a February 23, 1986

—

ESTABLISHED AUG
we

WEEKLY MAY 4, 1990

mio WEEK
Ly. CAMPO

vested sn ond belongs to Coste Mews lid. prow

Belong to the odvertiner

PUBLISHER AUG. 7, 1047-768. 19, 1979

ONCE OF COPYMGHT. Full complete ond ole copy!

ry odvernaamant prepored irom repre prooks, engrovings. etc. provided by the odv

+ 12, HE-AUG. 27, 1980

ght inany printed matter produced by Costie News Lid.
Nowaver’ thet copyright sn thot port ond that par’ only of

_Sf

Welcome news

Westar Timber's proposal for a
$35 million 10-year combined mill

Of course, the project isn't
without fault. Many of the major

and p con-
trol upgrading at its Celgar Pulp
Operations is welcome news.

The proposal comes at a time
when the local economy could use
@ boost — both financially and
psychologically.

Last week's announcement that
300 workers would be laid off ot
Cominco Ltd.'s Trail lead-zinc
operations sent a dark cloud over
this area. Westar's proposal
provides a ray of hope, even

the start-up date may still
be some time off.

But more importantly, the
proposed improvements to the mill
and the pollution control equip-
ment are an indication of Westar
Timber's long-term commitment to
the mill and to this c

poll control impr
are scheduled for the final four
years of the 10-year project.

And Ald. Len Embree hos said
that he would like to see the
project completed in six yeors
rather than 10, as proposed.

There are also questions about
the local environment. The pulp
mill can't meet the present
pollution standards much of the
time, let alone the tough new
standards that are supposed to go
into effect on Jan. 1, 1988.

If granted a variance order by
Environment Minister Austin

EMERGENCY

WAITING. ROOM

Letters to the Editor

Pelton, the mill would be all d
to continue to operate as it does
for another decade.

And even after the moder-

y -
something that wasn't always
clear.

There’ was concern among many
in the community that Westar in
tended to run-the pulp mill into the
ground. They saw the mill grow
older and older while Westar used
its profits to bolster other sectors
of the company.

The fear was that the mill would
finally become so obsolete it
wouldn't be economical to operate
and Westar would shut it down.

Kootenay Forest Products in
Nelson was held up as just such an
example of neglect.

But the proposed $35 million
modernization project should
dispel those fears.

program has been com-
pleted, the mill still won't meet the
Ministry of Environment's pollution
standards (it is the only pulp mill in
the B.C. Interior that doesn't meet
the highest level of pollution stan-
dards).

In addition, the company’s track
record for following through on

Businesses ‘suicidal’

Editor, Castlegar News:

After five years of trying to spend
money in the Kootenays I have finally
reached my breaking point and must
speak out.

Recently, my husband and I purch
ased New Zealand wool carpeting in
Vancouver, a world-class product not

poll control proposals isn't the
best. Westar has proposed a
pollution control upgrading
program for the Celgar mill twice
before — in 1974 and again in
1981 — but both times failed to
complete the programs.

Let's hope for the sake of the
local economy and the future of
the mill that that won't be the case
with this latest proposal.

Bizarre shell game

Premier Bilt Bennett and
Education Minister Jim Hewitt
seem intent on playing some sort
of bizarre shell game with
education funding.

Just last week Mr. Bennett an-
nounced a new $110 million “Ex-
cellence in Education” fund for
schools, colleges and universities.

He said the fund — which will
be used to promote academic ex-
cellence — will be over and above
operating budgets and represents
a six per cent increase from the
current operating budget for all
levels of education.

On top of that Mr. Bennett
promised to maintain operating
funds at the 1985-86 level.

The premier said the funding
underlined the government's “bot-
tom line — that investment in
people is what it’s really all
about.”

Well, this week we found out
just what kind of investment the
province is willing to make in the
Castlegar school district

The school operating budget
was slashed by $172,000 and com
bined with declining enrolment
the board faces a budget cut of
more than $365,000.

It's obvious that the Castlegar
school district can't continue with
yet another year of budget cut-
backs without serious disruption to

its educational programs.

The worst part of all'ts the Way
the government has gone about it.
Mr. Bennett clearly got consid-
erable political mileage out of his
announcement of the Excellence in
Education fund.

