S TANDARD TERRACE
1.30
$
$1.24 PLUS 6¢ GST
VOL. 26 NO. 41
www.terracestandard.com
Wednesday, January 22, 2014
MLA calls for safer highways SKEENA NDP MLA Robin Austin is joining his northwestern counterparts in wanting the provincial government to increase Hwy16 winter maintenance standards. Austin says requiring crews to clear roads more often and having them respond earlier to weather events will improve road conditions and reduce the chances of accidents. Hwy16 through municipal areas is considered a Class A highway but outside of built up areas its designation falls to Class B, meaning more snow is allowed to accumu-
late before clearing begins. Accidents in the early part of January along Hwy 16 in northern BC took eight lives. “With the increase in traffic from the [port] at Prince Rupert and more industrial activity generally, there is more commercial traffic on the road joining other traffic,” says Austin. “The volume has increased. “And if there is going to be LNG up here, if that ever does happen, there is going to be even more traffic and the province needs to recognize that and increase the
[winter maintenance] standards,” he said. “There are already impacts being felt ahead of final investment decisions in housing and social services and the province needs to act now.” Austin specifically says the approximately 60 kilometre stretch of Hwy16 heading west of Terrace toward Prince Rupert should be a prime candidate for increasing standards because it goes through several snowbelts and avalancheprone areas. He's also focussed on summer work, saying maintenance
measures could prepare road surfaces for winter driving eliminating the deep grooves made in road surfaces by large commercial and industrial vehicles. Those grooves, when filled with water during the winter months, make for dangerous driving conditions for smaller vehicles, Austin added. Austin is being joined by Doug Donaldson, the NDP MLA for Stikine, and Jennifer Rice, the NDP MLA for North Coast in the call for higher standards for Hwy16. The Kitimat-Stikine regional district last fall was successful in
getting a road maintenance resolution accepted by the Union of BC Municipalities, calling upon the transportation ministry to “revise the provincial standards for road maintenance for future road maintenance contracts to meet public safety needs.” Several years ago a petition campaign organized by Joanne Monaghan, then a Kitimat councillor and now Kitimat mayor, was successful in getting the maintenance standard raised on Hwy37 South between Terrace and Kitimat to Category A from Category B.
Poacher avoids long overdue fine By ANNA KILLEN
Anna Killen PHOTO
■■ Nesting Artists Sylvia Hart and Claude Rioux take a break from setting up Red Raven Gallery’s new location on Lazelle Ave., which opened officially this week. Rioux, a stained glass artist, is one of the gallery’s founding artists and says he’s looking forward to settling into their new space for the long term. The gallery had been housed in a temporary location beside Mr. Mikes for the last few months after leaving their long-held Skeena Mall location.
ONE of the individuals named in the provincial government's attempt to shame people and businesses into paying overdue courtordered environmental fines was convicted of illegal trophy hunting here in Terrace nearly a decade ago. Norbert (Bob) Saulnier was ordered to pay $20,000 in fines – with $19,000 of that going to the Habitat Conservation Trust Fund – after pleading guilty in provincial court to 22 counts including guiding for game without a licence, allowing a licence to be used by another person, and possessing an animal/plant for unlawful transport/export. His name appears in Closing the Gap, a Dec. 2013 report released by the provincial environment ministry containing the names of individuals and businesses who have long overdue fines. Saulnier had been accused of illegally guiding three American hunters for big game all over the northwest, and aside from the $20,000 fine, he was also sentenced to six months in jail – the maximum term allowable under the BC Wildlife Act – and handed a 10-year-ban on hunting. Saulnier, who was 61 at the time, failed to appear at his August 2004 sentencing hearing – he had
moved to New Brunswick and told his defence counsel he was taking care of his ill father. His stated reason for not appearing was that he could not afford it. The provincial environmental crown prosecutor for the case, Ron Beram, told The Terrace Standard afterwards that the sentence deters people thinking of illegally guiding hunters in B.C., according to a news story from Sept. 1, 2004. “It sends a clear message that [illegal guiding] will not be tolerated and when [it happens], it's dealt with severely,” he said. But nearly a decade later, Saulnier's $20,000 fine still has not been paid, which is why his name is in the ministry of environment report. The statute of limitations on environmental court fees is 10 years. According to conservation officials, a warrant was issued for his arrest, but Saulnier fled and did not serve his six-month sentence. His whereabouts are unknown The ministry of environment report, current to Nov. 25, 2013 and released late last year, lists 155 individuals and businesses who owe a combined total of nearly $1.5 million in outstanding fines. The ministry has stated a goal of collecting 95 per cent of these overdue fines but does acknowledge some may not be collectable.
Unplugged
Survey underway
Confident Kings
Veritas Catholic School students are taking a break from electronics \COMMUNITY A14
Terrace Chamber wants to know how businesses feel about Enbridge \NEWS A5
Terrace River Kings are looking sharp heading into CIHL playoffs \SPORTS A22