while music and band programs were or are threatened here, they’ve already been pared down in Frank's school district as part of those earlier budget cuts, The culs this year have reduced spending to the bare es- sentials, said Frank. This year the largest reduction was made to schools’ supply budgets — $171,000, Also cut was the equivalent of three full time teachers’ aids and the equivalent of one elementary learning —_assistance\elementary — specch pathologist teacher. Other reductions were made to professional development budgets, clerical staff, photocopier repairs, sick leave, new technology, English as a second language supplies, shop equipment repairs, and more. Most of the cuts made this year won't affect students directly because of difficult decisions made in past years, said Frank. In the 1992-93 school year, Grade 6 band was eliminated in Frank’s dis- trict. The next year Grade 7 Grade 6 and Grade 7 band pro- grams in Nanaimo band = was eliminated. Elementary physical educa- and Ladysmith tion teachers have also been fave already been eliminated for the most part. = cut, Frank remembers a very strong reaction from the public when these cuts were made. “T's a valuable service,”’ he said, referring to the band program. ‘‘But il’s not a service that there is funding for.”’ Frank explained that since districts are restricted to what they can reduce, boards look al the less critical services, and band falls inlo that category. “We still have a thriving music program in our dis- tinct,”? he said of instruction in singing and other musical arts, Frank said his school district maintains music instruction for Grades 1 to 5 students when their regular classroom teachers have preparation time. Preparation time away from students is required so having a music program dur- ing that period then means two necds arc met. Students also go to the library during their classroom teacher's prep- aration time. Joining Frank in the probe of the local school district is, Barbara Naef, recently retired as an assistant superinten- _dent of the Surrey school district and former education depuly minister Wayne Deshamnais. Each person on the efficiency team will be paid $6,500 for their work, They arrived in Terrace June 1 and should have their report and recommendations for the board and’ for the education minister done by the end of the month. Frank said he’ll meet with parent associations this week to discuss various recommendations. The Terrace school district must cut its spending by at least $300,000 to balance. Trustees here have suggested cutting music in kindergarten and Grade 6/7, PE in Grade 6/7 in Kilimat, resource centres, employce training and ac- counting services. An earlier plan to eliminate elementary band was abandoned. The team will analyze all the school districts practices and come up with the most suilable cuts and reductions. - ; : !