y Vol. 4, Issue No. Ja Land owner ‘appalled’ @ - Legislative Library, | Parliament Buildings, Victoria, B.C. V8V 1X4 YOUR HOMETOWN LOCALLY OWNED AND OPERATED NEWSPAPER TERRACE, B.C.. WEDNESDAY, April 6, 1988 me eet enna SA SS TA A TC SEE a by mining rights TERRACE — With some excep- tions, a ‘‘free miner’’ cannot be denied access to private property and has the: right to stake. mineral claims without the owner’s permission. by Tod Strachan Under the Mineral Act, a ‘free miner’? is defined as the holder of a Free Miners License, - and a Free Miners License is available, at a cost of only $25, to any Canadian citizen or per- manent resident who is 18 years or older, or any Canadian cor- poration. With his license, a free miner may enter any property he wishes, Crown or private, in order to prospect, explore, locate, mine, or produce minerals, with the exception of land occupied by a building, or cleared land or land under cultivation which includes gardens and orchards. He's also restricted, but may apply for permission, for entry into parks and mineral reserves. According to Kitimat-Stikine Regional District administra- tion, once he has staked his claim to sub-surface rights the free miner is then free to “‘use. and possess the surface of the claim’’ for exploration, develop- ment, production, and the treat- ment of ores and concentrates. _ Bill 66 is an amendment to the Mineral Act which is currently under review and is supposed to provide more protection to the property owners — but the regional district doesn’t believe it offers any more protection than the old act. These ominous facts were cause for local land owner Jim Culp to write a letter of com- plaint recently to the Ministry of. Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources Gold. Commissioner, Don McMillan, in Smithers. Culp told McMillan that he was ‘‘appalled’’ when he discovered the Erickson Gold Mining Corporation had staked a claim for sub-surface rights on a a Outside Date Hi Lo Prec. Mar. 28 2 -1 _ 3.6mm rain Mar, 20 7 #0 4mm saln Mar. 30 6 2 4.0 mm rain Mar. 31 8 3 10.9 mm rain Apr 1 & 2 trace of rain Apr. 2 5 0 2.8 mm rain Aor. 3 6 1 5.8 mm mixed raln & snow Forecast: Continuing unseitled with afternoon highs to 6 and overnight lows 6 to -2. Inside Business Guide 16 Church Directory 10 Classified Ads 21, 22,23 Coming Events 14 Comics 20 Crossword 20 Dining Directory 2 Entertalnment 2 Horoscope 18 Letters § Opinions 4 Sports 8 Talk of the Town 5 his property last August without telling him they had even been on the land. He asked that Erickson be re- quired to post a security bond assuring they would not enter his property without permission. McMillan complied with this re- quest and told Erickson they would have to post a $2,500 per hectare bond for property loss or damage before they could re- enter the land, However, they still didn’t need his permission to enter his land and this did not satisfy Culp. He’ wrote another ‘letter, this time to B.C. Minister of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources Jack Davis. Culp told Davis of the Erickson claim and asked that the Mineral Act be properly defined, giving land owners more protection and the right to be aksed for their permission prior to a free miner entering their property. . Culp explained that the excep- tions to a free miners access - privileges listed in the act don’t cover his property, which is be- ing developed as.a small fishing. resort. -_ He said that the undeveloped portion of their land had been left in its natural state inten- tionally as a “buffer zone’’, and he therefore didn’t want to do any work on the land and he didn’t want anyone else working on it either. However, even under the Bill 66 amendment, by posting the security bond Erickson Mines has the right to enter his proper- ty any time they choose — without permission. Culp is still awaiting Davis’ reply. Miss Terrace 1987 Charlotte Terrace businessman Gerry Martin, one of a focal group of entrepreneurs who now own shares In the restructured Shames Mountain Development Corporation, addressed the Terrace and District Chamber of Commerce jast week. Martin sald the ski resort development Is stili walting on govern- ment decisions, but it may be open by November of this year. For story, see page 2. . Drama fest this month — The R.E.M. Lee Theatre, barely recovered from the activ- ity of the Pacific Northwest Music Festival, will host another major cultural event at the end of this month. Terrace will be the venue for this year’s Skeena Zone Drama Festival April 28-30. Competing for the privilege of representing the Northwest at this year’s B.C. Festival of the Arts will be the On Cue Players of Kitimat, Prince Rupert’s Harbour Theatre, the Bulkley Valley ' and Terrace Hockey rep Schoeps Sharon Larmour were two of the dignitaries on hand to greet B.C. midget hockey teams who came to Terrace last week for the triple ‘AAA’ provin- clal champlonships. Pictures and complete results of the four-day tourna: ment can be found on pages 12, 13, and 14 of this week's Terrace Review. | Players from Smithers and the Terrace Little Theatre. This year’s adjudicator will be Voni Grindler of the Vancouver Arts Club Theatre. Production titles, scheduling and other information will be summarized in next week’s Ter- race Review. Tickets for events are on sale at Sight and Sound in the Skeena Mall, 50 CENTS Newname deadline | tomorrow The deadline for the contest to find a new name for School District 88 (Terrace) is Thurs- day, April 7. You can enter as often as you like - additional en- try forms are available at schools and libraries through- out the district. All entries should be received by April 7, at 3211 Kenney Street, Terrace,. - V8G 3E9. a When you consider that the geographic. area covered by the . School District serves an area of | about 35,000 square miles and over a dozen communities, you — can understand why the name ‘Terrace’ does not adequately describe such a big chunk: of northwestern B,C, Over 5,000 students in 20 schools from Ter- race, Thornhill, Hazelton, Kit- wanga, Stewart, Kispiox, Mor- icetown, Gitsegukla, Gitimaax, Kitsumkalum and other centres call District 88 their own. _ If a name that better describes the District is declared a winner by the Board of School Trustees, a prize will be awarded. If the winning name is submitted by a student, $500 will be awarded to the winner’s school for the pur- chase of new equipment. If the winner is an adult, a $300 bur- sary in the name of their choice will be given to some deserving — June, 1988 graduate in either Terrace, Hazelton, or Stewart. Award for Brenner Arno Brenner, the Director of the Terrace Community Correc- tional Centre, was one of eleven B.C, residents who received an Exemplary Service Award from Lt. Governor Robert Rogers ina recent ceremony in Victoria. The award is given to corrections and police officials who have more than 20 years service and have made a major contribution dur- ing their career. When asked about the award, Brenner said he felt it really belongs to the entire staff of the Terrace Community Correc- » |. tional Centre, because without their hard work and dedication the center wouldn’t have receiv- ed the attention it has. Brenner said the Terrace center became a national model after it was the first in the coun- try to develop a work program, cutting and selling firewood, which made the center ‘‘ninety- nine percent self-supporting’’. ‘‘The Terrace experience had repercussions on the whole branch and showed a lot of in- itiative on behalf of the center,” said Brenner, ‘‘And it was the staff here that did it, It took a lot of dedication, and my feeling about this award is that it’s for to be shut down. ARNO BRENNER: Award _ really belongs to entire Corrections staff. the whole centre — not just for me.’” Other developments that have earned Brenner and his staff recognition are the Direct Entry Program, a method for assessing the suitability of an inmate for serving his term in a minimum security center, and a Co-ed Program which operated suc- cessfully for five years before difficulties at Oakalla Peneten- tiary caused the entire program