TERRACE — It’s an- ‘idea
whose time has come. —

So says alderman Danny

Sheridan of his plan to end the
flushing of toilet paper down ci-
ty lavatories.

Sheridan will present the con-
cept in.a special report to be
tabled at next Monday night's
council meeting. The document
recommends city employees be
required to place used: toilet
paper in special hampers rather
than in the bowl: :

While conceding the initial
reaction of many to the. plan
will be ‘horror’, .-Sheridan
pointed out the idea ‘had been
tried elsewhere with remarkable

SUCCESS.

, Describing ihe proposal as a
natural extension of the city’s
drive toward increased recycl-
ing, he emphasized, ‘I gave this
a lot of thought before deciding
to bring it to council,”

Sheridan said he got the idea
from a recent article in Mother
Earth News in’ which
Christopher Nyerges — author
of three books, including Urban
Wilderness — explained the
system had been used in the
California headquarters of a
non-profit educational corpora-
tion.

A layer of soil and a few ear-

of, want nof Mu:

thworms were placed in the bat-
tom of a plastic hampers which
were then placed next to toilets.

That was done for four years
without there being any need to
empty the hamper. Company
employees found the paper pro-
ducts had broken down into ex-
cellent compost and that the
worms multiplied many times
aver,

And contrary to what most
people would think, there was
no odour problem throughout
the entire period, “Apparently,
they just got an earthy smell like
tich soil,” Sheridan seid.

Apart from being the

EST Gurl

‘ultimate in recycling,”
Sheridan said there were also
bottom fine benefits for the city.

He thinks economic develop-
ment officer Peter Monteith
should investigate the
marketing possibilities of the
compost and worms.

“How much would tourist
fishermen be prepared to pay
for a supply of worms?”
Sheridan wonders,

If local householders were to
follow the city’s lead, the result
could be relief of some of the
sewer line problems . currently
being experienced in various
parts of town, Sheridan added,

1 Mega
homes

TERRACE — The number
of permits for new homes
given this year has already
passed the total for all of
1991,

As of last week, 41 permits
were issued compared to the
35 for all of last year.

“And we're just going into
spring. It’s going to be a big
year,’’ city permits director
Bob Lafleur said last week.

There’s also a growing in-
terest in building homes on
speculation.

'ERRACE STANDAR

sad,

*

‘Downhill demon

CARVING TURNS: Telemark skier Henry Waldock cuts a curve high above the lift system on
Shames Mountain. All types of powder hounds were on the slopes over the weekend to catch
some spring season before warm spring weather relegates the boards to the closet.

sin the jand upon whiyts
“wants ta'bitild its till:

Natives ponder
Orenda support

TERRACE — It'll be a couple
of days yet before native groups
develop a consensus about the
Orenda Forest Products pro-
posal to build a pulp and paper
mill south of Lakelse Lake.

The groups, consultants and
provincial officials met here
yesterday to go over a final
report examining the proposal.

It was commissioned by the
province earlier this year in
response to a new policy which
requires native involvement in
the review process for major
developments.

At the meeting were Haisla
(the Kitimaat band) and Tsim-
shian representatives
groups say they have en

The results of the meeting will
be passed along the provincial

cabinet committee which judges ©

if the project should be given
preliminary approval now or if
it requires yet more study. ,

Going into the meeting,
Tsimshian Tribal Council presi-

; esol? oie

On Page ALI, you'll find a
story about northwest fibre sup-
ply for pulp mills and one on a
report which criticizes the Oren-
da proposal and its review,

dent Art Sterritt said several key
issues remain outstanding,

They include the
underground water supply sit-
ting beneath the mill site Oren-
da wants to use and the fibre
supply for the mill, he said.

‘We'll probably need a few
days to look over the report and
its recommendations,”” said
Sterritt: | AEE they” Anite abe:
“context of the’

ep oy ben Wee Tave: “tg ‘COs.
- sidet ‘the. matter further,”"

He said the native groups
could support approval in prin-
ciple for the project provided
Orenda is able to answer those
Outstanding issues through.
meeting conditions of permits
and licences it'll need to build
and operate the mill.

‘Help us’ plea

TERRACE — It’s time Thor-
nbill grew up, say Kitimat-
Stikine regional district direc-
tors.

They voted unanimously
Saturday to call on Victoria to
force residents of the unincor-
porated community to either
join Terrace or form their own
municipality.

“It's slightly ridiculous to
have a community of nearly
6,000 people with no local
government,’’ said Hazelton
director Pete Weeber, who led
the motion.

The idea sprang out of debate
on the Bobsein Crescent sewage
crisis, which drew a large
delegation of residents to the
meeting,

Lakelse-area director Sandy

Library plan hits another snag

TERRACE — A freeze on lot-
tery capital project grants
followed by word the provincial
lottery fund is to be abolished
has left the local library board
wordering where its expansion
plan stands.

“Te’s a blow,’? board member
George Clark admitted of the
budget speech announcement
the fund was to be eliminated,

The budget also. confirmed
half of all lottery money will
now go toward the cost of
health care with the remainder
being distributed by individual
ministries.

