AN, K>'3 Castlegar News PAGE A4, WEDNESDAY, MARCH 6, 1991 MEMBER OF THE B.C. PRESS COUNCK, ESTABLISHED AUGUST 7, 1947 TWICE WEEKLY MAY 4, 1980 THE MID-WEEK 12, LV, CAMPBELL — PUBLISHER, AUGUST 7, 1947-FEBRUARY 15, 1973 PUBLISHER — Burt Campbell EDITOR — Simon Birch GER OFFICE MANAGER — Warren Chernoft CIRCULATION MANAGER — Heather Hadiey ECON EDITORIAL Parks battle a rite of spring How can you tell it’s almost spring in Castlegar? Because Castlegar city council is fighting over where to spend its limited parks and recreation budget. In what is becoming an annual rite of spring, the contest began Tuesday night with Ald. Bob Pakula in his first at bat as parks and tec manager since coming out of retirement last fall as a civic politician. Mr. Pakula, taking over from former alderman Patti Richards in the parks and rec arena, was roughed up in the early innings as he pitched an $85,000 budget weighted toward finishing the Community Complex ballfield and completing improvements to the pony field at Kinnaird Park. Ald. Pakula’s teammates on council said they feel he’s neglected other projects in need of parks and rec funds in the city. The trouble is, all of the aldermen are right on this one. Ald. Pakula is right on the money for wanting to finish the two ballfields. Slo-pitch, whose players by far account for the majority of use of city ballfields, is a hugely popular recreational activity. Slo- pitch tournaments bring hundreds of people to.a town or city and the more top-notch fields we have here in Castlegar the more tournamen- ts we can attract and the more money visiting players will leave at local hotels and other businesses. So spending money on ballfields is a good investment. On the other hand, Mr. Pakula’s fellow aldermen are also right in pointing out that there are numerous other parks and rec projects worthy of council’s consideration. The idea of some kind of skateboarding facility for local youngsters is a neat idea and there are still enough tennis buffs around to warrant keeping the city’s courts in good shape. But the best idea of all is the proposed five-year master plan for city parks. Castlegar needs a thorough analysis of what’s needed and what the priorities are. With a master plan in hand, perhaps aldermen won’t end up ver- bally black and blue every spring. a LOCAL NEWS By the Recycle Advisory Group The job is not finished until the paperwork is done. But what happens to the paper? There is so much paper around us these days that we may think there is a never-ending supply. However, if you fly from Castlegar to Vancouver you'll be stunned at the number of clearcut patches in the forests. It’s prety obvious that we are cutting Phe trees faster than they are growing. It’s true that some of those trees are cut to produce lumber, but some are also cut for processing in pulp and paper mills. There is no doubt that we'd have more trees if we Finding a place for all that paper recycled more paper products. Why not set up a paper recycling system in your home and in your place of business? Here's how to sort it: 1, New ers. Remove all flyets. Keep clean, dry and out of sunlight. Pile in 12-inch bundles, secured with twine, or lay flat in cardboard boxes. 2. Colored Flyers. (Nelson depot only). Remove all glossy Paper. Prepare it the same as newspapers, but keep separate. 3. Computer Paper. White computer paper is the highest grade and highest priced recycleable pape: 4. White . Ledger. White bleached letter quality paper. 5. Colored Ledger. Colored letter quality paper and en- velopes. Stamps are OK, but labels are not because the glue may not dissolve. Remove celophane windows from en- velopes. File foiders are okay. 6. Cardboard. Corrugated car- dboard has high grade fibre and is recycleable. No light cardboard (such as cereal boxes) due to low grade fibre. Brown kraft grocery bags and envelopes are okay (remove celophane windows). Note: The following are not accepted under any of the above categories: glossy paper, wax Paper, colored construction grade paper, fax machine paper, magazines, carbon, paper. Remove tape from all paper. It is OK, however, to leave light staples in all grades of paper. Each ton of recycled paper saves 17 trees. Guys and Dolls Friday, March 15 at 8 p.m. Stanley Humphries Secondary School