The Daily Tar HeelWednesday, AprU 1, 19923
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Campus and City Reports
Campus
Sunday, March 29
The Student Union Underground
was the site of six counts of breaking
and entering and larceny and three at
tempts of breaking and entering Sunday
afternoon, according to police reports
Between noon and 2 p.m., unknown
suspects pried open the change doors of
the Cyclone and Bad Girls pinball ma
chines and the Galaga, Arch Rivals,
Touchdown Fever and Turbo Force
video games. The suspects then emp
tied the money drawers, carrying off
about $400 in quarters. Three other
machines had been tampered with.
Damage to the machines is estimated
at $100. Police are continuing the in
vestigation.
An unknown suspect damaged a
vehicle parked in Hill Lot about 1:30
a.m., causing $500 worth of damage,
The suspect walked on the vehicle's
hood and fell on its windshield, police
reports stated.
Saturday, March 28
A man who made his own license
plate for his car was stopped by police at
the corner of South Road and Stadium
Drive.
William Douglas Young, of
' Franklinton, was seen driving down
Stadium Drive by University Police
officers at 1 :30 p.m. When the officers
found that they couldn't make out the
stickers on his license tag, they stopped
Young.
The plate was found to be a novelty
tag with red stickers in the comers,
When police ran an identification check,
it was found that Young's license had
been revoked.
Young was arrested for driving with
fictitious plates, driving with a revoked
license and operating a vehicle without
insurance.
Officers stopped a man who was
seen carrying a beer in the F-Lot about
8 p.m.
Darryl Jerome Coleman, a Raleigh
resident, was issued a citation for un
derage possession of a malt beverage
after being identified as under 2 1 years
of age.
Shaun C. Donegan of Chapel Hill
and Gabriel Pearce Godwin, a Raleigh
resident, were issued citations on Sta
dium Drive for underage possession of
a malt beverage.
Police spotted Donegan and Godwin
walking south on Stadium Drive carry
ing beer. When their driver's licenses
were checked and they were identified
as under the age of 2 1,, they were issued
individual citations on the charge.
Friday, March 27
A visiting student from Duke Uni
versity accidentally broke the gate arm
in the Hanes Visitor's Parking Lot.
At 4:05 p.m., the attendant told the
student to drive around the booth and go
tp another parking lot since the Hanes
lot was full. A van was leaving at the
same time, and the gate arm was still up.
The student thought the attendants were
holding the gate arm up for him, so he
drove under the falling arm. On impact,
the arm broke over the student's car.
".-The student was very cooperative
and said he would pay for the damages
if necessary, according to police re
ports. City
Monday, March 30
A Chapel Hill woman reported that
her neighbor accidentally discharged a
firearm through the wall of her apart
ment, police reports stated.
: The woman, who is a resident of
Brookstone Apartments, was not at
home at the time of the incident, accord
ing to police reports. Her neighbor wrote
her a letter notifying her of the incident
and agreed to pay for any damages,
police reports stated
'. A police officer spoke to the neigh
bor and confirmed that the shot was
accidental, reports stated.
Saturday, March 28
! UAn assault was reported at 303
Broad St. in Carrboro, according to
police reports.
The victim of the assault said the
suspect attempted to choke her after
they had an argument, police reports
stated.
The victim said she wanted no action
taken against the suspect, reports stated.
Friday, March 27
A Durham man tried to pass a
forged, stolen check, according to po
lice reports.
: ; Michael Shane Shalterfield of 21 12
Broad St., Apartment E-45 , was charged
with uttering a worthless check, posses
sion of stolen property and possession
of drug paraphernalia, reports stated.
Shatterfield was placed on $5,000
secured bond, reports stated.
cientete, Jr JLPA
By Brendan Smith
Suff Writer
Warning: Strawberries may be haz
ardous to your health.
Every weekday, workers inMulberry,
Fla., load strawberries into the nation's
first food irradiator plant. The berries
pass through chambers where glowing
rods of cobalt-60 bombard them with
1 00,000 rads of gamma radiation, equal
to about 10 million medical X-rays.
