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Delivery 604-942-3081 • Friday, May 6, 2011
Comics stand up for mental health PAGE 21
Untangling red tape for new Canadians PAGE 13
Your source for local sports, news, weather and entertainment! >> www.burnabynow.com STEM CELLS
Do it for mom Janaya Fuller-Evans
staff reporter
After Eileen Sue’s husband Paul was diagnosed with aplastic anemia in 2004, she became aware of the dire need for stem cell donors throughout the world. Sue attended the first Thanks Mom! stem cell awareness campaign – headed by former Liberal MLA Sindi Hawkins, who passed away last fall – in 2006. She was determined to hold another. The second Thanks Mom! event is taking place in Burnaby, where much of the Vancouver resident’s family lives. The concept behind the event is giving back what your mother gave you – life, she says. “Mothers are revered in all cultures,” Sue says. “We wanted to reach out to all Canadians.” The multi-ethnic stem cell drive is scheduled for May 7 at the grand court in Metrotown at Metropolis from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Those interested in registering with One Match stem cell and marrow donor network will have DNA taken via a swab from the inside of their cheek. Stem cells Page 5
Larry Wright/burnaby now
Sick of dogs: Alan James stands at Charles Rummel Park, where some people consider off-leash dogs a problem. James wants a full-time ranger to enforce the leash bylaw at Burnaby’s parks.
Fragile habitat is going to the dogs Environmentalists want stronger enforcement to force owners to keep their dogs leashed Janaya Fuller-Evans
staff reporter
A Burnaby environmentalist is worried off leash dogs could pose a threat to fish and other wildlife in the city’s conservation areas, particularly around Eagle Creek. City signs stating that leashes are required are not easily noticeable, said Alan James, secretary for the Stoney Creek Environment Committee, who has spoken to dog owners at local parks about whether or not they’re aware of the bylaw.
“We need better signs,” he said. Some assume they just have to keep their dogs under control, James said, instead of on a leash. “I often see dogs in the creek,” he said of Eagle Creek, adding the committee took part in a fish release there recently. Dogs can disturb wildlife, and spread diseases to other animals, he pointed out. The committee brought up the issue to the city’s parks, recreation and cultural services department at a recent meeting. In particular, the committee referenced the Burnaby Mountain Conservation Area Management Plan from 2000. “Off leash dogs are incompatible with the conservation objectives of the conservation area and are therefore not permitted,” the plan
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states. Enforcement needs to be stronger, James said, adding that if the RCMP only arrested speeders when someone filed a complaint, they’d never catch anyone. The analogy was in reference to the department’s primary method of enforcement – responding to complaints. “I envision a full-time ranger in the area,” James said. He has not received a response about the issue since the committee met with department staff in March. “I would’ve expected a response by now,” he said. There is room for compromise with dog owners in the area James said, such as Parks Page 9
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