White wash Gift of life Exactly how large a protected ‘area does the Kermodei Bear need to survive?\NEWS A7# A local married couple share more than just their lives after an . operation\COMMUNITY B1 Banner year Organized soccer for women in Terrace grew by leaps and bounds in this year.\SPORTS B5 WEDNESDAY September.3, 1997 TAN DARD owner It’s a make or break week for SCI THIS FRIDAY is the deadline for a deal between unionized pulp mili workers and the banks that own Skeena Cellulose, company officials say. “It's a make or break week,” said Skeena Cellullose vicé-president Rudy Schwartz. “I don’t see any polen- tial for middle ground here. The situation has hit that late stage now where something has to happen.” The Royal and Toronto-Dominion banks that now control the company last week rejected calls for media- tion to help reach a deal with the union representing pulp workers in Prince Rupert. Time has all but run out before final decisions are to be made, the banks say. “The only way to save this mill is to implement the business plan,” said John Nixon, spokesman for the Royal and TD banks. “We're at the brink now and there just is not enough time for a facilitator to be of help.” The Pulp and Paper Workers of Canada (PPWC) local 4 has so far refused to budge on bank demands that full contracting oul and job flexibility clauses be included in the collective agreement. The banks, meanwhile, have refused to deviate from their business plan and open inland sawmills and log- ging operations on a solid-wood-only basis. At stake are the jobs of more than 2,000 workers across the northwest at the pulp mili, sawmills in Terrace, Camaby and Smithers, and area logging con- tractors. That doesn’t include other spin-off jobs. “The union must sign on or the banks will start the wheels in motion on their other altematives,” said SCI’s Schwartz. “The message should be very clear: The banks are not bluffing.” The banks worry customers will soon start going ¢lse- where for pulp, making the business plan all but useless. “All your projections on revenues and everything else are just right aut the window,” Nixon said, adding that’s why it’s so crucial the business plan be introduced as soon as possible. Nixon did leave the door open for last-minute inter- vention by the province. “At this late date, we need Minister (Dan) Miller or the premier to intervene directly if there is to be a solution,” he said, “This is no time to get a third party involved.” Miller on Friday urged the Royal and TD banks to agree to the apppointment of a third party to help broker a solution. “Given the ongoing urgency of the situation, the province feels the banks should agree to this pro- cess,” he said. Local 4 president Kal Sandhu said he’s shocked the banks didn’t agree to a third party facilitator. “[ would hope the banks are going to reconsider their position and recognize the need for all parties to work together to achieve a solution,” Sandhu said. The union maintains it’s still wailing for exact details on the capital expenditure plan and how jobs would be lost. “The numbers have been juggled in such an extraordi- nary fashion,” Sandhu said. “We need that information crystal clear in our minds, not just simple assumptions.” Sandhu maintains the deal isn’t dead. “We are actively working in a very progressive approach to the situa- tion,” he said. “This is not about money. This is about the future of thousands of families in the region.” foe as City wants cut of crooked cash TERRACE CITY council wants to get its hands on drug money. The city is looking for a cut of the cash and goods seized by the RCMP that’s suspected to have been earned from criminal activities. “Give us a cut of the booty,” says coun- cilor David Hull. “It’s only faiz.”’ Council recently sent a letter 10 federal justice minister Allan Rock formally re- questing a share of the confiscated goods. The letter points to am April 28, 1997 in- cident when Terrace RCMP executed a search warrant at the residence of Neil Lenard Strain. Police uncovered more than $130,000 at the home which was suspected to be from the proceeds of crime. Under the Narcotics Control Act, 80 to 90 per cent of that money goes to the province and the rest goes to the federal government. None goes back to the municipality. And council says that’s not fair because the city pays for 70 per cent of the per capita cost of each police officer assigned to the city. ‘We just want our cut of the pie,” Hull says. “If the money going out is shared, then the money coming in should be shared.”" But don’t expect the city to be holding garage sales full of confiscated goods. Hull says the government sells the confiscated items at federal auctions in the lower main- land. “They’ve seized half-million dollar homes down south,”’ he notes. Drivers blind to new lights TRAFFIC LIGHTS set up on Hwy 16 at Kenney St. more than a year ago have finally been turned on, but the change is so far creating as much chaos as order. RCMP said Tuesday many motorists so far haven't realized the lights are there, because they were bagged in canvas for so long. The lights were installed in June 1996, but weren't activated until Sunday because of pro- blems with a system to coordinate north-and south-bound traffic with the CN Rail crossing. “People are going straight through,” RCMP Const. Blake Walkinshaw said Tuesday morn- ing. “It even happened to me.” Walkinshaw said other motorists, waiting at Kenney St. to cross the highway, failed to proceed even though they had a green light. “It will take a few months,” said Stew Christensen, the City of Terrace’s director of