Despite guarantees by state and fed
eral officials that the irradiation of food
is safe, some scientists and environ
mentalists remain unconvinced.
Food is irradiated either to kill bacte
ria such as salmonella, which causes
food poisoning, orto increasethe food's
shelf life. Irradiation does not make
food radioactive.
The Food and Drug Administration
approved irradiation for fruits and veg
etables in 1986 and for poultry in 1990,
but irradiated foods had not been readily
available in the United States until the
Florida plant opened in January.
Vindicator of Florida Inc., a private
company, opened the plant after six
years of planning and building.
There are more than 140 industrial
irradiator plants located in more than 40
countries, but their primary use is the
sterilization of disposable medical
equipment.
Harley Everett, executive vice presi
dent of Vindicator, said food irradiation
could greatly reduce deaths associated
with salmonella bacteria in poultry.
According to a special Atlanta Journal-Constitution
report, the Center for
Disease Control estimates that at least 2
million people were poisoned by sal
monella bacteria in 1990, and as many
as 2,000 people died.
"I could have pointed to gravestones
and said I could have stopped that (with
irradiation)," Everett said.
The World Health Organization has
approved the irradiation of poultry as a
health safety measure for developing
countries.
The Vindicator plant treats about
1 00,000 pounds of strawberries an hour
to sell to local wholesalers, Everett said.
Irradiation doubles the shelf life of
strawberries from one week to two
weeks, he said.
I?
esidents call for shaded,
By Julie Flick
Staff Writer
Chapel Hill pedestrians would ben
efit from extended sidewalk networks,
gravel paths and shade trees, a group of
residents told town planners at a public
hearing Tuesday night.
Eva Metzger, a 30-year resident of
Chapel Hill, said planners would have
no trouble deciding where to build new
sidewalks.
"All we need to do is go out there and
look where pedestrians have made path
ways and add sidewalks there," Metzger
said.
aiuiar.
opt to share class
treasurer's post
By Kathleen Keener
Staff Writer
Michael Dannarand Kristin Mullins
have decided to join forces and be
come co-treasurers for the senior class,
pending Student Congress approval.
: Duetocomplicalions with the Elec
tions Board, the campaign was much
longer than either candidate expected,
Dannar said. He and Mullins became
friends while they campaigned for the
position of treasurer.
Congress representatives will vote
next week on whether they will allow
co-treasurers.
The run-off for the position origi
nally was scheduled for before Spring
Break, but was postponed until March
17 and then until March 24.
Dannar said he did not know why
the run-off was postponed several
times. "The Elections Board has been
very difficult to work with they
don't return phone calls, and they are
impossible to get in touch with."
Melvin Davis, Elections Board
chairman, could not be reached for
comment.
Mullins said publicizing another
run-off election was difficult because
students and administrators were ready
for campus elections to be over.
Both candidates real ized ho w much
Bring Resumes! Business Dress Recommended
The FDA-required radura is an
international symbol for irradiated food
Company executives hope to expand
the company and open more plants to
treat more foods, Everett said.
Barbara Ward-Grobes, public affairs
specialist for the FDA, said the agency
had done many studies on irradiation.
"The agency has moved very care
fully in the area of food irradiation," she
said. "Without a doubt, we are sure the
process is a safe one."
Despite FDA approval, some scien
tists and environmental groups have
questioned the safety of irradiation and
the reliability of the FDA's studies.
Michael Colby, president of the New
York-based Food and Water Inc., said
FDA toxicity studies have not been
sufficient to ensure public health. The
non-profit advocacy group formed in
1986 to oppose food irradiation.
Of the 441 toxicity studies commis
sioned by the FDA, 436 were ruled
invalid by the agency because they did
not meet its standards.
Two of the remaining five studies
were found to be methodologically
flawed, and a third study suggested ad
verse effects of irradiated food on older
animals, according to an article in The
Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists by Dr.
Donald Louria of the New Jersey Medi
cal School.
"These three studies do not docu
ment the safety of food irradiation, and
why the FDA relied on them is mystify
ing," Louria states in the article.
