CASTLEGAR NEWS, Thursday, August 17, 1978

lor Greater

One Man’s Opinion

Question of Money

By FRED MERRIMAN

Joe Nitpicker has been riding back and forth on the Vancouver buses for 25 years. |
asked Joe what he thought about the proposed increase In bus fares.
“The only reason | take a bus |3 because | can't afford to buy a car," he replied.
Then | asked Peter Commissioner, who was presently up to his ears working on the

transportation?"

or take the bus.

with reality.

figure out whether Col:

hen we have the case of Cora Chambermaid who walks from Adanac Street to
Hastings and hitchhikes from there to the Grosvenor because she can't afford to buy acar

Meanwhile Peter Commissioner wheels Into downtown Vancouver five days a week
In a late-model! Oldsmobile fully capable of carrying six people. He Is also charged with
the responsibility of solving Vancouver's rapid transit problem.

In my opinion Peter should ask Joe Nitpicker and Cora Chambermald to act as lay
consultants for the committee for the simple reason the committes needs some contact

Here In beautiful downtown Castlegar we do not have a public transportation system
of any kind whatsoever. We boast two traffic lights on a maln street that runs three miles
long and carries 1,000 cars an hour. No one has been killed trying to get across the main
street but most of us have fost a car or suffered damage from rear-enders and bashed
fenders because of our inatflelent way of getting around by automobile. | still cannot

isa

Rapid Transit, why he never used the bus.
“As tong as | am making $40,000 per, why should | sink to using public

plenty of parking.

wheel chooses to call It.

business.

1 freeway or a sp!

| have a long-standing feud with the public, whlch continually uses the private
automobile as though it were transportation to get from point A to B, when In effect it Isa
famlly toy or status symbol or shaggin’ waggon, or whatever else the power behind the

My feud is also directed at myself because our family has a late-model sub-compact
Ford sedan and a little Volkswagen for getting back and forth to work. Recently |
smartened up and | now ride in a car pool. But we still have enough cars to start a taxi

In my opinion Joe Nitpicker Is right. The only reason anyone needs a bus is because
he or she can’t afford a car.

It Is therefore our affluent society that does not need public transportation system.

Until the money runs out that is the way It will ba. It matters not, whether we are
talking about automobiles, campers, trallers, boats, clothes or houses.

It’s all a question of money. Thank you, Joe, for your honest answer to that question.

wide I] with

Phoenix Mine Closes

Consumer Fact

Add Soda and Cut the Bleach

Baking soda activates
bleach, causing it to work
harder,

Detergent and water are
unquestionably the most neces-
sary ingredients for effective
washing, but bleach is virtually
a necessity to aid detergents in
removal of soil and stains.

Liquid chlorine bleach ‘is
the most widely used bleach; it
is economical, safe for most of
today's fabrics, relatively easy
to use and highly effective,
especially when used consis:
tently, The only significant
drawback is the residual chlo-
rine odor left on bleached
fabrics,

By adding */s cup of baking
soda to the average laundry
load, the amount of bleach can
be reduced by as much as one-
half.

The bleach is activated by
the baking soda, meaning more

| Voice of the People

Speling Made Easy

oxidation takes place. Baking
soda lowers the pH level where
the bleach works more effec:
tively,

Only halfas much bleach is
needed for comparable results,

The clothes are just as clean
with less bleach odor,

Consumer Facts is a public
service feature of the Castlegar
News in co-operation with
SuperValu Stores,

™

33 ASTUDIO PORTRAIT
ay SOF YOUR CHILD

In Dynamic Natural Colour at a special price!

Editor, Castlegar Newa:

-Our present socially ac-
ceptable spelling is unteach-
able, mind-stunting, handicap-
ping and deceiving.

It stifles

spellings. Each vowel sound has
an average of 18 different spell-
ings.

English spelling is malig-
nant, lawless, erratic, mal-

blocks reading, represses liter
acy, promotes delinquency, and
squanders energy. It impedes
typing, obstructs alfabetic
voice printing, causes mispro-
nunciation and retards learn-
ing.

The 40 sounds in English
have more than 500 different

evolved, , anti-
quated and time-wasting.

