News Leader News for February 6, 2007
COAL PLANT GENERATES MORE DISCUSSION
Mayor Randy McLean probably said it best in his opening remarks at the public forum last Saturday night concerning the coal-fired generation plant when he observed, "This is wonderful. This is a room full of people concerned about their community."
McLean went on to compliment guest speaker Opposition Leader Carole James. "In my mind," he started, "The definition of a leader is someone who recognizes a wrong and tries to make it right."
Yale-Lillooet MLA Harry Lali echoed McLean's comments on the attendance, which saw over 200 people packed into the gym at Riverside Centre.
"It just shows the kind of commitment this community and valley has towards the environment and what it means to them."
Lali added more praise with, "Meetings such as this are a testament to the spirit of the people who live in the Similkameen."
The MLA went on to emphasis the importance he and his fellow MLA's have placed on fighting the Gordon Campbell government on the decision to move forward with coal-fired power generation in the province.
Lali said he wanted the Opposition Leader to come to Princeton and hear concerns from Similkameen Valley residents first-hand.
"Little by little we are destroying our planet."
In her opening remarks, James thanks the SOS (Save Our Similkameen) and Friends of the Similkameen groups for all their "incredible hard work" and Lali for his focus on the issue saying, "He certainly has stood strong for your community."
James talked about the future of Princeton, the Similkameen Valley and British Columbia and kept it short with the reminder "we are going to work together to defeat Gordon Campbell's plan to build a coal-fired plant here in Princeton."
James went on to state that in a recent survey 74% of British Columbians said
'no' to coal-fired plants. She talked about harmful chemicals that would be "pumped into your air and water. Your community will be subjected to mercury poisoning."
She pointed out that the Princeton and Tumbler Ridge coal-fired plants would produce the same amount of pollution annually as 300,000 cars.
"A coal-fired plant is wrong for Princeton. It's wrong for the Similkameen Valley. It's wrong for the whole of British Columbia. Today we are fighting something that shouldn't even be on the table."
Dr. John Bosomworth spoke on health concerns related to a coal-fired power plant. He started by outlining a small snapshot on small communities stating they tend to have specific health and population characteristics.
He then went on to review air pollution problems, which included particulates (small particles that enter the lungs through the air), ground level ozone ("the stuff down here irritates our lungs"), and sulfur dioxides (which create acid rain).
Bosomworth addressed a second concern, which he referred to as global problems which included temperature-related illnesses, extreme weather events, problems with infectious diseases and food and water bourne disease development.
Concerns from the Lower Similkameen Valley revolved around organic farming. Public perception from outside the valley is viewed as having a strong impact on the sales of produce grown in the valley and the effects of emission accumulation in soil and water would likely have an effect on the production of the produce.
Lali then opened the floor for comments from others.
MUSEUM PLANS 2007 HISTORY SHOW
Princeton's museum will open on Easter Saturday with new displays. Each year, some displays are retired and others take their place. This year, the front entry will display photos of people and places which are unidentified. The public will be asked to identify any of the people or places in the photos.The Copper Mountain and Dave Taylor displays will be completed and remain for the year. There is a possibility of a special forestry history display, but arrangements have to be made for that display.
Members of the Museum Society met on February 1 and approved the 2007 budget. The budget anticipates a year much like last year. Members are hopeful of receiving student employment grants this year. These grants provide student assistance for showing tourists the displays, and to assist the operations manager in dealing with archives inquiries.
An archives inquiry arrived from Wales asking about a Welsh coal miner who worked in Princeton. Other inquiries come from far and wide all year. Everyone who is not a member of the Museum Society must pay a fee for the archives service. Local people have the advantage of being able to purchase a Museum Society membership when the museum is open, or by contacting Nick Mills at 295-7588. Membership dues are tax deductible. The next meeting of the Museum Society will take place on Tuesday, March 13 at 2:30 PM at the Chamber of Commerce meeting room. Memberships may be purchased at that time.
More photos and information on Blakeburn were sent by a former Blakeburn resident. Contributions to the archives continue to arrive on a steady basis. The Blakeburn photos were very good, accompanied by information explaining the subject of the photos. Anyone considering donating old family photos should provide the archivist with information describing the content of the photos, if possible.