The remaining two studies were
sound, but they used foods irradiated at
See IRRADIATE, page 9
David Bonk, Chapel Hill transporta
tion planner, presented the town's 1992
pedestrian plan, which proposes estab
lishing pedestrian precincts around high
activity areas.
Precincts would include land within
a quarter of a mile of any activity center,
such as a school or shopping mall. The
town would construct convenient, user
friendly pathways within precincts, and
the areas would be located on public
transit routes, Bonk said.
Remaining Capital Improvement
Program funds totaling $30,000 have
been allocated to fund sidewalk con
struction described in the pedestrian
ulliiis
the other wanted the office, so they
decided to work together.
"We both really wanted it and had
good ideas, and I knew Michael would
do just as good a job as me," Mullins
said.
Dannar said the length of the cam
paign also factored in to their decision
: to combine efforts.
"We decided to try to be co-treasurers
because we had talked on the phone
so much, we were really compatible,
and we bothreally wanted it,"he added.
Mullins said having co-treasurers
for the senior class would be benefi
cial. "It gives another person the oppor
tunity to participate in student govern
ment," she said.
Mullins said she and Dannar would
split the duties of treasurer in order to
make the office more efficient.
"On paper I want the duties di
vided," she said. "That way we won't
have double phone calls to (the Stu
dent Activities Fund Office)."
The vote was so close in the first
election it was as if they were both
elected, Mullins said.
In the first election, Dannarreceived
1 20 votes, and Mullins garnered 106.
Bob Paty and Elizabeth Mitchell
are the newly elected senior class presi
dent and vice president.
M
QcM 131!
er
Local man seeks ban on irradiated food
By Brendan Smith
Staff Writer
The management of a local market
has refused to sell irradiated foods and
is pushing state legislators to ban them
because of health risks it believes the
foods might pose to consumers.
Irradiated foods have been exposed
to gamma rays either to increase the
food's shelf life or to kill bacteria that
causes food poisoning. Food does not
become radioactive in the process.
Keith Hayes, communications man
ager for Weaver Street Market in
Carrboro, said the Food and Drug
Administration did not perform
enough studies todetermine the health
effects of food irradiation before it
approved irradiation for fruits and
vegetables in 1986.
"The testing is inadequate, so many,
many people would argue that the
possibility of cancer evolving from
(eating) irradiated food is possible,"
Hayes said.
After writing to about 20 state leg
islators urging them to support a ban
on irradiated food, Hayes said he re
ceived no response. Hayes also said
he had not found any local scientists
who would support a ban.
Maine has banned irradiated foods,
and New York and New Jersey have
placed moratoriums on the sale of
irradiated foods. Countries including
Australia, West Germany and Den
mark also have either banned or se
verely limited the production of irra
diated food.
The radura, an irradiation symbol
required by the FDA, is not sufficient,
Hayes said. No information about the
dangers of irradiation is required on
food packaging, he said.
Hayes said he hoped consumers
would reject irradiated foods.
"Now is the time that consumers
can make adifference," he said. "They
can refuse to buy irradiated foods and
kill this industry. Now that this issue
has become more prominent in the
media, it raises the stakes for politi
cians." plan.
Rachel Willis.aplanning boardmem
ber, said the town's sidewalks needed
shade trees for the summer months.
"One of the main reasons people in
Chapel Hill don't walk for five or six
months peryear is because it's too hot,"
Willis said. "Planting a strip of shade
trees would change people's percep
tions." Henry Whitfield, a 55-year resident
of Chapel Hill, said more sidewalks
were needed near schoolhouses and in
the periphery of town, not in the center
of town.
"Unless you're going to double pave
Town planning to make buildings
more accessible to handicapped
By EmihRuss
Staff Writer
Chapel Hill's enforcer of the federal
act that requires removing physical bar
riers for handicapped residents said the
town was formulating a plan to comply
with the new regulations.
"We have been charged with making
sure that the town is complying in the
proper manner with the (federal) guide
lines," said Joyce Smith, local co-coordinator
of Americans with Disabilities
Act.
The Americans with Disabilities Act
of 1990, which went into effect Jan. 26,
requires local governments to appoint
coordinators to execute the guidelines.
