ar News Morch 20, 1988 ANNUAL MEETING Blueberry Creek irrigation District orts — Election of Trustees \< weberry Creek School DATE: March 28, 1968 Please Attend! BOARD OF TRUSTEES SCHOOL VIEW By Gordon A. Shead jou may, be aware, the statt gt Stanley Humphries Secondary School have been discussing changes to the Schoo! timetable tor the past two years. As well ecent accreditation report done trom Schoo! District No. 9 pointed out that this topic needed addressing by the teachers. As a result of a great deal of discussion, investigative work, and computer simulations on various timetable models, a decision hos been made to move to a timetable tor next tall which will see most courses offered on a linear or ten month schedule. There are many reasons tor such a change. The major Point to keep in mind 1s that this change 1s being done tor educational reasons. As well, a large majority of statt tee! that this change will improve the delivery of the courses that they teach. As a result, it 1s the opinion of these teachers that this change will improve student success in courses taught. Some of the main points supporting this change in. clude: To provide more time over a tull year for students to 4. To prov mer the secondary schools in the In addition to this basic other new directions are being considered including double blocks, period length, and a briet morning recess. These last topics are being addressed by student surveys, statt timetable commit going discussions at the school. Your input Please direct any comments that you have ina letter to: SHSS TIMETABLE COMMITTEE 720-7th Avenue, Castlegar, B.C. VIN IRS ai ra Ridin nue aver caret FENDER BENDER . . . This two-car pile up happened Thursday on Columbia Avenue across from the mobile home sales lot. Costews photo OFFICE AID Luella Andreashuk Has Changed Location For Income Tax or Accounting PHONE 365-6658 24 HOUR CALL RUBBER STAMPS Made to Order CASTLEGAR NEWS 197 Columbia Ave. Phone 365-7266 Robson women meet at Institute gathering Phe—regular—monthly meeting of Robson Women's Institute met at the home of Mrs. Fornelli in Castlegar for its March meeting with 10 members and three guests in handicrafts, etc. We're Steering You 1988 GMC S-15 *8888 GMC 1988 GMC FULL SIZ PICKUP $11,488 “Time to haul it on home.” , ole Bi savings on new $12,888 GMC FULL SIZED 514,888 on. gues Truck Sale! mu ht to heavy-duty used trucks! 1988 $-15 4x4 1988 4x4 No Interest No Payments“ FOR 90 DAYS DURING TRUCK MONTH *Offer On Interest and Payments Expires March 31 /"88 EXTENDED CAB $13,688 GMC FULL SIZED EXTENDED CAB 15,688 1988 More plans were finalized for the conference, as eight districts will be represented attendance. Mrs. Fornelli chaired the meeting and the minutes and the treasurer's report were read. Members again decided to submit a Robson resident's name for citizen of the year. On another motion, all mem- bers agreed to take part in Robson Recreation Activity Day April 16 in Robson Hall. The ladies brought there handicrafts for the district conference in Robson Hall on May 4. Kinnaird Women's Institute will be helping with helping Robson celebrate its 75th anniversary, Guest speakers were Anne Jones and Ann Fomenoff of the Castlegar Hospice Soc- iety. Hospice is a community program providing physical, emotional, social and spirit- ual assistance to individuals with a terminal illnéss, their family and friends and care- givers. Hospice works with other health care professionals and enables the patients to make decisions about the type of care he or she desires. The next WI meeting will be at the home of Jean Lloyd. Local schools compete in debate March 12 in Kamloops was the date of the provincial debating championships. Re- presenting the Kootenays were 12 juniors and four seniors, including four Grade 7 students from Kinnaird Junior secondary school. Mark Heard, Graeme Bas- son, Janet Kalesnikoff and Candice Larche had_ placed first and second, respectively at the Trafalgar tournament in February. The Grade 7 students had to debate four rounds of debate agains. teams three to four years older than themselves. Mark Heard came 22nd out of 88 junid> debaters in the province, one point behind the top Grade 8 debater in the province. As a team Heard and Bas- son placed 28 out of 44 teams. Other Kootenay results saw the team of Romany Watt and Kelly Swetlikoe from L.V. Rogers in Nelson 15th and Jaqueline Molinaro and Karianne Saare from Rossland place 19th. A team from Hillside of West Vancouver