__.~- - ..._ . ..... - -..-.. .. -. .,.. .. .. .. , ... .. .. .. -. , . ... ... // Smart choices Wall to wall And miles to gOmam The northwest is just Another week, another school Marathon runner puts catching on to new, green project bringing colour to a more mileage on his energy technologies wall in your community sneakers than he ever \NEWS A5 \COMMUNITY BI imag i ned\§PORT§ B6 -0 -0 -m ($1.1 0 plus 80 GST outside of the Terrace area) -00 h Austin nets fisheries critic portfolio By SARAH A. ZIMMERMAN “I think it could be a very important portfolio liament is sitting for a longer period than anticipat- MLA Roger Harris. THEAPPOlNTMENTof SkeenaMLA Robin Austin because we &e at that point of decision making in ed. His former office on Park Ave. was also occupied as fisheries critic for the opposition in the provincial B.C.,” Austin said. “We’ve got some fish farms al- Austin’s assignment sits well with-he Canadian by his predecessor Helmut Giesbrecht,’ who was a legislature has local anti-fish farm activists ikeling ready but the science is coming and repofts are com- Union of Public Employees (CUPE) president Barry two-term NDP MLA prior to Harris. with happiness. ing in that these farms are detrimental to the envi- , O’Neill, saying he is pleased to see Austin assigned Austin will instead share an office with Skeena- “1 think it’s fantastic that we are going to have a ronment.” the “high-stakes” portfolio of fisheries. Bulkley Valley NDP MP Nathan Cullen. voice from the riding,” says wild salmon advocate He hopes to see alternatives to ocean fish farms Carole James says the fisheries portfolio is one Cullen’s office is located in the Lazelle mini-mall. Bruce Hill. “I thinkkobin’s a sharp guy - he’s a explored and is interested in looking at the viability, area that the Liberal government has-neglected. Austin says the move will saverbothof the region’s quick study and I think he’ll do a fantastic job.” of inland farms or closed containment fish farms lo- Other areas she hopes to highlight include se- political representatives money. The assignment was announced June 21 as NDP cated on the coast. niors’ care, mental health, housing, Crown Corpora- Austin says the cost-sharing permits him to open leader Carole James released the list of critic roles “We have to figure out a way to make these things tions and BC Femes. two offices in the riding instead of just one. her 33-member caucus. more environmentally sustainable,” he said, adding The BC Femes and Ports critic job was given to “With a little creative sharing he and I can share ~ In a private conversation with Austin, James told he recognizes there are jobs at stake and that must be North Coast MLA Gary Coons. an office here so I will have a full time worker in Ter-’ the local MLA she expects his role to be an impor- kept in mind when examining the issues. Cariboo North MLA Bob Simpson is the new race and half-time in Kitimat,” Austin said. tant one. While the fish farm debate will be a key compo- Forest and Range opposition critic. Cullen’s office will be renovated to create addi- “We had a little chat about it and where she nent of his duties he says that’s not his only focus. The entire NDP caucus was given a critic’s job tional office space. He has yet to decide on a location thought I might start in terms of getting up to speed “It isn’t just around fish farms, but how do we of some sort. in Kitimat. That location will be open two pr three on this and told me she expects it to be quite a big promote healthy fish stocks as well?” he said. Opposition caucus chair will go to Jenny Kwan days a week, while the Terrace office will be open kea of critique,” Austin said last week. “It was a big Austin expects to meet with federal fisheries min- ‘while caucus whip is West Kootenay MLA Katrine five days a week. Austin hopes to see those renova- issue during the election.” ister Geoff Regan in the near future. He had planned Conroy. Mike Farnworth, Vancouver-Mount Pleas- tions complete by July 15. I: Amid rising concerns over the planned develop- to go on a tour of the Broughton Archipelago - a site ant MLA takes on the role of Opposition House Austin is also sifting through resumes of people ment of three open-pen fish farms at the mouth of which has drawn much attention because of the af- Leader. applying to staff constituency offices; The deadline the Skeena River, Austin says he expects the debate fects of fish farms on the ecosystem there - with Re- to apply for those jobs was 1ast‘Friday and Austin around fish farms to be one of his main areas of in- gan and Skeena-Bulkley Valley MP Nathan Cullen. Robin Austin has found..... a spot to call his constitu- said he had more that 25 resumes to consider. He terest. ~ That trip was postponed because the federal Par- ency office home and it’s not the office of former hopes to make a decision soon. ‘ ?