More accessible handicap parking
Recession prompts council
By Brendan Smith
Staff Writer
Statecutbacks and the recession have
forced the Chapel Hill Town Council to
cut the town's Capital Improvements
Program by more than 70 percent.
During the past five years, the coun
cil allocated between $400,000 and
$500,000 to the CTP each year, but
Town Manager Cal Horton recom
mended Monday that the council limit
its CIP spending to $230,000 during the
next two years.
Horton said he hoped to increase CIP
spending after the next two years. The
council allocates funds to the CIP to
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Keith Hayes of Weaver Street Market is
Robert Gordon, director of the N.C.
Food and Drug Protection Division, said
the state had not considered supporting
a ban because it was satisfied with the
FDA's testing of irradiated foods.
"We feel like we must use the expe
gravel sidewalks
these sidewalks or put them on campus,
I think it's a waste of time," Whitfield
said. "The University has paved every
inch of campus with brick, and I don't
know when they're going to stop."
Kathleen Cheape, a retired Univer
sity law school librarian, suggested the
town use gravel instead of bricks for
sidewalks.
Cheape said she had fallen twice
because of uneven or missing bricks on
the University campus.
"I think if you're going to put in lay
bricks, you should have careful mainte
nance," she said. "I think these bricks
are expensive, and I resent the high
near building entrances, wider parking
spaces and wider curb cuts are man
dated by the ordinance. Doorways that
are 32 inches wide, unobstructed path
ways, wider bathroom stalls and ac
commodating bathroom facilities also
are required by the ordinance.
Smith said another change outlined
in the ordinance would have an impact
on local buildings. Threshold levels in
many buildings exceed 2 inches, mak
ing buildings inaccessible to people
using wheelchairs. These levels must
be shortened to 12 inch, she said.
Coordinators are determining how
town facilities must to be changed and
are identifying specific alterations and
deadlines that the town must meet.
An outline for the changes will be
provide for costly projects that cannot
be funded by the town department bud
gets. Department officials request CIP
funds, and the town manager recom
mends proposals to the council.
From a list of 33 proposed projects,
the council emphasized the importance
of funding sidewalk construction, the
Greenways projects and the leasing and
upgrading of Glen Lennox Fields. The
town has proposed leasing the fields
from the University to use as soccer
facilities.
Council member Mark Chilton said
he was concerned that other projects
needing funds would be denied.
'There aren't a whole lot of options
3
DTHMiXwCline
lobbying legislators to ban irradiated food
rience of the FDA," he said. "No one
state has the money or the expertise to
test or clear something of this magni
tude." See WEAVER, page 9
taxes. Chapel Hill gravel is fine. It's
ecologically sound because the water
runs off, it doesn't harm the trees, and it
is compatible with the atmosphere of
uptown."
Tim Stevens, an area resident, re
quested that a sidewalk be laid on North
Columbia Street.
Pat Evans, a planning board mem
ber, suggested the town build a path
along U.S. 15-501 Bypass.
"There is very little space to walk
safely, even underneath the overpass,"
Evans said. "If we want people to walk
instead of driving their cars, we need to
provide them with safe sidewalks."
complete by July 26, Smith said.
Changes to public buildings must be
completed in three years, she said, add
ing that the renovations would not be
difficult for the town to complete.
Buildings constructed after Jan. 26,
1992, will be required by the town to
comply with the new ordinance.
"There is a lot that can be done," said
Martha Barbee, honorary co-chairwoman
of the Orange County Disabil
ity Awareness Council. "When build
ings are built, we want to be included to
give our expertise."
Barbee, who is blind, said that she
was happy with the upcoming changes
and that she hoped the ordinance would
See DISABLED, page 9
to cut funding
here," Chilton said. "We're really look
ing at a bare-bones program."
The Greenways project involves ac
quisition and landscaping of land along
the town's streams to prevent erosion
and provide hiking trails.
Greenways Commission members
said during a work session with the
council Monday night that they needed
$50,000 a year in CIP funds for the next
five years. Under the present CTP plan,
the commission would receive $40,000
during the next two years.
Funds are limited because $60,000
has been earmarked for projects the
See CAPITAL, page 5
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