REAL ISSUE AT BRITANNIA:

Should Sukunka coal be exporte

By MAURICE RUSH

A controversy is raging as to
whether the provincial govern-
ment should go ahead with the
building of a coal bulk loading
terminal at Britannia Beach to
handle shipments from the
Sukunka coal deposits near Chet-
wynd.

A preliminary environmental
study by Howard Paish and Asso-
ciates last week said that ‘‘on
purely technical grounds with
respect to ecologicaleffects and
angling, no serious arguments
can be advanced against the
Britannia site.”

Premier Dave Barrett
announced, following release of
the study, that a public hearing
will be held soon. The govern-
ment has *‘made no absolute
decision’’ about Britannia. he
said. Buta statement by Barrett
that ‘it looks good from the
strictly environmental point of
view,’’ and other remarks, has
left the public with the strong
impression that the govern-
ment favors the Britannia site.

This fear was added to Monday
in the Legislature when
Premier Barrett appeared to be
defending the Britannia site
when he said the government
‘*have absolutely no intention
of further industrial expansion
for Howe Sound if we go in at’
Britannia.”

In the first place. it must be
said that the government is not
being honest when it says it can
expand coal shipping through
Howe Sound and then limit it. If

you: look across at the North
Shore and see how bulk loading
facilities have expanded youcan
see that once it starts you can't
stop it. Once the facility is built
for coal there will be pressure to
use it for shipping other
resources.

The public should oppose build-
ing the bulk loading facility in
Howe Sound. Situated right next
door to the Lower Mainland
with its rapidly growing popula-
tion. and with recreational
areas being rapidly destroyed.
Howe Sound should be preserved
as part of the recreational
facilities for the people of the
Lower Mainland.

The debate as to whether or
not the bulk loading facilities
should be built at Britannia con-
ceals a much larger and more
vital issue for the people of B.C.
That issue is: should the Sukunka
coal from the fabulously rich
seams near Chetwynd be
exported at all or should the coal

. be processed in B.C. andused for

a steel and petro-chemical in-
dustry?

According to reports the
Sukunka seams hold a high grade
coking coal excellent for steel
manufacturing. Not only that.
The coal can be mined very
cheaply because it hes close to
the surface. Should we allow our
best quality coal. which can
be-most cheaply mined. to be
exported on the excuse that we
have lots of coal— and in later
years be faced with having to
mine more expensive and less

New ways to

world peace

Cont. from pg. 3

and they must make their voices
heardinthestrugglefor peace. —
she said.

Jean Vautour was addressing
the conference as part of across
Canada speaking tour organi-
zing new peace groups through-
out the country and publicizing
the historic World Peace Con-
gress to beheldin Moscow inOc-
tober of this year.

She noted that four delegates
will be going to the congress
from Canada — a credit to the
role Canada played in bringing
about a ceasefire. Only one
delegate has gone in the past. ¢

On Canada’s role in the cease-
fire, she said that ‘even though
the resolution in the House of
Commons during the Christmas
bombing did not go as far as we
would have liked. it was the first
time since the last war that Can-
ada has adopted a resolution
criticizing the foreign policy of
the U.S.”

--The ceasefire was not a vic-
tory for the U.S. in any way.
shape or form, she declared. in
answer to some ultra-left ele-

‘Canadian unions’

Cont'd from pg. 11

Q. Can you give one example
of an international union volun-
tarily granting its Canadians
members full autonomy up to
and including the right to merge
with other unions in Canada?

A. Yes, the International Long-
shoremen’s and Warehouse-
men’s Union.

PACIFIC TRIBUNE—FRIDAY, MARCH 2,

ments in the peace movement
who have condemned it as such.

“Itisa defeat forthe U.S. armed .

forces: it signals victory for the
Vietnamese people and victory
for the peace forces of the world.

--Now we must ensure that Can-
ada keeps her peacekeeping
role and that it be an honorable
one.” she said.

A special resolution pre-
viously sent to Mitchell Sharpe
by the Canadian Peace Con-
gress and subsequently adopted
by the conference. condemned
the recent action of the Israeli
government in shooting down
an unarmed Lybian aircraft
and killing 106 passengers.

Delegates called for imple-
mentation of the 1967 U.N.
special resolution on the Middle
East and the withdrawalof all
Israeli forces from neighboring
countries.

Other resolutions adopted at
the conference called for anend
to the bombing bv US forces of
Laos and the completion and
implementation of a complete
peace agreement in Indochina.
for the release of all political pri-
soners in South Vietnam. for
recognition of the G.D.R. and
for non-renewal of the Norad
agreement as well as Canadian
withdrawal from NATO.