& School *budgetf short audit standard By DUSTIN QUEZADA SCHOOL DISTRICT 82’s I. ,By SARAH LA..ZIMMERMAN preliminary budget for the MILLS MEMORIAL Hospital has ranked 2005-06 school year has a acceptable standard for cleanliness ,and improvement .is shortfall of $770,000. needed, says an independent audit scrutinizing the’state of But the Coast Mountains health facilities around the province. district will have a clearer The audit, conducted between March 1 and May 31 of financial picture in the fall this year, examined each of the province’s six health authori- when enrolment and staffing ties by making unannounced visits to various hospitals and numbers are finalized, says other health care facilities in each region. the secretary treasurer. A variety of high-risk areas, such as operating rooms, “Enrolment numbers are patient rooms and washrooms, were inspected and ranked. anticipated to drop by about Toilets, beds and tubs - items with a high chance of coming 7 300 students,” said Marcel in close human contact and therefore posing a greater risk of 11 , Georges. spreading infection - were also scrutinized. I % He said final enrolment The auditor’s report assigns weighted numeric scores numbers allow for adjust- reflectingthe cleanliness of the facilities. A passing grade ’ ments to staffing levels that is 85 percent and means that facility meets the benchmark standard. GO are done between September and December. The district Mills Memorial’s score of 82.88 falls just short of the ac- has to “eat” staffing costs cepted benchmark and was based on a surprise audit of 63 between September and De- different rooms at the local hospital, the report shows. cember, he says because it Terraceview Lodge, however, exceeded that standard and is easier to lay off teachers received a score of 93.21 per cent, based on the evaluation of than to re-hire them. 21 of that facility’s rooms. Georges added most dis- Both facilities in Terrace were audited in early March, tricts submit their budgets says Northern Health spokesperson Sonya Kruger. to the education ministry in She says Mills and other facilities that scored below the February or March. benchmark will be cleaned up. i “It sounds cosmetic,” said “Based on that review we =e going to make any nec- Georges, of the preliminary essary changes to the facilities’ current housekeeping pro- budget, adding the district cess,” says Kruger. “We also recognize it’s a snapshot in time and we’re go- could have gone the route ~ of submitting a balnced bud- ing to move forward from this point.” get, but it would have to be The audits are intended to createca common, province- Q adjusted in the fall anyway. wide system to evaluate cleanliness in health facilities. More This coming school year’s audits will be conducted each year and the scores are intend- budgetary forecast is im- ed to give individual authorities an idea of the state of their proved due to additional hospitals and what problems may need to be addressed. monies coming from Vic- Facilities scoring between 75 and 84.99 per cent mean toria and a cut in expenses improvement is needed, while scores between 65 and 74.99 from last year, he said. mean improvement is necessary. , The biggest savings have Any scores falling below the 65 per cent mark were given come from administrative a failing grade and auditors recommend those facilities “take downsizing and dropping en- action immediately and re-audit.” ergy costs from a retrofitting Only one facility in the Northern Health Authority re- of the heating and lighting ceived a failing grade - that was the L&es District Hospital systems in district schools. and Health Centre in Bums Lake. It scored 62.62 per cent -a Still, Georges emphasized ipprenticeship program orientation June 22. ‘InterestGd students came from all over the area to a’ttend the provincial low - based on an audit of 11 hospital rooms. I the fall remains crucial for wo-day information and assessment session. KAT LEE PHOTO “We’re investigating that result and we are going to con- the budget’s forecast. duct a review to try to understand why that score was re- ‘ Unlike other districts, a ceived,” Kruger says. bigger drop in enrolment ,First Nations .students eye She said she is pleased, however, with the authority’s sec- actually helps the district’s ond-highest ranking in the province.