The ability to actually feel the difference between a healthy and an unhealthy lung is just around the corner for the Council on Alcohol and Drug Abuse Prevention.

As the group embarks on its new focused direction of prevention, the substance abuse prevention centre has emerged as an exciting venue and was showcased to the public on Saturday.

The Centre for Alcohol and Drug Abuse (CADA) have set up a very modern facility in the Stables Building on 91 Reid Street in Pembroke.

The CADA Prevention Resource Centre will open from Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. and on Saturdays from 9 a.m. to noon.

Outfitted with two computers connected to the Internet, Cathy Belvedere, CADA's associate director, explained that students and any member of the public will be able to come in and do research on alcohol and substance abuse.

Also on hand are CD Roms which CADA's community programme coordinator, Gina Spence, explained are geared to different age groups.

"We really wanted this resource programme to work and got many people from the grassroots level involved,'' she said.

"It's no good us just deciding it would be good to have this and good to have that,'' she continued. "We wanted to have things on hand that will really interest people, especially the youth.

"Some of those CD roms have rap music which is where it's at with the young folk, and that will give more impact to the delivery of the message.'' A television and video recorder are set in front of a comfortable sectional couch unit in the prevention resource centre.

"In this area people can stop to watch one of the many videos we have on hand,'' said Mrs. Belvedere, "or they can certainly borrow one.'' "We hope to attract school groups and have a training room upstairs where we could show a video if the group is too large for this area,'' she added.

"We aim to make this a multi-media interactive museum atmosphere. We want to be creative and make the experience interesting and memorable to drive home our prevention message.'' A healthy human lung and an unhealthy one is just one idea Mrs. Belvedere has up her sleeve to help make the centre more interactive.

"You know if children and people can come in and actually feel first hand the difference in the two lungs, this will make the learning experience greater and more interesting,'' she said.