You ar invited to join the
efforts to revise the current
conventional spelling with
sound spelling.

Chatham, Ont. Canada

5 DAYS ONLY!
8x10
natural
colour
portrait

only

Individual
Person

Consumer Comment

From Consumer and Corporate Affairs Canada

PLUS
HANDLING PER PORTRAIT

Capture today’s
precious moments!

While pushing a cart
through a supermarket aisle,
have you ever wished you were
in charge of the place? Wanted
to see some things removed
from the shelves, and others

Metal Bird to Fly No More

By MYLER WILKINSON

(Reprinted from last
week's issue of the Grand Forks
Gazette.)

The Phoenix bird with its
neck now bent crazily to one
side and the bright paint dulled
by the elements stands guard
over a copper mine that has
provided employment for over
four generations of Kootenay
miners.

But as autumn approaches
the trucks and machinery and
the men will begin to pull out,
until sometime in late Septem-
ber or early October, there will
be nothing left but the pit, some
empty buildings, the odd care-
taker and a metal bird on the
hill.

After 80 years of praduc-
tion, it is time to close up. As
one veteran of the mine said;

“There's nothing left in the hole
out there.”

Mill superintendent Peter
Armes, has been with the
Granby Mining Company at
Phoenix “since day one” from
the day 19 years ago “when it
was a dream, to now when it's
going down.”

At 9 a.m. last Thursday
morning, when a reporter and a
photographer arrived, Armes
and Selmer Remo were talking
to a representative from Lor-
nex Mines near Kamloops, try-
ing to place some of the 80 men
who will be out of work when
Phoenix closes.

Sitting on a chair drinking
coffee, Armes looked more than
a little sad. “Grand Forks is a
beautiful place. It’s hard to pull
out after 19 years. I am proud
of the men who worked here.

It Looked Like
Wood to Me!

Ln ve Home Can

Have the Beauty of
Wood Without the
Problems

* Building a new home?
© Tired of painting AGAIN
this year?

Give us a call—Free Estimates
Vinyl & Aluminum Siding,
Soffits & Facia

A&L Exterior Siding

Dealers for Kaiser Aluminum
Fred: 365-2211 Marcel: 365-2616

Spending your
holidays at
Christina Lake?

Come visit
friendly
Grand Forks,
in the heart of

the beautiful
Boundary Country!

Sponsored b

You better believe that. This is
known as the safest mine in
B.C."

Armes is one who has been
lucky enough to get another
job. He will be moving to
Granisle, copper mine as mill
foreman.

It is his job today to take
the reporter and the photo-
grapher on a final tour of the
mine site he has worked at for
the last 19 years.

Just outside the crusher
mill he stops Larrie Leslie, a
long-time employee who has
“retired three other mines and
now I'll retire with this one.”

“Every mine closes," he
says, “you just go out and find
another job, that's all.

“T'm retiring but I'm going
to keep busy. I want to collect a
pension for at least 20 years.”

Armes leads on into the
twisting corridors of the erush-
er mill where everything is
coated with a film of grey dust
from the refinement process.

Morris Fellows, a repair-
man who has been with the
company for 10 years, is stand.
ing by the cone crusher, one of
the machines that reduces raw
ore to pebble size in the re-
finement process.

He says if you take that
many men out of work it is
bound to effect the community,
but there’s not too much alter-
native.

“The company is doing its
best to place people.”

The tour continues past
giant crushers and vats of
frothy grey metallic liquid that
look like inedible milkshakes,

Armes explains that this
chemical solution is one of the
final processes that lead to the
damp grey sand which is sold
around the world and contains

The Grand Forks Retail Merchants Association.

28 per cent copper along with
some gold and silver.

The rough ore that comes
in normally contains about 8
per cent copper sulphide per
ton, he says.

Copper is selling at be-
tween 60 cents and 65 cents a
pound on the world market and
Phoenix is producing 35,000
pounds a day.

The mill goes through
2,950 tons of raw ore a day, a
long way from the 650 tons a
day it processed in 1959, when
Granby started the mine up
again.

