BRITISH COLUMBIA

Free trade
‘disastrous’

Continued from page 1

She hit the Conservative government’s
parliamentary hearings on free trade, not-
ing these are invitation-only affairs in which
even regional and national labour bodies
have had trouble attending. And she critic-
ized a possible national referendum on free
trade.

“There is only one referendum and one
only on this issue, and that is a general
election,” she declared to applause.

“Never in my worst concerns ... did I
ever once believe that any group of Canadi-
ans could ever sign an agreement as disas-
trous as this one is ... This is not an
agreement, this is a sellout of a country,”
Hurtig declared.

Hurtig cited a document from the Groc-
ery Products Manufacturers of Canada
— which includes multinationals such as
Coca-Cola and General Foods — targeting
Canadian ‘marketing boards, laws protect-
ing Canada’s agricultural industry and
social programs for elimination.

“That is the secret agenda of these big
corporations that are trying to push this
deal,” he said.

Stating that “our greatest asset, our abil-
ity to determine our own future” is being
sold out by the Mulroney government, Hur-
tig called on the opposition Liberals and
New Democrats to act.

In a conclusion that netted a prolonged,
standing ovation, Hurtig urged those par-
ties, if the Mulroney government presses
forward with its free trade agenda, to
“block the business of the House of Com-
mons and let the people of Canada decide in
a federal election.”

A fire aboard a nuclear-equipped ship in
Victoria’s Esquimalt harbour which resulted
in the incineration of a nuclear weapon
could contaminate an area “several kilome-
tres beyond the accident site” and cause the
latent cancer deaths of as many as 3,400
people, a study prepared by a leading U.S.
nuclear policy specialist has concluded.

Even a reactor accident which resulted in
the release of radioactive materials could
cause as many as 422 latent cancer deaths,
said Dr. W. Jackson Davis, a professor of
biology in the Nuclear Policy Program at
the University of California’s Adlai Steven-
son College.

In either instance, evacuation of most of
greater Victoria would have to be carried
out quickly, followed by a massive decon-
tamination of the area, which could cost
tens of billions of dollars and might even
necessitate the abandonment of the area.

Because of that, the federal government
and Canadians should consider very care-
fully whether to allow nuclear-capable ves-
sels to visit its harbours, Dr. Davis recom-
mended. :

The two nuclear accident scenarios,
together with recommendations for changes
in public policy, were contained in an 89-
page study which Dr. Davis completed last
month. It was released in Victoria and
Ottawa Nov. 6.

Entitled “Nuclear Accidents on Military
Vessels in Canadian Ports: Site Specific
Analysis for Victoria-Esquimalt,” it was
commissioned in September by five Vic-
toria-area disarmament groups: the Victo-
ria chapter of Physicians for the Prevention
of Nuclear War, Greater Victoria Disar-
mament Group, Greenpeace Canada,
Greenpeace International and Operation
Dismantle. Rs ae

Phil Esmonde of the Greater Victoria
Disarmament Group said that the study
was prompted by the increasing number of

Closure of B.C. fish plants
threatened with GATT ruling

The west coast’s unionized fishermen
are outraged and have demanded the
federal government repudiate an interna-
tional trade ruling on Canada’s fish
exports that threatens to eliminate thou-
sands of B.C.’s fish processing jobs.

Against the background of an im-
pending free trade deal, a panel of the
General Agreement on Tariffs and
Trade (GATT) has ruled that laws
governing the eT
export of Cana-
dian-caught low-
er-grade salmon
and herring vio-
late GATT’s pro-
visions.

Geoff Meggs
of the United
Fishermen and Al-
lied Workers Un-
ion said the gov-
ernment should
tell GATT the ruling is unacceptable.

“It makes a mockery of the 200-mile
fishing limit and it’s even worse than the
Salmon Treaty,” he said.

“You have to ask, what’s next: the
right of Canadian fishermen to fish in
their own waters?” Meggs said.

The 200-mile limit is recognized by
Law of the Sea provisions and means
world recognition that Canada has
authority over who can fish within 200
miles of Canada’s coasts. The Salmon
Treaty signed last year allows U.S.

RE =

visits to Esquimalt harbour by U.S. nuclear-
powered and nuclear-capable vessels — and
the lack of any independent study analyzing
the risk involved in the ship visits.

Dr. Davis noted in his study that the
number of nuclear-powered and nuclear-
capable vessels visiting Esquimalt increased
from six vessels which spent 29 days in port
in 1980 to 20 vessels which spent 76 days in
port in 1976.

Esquimalt is also one of the several bases
expected to be the home port for one of
more of the 12 nuclear submarines the fed-

(ays CE

‘The probability of a nuclear
weapon incineration accident is
attested to by the extensive
preparations for such an
accident by the U.S. military.’

a

eral government is proposing to acquire, as
outlined in its defence white paper.

But those military changes have not been
accompanied by any disclosure of the
dangers involved in the event of accidents
which involve the release of radioactivity,
Dr. Davis asserted. Asa result, the public is
forced to “accept implicitly a risk which
cannot be evaluated independently.”

In fact, the risk may be far greater than
simple. statistical probability but at the
moment, it remains “incalculable,” said

Jackson, because of the U.S. military policy»

of keeping information on accidents classi-
fied and allowing military spokesmen to
deny the presence of radioactive materials
even following an accident. -

But even what information is available
highlights the danger, the study noted.

