that. wasn’t necessarily true, The
Ministry of Health, at any rate,
has no record of septic system
approvals in the area, Chief medi-
cal officer Dr. David Bowering has
since confirmed that fact. He told
the Terrace Review Wednesday
that he has searched for dacumen-
tation and found none.

Giesbrecht was also told dur-
ing Saturday's meeting that the
necessary upgrade to his septic
system would cost him between
$5,000 and $6,000. Being unem-
ployed, he asked for an extension
to the Feb. 29 deadline. Seltenrich
said no.

Giesbrecht has since appealed
that decision to Seltenrich’s im-
mediate superior, public health
inspector Ron Craig, and says he
has been promised a_ personal
visit by Craig and Bowering, who
will look at his property to further
evaluate the seriousness of the
situation.

This, in a way, offers Gies-
brecht a little breathing room.
But to be on the safe side, he says
he’s retained a lawyer anyway.
Bowering told the Terrace Review
Wednesday that a court order
would be the only way his office
could deal with non-compliance of
the Feb. 29 deadline. He added,
though, that’s not necessarily the
action that will be taken.

In an effort to come to some
sort an equitable agreement
before the Feb. 29 deadline, Mar-
cellin and Thornhill regional
director Les Watmough travelled
to Victoria about two weeks ago.

Blencoe didn’t let Marcellin
and Watmough return to Terrace
without options. "One would be to
declare an emergency in that area
and that would possibly spring up
more funds," says Watmough.
"But he’s reluctant to take that

option to cabinet because he’s —

afraid the answer will be no."
Another option is the amalgama-
tion of Thornhill and Terrace, an

idea that is not new. The regional

district was told some time ago it
might be the only way of getting
additional help from the province.

Watmough says they also met
with some officials from the Min-
istry of Environment, and they

too were sympathetic. But policy .
‘ and financial constraints appar-

ently tie the hands of that minis-
try as well.

In the meantime, Giesbrecht |

will have his meeting with local
officials. At best, however,. that
will likely get him nothing more
than a little bit more time. And
this leaves amalgamation. It may
be the only permanent solution.

They and Skeena MLA Helmut - &

Giesbrecht met with Minster of
Municipal Affairs Robin Blencoe,
but according to Watmough the
trip didn’t bear a lot of fruit.

In a telephone interview from
Victoria last week, Watmough
said Blencoe understood the situ-
ation and was sympathetic
towards the home owners, but
offered little hope. Under the
present circumstances, according
to Watmough, provincial policy
and financial constraints mean
there will be no additional finan-
cial help for the sewage problem.

PHOTOGRAPHY

murray metcalfe

Phone today for your
free wot dion

635-9585

But according to Watmough,
in view of the time constraints
presently being imposed by the
Ministry of Health, that solution
is something akin to a "shotgun
marriage", with the province
holding the gun.

BOMB THREAT
NOT THE FIRST

Terrace RCMP are seeking pub-
lic assistance in identifying who-
ever was responsible for an unex-
pected closure of the Skeena Mall
last Sunday. The mall was evacu-
ated around noon Sunday after a
suspicious package was discovered
in an aisle of a retail outlet there,

RCMP explosives experts were
flown in from Vancouver and the
package was later determined not
to be dangerous, however.

The loss of retail sales, incon-
venience and the anxiety caused
mall employees and customers,

Terrace Review — February 28, 1992

/.