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TMo Rattlesnakes Hugh Bremner Georgian Bay Park Islands National Park warden opens plastic sleeve designed to hold an Eastern Massasauga rattlesnake during tagging operations at the park about lOO km north of Barrie Park wardens tag the snakes to learn about their movements and habits Larry Vien left another warden holds the snake behind the head to prevent it from biting Examiner Photo Union activist remembers By STEPHEN NICHOLLS Of The Examiner He has deadly bite But his poisonous fangs cannot protect him The Eastern Massasauga rat tlesnakes lethal venom pro vides little defence against an encroaching civilization that has pushed him into remote wildemess area along Georgian Bay That encroachment and indescriminate killing of the snake threatens the Massasauga with extinction in Ontario Although not officially listed as an endangered species the Massasaugas dwindling numbers concern many en vironmentalists who say the timid rattlesnake is disap pearing Barbara Froom founding member of the Canadian Am phibian and Reptile Conserva tion Society said in recent in terview the rattlesnakes numbers are declining drastically Miss Froom author of The Snakes of Canada said the snake was once common throughout the Georgian Bay region and in areas along Lakes Ontario and Eric Most of the remaining rat tlensakes inhabit the wildemess areas along the bays eastern shoreline and on the islands DESTROYEI HABITAT Much of the Massasaugas habitat has been destroyed to facilitate homebuilding in the Georgian Bay area Filling in swamps and urban develop ment in rocky areas has reduc ed the snakes natural ter ritory Georgian Bay Islands Na tional Park 138 square km wilderness area 100 km north of Barrie is last bastion for the Massasauga Here the snake and his habitat are protected Larry Vien Georgian Bay Islands park warden said peo ple continue to kill the snakes however when they find them in areas outside the park the examiner Thursday July 1979 Massassauga not cute cuddly little animal butendang They see one snake and the first reaction is to kill it said Vien Now when you kill one its much more serious because there are so few of them left Killing one snake if theres only 50 around means much more than killing one if theres couple hundred left Dr Francis Cook curator of the herpetology section of the National Museum of Natural Science said this indescriminate killing may eliminate the snake in areas outside the park PEOPLE TERRIFIEI He said people kill the snakes because they grow up being terrified of snakes and theyll believe anything about them People are repulsed said Miss Froom You cant give snake personality It doesnt have any arms or legs Its not cute like baby seal It is so foreign to what they think is cute and cuddly or what looks human People hand feed bears in park but these socalled cudd ly creatures can be very dangerous she said Parks Canada lists the Massasauga as endangered meaning threatened with ex tinction because of the actions of man If unprotected the Massasauga will quite pro bably go the route of the Timber rattlesnake which is believed to be extinct in Ontario said Miss Froom The last confirmed sighting of Timber was in the Niagara Gorge in 1941 The Ontario Natural Resources has not decided whether the Massasauga is an endangered species If ministry officials list the snake as endangered it can be protected in the province by the Endangered Species Act Under this act someone who kills or injures protected species can be fined up to $3000 or sentenc ed to six months in jail or both MINISTRY INVESTIGATING Irene Bowman ministry Ministry of Barrie labor evolved without violence Andy Nicholson has seen unions grow By LORI COIIEN Of The Examiner Gradual evolution rather than violent workeremployer confrontation describes the history of the labor movement in Barrie Andy Nicholson is labor ac tivist whos seen Barrie grow from one union town to city with 30odd union locals 25 of which are affiliated with the Barrie and District Labor ouncil and the Canadian Labor Congress all within the last 10 years retired carpenter Nicholson has been labor organizer since the 1920s Hes now treasurer for the labor council He traces the history of labor in the area from just after World War II when he finished his term as tradesman at Canadian Forces Base Borden and settled near Hawkestone local of the meatpackers union at opacko was the only show of organized labor in Bar rie prior to 1950 Nicholson recalls Then in 1950 major project got underway the construction of the Canadian General Elec tric plant Local bricklayers organized to form Local of the now calle International Union youth and jobs One of the features of successful llireStudcnt Week was the car wash held Thursday at the Hayfield Mall Organized by the Canada Employment Centre for Students this event raised $7300 in donations for the Muscular Dystrophy Fund The cheque for this amount will be presented this week to the fire department The student employment centre would like to thank all sponsors employers and students who voluntwred their time to help make it happen Also it would like to thank all employers who supported it during the week and phoned in job orders Placements iii creased due to last weeks activities and in total