Clark said appears the library
board -will have to make a new
application — once the freeze

was lifted — and go through the .

municipal affairs ministry.

But with 50 per cent of lottery
money destined for health and
the government having confirm~
ed it will continue to finance the
B.C, Summer and. Winter
Games, Clark wonders..how
much will be left for other pro-

jects.
“That doesn’t leave very
much to divide up,”’ Clark said.
“It’s a real shame we
couldn’t have gone ahead with
the grant when we sent it in two
years ago ... when it was frozen

_ by the city,’’ Clark added.

That original application —
to cover one third of the cost of
the then $1 million cost — was
accepted by the lottery branch
and given an official number in
February, 1990: It went into
limbo three months later when
the city said it would not be tak-
ing the ‘project to referendum
until 1991.

It stayed there until February
of this year when council agreed
to take the now $1.75 nfillion
project to a vote in June.

However, it a ached three con-
ditions: - ,

« the fibrary board sueceeded
in getting a: lottery grant to
cover one-third of the cost;

-® residents of: the. regional

. Operating costs

district areas who were paying
only £5 per cent of the library's
agreed by
referendum to increase that
amount to 30 per cent; and

¢ city residents approved the
necessary borrowing — and tax
increase — also through

referendum.

As of last week, the city had
not reactivated the lottery grant
application because, explained
administrator Bob Hallsor, it
was waiting for the regional
district to vote on taking its part
of the deal to referendum.

Sandhals suggested there might
never again be enough incentive
to persuade Thornhill residents
to amalgamate,

*‘They’re being looked after
so well right now, my fear is
that after the sewer system goes
in they'll never go for
amalgamation,'’ he said,

“I'm thinking this Bobsein
crisis is only the tip of the

‘iceberg,’’ Weeber added, “How

many other Bobseins are out
there waiting to come up?”

He said the time has come for
Thornhill to stand on its own,
adding the community should
be pushed or prodded. ‘There
is a local reluctance to tackle the
issue,'’ Weeber added.

Thornhill-area director Les
Watmough said such a shotgun,
marriage would offer a simple
solution. But he doubted Vic-

toria would go for it — par- |

ticularly in light of lingering
problems from the last time the
province forced communities to
amaigamate back in the
mid-1970s. -

"It's something that Boris
Yeltsin might try,’* he said.
“But I don’t think (municipal

‘We're not saying we see the
questions we have as being in-
surmountable, We still need
more information before we can
come to any definite conclu-
sion,’’ said Kitimaat band
manager Ken Hodgins: before
the meeting.

Orenda’s plan to pump up
underground water needs
careful examination, he said,
because that water is important
to nearby creeks which support
fish.

Orenda wants what is called
approval in principle for its pro-
ject, That. allows the company

to 80. ahead provided it receives .

jermits “and

an undué delay resulting from

the native review could affect -

the company’s own-decision to
proceed.

The government has the op-
tion of requiring more intensive
reviews of the project and can
order that public hearings be
held.

made

affairs minister) Robin Blencoe
will do it. He won't touch it
with a ten-foot pole.”’

Kitimat-Stikine Regional
District directors also decided to
call on cabinet to declare the.
Bobsein sewage problem an
emergency situation and to
release emergency money.

Letters are being written to
the ministers of health and en-
vironment making that request.

“They have said there’s a
problem,”? Watmough said.
“They should back up their
words with some action.”’

‘Victoria has so far agreedtoa
75 per cent subsidy of the sewer
system proposal, which, based

‘on the most recent estimate of

$5 million, would cost residents
$817 a year for 20 years — as
well as a one-time hook up fee
of more than $1,000.

That, according to Blencoe, is
the best offer Queensway-area
residents are going tc get from
the province for the system to
end what's been described. ag
third-world conditions in the
Thornhill subdivision.

Northwest Roundup _

PRINCE RUPERT — A

"council committee here has

backed a request for $40,000

_ to help host the 1994 provin-
clal seniors games.

- A local group asked for

a bid.for the event.
: One® report estimates the

he economic activity. .

“the money so it could submit
“games will generate $500,000 |

won't be looking at a pro-
posal to build a 60mw
generator at Houston to be
fueled by wood until it ex-
amines its energy strategy,
Smithers council members"
have been told.
The generator would have
taken waste wood from a
large area and ¢ the electricity
- generated would have been |
fed into the B.C. Hydro grid, ©

But Smithers mayor. Tn a

Davidson sald he got the im-
pression B.C, Hydro wants
to hold back because ef a
sluggish economy.

HAZELTON — There's
about a month's worth of .
work left before the new $14
milllen secondary school
here is finished, :
“Included « in: the’ 82,000
square foot bullding iss gym.
and multi-purpose. room’ fc

. BURNS LAKE — . The local”

- new. cruiser, a tear’, drop
shape Chevrolet model me

-. all highway detachments’ on
“Hiwy 16 have the ne

the performing aris. . cs

The school. will: have” a.
capacity of 550. students and :
Sits on ads acres. of land.

vend

RCMP highway section has a.

Mts arrival now niewis:that

y models,

SHS ‘ivteiaig' dV already. said.

i
4