GOSH...1 THINK
WERE SEEING

REJECTION
ALREADY.

PERHAPS WE

G - SHouLD SHIP
BE THE PATIENT
SouTH,

VIEWPOINT

Retrieve RUSTs

ORD of funding cuts for North
Shore programs to locate poten-

tially destructive Residential Un-.

derground Storage Tanks (RUSTs) should
raise more than eyebrows !ocaily.

The erosion of resources to find the
tanks should be of major concern to
everyone on the North Shore.

An estimated 50,000 RUSTs were in-
stalled on Lower Mainland properties be-
tween 1940 and 1960. The majority of
these tanks were installed on the North
Shore as part of a program to provide
homes with unobtrusive storage facilities
for the heating oil that. powered their fur-
naces.

But that short-term unobtrusiveness has
been overshadowed by the plan’s long-term
environmental consequences. The lifespan
of the tanks is 25 years, after which they

begin to break down and leak. Environ-
ment Canada has estimated that up to 15.2
million litres of fuel oi! is still contained in

Lower Mainland RUSTs. That figure rep- -

resents a huge potential pollutant for area
creeks and ground water. RUSTs are al-
ready a major cause of loca! creek pollu-
tion, and ss more of the tanks reach their
allotted lifespans, their threat to our en-
vironment grows. One of the more in-
siduous aspects of RUSTs is that most
people don’t even know they have one on
their property, their house having been
converted to other forms of heating fuel
long ago.

The financing for programs to find
RUSTs should be increased, not decreased,
because if we don’t find RUSTs they will
surely find us, and the meeting will not be
plegsant. .

NEWS QUOTES OF WEEK

“‘You’re never too old for
SACHS."

Murray Uncyk, a partner in a
local company dealing in SACHS
bicycle motors.

“One man. suggested we record all
the noise that will be heard in
Horseshoe Bay during the night
and go to Mike Harcourt’s house
at 2 am. and play it on a
loudspeaker and see how ke likes
being woken up in the middle of
the night. We thought that wasn’t
a bad idea.”

Ingrid Fischer, spokesman for a

Horseshoe Bay residents’ group
opposed to the B.C. Ferry Corp.’s
plan to run all-night sailings from
Horseshoe Bay, on one of the
Strategies proposed to battle the
plan. .

“I. believe people can’t live
without art. I mean, you don't go
to Paris to see the flag.””

West Vancouver choreographer
Jennifer Mascall, on art.

“These guys (WVSB) don’t want
to hear any of this. Their mind is
made up. Given there is 2 short-*

‘new $13 million

fall, who is going to gay for it?
These figures are not just notions
that have popped into my head.’

West Vancouver resident John
McDiarmid, on the fiadings of his
independent study of tearing down
Hillside middie school to build a
school in the
Caulfeild Plateau area.

“This is a first.’

North Vancouver real estate
agent Meharam Sugrim, after a
disgruntled tenant left a dead
salmon on a heating duct of a
house Sugrim is trying to sell.

Free votes far

better than

a

recall system

REFERENDUMS AND recail (read firing) of MLAs by
unhappy constituents were demanded by a big majority of
B.C. voters last October. But the NDP government is now
dragging its fect on doing anything about it.

Small wonder. What premier
wants to be constantly worrying
about how many of his MLAs will
bite the dust on their home turf
month by month? But Mike Har-
court is also guilty of what T.S.
Eliot called ‘‘the highest treason
-—~ doing the right thing for the
wrong reason.””

It’s the right thing because cost-
ly province-wide referendums and
equally costly by-elections to
replace MLAs sacked by constitu-
ents are totally unnecessary.
There’s a much simpler, more
hygenic method of giving voters
an effective say in how they're
governed.

All we need are fixed terms of
office — along with an end to the
tradition that defeat on any
specific issue means the govern-
ment must (or can) resign and call
an election. However rough its
path, it would soldier on un-

dil the next four-yearly election
date.

Consider for a moment the
benefits to Joe and Jane Voter.

No more “trained seal’? MLAs
rigorously disciplined by party
whips to toe the government line.
Every MLA could vote on any
issue in accordance with his or her
constituents’ wishes. This freedom
would eliminate all need for a
recall process, since MLAs would
no longer have any excuse to flout
or ignore the people who chose
them.

The government would have.to
EARN caucus support for its
measures by sweet reason instead
of by threats, as it does now. If a
clearly desirable measure was ini-
tially unpopular with voters, the
cabinet's job would be to PER-
SUADE (not browbeat) enough
MLAs to sell its proposed legisla-
tion to their constituents.

In such cases MLAs could hold
constituency opinion polls — easi-
er, faster and cheaper than pro-
vince-wide referendums. If a ma-
jority of them still failed to win
over the foiks back home, the
cabinet would simply have to slink
back to the drawing board.

With MLAs having free votes
on everything during the fixed
term, one extra bell and whistle
might usefully be added. Instead
of being appointed by the
premier, have cabinet ministers
ELECTED by caucus. And have
the cabinet elect the premier
himself from its members.

Such heresies, can hear
outraged voices cry, would ex-

Neel

HITHER AND YON

change our sacred, centuries-old
form of strong ‘‘responsible’’
parliamentary government for that
tedious American division-of-
powers system, .

But isn’t it precisely the absence
of any true division of powers be-'
tween government and the gov-
erned that’s driven today’s
frustrated voters to regard ALL
politicians as their natural
enemies?

WRAP-UP: New 1992-93 West
Van Chamber of Commerce
president is Rath Kirk, installed
Tuesday at the annual President's
Banquet which also named hard- °
working comraunity volunteez .
Don Fleming its Citizen of the
Year ... Tuesday, June 16, at 7:15
p.m. 525 Pathfinder Squadron air
cadets hold their annual inspection
parade at the “Y’ on Inglewood ...
Former Socred minister Clande
Richmond, Western Environment
Taskforce head, reports on the
Rio Earth Summit to North Vas
Chamber of Commerce's lunch -
meeting Thursday, June 18, at the
North Shore Winter Club ... A
very happy birthday today, June.
‘14, to North Van’s Donna Kerr ...
The same to West Van Kiwanian
Ian Andrews ... And many happy:
returns of tomorrow to Mount
Seymour Lions John Paviik and
John Hopcraft.

WRIGHT OR WRONG — from
Tertullian, the Romar Christian
scribe: ‘‘Hope is patience with the
lamp lit.’”

Disptay Advertising 980-0511 Distribution 986-1337
Real Estate Advertising 985-6982 Subscriptions 906-1337
Classified Advertising 986-6222 Fax 985-3227

985-2131 Administration 985-2131

MEMBER

Pubilsher : Peter Speck
Managing Editor . . . Timothy Renshaw.
Associate Editor Noel Wright
Advertising Director .. Linda Stewart
Comptzoller ...-Doug Foot

North Shore News, founded in 1969 as an
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under Schedule 111, Paragraph ttl of the Excise
Tax Act, is published each Wednesday, Friday and
Sunday by North Shore Free Press Ltd. and
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Entire contents © 1992 North Shore Free Press Lid. All rights reserved.

MIKE HARCOURT... right - but
for the wrong reason.

81,582 (average circulation, Wednesday. Friday & Sunday) ;
CLAUDE RICHMOND...

guardian to report on Rio.

eco-