FOUR PILLARS COALITION SAYS THERE'S NO EASY FIX

The Four Pillars Coalition has a plan - now all it needs is the money to
make that plan a reality. After 13 months of studies, meetings and
consultation, the coalition made its report public Tuesday. The Central
Okanagan Framework for Action outlines what the committee has learned and
makes numerous recommendations for dealing with drug issues in the community

Coalition chairman Robert James says there are no quick fixes to the
problem that has been around for decades. Of the 28 recommendations in the
report, the need for a regional drug policy co-ordinator was deemed the top
priority

"There has to be somebody in place to make sure it (framework) is enacted,"
James said during a press conference Tuesday. James said the city needs a
longterm commitment with stable funding for the co-ordinator to work with
various agencies and groups to ensure there is no duplication or gaps in
services. The framework contains recommendations that have been made in the
past, such as a need for more rehabilitation facilities, drug treatment,
youth programs and others

James said some of the programs are already in place, but are not
consistently applied in the region

Coalition community adviser Daryle Roberts said no firm dollar figure is
yet available. The coalition has applied for $16,500 from the regional
district to hire a financial consultant to look at the costs of the
recommendations.

"The cost of dealing with the problem will be a heck of a lot less than
existing with the problem the way it is," said James.

The coalition hopes to have financial numbers collected by the summer.

Roberts said all three levels of government must be on board financially.

"It's the government's job to provide leadership in this area," said James.
"We're just providing the road map. We did the first part; now the
government must step up."

James said a precedent has already been set with the provincial and federal
governments helping the City of Vancouver pay for its four pillars program.

Vancouver has had a four pillars program in place for a few years, and
James said the number of drug overdoses dropped to six last year from 147
three years ago, proving the program's worth.

Vancouver also has a drug policy co-ordinator.

"The result is they are making progress in all aspects of their document,"
said James.

The program's four pillars are treatment, prevention, harm reduction and
enforcement.

Lately, in Kelowna, the focus has been on enforcement. Police have begun
conducting sweeps through the downtown core, rounding up dealers and users
and rousting the homeless. James says that is merely "rearranging the deck
chairs on the Titanic."

All four pillars must work in harmony to make a real difference, he said.

Harm-reduction committee chairwoman Carmen Lenihan said there are already
harm-reduction programs in place in Kelowna, such as the needle exchange,
methadone clinic and food bank, but a safe-injection site is not in the
framework.

Kelowna is not an injection town, said James. He said drugs such as crack
and crystal methamphetamine dominate the local street scene. Statistics
compiled by the coalition show crack is favoured by 29 per cent of active
drug users while 26 per cent used crystal meth.

Area youth addiction services providers reported many of their clients
became drug involved at an early age, with 20 per cent misusing substances
when they were between the ages of eight and 10.

The Drug, Alcohol, Resistance, Education (DARE) program has been increased
in area schools, said James, but more education is needed, and it will take
years before any results are seen.

The $60,000 framework, paid for by the city and Health Canada, gives the
municipal, federal and provincial governments an idea of what is needed. It
is now up them to provide the money to make the plan a reality.