A Black Monday for Ferry Travel B.C
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
f E Davidson TT Your Community Newspaper! RR1 ford, BC CRD directors decide to expand landfill into 08/01/91 Heal Lake. See News be at Section, Page A2. Gulf Islands its spring in the islands and time for borne Driftwood improvement tasks. See Section B. VOL. 32, NO. 12 60 CENTS GANGES, BRITISH COLUMBIA WEDNESDAY, MARCH 20, 1991 A black Monday for ferry travel B.C. Ferries' Mayne Queen must Minor damage suffered by the not like Mondays. Mayne Queen that night was repaired The vessel played another nasty last week and the vessel then trans trick on Gulf Islands travellers when ferred to Fulford Harbour. it refused to operate on the Fulford The boat's problems this Monday Harbour-Swartz Bay run Monday. meant Victoria-bound island traffic B.C. Ferries information officer was rerouted through either Long Pat Stephens told the Driftwood the Harbour for the 6:40 a.m. sailing to Mayne Queen suffered "mechanical Tsawwassen or Vesuvius Bay until problems" and was unable to service necessary ship juggling brought the the 6:30 a.m. sailing as scheduled. Bowen Queen back to Salt Spring in The same vessel ran aground off the afternoon. Portland Island the previous Monday Stephens explained this was ac on an evening Swartz Bay-Otter Bay complished by the Queen of run. Ninety-six passengers endured Nanaimo being brought out of refit to almost six hours on the ship before it was towed back to Swartz Bay. MAYNE QUEEN A3 Industry will battle rate "discrimination" Changes to Canada Post rates for be delivered free of charge within the newspapers and other publications "free zone" until March 1994. could result in huge extra costs for The increases were to come into off-island subscribers to Gulf Islands effect March 1, after only 90 days Driftwood. notice from Canada Post Successful DritHOOd photo by Dwricfc Lundy Currently, the Driftwood pays 5.2 lobbying by the hundreds of com cents to mail each issue to subscribers munity newspapers across Canada, DIGGING IT: Returning salmon won't recognize this once overgrown, Utter and silt-filled stream outside a 65-kilometre radius of Salt through their national association, after members of Debbie Da vies' GISS environmental studies class cleaned and enhanced It last week. Spring Island. With the changes, has resulted in an implementation Janaki Larson (left) and Gemma Anderson are seen making an alternate route for newly-released fish. The revitalized stream Is on the arts centre property, across from Ganges linear park. costs of mailing an average 150-gram delay to June 1. copy will jump to 41 cents per issue. Members of Parliament, includ Up to 2,500 copies will continue to ing Saanich and the Islands repre sentative Lynn Hunter, have been speaking out for community newspapers across the country. Trustees to fight budget cuts SPOTLIGHT Driftwood publisher Joyce Carlson says the Canada Post in School district 64 will formulate before," for realistic consideration of Water between islands means ef creases will result in an off-island "stronger and harder" arguments Gulf Islands needs. ficiency cannot be attained in the dis- subscription rate increase of ap against funding cuts made to its He said the ministry's refusal to trict, he explained, by simply proximately $18 per year. Current forthcoming year's budget. acknowledge problems unique to this shutting one school and bussing its rates in other parts of Canada are Schools superintendent Dr. Mike district has been a long-fought prob students to the next nearest school. $31.03 including GST. Marshall told the Driftwood Monday lem. Kindergarten, for example, has "We're hoping our many off-is that staff is currently "going through received only 50 per cent of its re Marshall is especially critical of lands subscribers remain loyal and an analysis of all expenditures, quired funding for the past 10 years. the ministry's timing and procedure continue to subscribe, but it is a dis school by school" to show the educa The shortfall has been taken from in introducing the formula that Home support workers turbing situation." tion ministry why the Gulf Islands "supplementary funding," explained resulted in Gulf Islands cuts. form an integral part of this Carlson said the Driftwood would cannot function with a drastically Marshall, the area hardest hit by "It would not have been so bru community. See story, honour its commitment to sub reduced budget as proposed by the 1991/92 budget cuts. tal," he said, if districts had been beginning on Page CI. scribers who have already bought ministry. No other district has to deal with given advance warning, been asked subscriptions, but future renewals The district's recently announced eight schools