The Terrace Standard, Wednesday, December 20, 2000 - A5 By JENNIFER LANG THE HIGHWAYS ministry is looking at ways to reduce the amount of road salt used each winter. Federal environmental regula- tions establishing guidelines for the use of road salt are expected in two years. Meanwhile, Canada’s environ- ment minister may decide to de- clare road salt a toxin under the '~Canadian Environmental Protec- tion Acl, even though it’s not harmful to humans. Don Ramsey, Skeena district highways manager, said Environ- ment Canada has offered assur- “ances that there won't be an all- out ban on road salt. “They also say they will not compromise safety on roadways, or put caps on road salt usage,” he said. But he expects the regulations will establish guidelines on the storage and usage of road salt, particularly in environmentally sensitive areas. : HIGHWAYS district manager Don Ramsey stands in front of viles. of salt in the ministry's new salt shed in Thornhill. It's been de- signed to prevent road salt from escaping and contaminating the . surrounding environment. Crews S aiming to reduce use of road salt May be declared a toxin in Canada plants, fish, and potentially even animals. With this in mind, the Skeena highways district constructed a new salt shed at its Thornhill stor- age yard earlier this year. The foundation of the $80,000 shed and portions of the yard are tined, preventing salt run-off. As well, the highways ministry is about to launch an experi- mental mapping project that could reduce the amount of salt used on the district’s roads. namic thermal map of the dis- trict’s major roads under different weather conditions. Ramsey said temperatures and weather conditions change along the highways, but the paltern of relative temperatures remains fairly constant. All of the major roads in the Skeena district — Highway 16 West from Kitwanga to Prince Rupert, Highway 37 from Terrace to Kitimat, and the Nisga’a High- way from Terrace to Rosswood — Once completed, Ramsey said the thermal maps will contain a pattern of hot spots and cold spots along the road that will help maintenance crews determine when and where to jay down salt. That’s because drivers can ac- cess up-to-the minute road and air temperatures from four Highways Ministry weather stations in the Skeena district. Two weather sta- tions were added this year. Ramsey said the combination will be an extremely accurate tool for the crews who keep our high- ways clear of snow and ice. Meanwhile, the district’s main- tenance contractor, Nechako Northcoast, is conducting trials using pre-wetted salt and sand on the roads. “What it does is it minimizes the application of salt and sand because it doesn’t bounce off the road right away before it’s needed,” Ramsey said. Pre-wetted salt starts to act right away, because it forms a brine solution much more quickly than traditional dry road salt pel- CORRESPONDENCE FOR THE TERRACE STANDARD Road salt impacts the environ- ment, because it harms some Tips for drivers Here’s how to dodge trouble The ministry is creating a dy- * of a St tt G78 pr peered pee cerrer ge Beer CE YS ere owe are included in the experiment lets do. i Gand [pte yet trent ’ 4 4 on the roads this winter By SARAH ZIMMERMAN WITH winter well under way in the north, dri- vers need to be extra cautious on the roads. But before you even hit the road there are a number of helpful hints to keep in mind. “Make sure to sweep off your lights before driving away,” advises Shane Illingworth of Kermodei Driving School. ‘Snow surrounding lights makes it difficult for other drivers to know where you are going and it blocks headlight beams. While you are sweeping off the car it's a ‘good-idea to let the engine warm up. The B.C, Automobile Association suggests keeping the heater and defoggers on while you scrape your windows and mirrors. _’ Frozen locks can be a major prablem in the winter. If this- happens you may want to use a hair dryer to heat up the lock or a spray-on lu- ~ bricant to blow out any water and oil coat it. However, Ilingwerth warns using lock de- icer regularly can corrode the tumblers inside. ‘He suggests using a three-in-one oil in the jock after using deicer. It wili lube the inner workings and prevent further freezing he said. So, you’ve made it out of the driveway. What should you look out for on the roads? Firstly, increase the distance between you - and vehicles ahead by up to six times the nor- mal-safety gap, depending on road conditions. “-.Remember that ice forms’ faster an bridges, overpasses and in shaded areas. “Intersections tend to be the most slippery places ‘on the road,” says Ilingworth. “Vehicles sit at the