In reality, he was simply using
money taken from elsewhere in
the education budget — a kind of
shell game. Unfortunately, in this
case the voters are the shills.

Squeaky
wheel

Who says the squeaky wheel
doesn't get the oil?

Case in point is the decline this
week in gas prices at retail outlets.
Jut two weeks ago federal Energy
Minister Pat Carney defended the
high gas prices by saying that it
took time for the decline in crude
oil prices to filter through the
system to car owners — two or
three months to be precise.

But lo and behold, a mere week
or two later prices start to fall.
fall. Magic? Hardly.

More like the thousands of
complaints the government
received had something to do with
the sudden drop in prite. t

Quotable Quotes

GARY LAUZON was sentenced to
42 months in jail after stealing flares
from a police van in Timmins, Ont.
Lauzon doused the van with 20 litres of
gas, lit a flare and set the van on fire
The same day he placed a lit flare in
the cab of a truck, causing $2,000
damage.

He shoved a third flare in the gas
tank of another vehicle, but a passerby
removed it before it could ignite the
gas.

Lauzon’s defence argued: “He was on
a bit of a bender.”

SOUTH AFRICAN TV viewers were
given a surprise last week when the
normally strait-laced state-run telev
jsion aired a naked couple making love.

South African Broadcasting Corp.
said police were called in after the 10.
to 15-second interlude in the evening
news.

A spokesman said the station
received a number of calls about the
film.

“A lot of people say they want to see
more. One person said it was the most

exciting news bulletin he'd ever seen.”

LYDIA KAUFMAN, in a letter to
her brother, convicted murderer Hel-
muth Buxbaum:- “Helmuth, when I
think of you, I must say you are weird.
You are the guy who calls your
brothers’ jokes boring. But you go.to a
street bum and give him your arm to
inject needles.”

EDUCATION Minister Jim Hewitt,
who quit high school in Grade 11: “In
hindsight, my education was too short.
I would have liked to seek a
profession — perhaps lawyer, doctor.
But I must make it clear that I have no
regrets.”

TORONTO lawyer Harry Kopyto,
after a judge dismissed a claim by Ross
Dowson, Kopyto's client, against two
RCMP officers: “We're wondering
what is the point of appealing and
continuing this charade of the courts in
this country which are warped in favor
of protecting the police.

“The courts and the RCMP are
sticking so close together you'd think
they were put together with Krazy
Glue.”

ilable through local retailers. For
installation we first contacted a
Castlegar firm. The material and labor
for the job were estimated at $1,200.

Now at first contact with this
company I expected one of two
answers, a “no” because we had not
purchased the carpet through them, or
a “yes” if and when their schedule
permitted. We received the latter and
even a probable date for the work to be
done. Fine.

We spoke to the firm twice on the
phone about materials, costs, ete. At a
maximum we took a total of 10 minutes
of their time. I called a third time to
confirm we wanted the work done, to
ee ee. whatever. At that
point the: manager/salesman told me if
no uncertain terms that he was fed up
with our pestering him (10 minutes!)
and to leave him alone.

This is just the latest of several
similar incidents that have happened to
us as we have been building and
furnishing our home, trying to do
business with West Kootenay retailers
and tradesmen.

We needed railings and spindles for a
stairway. When asked in December, a
Fruitvale retailer replied they would

be in “sometime next year”. A call toa
Vancouver firm at noon the next day
had the required material at the
Motorways Freight depot in Trail the
following afternoon. (An $800 purch-
ase.) I asked several local firms for
estimates on kitchen cabinetry (final
cost $8,000). Not one ever called back
or showed any interest. Finally, a then
Okanagan-based company did the
work.

We have spent many, many thous-
ands of dollars outside the Kootenays

and it is obvious we will have to
continue doing so. Freight is cheap and
Vancouver firms are eager to consult
endlessly with customers, special order
goods and provide immediate and
impeccable service. Local businessmen
could learn many lessons at the coast.
As a final point, listen to the swan
song of these suicidal businesses. They
inevitably hold Cominco cutbacks
responsible for their demise.
(Mrs.] Ellen Rogers
Fruitvale

Russian immersion
program beneficial

. Castlegar News:

I would like to take this opportunity
to thank our local elected school
trustees for the continued support that
they have given to our local language
immersion program. My wife and I
enrolled our son in this program in
hopes that he would be challenged by
the immersion curriculum and would
benefit academically.

