ee a ae a ee A SATURDAY Mareh 2, 1901 Vol. 44, No. 18 Castlegar, B.C, 2 Sections (A & 8) 75 Cents Castlegar Realty wins opener ++ B2 Heritage society looks for members Ca Rk tlégar News Workers press for more local hiring By ED MILLS Staff Writer Two weeks. ‘That's the time limit local workers gave Celgar Pulp Co. on Thursday to make good on its promise to put them to work on the mill expansion and modernization project before they take more radical action. It's, also the time a Celgar representative said the company needs before it can meet the demands of the workers. About 75 local construction workers met at the Hi Arrow for the second time in as many weeks Thur- sday night to express their frustration with hiring practices on the project and to press their demands that moe locals get jobs. Asked after the meeting if the tors be given the two weeks to hire the workers. “This is the first time people are getting together and I don’t think people should blow it with premature militant action. Let’s give it two more weeks,”’ said Evin, who owns a backhoe company in Castlegar. Others at the meeting, which was chaired by Rossland-Trail MLA Chris D'Arcy, weren’t initially’ in- clined to give the company any time, saying they’ve already waited long enough while outsiders get the jobs. “*Maybe it’s time all of us stuck together and do something about this,"” said one man. “Maybe (we should) shut the job down, put a picket line up. Maybe then we can get the message across that we're serious. We have to give you (Celgar) an i and it has to come workers i an to Ceigar and the site contractors, Castlegar resident. Gerry Evin said, “basically, yes.’’ But he was the one who suggested during the meeting that the contrac- from the people in this room."” D’Arcy tried to dissuade the men from radical action by saying if they want jobs ‘‘you catch more flies with honey than you do with vinegar.’" “When you go on the job and you are going to go on the job, you're going to have to get along with the. people who hired you. Maybe it feels better to talk about using the big stick, but people remember that kind of language,’’ the New Democrat MLA said. Emotions calmed somewhat after Celgar representative Ron Card told the men that barring continued cold weather, a great deal more man- power and equipment would be required on the project in the next two weeks. Following Card’s statement, Evin asked: ‘‘So what you're saying is that we're panicking right now, but in two weeks we're justified in really raising shit?’’ Card answered yes. Though no vote was taken, the workers seemed to accept Evin's suggestion to give the company that time. Kasper Mayer, business represen- tative for the i ‘Union of please seo WORKERS page A2 Project. —cosnews photo by Ed Milts hursday night that, ba cold y nigh irting ther, paca. aohcnginsi yet ioe gob feage sa ‘on the mill expansion and Ministry delays pulpwood hearings By DONNA ZUBER SPRING SETBACK Staff Writer Regional districts may take out trash together By DONNA ZUBER ments, we’re answering to two dif- ferent clients.” Staff Writer The Ministry of Forests will not reschedule public hearings on a pulpwood agreement coyering an area of the southern Interior until it determines what additional infor- mation it needs from the applicants, a ministry spokesman said. Hearings originally scheduled for OctoBer 1990 in Nelson and Kamloops were expected to be held early this yei However, a new process of reviewing the applications has delayed the public hearings in- definitely, said Dennis McPhail, a timber tenures forester with the ministry’s timber harvesting branch in Victor “The ministry is still evaluating it,"” McPhail said. ‘‘It’s part of the new process to identify information gaps as things are evolving and changing. We reserve the right to ask for more information." Celgar Pulp Co. is one of three companies competing for the agreement. The ministry invited ap- plications in December 1989. The process of evaluating pulp- wood agreement appli ions changed from a referral process to @ more complex series of checkpoints ba dhpesd anyone who is interested in agreement has a chance to offer ped McPhail said. “'There’s more interest and more concerned with the land base. We have to develop new hy to ensure that input is i ight. — Fickle Mother Nature showed why she got that J eapeona as the balmy aly Eobrenty hod been d to mo: weather and cold