lights with the exhaust pipes :heating up the ground and then it freezes.” ‘The best line of defense when approaching inlersections is to start applying the brake well before you normally would. A checklist HERE are some of tha items that should be in your car in case of a winter road- side emergency. @ A tow rope and chains @ Booster cables “MA candle and holder. If you should be stuck in a cold broken down vehicle the heat from a single candle can put olf a tremendous amount of heal in such a small enclosed area. m@ Dry food m@ Reflective gear in case you break down at night. MA first aid kit @ A shovel mA blanket, sleeping bag or some extra warm. Winter clothing, @ Some drinking waler EVEN 4X4s get stuck, as evidenced by this pickup that wallowed in a local parking lot Saturday. At right, precautions must be taken when deicing car locks. Illingworth suggests touching the brake a few times to clearly warn drivers behind that you are stopping. This will help avoid being rear-ended at a slippery intersection. Keeping an eye out for pedestrians is parli- cularly important in winter, say police, “Watch out for pedestrians and children wearing toques,” advises Cst. Bill Casault. “They don’t hear as well with their ears covered.” Watching one’s speed, particularly at night is also critical to slaying safe on the roads, If you can only see 30 to 40 metres down the road while driving at-night, you are driving too fast, say police. IHingworth also reminds drivers to scan highway shoulders for wildlife, “It’s usually the second moose that people hit,” said Illingworth. “People can be so busy looking at the first moose that they don’t even see the second one come out of the shadows." Another winter highway hazard are hills. Before approaching a hill on a-slick toad, build up some momentum an level ground to carry you over the top, advises lhe BCAA. — Even a relatively modest incline can be a traction challenge when the road is slippery. Accelerating or downshifting on a slick sur- face is more likely to break tire traction and cause wheel spin. An early indicator of trouble is a feeling of lightness in the steering wheel and a slower steering response. If this happens, ease up on the accelerator arid slow down. IMingworth also recommends putling your vehicle into neutral before coming to a stop. “Putting your transmission into neutral will eliminate the idle power to your. wheels and you'll brake € better,” he sald, If your car starts to skid, try not to panic. Although the instinctive reaction is to hit the brakes -— don’l, unless your car has an anti-lock ° braking system (ABS). Instead, ease your foot off the gas pedal and look and steer in the direction you want to tra- vel. When you regain control, apply the brakes with a gentle pumping action to prevent the wheels from locking up, If your car has ABS, the BCAA says to apply. a firm and consistent pressure and steer in the direction you want to go. - The pedal will vibrate and probably make a drumming noise as the ABS works to prevent the wheels from locking up. Be ready to cor- rect the steering when the tires do get traction. Perhaps one of the most frustrating winter scenarios is when your vehicle gets stuck. ‘It may be tempting to gun the accelerator or get people to push you out, but Mlingworth suggests a. more methodical approach. “Always assess the situation,” says Iling- worth: “IF you just spin you tires your transmis- sion.can overheat, you could create a rut in the snow from going forward and backwards.” Don’t be afraid to get out and shovel, says © Illingworth. He also suggests using sand under the tires for extra traction. Remember that anything can happen in the winter. Give yourself extra time when traveling the roads: this winter, Be ‘aware of the people and vehicles around - you, Be prepared and drive safely, The Mail Bag Time to speak up for our health care Dear Sir: You have to admire the courage of Brad Mazurak in his Dec. 13th letter to The Terrace Standard “How This Man Lost His Wife”. Mr. Mazurak should be commended for having the guis to come forward and tell us how bad our health care system is, in spite of opening up the pain of his own personal tragedy, The NDP government must be made to realize thal every British Columbian is entitled to proper health care. It is simply not acceptable for people to risk death waiting in limbo for life-saving procedures. So what is wrong with our system? It is not the fault of our local health care providers.. Most people who have been in Mills Memorial recently realize that our doctors and nurses are doing a great job in spite of the constraints they are working under. I blame the top-down