As a non-native speaker of the
language I at first had reservations
about the viability of Russian as a
second language. However, as my son
has progressed in the program I've

seen the positive benefit of his
increased awareness of the local
cultural hertiage.

At the same time, his academic
development has left me very impres-
sed. The staff and structure of this
program are excellent and are a credit
to the school district. I would not
hesitate to recommend this program to
any parent who would like their child
to benefit from the immersion exper-

D’ Arcy
Report

{

Cabinet profiles

Step right up. All you ever wanted to
know about the recent cabinet shuffle
but were afraid to ask. Humbly, I offer
thumbnail sketches of the personalities
in new or altered cabinet postings.

Pat McGeer: International Trade
and Investment, Science and Technol-
ogy — Have brain, will travel. Natural
gas powered. Fixed link mentality.
Thinks those who can't afford Socred
gasoline prices or natural gas conver-
sions should sell their cars.

Grace McCarthy: Provincial Secret-
ary and Government Services — Had
this protocol job before. Vivacious and
energetic. Has already eyed a new
wardrobe for when she directs the
Charles and Di show come Expo time.
First must have lunch with BCGEU
president, the Reverend John Shields.
Hopes to sell Expo passes to single
people living on a $375 a month. Smile.

Russ Fraser: Post Secondary Educa-
tion — Senatorial. Engineer. Likes to
build things. Will understand need to
expand college facilities in Trail and
Castlegar. Now, if he can understand
what colleges do inside the buildings,
we're away to the races.

Stephen Rogers: Health — Keeps
personal opinions in blind trust.

Invented water licence fee increases to
control rampant job stability and
suppress unreasonable growth in the
economy. No financial interest in Acme
Medical Clinics Inc. Honest. Knows
how to spell Cat scanner.

Elwood Veitch: Consumer and Corp-
orate Affairs — Huggy bear of a guy.
Was Tourism minister before being
summarily trashed by voters in 1979.
Second round draft pick. Adept at
lassooing wandering cabinet ministers
into answsering roll call bells.

Tom Waterland: Agriculture —
From Anyox, so can’t be that bad.
Understands extraction part of
resource industries. Will train farmers
to get by without replanting, juvenile
spacing, fertilizer, or range fire
preparedness. Will be a star at truck
farmers’ convention.

Jim : Education — Telly
Savals look alike from Toronto. Fond of
expressions like “window in time”, and
“hard nosed bargaining”, and “critical
time path”. Will have end displays of
post- course brochures set up
in high school corridors, clearly
marked with sign proclaiming New
Product! Will chair Expo Education
Legacy Fund. Will provide one-third

grants for projects such as Pine Cone
3tudies at Christina Lake.

Jack Kempf: Lands, Parks and
Housing — Used to give speeches
attacking government policies, then
would meekly vote for same policies in
roll call votes. Can't abide listening to
boring, repetitious speeches on West
Trail Approach and Pass Creek Road.
Turns off hearing aid.

Tony “Zap the Wolves” Brummett:
E y, Mines and Petroleum
Resources — Frontier school principal.
Sense of humor. Doesn't suffer fools
lightly. Must have some bad days in
cabinet.

Jim Nielsen: Human Resources —
Good House Leader. Brings experience
in family relations to new posting.
Can't spell Cat scanner or find Trail on
map, but one of better ministers. Good
sense of humor, except when badgered
by Eli Sopow.

Three ministers return to the
backbenches:

Jim Chabot: Charming expatriate
Quebecois. Fourth round draft pick.
Competent right winger, good along
the boards and in the corners.
Sometimes brilliant on special teams.
Defends indefensible. Translated
writing on corn flakes boxes for Bill
Vander Zalm.

Den Phillips: Stickhandled funding
for Castlegar water system through
treasury a few years ago. Father of
northeast coal land foreign ministerial
junkets. Can spell “travel agent”, but
has difficulty with “cost benefit analy.
sis”. Believes a stack of contracts with
escape clauses is better than one
contract with teeth in it.