Tickets $10 TICKETS AVAILABLE AT: Cort’s Drugs * Pharmasave * Castlegor Library Society. All smi! aos attr. profits LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Service eroding Recently I mailed a letter to Calgary at the Castlegar post office and to my surprise learned that as of Feb. 25, 1991, all mail heading to points east is shipped first to Vancouver. On asking the postal clerk whether this could contribute to even slower delivery of our mail to eastern Canada, I was dismayed to find that it could, despite the ever-increasing prices we must pay. Apparently, Canada Post is currently centralizing all sorting work at mechanized larger Post offices. Formerly, Castlegar postal workers separated mail into packets for Alberta, Manitoba, Ontario, and so on. Now it is shipped, unsorted, to Vancouver. This new trend has negative implications which I find unacceptable: © A decrease in the quality of our postal service while we are forced to pay higher and higher prices. This is happening despite the Celgar expansion and the probable increase in VIEWPOINT Arafat faces tough times By MONA ZIADE NICOSIA, Cyprus — Hard times lie ahead for the Palestine Liberation Organization and its chairman, Yasser Arafat, who supported Sad- dam Hussein in the Gulf War. The Iraqi leader has been crushed and his survival is uncertain. The oil- rich Persian Gulf Arab states have angrily stopped the flow of funds for the Palestinian cause. The PLO’s relations with most Arab leaders are soured by hostility and distrust and the movement itself has been shaken. But, with the war over, western and Arab leaders agree the time is ripe for a new drive to settle the Palestinian problem, the root of con- flict in the Middle East for more than four decades. “All efforts should now be deployed with the view of resolving the Arab-Israeli conflict with the same rapidity as that which settled the gulf cri on the basis of inter- national legality,’’ declared Yasser Abed-Rabbo, a member of the PLO’s ruling executive committee in Tunis. Achieving an Arab-Israeli peace will be the main test for. the ‘‘new world order’ U.S. President George Bush claims he wants to establish. } That in itself is a political victory for the PLO, which for 23 years has warned there can be no peace in the Middle East until the Palestinian issue is resolved. : But the position of Israel's right- wing government has been hardened by the war and by Arafat's backing for Saddam. Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir has brought more hardliners into his cabinet. The continuing mass emigration of hundreds of thousands of Soviet Jews to Israel, an issue over- shadowed by the war, will again decome a major bone of contention. Israel may expect the United States to back it as a reward for staying out jof the war despite Iraqi missile at- tacks on the Jewish state. Roland Dumas, declared Thursday that the PLO is the only organization that can speak for the world’s five million Palestinians. Before Arafat gambled on Sad- dam, the PLO was getting some $43 million US a month from the gulf States, much of which bankrolled the three-year-long Palestinian uprising in Israeli-occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip. That aid has been cut off. The deportation by the gulf states of many of the two million Palestinians who worked there has cut off another $8 million to $10 million a month’ in remittances. Saudi Arabia, once the PLO’s main donor, and other gulf states are not likely to forgive what they see as Arafat's betrayal until he is ousted. Arafat years ago shrewdly made contingency plans for just such an emergency-by investing an estimated $2 Billion in Europe, Asia, Africa and the Middle East. But he’s still had to slash the PLO’s $300 million annual budget by 35 per cent. Arafat has been written off many times since he took control of the PLO in 1969 and welded it into a Political and military force. Arab leaders have tried before to get rid of him. Lebanon and Jordan turned their armies on the PLO in the 1970s to curb the PLO’s growing power. Egypt and Syria have engineered mutinies within the PLO. Arafat was written off in 1982 when Israel invaded Lebanon, strip- ping the PLO of its power base and forcing it to disperse its fighters around the Arab world. But Arafat