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PAGE 28, WHITBY FREE PRESS, WEDNESDAY, APRIL 26, 1989 Region defers decision on short-term dump site By Mike Johnston For the second day in a row last week, Durham Region's council chambers were packed with Pickering residents oppos- ing the proposed new short-term durnp. And after many deputation's requesting ublic involvement, council voted o defer a decision for four weeks and to hold at least one public meeting in Pick- ering. Durham's waste mangement cornmittee had recommen ded two sites, one in north Pickering, known as P1, located north of Taunton Rd., and the other on the federal airport lands, also in north Pickering. The site would be used by both Durham and Metro from 1992 to 1996 while the five regional municipalities within the greater Toronto area (GTA) search for a 20-year dump site. If Durham was to open the new dump, Metro would sto taking garbage to the Broc West site, also in Pickering, and would divert its waste to Keele Valley in Vaughan..This would give Durham dumping capacity at Brock West until 1992. Durham had' also looked at a Newcastle site but that location was discarded, according to Art Leitch, director of operations. He said the north Pickering site would not require trucks todrive through Durham Region, is remote from the five lakeshore municipalities, and is provin- cially owned. (The Province has agreed to provide the land for the use, according to regional chair- man Gary Herrema.) As part of GTA, each of the five municipalities was to offer a contingency site for short-term garbage use. Leitch said Metro h ad offered a site near the Rouge Valley known as M3 but removed it after tremendous public out- crin face of that opposition Metro stopped and looked out- side their boundaries," said Leitch. Bile Parish, chairman of the Ajax Pickering Citizens Together (PACT) for the Environemnt, who led the fight for morenpublic participation, did not mix his words after council's decision. "It is Herrema's (regional chairman Gary Herrema) mmd- chairman GaryHerrema) im n set to be in bed with Metro. That is part of the problem," said Parish. During the next four weeks, Parishsaid PACT will hold its own public meetings to advise the residents of Pickering about the dump. The four weeks will not offer any new answers to the problem, according to waste management committee chairman and Osh- awa councillor John Aker. "I don't see any changes. No one offered us a solution to our garbage crisis," said Aker after the meeting. But Parish had argued that as Iong as Metro can dump its gar age outside its boundaries it would never seriously get invol- . Canada Pos.t . .. .Co..e.rat.k... Keeping our comtment M rural Canada One of the most important parts of our commitment to rural Canadians is making postal products and services more accessible. To help us do this, we draw on the resources and the expertise of local busi- ness. Where practical, we are approaching business people in communities across the country and offering them the opportunity to provide you with postal products and services. As a result, you can now buy postal products or services in more locations at convenient hours, often including evenings and weekénds. Realbenefitsfor everyone More outlets. The objective is to increase the number of rural locations where you can access postal products or services from 5,000 to 7,000. More convenience. Retail postal outlets are conveniently located in businesses close to other services in communities across Canada. Longer business hours give you even more accessibility to postal products. More business for local merchants. Local merchants are being given an opportunity to provide postal products or services. This strengthens their business through increased customer traffic, and maintains the business base of the community. More efficient service. With local merchants retailing postal products and services, Canada Post Corporation is able to concentrate on reliable pick-up, processing and delivery of mail to Canadians. Canada Post Corporation is delivering on its promise. We're in rural Canada to stay. MAILb3|POSTE Canada Post Corporation/ Société canadienne des postes Our commitment: better service for you. vUntil Metro has to face dump- ing in the Rouge Valley it wont tackle the four Rs (recycling, reuse, reduce and recovery). The world class city is in this respect a low class city," said Parish. Hie view was shared by a number of Pickeringresidents, most of them living in or near Whitevale, which would be adja- cent to the dump. "Bigger holes are not the answer. Neither is taking gar- bage to the ozone layer in a rocketship. I understand there is a hole up there. GTA will not encourage people to recycle» said AI War , who owns a dinner theater on Altona Rd. which would be across the street from the dump. He suggested that an ymoney Durham would receive by open- ing the dump "is not enough to ravage part of our country.» A report from the waste management committee noted that Durham would receive $25.9-million in royalties and rebates from Metro if it opened the dump. Metro and Durham wouîd share the cost of opening the dump, which could run into $10-million. "A 1,000-acre mega-dump is no tem porary landfill dum.The pblic i not an ass," sai sae Thmp son, a Whitevale resident. Inhis comments to council, Aker said the dump provides a solution to Durham's garbage cri- sis. "There is no phian B or faIl-back position. And the Province won't assist ua if we are not part of GTA," said Aker. But Parish disageed. "There is no pi an B because there is no pohitical will for a plan B. We are being ciubbed by the Province and bribed by Metro," said Parish. "It is never a uality decision when you are under a gun or a club," added Parish. No date has yet been set for the meeting. Federal lands not available: Soetens Federal airport lands will not be available for a proposed Dur- ham-Metro mega-dump, accord- ing to Ontario riding MP Rene Soetens. Soetens told The Free Press that he has discussed Durham's proposal for the dump with Transport Minister Benoit Bou- chard and learned that the land is not for use as a dump site. "The iRegion should get that out of their minds," said Soetens, who is opposed to Durham join- ing Metro for either a short- or longterm dump site. "Metro has abused Pickering (through Brock West) for 15 y ears. In the short- or longterm, urham should have nothing to do with Metro under any circum- stances." Soetens is also opposed to the Pi site in north Pickering, which Durham has also suggested for a dump site. Soetens had no suggestions for an alternative but he noted that Durham councillors said they couldn't recycle years ago and are now one of the leading muni- cipalities in recycling. "They're not looking hard enough. They are seeing this as an opportuntiy to get some money. He also had a warning for Whitby councillors who vote in favor of the Pickering location. "If councillors in Whitby con- tinue to vote for Pickering and the dump doesn't go there they should know Whitby has a lot more land available than Picker- ing,"he said. He explained that a vote to join Metro in a short-term dump is also a vote to exempt bth municipalities from a full environmental assessment hear- ing. SEE PAGE 38