"Cowardice asks the question...is it safe? Expediency asks the question...is it politic? Vanity asks the question...is it popular? But conscience asks the question...is it right? And there comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular but one must take it because it is right." ~Dr. Martin Luther King

Wednesday 21 January 2015

Courage Mes Amis ...Je Reviendrai

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "More About Hazardous Waste Heading For the Inciner...":

It is " supposed " to divert hazardous waste from the collection into the bins. everyone to whom I speak is already doing their best. Clear bags will do nothing to improve the situation. They just make the politicians feel better

Posted by Anonymous to Our Town and Its Business at 21 January 2015 at 10:0

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Hazardous waste does not go into bins.  Special depots have been set up within the region to receive batteries and electronic waste .

I think the devil is in the sorting  system. Too many details. Expectation of success is unrealistic.

ThIs morning I read the conditions of the environmental assessment approval....nineteen pages.

Entirely about monitoring.

An Advisory Committee is required to meet and report annually from date of approval; Oct. 2010.

The  committee  is composed of representatives from lower tier municipalities in York and Durham.
That's the town; nine in York, I don't know how many in Durham.

York is a 30% partner in the incinerator project.

I looked for annual reports that might reveal problems with public participation in garbage separation

They didn't pop up  quickly and I had had enough of repetitious jargon for one morning.

Aurora is following Markham  with the  clear bag program. It may mean Markham and Aurora are the only towns experiencing problems with participation.

It may not.

We know from back and forth here, some retailers  like Staples accept used batteries.

The CAA  took my car battery last Saturday .

We learned some  retailers are accepting plastic shopping bags for recycling.

We did not know that.

 I would guess the town didn't either. Else they would have told us...right?

$300 million public dollars have been invested on a system to dispose of garbage that depends
entirely on  public participation. .

Without it the system will not function effectively.

Yet what is required is use of a "clear (translucent) bag" as opposed to black or green.

Garbage collectors taking time to examine each bag to determine acceptability of contents.

If  acceptable bag proceeds

If not , collector removes safety gloves, retrieves sticker from wherever he keeps it. sticks it on the bag and returns it  to the curb.

Collection time is increased and more trucks and manpower required to complete the weekly collection.

It's a good thing garbage collectors are not town  employees hooked up to the Work Asset Management Software System.

I plan taking time off from the blog.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

I think Markham was held up as having the level for which Aurora should strive . But that was by the speaker who had put the system into Markham - he was not at an Aurora council meeting that evening on his own dime. He was clearly a proponent and cheer-leader.

Anonymous said...

I really do hope its vacation time. You will be missed.

Anonymous said...

You definitely will be missed. We have become so spoiled. Thank you, Evelyn

Anonymous said...


The blog will be here waiting for you when you return.

Use the time of your absence well.