PULP MILLS TARGETED

Pamphlets urge action to stop Sound pollution

WEST VANCOUVER-based Environmental Watch has mailed out 200,000 four-color pamphlets to residents all over the Howe Sound area urging immediate action to stop what the pamphlets maintain is the killing of Howe Sound

by pulp industry pollution.

Produced by Environmental Watch and the Western Canada Wilderness Committee, the pam- phiets include photographs of smokestacks discharging smoke from Howe Sound’s Woodfibre and Port Mellon pulp mills, exam- ples of deformed sealife and a provincial map comparing lung cancer rates around B.C.

But industry representatives say the pamphlets are misleading and factually incorrect.

Environmental Watch founder Terry Jacks said the pamphlets have been mailed to residents all over the Howe Sound area and to residents in all B.C. communities near pulp mills to raise public awareness of the serious en- vironmental impacts of mill pollu- tion on their communities.

They are also designed, he said, to draw environmental activists out of the closet in the far reaches of Howe Sound and the rest of the province.

“It will show them what’s being done down here,’’ Jacks said. ‘‘A lot of them are concerned but don’t know what to do. Howe Sound is merely a reflection of what is happening to the environ- ment all up and down the coast.’”

But Canfor Corp.’s vice-presi- dent of environment Kirke Mac- Millan said the pamphlet ‘‘is so full of holes it’s laughable. There is very little in it that has any substance.”’

He said, for example, that a 198! aerial photograph in the publication showing purple water near Canfor’s Port Mellon pulp mill is not the result of ‘‘purple toxic effluent pumped into Howe Sound” from the mill as stated in the cutline under the photograph.

Pulp mill effluent, he said, is brown, not purple.

MacMillan said the contrasting lighter-colored Howe Sound water in the picture is the result of runoff from nearby Rainy River.

Canfor, he said, was going over the pamphlet paragraph by paragraph, but had not yet decided

By TIMOTHY RENSHAW News Reporter

whether to produce a_ printed rebuttal to the statements made in the publication.

Howe Sound was closed in- definitely June 14 to all commer- cial crab fishing because of high levels of dioxin and furan pollu- tion.

Fisheries and Oceans Canada has since expanded the crab fishery closures to seven other areas around B.C. coastal pulp mills because of high toxic pollution Jevels found in marine life sampled in those areas.

Both Howe Sound mills are ctir-"

rently instituting multi-million dollar programs that they maintain will eliminate all dioxins and furans from their effluents.

In addition to mailing out the pamphiets, Environmental Watch will be involved in a Dec. 17 rally at the United Fishermen and Allied Workers’ Union hall, 160-111 Vic- toria Dr., Vancouver, that will in- clude representatives from the commercial fishing industry; en- vironmental, native and sport fish- ing groups; forestry and pulp unions; and the B.C. Federation of Labour.

Jacks said the NOW (Nothing in Our Water) coalition has invited federal and provincial environment and fisheries ministers to appear at the meeting.

The coalition, he said, will de- mand that poisons from pulp mills stop polluting the B.C. environ- ment.

“And the message is stop now,”’ Jacks said. ‘‘We don’t want to wait any more. We don’t want to wait another year. And we are not just talking about dioxins and furans. We are talking about the thousands of toxic compounds that are being pumped into the water that belongs to all of us.””

Jacks said if the ministers do not agree to reflect the will of the peo- ple and stop the pollution, ‘‘we will call for their resignation.”"

DUE TO popular demand the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra will be performing two return engagements in North Vancouver starting Saturday. Yhe VSO played to an enthusiastic crowd at Waterfront Park last

summer (above).

TWO CONCERTS

Symphony to play at N. Van market

THE SPIRIT of Christmas gets into full swing this

Saturday when the city’s

premier orchestra returns to

Lonsdale Quay Market for two afternoon concerts.

The Vancouver Symphony Or- chestra, fed by conductor Bruce Dunn, will perform an_ old- favorites Christmas festival pro- gram at 2 p.m. and again at 3:45 p.m. on Dec. 16.

The program includes Fred Stride’s Fanfare for Christmas; VSO bass player Fred Schipizky’s Quiet Eve; Michael Conway Baker’s Chanson des Joyeuse; Ralph Vaughan Williams’ Greensleeves and an assortment of traditional Christmas carols fora sing-along.