Outside the crusher mill
there is a clear view of the zig-
zagging steps that climb the
hillside and mark 80 years of
mining. There are just a few
reminders left of the early days

. . at one point there is a small
hut that miners used to go
inside when explosions were
about to be set. Armes says it
must be 70 years old.

Two old concrete founda-
tions and some cracked timber
retaining walls far up the hill-
side are all that remains of a
train pick up point for the raw
ore.

Down below in the “Glory
Hole” a greenish-colored lake,
that Armes says is about 200
feet deep, covers the old mine.

A five-minute drive and a
short walk up a mountain path
and there it is, a 10-foot
wingspan framing the whole of
Granby mines.

Now there are only com-
pany buildings and an empty
pit, but from this vantage point,
it is not hard to imagine what
the old town of Phoenix might
have been like with its 17
saloons and 2,500 people
stretched across the hillside
before it came to a premature
death in 1919.

Over the years, much has
been said about the Phoenix, a
mythical bird that rose from
the ashes of its own funeral
pire. The mine here has often
been compared to that bird.
With autumn and closure about
a month away, many of the
mine employees think the Phoe-
nix has finally seen its last

“ days.

But Armes has something
more to say as we stand up on
the hill: All the wastes that
have been stockpiled at Phoe-
nix for more than half a century
still contain about 15 per cent
copper. Right now the tech-
nology is not there to get it out
economically.

But who knows? Techno-
logy has a way of catching up
with human problems if there is
a profit to be made. The metal
bird may yet fly for a fourth
time.

RUBBER
STAMPS

CASTLEGAR NEWS

Phone 365-7266
191 Columbia Ave.

added? Got fed up with the
prices?

Thousands of British Co-
lumbians who want more con-
trol over the food merchandis-
ing system have turned to food
co-operatives,

Along with price advant-
ages, members of a co-op have a
voice in the running of the
store. They decide what items
will be carried and which
brands, which wholesalers to
patronize and what staff, if any,
is to be hired.

In most co-ops, members
are expected to contribute a
specified amount of time each
month for stocktaking, main-
taining store facilities, book-
keeping, and other adminis-
trative duties.

The time a member spends
working in the store can vary
from a couple of hours to
several days each month, de-
pending on the size and wishes
of the membership. Many
larger co-ops find some paid
staff essential to

parking to start a co-op. Many
have begun in someone's base-
ment and moved to other
quarlers as the membership
grew.

You do need a core group
of enthusiastic members who
will pitch in to get things
rolling, and help keep them
moving once the coop is
operating.

If you'd like to try starting
a co-op, a booklet called “A
Guide for the Incorporation and
Operation of a Co-operative” is
available for $1.40 from Van-
couver Community Legal As-
sistance Society, 257 East 11th
Ave., Vancouver, B.C.

204,

Information with the em-
phasis on the financial aspects
of a co-op is available from the
Co-operative Services Office,
B.C. Central Credit Union, 885
Dunsmuir St., P.O. Box 2038,
Vancouver, B.C. V3B 3R9.

For broader information on
co-operative philosophy and the

volunteer efforts.

You don't have to have a
big building and acres of

status of co-op in Cana-
da, contact the Co-operative
Union of Canada, 111 Sparks
St., Ottawa, Ont., K1S 5B.

No y!
No age limit.
Limit — 1 offer per person, 2 per family.
$1.25 for each additional person photographed in
agroup portralt.
of poses
A portraits are at
prices;

THIS SPECIAL OFFER GOOD
Tues., Aug. 15 — Sat., Aug. 19

heQSay

1280 Cedar, TRAIL
368-3393

Tues., Wed., Thur. — 9:30 - 5:30
Fri. — 0:30 - 8:00
Sat. — 9:30 - 6:00

Plan 24 Earns interest daily.

And that’s the

big difference!

And that big difference means you earn more interest
on our 644% savings rate than you might on 7% elsewhere. Here’s how: :

m Withdrawals Depoyity Balance

1,000.00.

1,900.00,

1.000,00
S000 £500 00
s00,00

§00.00) 1 ,000,00
7,000.00 2,000.00
100.00.