So far, Jackson said, “public available
catalogues of U.S. nuclear accidents ...

fishermen to intercept 20 per cent of the
Fraser River run, a move the UFAWU
called deplorable.

The laws stipulating that salmon and
herring be processed in B.C. came under
attack by fish processors in Alaska,
Washington and California. The com-
plaint was formally launched with the
Geneva-based GATT by the US.
government a few years ago.

Meggs said the ruling could wipe out
an estimated 4,000 of the 6,000-8,000
canning and related fish processing jobs
in British Columbia, with fish being
shipped out of the country for cheaper
processing offshore.

The panel’s ruling, which had been
confirmed by the U.S. government but
not officially announced at press time,
must be adopted by a full tribunal of -
GATT to become effective, Meggs said.

Rulings are not binding on member
countries but failure to adhere to the
ruling by Canada, one of more than 100
GATT signatories, means the United
States can retaliate under GATT rules.
Canada can appeal but Fisheries Minis-
ter Tom Siddon has said the government
is unlikely to for fear of jeopardizing the
free trade deal — a decision which has
UFAWU members particularly incensed.

Meggs said the union’s reading of the
proposed free trade agreement indicates
that once the agreement is signed, GATT
rules would be binding on Canada. :

The ruling marks the second time in a

N-ship could devastate Victoria: scientist

demonstrate that more than 300 such acci-
dents/incidents have occurred in the U.S.
Navy.”

In addition, during the fiscal year 1986,
“U.S. Navy shore station fire departments
responded to 354 shipboard fire alarms,”
the study noted, although it was not known
how many involved nuclear-capable vessels
or how much damage was done.

Dr. Davis also cited a 1984 manual pro-
duced by U.S. Defence Nuclear Agency
which stated that the U.S. had not recorded
an accident which resulted in a “nuclear
yield.”” But at the same time, the manual
acknowledged: “Accidents have occurred,
however, which released radioactive con-
tamination because of fire or high explosive
detonations.”

Among submarine accidents was one
involving the British nuclear submarine
Torbay which released 120 litres of contam-
inated water into the Irish Sea. The subma-
rine, which visited Halifax in October, is a
Trafalgar-class vessel, one of two designs
currently under consideration by Defence
Minister Perrin Beatty.

“That the probability of a nuclear wea-
pon incineration accident is considered sig-
nificant is attested to by the extensive
preparations for such an accident that have
been taken by the U.S. military,” the study
stated.

But if the U.S. military has considered the
risks, it has not given the public the neces-
sary information — and the Canadian
government has no effective plan at all to
deal with such a catastrophe, Jackson stated
in his report.

“Detailed information regarding Cana-
dian emergency planning for nuclear acci-
dents is not available in the public domain,
(and) existing indications suggest that such
planning is deeply confused, inconsistent
and inadequate to anything but a very
minor radiological incident,” he said.

month that GATT has taken action
against a Canadian program intended to
protect Canadian jobs and industries.
Earlier, the organization ruled on a
complaint by European countries that
Canadian provisions that allow a higher
markup on imported wine and beer vio-
late GATT trade regulations.

“GATT obviously operates in favour
of the major players in the capitalist
world,” Meggs said.

With thousands of jobs and whole
canneries in some communities threa-
tened, the union is planning to fight the
ruling, Meggs said:

““We’re not about to see any foreign

power dictate how we process our fish,”
he stated.

On Tuesday, delegates to the Van-
couver and District Labour Council
voted to back the union in “whatever
action is necessary to protect our sover-
eignty and the jobs of more than 4,000
workers.”

The labour council called the GATT
ruling ‘“‘a direct attack on Canadian sovy-
ereignty and our right to control and
develop our natural resources as we see
ite

UFAWU business agent John Rado-
sevic told delegates that the ruling was
yet another warning of the danger in the
free trade deal since the proposed pact
would effectively impose the ruling on
Canada.

“It would appear that Canadian policy
with respect to more significant warship
accidents is, in essence, not to plan.”

For example, he said, the perimeter
which is to be cordoned off in the event of a
nuclear accident only extends to 609 metres
beyond the accident site. “(Yet) the
impacted area would extend up to several -
metres from the accident site and could
include much of Esquimalt, Victoria and
Saanich,” the study warned.

Dr. Davis wound up his 89-page report
with seven recommendations, calling on
Canadians to determine whether allowing
port visits by nuclear-capable vessels and
basing nuclear-powered submarines in
Canada “represent socially utilitarian poli-
cies

His recommendations called for:

@ An evaluation by the federal govern-
ment and the Canadian public to determine
whether, “in light of the possible conse-
quences of nuclear war and/or accidents,
the benefits of port visits ... outweigh the
prospective costs.”

If such ports visits are to continue, the
study recommended, the federal govern-
ment should:

@ Extend evacuation zones to at least five
kilometres; :

@ Develop evacuation plans and rehearse
them regularly;

@ Develop plans, budgets and timetables
for decontamination, with clear assignment
of federal, provincial and local government
responsibilities;

@ Seek the necessary information from
the governments whose ships are visiting
that would enable emergency planners to
calculate the risk of nuclear accidents;

© Clarify with those governments re-
sponsibility for liability and indemnity in
the event of an accident;

@ Update emergency planning manuals
and publicize them widely.

PACIFIC TRIBUNE, NOVEMBER 18, 1987e3 —