has survived because of the support he enjoys among the vast majority of Palestinians. To them, the 60-year-old _pistol-packing revolutionary symbolizes their struggle for a homeland, Salah Khalaf, Arafat's deputy, was assassinated in Tunis by a renegade bodyguard on the eve of the Guif War. Arafat's military chief, Khalil al-Wazir, was slain by gunmen in Tunis on April 16, 1988. The PLO blamed Israel for both which i weakened Arafat's inner circle and his operational apparatus. Mona Zinde writes { lor Associated activities here. Private citizens as well as businesses ‘willbe affected h y © The loss of decent-paying postal jobs in Castlegar, as more jobs are moved to the larger centres. To some, this change in mail sorting, while having negative consequences here, may appear to be very minor. However, I view this change as another example of current federal government policy to centralize at the expense of smaller communities. Right now, our government is making all kinds of noise about its determination to keep the country together, and has even established a separate commission to study the problem. And yet, the actions of the same government with respect to rural and small city populations have been steadily eroding services. The most glaring examples of this erosion are the ongoing plans to sell off our entire postal system by 1996, cuts to our rail system and abandonment of regional CBC stations. These actions, which systematically remove the federal presence from Canadian communities, stand in direct contradiction to a government which claims to be concerned about national Wildlife loses Last week, we read about the ‘Wildlife Winners.”’ It was news coverage on men who gave each other awards for shooting large animals. The winners were not wildlife. The language was indirect. It was said that the men (or boys} won awards for “‘bringing home’’ these creatures. The fact is, they killed them and they got awards for killing them. And, most alarming to me, they dined on cougar and that was all right. This happened! Over 200 men and women got together to pat themselves on the back. They called each other ‘‘winners"’ for killing these wild animals, especially ones that are rare. Humans may hunt, but must we glory in it so recklessly? We know better now than to shoot the biggest and strongest. These individuals are needed for their own kind. And we must teach our children not to shoot the endangered ones. The bear balls joke does not show respect for a species which (more primitive) homo-sapiens have held sacred. I feel like a winner if ever I see such an animal for only a moment. I hope someday that I will see a cougar who is wild and free and alive. And when I do, I will fervently hope that she does not get shot or trapped, prematurely, by a member of my species. Barbara Murdoch Pass Creek Animals valued 1am writing this letter in response to Barbara Murdoch's letter (CasNews, Feb 27). I would like to let Barbara Murdoch know that I can appreciate her feelings and am happy to see her put wildlife in the limelight. But | would also like to set the record straight. Barbara's “The wolv is truly "is based on emotional sentiment and not.on factual information. I will say that in B.C. as in other parts of Canada, wolverine are rare, as compared to other large species of wildlife such as deer, elk, bears, and so on, and because very few people ever see them (even trappers) does not put them in the position of being endangered. They are very reclusive animals. There are millions of flying squirrels throughout B.C. — when was the last time you ever saw one? Most people don’t even know they exist. And because there are no populations of flying squirrels in Newfoundland, should Newfoundlanders consider them as endangered? If it appears that there are low numbers of any species of wildlife, | agree we should most certainly look at finding the cause. Wolverines, for example, have never been considered abundant. It is the nature of the beast, and for as long as histsory has been recording these creatures, that is just the way it is with them and they will probably always be low in numbers. They are very unique in their habits but simply will never breed like rabbits. As for Barbara’s question, ‘When does our local trapper know when he has killed the very last wolverine on the mountain?’’ If there is a trapper so stupid as to do that, we have the Ministry of Environment to safeguard against that ever happening. In the East and West Kootenays, every wolverine that is trapped, by law, has to be i for ii ion with specific inf on the indivi i sur ing the trapping of that animal, including sex, size (length) and weight) date of kill, location, trapper verification, number of traps used and for how long. 4 If this information is not submitted in the specified amount of time, the trapper may very well lose his or her licence and trap-line. For every in terms of dollars given the overall highways budget... .’’ So, we have a ready-made site with slips and anchors for a ferry. We have the need. Money is not a problem. The only: other thing we require is the will to do something. With the premier now on our side’and given the expertise we have at getting things done quickly —-and have-demonstrated in the past — we can very well have a temporary ferry operating by Labor Day, a ferry that can be used in the future in the maintenance of the cable ferries in use in the Arrow Reservoir. But we do need the will, the commitment. Fred G. Marsh Robson Water users backed We, the members of the Elliott, Anderson, hristian, Trozzo Watershed Committee, aré writing this letter to express our support for the Red Mountain Residents Association and the Hasty Creek water users in their refusal to engage at this point in an integrated watershed management process. We are dismayed that road building in this watershed is going ahead while ignoring the legitimate concerns of the residents and Provincial ombudsman inquiry into the Ministry of Forests’ public involvement process. Our watershed committee, as a member of the Slocan Valley Watershed Alliance, seeks the same changes to the IWMP as those sought by the Red Mountain Residents Association and Hasty Creek-Alvin water users. We intend to press for these same changes should the ministry call for an IWMP in our area. While we always hope that the Ministry of Forests will work with the SVWA to resolve the five outstanding issues which make the IWMP. to us in its present state, we are wolverine that is taken by a the.province, the same applicable information is required within 10 days of the date of kill. I cannot begin to describe the value I put on wildlife — there is not enough room in this newspaper. But | will agree with Barbara on one item, and that is wildlife problems are a direct result of people, and the only way to lessen or imi: these is through i active ici related and | the ge o Thank you Barbara Murdoch for giving wildlife such a high priority. I most certainly do. Stephen Davis, President Casilegar. and District Wildlife Association Castlegar in wildlife- Ferry still needed After reading carefully Simon Birch’s interview with the Honorable William Vander Zalm (Castlegar News, Feb. 23) I believe that our premier has said that when our Robson ferry was so abruptly shut down almost three years ago he was unaware of its importance in the day-to-day affairs of Robson and Castlegar. This can be only because his fellow members of the cabinet have been remiss in keeping their chief informed on representations being made to their ministries. The ferry issue is much broader than many realize and has many ramifications. I myself have written to and received letters from eight cabinet ministers since this sorry matter arose. Others have done even more than I have to have our ferry service returned to us. But I see reason for renewed hope. Our Premier — and I use his own words — is now “sympathetic to what it is the people say when they argue the closeness of those communities. So call it a moral obligation, call it what you will, I think there’s an obligation to do something.’’ A bridge is most certainly a satisfactory something. A bridge is also three years in the future, maybe four or even five. When we look at the already rapidly increasing traffic on the road from Castlegar to the pulp mill and on to the Keenleyside dam it is clear that we need a Columbia River crossing at the old ferry site right now, and will need it even miore when the new mill construction is at its height, and while the bridge is being built. i The ferry slips are already in place. Our balanced provincial budget. “... that’s (a bridge) not even that big e project Prepared to support the Red Mountain Residents Association and Hasty Creek-Alvin water users in their efforts to protect their water. Bo Conlan On behalf of Elliott, Anderson, Christian, Trozzo Watershed Committee Winlaw Dr. Ruth unwanted The community of Castlegar does not need the advice of ‘‘sexologist”’ Dr. Ruth in the Castlegar Sun. Our city and surrounding districts need the advice of a nutritionist, plus advice to our youth on the use of alcohol, cigarettes, drugs — including steroids — and more awareness about teenage sex and its consequences. I'm not a prude by any means. When I see the garbage can in the local Post office overflowing with Castlegar Suns every Wednesday afternoon, I’m not surprised. What a waste of Paper, pulp and trees from our beautiful Columbia Valley. Remove Dr. Ruth's column and the Sun may acquire some subscribers. Fern Schwartzenhauer Castlegar Editor's note: The Castlegar Sun did not Londen Dr. Ruth’s column in its last issue, Feb. 7. Please address all letters to the editor to: to the Editor, Cas: legar/ typewritten, double- Or town Only cases will letters be without the writer's name. , the name, and Treeplanter shows his world A serries of treeplanting photographs by Dave Brooks opened at the Nelson Museum on March 1 and continues until March 31. Theatre celebrates Celtic musical spirit Juno award nominee Figgy Duff comes to the Capitol Theatre at 8 p.m. on March 9 for a gala evening in celebration of the Celtic musical spirit. Hailing from Newfoundland, the group has a considerable range without abandoning its Celtic roots, Oasis Productions says in a news release. Traditional Newfoundland music is a blend of Irish jigs and reels and English ballads with French and Scottish influences and a strong feel of the sea. The isolation that has given Newfoundland its unique music has also helped that music stay alive. The band will have six members on the tour. Instruments range from acoustic guitars, to Celtic harp, but- ton accordians, the bodhran, some fine fiddle playing and more. Abo- ve it all rises the voice of Pam Morgan. She has been compared to such English folk-rock legends as Sandy Denny and Jacquie McShee, Oasis says. Figgy Duff’s «latest album, Weather Out the Storm, is being played across Canada and the video as well as the group was recently featured on CBC’s The Journal. CABLE 10 SHAW CABLE 10 schedule 1991 5S p.m. (Wed) 9 a.m. (Fri) West Kootenay Today — A look at’ this week's Shaw Cable lineup. p.m. (Wed) 9:30 a.m. (Fri) USCC Youth Festival — Coverage continues with Part 3 of this annual event that is held at the Brilliant Cultural Centre. This week, the Glade Community Choir, Slocan Park-Passmore Community Choir and the Calgary Youth Choir are featured. Produced by USCC. 6:30 p.m. (Wed) 10:30 a.m. (Fri) 18th Annual Northshore Gymnastics — Produced by Shaw Cable in Van- couver, this event included gymnasts from 14 top clubs from Westeren Canada and the United States. 8:30 p.m. (Wed) 12:30 p.m. (Fri) No Funeral By Request — This was the topic of a panel discussion held on Feb. 26 at Selkirk College in Trail. Panel members Kent Isreal, Branda Hooper, Bill Clark, Terry Jones and Michael Phillips presented the views on the effects on friends, loved ones, care givers and the com- munity. Hosted by Dave Glover. Produced by continuing education in Trail. 10 p.m. (Wed) 2 p.m. (Fri) Sign NOTE: This schedule is repeated on Friday at 9 a.m. Please note: There will be no regular program- ming on Sunday, March 10, due to live-—coverage of the Children’s Development Centre Telethon. Sunday, March 10, 1991 12 p.m. — Childre: ment Centre Telethon — coverage of the annual event held at the Cominco Gym in Trail. The money raised at the annual telethon goes to the operation of the centre. Take in the live eight-hour event and please donate to this event. Storyteller Melanie Ray is revisiting the Castlegar Library on March 8. She performed for the summer reading program par- ticipants last summer and library staff were so impressed by the magic of her stories they’ve in- vited her back, with the aid of a co-sponsoring grant from the Storyteller returns Castlegar school district. Students from two elementary schools