‘4 ~ Wednesday, January 5, 1994 -

Fixing the water quality

North Shore Nows

GREATER VANCOUVER Regional District spokesman Bud
Elsie says he wants to listen to what people have to say about
the call by the GVRD’s medical officers for chloramine to be
added to the North Shore’s water supply.

I'm sure he's already heard
cnough howls, hoots, squawks,
barks and snarls to last 4 while,
but, for. what it’s worth, let me add
my. own cautionary bleat.

. As I’m sure you've noticed, the
” GVRD geniuses have been study-
ing whether to add more chlorine
to the drinking water system to
achieve “consistent disinfection _
standards” throughout the system.

As we al} know, disinfectants
are used to kill off bacteria. And,
pure.as we'd all like our, water to
be, the fact is, on balance, we're: ..
better off without the bacteria,
thank you.

: The body count is lower. But
“there is a body count both ways.

- Since chlorine came into use in
water treatment in the early part of
the century, water-borne diseases
like cholera, infectious hepatitis,

.. dysentery and typhoid have all but
“been wiped out in the U.S. and
: Canada. ie
-+ Chlorine is currently added to
the water coming from the ....
, Capilano and Coquitlam

+ North Shore Health officer Dr.
. Brian.O'Counor warms that he sees:
ay potential human health i issue.

“TUE FOLLOWING" people.
Appeared..in, North ‘and|,West. :

Vancouver; courts recent to fas.

stolén’ motorcycle’

Western, Yamaha

months" ‘probation ‘after, she was’

found guilty. of a ‘merchan-
t

B..
Before Judge ‘Bal: Rodge rs in
orth’. Vancouver provincis
court‘on Dec.,14:;

Titnothy ‘Jonathan Brady, 27, of A

Nortl Vancouver, was fined $200 °
“after he:pleaded guilty.to: wilfully
vobstructing. North. Vancouver

STRICTLY PERSONAL

is safe and this is a very reasonable
way of doing so.”

This “reasonable way” involves

a network of 40 booster stations
along water lines serving GVRD
member municipalities. ‘

“It would. be; cheaper to dump _

-. ‘chloramine into the water than to’

* “dump more chlorine, Dr.
O'Connor adds, a point in its.
favor. Boy

“Unfortunately, even at low lev.

RCMP. Const:: Biad Marks on Aug.
.14in North Vancouver District.
Before. Judge: Bill. Rodgers in
North Vancouver ‘Provincial:
-court on Dec; 13:

Andrew Edward Barkley, 26, of
North Mancouver, received ;12
months’. probation after he pleaded |
not guilty to marijuana trafficking.
but instead, pleaded. guilty to the:
lesser.‘or included offence: of nar-

Otic. possession.

‘yThe ;charge stemmed froma. :
in North

Jan. .23, incident
‘Vancoiiver City.”

» «Barkley was. required to per-.
form:50 hours of community work.
‘service within N months of sen-
» tencing. :

" Before * Judge” Reginald
’ Grandison in North Vancouver
"provincial. court on Dec. 8:

© William Edgar Freeborn, 27,:of

North Mancouver, was fined $100:

.-and received six months* probation’:

“after he ‘pleaded guilty’ to assault-
‘ing a male on Oct..22 in North’
. Vancouver City.

A probation’ term order’ ‘states:
that Freeborn is not.to go into any’
Canada Safeway store on the North.
“Shore... :

“Before Judge Jerome Paradis i in
“North Vancouver provincial
court on Dec. 7:
Hwa’. Phillip’ Hu,
‘Vancouver, was fined $100 and |
had his driver’s licence suspended.
 six-months after he pleaded guilty
.to driving without due care and

Find out How to’ Y decide which fund is right-
for you before you make your. RRSP ;
. investment decision this year. oo Bet

' Rick Peterson :
: Financial Advisor

Call for this free report, and we'll ‘also send °
“an updated quarterly report on our:
‘Recommended, List of investment

. Fund Managers. a

7 Calll Rick Peterson
Sr. Vice President.

- Financial Advisor
a ‘Tel. ,640- 6510 . /

Before

of.

els both chlorine and chloramine
have a nasty habit of killing fish, a
point not in cither of their favors,

But chloramine kills a lot more
fish,

Chlorine breaks down faster
than chloramine, which retains its
deadly toxicity as it splashes
downstream, A recent spill in
Surrey, where a pipe ruptured,
flushing chloramine-treated water
into Fergus Creek, resulted in
almost all the fish being wiped out,
along with the entire insect popula-

_tion of the creek,

Surrey is, of course, topographi-
cally dissimilar to the North Shore,
where a similar pipe rupture would
send the stuff flowing down into
MacKay and Mosquite creeks and |
Capilano River itself.

