Stones announce Canadian tour dates /17

WEDNESDAY, JULY 26, 2006

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Asphalt company defends operation
by MARK NIELSEN Citizen staff Pittman Asphalt is already working with the city to address some of the complaints about its operations raised by residents on the north side of the Nechako River, says the company's regional manager. John Brunet said he and city staff met with residents Thursday, and, as a result, agreed to take steps to reduce dust and noise emerging from its gravel extraction operation at Foothills Boulevard and North Nechako Road. When about 60 residents appeared at Monday's city council meeting to express their dismay, most of the focus was on Pittman's asphalt plant on Otway Road on the south side of the river, but complaints were also raised about its work on the north side. Specifically, Brunet said a stop sign will be installed at the exit to its Foothills pit and a notice will be sent to truckers telling them not to use their engine brakes to slow down before entering the site. But before the stop sign can be put up, he said the city must first repave a portion of the road it ripped up to put in the watermain for the new water reservoir part way up Foothills Boulevard. The city's environment services manager, Mark Fercho, confirmed and echoed Brunet's comments, saying the entrance will be paved on Thursday. And contrary to concerns raised by some, Fercho said Pittman is not producing any asphalt at the site on the north side of the river. "They had some asphalt equipment stored there but they weren't actually processing and that's where some people were confused," Fercho said. As for complaints about noise, smell and emissions from the asphalt plant, Brunet largely reiterated comments he made when the issue was first brought up by residents last month -- namely that Pittman had been operating at full capacity to meet the demands for the First Avenue paving project, but has since cut back its rate of production. "We did about two-thirds of our normal season within the first month (June) and that had an impact on the reaction of the people around here just because of the noise level and traffic level," he said. "But right now, you come around here and there's not much happening." -- See PARTICULATE on page 3

Asphalt production has long history on Nechako
by MARK NIELSEN Citizen staff Like 'em or hate 'em, those asphalt plants along the Otway bench can lay some claim to saying they've been allowed there long before homeowners began populating the other side of the Nechako River. It all dates back to the 1950s, when Rolling Mix Concrete Ltd. set up on Otway Road at what is now Foothills Boulevard, and has always had some form of zoning that allows both gravel extraction and asphalt production. But the move that has created the most trouble occurred in 1967, when the municipal affairs ministry approved a switch to residential from rural on the north side -- just one month after allowing Columbia Bitulithic to start operations on Otway Road. "Right across the bench from Columbia Bitulithic there were probably only six homes in '67, but the rezoning of that allowed it to become higher-density residential," city planning manager Dan Milburn said Tuesday. -- See SITE on page 3
Citizen photo by Brent Braaten

FROM THE SOCCER FIELD TO THE CORN FIELD -- MacKenzie Bouchard-Hooker, 12, left, and Alexandria Childs, 12, pull weeds Tuesday morning at Dillman's Corn Maze. The two girls are players with the Under-12 all-star soccer team. The weeding work was part of a fundraising effort for the team to attend the B.C. Summer Games.

New tribal council chief takes helm
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INDEX
Annie's Mailbox . . . . . . . . . 27 Bridge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20 Business . . . . . . . . . . . .22-24 City, B.C. . . . . . . . . . . 3,5,6,13 Classifi ed . . . . . . . . . . . 19-21 Comics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Crossword . . . . . . . . . . . . .18 Entertainment . . . . . . . . . . 17 Horoscope . . . . . . . . . . . . .20 Nation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6,7 Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-12 World . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14,16

by FRANK PEEBLES Citizen staff David Luggi is introducing himself to the Carrier Sekani Tribal Council's annual assembly only three days after winning the position of tribal chief. The assembly started Monday and ends today in Binche, on the Tl'azt'en Nation near Fort St. James. It is the largest annual gathering of the seven member nations that make up the council. Luggi's three years starts today when he is sworn in. "I think that a lot of people expect a new direction and I put my bid in for the position with that in mind," said Luggi, who is a former chief from the Stellat'en First Nation near Fraser Lake. "One of my goals is to generate more interest and more participation

from the average person in the community. By reaching out, CSTC can garner more support to help us reach our goals and objectives." That outreach, in Luggi's mind, includes a concerted effort to improve communication within the organization, and among grassroots members (about 5,000 across central B.C.). He also wants the general community and stakeholders to be better aware of what the tribal council stands for and is active in. Luggi also opposes the suggestion made during the election campaign that the coalition should adopt a show of hands voting system rather than the secret ballot system. "If we were to take voting privileges away, if you take that tool away, your support will diminish," said Luggi. "Leadership selection would be rel-

egated to maybe 200 people at a meeting as opposed to the 950 or so that cast ballots at nine polling stations across this very large territory." He added that the travel and meeting attendance issues were not the most ominous reasons to oppose the show of hands system. "There could be other influences that determine the outcome, when you do just a show of hands," he added, meaning peer pressure and bullying could skew elections if shows of hands were the norm. The main thrust of his mandate, he believes, is to advance the cause of land claims and self governance for the member nations. "Right now, federal and provincial negotiation policy does not fit with our objectives," Luggi said, scolding them for picking and choosing First

Nations they want to negotiate with first, followed by the rest in a pecking order. "We as CSTC would like to get back to the table, accelerate negotiations. I will have to sit with all the chiefs and councils in the CSTC community to develop a strategy to put pressure on the governments again to advance our agenda," he said. "I think thirdparty interest, other stakeholders, investors internationally, would like to see some certainty. Most importantly, our members would like to see a lasting certainty." He thinks his three-year term is ample time to exert influence on the negotiation process even though it has been a business each First Nation has had to measure in decades with few treaties to show for it up to now. fpeebles@princegeorgecitizen.com

Tumbler Ridge forest fire grows quickly
by STEPHANIE MORGAN Citizen staff A forest fire near Tumbler Ridge doubled in size between Monday and Tuesday because of strong winds in the area. The fire is about 75 kilometres southeast of the community, and crews have been deployed to deal with the fire, now covering 400 hectares. A travel restriction is in place for the area, near Whatley Creek, to allow for crews and equipment to attend the fire more easily and to protect public safety. "The concern (is), although temperatures are cooling, winds in the area are predicted to be quite strong," said fire information officer Barbara Durau. The cause of the fire is under investigation. Crews are also deployed to a fire 65 kilometres southwest of Vanderhoof, with 27 people and 10 pieces of equipment attending. The fire covers about 25 hectares, and the cause is also under investigation. Bans on backyard burning and industrial pile burning are still in effect. Campfires are still permitted, however. The fire danger rating is currently at moderate to high across the Prince George Fire Centre region. If a wildfire is spotted, report it to 1-800-6635555 or *5555 on most cellular networks.

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