A4 - The Terrace Standard, Wednesday, September 28, 1994 TERRACE.

STANDARD

ESTABLISHED APRIL 27, 1988

ADDRESS: 4647 Lazelle Ave., Terrace, B.C. * V8G 188 TELEPHONE: (604) 638-7283 + FAX: (604) 638-8432 MODEM; 638-7247

Finally

JUST ONE more sign that the provincial govern- ment is gearing up for an election came last week with Premier Mike Harcourt’s new -posi- tion on land claims negotiations. He’s now taken a dramatic about turn from what was.a policy of keeping the lid on the substance of land claims talks.

. While we wish the premier well and hope he doesn’t get a severe case of windburn in his rush to open up land claims talks, we do wonder what took him so long. The problem of secrecy sur- rounding the talks has been an issue up here for several years. Lack of knowledge on any issue breeds only fear and suspicion. It’s been clear for some time that continuing to stay the course on Jand claims would have meant major problems — not only politically but in the deadly serious business of preparing and implementing public policy.

To be sure the provincial and federal govern- ments have struck committees to give them ad- vice. They’re been made up of representatives from specific interest groups who have legiti- mate points of their own when it comes to land claims. Yet these representatives feel they aren’t as free as they should be when reporting back to their organizations or groups.

Missing from all of this was the opportunity for the average person to gain a better understanding of just what the heck is going on. Although details on exactly what the premier wants to do are sketchy, one step toward more news on land claims takes place at the R.E.M. Lee Theatre Oct. 13. That’s when provincial aboriginal af- fairs minister John Cashore comes up fora ques: tion and answer session. .

This is going to be an informal affair with a minimum of pomp and circumstance — just Mr. Cashore and the audience. It starts at 7 p.m. What better opportunity could there be to be- come informed?

Leadership

TERRACE PRIDES itself on being the regional centre. And that designation should carry with it a certain responsibility, to play a leadership role among northwest communities.

Certainly local politicians like to believe that’ 5 true.

Which begs the question: why has this city So obviously failed to become even a follower, let alone a leader, when it comes to recycling?

Sure, it has sold composters at discounted rates for the past few years, but that is not exactly tackling the issue in a meaningful way.

Of course, it can be argued the city, through the regional district, is putting together a waste man- agement master ‘plan of which recycling will be a big part.

But that’s a long way from completion and in the meantime waste paper that could be recycled just down the road in Kitimat continues to be dumped into the landfill.

Something for councillors to think about when they go into budget discussions.

“ye ena) PUBLISHER/EDITOR: Rod Link ADVERTISING MANAGER: Mike L. Hamm PRODUCTION MANAGER: Edouard Credgeur NEWS COMMUNITY: Jeff Nagel » NEWS SPORTS: Malcolm Baxter OFFICE MANAGER: Rose Fisher ,

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Serving the Tentace atea. Published on Wednesday of each week ty Cariboo Presa (1969) Ud. at 464)

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VICTORIA — One of the buzzwords to have come to prominence in the past few years is ‘‘bio-diversity’’ or, more accurately, biological diversity.

Specialists such as biologists, botanists, foresters and wildlife experts have always been acutely aware of the impor- tance of bio-diversity. But it wasn’t until the environmental movement flexed its muscle that the word made its way into the general vocabulary.

Today, one rarely reads a newspaper article dealing with land-use concems that doesn’t invoke the all-important bio- diversity. Small wonder, there- fore, that the B.C. Association of Professional Foresters is grappling | with bio-diversity i in ‘ablgways °° °°

A recent discussion paper issued by the University of British Columbia’s Centre for Applied Conservation Biology, in co-operation with the asso- ciation, defines bio-diversity as “the diversity of life in all its forms and all its levels of orga- nizations, including genes, specics, and ecosystems.”’

Having said that, I find it en- couraging to read in the discus- sion paper tat British Columbia has more biological diversity than any other part of Canada. About 70 per cent of the na- tion’s bird and terrestrial mam- mal species make British

"FROM THE ‘CAP ITA L. HUBERT BEYER

Columbia their home. When plant and invertebrate species are included, the numbers are .even greater, . . Since’ - much of — British Columbia’s land mass is for- ested, it stands to reason that proper forest management will play a crucial role in maintain- ing biological diversity, The discussion paper suggests two ways of achieving this aim: es- tablishing protected arcas and ensuring integrated manage- ment of non-protected lands. Weil, here’s to our friendly litle “neighborhood — socialist government which had the foresight and political will to embark on a policy of doubling British Columbia’s parkland from six per cent to 12 per cent of the province’s total area.

And heress a second toast to the same government for hav- ing the guts to deal with the messy land-use controversy in a comprehensive way by cstab- lishing the Commission on Resource and Environment, and by introducing a new and tough Forest Practices Code.

Those two iniliatives, coupled with the government’s Protected Areas Strategy, should go a Jong way towards achieving an ideal biological diversity, in which no species is threatened with extinction.