our placements for June were 550 The Workmcns Compensation Board of Ontario is an in dependent commission established in 1015 to administer the Workmens om icnsation Act The act provides compensa tion medical ait rehabilitation services and pensions for Ontario employees injured in onthejob accidents Compensation benefits and the WtBs operations are funded through assessments on approximately 150000 on tario busineess and industry employers About 3500000 Ontario employees nearly 90 per cent of the provincial labor force are protected by the act All medical costs are paid by the WCH Employees who are disabled from earning full wages beyond the day of acci dent receive weekly compensation payments totalling 75 per cent of their groww average earnings These payments are taxfree Maximum compensation is $23366 per week Death benefits in the form of burial allowance and pensions to dependent widows or widowers and dependent childi en are payable to families of fatally injured workers Permanently disabled workers are awarded lifetime pensions according to degree of disability Minimum pension for total disability is $509 month mximum is 810125021 month Definitely the main benefits of the system for employers LIFO of Bricklayers and Allied Kraft smen Harry Clcare was one of the unions original members and has since seiycd as steward president and most recently business agent for the past 20 years He says it was difficult for the union to gain acceptance at first CONTRACTORS OIIOSEI It was rough going in the beginning he says Local contractors were opposed to trade unions and it was years bef ore they accepted us He says the bricklayers dealt mainly with outside contractors who were accustomed to deal ingwithunions Those contractors were grateful for the union because it solved their labor shortage problem Nicholson says learc says bricklayers an ticipated industrial growth in the 1950s and decided it was in their best interest to organize There were few strikes but Cleare recalls one incident dur ing construction of the new Royal Victoria hospital in 1954 when the contractors employed union bricklayers but for masonry tried to bring in out side workers Clearc says the workers struck for three months for the Special week successful it levels out accident costs under the collective liability principle assessments are actuarially computed based on accidentcost records and payroll an employers injured workers are effectively cared for expensive disruptive and demoralizing lawsuits are avoided Under the law an employer must report any accident in volving lost time or medical aid to the board within three days of leaming about it Prompt complete and accurate reporting of accidents helps employers injured workers and the board One example of many ways it helps employers bringing the board into the picture assures curly monitoring of medical treatment and timely provision of rehabilitation measures thus keeping compensation costs and assessments down Another employer obligation is assur ing safe workplace Employers can appeal decisions on individual claims and deCisions on their assessments Any board decision affecting an employers interests maybe appealed Nine safety associations are financed through the WCB ac ctdent fund The associations provide accident prevention programs in construction electrical utilities farming forest products hospitals mines pulp and paper transpor tation and general industry Under the act severe financial penalties are levied by the WCR against any employer whose workinjury and accidentcost record is consistently higher than that of other employers in his industry To avoid these penalties ask your safety association for tailormade accidentprevention program For more information on WC write to Bloor St 12 Toron to Ont M4W 3C3 or phone General laims Enquiry 41th 965lt885l Assessment 4161 9658650 First Aid Regulations I416 9654797 right to work on the hospital and were supported in the com munity he sees it as the first significant strike for union rightsin Barrie In 1951 the carpenters form ed Local 2480 in Barrie and during the following three years painters electricians and plumbers unionized By 1955 the trades were fairly well orgtanized although not yet strong Nicholson says Next came the industrial unions of which the United Rubber Workers Union at MansfieldDenman now known as General Tire was among the first Syd Owen past president of the rubber workers arrived in Barrie 18 months after its for mation He said he found Bar rie an antilabor town Barrie advertised on the strength of its cheap labor Owen says Thats one of the reasons companies came here strike by United Auto Workers atAUniversal Coolers company which has since left Barrie stands out in Owens memory It was one of the big gest strikes in Barrie and the first one the labor council formed in 1952 was heavily in volved in says Owen Most of the workers were farmers in their first factory jobs and unsophisicated in the labor world Owen says The workers had militant attitude since Barrie was anti labor and the police force the mayor and the chamber of com merce were on the companys side The strike was about wages in the workers first settlement they eventually lost out Barrie residents are still basically anti union says Owen he sees this however as