Yesterday I wrote that two politicians on the Waste Management Committee were “incredulous” about things they found in a staff report on programs and priorities for 2008. It does strain credulity that we would allocate no funds in 2008 for composting while earmarking half a billion dollars for waste-to-energy (incineration) without any discussion.
I singled out Dan Johnston (Burnaby) and Peter Ladner (Vancouver) and thanked them for raising important questions about these priorities, but all 9 members of the Waste Management Committee deserve recognition. They are working hard on our behalf and making great headway.
This is a big change from five or six years ago. The waste committee used to receive reports and adopt staff recommendations with little or no comment. It’s easy to see why. These folks are overseeing the regional waste system - both sewage and garbage - off the sides of their desks, on top of all the work they do in their own municipalities.
This is why Zero Waste Vancouver will be calling on the Committee to form a public advisory committee to support them. Public participation was the key to success in Halifax, which has the most progressive waste management system in North America. The people of Halifax got a place at the table planning their community’s waste system. It got results. Let's do it here.
I singled out Dan Johnston (Burnaby) and Peter Ladner (Vancouver) and thanked them for raising important questions about these priorities, but all 9 members of the Waste Management Committee deserve recognition. They are working hard on our behalf and making great headway.
This is a big change from five or six years ago. The waste committee used to receive reports and adopt staff recommendations with little or no comment. It’s easy to see why. These folks are overseeing the regional waste system - both sewage and garbage - off the sides of their desks, on top of all the work they do in their own municipalities.
This is why Zero Waste Vancouver will be calling on the Committee to form a public advisory committee to support them. Public participation was the key to success in Halifax, which has the most progressive waste management system in North America. The people of Halifax got a place at the table planning their community’s waste system. It got results. Let's do it here.
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