spread so widely apart, for input and allowed to identify spe from June 1 will have to be increased 1991/92 budget was reduced by 2.2 he notes, but the ministry still funds cial problem areas. to cover costs. per cent from the previous year, on the basis of pupils served — not "We are continuing to fight the based on a "block funding" formula classes or schools operated — within School trustees gave weight to a INDEX increase size and if successful, we introduced by the Ministry of Educa a district. formal protest when a motion was will not have to implement such a Arts & Entertainment .. A16 tion this year. All of those schools must have a passed at their March 13 meeting large increase." Marshall said staff will be iden principal, he said, even if their directing "representations" be made Beyer , A6 Community newspapers are tifying areas where real shortfalls school's numbers only warrant .2 to the education ministry and the Business Directory.. A20,2i will exist, and "make arguments FTE of a principal, as is the case on islands' MLAs regarding funding * POSTAL INCREASE A2 stronger and harder than we have Satuma Island. cuts. Classifieds A22-26 Editorial A4 Country Gourmet .. CI $8,000 in salmon dumped Letters to the Editor .. A5-7 It's a Real Estate Cl-12 Controversial regulations of two The USFDA rejected the of the Free Trade Agreement — no national governments combined to salmon's entry into the U.S. last fall, processed fish imports from Canada. sure sign Sports A19,27 level an $8,000 loss on a Ganges claiming it was contaminated by the business. virus listeria monocytogenes. "I can guarantee there are no fish Nineteen boxes of smoked salmon companies in Canada that have of spring benefitted from the Free Trade FEATURE had been ordered by an American Hummingbirds have buyer. One of them tested by USFDA Agreement," he told the Driftwood By GAIL SJUBERG last Thursday. He and other com returned to Salt Spring. Driftwood Staff Writer indicated listeria was present in the panies had shipped products south of The first "sure sign of fish. the border trouble-free before the spring" was spotted by agreement came into effect, he said. Isabella Point area resi Salt Spring Seafood Products Ltd. Business owner John dent Vigs Monsette. bid farewell to $8,000 worth of Christianson's experience with the Christianson finds the lack of sup Monseite was first to smoked salmon last week as Health loss, the USFDA, Health and Wel call the Driftwood in the and Welfare Canada supervised its port from Canadian government fare Canada and department of sources most disturbing. annual race to spot the disposal at the Blackburn Road gar Fisheries and Oceans has convinced first island hummingbird. bage dump last Thursday. him to forget exporting his product to "The fact that our government He called March 13 and the United States as he has often done backed up their government is what noted he saw the bird the The Nye sisters hare Regardless of United States Food in the past. appalls me," he said. vious day. cashed in on their love of pre> and Drug Adminstration test results, After the USFDA test found Monsette said he saw movies. See story on Page Salt Spring Seafood Products owner II- fcUT.il— .1 *1_. —1__* -»- Page A2 GULF ISLANDS DRIFTWOOD Wednesday. March 20, 1991 tk*. NEWS BEAT Driftwoo n GOLDEN ASH TREE CARE Regional directors agree Ian Hayes, Professional Arborist - ^Danger Trees "Tree Surgery •Topping & Shaping • Lot Clearing* Pruning* Hedge Trimming •Brush Cutting to expand Hartland dump Fully Insured 537-5573 Free Estimates Hartland Road landfill will be ex "I am not in favour of filling a tinue dumping at the current level panded with a price tag of $22.1 mil lake," he told the CRD meeting. Such and let garbage overflow into Heal lion. a move would cause ecological Lake by default Capital Regional District direc damage and hurt tourism in the The motion to table the environ Give us a break! tors approved expansion of the dump region, he said. ment committee report failed. to include the Heal Lake area. Work He suggested more time was Carol Pickup of Saanich told the on the expansion will begin immedi needed to study both choices "to board, "We have run out of time." ately to meet a deadline of October avoid making a wrong choice." Residents of Saanich are suffer 1992. Salt Spring's Julia Atkins pointed ing, she said, from the smell of At last week's meeting, Mayor out such a study could take up to a methane emanating from the dump David Turner of Victoria attempted year to complete and the CRD does site. Part of the proposal for expan to table an environment committee not have a year to spare. sion includes plans to control the report which recommended expan CRD engineer Mike Williams methane, she noted.