SUBSTANCE ABUSE 'WIDESPREAD' IN FOREST SECTOR

SCOTT STANFIELD Citizen staff

A subculture of substance abuse within the forest industry needs to
be dealt with, the executive director of the Central Interior Logging
Association said at Tuesday's inquest into the death of logging truck
driver (Frank) Joseph Leroux.

Long hours and isolation are two factors contributing to a relatively
high level of substance abuse in the industry, said Rick Publicover,
a former manager at Woodland Forest Products who has also served as
executive director of the B.C. Council on Substance Abuse.

"It is widespread. It's a huge issue, in my opinion," said
Publicover, noting the subculture includes employees and supervisors.
"Safety needs to be looked at from a number of perspectives."

"Changing the culture at the workplace is kind of like turning a
tanker, isn't it?," coroner lawyer John Orr asked.

Publicover, in response, said all players in the industry need to be
on the same side, become knowledgeable about substance abuse and
implement intervention strategies.

Earlier in the inquest, testimony showed that Leroux, who was killed
March 20, 2006 on the Finlay-Philip road near Mackenzie, had THC, the
active ingredient in marijuana, in his system. Leroux was killed at
night when he and another logging truck driver met unexpectedly at a corner.

The inquest began June 18 at the Prince George courthouse.

Publicover, in response to cross-examination by WorkSafe B.C. lawyer
Scott Nielsen, admitted that during his time at Woodland he had not
reported various substance abuse incidents to WorkSafe B.C., then
known as the Workers' Compensation Board, but agreed that substance
abuse violations need to be reported to the provincial body.

One member of the five-person jury brought up the question of
mandatory drug testing at the workplace.

Radio-calling procedures and the question of who is responsible for
safety on logging roads have been other key issues at the inquest,
which is expected to wrap up Friday.

Mary Anne Arcand, director of a B.C. Forest Safety Council initiative
called the Forestry Truck Safety Program, also took the stand
Tuesday. She said a recent summit targeted a number of key issues to
do with truck safety: signage, jurisdiction, driver fatigue, long
hours and confusion over regulations.

According to Arcand, there is "tremendous confusion" concerning radio
call systems, which vary around the province, and said it would be
"absolutely" advantageous to have local call systems, in response to
a question from Orr.

Adding to the confusion is the estimated 150 radio frequencies
truckers need to deal with. The Forest Safety Council would like to
see this number reduced to 40, the idea being to have one frequency per area.

Arcand also spoke about certification requirements of truckers, who
need only a Class 1 designation to operate a logging truck.

"We're finding that's just not good enough," she said.

The Forestry Truck Safety Program, in conjunction with ICBC, is
looking at implementing a logging truck endorsement, which includes
off-highway hauling and dealing with steep-slope terrain, among other
things, in addition to the Class 1 designation.