THE VOICE OF NCRTH AND WE

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TASK FORCE RECOMMENDS
BANNING FIRES IN 3 YEARS

THE CONTROVERSIAL issue of outdoor burning raised
some heated debate at West Vancouver District Council

Monday night, with

one alderman being

aceused of

withholding ‘‘official documents’? from a municipal task
force commissioned to study the subject.

In 1987 council struck a Cask
force to examine the issue of out-
door burning in West Vancouver
and whether the practice
should be banned, something the
District. of North Vancouver has
already done.

The task force’s report was
released at Monday night's council
meeting, with its two major rec-
ommendations being to continue
to allow outdoor burning for the
next three years before introducing
a ban.

The report also recommends in-

Ald.

Alex
Brokenshire ...defends his integri-
ty.

WEST Vancouver

creasing the present number of
burning days during the next three
years.

Mayor Don Lanskail was forced
to cut off debate on the issue
shortly before 11 p.m., after an
overflow crowd packed council
chambers to discuss the subject.
He said council will debate the task
force’s recommendations at a later
date, ‘‘maybe in February.”

claimed had been sent to the task
force were never found.

The task force recommends
outdoor burning be allowed to
continue in West Vancouver until
Dec. 31, 1993 when it should then
be banned, However, during the
three vears the outdoor burning
practice is allowed to continue,
council should draw up a bylaw to
iscrease the number of burning
days.

At present, West Vancouverities
are allowed to burn backyard ref-
use outdoors during the first four
Fridays and Saturdays in April and
October. The proposed bylaw
would see outdoor burtiing on any
day except Sundays and holidays
between Oct. } and April 30.

But burning under the proposed
bylaw would only be allowed on
days when ‘‘conditions are suit-
able’? and those conditions would
be determined by West Van-
couver’s fire chief,

But Steig said ‘tthe only respon-
sible move is to ban burning
now.

“The increase (in burning days)
will cause the fire department te be
greatly overworked. We would go
from a possible 16 days of burning
(per year) to a possible 175, The
environment is at risk.

But Dr. L.A.S. Boothroyd, a
task force member in favor of
outdoor burning, said the ‘simple
solution’’ to the problem is to in-
stall a tape recorded message on a
West Vancouver fire department
telephone line instructing callers
when it is safe to burn.

BURNING SHOULD BE BANNED: S¢E EDITORIAL PAGE 6

Ald. Alex Brokenshire, chair-
man of the task force, was accused
by a task force member of not
providing the body with all of the
information that was sent to it.

“An inadequate amount of in-
formation was received. I’m talk-
ing about several official docu-
ments that we (task force) did not
receive,”"’ said Kathy Steig, who
also accused Brokenshire of delib-
crately withholding information.

But Brokenshire denied he held
bach information on purpose, and
said the missing documents Steig

He also called on council to ex-
tend outdoor burning from the
proposed three years to five years
and to put the whole question of
outdoor burning to a referendum.

But resident Graham = Green
argued that ‘burning in aay form
is a form of pollution.””

“Conservative estimates suggest
we have 10 years to turn the situa-
tion around, [ see a fot of people
here tonight snicker and laugh. I
wonder if in 10 years they will
snicker and laugh when they see
their grandchildren suffer."

ST VANCOUVER

right): Michele Lee, Sara Roka, Evelyn Tsang, Samantha Saivat and Sam Robertson.

.
a

celebrates |
20 years

THE INSIDE SCOOP
ON YOUR LOCAL
PAPER: 14

December 15, 1989 News 985-2131 Classified 986-6222 Distribution 986-1337 88 pages 25¢

urning sparks
st Van debate

: oes S
NEWS photo Terry Peters
SENTINEL SCHOOL’S Art and Design students have created a timely project for the holidays. These
silk-screened Don’t Drink and Drive paper bags were produced by the students with the cooperation of
Sentinel teachers and the Sentinel CounterAttack committee. The bags will be distributed to the three
West Vancouver liquor stores this week. Pictured with the bags are students (clockwise from bottom