2.400.002,

@
ated on daily bakince:

Competitor's
non-chequing

7% per annum
calculated on min,
monthly balance

enay CU. Plan 24
‘oper annum calcul

Tol Tour
Interest 18.66 COMPARE Interest 4.11

Discover the big difference at

KOOTENAY SAVINGS
CREDIT UNION

7 convenient locations in Trail, Fruitvale, Castlegar,
Salmo, South Slocan, Nakusp, and New Denver.

Be

Lee SREID

Victoria,
VOV 1X4

Legislative Libraffy,
Varliament Bldgs 501 Bel,
i B.C.

Distributed Bright and Karly Ev

STLEGAR NEWS

Thursday Morning at *The ¢

ssroads of the Kootenays”

For Convenient
HOME DELIVERY
of the Castlegar News

365-7266

VOL. 31, No, 34

TWO SECTIONS (A&B)

CASTLEGAR, BRITISH COLUMBIA, THURSDAY, AUGUST 24, 1978

26 CENTS

“Constructive’ Outcome Hoped for Meeting

‘CanCel Not Bargaining in Good Faith’ — Embree

Despite unsuccessful at-
tempts to discuss its proposed
new water supply with Muni-
cipal Affairs Minister Hugh
Curtis, the city will get to meet
in Victoria with his staff Sept.
a

That was water committee
chairman Ald. C. S, Fowler's
update Tuesday on attempts to
secure provincial government
funding for a tie-in with Can-
Cel's Arrow Lakes water sup-
ply.

Noting his disappointment
that Curtis has failed to meet
with the city to discuss a new
supply for Castlegar, Fowler
said he -hoped the Sept. 7
meeting between city and min-
istry technical staff “without
Politicians” would provide a
thorough discussion of the

feasibility of both the Arrow ©

Lakes tie-in and the Selkirk
College well recently tested by
the water rights branch as
potential sources,

He said consulting engi-
neer Gordon Leidal, solicitor
Galt Wilson and city adminis.
trator Bill Krug will represent
Castlegar in the meeting with
deputy ministers Chris Wood-
ward and John Taylor,

“l feel this meeting should

Arrow Lakes supply, then
hopefully quickly thereafter
there should be participation
from CanCel in discussions.”

Ald. Len Embree criticized
CanCel’s failure to take the
active role it promised to take
in the with the

produc
constructive,” he ‘ead, “If the
decision goes in favor of the

provincial government for the
Arrow Lakes tie-in. He ciled an

Aug. 3 letter to the cily solici:
tor from company solicitor
Roger Duncan which said Can-
Cel was not prepared to par-
ticipate in any of the negotia-
tions.

“I'm rather disturbed
about that because it was my
understanding that they were
going to initiate those meetings

and participate and encourage a
solution,” Embree said.

“This letter just reinforces
my position thal they have no
commitment because now
they're not even prepared to
take part in the meeting that
only two months ago they
suggested they would initiate
and participate in.”

“When I received that

The federal transport
ministry is obliged to pro-
tect the jobs of seven Castle-
gar Airport employees when
it takes over the facility Oct.
31, according to Ald. Gerald
Rust.

In response to a letter
saying the ministry cannot

the jobs after the city with-
draws from operation of the
airport Rust, city council's
airport committee chairman,

to retain the employees.

staff be retained,” he said.

Honor Commitment,

guarantee the security of

moved Tuesday to tell the
ministry the city expects it |

“When the city took
over the airport it was on
the condition that incumbent

Tells

‘Protect Airport Jobs’

“We expect the ministry to
honor the same commit-
ment.”

“If they are in need of a
precedent they might refer
to the ministry takeover of
Vancouver Airport some
years ago,” he added. “This
is exactly the same thing as
what we're talking about

Aug. 14 letter,
signed by Al Bach, Pacific
regional air transportation
administrator, said the min-
istry will go, through “the
normal Public Service Com-
mission procedures for hir-
ing staff.”

“Accordingly, it would
not be possible to guarantee

that any of the municipal
employees currently en-
gaged in the operation of the
airport would win such com-
petitions,” the letter said,

Speaking in favor of
Rust's motion, Ald. Bud
Godderis stressed the im-
portance of employing local
residents at the airport.

