The Goderich Signal-Star, 1974-02-28, Page 2FADE 2 .0QDERICH SIGNAL -STAR, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY +8, 1674
Keep an open mind.
.. -It 'was about one year ago now that'
the ,Signal -Star headline read: A
nuclear 'power' station near? Readers
Will 'remember the question 'followed t,
comments by Paul Carroll; at'that time.a
candidate in the, provincial by-election.
Readers will also recall that Carroll was
put down at that time as_a foolish young
man .who had jurr5ped to conclusions in
order to get votes.
Well, this year's Signal -Star headlines
Ar0,11 ,,, asking a question. They are
telling the world that finally, after ram-
pant rumors, Ontario Hydro spokesmen
have finally conceded tht. a nuclear
development is planned "for the
•
Goderich area. p '
How do people feel _about this rather
hesitant announcement? •
Goderich citizens have the advantage
4of looking to the no'rth'at Douglas Point
and assessing a similar situation. If they.,,
are honest they will admit mixed
feelings.' . 4uoh a sizeable development
has a bearing „on a .community. ..Some
folks will like it _aome will not. •
To be sure,; there 'are many, many
aspects to be considflred about this "an`-
nouncement". As Huron MPP has poin-
ted out, if the county wants industrial
° development a nuclear plant is a sure
way to attract it. But what about far-
• inland? What about ertvironrnental con-
cerns? .What about this ineVitable'new
way of "living?
It is too early for, this newspaper to
speculate on the impact this develop-
' meat could hake ontGoder.ich, on Huron.
J
But one thing is•Eertain. The question
of nuclear development is bound to raise
'issues which are neW''nd Puzzling to.
•
... • the people .of agriculture -oriented Huron
County. _ It behooves every 'citizen to
keep abreast of the °situation with an
open n'ii•nd and an eye to the future: -
Bon voyage? Not yet
The 28 GDCI students who are .going
to •England in March to present their
dramatic talents before British audien-
`ces are having,_ ea .problem to find the
• necessary motley for the trip.
Determined though they may be to put
the show on the' -road despite the set-
backs, the group was totally unprepared
for the price increasesthey have been,
encountering on . every sicte. Air fares ,
have,gone .up in .price since the .group
initallycommitted•itself>to the excursion.
What's more,, prices in: general to
tourists are on .thea rise and now it ap-
pears ; it w 1 o t aTota"`'&0—ex ria-f"o.i�"""'
each student to make the trip:
Perhaps the community should be
aware of the tremendous Honor which
has been accorded these local
youngsters: They -have .been asked to
appear abroad. They are presenting
original ' Canadian material and will
become the first studentgroup to
represent Canada in just this way in
Britain. What an experience for them!
What an opportunity for the. community
to support youth in,a worthwile venture!
The students are working to help
themselves., They are selling tickets on
a holiday in Bahamas. They are Spon- ,
soring a dance in Saltford Valley Hall
this Saturday evening, March 2, to which
young and old are cordially invited for a
modest $8 per couple.). •
But needless to say, without com-.
muntt'support their.efforts will go bust.
They need the oor`nmunity to reach their .
8 •
goal.
Disa • -ointments have dampened their
PP
enthusiasm but they are committed.
Their application`for,. federal and `provin-
'c1'a1 -g vernT-rrent- grams- rave" -'-b
denied but they have accepted the
challenge to raise their'own-funds; And
; there isn't, much time left, before March
16. P
I-t'l1.TO lit
.fv\tD
AccoRtgNa, `1"Q .
AT' 5,r RE P 1 \
-7144f9IR5TO.WA•VE'S ARE
NEIQi/0 BACK TO THE/ .
(RQgIiDS /IV THE
$RI'r'1, 1 t✓FSr /NOES' TO r /Atro
• .f-
•
A.ccordi.ng« to. the...little_. blue
dictionary which sits on 'my
desk and "some days feel's at
tach
ed to my hand, the.
definition of .communication is
as follows: imparting or ex-
change of information;, connec-
ron e ween p aces. r,
the: ..people', of Huron . County: tap to
have a right to" expect much boost
more Sophisticated behaviour ,little.
from the public employees bre; 'As for Huron County
Council members, they were in
the enviable position of hearing
both sides of a very hot, issue on
-' prrwer •tine ''cnrrid'tsrs---withuta l s
present their case and to
communications just a
_these two boards. .