placed first. In individual results, the same team from Hillside sec- ondary, Arden Tahaerzadeh and Jessica Gibbs, placed first and second, respective ly. In senior results, Christy Terness from J.L. Crowe Secondary in Trail placed seventh, her partner, Trevor Robinson, placed 12th out of 78 debaters, and as a team, they placed fifth out of 39 teams. Beaver Valley Junior Sec. ondary will be hosting a de- bating tournament for novice junior debaters in late April. Close to 40 novice debaters at KJSS will be training and competing for the opportun- ity to participate in the April tournament. Be cessing hepa, tan BD. eek Environmentalist says Vander Zalm is a maniac OTTAWA CP) — Premier Bill Vander Zalm is a ee who has lost touch with the people who elected him, sa; British Columbia environmentalist. Colleen McCrory, chairman of the Valhalla Society conservation group based in New Denver, tame to Ottawa this week to lobby federal politicians to help stop new policies that would open up provincial parks to resource development. More than 50 people have been arrested over the past several weeks at demonstrations against mineral explora. tion in Strathcona provincial park, British Columbia's oldest. Seven people arrested last Saturday are being held in jail until a March 21 bail hearing because they refused to sign agreements that they would not return to the park until the courts have dealt with the mischief charges against them. The decision to allow exploration and eventually mining in Strathcona is just “the first step in the gutting of B.C.'s park system,” McCrory said in an interview. And it's just another example of Vander Zalm “working in total isolation of not only his cabinet, but also the people who elected him,” she said. Ottawa has little authority to take direct action on the issue, McCrory conceded, but ‘she added: “The federal government has to recognize there’s a maniac out there. People here (in Ottawa) have to recognize there's a very dangerous situation out there.” New Democrat MP Jim Fulton, who represents British Columbia's Skeena riding, said the province's willingness to let loggers and developers into parks goes against numerous studies and polls in which B.C. residents “have expressed strong views about the need for more parks and a cleaner environment, even if that means higher taxes or a lower standard of living.” “The determined efforts by the Vander Zalm govern- ment to erode parkland and give special rights to a few privileged developers is leading to chaos.” McCrory was scheduled to meet today with federal Environment Minister Tom McMillan. In an interview McMillan said he “might-be sympathetic to certain particular causes within that provinee that may not fall within federal jurisdiction, but we're very limited in what we could actually do.” MeMillan said it is up to the people of British Columbia to “make their case” to the provincial government. British Columbians are making their case, McCrory says, but the only response has been further injustice. “People are going to jail, and if anyone is breaking the law it’s Vander Zalm,” she said. Vander Zalm taking shots By DAPHNE BRAMHAM Canadian Press VICTORIA — Premier Bill Vander Zalm has abused his position to earn “millions of dollars” for himself and $20 million for a friend, New Democrat Glen Clark charged Friday in the British Columbia legislature. Clark told the house the premier gained about $4 million on paper when the governmentt-appointed agricultural land d a rezoning for the family owned Fantasy Garden World tourist attraction in the Vancouver suburb of Richmond. Vander Zalm also influenced cabinet to overturn a commission decision that rejected a rezoning request from his friend and party supporter, Milan Ilich, Clark said. “He (Vander Zalm) personally made over $4 million because of a decision made by a commission appointed by his government,” Clark said in the legislature during what was supposed to be a reply to the throne speech. “If that's not a conflict of interest. I don't know what is.” Clark later repeated the charges pertaining to Fantasy Gardens outside the house. Vander Zalm denied he earned any personal benefits from the rezoning and challenged Clark to prove his claims. The rezoning change to seasonal recreational use in 1986 from agricultural for the Fantasy Gardens’ property allowed the Vander Zalms to expand the 8.5-hectare garden. The garden-amusement park now includes a European village restaurant, ‘souvenir stores, a petting zoo, a miniature train ride for children, a stocked trout lake, a wedding chapel, a biblical garden, Noah’s Ark theatre and a parking lot for 325 cars and 12 buses. Clark said the B.C. Assessment Authority's tax roles showed the land and buildings were valued at $804,000 before the rezoning, but the assessed value leapt to $4.9 million last fall. Vander Zalm originally bought the property in 1984 for $1.7 million when it was a modest development called Bota Gardens. An official in the area's assessment office confirmed Friday that the assessed value of the land alone increased by more than $2.5 million after the rezoning. It was assessed at $314,000 before the rezoning, $2.31 AUTOMOTIVE DIRECTORY 4 eee” Dealer No. 7724 ecard de 0 Nosteuay Honda ee (across from Waneta Plaza) 368-3377 Maloney Pontiac Buick GMC 1700 Columbia Ave., Castlegar DI. 5058 Call Collect 365-2155 CASTLE TIRE (1977) LTD. SALES & SERVICE - 365-7145 “= 1050 Columbia, Castlegar =K & A TIRES LTD. For all your tire needs! Also specializing in brakes and shocks. 1407 Columbie Ave. SBRIDGESTONE. coi 309 2955 million ii after the 1986 rezoning and, as of Feb. 26, it is valued at $3.18 million. Vander Zalm has repeatedly said that since he became premier in August 1986, Fantasy Gardens has been owned by his wife, ian. But the financial disclosure form the premier filed in January shows he holds more than 30 per cent of the shares in the company. RENTAL INCOME Hf you rented your property to tenants this past year, our specially trained tax return preparers are ready to show you how they on your tax return. At H&R Block, we look tor every deduction you're entitled to. We toke all the necessary steps to do the job accurately becouse we want you to pay only the lowest tax or get the biggest retund you're entitled to. Don't be contused by all the talk over tax law changes The speciolists at H&R Block always have the answers you BLOCK ——_—_—_—_—_— THE INCOME TAX SPECIALISTS: 1761 Columbia Ave., C “(Old Shell Building) 365-5244 F ny. morch20, 1980 Castlégar News 43 Measle warning VANCOUVER (CP) — Washington state health officials say they have notified their counterparts in British Columbia that up to 47 people in B.C. may have been exposed to measles during a judo championship in Tacoma, March 4-6. A 13-year-old California participant in the Pacific Northwest Judo Championships broke .oGt with measels during the competition, said Barbara Baker, spokesman for the state department of social and health services. Kitimat mill expands VANCOUVER (CP) — West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. and a Finnish company will spend $125 million on expansion of their joint venture mill in Kitimat, B.C., West Fraser said in a news release. West Fraser and Enso Gutzeit Oy want to expand the linerboard capacity at the Eurocan Pulp and Paper Co. in northwestern B.C. to 372,000 tonnes a year from the current 260,000 tonnes. West Fraser said it will be the first mechanical pulp mill in Canada to recover the chemicals used in the pulping process, reducing the impact on the environment. Swedish royals visit BURNABY, B.C. (CP) — More than 200 retir« Swedish immigrants greeted King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia of Sweden as they toured a rest home in this Vancouver suburb on Friday. The king praised the residents for loving their new homeland while keeping warm regards for Sweden. Swedish immigrants to Canada have been good ambassadors, said the king, and that’s why Sweden is so respected here. “You cah be sure I bring back many happy memories from these days in-your land, Canada,” he said. Canadian victim freed BOGOTA (AP) — A Canadian engineer kidnapped last year by Colombian guerrillas has been freed, police said Saturday. Richard Paulson, 37, was released Friday near Beleen, a town in Boyacaa state, and he went to Bogota by bus, police said. The National Liberation Army, a group inspired by Cuban leader Fidel Castro, had asked $20 million in ransom for the engineer's release. But it reduced the amount to $6 million, said Colombian journalist Alonso Heredia, correspondent for the El Espectador newspaper. North asks to retire WASHINGTON (AP) — Lt.-Col. Oliver North, facing trial in the Iran-Contra affair, announced that he has asked to retire from the Marine Corps. North ‘also said he may subpoena “the highest- ranking officials in our government” as part of his legal defence. The former National Security Council aide has asked that he be allowed to retire effective May 1, when he'll have completed 20 years of military service, Pentagon sources said. This is the minimum length of service required to retire with a pension. With 20 years of service, North, 44, is entitled to a pension of half of his base pay, or slightly over $22,000 US a year. British soldiers killed BELFAST (AP) — Two British soldiers were shot to death Saturday after mourners at an IRA funeral dragged them from a car, beat them with crowbars and hoisted them naked before cheering onlookers, witnesses and police said. With blood streaming from their heads, the soldiers were pulled to the top of a 3.5-metre-high wall around a soccer field for the crowd to see, witnesses said. They were then hauled behind a building and shots were heard. Shortly after, their bullet-riddled bodies were found in a vacant lot on Penny Lane. They were covered in blankets and removed by police. It was the second fatal attack in four days at a Belfast funeral. Alleged sex act CHICAGO (AP) — A man and wife who were accused by a 13-year-old girl of having sex on an airliner were arrested, and two men who began throwing food when a flight attendant intervened also were charged. The four passengers were arrested Monday when American Airlines Flight 37 from Munich, West Germany, to San Diego, Calif., made a stop in Chicago, police said. Phillip Matin, 52, a physician from Loomis, Calif., denied that he and his wife were indulging in a sexual act New steering wheel BOSTON (AP) — General Motors president Robert Stempel has introduced a new car: steering wheel designed to move with the driver on impact and reduce injury in a crash. Stempel told a conference of 1,000 road safety activists that the steering wheel remains “a primary source of injury in the event of a crash,” despite the collapsible steering column introduced 20 years ago. The new steering wheel has an energy-absorbing hub, where the wheel meets the steering column. Six metal joints are designed to fold on impact and enable the wheel to move with the driver's chest. Iraq vessels destroyed BAGHDAD (Reuter) — Iraq claimed Saturday its air force jets destroyed a number of vessels in 2 raid on Iran's main oil loading terminal at Kharg Island in the northern Persian Gulf. A High Command communique said the raid was staged ‘about half an hour before an Iranian missile struck Baghdad, killing or wounding a number of civilians. TOURNAMENT DINNER . « - The Brilliant Cultural Cen- tre was the scene of a dinner held in honor of the 16 teams which were competing in the B.C. single A girls’ dinner was f basketball championship this week in Castlegar. The the West K skits performed by the teams. y Choir and CosNews Photo SWEENEY SAYS Closure no problem By CasNews Staff “Less than 10 per cent of the 20 The Celgar Pulp Co. closure is not as pressing a problem as many in the area thinks it is, says Wilf Sweeney, the mill's general manager. Sweeney told a Castlegar Cham- ber of Commerce luncheon Thursday that the furore over the closure of the pulp mill's woodroom has been blown out of proportion. “In our opinion, these claims have been exaggerated,” Sweeney said of the projected loss of jobs and other objections raised by Castlegar council and school board. “We have relocated all the woodroom workers to other areas in our operations.” Sweeney also said the problem of decadent wood on Tree Farm Licence 23 is not a problem because Westar Timber Ltd. is under government contract to manage that licence prop- erly. TEAMS —— continued from front page some problems initially, but were quickly overcome. “I no longer could focus on the tournament, I had to focus on the (bus problem),” Hickey said. “My problem was I had to find transportation for the teams.” Hickey said the problem was quickly solved when the school board came to the rescue and provided two mini-bussettes to shuttle the players to and from the school. * “It kind of diminished from the excitement of the tournament for awhile only because the coaches were worried about how they were going to get their kids home,” Hickey said. (However), the tournament itself has run very well despite the bus incident.” they per cent of d chips (Celgar used from roundwood logs) were deca- dent anyway,” Sweeney said. The mill closed the woodroom in January as a cost-saving decision. Sweeney said the surplus of cheaper wood chips from area sawmills made it an “economic necessity” to close the woodroom. He added that he likes the idea of a mill expansion and hopes it will occur, but said it takes more than a surplus of wood chips to justify an expansion. “We'd love to expan Sweeney. “The fact that there's a surplus of chips doesn't mean you can expand; there are other areas you have to consider.” Sweeney said the mill is currently using about 1.1 million cubic metres of chips a year out of the approximately 1.5 million chips available in the area. BUS RIDE . . . This Aga steps off the bus at her hotel, the Agassiz bus was one of the few which weren't stopped by motor vehicle officials CosNews Photo “There are more than enough residual chips to satisfy our needs at the moment,” Sweeney said. “The roundwood we were buying was too expensive. The most expensive chips for us were roundwood chips.” Sweeney also said that since the mill was purchased, the mill owners have been pumping a lot of money into improving operations. “There will be about $10 million a year going into Celgar operations over the next five years,” he said. After the mill was purchased the new owners, CITIC and Power Con- solidated Ltd., immediately looked at a proposed $33 million pollution up- grading and asked for a reassessment. “We're spending $48 million alone on improvements,” said Sweeney. “They're making an awful lot more money than they (Power Consolidated) expected,” he said. Sweeney said he doesn't know what the profits are for the mill because the mill acts as a “cost centre” and the books are kept at the head office. “All we do is tell them (the owners) how much it costs to make the pulp,” he said. “They decide what the selling price is.” Sweeney said the woodroom clo- sure was a business decision and a prudent one. “It's a business and I think we're doing well.” Following Sweeney's address, chamber president Dale Neilsen said the negative remarks by the school bdard and council are hindering the chamber's ability to attract invest- ment. “It's hard to attract potential investors when local officials are making negative remarks about the city's major employer,” Neilsen said following the luncheon. “A negative attitude will discourage investment in this community.” HYDRO continued from front page snow buildup on land above the res- ervoirs (snow pack levels) to melt and’ replenish reservoir levels in the spring. But when a drought occurs for several years in a row, Hydro starts to lose its power supply. “It's the sequence of those dry years that is significant,” said Ken Epp, senior manager of Hydro res- ervoirs in B.C. “A single dry year has an impact on the hydroelectric system but we can deal with that quite readily. What we have to plan against is that sequence of dry years.” A Ministry of the Environment and Parks snow survey report indi- cates snowpack levels on the upper and lower Columbia River areas in 1988 were 15 per cent below normal and in the Arrow Lakes areas were 40 per cent below normal in that year. In 1987 they were 35 per cent below normal. “We're collectively asking every one to pray for rain,” Bell joked. “The hydroelectric system can no longer provide the total requirements of our domestic load if we turn critical right now,” Epp said. However, Bell assured reporters that low reservoir levels will not cause “brown outs.” (Levels of power too low to supply all of B.C.’s demands). Instead, Hydro will have to get power from other sources. “If worse comes to worse, you are looking at curtailing exports and running the (Burrard natural gas-pow wered) thermo plant,” he said. “There won't be brown outs or shortages.” When asked, Bell declined to say whether Hydro consumers would see an increase in their power bills if reservoirs fall to critically low levels. ‘We'll look at that in a month or so,” he said. “There is still the oppor- tunity to manage our affairs so that it will not happen.” Bell said a number of variables — such as “enough precipitation in the next two months or higher export prices” — could change the situation. But he didn't completely rule out the possibility of a rate increase. “It is definitely a possibility that prices will go up in the worst-case NORIEGA REJECTS U.S. PLAN PANAMA CITY, Panama (AP) — Panamanian strong: man Manuel Antonio Noriega was reported to have fired more military leaders Satur. day, apparently consolidating his power after rejecting U.S. terms for his resigna tion. In Washington, a U.S. administration official said Noriega had indicated a will- i step down as Pan ama’s military commander — but he refused to go into exile, as the United States demanded. Opposition leaders called for a general strike Monday to protest the government's national state of emergency — restricting civil liberties — which was called Friday. Diplomatic and other sources, speaking on condi- tion of anonymity, said Nor iega appeared to be rein- forcing his military power base after rejecting an offer from a U.S. State Depart- ment envoy. William Walker was said to have offered Noriega a guar- antee that the United States would not try to extradite him on drug-trafficking charges if he accepted asy lum in a third country, prob- ably Spain or France, The United States appar- ently fears that if Noriega did not leave Panama he would continue to influence affairs even after giving up his official post. A source close to the Pan- amanian military said 15 colonels and majors have been retired or moved out of key positions since the head of the national police tried to stage a coup Wednesday. Noriega’s high command has acknowledged only five retirements and one major demotion. The Defence Forces also admit to holding five officers. But the ‘military source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said a dozen offi- cers have been arrested, “three or four are in hiding and quite a few more are suspected and being investi gated — up to 100.” The latest military purge came a day after the civilian government, controlled by Noriega, declared a “state of urgency” aimed at propping up Panama's tottering econ- omy. Hondurans send troops to border TEGUCIGALPA (AP) — Honduran President Jose Azcona Hoyo said Saturday he was reinforcing troops along the southern border to oust Nicaraguan forces. He also said he wouldn't hesitate to seek more U.S. help. A few hours after the presidential statement, the Honduran armed forces an- nounced that the Nicarag- uans were pulling back. “Their troops are with- drawing,” said Col. Manuel Suarez Benavides, an armed forces spokesman. “About 600” Sandinista soldiers are still insidé our country, and the rest have abandoned the area during the past 24 hour: “This is a good sign on the part of the Managua regime, so that peace can prevail in Central America,” he added. “We hope the Nicaraguan troops definitely leave our nation within the next 24 hours so that we can solve this serious problem of na- tional security.” Brisco U.S. officials, who have sent 3,200 military personnel to Honduras in recent days, said they expected approval this weekend for U.S. heli- copters to airlift Honduran troops to non-combat areas near the fighting. Nicaraguan president Daniel Ortega said he was appealing to the World Court in the Hague for an in- junction to prevent any act- ion that would increase ten- sion between the ¢diintries. He said he also asked the United Nations to investigate the border dispute. The UN agreed to send a team of ob- servers to Nicaragua. The Soviet media, mean- while, accused the United States of trying to impose its will on Nicaragua and spoil Central American peace ef- forts by sending in troops. Azcona said the situation in the mountainous Bocay region deteriorated when Nicaraguan troops re-enter- ed Honduras after having re- treated to the Nicaraguan side. slams throne speech Kootenay West MP Bob Brisco slammed Premier Bill Vander Zalm's throne speech this week. In a brief state- ment issued from Ottawa, Brisco said he was dis. appointed with Vander Zalm's attack on the federal government's contribution to BC. “When the premier takes a positive approach on the West Trail approach and stops bluffing about the Slocan Bluffs, then he can crow,” said Brisco. “In the meantime, the federal government's record in Kootenay West is out- standing and it will con- tinue.” BOB BRISCO . disappointed FIRE Community Complex. really damaged.” “That's arson for sure,” continued trom front page A total of 20 firefighters responded. Meanwhile, arson was blamed for a second fire that destroyed the roof of the gazebo in the park next to the Mann said. “The roof is It is the second fire to the roof in the last four years. Mann said the fire department received the call just after 2 a.m. and a pumper truck, the first response unit and 11 firefighters battled the blaze. “She was going pretty good in the roof” when fire- fighters arrived, he said. Castlegar RCMP called the fire “highly suspicious.” RCMP report that someone also ripped out a large floodlight from the top of the Community Complex. Police note that floodlight normally lights the area of the park where the gazebo sits.