creases

Balanced budget focuses
on ‘Green Yax, more

money for m

B.C.’S_ SECOND $s straight
balanced budget, introduced
on Thursday, sets up a
*‘sustainable environment”
fund fuelled by a ‘‘Green
Tax,” provides some taxa-
tion relief for homeowners,
and promises substantial in-
in education and
municipal funding.

By JOHN
From Vi

The budget also promises a
$10-million emergency fund to
help local governments that suffer
economic or business disasters,
such as the Sullivan mine closure
in Kimberley.

Introduced in the legislature by
Finance Minister Mel Couvelier,
the budget projects a record ex-
penditure of $15.26 billion for the
fiscal year 1990/91.

The figure represents a 9.8 per
cent increase forecast in revenue
and expenditure over the previous
fiscal year which ended on March
31 of this year.

Much of that increase is in
education spending, up to 15.2 per
cent, and its sister ministry, ad-
vanced education, training and
technology, which shows a 13.4
per cent rise.

The two represent an additional
$538 million for the new fiscal

Finance. Minister Mel Couvelier
record $15.26 billion expen-
diture.

year, and a total of $4.14 billion.

Municipal affairs (up 15 per
cent) and economic development
(up 13 per cent} account for
another $94 million in additional
funding. Couvelier’s statistics also
promise an 18 per cent hike in the
revenue-Sharing grants to
municipalities.

Other highlights of th: annual
document include:
® No direct tax increases, but a $3
levy on all new vehicle tires sold,
and a $5 disposal charge on lead-
acid auto batteries, both ¢/fective
July 1. Expected return is $21.3
million.

°©A supplemental Homeowner

Reynolds won't tolerate

LAST WEEK’S environmental crackdown on Western
Pulp Partnership’s Woodfibre pulp mill in Howe Sound
has raised the eyebrows of the province’s pulp and paper
industry and has delivered the message that the provincial
government will not tolerate abuses of its pollution laws,
B.C. Environnient Minister John Reynolds said Thurs-

day.

The West Vancouver-Howe
Sound MLA made the comment
one day after Woodfibre met an
April 18 deadline, imposed by
Reynolds last week, to install a
series of pollution-control
measures at its Howe Sound pulp
mill or face closure.

Terry Jacks

IN THE wake of last
week’s provincial govern-
ment crackdown on Howe
Sound’s two pulp mills,
Environmental Watch
founder Terry Jacks has
withdrawn his two-year-old
civil suit against the pro-
vincial environment
ministry.

The suit was originally launch-
ed in April 1988 over the provin-
cial government’s decision to ap-
prove a revised air pollution
permit for the Port Mellon pulp
mill, But delays and postpone-
ments have kept the suit from
reaching trial.

Jacks said Wednesday he had
decided to withdraw the suit,
**because the government has fi-
nally decided to start to enforce
its environment laws,”’ which he
said was the main purpose of his
court action.

Last week, Environment
Minister John Reynolds an-
nounced that the Port Mellon
mill had been charged with 19
pollution-related offences under
the Waste Management Act.

He also ordered the Woodfibre
mill to clean up or close up after
the Howe Sound mill experienced
its third chemical spill in just
over a month.

; SURIR. N
Ne eporter

Reynolds said Woodfibre’s
pollution abatement, which was
issued after the mill experienced
its third chemical spill in just
over a month, and the laying of

drops suit

Environmental Watch founder
Terry Jacks ...mill won ‘“‘two
years of polluticn.”’

Jacks said the postponements
in bringing his civil suit to trial
had allowed the Port Mellon mil!
to win ‘‘two years of pollution.”

But he said the suit, combined
with continued public pressure,
had resulted in enough ‘“‘political
embarrassment’? to force the
provincial government to act.

“Finally the government is
starting to enforce its own laws,”*
Jack said. ‘‘That’s what I've
been up against for the past five
years.’”

He added that the funds need-
ed to bring his suit to trial could
be better spent elsewhere advan-
cing the Environmental Watch
cause.

unic

ipalities

school taxes.

$1,000 and a $500 reduction next
year. The budget also holds resi-
dential property tax increases for
scheol purposes to an average 5.5
per cent.

© Charging municipalities with
pollution discharge fees, as of Fri-
day, and on Jan. t, 1991, to in-
crease those fees ‘tio discour-ge
the production of waste."*

*A pledge to begin vehicle emis-
sion inspections in the Lower
Mainland in the spring of 1991.

© Raising the price ceiling for new
homies to $200,000 from $150,000
before property purchase tax is
applied. This is for the Lower
Mainland only.

© No increases in Medical Services
Plan premiums.

© A five-year, $420 million science
and technology fund ‘‘to promote
cooperation between industry,
governme::* and the science com-
munity ... in special projects which
focus on economic diversification
and industrial competitiveness.’’

