I discern a disconnect between the clamour for information about the Aboriginal Cogeneration project and the fact that no more than half-a-dozen citizens have sought a copy of the readily available document that sets out the facts about the expected air emissions from the ACC plant.
That's what should be the main focus of public discussion. The nitty-gritty of the debate so to speak.
Environment ministry permit 103943 spells out the nature and expected volume of air emissions, the type of emission suppression and control equipment, and how the ministry plans to monitor the operation.
For a copy, email www.Dean.Jeske@gov.bc.ca or call 250-371-6333.
If the March 11 public forum at TRU is to be something more than an environmentalist talkathon and an occasion to scold ACC president Kim Sigurdson for perceived misdemeanours, organizers should take steps to ensure that it lives up to its billing as an occasion for fact-finding.
To this end, effigies of Mr. Sigurdson should be confiscated at the door and the forum chair should firmly restrain participations from making speeches instead of asking questions. Polemics are out.
A fit watchword for the proceedings might be: "Just the facts, ma'am" — a famous catchphrase of the 1970s fondly remembered by devotees of the long-running TV police drama "Dragnet" and its hero Sgt. Joe Friday.
STEPHEN TROWER
Kamloops