almost A waste management study laun- ched by the Regional District of Cen- tral Kootenay recently took a twist that could result in a joint venture with the Regional District of Kootenay Boundary. The consultants hired by the RD- CK to do the study, Stanley and Associates Engineering Ltd. of Kelowna, have also been hired by the RDKB to conduct a similar study, said engineer Peter Shand. “We're looking for potential areas where the two regional districts can combine their efforts,’’ he told the Castlegar News in a telephone inter view from his office in Kelowna “‘But they are two separate assign- John Voykin, RDCK director for Area I (Pass Creek, Shoreacres) said considering a joint venture is a must, given the magnitude of the study. “We want to look at all options because if it's going to be a major burden on the taxpayers, then we're heading ‘in the wrong direction,” he said. Shand said the operating costs of whatever plan is finally adopted by the RDCK will come out of tax- payers’ pockets, but the public will have a good deal of influence throughout the study on how much those costs will be. “The operating costs are part of please see WASTE page AS Westar hopes metric helps By DONNA ZUBER Staff Writer Financially, Westar Timber Ltd.'s sawmill in Castlegar is leaking, but plans to convert the mill’s operations to metric from imperial measuremen ts will hopefully be enough to save it from sinking, a company official said Thursday. “Our task today is to keep the people employed that are there. In financial terms, we probably shouldn't be but we have please see PULPWOOD poge A2 no plans right now to shut down,” Dan Madlung, general manager of Westar’s southern region, said from his office in Revelstoke. Converting the mill — at a cost of around $100,000 — is being done to open up markets in the United Kingdom and Japan that deal in metric measurements, which will relieve some of the pressure of trying to stay afloat with a weak U.S. market, he said please see WESTAR page A3 By DONNA ZUBER Staff Writer Between an elephant ride through the jungle, the Kok River, 12 local students will be getting an education about Thailand they could never get in the classroom Students from Stanley Humphries secondary school and Kinnaird Junior secondary school will land in-Bangkok on March 27 to start a 10-day tour visits {6 tribal villages and a five-hour boat ride down —— CASNEWS FEATURE people who know about Asia, the people of Asia and the cultures of Asia, it'll surely contribute to less discrimination and ignorance, and give the kids a wider view of the world.”* The ministry is providing $12,000 — about one- fifth of the cost of the trip — teacher and student travel grants from the Pacific Rim Initiatives program. Each student is paying $2,100, the only to going on the trip. ren eae oes See eee eieieny), Ps on said. “ expanding markets. Uy sine cengs get idiocinait voosth Local students prepare for taste of Thailand B tours, the iti for school trips because of strong trade markets, were cancelled due to fears of terrorism related to the Persian Gulf War. But the federal Department of External Affairs and the Canadian Embassy in Bangkok gave the green light for the trip to Thailand. Parents of the students were also consulted, Foster said. In preparation for the trip, the students and teachers had typhoid shots and met with a public health nurse to learn what kinds of precautions to take, he said. As well, KJSS teacher Deb Chmara, who has been to Thailand, talked to the group about “everything” from how to deal with the heat to what kinds of food they would be eating. For example, the water in Thailand is not safe to drink, so she warned to keep mouths closed when showering and make sure any beverages come directly for a bottle. Included in the itinerary are tours of local temples, a handicraft village where umbrellas, laquerware, silverware, silk, ceramics and furniture are made, a Yao market, the Golden Triangle where the borders of Thailand, Burma and Laos meet, tin mines, coral reefs, and ‘‘interesting™ limestone Foster said they tried not to make the itinerary too hectic, ‘‘but it'll still be a Jot given the heat."" Thailand in March is very hot and dry, he said The students going are Kirk Ismay, Elliot Brown, Seamus Donohue, Ryan Swedburg, Sheri Finch, Suzanne Dingwall, Denise Smithers, Christi Anderson, Carly Lychak, Sara Healing, Nora Johnson and Lora Wolff. =