Rev. Harvey “The Gentleman”
Schroeder: Kept orderly House when
Speaker of the Legislature. Fair to
both sides. Doesn't like Bob Williams.
Can't imagine why.

There you have it. The above
attempt at whimsy should not obscure
that, on balance, the cabinet is

ly improved. The reality is
that they are the ruling government, at
least for now.

Considering the state of the B.C.
economy, we should all wish them well.

During the evening Mrs, H. Johnson
of Robson delighted the guests with
accompanied

Block 59 “The Ball Park,” owned by
8. Holoboff and S. Hoodakoff has been
offered for sale to the village for a

nd.
a ie an ideal location for future
development as a civic centre if it can
be purchased at a reasonable price.
. °* *@

The Women's World Day of Prayer
was observed in Castlegar with a ser-
vice held in St. Alban's Anglican
Church on Feb. 9. Leaders for this ser-
vice were Mrs. Lillian Killough and
Mrs. John Sherbiko and the address
was given by Mrs. A.T. Horswill.

‘The soloist was Mrs. MacLeod, ac-
companied by Mrs. A. Hostetter,
organist for the service.

. *« *

The usual meeting of the First
Company Castlegar Girl Guides was
held Feb. 14.

Square dancing was enjoyed for the
first half of the evening. Later the
Guides gathered around the piano and
sang with Joanne Dunlop scegmpany-
ing them.

25 YEARS AGO
From the Feb. 23, 1961
Castlegar News

The Kinnaird PTA is to hold an
auction on March 18 in the Creighton
Building to raise money for the Kin-
naird swimming pool fund and to buy
two refrig for the 7
sel

* 6« «

A 12-year-old Scout who saved a man
from drowning in the Lower Arrow
Lake last August has been awarded the
Silver Cross for Gallantry by the Boy
Scouts Association. This is the second
highest award for gallantry bestowed
by the Scout movement.

James Arthur Cummings of Castle
gar tops the list of 10 association
members and leaders in the honors
released in Ottawa by Canada’s chief
scout, Gov. Gen. George Vanier.

7. 6 *

For the first time in the history of
the event, the West Kootenay High
School Basketball tournament will be
held this year at Stanley Humphries
High School.

. 28 6
the CPR regarding the possibility of a
tourist park being established by the
village on property owned by the CPR

From the Feb. 25, 1971
Castlegar News

A new $280,000 postal distribution
centre for Castlegar was among
$4,585,000 in federal works projects for
B.C. approved in the House of Com-
mons last Wednesday.

. 26* @«

A federal grant of $1,000 was re
ceived Monday by Peter Samoyloff,
director of the Stanley Humphries
Senior Secondary School Doukhobor
choir to assist the group in appearing
at the coast in March.

The choir, who is about 100 voices
strong, is to appear on the campus at
UBC as well as at the Sir Winston
Churehill Secondary School and Erie
Hamber Secondary School in Vancou-
ver.

* 2 6

The Slocan Curling Club was host to
the West Kootenay Zone playdowns
Feb. 12-14.

There were 10 rinks playing with
five from Slocan, two from Nakusp and
one each from Nelson, Grand Forks and
Castlegar.

The George Keay rink from Nakusp
skipped by Fred Desrochiers, won first
over the Grand Forks rink, skipped by
Doug Engstrom.

* 28* «

The B.C. operations of Cominco at
Trail have been awarded the first
Workmen's Compensation Board Em-
ployer Recognition Award for hiring of
workers handicapped through indus-
trial injuries.

5 YEARS AGO
From the Feb. 25, 1981

Castlegar News

Castlegar’s Senior Citizens’ Associa-
tion is getting a grant from the city to
pay for improvements to the associ
ation’s building.

Aldermen voted Tuesday night to
approve spending up to $1,500 to install
a subfloor in the basement of the
building.

. 8 «6

Castlegar city council is prepared to
give a grant to the local chamber of
commerce, but it wants more infor-
mation about the chamber’s financial
situation before deciding how much the
grant will be.