* * *
-�`~rfi°rrrt
Anyone wh'o• is a part •of a 'perhaps a• three -pronged
business cirganization tgdaynot A problem. involving the County
only knows the value of com- of Huron, some. of the
munication, but knows how dif- ratepayers of the county, and
• ficult it can be, from time to Ontario..Hydro.
Surely the people of Goderich can ' time. to keep the lines of com- -
Ha.. lack of - com-
rally together an ether time to assist :r unication.open. Humans that,, munication has not caused •an'y
ere.,
these game youngsters to achieve their"'- we are, we forget or neglect or, major incident to 'date, but
bypass that all-important comtliere:iscertainly cause for con-
munication link, and -before we cern in the fact that these three
know what.has'happened, there factions seem to be pulling in
is "a major upheaval caused by opposite directions; mostly out
that one miscalculation.of lack of understanding,. a
Manu"
objective. Surely this community can
muster enough pride to put money in the
jeans of 28 teenagers who want to take'
the community to the world.
Bon voyage?. You bet!'
The on1yan:wer
Restructuring. The, words, roll off the
tongue with some degree of dignity. It
also must 'rollaround in the heads of
municipal ,and county councillors who- D
are worth their salt" '
Restructuring. Restructuring ,local
government.. An awesome task,
gigantic task. A necessary task if' local
autonomy is to survive.
Restructuring. Not an easy thing to
achieve but something which' cannot be
ignored much .longer. The deadline- is
getting too close. The signs are too ob-
vious. -°
Goderich Town Council got' another
admonition from Queen's Park to take ab
serious look at restructuring:�'Not a half-
hearted glance,to appease the Ministry
of Treasury Economics and Intergovern-
mental Affairs, but a 'hard', penetrating
Gook •at the system .'of government that
. has been accepted for eb''' r .
Oddly enough, a little -upset in ,the
village of Grand Bend sent the council
of that municipality scurrying for
,� changes.' Even more oddly, Goderich
somewhat reluctantly supported Grand
Bend in its bid for "restructuring" only to
discover The Municipal Act was a step
,ahead. g
' Just 'to review, Grand Bend felt
municipality should have the right to ap-
• point an alternative to county. council
when the reeve was unable through
times noo'r .com. result. -of communications
•
munication is at the .bottom •pf breakdown.
- dissention, disharmony "and • : '
disappointment. .- " ' Ab last week's county: council
In the past few weeks, three session, Hydro officials were
vital c•omrnunicatioin Jinks have present to attempt to heal the
broken down..•and three communication breach'. At the
problems have developed:which same meeting, some county
..� should 'not ' have had 'com-"ratepayers 'represented by the
illness or injaury•tb attend. According to munications beeri_adequate. Bruce -Huron • Hydro'
a letter :.receive y
d 'b Goderich Town The first of these appeared Negotiating Committee were on
Council at last weeks meeting, there is locally when Goderich Minor
provision • under Section 209 of The Hockey Association and the
Goderich Community Centre
Municipal Act for any municipal council .and Recreation' 13oard
to„appoint from among its members a managed to .lose touch 'with
replacer9ent for a head of council in the each other...and ended .up in
event of his temporary absence.
the 'council chambers'with the
But that section excludes Godet•ct‘ - . mayor and his associates as
•mediators.
.or any town where the head of council is Unfortunate public attention
the mayor who does not' attend, -County was focused squarrxly 'on two
council -sessions. The Act says nothing dedicated groups within the
about absent reeves, only heads of town. Few people will argue
council.that either the members of
.., •
' ,.GMHA or the Rec. I3'oard are
And then comes the cruncher. insincere about their work. In
"The County Council might consider :--fact, it is often sincerity which
the offer that the Treasurer 'of,Ontario, ,breeds troubles -unless the lines
the Honorable John White, made 'at a' of communication are open and
meeting of the Association of Counties al've:
At the end of the skirmish, it
and Regions of Ontario in Hamilton last•; was. evident the whole problem
fall. At: that time he said that provincial could be ironed out with just as
asSlsta e -would be made' - available to little more communication by
counties wishing to undertake studies both groups. Wisely the two,
toward restructuring. An important part organizatiots agreed to bury
thein differences amd,. begin
of any such study . Would be ` an fresh..;looking to 'a new year
examination • of representation._ , This and a new era of , co'n-
would enable the County Council to
solve the 'problems of adequate
representation as they relate to the total
local g ,vernrnent system rather than
dealing 'With. each problem .as, it arises
on aecemeai'-b'asis.”