“I think it’s a good
principle that local people
should be the prime con-
sideration and that we
should be as consistant in
this as possible,” Godderis
said.

Also supporting the mo-
tion, Ald. Len Embree said
the letter represented an

(Con't. Pg. A10, Col: 2)

City Council Changes Mind
On Use of Tranquilizer Gun

City council Tuesday re-
versed its decision to prohibit
animal, control : officer’ Jim

. Vigue’s use of a tranquilizer

gun to apprehend animals.

A motion by protective
services chairman Ald. C. S.
Fowler to allow use of the gun

~KBLRA Invitation
Snubbed by Council

Castlegar will not have a
voice in Kootenay _ Boundary
Labor Relati

city's plans to withdraw from
the organization Dee. 31.
Ald. Len Embree—whose

affairs, city council decided
Tuesday.

Council supported Ald.
Gerald Rust’s motion to reject
‘an invitation from the KBLRA,
an association of municipalities
bargaining jointly with employ-
ees belonging to the Canadian

. Union of Public Employees, to

appoint two aldermen to repre-
sent Castlegar because of the

motion to with from the
KBLRA, citing excessive mem-
bership costs, gained council
approval last December—said
he was “very pleased” with
Rust’s recommendation that
the city have no ‘further asso-
ciation with the organization.

Although council with-
drew from the KBLRA late last
year, the city is still obliged to
pay $4,788 in 1978 membership
dues.

Nuclear Energy Topic
Of Local Public Forum

Exploration and develop-
ment of radioactive material in
B.C. will be the topic of a three-
hour federal government-spon-
sored public information meet-
ing at the Regional Recreation
Complex 7:30 p.m. Wednesday.

A panel of six members of
the Committee on Nuclear
Issues in the Community will
discuss, and answer questions

: on, the advantages and dis-

advantages of using nuclear
energy to generate electricity.

Chaired by Winnipeg busi-
nessman Bernie Wolfe, the
panel includes geologist Jim
Harrison, health physicist Hen-
ri Rothschild, nuclear engineer
Daniel Rozon, physician Dr.

and energy”

“if possible in the presence of a
RCMP member” was approved
after he reported adequate
liability coverage was available
for its operation.

- Fowler- said’ members: of
his committee were in favor of
lifting the bat—imposed seve-
ral months ago after a dog
owned by a local resident died
after being shot with the tran-
quilizer gun—because they
were convinced the animal
control officer was able to
operate the gun safely and not
use it excessively,

But Ald. Len Embree ques-
tioned whether use of the gun
was necessary and whether the
$100,000 coverage quoted by
Fowler was sufficient for any
liability which could result.

“Is it that important to
carrying out his duties effec-
tively as dog control officer?”
Embree asked the committee.
“If someone is injured-in an
accident, $100,000 is going to be
nothing.”

He recommended heavier
coverage for use of the tran-
quilizer gun.

“There are times when an

(Con't, Pg. All, Col. 2)

CHERYL KRISTIANSEN .

aa =x medals and record times In St. John's:

iple Gold Winner in

National Meet

: letter I could interpret that in
no other way but that CanCel is
not bargaining in good faith.”

. Fowler said he “can't dis-
agree" with Embrce's state-
ment but added that hoped the
outcome of the Sept. 7 meeting
would leave “the ground clear-
ed away for three-way dis-
cussions.”

“I'm certainly not prepared
to say that CanCel has no
obligation or involvement or

interest or participation,” he
said,

Committee chairman Ald,
dim Gouk also criticized Can-
Cel's position on the negotia-
tions, told council that even if
the Selkirk College aquifer is
chosen over the Arrow Lakes
supply the company, under its
1960 agreement with the then
Village of Castlegar, would be
equally responsible for assis-
tance in securing that supply.

Castlegar to Join
Crowsnest Group

Ata cost of $100 Castlegar
will join in the p of

Ald. dim Gack agreed with

Highway 3, city council mem-
bers decided Tuesday.

