Sy " ud os /Passenger found | zhimself alone in crushed vehicle From pane t @ Leslie. Bur, Marques was not one of A them. f¢ was Griginally planned that A he drive Lestie’s car, so he remained sober. Upon leaving, the nvo of them got a lift to Leslie's 1993 Nissan Maxinia with another friend. At that point, their plan began to unravel, “asked Aaron for the keys and he didn’t give them to me. He said he was driving,” said Marques. “He just changed his mind right there and then.” The two argued for about half an hour in the quiet North Vancouver neighborhood. “The mniother of a friend was woken up by the ruckus,” | said Marques. “She basically told us ta get lost because we were being too loud.” Marques came to the conclusion that you can’t reason with a drunk. He reluctantly gave up the keys to his best friend. The next 10 minutes passe blur. Lesiie gained speed as he navigat- ed his car through North Vancouver side streets. “E wasn’t wearing my seatbelt ac the time and he started rippin’, flying and I told him to put on his seatbelt,” remembers Marques. “He didn’t say a word ... but T put on mine.” Short!y thereafter, Leslie lost con- ral of hix car. It slammed past a curb and on ito a bank before being “ faunched irto the air. It rolled several times and came to a stop on top of a tree, Marques kept his head through- our the or ef alone and trapped in the car. A friend ‘pulled up at this point. “Where’s Aaron?” asked Marques. The friend disappeared briefly and = Optimi lan Noble News Reporter ian@nsnews.com Capilano postal workers shop steward Bryan g to be flexible in the Boule said he’s mail dispute. And he believe Vancouver feel the same way. Shore workers, Boule said: “A What they would Standing near scores of idled C: Boule added he urprised that the “Hf they've been talking that long they must have been talking about something other than who's paying for the he said. “Everyone is quite optimistic it will doughnuts,” finish very soon.” However, Canada Post Friday that the union and Crown corporation r apart. He said the union has not responded :o the latest pecities of that off wage offer, but he would not giv and found himself most of the approximately 235 Shore postal workers at Third Street depo: in: North The union’s first: wage demand was for 8.6% over 18 months When asked for the general pere prion | an ong, j ttle for I have no idea. I rally don” nada Post tracks, spokesman John Caines said NEWS pheto Terry Peters FLOWERS deposiied by friends and family mark the site of Leslie’s accident. yelled a phrase Marques will bkely never forget: “He's dead!” Leslie’s triends have helped cach other through the ordeal, but some are having a much harder time than others. “It's like I've been amputated. Ive lost my best friend. P’ve known him since kindergarren,” said Marques. “Tr’s stiff hard to comprehend .. that he won’r be there, won't b there to call us up,” lamented Lori Pinkowski of her fost friend. Said Leslic’s girlftiend Jaki Gibbs, 17, “Please don’t drink and drive, slow down and wear yaur seat belt. We've all suffered a great loss to learn this.” Hard-learned lessons are often the best-remembered ones. — Leslie’s friends hope so. ism on lo postal picket lines But both sides in Canada Post dispute still far apart on job security issue security i th workers The No offer is unsatisfactory and the union wants to be converted to regular positior rary position The union’s wage demand has changed to and a modest increas protection” vorth union, wants to be able to p ve job s 20 publication said Canada Po: man Chris XACT Wage requests. Lawson said the average member makes hour, but the big issue Post wants to eliminate Meanwhile, che NEWS photo Mike Wakefield INTERNATIONAL Bio Recovery Corporation's (left to right) Jerry Van Dyk, Peter Dodge, Ben Van Dyk, John McLeod and Dick Van Dyk don’t look at biodegradable waste as garbage. Company te From paae \ up the trucking routes and means to ac time. He calls his reeveling plant the missing reeveling system because “we really have no ¢ process to handle biodegradable waste,” he said. rrently, 30% to 32% of household biodegradable. Van Dyk his waste reduction technology provides another benetit — it keeps biodegradable waste that caus- es odors and leachate out of landfills. “We take that garbage, we do this in a completely enclosed system, so we have no odors, no waste and we produce o of that organic fertilizer. It is completely do nature’s w Even though the garbage that goes into the inevitably includes rat poisons and pi esticides, they ken down by microbes in the process and rendered harm- Although the plant currently operates at 50 tonnes, che plant hopes to have 11 10-tonne “digesters” working A pamphlet circulating at the North Shore depot called the Daily Picket, trom the V id the union wants to maintain the present job fancouver Local of t. Canada Past, said the k and choose which postal urity and which one: wage me tempo- “inflation , said national union awson., He added the union won't $17.41 an “rp wages, it’s the jobs Canada Resource orth Shore Haman Centre of Canada said it wants to ensure clients continue ¢ continue main far to ger benefit cheques during the strike. nent Insurance claimants have been asked to fn aimant report cards to the office at Pt) Lonsdale for processing. Effective Now 24, cheques and claimant report cards can be picked up at 101-260 West Esplanade in North Vancouver trom 9 a.m, to -$ pom. Call 682-5400 for more information, Workers Compensation Board clients can pick up their cheques at the nearest WCB office, C Canada Post Pacitic Region spokesman Bob said federal government cheques are being delivered on Wednesday af the stri 440.7744 for more information. 1273-2260. Tavlor continues, Call toll tree 1-S88- Vavlor said Canada Post “The wages will work themselves out but the overrid- ing concern in these negotiations is to modernize this 30- year-old delivery system,” said Caines. “We have to improve that system and we have to change the work par- terns to move this company forward, but every proposal we have made to the union on this issue has been flatly rejected se we have a problem there.” has offered to deliver cheques for niunicipalitics and provincial governments. People expecting a cheque from those governments should call the proper department for information, Look in the blue pages for the phone num- ber. Welfare cheques will be available Wednesday at local district offices of centres to be designated next week B.C. Family Bonus cheques will be delivered next week. within a year. So far, the plant has cost approximately $3 million dur- ing the four-year research and development. ph Government: grants, tax breaks and National Research Council grants have provided $800,000. A pool of 80 investors alsa kicked in cash. The company is in the process of going public and is looking at seeking. lis on. the Vancouver Stock Exchange, Toronto Sto xchange or Nasdaq. Van Dyk said “quite a few other jurisdictions” have already scrutinized the plant, which can carn revenue through tipping fees and fertilizer sales. Although negotia- tions connnue, no deals to build ny plants have been signed, said Van Dyk. He said the fertilizer produced out- grows chemical fertilizer and is environmentally safe. Meanwhile, marketing vice president Peter Dodge said fertilizer sales are beginning this spring under tac name Seasons Lawn Fertilizer through Welcome Harvest Farms, a Texada Island-based manufacturer of organic fertilizer. He said bulk sales to larger fertilizer users such as golf courses and municipalities will be pursued. NEWS photo Terry Peters POSTAL workers picket at the North Vancouver maii depot Thursday, the day after posties walked off the job.