Scariest of all, according to
Steve Samis, senior program man-
ager at the Department of Fisheries
and Oceans water quality unit, is
the likelihood that people using
water sprinklers or washing their
cars would send little streams bear-
ing the fish poison down through.
culverts and drains into nearby

~ streams and crecks, a nightmare

that would be impossible to con-’
trol.
~ Dr O° Connor says that drink

ing water treated with low levels of.
’- either chloramine or chlorine is not.
. considered hazardous, to > human
; health.

» attention on’ the Second 1;Narrows-
Bridge on June 6.00.
‘Judge’ a Reginald.
Grandison in West: Vancouver.
"provincial court on Bec.'3: # +

“Sandy | Joseph, 32,’ .of
Vancouver, was fined $125 after .
he pleaded guilty to marijuana pos-

session on April 29. jin’ "West: a

Vancouver.

7 Before. Judge cu, Walker in

Thumbing through a copy of a
1984 City of Toronto Department
of Public Health study titled
Toranto’s Drinking Water: A
Chemical Assessment, [ find these
words about chlorine:

“Until very recently it appeared
that while the public health bene-
fits of chlorine in water ieatment
Were enormous, its risks were min-
imal or non-existent. In 1974, how-
ever, researchers in the

' Netherlands and the United States

independently concluded that chlo-
rine reacts with organic matter

(mainly munic and fulvic acids) in’.

raw water to form chloroform and
other trihalomethane (THM) com-
pounds, Subsequent surveys of
United States drinking water sup-
plies by the Environmental
Protection Agency... found ti-

_ halomethanes in nearly all chlori-

nated water supplies...

“Trihalomethanes are just as
prevalent in Canadian chlorinated
water supplies...

“Concern about trihalomethanes
in drinking water was heightened
by the discovery by the United
States National Cancer Institute. ~
(NCI) in.1976 that chloroform i is ;
an animal carcinogen... -

“The fact that chlorine has a-
propensity to interact chemically”

with contaminants.in water to form ; .
. compounds that are potentially.”

hazardous to health has prompted .

i Researchers to o study the mutagenic

North: Vancouver provincial

* court’ on Noy. 243”:

“Audrey Sharleen. Estabrook, 4),
of. Sechelt, ‘received four months’:

‘probation. after-she pleaded ‘guilty

to stealing property belonging to. ;
Sears Canada on July:7 in North |
“Vancouver City...

Estabrook was required to per-
form 50 hours of Sommunity work
service by Jan, 24.

could h

potential of treated drinking water,
In Canada, the United States and
Europe, investigators have found
that chlorination of raw water
increases mutagenic activity in fin-
ished water to varying degrees,”

Chlorainine is dismissed in this
report, by the way, as being only a

“mediocre bactericide™ and a “poor
virucide.” : a

Like chlécine, it reacts with »
organic matter to form tri- -
halomethanes.

The report ends with an as-yet-
unheeded call for the federal gov- >
ernment to “investigate the possi-
ble interactive multi-generational
effects of long-term exposurs to
chemicals in drinking water,” and,
further, that the national health
ministry “be required to conduct
animal studies on the ‘possibility of:
such health effects as behavioral“
and psychological effects, suppres-
sion of the immune system and
changes in fertility rates, and their |
relationship with the ingestion of
hazardous chemicals, particularly
through drinking water.” ”. .

. Dr. O'Connor says that the © ,;

‘chlorinated drinking water is safe’
‘now, and: the disinfectant Icveis are

fine. But he told North Shore

News reporter Anna Mari

D Angelo that it is necessary be:

: “proactive” concerning ‘water, stan

In our. ‘BI2-4 “White: Bale flyer,. .
Home Studio: Bed- in i Bag

On 1994 January 1 10th the a volume ¢ of garbage which
_May be placed out for. pick-up at single family and 3
. duplex | homes shall not exceed 230 litres: per week:

The: maximum’ size of any. solid waste receptacle
shall be 140 litres and the maximum weight in any -
one receptacle shail be 35 kilograms (78 pounds)...

Ege

..one pail

of 77 litres |
=,one can

one garbage
oh pag a

| = one can.
For information on how to REDUC

phone W.H.E.N. Environment House 926-5079, the. Reoyeliig
Hotline: 732-9253 or the, Compo :

‘onie toter cart
of 140 tres.

one! lu

E, REUSE and RECYCLE,