mentality of our current government. You simply cannot dictate from Victoria a one-size-fits-all health care system. It doesn't work, boys — face up to it. With a dictated, top-down system, something very valuable goes out the window; the cooperation of. the people you need to depend on to make the system work. It’ no wonder that the cost of healthcare is spiralling out of control. You might ask, “What about our local health councils? Aren’t they supposed to give local representation to Victoria?” Not wilh this government, The role of the politically appointed community health council seems to be to act as a shield to protect the government from the legitimate concerns of the citizens. Nor can you expect any help from the man who is supposed to be our local provincial representative, Mr. Helmut Giesbrecht. He has also been acting as a shield to deflect any criticism of NDP health policies. So what can we do about it? More people like Mr. Mazurak need to speak out. Don’t be afraid. It’s only by standing up to the bullies that we will be free of them. Another thing that we can do is consider private clinics, paid by the medicare system. These would not be the “beginning of the end of universal medicare” as the NDP and the federal Liberals would like you to believe. What they would do is bring accountability into he system, reduce waiting lists and begin to build a bottom-up model of heath care. Don’t forget that there are already private clinics in B.C. — private abortion clinics. Perhaps private clinics, surrounded by bubble zones to keep the socialists out would go a long way to preventing any more tragic and senseless deaths in this province. Until then, it?s time to give the NDP the proctologist’s salute. cola, horme Sexton, Terrace, B.C. QMgy le pe tbe te un Someone is not always to blame Dear Sir: In the continuing debate on health care I am just a little puzzled at some of the cases that are being raised and the claim that they were caused by a lack of funding when even the few facts included clearly indicate that human error may have been the cause. In recent weeks ] have read about doctors (always nameless in the letter} and sometimes parents and patients making a decision that had unpleasant and sometimes dire consequences. Even in the most obvious cases, when the facts show otherwise, the claim is that cuts to health care or lack of funding are the cause. There is not always someone to blame. Health services are not delivered with the certainty that you get when you visit the local mechanic, Health services are delivered by people who make decisions and on rare occasions they make mistakes. I have never said that everything in health is fine, The province has increased health spending from $5.8 billion to $9 billion in just 10 years. The federal government has decreased its share of health costs from 25 per cent to 15 per cent. That difference of 10 per cent is $900 million less to B.C, And the federal government recently received approval for the cuts from voters. The questions that many letters raise can only be answered by the folks at Mills Memorial who will justifiably never respond to a letter to the editor due to the confidential nature of the service they provide. tf Mills Memorial has 5,000 in-patient and day- patient cases a year and 18,000 emergency visits there are bound to be cases that need to be investigated and maybe corrective measures will be necessary. Finally, not all the healthcare services anyone will ever need will be located in every community in the province. Terrace over the last decade has not lost any services, it has gained some, Dialysis was not delivered at Mills in the past and has not been lost due to cuts which have not occurred. The Terrace and Area Health Council has requested a dialysis unit be established here and I have been lobbying for one. We are now on the list to be considered for the next “satellite” dialysis slation and I believe we have a good case. Expansion of services is based on need and distances from the nearest station. So let me say once more and this time especially to Lynne Christiansen, when you are competing with all other regions for a bigger portion of the provincial funding “pie,” the facts are much more persuasive than rhetoric, That should be obvious to anyone, :Helmut Giesbrecht, MLA, ‘Skeena About the Mail Bag The Terrace Standard welcomes letters. Our address is 3210 Clinton St., Terraca, B.C. Vaq 5R2. You can fax us at 250-638-8432 or e-mail us at standard@kermode.net. No attachments, please, We need your name, address and phone number for verification. Our deadline {s noon Friday or noon Thursday if it's. a lang weekend. oo