Brisco
Report
By Kootenay

West MP
Bob Brisco

Brisco explains
high gas prices

As of last Friday, I had received
close to 500 letters from constit-
uents wishing to register complaints
about the high cost of gasoline. Most
were in the form of newspaper
cut-outs, published by the B.C.
Automobile Association, although I
have received a number of personal
letters, as well as letters from
concerned municipalities ‘and
chambers of commerce.

First of all, | want to thank all of
you for taking the time to express
your opinions on this matter to me.
No one likes paying upwards of 57
cents for a litre of regular gasoline.
As I mentioned in an earlier column,
the two biggest irritants faced by
Canadians on a daily basis are the
poor and expensive service
delivered by the post office, and the
high price we pay at the gas pumps.
Obviously, you agree.

There are reasons, unfortunately,
that we pay what we do for gasoline.
I will take this opportunity to
explain why, and next week I will
inform you of what the Progres-
sive Conservative government is
doing to allow for lower prices at the

pumps.

The most recent figures available
from the Ministry of Energy, Mines
and Resources (January 1986) break
down the cost of a litre of 56.2 cent
gasoline in the following manner:
crude oil costs — 24 cents; refining
and marketing costs — 15.5 cents;
British Columbia provincial tax —
9.6 cents; federal tax — 7.1 cents.

The federal tax is the same across
the country. The provincial tax of
9.6 cents in B.C. compares with a
national average of 7.7 cents; from a
low of 0 cents in Alberta and
Saskatchewan, to a high of 13.7
cents in Quebec.

The BCAA, and other consumer
organizations claim that 50-60 per
cent of what we pay for gasoline is
taxes. That statement is somewhat
misleading.

Direct federal and provincial
taxes combined account for about 30

per cent of the total pump price.
Other industry and corporate taxes
exist, and some (e.g. BCAA) feel the

;

i
ll

ff

I
i
ee

!
i

Hi

-*f
i
i

|

|

sh

iE fi
1H i
Ht

:
pE
:

Fo wrr

them in the price they charge for
crude oil. The fact is, however, that
crude prices in Canada are set
according to world oil prices; a topic
I will go into in greater detail next
week.

Canadians seem particularly
upset that when they travel south of
the border, they pay, an average, 12
cents per litre less than they pay at
home. However, the reasons for
that difference are complex and
numerous.

For one thing, operational costs in
the Canadian marketplace are
higher than in the U.S. Canada is
much smaller in terms of population,
and much larger geographically.
The costs associated with maintain-
ing a distribution system for fewer
people over a larger area are higher
than those enjoyed by American oil
companies.

Additionally, taxes in Canada
are higher. The provincial tax of 9.6
cents per litre, commonly called a
3 ” is a major source of

network of highwasy. In fact we are
probably lucky it isn't higher
because according to the provincial
finance ministry, the costs
associated with highways generally
exceed the revenue d by

predict that any tax reductions at
the present time would be next to
impossible.

Another factor which contributes
to the higher cost of gasoline in
Canada, is the severe difference
between the U.S. and Canadian

U.S. where there is much more
activity among “independent”
retailers, who purchase gasoline
from whichever distributor offers
its product at the lowest price.
exists in Canada, but
of a different nature than in the U.S.

MORE LETTERS
Still issues to be

resolved by group

iS =f
3 oa
tot oe oe
2 nomen
os ;
wish to nfo te sews titi senbeel: 1, a
I wish to the public of some 4
by  Memamard -_ R h Ce on ob D
affairs (formerly Kootenay Committee on Inter-group
Relations)

Td like to tell some of the committee members that we
Sons of Freedom know problems exist — that is why we go
to these meetings. But we do not wish to sit and listen to
someone who dictates and says they know the answers to

should believe.

of all we have women in prison and on a hunger strike. We
have Mary Astaforoff, who suffered in the hands of the
institution and died at Matsqui. She was sentenced to 10
years for a crime she never committed.

We have Peter Lordly’s murder, the confiscation of

lands in and in British Columbia,
‘and the sale of the lands back to the Doukhobors.

Committee chairman Fred Makortoff fails to see that
the authorities have admitted the prosecutions were
unwarranted, and are willing to compromise and again
release the women as soon as ible.

