Fears expressed continued from page 1 years old and out of school? What services will) be needed then? These children should be able to move out on their own at an appropriate age, but there will be problems if some of them are unable to cope in the independent living program. For those who fail there should be some sort of backup, and a group home is not a bad idea."’ Kennedy speculated . that the decline in membership of the local BCMHA could be be- cause parents are at- - tracted to other existing programs, and she said that the organization would be improved by more parental participa- tion to help identify the needs of the community. She stated that the pre- sent board is composed almost entirely of profes- sionals who are involved in other programs, a situation which she sees as a type of conflict in that it divides commit- ment. There are only 22 active members in the local chapter, and it no longer receives any ~government funding. Kennedy asserted that the lack of funding is an advantage of a sort, in that the organization can act independently. It still receives income from in- terest on property and lease payment for the Three Rivers building. Citing a recent exam- ple of a mentally han- dicapped adult who had to go through the trauma of a court proceeding, Kennedy concluded, ‘These people don’t have the right to vote or any political clout. They need advocates, unpaid friends, people to lobby for them, This commun- ity needs more people who care,’’ Anyone interested in further information about the BCMHA can contact Margaret Ken- nedy at 635-5868, after August 18. 2 Terrace Review — Wednesday, August 6, 1986 The Shames Mountain skiing deve Sy Be: lopment crossed another barrler recently with the com: pletion of the third and final bridge on the access road into the site. Work was done by Don Mckilligan, a professional bridge bullder from the Nass Valley. The bare log stringers were covered with decking of 8x8 and 4x12 timbers cut by a local sawmill, Cote Lumber. Bridge work — sumkalum mountain equipment. The regional -district board meets next on August 16,. and it is expected that Kitsum- kalum will be on the agenda at that meeting. The topic of the rela- tionship between the Shames Mountain de- continued from page 1 velopment and the disposal of the assets from Kitsumkalum Mountain came up at a recent Committee of the Whole meeting of Ter- race council. Council had been approached by the Shames Mountain corporation for support, Verbal agreement recognized TERRACE — The most recent development in the disagreement be- tween two local unions and a Dawson Creek non-union contractor will restrict the labor organizations’ ability to bargain for wages. In a recent decision on Hegge Construction’s appeal of union certifica- tion for the Terrace RCMP building site, the Labor Relations Board (LRB) ruled that both the Tunnel and Rock Workers and the United Brotherhood of Carpen- ters and Joiners are bound by the wage rates established when the project began. The rates are $10 per hour for laborers and $15 per hour for carpenters, levels substantially below union scale. In the appeal Hegge was disputing both the certification of the site and the right of the unions to negotiate for higher wages. Although the certification was upheld by the LRB, Hegge’s contention that an oral agreement at the beginning of the project concerning wages should be binding on the unions was also upheld. Paul Johnston of the local building trades council indicated in a re- cent interview that the decision will be appeal- ed, but he stated that he could not speculate on the specific basis of the appeal because the unions have not received the written decision of the LRB. ‘‘This will have the effect of prolonging the dispute,’’? Johnston said. Hegge has not con- tacted either union since the decision, Johnston said, and added, “It doesn’t really make sense to talk to him until we’ve had a chance to analyze the ruling, ’’ The strike at the site of the new Terrace RCMP building is now entering © its third month. and Ald. George Clark stated, ‘‘This situation is causing a lot of confu- sion right now. We should be supportive of this project to keep ski- ing in the Terrace area.”’ The Shames Mountain corporation expressed interest in acquiring equipment from the local ski hill after a referen- dum in June caused the regional district to withdraw from the operation. The regional district board is presently awaiting a report from administration which will outline available op- tions for selling off the lifts and other materials. Although the possibility of continued operation through a lease arrange- ment has been discussed, a representative of the regional district recently indicated that leasing the operation is not a workable possibility. The remaining options include selling the equip- ment piece-by-piece or selling it as a complete package through a tendering process. In responding to Ald. Clark’s suggestion, Ald. Robert Cooper stated that it would be inap- propriate for council to take a position, with regard to a private operation in view of the fact that another operator may be found for Kitsumkalum, and he added, “If it won’t suc- ceed without our sup- port, it shouldn't be there.’’ Mayor Jack Talstra pointed out that there was not enough hard in- formation to act on, and he suggested that council await the results of the regional district report before taking any action. There were no recom- mendations made, ( Gift Beverly Evans (left) awards Pam Straker with a gift on behalf of Peter Martin, director of Library Services. The presentation was made in recognition of Straker'’s extensive efforts on the Ter- race Library board, Ellzabeth Evans photo Skeena River | - Management proposal gets cool reception — TERRACE — An organized group of recreational fishermen from the northwest recently released the latest in a_ series of evolving proposals for managing the fish resource in the Skeena River. The Skeena Watershed Fishermen’s « Coalition came into being last year as a grassroots uprising to combat the possibility of an Indian-controlled commercial fishery on inland areas of the Skeena, by Michael Kelly The proposal, which was endorsed in principle by Terrace council in Ju- ly, is directed toward a management scheme which would attempt to conserve threatened populations of steelhead and some salmon species native to the river. Under the terms of the coali- tion’s position paper, a 16-member board would determine catch limits and fishing techniques on an annual basis. for everyone using the river, including the commercial fishermen who work the Skeena estuary. The board would have equal representation from recreational, native and commercial fishers, and delegates from the Department of Fisheries and Oceans and B.C. Fish and Wildlife. The position paper states unequivocally that the federal fisheries act must remain as the ultimate authority in fish manage ment on all parts of the Skeena. Although the proposal has a reasoned tone and desirable objectives, none of the groups whose participation would be required to establish the scheme ap- pear to be particularly Sports enthusiastic about becoming involved. The coalition’s assertion that the tidal fishery must become species-selective within five years is seen by commercial fishermen as threat to their livelihood because it would virtually eliminate the use of gillnetters and seiners at the mouth of the river. Despite the long-term benefits of conservation some terms of the proposal are unac- ceptable in an industry already in serious finan- cial straits; additionally, the existing Skeena River management advisory board is weighted heavily in favor of commercial fishing interests. The Gitksan-Wet’su- wet’an Tribal Council, whose reserve lands oc- cupy portions of the Skeena and its tributaries from Kitwanga to Houston, has also re- jected the idea of par- ticipating in the propos- ed management board. Don Ryan, legal advisor for the council, said in a recent interview, ‘We have more power under the Indian Act; we’re go- ing to be more successful with our own manage- ment authority. I think retaining the Department of Fisheries and Oceans is a dead loss. We've - seen the demise of their authority, and now they appear to be almost en- tirely dominated by the commercial fishing in- dustry. They don’t seem to be seriously interested in management, and I think: it’s naive of the sports fishermen to think that they are.’’ A series of bylaws — which would have allow- ed member bands of the Gitksan-Wet’suwet’an Tribal Council to con- duct an inland commer- cial fishery on their . continued on page 3 This week’s feature: A guide to Terrace’s night life — the “who where and when” for entertainment. at George's Pub Floyd Tolmen Country Western Singer Saturday Jam 4to 7 p.m. Bring an instrument!