© A 24 per cent increase in spend-

ing on reforestation and en-
vironmental programs, to $550
million.

© $28 million for initial construc-
tion on a natural gas pipeline to
Vanceuver Island, and $2 million
for power and gas line extensions
to northern and interior centres.

mill abuse

19 pollution-related charges
against Howe Sound Pulp and
Paper’s Port Mellon mill the next
day, is a message to the pro-
vince’s pulp and paper industry
that his ministry will not accept
any more violations of its en-
vironmental faws.

“I think it does (send a
message). They (pulp mills) know
we are very serious about that,”
said Reynolds.

He added that he is happy with
Woodfibre’s work in helping to
contro! chemical spills at its mil
operation.

“*E had a good discussion with
Chester Johnson (Woodfibre
chief executive officer),"*
Reynolds said, ‘‘and I also sensed
a great deal of commitment from
the union members. They don’t
want to lose jobs."*

On Tuesday, federal Environ-
ment Minister Lucien Bouchard
introduced a_ series of en-
vironmental regulations that
would force about 90 pulp mills,
12 of them in B.C., to install
secondary-treatment facilities for
their waste water.

Reynolds said Ottawa is fol-
lowing Victoria’s lead.

“Those regulations are the
ones we have already brought
in,’’ said Reynolds.

On April 6, a chemica! spill at
Woodfibre sent about 500 gallons
of sodium chlorate solution into
Howe Sound after a tank on a
barge overflowed.

The spill was the third chemi-
cal spill to hit the mill in just over
a month, and Reynolds said it
was a major factor in his issuing
Woodfibre’s potlution abatement
order.

“There are accidents that can
happen, but three in a row is too
many,” said Reynolds. ‘“‘! said
when | was appointed (environ-
ment minister) that that (en-
vironmental regulations) was a
priority. We added staff to the
ministry and we’re doing what we
said we'd do.”’

Woodfibre still faces 12 pollu-
tion-related charges.

Grant to compensate for rising
The scheme will
mean a $250 reduction this year
for those with a school tax bill of

3 - Friday, April 20, 1990 - North Shore News

Li

OL SOOO an pier aes
NEWS photo Cindy Goodman

NORTH VANCOUVER District employees Will Johnson (left) and
Sean Kerr fell rotting linden trees along Frederick Avenue. Lack of
warning about the district's restoration project has got area residents

hopping mad.

Tree workshop set

From page 1

Save The Tree Next Door.
“People just don’t know what
to do about it, but there’s a lot of
action that can be undertaken,
individually or on a municipal
level,’’ she said.
The first session is set for 7:30

p.m., April 24 at Carson Graham
schcol, 2145 Jones Ave. in North
Vancouver.

Registration for the workshop
is available through North Shore
Continuing Education. The se-
cond workshop will be held at the
West Vancouver YWCA, Thurs-
day, April 26.

Embassy adds glitch to
Romanian orphan adoption

WHILE Immigration Canada has agreed to allow into the
country a 74-year-old Romanian girl being adopted by a

North Vancouver couple,

the Canadian Embassy in

Bucharest is refusing to issue her visa papers, says the girl’s

new father.

Dan Carbonneau, whose wife,
Monik Leclerc, has been in
Romania for the past three weeks,
said his wife has secured all the
necessary adoption papers and ex-
pects ker and his new adopted
daughter, Adrianna, to return to
Canada on Saturday.

But he says while Ottawa has
now decided the girl can come into
Canada, the Canadian Embassy in
Bucharest is saying she can’t.

‘*My wife has the baby with her
and the adoption papers have been
signed by the Romanian prime
minister,’’ said Carbonneau. *‘But
you know where the problem now
lies? The Canadian officials in
Romania are refusing to sign the
visa paper to allow my daughter
into Canada. Can you imagine
that?"

Carbonneau’s wife originally
went to Romania as part of a B.C.
fact-finding team looking at adop-
ting Romanian orphans. But while

Automotives............29
Classified Ads..........33
Ecoilnfo................10
Home & Garden.........15
What's Going On........28

By SURJ RATTAN
News Reporter

she was there, she and Sonya Pat-
terson, founder of the Romanian
Orphan Support Group, had an
argument in which Leclerc was
allegedly slapped in the face by
Patterson.

While Patterson returned to
Canada without adopting any or-
phans, Leclerc remained in
Romania.

Carbonneau said he believes
Patterson is behind the Canadian
Embassy’s refusal to issue visa
permits for his daughter.

‘‘We're positive Sonya Patterson
is doing something. She laid a big
egg while she was over there,” said
Carbonneau, who vowed that both
his wife and new daughter will be
in North Vancouver on Saturday.

**You can rest assured that my

See Romanian
Page 9

WEATHER

Friday, rain. Saturday,
cloudy with showers. Highs
near 14°C.

Secoad Class Registration Number 3885