This is the VSO’s second Christmas concert at the Quay. Last year hundreds of people turned out to hear them play, said Janet King of Lonsdale Quay Market.

“It was a very popular concert. We always have a good turnout here and that’s why we keep ask- ing them back,’’ King said.

The VSO recently began per-

NV CITY COUNCIL TO DUMP FIRM’S CONTRACT

Garbage collection de-privatized

GARBAGE COLLECTION will be de-privatized in North Vancouver City fol- lowing council’s approval of a city report that says the cost difference between public and private collection is negligible.

By CORINNE BJORGE Contributing Writer

“It is my belief that the costs of providing a public service collec- tion and disposal service will not vary significantly from the costs of a private service providing reason- able manning provisions are of- fered by CUPE (Canadian Union of Public Employees),’’ said city engineer Chuck Gale in his report to council,

The decision by council to not renew the private contract which expires December 1990, ends an experiment with private collection services that began after the city

felt it was being pushed into a cor- ner by CUPE’s last-minute negotiating requests.

Ald. Bill Bell said the report vindicated council members who

bage, we felt we could get good service,’’ said Braithwaite.

“Since that time (the privatiza- tion) I felt P’'ve gotten poor ser- vice,’” he said.

“If we give it carte blanche to CUPE, I don’t think we are business-like.’’

— North Vancouver

City Ald. Stella Jo Dean a

had fought against the privatiza- tion.

“The report makes it clear that it was a political decision, not a cost-savings decision,’’ said Bell. “There is not the difference (in cost) that had been promised.”’

Ald. John Braithwaite said that garbage privatization was an “issue of control’? and its collec- tion should be a municipal service.

“The main thing is that when we had our own employees doing gar-

But Mayor Jack Loucks said he wasn’t convinced that bringing garbage collection back under the city’s wing would improve service or reduce the cost.

“T haven’t heard anyone give ev- idence that the offer was better,” said Loucks. ‘(Private collection) is just as good as when it was col- lected by our own people.”’

And Ald. Stella Jo Dean said she did not support giving the col- lection service to CUPE without

EVELYN JACOB News Reporter

forming in public places to raise its profile and make it more accessible to the public, says VSO prome- tions manager Muriel Schubert.

After a successful summer concert series, Schubert said the orchestra decided to ‘‘go where the people would be, and play for them.’’

“It’s in keeping with the idea of bringing the symphony out to the community so people have the opportunity to experience the VSO in different settings,’’ she said.

King said the VSO ‘‘seems to be living up to that commit- ment.’’

Public concerts like the Dec. 16 Quay performance help raise the profile of the VSO outside the Orpheum, said Schubert. They also give other people, in addi-

going to public tender to allow private companies to bid on the contract.

“If we give it carte blanche to CUPE, I don’t think we are business-like,’’ said Dean.

But the engineer’s report warned against having the city bid against private contractors.

“In the event that a contractor errs on a tender and exceeds the tendered price, the City still re- quires that contract price to be adhered to with the resulting loss accruing to the contractor. In the event the city exceeded its tendered price, who would pay the dif- ference?’’ said the report. “Discussions with other municipalities suggests this is a policy to stay away from.”’

Dean said she was also worried about the added costs of regaining and storing garbage collection equipment.

“There are various costs that are going to be hidden in the tender,”’ said Dean.

3 - Friday, December 15, 1989 - North Shore News

NEWS photo

tion to Orpheum-geers, the chance to hear them.

This year the VSO’s Christmas schedule includes a performance at Winterfest, the children’s winter festival at B.C. Place, where they will accompany world-champion figure skater Kurt Browning on Dec. 28 and 29.

On New Year’s Eve the or- chestra takes part in First Night, Vancouver’s annual celebration of the arts.

Dunn, who will lead the or- chestra during the Lonsdale Quay concert, studied under former VSO conductor Kazuyoshi Akiyama and Londen conductor Norman Del Mare. He conducted some of Conway Baker’s film scores and a selection of Joelle Rabu’s recordings and orchestral concerts.

Two years ago as part of a week-long anniversary celebra- tion, Lonsdale Quay merchants and members'of the community raised $10,000 for the VSO. Said King: “The North Shore com- munity really showed their sup- port for the VSO.”’

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