:Restructuring. The\only answer. But
• when will it begin in Huron?
efje BioDccicry
• SIGNAL -STAR
11,441)
•{}-- • The Cpi my Town Newspaper of Hot -on —G}—
'P untied in 1848 and published every Thursday' at Goderfdn. oratorio Member ,of the
CWNA and OWNA. Advertising rates ori-`i`eZIG'eat. •Subscriptions payable in ,advance.
$8.50 IW'Canada, S40.00 in all countries other than •Canada single copies 20 cents
Second class mall Rlegistratron Number 0718. Advertising is accepted on the condition
that, in the event of typographical error, the advertising space occupiede, by the
erroneous item, together with reasonable allowance for signature;'wits not.be charged
for but the balance of the advertisement will t$e paid for at the applicable rate In the
event of a typogophipai error advertising goods or services at a wrong price, goods or
servlcp rt aiy not be sold; Advertleing is merely an offer to sell, and may be withdrawn at
any time. The Signal -Star Is not respdnsibie for the loss or -damage of unsolicited
manuscripts or photos. ,•
brei ono, Editorial OHlce
TELEPHONE 5244331
area code Sts
Mailing -Address
P.O. BOX 220, Goderich
ohms Mall rigIstrattorr trtinbirlrr- O"118
Published by Slgnal•Star Publishing Ltd.
ROBERT G. SHIVER --president and publisher
• SHIRLEY J. KELLEfI-editor
R:W, .S HAW-.dItorlal staff
EDWARD J. RYRSKI•-advertising manager
DAVE R. WILLIAMS-advertising representative
munication• .r
* *
Trouble' has also erupted at
the, county level between the
Huron County Board of
Education '.and the Huron
County Health Unit. Although
the twooffices are separated by
only" 12 utiles, the com-
munications were so bad school
board officials as well as health
unit• personnel suffered•
publicly.
No doubt a simple telephone
calf or a quick meeting over a •
cup of coffee could have
elitninated much of the name
calling which made its way into
the press.
After researching the story,
the sewage problem at Blyth
School, it appeared a\ident that
a secondary communication tag
within the board of education
office., may have fanned the
flame. 'Bu't the whole
regrettable incident was clearly
a case -of failing to recognize
areas of authority...and
allowing poor communications
' to complicate an already
ticklish situation.
Like the problems between
',GMHA and the Pec Board, the
'county differences 'have • been
smoothed Over - at feast,fo"r the
present. However, one would
be remiss not to point out that
7
•
Once and for rr11
Dear Editor;
Have read with -interest _ Mr.
Dymondl3 report tp the town
council regarding the con-
ditions that exist in the
buildings, plus the pool' of
Gooderham Park.
agree it should be a finan-
cial priority but would like Co
see it yt'aken ,a step further, and
perhaps end for a • while, this
pool repair that comes up every
year. How about enclosing it all
and make this a year round
pool, with. perhaps the schools
taking advantage of this for
swimming lessons.
Both children and adults
.alike' could benefit by such al
place dad I think it would be a
very worthwhile project for
some of our ,energetic civic min-
ded clubs of town to get behind
the recreation • committee and
• investigate the possibilities of
operating a fully municipal
pool.
P. McConnell
implications of those ,actions
had not been recognized as a
threat=.to others.
Ontario Hydro is big
business. Does it have to pas
along information •to the
grassroots? Does it have to*
County government is being
threatened. Can it afford to -go
uninformed?
The Huron Board . of
Education is the latecomer.
Should it not be constantly'on
the watch for those.littl rum-
blings 'cif' discontent which are
such a 'valid indicator of the
feelings of the people? "
The:local boar"ds are arms of
the Tommunity.. Is it not im-
perative that they know one
another, talk together and co-
operate in all .things'?
It., all boils down to com-
munication, that illusive
necessity 'which is imperative if
people are to get along. It
doesn't matter- whether' it is
Ontario Hydro or two toddler_ s
at play. If communicatRon is
absent, there's bound to be a
fight.
having to really side in with
anybody.
