Sh tether CENSUS: MUCH MORE THAN A HEAD COUNT — by Harriett Fjaagesund June 4, 1991 — time to stand up and be counted in the next Canadian Census of Population. Statistics Canada expects to count over 26 million Cana- dians, in 10.6 million households. Over 21 million questionnaires will be used; if these forms were laid end to end, they would stretch from Van- couver to Moncton, New Bruns- wick. To conduct the census will cost $1.72 per person in Canada. ~ The Canadian government will hire 45,000 census represen- tatives across Canada (5,000 across B.C., 190 in the Skeena area, and approximately. 55 in the Terrace area). Probably the most famous census of all time was taken during the birth of Christ. The first census in Canada took place in 1666 in New France (Quebec) by Jean Talon, the Intendent appointed by the French King. Excluding aborigi- nal and military. personnel, a total of 3,125 people were counted. Until 1867 when the British North America Act was introduced, many censuses were taken at irregular intervals in the colonies of France and Britain. The BNA required that a census be taken every 10 years. The first census after Con- federation was taken in 1871, and was the first to use the de jure method of enumeration, which counted people where they were found on Census Day, then adjusted the results of the location if it was not their usual place of residence (Europe used the de facto method, which counts people where they are CITY OF TERRACE PUBLIC NOTICE ROAD CLOSING TAKE NOTICE. THAT, pursuant to Section 578 of the Municipal Act, the Council of the City of Terrace intends to stop up and close to traffic that portion of OTTAWA STREET shown In heavy outline on the TO Section 573 of the Municipal Act, the Council of the City of Terrace Intends to petition the Minister of Municipal Affalrs, Recreation & Culture, to abandon the said road and vest title thereto In the name of the City of Terrace. ales LADLE Prat Ya Terry Mathews: The largest undertaking in Canada. found on Census Day, whether It is against the law to refuse or not it is their usual place of to fill out a census form. residence). The 1871 census counted the population of the four original provinces; Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Quebec and On- tario. Self-enumeration was in- troduced in 1971. This year also saw the passage of the new Statistics Act which changed the name of the Bureau of Statistics to Statistics Canada and made the five-year national census a law. plan below; AND PURSUANT wy Z CA 4ad EMERSON AVE. CAKELSE | eee ee SS OVERWAITIA GREIG AVE. 27, 1991. THE PROPOSED ROAD CLOSURE BY-LAW MAY BE IN- SPECTED between the hours of 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Mon- day to Friday, excluding holidays, from May 14, 1991 to May 27, 1991, inclusive, in the reception area at the City of Terrace Public Works Building at 5003 Graham Avenue, Terrace, B.C. Any person(s) wishing to voice their opinions regarding this Application may do so, in writing, andior in person AT THE SPECIAL COUNCIL MEETING, TO BE HELD IN THE MUNICI- PAL COUNCIL CHAMBERS, AT 7:30 P.M. ON MONDAY, MAY THIS NOTICE IS GIVEN IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE MUNIC- IPAL ACT, R.S.B.C., 1979, AND AMENDMENTS THERETO. TAKE NOTICE and be governed accordingly. E.R. Halisor, Clerk-Administrator Other than creating moun- tains of paperwork and ‘some temporary jobs, you may wonder why we, as Canadians, bother with a national census every five years. To sum it up in one sentence, information gathered during a census is vital to community planning at every level, and means real dollars in federal government transfer payments to each of the prov- inces (the government transfers to the province approximately $600 per year for every year counted). You can break that down even further — census data provides ‘municipalities and regional districts with a vital basis for decisions on education, health care, housing and social ser-. vices, public protection and transit services. Census information is also a key factor in planning accessible services for the disabled. Com- panies use data to develop prod- ucts, make sales, choose store or factory locations, and to deter- mine future expansion growth. Organizations as diverse as B.C. Hydro and the Cancer Control Agency rely on this readily available and accurate informa- tion. It is available through any public library or may be bought directly from Stats Canada. Two types of forms will be delivered to each household — regular short forms (10 basic questions) and long forms (54 questions). Donna Cairns, Com- munications Officer for Statistics Canada, says one in five households will receive the long form. ‘‘With that 20 per- cent sample of the country we are able to combine the long Terrace Review — Wednesday, May 15,1991 Bi form with the shorter form