According to a report in the Jan. 25 Vancouver Sun
Makortoff feels he is above the authorities and that he can
enforce his ideas at the “stroke of a pen,” so to speak.

To quote from the article by Kim Bolam: “We find
ourselves agreeing now without even having first agreed to
agree’ said Fred Makortoff of the Reformed Doukhobors as
he chats casually with other committee members in Rose's
Doukhobor restaurant, about 25 kilometres north of

Castlegar.

“But after the pair lit a protest fire at Matsqui
Institution earlier this month, the committee has put the
proposal on hold until the women agree to fully
and obey prison rules.”

I asked Mr. Makortoff about the statement and he
denied it, telling me “not to pay attention to the
new: ‘

‘spapers.

The committee never authorized Mr. Makortoff to make
any press release on such issues or on any issues. Therefore,
seeing such misleading statements, he should have corrected
them. I believe that’s why the women started their fast
again.

I also wish to state that the authorities should not
exclude themselves from the problems among the
Doukhobors. It’s not the many years of pain “between
sects,” it's the pain that the “authorities induced.”

Walter Perepelkin
Crescent Valley

MARGARINE

PARKAY 3-48. PACK --

PROCESS CHEESE $90
BLACK DIAMOND SINGLETON. 500 GR. ...-

that tax.

The federal sales and excise taxes
totalling 7.1 cents per litre,among
other things, go towards paying for
the costly social programs that
Canadians want; programs which do
not exist to the same degree south
of the border. And yes, they are
costly.

Fully indexed old age pensions,
for example, cost Canadian
taxpayers over $8.2 billion dollars
last year. Guaranteed income
supplements cost just under $3

gasoline in Canada either have, or
are presently being addressed
the Progressive Conservative
government. In next week's

I will explain how.

Winning
Lotto 6/49
numbers
drawn

was 39
The

holder

The

‘The six winning pumbers
in Wednesday's Lotto 6-49
draw were 5, 17, 23, 35, 45
and 48. The bonus number

jackpot
$1,411,762.10 goes to the
of a
bought in Ontario.

second-prize
awarded to those matching

243,742
$5,425,174.20.

The jackpot
pected to be at

pool of
single ticket

pool,

five regular numbers and the
bonus number, had six win
ners of $88,888.70.

There was a
prices

pool is ex

million for the next draw, to
be held Saturday.
Winning numbers drawn

Wednesday evening in Brit
ish Columbia's Pacific Ex
press lottery:

For $100,000: 303211

For $50,000: 114382

For $10,000: 358927.

In the event of a discrep-
ancy between this list and
the official list of winning
numbers, the official list will
prevail.

total of
worth

least $1.8

KOOTENAY SAVINGS IN

‘Personalized Autoplan Service’’

¢ Insurance ® Licence Plates * Registration © Vehicle Transfers

or

SURANCE SERVICES LTD.

PLUS PREMIUM FINANCING!

Personal Autoplan Coverage
Competitive Interest Rate
Financing up to $1000

Payable in3
Minimum Do

Required

Financing Subject to Approval

Financing arrangements through Kootenay
Savings Insurance Services Ltd.

svvovoecoeeesuenunnennvatosscscesnnvsuocnssanvnnoceeasvevannecvcsoangsesgnssauniaueeneeet

| NOW YOU CAN RENEW EARLY AND

monthly installments __
wn Payment & Administration Fee

el
AVOID THE RUSH!

KOOTENAY SAVINGS INSURANCE SERVICES LTD.

1199 CEDAR AVE.
TRAIL
368-9174

1016

- 4th STREET
CASTLEGAR
365-8313

CHEERIOS
HOMEGOODS

FURNITURE

wy

WAREHOUSE

Mon.-Sat., 9:30-5:30
China Creek
“Drive a Little to Save a Lot”

PEPSI OR 7-UP
DIET OR REGULAR. 6-355 MAL. TINS ....

We reserve the right to limit quantities.
Prices |i to stock on hand.

CENTRAL FOODS

MENT AMOS
ff and chat

itvale - Castlegar » Salmo - South Stocan Nakusp - New Denver - Waneta Plaza Kasto