To be -sure, poor. comb
munications in the past is
causing considerable 'grief in
the 'present .for Ontario Hydro.
%From all, appearances, Hydro
officials have learned a vital
lesson about dealing with the
populus. It now remains, for.
Huron citizens and Huron
County Council to react ' in a
manner becoming in"forr`ned
people.
*'**.
In all three cases, there was
only.a minimum of„ imparting
or exchanging information.
There was virtually no connec-
tion between places. a Each was
moving within a„,very narrow
circle arid in'.soriie instances the
Get setto give
"What's a borate of a dltfenint cstllar"', jokad Socrrtarlst's-otener Helen Tvieody to this year's
Timmy, 11 year old Billy Lyi`tch, as she led hockey old-tlme all-star winger Sid Smith, the
Billy .
winner's circle, Along with 87 ot,er head table celebrities and a capacity crowd of over
eleven 'hundred sports fans, Sid Food=natur'edly lent his Oar to a good cause at list Thur-
sd'ay's '23rd "annual Sports Celebrities Dinner in -Toronto's Royal, York;, Hotel... Tho young
Belkivillo lad's ^flr$t ofticlar function of the year proclaims thesiert of next month's Emitter
seat campaign throughout the province during which time the Ontario Society for Crippled
Children hopes to raise $1,660,000.
L i e chanire4
Dear Editor:
It's time that . Huron County
taxpayers started, asking
questions about how many
thousands of local tax dollars
have been spent onfutile ef-
forts • to establish ,a land use
plan. Such a plan has been
based on ,a twenty year time
and 'is founded 'on a "slow- ,,
growth" philosophy..
Events of the last ,few days'
have confirmed (once • again,
from more credible sourcesi.
that it is the intention of 'On-
tario 'Hydro to construct a
seconcf nuclear plant' on Lake .
u"FI`" ro near' Go cite (i%no"vi °-
the ` favoured site is ' mear
" Drysdale, but pure speculation,?
based on Hydro's behaviour at .,
Inverhuron, indicates that the
most favoured site would be
Point, Farm's 'Park).
Setting aside the major eti
vironmental risks and the
deplorable legacy. that 'such
plants leave for_ future
generations (whichlocals up to
this point have ignored), such a
deyelopment would nullify the
efforts of local Councils, in par-
,ticular .Huron. County Council,
in trying to develop a rational
land use system. It's very much
the same as tossing a couple of
hrundred thousand dollars of
local tax motley into the lake!
A nuclear plant in Huron`
County would change our way
of life. Our planning programs
can not possibly cope with the
,massive disruptions of land use
and 'projected development- in
the municipalities of Huron
Cqunty. Are we truly prepared.
to accommodate thie "dramatic
increase in municipal tax levies.
to meet, the . demands of a
rapidly increasing population'
and ' , the accompanying
demands for utility services? -
One only has to look North to
the communities of Kincardine,
Port Elgin, Southampton,
Tiverton, and the surrounding
rltral townships. i..
Before any major *changes
are planned for our com-
,,munities by- any- Provincial
agency, the local governments
must demand to be involved in
early preparation. This _ an-
nouncement :by Ontario Hydrp
as much as says "to hell with
the efforts of local: authorities."
Sincerely,
Paul Carroll
it (fry experts
Dear Editor; ,. ,A •
..A.n article appearedi ^in'-'tf e"° '°
February 26, 1974-4d-it;on of
the London Free Press with the
following heading: "Insurance
companies wary of 'nuclear'
act".
The article stated,- "that a
federal act passed nearly four
years ago to give the public
financial protection against
nuclear accidents still has not .
been proclaimed because in,
surance
-
surance companies are wary of -
it, says an atomic energy of-
ficial.”
it appears that there is a sec-
tion •of the act stating nuclear
power operators are liable for '
"personal injury" caused by
leakage's, explosions, of other
disasters involving radio -active
material according to J, F. D.
MacIsaac of the Atomic Energy
Control Board (AECB) in an
interview last Monday.
-According to the article the
insurance companies feel that
liability should be restricted4to
bodily 'injury or property
damage, Which might, preclude
claims for ge^neti4 damage, ac-
cttmulative injuries or mental
anguish said Mr. Maelsaac,
legal adviser for AE03.
The article Stated that the
Nuclear Liability Act requires
,(continued on payer E)