Council approved Ald.
Gerald Rust's motion that
Castlegar take out a member-
ship in the Crowsnest Highway
Association, a group of muni-
cipal councils, chambers of
commerce and interested indi-
viduals in B.C. and Alberta
campaigning for highway up-
grading and greater use of the
route by the motoring public.

Rust told the board mem-
bership in the association would
be an advantage to the city
after the completion of Castle-
gar's highway link with Salmo
next month, and said it would
be useful in attracting visitors
and industry to the area.

But Ald. Len Embree op-
posed the motion, saying he
failed to see any benefit which
would result from membership

"in the organization. In addition

to the cost of dues the city
would also be faced with the
costs of sending delegates to
Crowsnest Highway Associa-
tion. meetings, he said.

Ald. Bud Godderis, also

, opposing membership, suggest-

ed the Castlegar and District
Chamber of Commerce would
be more suitable for participa-
tion in the association.

Speaking for the motion,
Ald. Albert Calderbank said he
doubted whether the local
chamber is strong enough to
represent the city properly.

“We're going to need a lot
heavier clout, possibly, than
our own chamber of com-
merce,” he said.

Kristiansen Sets World Record

Three gold medals and as
many record times highlighted
local swimming champion
Cheryl Kristiansen’s participa-
tion in national competitions in
St. John’s, Nfld. early this
week,

Cheryl, a 14-year-old
single-leg amputee who is a

member of the Castlegar Aqua-
nauts Swimming Club, won her
first gold medal at the Canada
Games for the Physically Han-
dicapped Monday when she
broke the national record for

. the backstroke with a time of

1:44.
Tuesday she won two more

Court to Amend Voters’ List
For November City Elections

__ City council appointed two:

Sandy
Fencarah consultant Ralph Tor-
rie,

Tuesday to sit on the:
Oct. 2 court'of revision on the
municipal voters’ list.

Ald. Albert Calderbank:
and Ald. Bud Godderis will
have the authority to correct or
amend the voters’ list in pre-

paration for Nov. 18 municipal
elections. The court will con-
vene at 4:15 p.m. in city council
chambers at city hall.

irectors ‘Not a Bunch of Dupes’

oy

gold medals, one while break-
ing the world record in the
breast stroke with a time of
2:24 and the other by breaking
the world record in free-style
swimming with a time of 1:35—
seven seconds off the previous
world record for free-style.

She was scheduled to com-
pete yesterday in the 100 metre
fly and the 200 metre individual
medley. The outcome of these
races was not known by press
time.

Cheryl, who received fi-
nancial) support. from local resi-
dents and for the

international competitions in
Brazil, later this year.

City council appointed a
special committee Tuesday to
work with other sectors of the
community in honoring the
young athlete for her achieve-
ments at the St. John's games.

In response toa letter from
the Kootenay Savings Credit
Union's Castlegar branch indi-
cating interest in participating
in any ceremony or reception
for Cheryl on her return to
Castlegar at the end of this
week, Ald. Jim Gouk, Ald. Len
Embree and Ald. Bud Godderis
were i towork with all

competition, is expected to be
picked to represent Canada in
ne oe

interested parties in planning
the function.

was
probably ee the city's
jurisdiction, but he stressed the
importance of representing the
city in the associations negotia-
tions with the provincial gov-
ernment over development and
expansion of the communities
served by the route.
“Castlegar is just coming
into this,” he said. “A lot of the
others are already established.

THE
INSIDE
_STOR'

e TWITCH: Part ‘of the
“new” Castlegar News
lineup.

. Page B2

e THAW: The Regional
District of Central Koote-
nay wants the B.C. Land
Commission to end the
freeze on Area 1.

Page B1

e@ TROUNCED: The Castle-
gar Rebels in the last
moments of weekend com-
petition.

Page A6

AnnLanders . . .. Page AB

BillSmiley .... Page B2

Classified Ads, Real

Estate, and Automotive. . .

Pages Al2-A13-A14-A15

Editorial

One Man's Opinion

age BS:
Sports .. Pages A6-A7-AB’
Telenews . . . Pages B3-B4

oka gd ON
Weekend

Weathercast

UNSETTLED conditions are
to continue with clouds and
some shower activity and
the risk of thunder showers.
There will only be occasional
sunny periods. This pattern
will continue through, the
weekend.