The discussion paper states that even some of the largest reserves or protected areas cannot maintain viable popula- tions of some large, wide- ranging species,

‘Reserves alone are not suf-

‘ficient to ensure conservation |

of biological _—_ diversity. Without management of the broader land base that actively considers bio-diversity, this resource would be reduced.”’ Judicious management of non-protecled areas, adjacent to the reserves such as produc- tive forest land, is, therefore, extremely important. The two CORE reports on future land- use in. the Cariboo-Chilcatin and on Vancouver Island have reached the same conclusion. Achieving a satisfactory level of forest management thai maintains bio-diversily

isn’t going to be easy. It will

. biological organizations may.

_ Merit.

More than just a buzzword

require a willingness on the part of the forest industry to change.

A down-to-carth assessment «97 of the importance of bio- _

diversity comes I Wood, who has been involved

from Paul”)

in forest management for 18. years, with the Ministry of. -

Forests, with his own consult-

ing firm, and with the Facully 2° P

of Forestry at the University of .°.

British Columbia.

While every living mammal] in :the natural environment is ecologi-. cal nonsense,’? Wood said in: the latest Association of B.C: Foresters’ newsletter, .

“granting rights - to.

‘tthe. S :

idea that specific units of *,

have intrinsic value has some:

“‘Bio-diversity is not merely ne

another to be traded-off (value) against competing .

forest.’ -

valucs. On the contrary, the’ conservation of bio-diversily:-: (here I’m referring to species)" must take priority over other - forest values, because in the -')°

long term it is necessary. for

the maintenance of other forest’ * benefits. It is simply one of the +

necessary preconditions for the continuation of humanity.”

So, next time you read about % bio-diversity, don’t dismiss it as just another buzzword. Our -

species: depend on understanding its imporlance.

survival may well °

Are Granny Olympics next?

I ‘never expected grand- parenting to be competitive.

I was prepared io measure up in the eyes of my grand- daughters, inexperienced as they are.

For two years I had no idea 7 Taust outperform their playmates’ grannies.

The kids applauded when I suggested a bowling pin to roll

playdoh, made an indoor slide —

from a chunk of heavy cardboard, or overturned rocks in the hunt for compost earthworms.

They accepted that Grandma — without her bifocals — couldn’t clasp a tiny necklace or buckle a Mary Jane.

They didn’t expect me to play musical ride prancing around the yard with one of them astride’ my shoulders. Such endeavours [cll to Mom or Dad.

Then one day I was trotting along pulling my two-year-old granddaughter in her red metal wagon, closely trailed by her three-year-old sister pedaling

OA NO! L FORGOT Jo HEM MY PRESS

THROUGH BIFOCALS |

CLAUDETTE SANDECKI

her tricycle.

A playmate, jogging beside as an oultrider, chided, ““My grandma can run faster than that.”’

Well! Did she intend to spur my efforis with those words? In fact, she hurt my feelings, damped my enthusiasm for one of our favourite games, and in- stanly took me . back. to

ANP MY PURSE {IS RIPPED !

recesses when I was left off both ball teams.

“*Maybe your grandmother is younger than J am, or has less arthritis,’’ I whined, ‘‘but ’m doing the best I can.”

Now that I’m being com- pared to other grandmothers, I

“worry about my shortcomings.

Should I wear a sweatband, jogging sweats, and power walkers?) Will they greet me with a signal gun and a stop watch?

I’m hoping my shortcomings will be balanced by my endear- ing qualitics — the ability to bake a great peanut butter cookie, to identify local vegetation, and to create a Martin Short coif with sham- poo. Another specialty is high pumps on the swing.

IT also tolerate playtime grime. Recently as three in-line skaters watched me shepherd home what must have looked like two truants, dampish red

‘ sand plastered on their. pants

and in the licorice smears on their faces, one teenager said

to the others, ‘‘Boy, are they

going to catch hell when they ~

get home."’ The teenagers didn’t know 1 had helped the girls climb a

twelve foot ridge left by a front

loader so they could slide down in the sand, beaver style,

The girls have three granny °- rules: spend time with them —

doing whatever they choose, ~ and | >

help with difficulties,

never call Time before they’re ©

ready to quit.

Following those few criteria ° -* we three enjoyed hours togeth- © er reading books, burying bare - tocs in the sandbox, or swing-" ~.

ing at the tot Jot.

Since the girls were intro- : duced to granny clashing, * they’re Icss tolerant, On our °°

way to the tot lot Wednesday,

the older one on her tricycle’. was again outdistancing me ©:

pulling the wagon.

Clutching the edges of her . ° Roadmaster in anticipation: of -. .

rapid youngest hollered,

“Run, Grandma, nin”

AND MY COMPACTH GEE ! You Look.

ISCRACKED !

GREAT ROSIE !

accelcration, the. .,: