"

November 20, 1988

FIGURE SKATERS .. . Castlegar Figure Skating
Club members competed in the Kootenays
Regionals and the Sunshine Valley Open figure

pard, Laura Kosowan, Lisa Datchkoff, Charmaine
Garay, Selena Fodor, chelsea Van Vliet and Kerri
Redekop. (Front row, from left) Meghan Van
Vliet, Heather Sheppard and Jennifer Datchkoff.

skating competitions in Grand Forks last week

(Back row from left) Karen Skibinski, Averil Shep

ESKIMO QUARTERBACK

Ham ready for Leos

By JOHN KOROBANIK
Canadian Press

EDMONTON — Tracy Ham was
an uncontrollable bundle of enthu
siastic energy Friday as he bounced
around the Edmonton Eskimos
dressing room, his loud voice almost
echoing off the walls. The 24-year-old
was ready

“I'm comfortable with it,” he said
of his role as the team's starting
quarterback for the CFL Western
final against the B.C. Lions today
(CFN, 1:30 p.m.).

“You don't look at the status of the
game; you just go out and play
another ball game and you play it as
hard as you played the first game of

Hi Arrow
wins pair

Hi Arrow Arms*won both games
this week in CRHL action at the
Community Complex. Hi Arrow beat
Sandman Inn 7-4 Thursday and
Woodland Park Shell 8-4 Wednesday

Dean MacKinnon and Brent Smith
scored two goals each to lead Hi
Arrow to Thursday's 7-4 win over
Sandman. Both of MacKinnon's goals
were unassisted

Other Hi Arrow marksmen were
John Obetkoff, Clay Martini and Rick
Shukin. Rod Zavaduk, Smith, Vince
Antignani, Bill Nazaroff and Chris
Brodman all drew assists.

Rod Fayant, Dave MacKinnon,
Pete Tischler and Jim Paetz replied
for Sandman. Paetz, Frank Costa and
Dwayne Weir picked up assists

In Wednesday's game against
Shell, Antignani and Obetkoff scored
two goals each for Hi Arrow. Steve
Simonen, Zavaduk, Brodman and
Shukin scored the other Hi Arrow
markers. Obetkoff, Kevin Kirby,
Brodman, Simonen, Zavaduk and
Mitch Quaedvlieg drew assists

Wes MacPherson led Shell scorers
with a pair. Mercer and Murray
Pearson scored one each. MacPher-.
son, Pearson, Kelly Keraiff and Stan
Matell added assists.

Sandman plays Shell in the next
CRHL game Monday at the Com
munity Complex starting at 9:30 p.m

*S EER XK ECERE RE REX

, The Ski Specialist a

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“The Largest Ski Specialty
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the season.”

This is Ham's second season with
Edmonton but he was third string in
1987 and saw limited playing time.
This season he was to be upgraded to
Damon Allen's backup, but because
of injuries Ham found himself first
string most of the year.

Now he leads the struggling Grey
Cup champions into the final against
the Lions and veteran quarterback
Matt Dunigan, the man who won last
year's final for the Eskimos against
those same Lions.

The Lions aren't concerned that
Ham will be starting against them. It
will be his first start against B.C. He
played only briefly against the Lions
this year, finishing up a Sept. 1 game
after Allen was unable to get the
offence moving.

Compared to Dunigan, Ham is a
raw rookie. But he's not acting like
one; nor does he feel like a rookie or a
man under pressure.

“I've been in situations when I've
been the centre of attention for the
whole week, too, and it doesn’t make
any difference,” Ham said

FIND CRACKS
Ham and Allen have worked toge

Esposito

ther the last two weeks, helping each
other find cracks in the B.C. defence,
correcting their own mistakes and
coming upwith the plays they feel
will work best against the Lions.
They both know the struggling
Edmonten offence must perform far
better on Sunday than it did the final
four weeks of the regular season.

“I think the key is going to be
maintaining some decent drives, the
length of the field; I think that’s
going to be important,” said Ham,
the five-foot-11, 185-pound native of
High Springs, Fla., “And we have to
take advantage of the turnovers.

That's especially important for the
Eskimos with their struggling of.
fence. It may not be as vital to the
Lions with their offence at its peak
rolling over all opposition.

That's not to say the Eskimo
defence is tentative or overly con
cerned.

“We're very confident,” said all
star cornerback Stanley Blair. “We
feel like we've got some good keys on
them, they have some good tenden
cies for us to read and we're going to
go out Sunday and sniff out as
many plays as we can.”

brothers

competing again

NEW YORK (AP) Like most
brothers, Phil and Tony Esposito are
no strangers to sibling rivalry.

The Esposito brothers, who grew
up in Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., took the
competition out of the house and on
to the National Hockey League ice
when Phil was a high-scoring centre
and Tony was a stingy goaltender.

Now they've taken it to the NHL
front office where they are both
general managers for teams fighting
for the top spot in the same division.

“I think it’s more pressure than we
ever faced as players,” Phil says. “It
was much easier when we were
playing against each other.”

That was through much of the
1970s, when Phil was setting goal
scoring standards, first with the
Boston Bruins and then New York
Rangers, and Tony |was an all-star
goaltender for the ‘Chicago Black
hawks.

Since then, both have been elected
to the Hockey Hall of Fame and
moved into front office positions —
Phil with the Rangers and Tony with

the Pittsburgh Penguins.

This has created a new awareness
in both.

“When he and I were playing, we
were controlling our own lives and
we could say anything we wanted
about anybody or anything,” Phil
says. “But now we control other
peoples’ lives and that’s a very, very
touchy thing.”

As for his new business relat
ionship with his brother, Phil says he
has to think twice about making
trades with him, especially since they
are both in the Patrick Division.

“I wish it wasn't the same
division,” Phil says. “I'll tell you this:
If he wasn’t in our division, we would
have made a couple of deals already.

“I would have tried to help him out
more and I think he would have tried
to help me more.”

Not that either has ruled out a
trade between them.

“I feel if I can make a deal with
anybody that would help our team, I
would make it,” Tony says. “I don't
care who I'm trading with

Verzuh undefeated

The rink skipped by Mike Verzuh,
completed the first eight-game draw
undefeated and leads the field of 20
teams with a record of seven wins
and one tie.

In second place with six wins each
are the rinks of McGillivray and Wil.
son. Alone in third place we have
Walker and his three musketeers,

CASTLEGAR & AREA
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with five wins and a tie. Nipping at
the heels of these fellows are the
teams of Clay and Rust with five
wins each.

The rinks of Archambault, with
four wins and two ties, and Heagy,
with four wins and one tie, are close
behind. Batting .500 are the teams of
Leckie, Kaardal, Obedkoff and Bate
with four wins each. Following the
starting schedule for the next eight
game draw: Tuesday's 9:30 a.m.
draw includes Rust vs. Wilson, Mills
vs. McGauley, Verzuh vs. Kaardal
and Archambault vs, Walker.

The 1 p.m. draw has Waterman vs.
Molnar, Bradford vs. Clay, Burak vs.
Bate and Buffett vs. Obedkoff.
Wednesday's 9:30 a.m. draw is Rust
vs. Walker, McGillivray vs. Kelley,
Heagy vs. Leckie and McGauley vs.
Kaardal.

Thursday's 9:30 a.m. draw includes
Archambault vs. Clay, Verzuh vs.
Molnar, Mills vs. Wilson and Water.
man vs. Bate.

At 1 p.m. it’s Burak vs. Kelley,
Buffett vs. Leckie, Bradford vs.
Obedkoff and McGillivray vs. Heagy.

SPORTS

Swetlishoff loses
in coaching debut

By CasNews Staff

Miro Pasic scored three goals to
lead the Rossland Warriors to a 96-
win over the Castlegar Rebels in
KIJHL. action Friday in Rossland.

It was Ken Swetlishoff's coaching
debut for the Rebels this season after
replacing Daryl Weir and despite the
loss, Swetlishoff said the team per-
formed well.

“It was excellent it the first
period,” Swetlishoff told the Castle-
gar News. “Then we started getting
penalties. When were were short-
handed, they scored.”

The Rebels jumped out to an early
two-goal lead in the opening period.
Shawn McAdie opened the scoring at
the 2:57 mark after Chris Milne set
him up. McAdie scored just two
minutes later on an unassisted effort
to give the Rebels a two-goal bulge.

Andy Wingrove replied for Ross-
land at the 13:31 mark. Assistant
captain Mike Krause assisted. Castle-
gar got the two-goal lead back on
Glen Ormsby's goal. Molne and

assistant captain Jaret Watts as-
sisted.

Rossland got the final goal of the
period from Pasic after Shane
Jackson set him up. The Rebels led
3-2 after one.

Rossland came out early in the
second period, scoring two quick
power play goals. Pasic scored his
second of the night from Brian Thor-
burn and captain Dennis Olson at the
1:22 mark. Pasic scored again just
over three minutes later on a pass
from Tim Bourchier.

But Castlegar came back with two
power play goals. Wayne Saliken
scored from Lorne Kanigan and
Keith Semenoff to tie the game at
four. Less than a minute later
Kanigan ‘scored from Saliken and
Jason Hughes to give Castlegar the
lead again.

But Krause replied for the War-
riors after Wingrove and Chuck
Steele set him up. It was 5-5 after
two periods.

The Rebels scored with just 24
seconds gone in the final 20 minutes.
Kanigan got his second of the night
on an unassisted effort.

That would be all for the Rebels as
the Warriors scored for third-period
goals — three on the powerplay — to
put the game out of reach. Olson
scored from Thorburn and Pasic to
tie it at six. Jackson scored the
game-winner on a- play set up by
Olson. Olson got his second of the
night after Steele and Krause put
him in the clear. Thorburn got the
game's final goal from Olson at the
16:47 mark to assure Rossland of the
win.

Castlegar is in fifth place in the
KIJHL west division with five wins
and 13 losses for 10 points, eight
points behind fourth place Rossland.

Swetlishoff is confident the Rebels
can turn things around soon. He said
the team just needs a little time.

“It's going to take time,” he said.
“We're almost starting all over
again.”

Giants out for blood

By The Associated Press

The New York Giants had no
defence for the way they played last
week against the Phoenix Cardinals.

Against the Philadelphia Eagles,
things will have to be different.

“It's probably the biggest game of
the year now that the division is the
way it is,” coach Bill Parcells said as
the Giants prepared to meet the
Eagles in a big National Football
Conference East Division game to-
day.

Call it a playoff game, because in
some ways it is, even though it's
only the 12th week of the season.

The Eagles, 6-5, will come into
Giants Stadium just a game behind
New York and Phoenix, both 7-4, in
the tight four-way battle for the top
spot in the NFC East. Washington is
tied with Philadelphia for second
place.

don’t think there is any question
this is (the biggest game of the sea-
son) for us,” Eagles coach Buddy
Ryan said. “They (the Giants) are
leading the league we're in.”

In other NFL action today, it will
be New York Jets at Buffalo Bills,
Chicago Bears at Tampa Bay Buc-
caneers, Cincinnati Bengals at Dallas
Cowboys, Detroit Lions versus
Green Bay Packers at Milwaukee,
Indianapolis Colts at Minnesota
Vikings, Phoenix Cardinals at Hous-
ton Oilers, Pittsburgh Steelers at
Cleveland Browns, Seattle Seahawks
at Kansas City Chiefs, Denver Bron
cos at New Orelans Saints, San Diego
Chargers at Los Angeles Rams,
Atlanta Falcons at Los Angeles

Raiders and New England Patriots at
Miami Dolphins.

In the Monday night game, Wash-
ington Redskins will. play at San
Francisco 49ers.

The Giants could have taken a big
step toward the division title last
weekend, but lost 24-17 to Phoenix,
tightening the division with five
weeks to play.

Against the Cardinals, the Giants
had one of their worst defensive
performances in recent years. New
York gave up 466 yards in total
offence and allowed the Cardinals to
convert on 12 of 17 third-down
chances.

The performance was reminiscent
of the Giants’ effort six weeks ago in
a 24-13 loss to the Eagles on national
television. In that game, Eagles

The Jets, 5-5-1, have a mathe-
matical chance at a wild-card playoff
berth.

Jets coach Joe Walton has benched
quarterback Ken O'Brien and will go
with veteran backup Pat Ryan in an
attempt to spark an offence that
has only generated three touchdowns
in two consecutive losses.

Ryan's last start in a non-strike
game came in the playoffs in 1986.

Richer
suspended

MONTREAL (CP) — Montreal
Canadiens forward Stephane Richer

quarterback Randall C
completed 31 of 41 passes for 369
yards and threw three touchdown
passes in his best pro performance
yet.

Philadelphia, which started the sea-
son 1-3, has won five of seven games
to get back into contention.

Buffalo can clinch a playoff berth
by beating the Jets today. The
Bills, 10-1, are the only American
Football Conference team that has
not appeared in the playoffs since
1982.

Buffalo quarterback Jim Kelly ac-
kowledges his teammates are aware
of the game's significance, but says
they are playing it down because a
playoff berth is only the first of many
accomplishments the team has plan-
ned for this season.

has been suspended for 10 games
without pay as the result of a
stick-swinging incident that injured
New York Islanders defenceman Jeff
Norton, the National Hockey League
announced Friday.

Richer hit Norton in the mid-sec
tion during the second period of a
game Wednesday night, causing the
New York player to collapse on the
ice. Norton was down for about 10
minutes and had to be taken from the
playing area on a stretcher.

Norton spent the night in a Mon
treal hospital where doctors origin-
ally feared he might have suffered
broken ribs or a perforated liver. He
was released Thursday after initial
X-rays were described as “negative
but inconclusive.”

Weekend Wrap-up

HOCKEY

ue
WEST DIVISION,
w

Grond Forks 31
EASTERN DIVISION

Col. Valley 132

Cranbrook

Kimberley

Spokone
Eh Valley
WEST KOOTENAY MINOR HOCKEY
‘ASSOCIAT
‘ATOM DIVISION

Chicog 610
Minnesote 412
Smythe Division

13

744
WALES CONFERENCE
‘Adams Division

7

‘otfey. Pgh
Robitaille LA

no
o7
2

Division tt
Portsmouth

SCOTTISH LEAGUE
Premier Division
w
9
6
Division |

0
rs

BASKETBALL

NBA
EASTERN CONFERENCE
‘Atlontic Division

Contra! Division

Indiono

Hmpor! guard. Der
Qvord Andrew McConnell on inyur

Ht
ngers send leit winger John Ogrodnuch
onal Hockey League on ©

BRISCO CITES
IMPROVEMENTS
IN ECONOMY

By RON NORMAN
Editor

Bob Brisco's campaign office is not ideally
located. A campaign sign with an arrow points the
way up two flights of stairs and around the corner to
the Conservative incumbent's second-floor Castlegar
campaign headquarters.

But Brisco doesn't apologize fer the fact he
couldn't get street-level office space. In fact, he
proudly points out that it reflects a booming West
Kootenay economy — something he says came about
because of a Progressive Conservative government.

“The economic recovery has been significant,”
says Brisco. “There is more to be done,.there is no
question of that. But I can well remember 1984, four
short years ago really, when there were a very large
number of vacancies on Baker Street in Nelson, the
same in Castlegar, the same on Bay Avenue or Cedar
Avenue in Trail. Office space is now much more
difficult to come by. That tells me one thing: We're
busier.”

Brisco says unemployment has dropped “signifi
cantly” in the region since he was elected in 1984, but
he would like to see it fall by another seven or eight
percentage points.

“If we could get our unemployment down to five
per cent, we're essentially at the zero point. That's a
major objective of mine.”

Brisco points to 1.8 million new jobs created
under the Tory government. “(We've created) 1,000
jobs a day every day since we took office. That's
what we've done.”

Locally, Brisco says his record “speaks for
itself." He says he set three major spending
objectives during the 1984 campaign, and has met
them all. They include the new RCMP subdivision
building in Nelson, the expanded air terminal at the
Castlegar Airport, and the $79 million in federal aid
for Cominco’s lead smelter modernization.

But he says that isn’t all. Western Canada’s first
Community Futures job creation program was
established in Trail, and another for the Castlegar.
Nelson area soon followed.

“My record, for those familiar with it . . . speaks
for itself,” Brisco said. “It is one of total dedication to
this constituency and it has always been.”

Like the last election, Brisco says he has

established goals and objectives for each community
in the g.
But he calls it “a sad commentary on our local
political scene” that he is the only candidate who has
specified his objectives for the riding community by
community.

“The other candidates have not really identified
anything,” he says. “I think Mr. Kristiansen (NDP
candidate Lyle) has made reference to some
assistance for the library in Nelson, and I suppose

| BOB BRISCO
. Fecord speaks for itself

there's a smattering of other things, but they're not
found on the record.”

Still, despite trying to run on his record, Brisco
concedes the campaign has turned into a referendum
on the free-trade agreement.

“That's sad, given the performance of the
government in so many other areas,” he says. “In
terms of employment equity, in terms of deficit
reduction, in terms of economic performance. We've
led the industrial world in economic performance in
the last three year:

But Brisco says Liberal leader John Turner has
no intention of tearing up the free-trade pact, if the
Liberals form the government.

“I do not for one minute believe that John
Turner is opposed to free trade," says Brisco. “I
think what he will do is clear his throat, say: ‘We will
make some modifications to this agreement,’ and we
will have free trade.”

Brisco points to similar instances in the past
where Liberals have campaigned on one thing, but
once in office have turned around and done the
opposite.

“Bob Stanfield (then Conservative leader)
campaigned on price and wage controls in 1974, and
he lost. And the Liberals, a few months later, after
campaigning against price ‘and wage controls
introduced price and wage controls.”

Brisco said the same thing happened in 1980
when Joe Clark's Conservative government was
defeated. He said the Tories campaigned on raising
gasoline taxes by 18 cents a gallon.

“The Liberals campaigned against it . We
know what Trudeau did. He formed the next
government and the first price increase was 22 cents
a gallon.”

Free trade crucial

Jenkins slams
Mulroney deal

By BRENDAN NAGLE
Staff Writer

Fora did. who has been from
pillar to post around the Kootenay West-Revelstoke
riding for the last six weeks, Garry Jenkins still appears
to be as fresh as he was when the federal election was
first called. But the Liberal hopeful makes it quite clear
that the election campaign has taken its toll.

“I'm getting awfully tired,” the two-term Rossland
alderman and family physician told the Castlegar News
in an interview. “Fifty-one days really is enough. I'm
looking forward to Monday very, very much.”

But the fatigue has yet to show on Jenkins as he
continues to attack both opposing parties while pitching
the Liberal party line and describing what he would do
for Kootenay West-Revelstoke if elected.

His priorities for the riding include a microwave
landing guidance system for the Castlegar Airport, a
renegotiation of downstream benefits on the Columbia
River Treaty that would directly benefit municipalities
in the riding and “double tracking” the Trans Canada
Highway up in the Revelstoke area to provide increased
highway access to tourists and industrial carriers.

“People should vote for me because I'm willing to
work hard on their behalf,” he said. “They should also
vote for the Liberal party because of the platform that
we have that I think satisfies the needs of the average
Canadian.”

Jenkins said he is sure the single-most important
issue in this federal election is the free-trade agreement
with the United States. He condemned the “Mulroney
trade deal” because it is a “sell out.”

“There is no question that the  single-most
important issue for everybody when I go door-knocking
is this Mulroney trade deal and free trade,” he said. “I
don’t think any other issue makes any difference to the
campaign.”

The free-trade issue has dwarfed all other
significant election issues that would normally be at the
forefront of the campaign, he said.

“Sure the Liberal party is against nuclear
submarines and we're against cruise missile testing, but
nobody seems to care,” he said. “It's free trade, free
trade, free trade.”

But Jenkins quickly added the Liberal party is not
opposed to a free-trade arrangement

“The Liberal party has always been in favor of free
trade, still is in favor of free trade and always will be in
favor of free trade,” he said. “The problem is the
Mulroney trade deal is not free trade. It goes an awful
long ways past free trade to get into areas that are not
covered by the GATT (General Agreement on Tariffs
and Trade) and to get into areas where I think it
endangers our Canadian way of life.”

But Jenkins also criticized the New Democrats for
what he says is a lack of policy or direction. He said
people who vote for the New Democrats will not be
voting for something, but will be voting against free

GARRY JENKINS
will work hard

trade without an option.

“My real worry is people will say, ‘Well, we don’t
want the Mulroney trade deal, therefore, we're going to
vote NDP,’ " he said. “I don't believe the NDP has a
viable plan to put in place of the Mulroney trade deal.”

He said the federal campaign has definitely taken
after the negative campaigns waged in the recent U.S.
presidential elections. But he added the campaigns of
the three Canadian party leaders did not turn negative
until after the debate.

“I think up until the time of the debate between
Turner, Mulroney and Broadbent, all the candidates
were taking a bit of the high road,” he said.

“I think since that time and since the American
election where they had some extremely negative ads

. I think to bring it down to calling each other a liar is
ridiculous, it's child's play.”

Jenkins remains positive in his campaign but also
realizes there are two large hurdles to overcome — the
Tories and the New Democrats — if he is to win the
election. He is well aware the Liberals finished a distant
third to the Tories and the New Democrats in the last
federal election four years ago.

“I think the Liberal party is going to do well this
time. I'd be very unhappy if I get less than 20 per cent of
the vote,” he said. “I've got to be very realistic. I'm
running against two incumbents. It's definitely an
extremely uphill battle to try and get elected.”

Ny.
November 20, 1988 rf ‘astlégar News 83

Kristiansen fights

against f

By BONNE MORGAN
Staff Writer

New Democratic Party candidate Lyle Kristiansen
feels “positive” about the results of the federal élection.

“There have been so many indications of long-term
Conservatives who feel the party has betrayed them,”
he told the Castlegar News.

Kristiansen said early campaigning had shown that
people were “uneasy” about the free-trade agreement
while recent indications show opinion has changed,
especially after the party leaders’ televised debates.

“They feel they haven't been getting straight
answers from the government,” Kristiansen explained.

He says this election will be fought on the merits of
the free-trade agreement, which is riot only the most
prominent, but the most important issue.

“It affects every other aspect of Canadian society,”
Kristiansen said, adding he believes it affects Canadian
sovereignty,

Kristiansen claims that under the free-trade
agreement, no future government will be able to “adopt
a made-in-Canada energy price” because it prohibits
Canadian energy prices from being lower than those in
the U.S.

As well, he says Canada will lose its control over
American investment in the country

“This agreement clearly disallows controls on
investment under $150 million or on any indirect
takeover,” he said.

He said the agreement has controls to curb
Canadian outflow of capital to the U.S. and cited foreign
exchange controls during a period of high interest rates
in Canada as an impossibility under the free-trade
agreement.

But Kristiansen said a Turner government would
also implement the free-trade agreement.

“Judging by his own corporate background, he
would make a few minor changes and zap, it's in.”

Kristiansen compared the free-trade agreement
with the Columbia River Treaty. He said the
Conservatives negotiated the Columbia River Treaty,
the Liberals concluded it and provincially the Social
Credit party under W.A.C. Bennett supported it.

“We've got the same kind of set up if we were to
end up with a majority of either Conservatives or
Liberals again.”

Kristiansen predicts that a future government will
not be able to opt out of the free-trade agreement once
it is implemented despite the six-month cancellation
clause.

He said free trade will displace “hundreds of
thousands” of workers and a future government could
not feasibly cancel the agreement and easily return
industry to the way it was.

“All the Americans need to do is stall on that for
five years and say you give us what we want,” he said,
adding, “when you've closed down plants what do you
say? We'll open it again and rebuild.”

Kristiansen said he can do an effective job
representing the riding without a majority government,

ree trade

LYLE KRISTIANSEN
. . positive about election

pointing to his past record when elected to represent
Kootenay West during 1980-84 under a minority Liberal
government.

Kristiansen said the NDP supports the concept of
free trade, but not this agreement, and would take a
different approach to expanding Canada’s foreign trade.

“We think it’s much better to approach these things
sector by sector,” he said.

Kristiansen brushed aside speculation that reject
ing the agreement will cause value of the Canadian
dollar to drop, saying a deflated Canadian dollar is
healthy for exports.

“I know it annoys people when they go down to
Spokane, but the fact that we've got more jobs here is
more important,” he said.

Despite differences with Conservative incumbent
Bob Brisco over each candidate's spending record in the
riding, Kristiansen denies it has been a negative
campaign, both locally and nationally.

“People tend to exaggerate their own record and do
diminish the record of others.”

He said the free-trade debate has aroused
“nationalistic” feelings in people, causing emotions to
run high, dismissing mudslinging between party
leaders

Kristiansen believes a 48-vote swing from
Conservative to NDP would be all it would take for him
to win this election.”

“We have the tightest constituency,” he said,
explaining that Kootenay West-Revelstoke has an
estimated 98-vote margin with the recent expansion of
the electoral boundaries.

MICHAEL BROWN
atmosphere threatened

ENVIRONMENT
MAJOR ISSUE
FOR BROWN

By CasNews Staff

Green Party candidate Michael Brown is most
concerned about impending threats to the environ:
ment, than the free-trade agreement or any other
federal election issue.

He says Canadians should change their
priorities and vote for the party which will do the
most to reverse environmental damage

“The Green Party seems to be the only ones
concerned with the environment,” he told the
Castlegar News, adding that the federal election
seems to be a free-trade referendum.

“They are going to find that this,” he said,
pointing to the Conference Statement on The
Changing Atmosphere: Implications For Global
Security, “is going to have a greater effect and a
more profound impact on their lives.”

The conference, held in June in Toronto,
gathered together international politicians, indust-
rialists, economists and experts on the environment
to consider threats posed by changes in the

atmosphere. The conference statement, which
Brown brought along for his interview, details such
concerns as climate warning, rising sea-level, altered
precipitation patterns, “the greenhouse effect”,
depletion of the ozone layer, toxic chemicals, soil
erosion, fresh water resources, and accelerated
extinction of animal and plant species.

It states that the “ultimate consequences could
be second only to a global nuclear war.”

Brown said the most important environmental
issue is changes occuring to the earth's atmosphere.
He feels the easiest threat to deal with is the use of
chlorofulorocarbons, which destroy the ozone and
greenhouse gases and are found in such things as
aerosol sprays and refrigerators.

“There is no reason why we can't stop the
production of chlorofluorocarbons,” he said explain
ing that it is a relatively small industry

Brown would also like to see clear-cut logging
and slash burning stopped. He said the trees are
going to be needed to protect seedlings from harmful
effects caused by the atmospheric warming trend,
and different forestry management practices are
needed.

Brown criticized the Tory government for its
stand on the environment, saying it has offered
“Band-Aid solutions” and prefers “crisis manage
ment” to prevention.

“In some respects I get angry when I think that
the Conservative government has known about this
for months and has done nothing to inform the
public,” he said, picking up the conference
statement

Brown said he wishes there would be a referen
dum on the free-trade agreement to separate it from
the federal election.

The Conservative government's offer of econ
omic prosperity tied to the free-trade agreement is
“disgusting,” he says.

have been despoiling their

environmental conditions will
become worse if the free-trade agreement with the
United States goes ahead. American
Canadian resources such as fossil fuel, wood, and
water will only discourage Americans from cleaning
up their own environment

“We are concerned that free trade means more
economic and industrial growth which is at the root
cause of all our environmental problems,” he said.

Brown said a Green Party government would
fund environmental steps to reverse atmospheric
conditions as a wartime government would fund a
war.

“When threat to our society is perceived, when
people understand the real threat, the money will
come,” he said, adding: “during World War Two
people didn’t say we don't have the money to fight a
war, we're just getting over a Depression.”

Brown admits his chances of being elected are
slim, but is positive about response from people over
environmental concerns.

“I feel quite positive about the response I've
been getting irrespective of the number of votes I'll
be getting,” he said.

Brown also said a minority Green Party can't
change things overnight, but “even one Green Party
seat in the House of Commons would be a voice that
is not heard.”

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