characteristic of most Cana dians because they arent taught unionism in school Nicholson agrees Barrie wasnt and isnt labor oriented Unions were not exactly welcomed with open arms he says It was difficult something new and strange and there was so much adverse publicity Owen is convinced todays children have no social cons cience As long as theres han dout therre happy he says Attendance at labor council meetings was high at first Nicholson says followed by lapse of few years The ad vent of television into the homes of most Barrie residents caused attendance to decline he says Prior to TV there was better attendance he says It was night out for the boys Nicholson and Owen agrees the labor council hasnt been as influential as it could have been It hasnt done much Owen says It didnt promote itself as it should have park warden uses special needle and nylon fishing line to sew colored plastic discs onto the rattle of an Eastern Massasauga rattlesnake The colorcoded identification discs are used to trace the snakes movements Examiner photo by Stephen Nicholls biologist in Toronto said the ministry is investigating the status of the Massasauga The rattlesnakeis one of several species being examined by the intergovernmental com mittee of status of endangered wildlife in Canada said Ms Bowman To learn more about the snakes habits and characteristics Georgian Bay Islands park resource managers are tagging rat tlesnakes Park officials will use this information to help pre vent furthcr reduction in Massasauga numbers in the park Ontario is the northern range of the snake but Dr Cook said the rattlesnake is also becom ing scarce in the United States Marvin Hensley zoology professor at the University of Michigan said the snake is not listed as an endangered species in his state but the rat tlesnakes are less common then they used to be In recent field trip in prime rattler country his class of 25 university students found only one Massasauga rat tlesnake Hensley said an Illinois university professor told him recently he was worried about Snakes wearing colored disks as part of research program ered by encroaching civilizatiOn the snakes declining popula tion in that state Convmcing people that poisonous snake needs protec tion is not an easy task Ron Hamilton Georgian Bay Islands park resource manager said the Massasauga is not the killer hes reputed to be Only two persons in Eastern Canada have ever died from Massasauga bite and neither victim received proper medical treatment said Hamilton One case involved child who was bitten and left untreated for 48 hours he said The Massasauga described by experts as timid or docile rattlesnake rarely bites said Hamilton The snake prefers escape to attack he said Dr Herman Jilesen chief of general practice at Midlands Hurouia District Hospital said if the snake bites into blood vessel death is quick If the snake bites into flesh tissue theres lots of time for medical attention he said Hamilton said healthy adult even if untreated may only be violently ill from snakebite Massasauga rattlesnakes are important to the balance of nature because of the role they play in controlling rodents said Miss Froom Dr Cook aid people should not kill rattlesnakes because they are afraid of them In cottage areas where there are children and pets theres not much of case for tolerating the snake around said Dr Cook But in relatively wild area they should leave snakes alone They were here before we were They are part of the wildlife of Canada We think of wildlife as moose and bunnies but these snakes are animals too There should be some place where they can go about life un molested he added Campers in Georgian Bay Islands national park may be surprised to find rattlesnakes wearing coloredplastic diScs Park wardens have sewn the discs on more than 20 snakes other uses special needle and nylon fishing line to sew two plastic discs onto the rattle Large snakes are placed in plastic tube to prevent them from biting during the opera rattlesnake mer transport the rattlesnake PLACED IN TUBE Gibbs chief warden resource managers began tagging rattlesnakes last suin as part of research program on the Eastern Massasauga said in an interview park Through tagging park staff hope to learn more about the Massasaugas movements and habits Ron Hamilton park warden said the locations where snakes are caught and the areas where they are later releas ed are marked with pins on park map When park staff or campers sight the tagged snakes wardens can trace the movements to determine the rat tlesnakes range or territory Wardens use special hooked aluminum snake stick to pick up rattlesnake found in the park They place the snake is speciallymodified garbage can used to hold and Tagging rattlesnake is twoman operation One warden holds the snake behind its head while the tion Each snake receives its own combination of colored discs There are 120 color combinations and wardens can identify recaptured snake by its special color code Gibbs said about 30 rattlesnakes are caught in the park each summer Last year 17 snakes were tagged This year six snakes were tagged by June 30 There is not enough information yet to establish any pat terns said Hamilton No studies have been done on the snake and wildlife ex perts know little about its range habits and