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C hisholm SCHOOL SUCCESS www.chisholmeentTC.com (9 0 5 ) 8 4 4 -3 2 4 0 No one keeps up with Jones in national triathalon Sports Take a walk with The Bronte Bunch Focus O ST A Metroland Publication Vol. 40 No. 90 AWARDED CO vV S P A P E R WEDNESDAY, JULY 30, 2003 56 Pages SI.00 (plus CST1 "USING COM M UNICATION TO BUILD BETTER COM M UNITIES Consultant hired to map Environmental Strategic Plan Town w illform task force to act in advisory role By Kim Amott S P E C IA L T O T H E BEAVER BMX p ro g ra m back on tra c k By Stephanie Thiessen S P E C IA L T O T H E BEAVER Work on a long-awaited and m uch-anticipated Environmental Strategic Plan for Oakville is underway. The town announced Monday that it has awarded a $248,000 contract to IER Planning, Research and M anagem ent' Services to "Throughout the whole develop the plan. The Concord-based compa of the process, it's ny specializes in offering envi really important to be ronmental and management able to work with the consulting services. Narelle Martin, nhe Town's community on this." environmental advisor, said the · Narelle Martin, plan should be completed over Town o f Oak\'ille's the next 12 months, but added environmental advisor the time frame will be flexible enough to ensure meaningful community input is gathered. "Throughout the whole o f the process, it's really important to be able to work with the community on this," she said. "What we don't want is something that sits on the shelf." One of the first steps to be completed is the establishment of a task force that will provide advice and comment to IER throughout the creation of the plan. (S ee 'E nviro n m e n t' pa g e A4) Oakville university student gets second shot at giving PM advice By Kim Amott S P E C IA L T O T H E BEAVER Is the Prime Minister lis tening? Because Oakville's Oliver Johnston seems determined to be heard. For the second year in a row, the 23-year-old student has been chosen as a semifinalist in M agna International's As Prime Minister Awards. The annual contest asks post-secondary students across Canada to write a 2.500-word essay outlining what they would do as Prime Minister to "improve our liv ing standards and ensure a secure and prosperous global community." Last year, Johnston's essay was selected as one of 50 semi-finalists, but failed to advance to the finals in the contest. (See S tudent' page A7) Harrison Smith · Special to the Oakville Beaver ANCIENT INITIATION: Nine-year-old C urtis Preksta received his initiation into the Zoroastrian religion during a ceremony in Oakville on Saturday. The symbolic ceremony, called Navjote, repre sents the purification of the body and soul, allowing the individual to live with the religion's three cardinal principles: good thoughts, good words and good deeds. For more photos see page A3. For Nicky Pearson, the past week has been quite an emotional roller coast er. Just three days after discovering 19 BMX bikes used in the Riders Ready program were stolen, she stood shaking her head in awe, as she recounted tale after tale of the generosity of Milton and area individuals and businesses who responded by reaching for their wallets. It's a real-life fairy tale of good tri umphing over evil. "We're set for probably the next four years," said Pearson. Friday afternoon, excited kids from the BMX program were presented with a BMX bike by the Hudson's Bay Co. It's the first of 19 bikes the company's donating to replace what was stolen. But there's more. Fifteen mountain bikes were donated by Tim Hortons, and 12 bikes were donated from other businesses and individuals in Halton. So far, $12,500 has also been collected, including $9,000 from Trivest Development. Cyclepath and Canadian Tire, two o f the program's continuous supporters, have also pledged their sup port. Due to the thefts, security is also a main concern and program organizers are currently speaking with security companies and storage facilities that have approached them wanting to help. Due to this generosity, not only will the program be able to resume, it will be greatly expanded. In fact, one of Pearson's dreams will now come true. The program will spread across the province -- something she had always wanted, but was unable to do with the program's limited resources. Now, the overflow o f bikes and cash will go to other communities like Chatham, Kingston and Port Elgin to establish more Riders Ready programs. "This is going to change every thing," said Pearson. The Riders Ready program is a non(S ee 'B usinesses' page A4) Smoggy days can be deadly days Julie Saccone Focus...............................B1 Fashion............................Cl ArtScene..........................G Classified..........................C4 Sports..............................C8 Faces of the Future............D4 S P E C IA L T O T H E BEAVER S V L C (Support Your Local Carrier) DELIVERY For home delivery <£ customer service call (905) 845-9742 Mon., Tues.. A. Thun. 9 am. - 6 p.m.. Wed. &. FrL 9 a.m. - 8 p.m. or Saturday 10 a.m. - 4 p.m For new subscriptions, cali (905) 845-9742 or subscribe online @ www.oakvUlebeaver.com Partial Delivery: Alexanian Carpet. Rona Home and Garden, McMaster University. The Bay, Sport Check, M ississauga Booster. Sport Mart, Sears. Cims. Home Depot. Hy and Z eis FL Y E R D EQ Lu IV ERY a n titie s a s lo w a s 1 0 0 0 9 0 5 -8 4 5 -3 8 2 4 With the hot, hazy and humid sum mer now in full swing, local environ mental health and provincial medical experts are cautioning sun enthusiasts to beware of the dangers of smog. Smog, a mixture of pollutants caused mainly by human activity such as auto mobile emissions, coal-buming power plants and other heavy industries, is responsible for l,800 premature deaths in Ontario each year, according to the Halton Regional Health Department. Smog can also be traced to emis sions from sources as far away as the United States, which drift across Ontario on the prevailing winds. The Ministry of the Environment (MOE) estimates during periods of ele vated smog, 50 per cent of Ontario's ground-level ozone and fine particulate matter, two key components o f smog, come from the United States. G round-level ozone, unlike the stratospheric ozone layer that protects us from the sun's harmful rays, is a gas toxic to the respiratory system and is Harrison Smith · Special to the Oakville Beaver A utom obile em issions are one o f the leading causes of smog. Idling a c a r fo r th an re sta rtin g it. formed when nitrogen oxides and lodge deep in the lungs. volatile organic compounds react in the Health effects of smog include irrita presence of sunlight. Fine particulate tion o f the eyes, nose and throat, matter are tiny specks of either liquid or reduced lung capacity and tightness in solid particles suspended in air, mainly the chest. Numerous medical studies composed of soot and acids that can have also suggested smog increases the m ore th an 10 seconds uses m ore fuel number of people affected by asthma and worsens the condition o f people with asthma, bronchitis, emphysema and heart disease. Dr. Larry Erlick, president of the (See 'Halton' page A5) 3 T O P P IN G P IZZA ! at & add 10 Chicken Wings for only » a <^ ' - i b o t lt e o f JR* · C A R P E T · O R IE N T A L R U G S · A R E A R U G S · H A R D SU R FA C E S TJTW i I 1 1 B B Q £ G rillin g Sauce! A GALLERY O F ORIENTAL RUGS, UNIQUE AREA RUGS AND FINE CARPETING MOST AT AN E n te r fo r you r chance W I N a getaway for four to N e w Y ork to see a W W E E v w t l i v e & m e e t a W W E S u p e r s t: ` Additional 5 C T o f f Our Already Low Prices ·ONLYAT OUR OUTLET STORE 125 C r o s s A v e , O a k v ille (Across from Home Depot) 9 0 5 . 8 4 9 . 4 4 7 2