Dear Editor,

The latest information on how to sort our recyclable refuse came in the mail as a black and white flyer from the local municipality. It indicates that we must decode what kind of container is biodegradable as it can no longer be put in with the recyclable material, nor can anything that is dirty. This is a given, but how do we figure out what kind of container is biodegradable? There are sites listed to visit but this is tedious business and not everyone has access to internet.

The other problem is that many types of containers now have recycling fees added on to the price. You may have noticed you are now being charged an extra fee for certain containers that are recoverable only if you return them to the store. The manufacturers have their own special transportation systems separate from the local garbage collection that ensures the items are recycled. We have heard how most recycling doesn’t even get to the recycling depot but gets mixed with regular garbage, so this is a step forward to making the manufacturer pay and therefore recycle.

This confusion at the bin is a mini example of how our garbage management process leaves the consumer doing a lot of legwork trying to figure out how to participate. From the outset, the public is not given any opportunity to participate in decision making on how they want their garbage to be handled locally, other than attending public forums and simple surveys. They are left with picking up the pieces rather than making educated decisions on the range of possible choices and the ways to mitigate costs.

There’s been an ongoing effort on the part of some mayors and councillors to educate the public on the ins and outs of recycling, most recently by sending out this flyer as well as going door-to-door doing surveys and distributing fridge magnets. But where were the councillors and mayors who don’t attend the MRC sessions to educate them on the plan for recycling? They are tasked with educating and representing us. But is that fair?

This flyer reflects an effort to make sense of the ongoing changes in directions taken by the MRC management committee that has never made information available directly to citizens. We sit nervously wondering how the powers that be will deal with our recyclable refuse and the incurred cost that will be added on to our yet-to-be sent-out municipal tax bill.

The funding guidelines seem to be the sticking point for little progress on the part of municipalities and they defer to waiting for guidance from above, which leaves us in the no man’s land of having an opinion but no one wanting to represent us locally. There are rumours of municipalities having the ability to opt out of door-to-door pickup if they can prove they have alternative means to satisfy the regulations. At the very least, can we individually opt out and not be charged if we don’t want to send our compostable material away?

There are endless examples of ways we can be responsible waste managers finding local solutions, but the question remains, where is the government money that is supposed to provide for these less environmentally harmful practices? Decisions are being made at the MRC level that preclude having municipal access to these funds. In the meantime, those who are doing their own garbage processing have found some alternatives that require little or no financial investment and offer great returns. The local examples include outdoor hot and cold composting, and indoor worm composting of paper products, animal and human by-products and, of course, vegetable matter.

The second Seedy Saturday taking place on Saturday, Mar. 27 at the Ladysmith Community Hall this year will feature these options and anything of a seedy nature. Will someone from the MRC’s environment division be there to answer our questions?

Cathy Fox, Portage du Fort