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6 stouffville suntribune thursday jan 12004 opinion publisher ian pr0u0f00t telephone 9056402612 fax 9056408778 email jmasonymgcom website wwwyoiicregioncom editorial public has right to know about sewage treatment with yet more reports of problems at york regions sewage treatment plants one would think the region would be going out of its way to assure residents this is not a public health and safety issue most recently three of york- regions seven sewage treatment plants failed ministry of environment inspections at mount albert and stouffville plants effluent was being released into the envi ronment in an exclusive news story in todays newspaper former york region employ ee steve young who acted as a class 4 operator in the water and wastewater department tells how concerns he had about processes at yorks sewage treat ment plants fell on deaf ears just one more incident in a litany of concerns this spring the region was fined 16000 on four administrative charges a legal battle is to proceed jan 22 over ministry charges resulting from a spill in sutton in may 2001 last august 200000 litres of sewage spilled into tannery creek the ministry continues to investigate the region was previously fined 35000 over a large sewage spill in markham rather than assure the public steps are being taken to address what appears to be systemic problems with its sewage treatment facilities regional officials have yet to even acknowledge problems exist instead of assuring residents the envi ronment is safe however york region has refused to answer even the most rudimentary questions it even refused to disclose how many treatment plants it operates and where they are located using the hapless excuse of the upcom ing court case over the woodriver bend mishap in sutton york region has clearly forgotten for whom it works us fortunatelyforthepublicwearefind- ing out about the problems due to the ministrys tough new stance as dis turbing as that may be to a region that prefers to keep things under wraps lets not ignore the lesson of walkerton the ministry has cracked down on water filtration plants clearly its time to take a tougher look at sewage treatment instead of focusing on fighting min istry charges the region should be answering questions about the reliabili ty of the sewage treatment system co- letters to the editor stouffville sewage plant example of growth problems if one was properly motivated it seems unlikely it would take a whole lot of time or effort in perusing the recent archives of this publication before one would come across a trend one would find accounts of a concerned individual or group telling the council of the day the process of approving every residen tial retail or commercial development brought before them without first ensuring the proper infrastructure existed would return in the notsodistant future and bite us on a fleshy place where we would prefer not to be bitten judging by the story trouble brewing at york plants in the dec 26 suntribune that exact scenario has reared its ugly head before us stouffvilles waste treatment plant appar ently is prone to causing some environmental damage and may lead to charges laid hmm no doubt this legal effluent will stick to the hapless operators of the facility and not the politicians whose lack of foresight caused the problems of under capacity in the first place sadly these days far too many politicians suffer from the unfortunate malady that allows them to make hastily imprudent deci- the stouffville suntribune welcomes your letters all submissions must be less than 400 words and must include a daytime telephone number name and addressthe stouffville suntribune reserves the right to publish or not publish and to edit for clarity and space write letters to the editor34 gvic ave po box 154 stouffville l4a 7z5 email jmasonymgcom sions without at least some small part of their brains considering the possible ramifica tions too much waste created for the sewage plant to handle not enough water in the sum mer for basic needs prompting rationing and shortages gridlockinducing traffic noise pollution blackouts crime need i go on one thing is for sure though rampant growth without the proper safeguards in place is a recipe for disaster and in some cases may even border on criminal even more sadly however it is usually someone or something else who ends up pay ing the price for the lack of consideration given to such matters and as for those who are really at fault they are lucky to have two things going for them elections are years apart and voters have frighteningly short memories hugotkroon bethesda suntnbune a metroland community newspaper 34 gvic ave 3rd floor stouffville ontario l4a7z5 phone 9056402612 fax9056408778 classified 18007433353 distribution 9052948244 website wwwyorkregioncom email jmasonymgcom memberontario community newspapers association canadian community newspapers association ontario press council editor in chief debora kelly editor jim mason reporters joan ransberry hannelore volpe retail sales manager steve kane sales representative susanbeny production manager pamnichob office manager vrvianoneil business manager robert lazurko advertising director retail sales fryers nicole fletcher advertising director classified real estate events management gord paolucd managing director real estate mikerogerson director of production johnfuthey distribution manager barrybiadc sales manager new business development distribution dawna andrews general manager york region printing bob dean director marketing promotions debra welter shows manager stacey allen classified manager ann campbell off the top with jim mason beyond facade of main street growth an old friend popped into whitchurchstouffville over the christmas holidays he left flabbergasted what have they done with our town he said a resident of the community in the t 1960s and 1970s he was on the anti-pro- hibition forces that fought for liquor and beer stores in stouffville they eventu ally won doing away with the days of stouffvillites driving to markham for potable favourites now living in durham region our friend has been back to the old home town but not in the last two years i dont like it he said too much too fast those of us who drive main street every day take for granted the changes that have occurred on the strip call it the shift west x twentyone years ago downtown stouffville had two hardware stores a shoe store three clothing stores and a grocery store all were mom and pop operations no more now westend stouffville looks pret ty much like the entrance to orillia sault ste marie or belleville with the same fast food video and grocery stores despite my friends reservations theres little anyone could have done to alter the look my concern is less esthetic sobeys ap giant tiger blockbuster burger king and the others didnt pour millions of dollars into the main street strip to service the 12000 or so folks who now call stouffville home theyre after the business from hun dreds of new homes that will be built here after the big pipe sewage system is hooked to stouffville later this year and with those homes will come thousands of newcomers looking to reg ister their kids in minor sports take night school courses and go out for an evening are we ready for them and the fall out what about the social conse quences of growth will the markham stouffville family life centre offer more courses here will neighbourhood watch have a revival in a town where vandalism and theft are already the biggest troubles will we get the additional police patrols residents want well see very soon jim mason is editor of the stouffville suntribune