will be attending her per- formance in three sessions, one at 9 a.m., the second at 10:15 p.m. and the third at | p.m. These will be open to any adults interested in the art of storytelling. ale The exhibit, entitled Keep Cool: Trees for Tomorrow, takes its title from the instructions on the boxes of trees which arrive in the treeplanting locations and from the personal through his previous exhibition at the Nelson Museum, Travelling Light, a record of a hitch-hiking trip back to Ontario in 1989. A member of the New Moon Gallery response of the » who has been a treeplanter himself. Brooks moved to the Kootenays from Ontario, after studies at Ryer- son Polytechnic Institute for photography. He has been taking photographs while treeplanting from 1986 until the fall of 1990. These Photos are a selection from the many he has taken in locations all over B.C., and gives a look at the world Tweet yourself to When life gets too hectic, take a mini-vacation at our Holiday Inn® Call collect for reservations 4212 Sunset Bivd., Spokane, WA 99204 1-609-747-2021 “commemmoration for those who of treeplanting for those who have not seen it and a reminder and have, the museum says in a news release. Brooks photographs -are familiar THIS YEAR’S JUNO to are residents in the Neon Daly NOMINEES FOR BEST News, where he regularly , Photographs local musicians, and uu “Famous for Prime Rib & Caesar Salad!’ © STEAKS © SEAFOOD © POULTRY HOURS: LUNCH: Mon.-Sat. 11:15 o,m.-2 p.m, DINNER: Mon. -Sat. 5 p.m.-9/10 p.m. COMINCO & CELGAR VOUCHERS WELCOME! 646 Baker St., Nelson (FRI)(SAT, SUN THO vance 8 J(9 |{10}[11)12(13)(04) “THE MEMORY OF THIS MOVIE WILL STAY WITH YOU FOREVER’ ly) VIZ WVMVE> oon IMMUNITY J Bulletin Board Annual Songtest Concert — March 16, 7:30 p.m., Castlegar United Church Tickets $5, Carl's Drugs. 2/9 CHRISTIAN WOMEN'S CLUB Luncheon 11 a.m.-1 p.m. Thursday, March 14, Sandman Inn. Phone 365-8025. Babysitting provided. 219 SENIOR CITIZENS BRANCH 46 MEETING Thursday, March 7, 2 p.m. Whist — March 14, 7 p.m. 2/18 UKRANIAN EASTER EGG Senior Citizens Holl, 204-11th Ave., Wednesday, March 6, Wednesday. March 13, 7 p.m.-9:30 p.m. For more information call Heidi at 365-3646. Sponsored by Kootenay Art Club. Non-members $5.00 per evening plus supplies Siig CASTLEGAR FIGURE SKATING CLUB Cornival “Broadway” Saturday, March 23, 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. Tickets at doce. . Coming events of Castlegar and District non-profit organizations may be listed here. The first 15 words are $5 and additional words are 30¢ each. Boldfaced words (which must be used for headings) count es two words. There is no ex tra charge for a second insertion while the third consecutive insertion is half price and the fourth and fifth consecutive insertions are only halt price for the two of them. Minimum charge is $5 (whether ad is for one. two or three times). ore 5 for Saturday's paper and 5 p.m The Trail & District Multicultural Society and Trail Hospice invite you to attend the “MULTICULTURAL HEALTH CARE ISSUES WORKSHOP" Friday, March 15 Saturday, March 16 1s This workshop will deal with issues of cultural differences ond how they offect health care attitudes and care plans. The workshop is open to the general public and will be of special interest to social service agencies, professionals, and volunteers especially those in the Health Care Field. For more information Contact Continuing Education in Treil at 368-8229. The $20 tee includes lunch on Saturday. Downtown: WestCoast Roosevelt, Camlin & Vance Hotels, WestCoast Plaza Park Suites* Airport: WestCoast Sea-Tac and Gateway Hotels EVERETT WestCoast Everett Pacific Hotel WENATCHEE WestCoast Wenatchee Center Hotel SPOKANE WestCoast Ridpath Hotel This coupon entitles you to stay at any of the WestCoast hotels listed here for just $49 per night, single or double occupancy” So call for reservations now. And catch this special rate before it leaves town. @ WestCoaste . Hotel iS s For reservations or information, call 1-800-426-0670 April 30, 199. o SS ee eee ee Se Se ——— ee pa p.m Monday for Wednesday's paper. Notices should be brought to the Costlegar News at 197 Columbia Ave. COMMUNITY Bulletin Board MARCH .11,15,18 DEPARTURES 3 OR 4 NIGHTS CALL YOUR TRAVEL AGENT OR 1:800-663-1266 Masts Gravel Agency