characteristics he said Biolngists for example do not know how to deter mine the age of Massasauga rattlesnake said Hamilton Because the 138 square km park is wildlife preserve resource managers there try terference with the snakes Park officials will use the tagg ing research to help protect the snakes said Hamilton Wardens may move campsites or reroute trails if they in terfere with the snakes habitat he said to minimize human in Township wants ministry study to determine area seniors need $25000 and By RICHARD TIIOMAS Of The Examiner Oro council agreed Tuesday that provincial survey in the township is the only way to ac curately determine the need for senior citizens housing cen tre The municipality is re questing the survey known as municipal housing statement from the ministry of housing This is the only way we can find out if enough people want it said Reeve Howard Camp bell Council was asked in June to look into such housing by delegation from the Marigold Senior Citizens Association which alimed the majority of its 100 or so members were in terested in living in uch ac commodation Based on its population of about 6400 the township could accommodate centre of about 25 units In letter from theministry read to council Tuesday figures based on 40 unit centre indicated the cost per unit would be about maximum rental fees about $370 Township clerk Henry Neufcld said rents might be higher for operating the smaller 25 unit centre He said the rents would be calculated on sliding scale ac cording to residents income with minimum of about $50 per month for those whose only source of funds are old age pen sions Neufcld said however that ministry statistics show only one in four who apply for residency apply for such reduc tions People think they are get ting something for nothing but tycy arent saiu Reeve Camp bell HEALTH lNIT AGREES The survey could take up to four months once the ministry starts and although the Simcoe County health unit has agreed such complex could be safely operated on septic beds council will not bother to look for site until the survey is complete Members of the Marigold Association told council the ma jority of members favored either Oro Station or Hawkestone but the centre may be more suited for loca tion nearer irrie or Orillia said Alla McLean deputy reeve My concern is that these people have got to be able to get to town he said Many of them might drop out if the centres site is not where they want it said Reeve Camp bell There is lot of interest now but dont think there is any great need said Coun cillor Gail Swainson Once these people find out they have to sell their property theymightfeeldifferently Neufcld said the concept of senior citizens housing was tried in the township three years ago but was dropped after no one made any applica tions to become residents The centre would require twotothreeacre site and would be funded 50 per cent by Beware cheques chamber Prison terms of up to 10 years are possible if youre convicted of passing non sufficient fund NSF cheque cheque says the Greater Bar rie Chamber of Commerce Information on NSF cheques has been released through the chambers public relations committee The 10 year imprisonment could apply if the amount of the NSF cheque is over $200 When the cheque is under $200 two year sentence is possible the chamber says The chamber advises private businessmen not to ac cept postdated cheques and not to cash cheques that show signs of alternation The chamber says businessmen should ask for at least two forms of identifica tion and to call the bank if theres any uncertainty Signatures should be match ed with identifEcaéion and the client should endorse the che ques while the businessman is watching says the chamber Cheques should be deposited promptly and the party con tacted as soon as an NSF che que is received it adds For small fee the bank will hold the cheque for 10 working days in case funds are deposited into the account If this doesnt work the af fected person should contact collection agency or small claims court the chamber says The police should be notified for possible criminal action no matter how small the sum The Barrie Credit Bureau should also be notified says thechamber the federal government 42 per cent by the province and 712 per cent by the municipality for maintenance The municipality would have to pay for the land but this money would be refunded when actual construction began New centre planned for historic site here PENETANGUISHENE Plans to construct visitor orien tation centre at the Historic Naval and Military Establishments here have been announced by Reuben Baetz minister of culture and recreation The centre is designed to prepare visitors for their tour of the historic site with display area built the aftervdeck of sailing ship and slide presenta tions In making the announce ment Baetz said the provincial government has strong com mitment to preserve historic sites across Ontario In order that the Historic and Naval Military Establishments may continue to gow as viable tourist at traction in Ontario it is impor tant that we meet the needs and interests of the Visiting public be said Designs for the new facility are being prepared by the ministry of government ser vices Costs and target date for completion have not yet been determined