Letter to the Editor - Re: “Gabriola Radio Station” Letter to the Editor in Jan. 2 Sounder
Do we need music in our lives, as we need air, food and water? Well, no, I suppose we don’t. Do we nonetheless want music? Of course we do. Similarly, while we may not absolutely require a Gabriola community radio station in order to exist, a great many of us see it as a very valuable addition to our island way of life.
A local community radio station is quite different from an off-island campus radio station which exists primarily to serve a mostly youthful audience of students. Our station will address – and be participated in by – all age groups and will greatly help co-ordinate and disseminate all the many creative activities of our island. How the station will ultimately evolve is entirely up to those Gabriolans who become involved.
Technically, establishing the station involves installing a very low power 60 watt transmitter which will be located in a high elevation treed area largely screened from view. Standing in front of a microwave oven, or even making a cell phone call, would expose you to vastly more electromagnetic radiation than this tower ever could.
Fire, ambulance and police services will be able to use the station’s tower to improve their coverage. In the interests of public safety, they will also be able to maintain communications even during power outages.
After long campaigning, the federal government has granted us the exclusive use of an assigned frequency. Now it’s up to us to get the station up and running for all Gabriolans!
For more information on your very own community radio station, please visit www.CKGI.ca.
~ Ken Zakreski
On behalf of the CKGI Gabriola Co-op Radio Board