Wood stove industry gives city heat
By KEVIN HARDEN
Of the Emerald
Claiming the wood stove industry in the
Eugene-Springfield area has been sub
jected to “unreasonable and capricious ac
tion,” five members of that industry have
called for an investigation of the city’s
mechanical inspection division of the Public
Works Department.
The members, Mike Duval of J & J Enter
prises, Ken Hussey of Mannan Building
Supplies, Thomas Lichty of the Oregon
Woodstove Company, John Orlando of
Oregon Steel Fabricating and G.M.
McCormack of McCormack Consulting En
gineers, will present their own findings of a
conflict of interest by one of the division’s
inspectors at a news conference today.
According to a letter sent to the Eugene
City Council last Wednesday, the group
claimed that elements in city government
"have actively discouraged the (wood
stove) industry by irresponsible, unreasona
ble and inconsistent actions and have
caused substantial monetary losses (in the
industry).”
Citing several documented incidents of
irregularities in the mechanical inspection
division’s handling of wood stove inspec
tions, the group said one division employee
was attempting to “force local businessmen
out of business by threats and malicious
statements.”
That employee, Lyle Lamont, a mechani
cal inspector for the public works depart
ment, is under investigation by the city
manager's office, Keith Martin, assistant
city manager, said Monday.
Although it is uncertain how long the in
vestigation will take, Martin said, the wood
stove manufacturer’s charges are being
studied in depth.
"The charges they presented to us in our
meeting were pretty broad,” Martin said.
“But the investigation is checking into each
of the items individually.”
According to the Public Works Depart
ment, Lamont is on vacation and cannot be
reached for comment.
Among the charges, the group claims
that misleading statements made my Lam
ont might have discouraged potential cus
tomers from buying wood stoves.
"Misleading statements have been made
by the mechanical inspector that installa
tions of certain stoves will result in cancella
tion of homeowner’s insurance,” the
group’s letter said. “Such statements are
false and have been pointed out to the in
spector in the past.”
The statements continued, the group
said, and sales were lost because of reluc
tance to buy wood stoves under those cir
cumstances.
While the Eugene-Springfield wood
stove industry is important to the local
economy, the alleged activity of govern
ment officials may damage both industry
image and sales, the group said.
... of environmental concern
By KATHLEEN MONJE
Of the Emerald
A court decision on herbicide
spraying in the Siuslaw National
Forest, which will affect chemical
use on public lands statewide,
was again delayed Friday.
Federal Judge Otto Skopil of
the U.S. District Court in Portland
Tom McCall will speak tonight
on the “Future of the Environmen
tal Movement in Oregon,” part of
Wilderness Day during Earth
Week at the University.
McCall, a candidate for gover
nor, will lecture in Room 167 of the
Erb Memorial Union.
Also on the agenda are Alaskan
wilderness films and slide shows,
to be repeated throughout the
day. From 10 to 11 a.m. “Alaska:
postponed his decision on the use
of the herbicides 2,4,5-T and Sil
vex, both of which contain the
highly controversial chemical
Dioxin.
Citizens Against Toxic Sprays
had filed a request with Skopil for
a temporary restraining order
against use of the herbicides in
national forests.
Skopil, who last year banned
use of the two chemicals in the
Siuslaw National Forest until
completion of the Forest Service’s
environmental impact statement,
says he will study further the en
vironmental statement.
**********
Oregon meteorites will be the
Today’s
events
Land in the Balance” and “Admir
alty: Fortress of the Bears” will be
shown. The films will be repeated
at 2 p.m.
Slide shows of the Misty Fjords
and Stikine-LeConte wilderness
areas in Alaska will be shown from
11 a.m. until noon; they will be
shown again at 2 p.m.
The films and slide shows will
be presented in the EMU down
stairs lobby, in front of the Survival
Center, Suite One.
ESTHER
PHILLIPS
FRI. & SAT. APR 21 & 22
2 Shows
8:30 & 1 I 30
Tickets:
4" advance - *5* day of show
COMING ATTRACTION!
★ SEA LEVEL formerly of the Allman Bros.
Thurs. APR 27th 8:00 & 11
Tickets: $6.00 advance - *7.00 day of show
★ DAVE VAN RONK - FRI. APR 28th
Originator of “Cocaine Blues"
8:30 & 11:30 - Tickets: 3.50 advance - 4.50 day of show
160 S. PARK - Fine Dining Too - Over 21 with I.D.
Tickets at the Sun Shop - Everybody's Records & The Place
subject of a lecture and presenta
tion sponsored at 8:00 p.m. Friday
by the Eugene Natural History
Society and the Eugene As
tronomical Society.
Speaker Richard Pugh has had
15 years’ experience collecting
meteorites in Oregon and
Washington. He will explain how
to identify them, and will bring
about 24 specimens. The lecture
will be held in Rm. 123 in the Uni
versity Science Bldg.
**********
The Pacific Northwest energy
debate continued in Portland
Saturday, with Senators Mark
Hatfield, R-Ore. and Henry Jack
son, D-Wash., urging regional
partisans not to let hydropower al
location become a “battle be
tween our states.”
Jackson, who chairs the Senate
Committee on Energy and Natural
Resources, was in Portland for
one of four meetings to hear tes
timony cn the region’s energy
problems.
Opponents of the bill proposed
by the Pacific Northwest Utilities
Conference Committee (PNUCC)
dominated the hearing.
Gov. Bob Straub and Portland
Mayor Neil Goldschmidt told the
Senate committee they could not
support any proposal that would
not guarantee a larger share of
low-cost hydropower for Oregon
residents.
The PNUCC bill would continue
to give priority for the federal
hydropower produced by the
Bonneville Power Administration
to customers served by public
utilities.
Most Washington residents ob
tain their power from public
utilities, while the Oregon cus
tomers are served by private
utilities.
-,<3 STORIES TO BE TOLD
-LTI CTnDFA D ADA CCD A WT A F\ A Q
orHISTORIA PARA SER CANTADAS
By Osvaldo Dragun
“The Man with the Abscessed
Tooth’’
‘ The Story of the Man Who Tumed
into a Dog”
“The Story of Panchito Gonzalez”
April 14, 15, 19. 20, 21, 22
8:00 P.M.
Box Office Noon - Five Daily
686-4191
Adm. $1.25
Arena Theatre
are you robbing
your body of
vitamins?
Bronson
Pharmaceuticals
can supply the answer
with their FREE
information on
nutrition.
Find out for yourself what proper nutrition is — and what you need in food
supplements. Discover the hidden facts about so-called "natural”
vitamins. Learn how to read a label to find out what you’re getting for the
price. Become familiar with 71 different vitamin products. This
information is available right here on campus — and you can get a
selection of Bronson vitamins here, too. They are superior vitamin
products at 50 to 60 percent less.
uo
13th & Kincaid
686-4331
Open:
Mon-Fri 8:15-5:30
Sat 10:00-2:00
BOOKSTORE