For convenient bome delivery
of the Castlegar News, call
365-7266.

.. . Hydro Hi

Crowd Baits RDCK Board in Kootenay Diversion Plebiscite Debate

By RYON GUEDES

} CasNews Editor ~

“We're not leaving here
until you make that vote fons a
referendum.”

That was among the com-
ments levelled at Regional

gional and municipal elections
this fall,

Statements by directors
supporting the November vote
during the’ 90-minute debate
were punctuated by applause
from the audiences of which
man: \

District of Central Koot
directors by more than 100
angry and often noisy spec-
tators Saturday during a de-
bate which ended in a decision
to proceed with a November
plebiscite on B.C. Hydro's pro-
posed Kootenay diversion.
After granting B.C. Hydro
chairman Robert Bonner's Aug.
8 request that ‘they consider
the

Lake residents, while directors
opposing the referendum were
heckled throughout the dis-
cussion.

‘Although board chairman
Art Suteliffe asked directors
several times to refrain from
debating with the audience, he
did not attempt to quiet the
spectators crowded into the

the
RDCK board members voted
18-9—to cheers from reportedly
the largest audience ever to
attend a board meeting—to
conduct it during regular re-

Area F director Dave
Pearce, representing the north

voted to consider delaying the
referendum because it did not
have sufficient information on
the effect Hydro's proposed
diversion of the Kootenay Ri-
ver into the Columbia would
have on the lake.

“ live on the lake, my kids

A five-man

want to live on the lake and I
make my living on the lake,”
Pearce said. “This is of con-
stderable interest to me, and I
do not think that in any way,
shape or form I have the
information to make a hasty
decision at this point.”

The Area F director also
said he resented the implication
that the RDCK directors “area
bunch of dupes” and that
Bonner “came in here and
conned us into abandoning the
referendum.”

“We did not rg it,”

Robson Residents Apply for Referendum

Fall deta lg Vote Sought

after

f Robson area

to its vesional eee an application tat a Nov. 18
fire the

a
Castlegar News was told, this. week,

Committee Chairman Cliffe Churches said yesterday that the
fire pi

shore area on Koot Lake,
drew loud criticism from spec-
tators when he said the board

it up to seek ad

for the area

between Brilliant Elementary School and the Keenleyside Dam—
submitted the application to Area J director Martin Vanderpol
=

referendum.

he said. “We were simply asked
to postpone it until we had
more information.”

In a heated exchange with
the crowd Pearce said many of
the spectators did not live
“anywhere near the lake” and

with him the requirements for holding a

Churches said the committee is circulating in the area a
petition “to add weight to the application” and he noted the
Regional District of Central Kootenay board Saturday approved a
$250 donation from the Area J grants-in-aid und.

The committee is also awaiting

would not have to live with the
decision made by the board.

“Don't imply rotten mo-
tives to the people who are
here,” interjected a spectator,

“Well I live on the lake,
brother, and most of us do,”
another angry member of the
audience said.

Area H director Norman
Brewster praised Pearce's
“courage in voicing in such a
straightforward way such an
unpopular view” and said the
diversion would be “the cheap-
est and least damaging to use of
all the Columbia River Treaty
projects.”

But he said Hydro “is now
-reaping what it has sown in the

fied in rejecting any new work
by B.C. Hydro which would
further damage out environ-
ment and what land we have
left,” the Area H director said.
“It seems to me that would be a
mockery, adding insult to un-
requited injury.”

To loud applause from the
audience, Brewster said he was
“not prepared to accept any
damage whatsoever to the
Kootenay Lake or its environs,”
and urged the board to proceed
with the referendum plans and
hold a series of public informa-
tion meetings on the plebiscite.

Similarly applauded was
Area A director Charlie Wilson,

past” and lost its dibili
with

in fire pi
from the provincial fire marshal's office and the Tapurerst Advisory

Organization, he said.

of the region.
“Certainly the citizens of
the West Kootenay are justi-

Kootenay Lak

the south end to past Riondel”

and a referendum was “the only
{Con't. Pg. A10, Col. 1)

who noted that he represented
“from