A new provincial committee
was elected from the confer-
ence at once expanding and
strengthening the work of the
B.C. Peace Council. Delegates
from Vancouver Island. Okana-
gan.and Fraser Valley took part
in the conference.
1973—PAGE 12

accessible coal when and if we
get around to building a steel or
petro-chemical industry in
Bree

The deal toexport the Sukunka
coal was made by Socred
Premier Bennett and was
suddenly announced on the eve of
the last provincial election. It
was one of the many resource
giveaways carried through by
the Socreds. There is no reason
why B.C. should now, under an
NDP government, blindly carry
out the Socred sellouts. :

All the details of Bennett's
deal with the financial
conglomerate who want to
exploit the Sukunka coal fields
have not been made public. It
would be good if they were.
Involved are some of the most
powerful financial interests in
the capitalist world.

Brascan, which is one of the
major companies involved, is
listed among the 100 top corpora-
tions operating in Canada,
holding ninth position in total |
assets. It used to be Brazilian
Light and Power, and controls
many subsidiaries in Latin
America from where it also
extracts raw materials. It also
holds 32 percent control of John
Labatt brewery and has sub-
stantial interests in the Hudsons
Bay Company.

Brascan joined with other
U.S., British and West German
financial interests in forming
an international conglomerate
to exploit the Sukunka coal
fields.

Let’s have more light on this
deal, Premier Barrett. Let’snot
destroy Howe Sound for the
recreational needs of the
people. Let’s also stop the give-
away of our resources and use
them instead to create job-
producing industries in B.C.

he 9 a.m. ferry at TSW as:
: ee eS 2 bu

Pickets at Hastings and Nanaimo Shopper's Drug Mart.

Shoppers Drugs unfa

.Some 120employeesfromnine
Shopper's Drug Mart stores in
Vancouver, Coquitlam and New
Westminster went out on strike
Friday seeking wage increases,
sie benefits and job secur-
ity

Present wages for cashiers in
the drugstores are about half
the wages paid to a super-
market cashier and pharma-
cists receive far less than most
tradesmen despite the training
and education necessary for the
position.

The employer has, as yet
offered nothing and in fact has
done everything possible to try
to thwart union organization.

In early 1971, the Retail
Clerk’s who represent the drug-
store workers, applied for certi-
fication for all the stores when
they were still part of the
Cunningham chain. The Labor
Relations Board stalled on the
certification and in the ensuing
period, Shopper’s Drug Mart —
owned by Kofflers, a huge drug

Sean Griffi

concern in eastern canada
took over Cunningham's. Ed
Shopper’s _ proceé ded 3 frat
operate the stores on 4 n stot
chise basis, making each 7
an individual bargainine.
In subsequent court ca 4 |
union lost the right to cert x
the stores and had to begilt
izing on a store-by-store pasis: tite
At the labor council me pri
Retail Clerk’s delegate
Dent pointed out that the
chise operation was mer cast
paper transaction in many

and was only used to bloé ck
union. :
ig i
“What they’re doi 1

probably legal,”’ Retail cle “ib
secretary, Rudy Kricka® pe

‘but it is done only to: frus
our efforts to organize.’

js

He added that the unioty

projecting the idea th ji)

Shopper’s Drug Marts are ‘atl

and asked for full suppot!” ae)

union’s attempts to win an
ment.

Land Act hits promoters |

Cont'd from pg. 1 :
contrast to the growing sociali-
zation of the production process.
It is the drive for private accumu-
lation ‘private profit. regard-
less of the costs to society)
which distorts proper and much-
needed economic and com-
munity planning.

The proposed legislation will
create a five-man Land Com-
mission for the province, which
will designate the farmland to
be frozen. Lands placed under
the freeze will not be able to be
rezoned for purposes other than
agriculture, nor will owners be

able to put up buildings on it
other

than for agricultural
purposes.
Minister of Agriculture

Stupich States that the legisla-
tion does not cancel out any
rights. but merely consolidates
existing zoning powers. "We've
had the right to zone for a long
time and. we have. indeed.
zoned.” he said. “The Com-
mission will not acquire farm

_land until the farmer may want

to sell. If he can’t finda farm
to buy it, the Commission wi D
The Provincial govern™: io
moving to restrict subdivi§ io
and preserve farmlandS jy
agriculture and providé | aj
needed green-belt and pa i
extensions. Despite thé jer
clamor and threats of vio jaf?
eminating from ~ the ve
developers and monied inté rie
the NDP government des wert
the support labor and
cratic forces. F
y
It is well-known that 4 el
number of municipalitie® ait
some regional district ay
already allowed excessive trv
trial and residential cons ie
tion on our limited and irreP ot)
able agricultural lands. © ff)
short trip to Tsawwasse® e
Vancouver. to Chilliwate ee
through the Okanagan |
provides living proof
imperative need for the a
ment to step in, and: 4
deterred by a noisy
impotent.opposition