engineering, “People should be very cautious ~ especially if they have the green light on Kenney — that they enter the intersection very, very carefully. It won't be the tourists that are the problem. It will be the people who have lived here for many, many years who will drive straight through.” Christensen’s glad the canvas bags have finally been taken off the lights because resi- dents tended to blame the city for the incredible delay in activating the lights. ' In fact, the city built and paid for all its share of the rebuilt intersection in 1996. The city wrote a number of letters to Transport Canada and CN Rail demanding action. The problem with the CN equipment — designed to detect approaching trains and then make north and southbound lights red so traffic doesn’t get hit by a train — is now solved. Christensen said it happened afler Transport Canada ordered the lights activated with ar without coordination with CN Rail trains, “They were getting concemed about the fact that school was coming back in, children were walking, and the interseclion needed a light.” CN then acted quickly, he said, and the lights now work as intended. Extend youth shaming JIM CULP of the Deep Creek Hatchery feeds a pond of chinook smolts. The hatchery is keeping these fish for a year before releasing them to see if that will help increase survival rates. The hatchery was also hoping to idea here, lawyer urges venes. collect summer coho eggs from the Copper River this year, but that might not happen because of poor returns. Coho numbers feared too low to try rescue Hatchery hopes to revitalize troubled Copper River run A PILOT project by the Deep Creek Haichery to help endangered coho stocks on the Copper River might not happen this year because of a dangerously low retum of wild stocks, “We're keeping our fingers crossed,’’ says Jim Culp of the hatchery. ‘‘The summer coho run was really low this year.”’ - Over the past two years, the batchery has been identifying coho spawning areas on the Copper and counting returning fish. The plan was to estimate the popula- tion, then take a percentage of the- eggs and raise them in the hatchery to help increase survival rates. ‘Copper coho are in huge trouble,"” Culp says. ‘‘They could use a little nudge.” Two years ago, the hatchery estimated about 300 fish made it up Copper River to spawn. That number dropped to about 200 last year, and this year it will likely be even fewer. “If the population is too low, we can’t take any eggs,” Culp says. “We can't jeopardize the wild population.” Culp says the hatchery will continue to monitor the Copper coho in hopes that there will be enough fish to allow them to lake some eggs. There is some good iiews at the hatchery, however. Work is going on there right now to create 9 watershed restoration demonstration arca. “The idea is for the public and other groups to come and look at what we've done and use it as a model for other areas,’’ Culp says. During the past few weeks, several watershed restoration experts have visited the hatchery to make sugges- tions and help redesign problem areas. ‘It was a great idea to bring them here”? Culp says. ‘‘Watershed restoration is pretty complicated and tricky stuff. Anyone who thinks you can destroy a stream and then throw a bunch of money at the problem and it will be like new is fooling themselves. . It takes years for streams to recover, All you can do {s lend a band and help reducé the impact.”* . Continued Page A2 BEFORE couris, lawyers and a compli- cated legal system, justice was handed out by neighbours. Simple and effective, this method of jus- tice was common to small villages and more recently to aboriginal groups around the world, Now a new Crown prosecutor in Terrace is hoping to revive this old form of justice. It’s a personal goal for Rita Scott, and has nothing to do with her new job, she empba- sizes. However, her legal expertise gives her unique insight into how such a system of justice might work. And she’s already helped set up three such models in Mackenzie, Fort St. John and Golden. Called family group conferencing, this model was brought over from Australia by Judge Heino Lillies of the Northwest Terti- tories. He was interested in how Australians and New Zealanders dealt with young of- fenders. There’s a much lower rate of re- offending, there than in North America. The advantages of the system is that jus- tice {s handed out quickly, and alll affected parties have a chance to speak. After a youth is arrested, bul before he or she is charged, the community group con- The group explains the process to the of- fender and his or her family, the victim and any others affected, If all partics agree to the process, they mect and begin proceedings. “The process shames the young person and then brings him or her back into a posi- tive relationship with the commutity,” says Scott. Each party agrees on the penalty and who will monitor it. “There’s no buffer between the young person and the consequences of his or her behaviour,” she says. The youth hears directly from the victim what the impact of (he crime was. And then the youth has to respond to that. Scott points out there are a number of ad- vantages to family group conferencing. Justice is very quick and money Is saved by diverting potentially lengihy court cascs out of the justice system. Young people are kept in touch with their families and communitles, and don’t link up with other deviant youth in correctional institutions. And the young offender empathy for the victim. As for what type of crimes would be ap- propriate for the system, or if it could be Continued Page A11 develops