to receive a much more accurate picture.” Of special interest to farmers will be the Census of '- Agriculture, also conducted on June 4. In 1988, British Col- ~ umbia’s farms contributed a total of $1.3 billion worth of produce to Canadian agricul- tural export markets. New trade agreements have a ‘direct effect at the farm gate, and B.C. farmers need up-to- date information for partici- pating in trade negotiations. This data will also provide the farmers with information on their customers, the public. Cen- sus information can also provide historical basis for comparison of past and present conditions within the industry; farmers can estimate the individual effects of new trade agreements such as GATT and Free Trade. And if you happen to be one of the thousands of Canadians who have what is classed as a small hobby farm, you may still tatives. Quality control checks are conducted at every stage of the census. “Under the Statistics Act, all employees of Statistics Canada who handle census returns are required to take an Oath of Secrecy, and are subject to fines of $1,000 and/or imprisonment for any violation. Mathews says there has never been a breach of confidentiality in the history of the Canadian Census. Some people are bothered by the fact that census forms re- quire that they fill out their name, address and telephone number, but Mathews explains that this information is used on- ly to enable them to check that they have received a form from every household, and that the in- formation provided is complete. This also ensures that they don’t accidentally count someone twice in the census. And census information can only be used after it has been combined with the answers from millions of other households. be asked to fill out an agricul- ture census form. According to Stats Canada, if you have an ex- pectation of selling a product, then you must fill out the form. If you feel the agriculture census form applies to you but you have not received one, you can call toll free to request a form. Terry Mathews of Ft. Fraser, Census Area Manager for the Skeena area (Vanderhoof to the Charlottes and Stewart down to Kemano), the largest census area in the province, says that on June 4 canvassers wil! count people where they are, regard- less of citizenship. ‘‘If you’re in Canada on that day, then you'll be counted.” Mathews, who has logged 14,000 road kilometres. over the last two months (in addition to_ flying to various areas in this district), was a census com- missioner during the last na- tional census. He explains that a census is the largest undertaking in Canada, and that it will take approximately one year for all the information to be sifted through and recorded. Mathews goes on to explain that the quality of people hired for the census, including the training each individual receives, is excellent. Background rec- ords, such as police and criminal record checks, are also con- ducted on all applicants, Federal government employees, in- cluding members of the Armed Forces, ate not eligible for employment as census represen- All playing fields in the Terrace and Thornhill area schools will be fertilized monthly. This program will run from May through October 1991. . ‘Names, addresses and tele- phone numbers are removed from the census forms before the information is passed on to be loaded into the census base. Confidentiality is a very serious thing and it is protected at all costs,’ Mathews says. Individu- al information gathered during a census is not available to anyone — not the police, not welfare, not immigration, not any other government department, Not even the National Security In- telligence Service or the Prime Minister of Canada can obtain your individual census question- naire. No judge or court can order the information released. “Canada is the premier census-taker in the world. Peo- ple come from all over the world to see our census in action. Part of the reason that the Canadian census is so accurate is that the people in Canada are so co- operative,’” Mathews says. Canvassers who will be going into remote areas and onto native reservations will be help-— ing people, door-to-door, to fill out their census forms {long — forms only). Natives particularly have requested this in order to have a completely accurate cen- sus. All canvassers on native reserves will be native. Census forms will be dropped off at each household starting the last week in May. Mathews reminds people to fill out their forms on June 4 and drop them in the mail that same day. No stamp is required; because of the huge volume, an agreement has been worked out between Stats Canada and the Post Office. If you have any questions of haven't received a census ques- tionnaire by June 1, or if you need assistance in filling out your form, you can phone 1800-267-1991 or 1-800-465-1991 (Census of Agriculture).