"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

Tuesday 20 January 2015

More About Hazardous Waste Heading For the Incinerator

community FOCUS Aurora Ontario has posted new content, 'What is the Clear
Garbage Bag Program - My Understanding'

According to the Town of Aurora the clear garbage bag program is a household
waste diversion program. It will require Aurora residents to switch from opaque
(usually black/green) garbage bags to clear (translucent) garbage bags. The
purpose of the program is to divert items away from the garbage which belong in
the recycling blue box, [...]

You may view the latest post at
http://www.livinginaurora.com/what-is-clear-garbage-bag


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When Margaret Thatcher was U.K. Prime  Minister an American company was permitted to build
an incinerator for toxic  waste in a  Scottish farm area

Employment was provided.

The disposal process required  exceedingly high temperatures.

Soon noticed was a high number of  still births and aborted litters among farm cats.

Cows ,with longer gestation periods aborted or had still- births or calves born with gross deformities.

Eventually, in turn, abnormally high rates of miscarriages, still-births and babies born with terrible abnormalities were noted among human mothers.

One particularly horrible example was of an infant with one eye and that in the middle of her forehead

Scottish National Television did a weekly series  covering the story in depth from start to finish .

Before they could be prosecuted the incinerator operation ceased and those responsible left the country.

Except of course for government officials responsible. The series ended without dealing with that
aspect.

A public inquiry revealed the incinerator had been deliberately operated at lower than required
temperature.

Toxic waste had been spewed unadulterated into the atmosphere to come down in rain on everything living within it's radius.

I was in Scotland for several months when the series was run.

During the decades the Region was searching for a way of dealing with garbage other than landfill,
elected  and appointed alike traipsed off to Europe to see for themselves, how the service  was being managed elsewhere.

Countries like Sweden, without landfill option, were successfully incinerating garbage.

Sweden is a country unlike many other. A social conscience is shared between government and the people. I doubt any private company is given responsibility for ensuring public and environmental safety.

Permission for  York Durham to use incineration to dispose of garbage was not easily obtained.The cost stated  in Wikipedia  was $15 million.

Capital construction was $276 million.

Claremont community opposed  the project until the bitter end.

But permission to incinerate.has conditions attached connected to successful separation of garbage stream collection.

The incinerator started operations in 2014   About the same time as the proposal to change to clear plastic bags.

Metals can  and are being recovered from the residual waste.

They are not therefore the reason as stated for the change to clear garbage bags.

There is no new hazard to garbage collectors.

York and Durham have contracted the operation of the plant while remaining entirely responsible for environmental standards.

Since this conversation started we have learned Staples and other retailers accept used  batteries.

Neither the Region nor the municipality provided that information.


5 comments:

Anonymous said...

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.

Anonymous said...

Every year there are collections of electronic waste right here in Aurora. One of the better ones is run at a school. The event run by the
town was poorly attended.
When you heard those numbers floated about regarding the degree of " compliance " of residents in the various "ideal ' municipalities one has to wonder how they are compiled - if they are even true.

Anonymous said...

I've taken my electronic waste to Best Buy and Staples. They don't charge you anything. Never did understand why the Town held these types of "events" unless they get some sort of waste rebate for it all.

Anonymous said...

The entire town is going to have to go through hoops & upheaval just to try & weed out a few who break the recycling rules. It simply is not going to work because the culprits are totally unaware of what they are doing & will continue to do it.

Anonymous said...

The Auroran is up and so is the cost of the Leisure Complex.
It is probably too early but I did not see any reply from Mr Ballard to last week's letter - maybe it will come up later tonight