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OAKVILLE BEAVER Friday, April 17, 2009 · 6 OPINION & LETTERS The Oakville Beaver 467 Speers Rd., Oakville Ont. L6K 3S4 (905) 845-3824 Fax: 337-5571Classified Advertising: 845-3824, ext. 224 Circulation: 845-9742 Editorial and advertising content of the Oakville Beaver is protected by copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited. THE OAKVILLE BEAVER IS PROUD OFFICIAL MEDIA SPONSOR FOR: NEIL OLIVER Vice ­ President and Group Publisher of Metroland West The Oakville Beaver is a division of Media Group Ltd. DAVID HARVEY General Manager JILL DAVIS Editor in Chief ROD JERRED Managing Editor DANIEL BAIRD Advertising Director RIZIERO VERTOLLI Photography Director SANDY PARE Business Manager MARK DILLS Director of Production MANUEL GARCIA Production Manager CHARLENE HALL Director of Distribution SARAH MCSWEENEY Circ. Manager Good news on the green front Perhaps it's only fitting that as Earth Day April 22, 2009 approaches, the Region of Halton has some good news to release about it's waste diversion program. In case you missed it, the Regional announced earlier this week that more than 60 per cent of Halton's waste is now being recycled instead of ending up in the landfill site just north of Oakville. While the number could be higher, and should be higher, the 60 per cent figure represents an improvement over previous years. The figures released at Wednesday's regional public works committee meeting are encouraging: · The diversion rate for the last three quarters of 2008 is almost 20 per cent higher than that achieved in 2007, primarily due to higher than expected participation in household recycling. · Blue Box participation rates exceed 90 per cent on a weekly basis and GreenCart participation rates average 79 per cent in the urban areas and 61 per cent in the rural areas. · More than 121,000 tonnes of organic and recycling/reuse material was diverted from landfills in 2008. Just over 4,000 tonnes of recycling materials and organic waste collected was sent back to landfills as residual waste. Thanks to this increased waste diversion, the Region now estimates its landfill site on Regional Road 25 in Milton will not reach capacity until 2030, an extension of seven years from its 2007 estimate. There is room for improvement and next year, the Region aims to have all eligible schools included in the organic waste recycling program as well as adding more townhouse complexes to the program. Clearly the majority of Halton residents are participating in the Blue Box or GreenCart programs. As for the others, we have to ask, why not? The Oakville Beaver welcomes letters from its readers. Letters will be edited for clarity, length, legal considerations and grammar. In order to be published all letters must contain the name, address and phone number of the author. Letters should be addressed to The Editor, Oakville Beaver, 467 Speers Rd., Oakville, ON, L6K 3S4, or via e-mail to editor@oakvillebeaver.com. The Beaver reserves the right to refuse to publish a letter. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Apply common sense to next power plant site On Tuesday, I attended an open house for one of the competitors in the Ontario Power Authority's competitive procurement process for the construction of a natural gas-fueled power plant in the GTA. At least two of the sites that may host the winning bid are within sight of residential areas of eastern Oakville. The area already has elevated levels of pollution -- due in part to the existing industry, highway traffic and geographic depression sloping to the lake which, I've heard, restricts dispersion of ground level ozone etc. Despite the current situation within this area, the competitors are selling their bids on the fact that gas-fired plants pollute much less than coal fired plants. Agreed -- but that doesn't make it okay to add more pollution into the air around heavilypopulated residential areas. Less polluting alternatives are still more pollution to us. Understandably, we need new sources of electricity, however, can we not put these needed plants in true industrial areas -- away from well-populated residential areas? Where is the common sense? DAVID SPICER Recyclables shouldn't be blowing in the wind Has anyone else noticed the strong winds that seem to blow every time we put out our blue boxes? Without fail, the winds get stronger the night before waste collection, rising almost to a gale force that diminishes once the recycle truck has left the neighbourhood. Maybe it's an unforeseen effect of global warming, but one thing's certain: We need to take action. For goodness' sake, neighbours, pack your blue bins so that the Pud BY STEVE NEASE snease@haltonsearch.com This week's poll This week's question is: The Ontario Medical Association wants calorie content to be posted in restaurants and school cafeterias. Is this a good idea? · Yes · No To vote, visit oakvillebeaver.com. The Oakville Beaver is a member of the Ontario Press Council. The council is located at 80 Gould St., Suite 206, Toronto, Ont., M5B 2M7. Phone 416-340-1981. Advertising is accepted on the condition that, in the event of a typographical error, that portion of advertising space occupied by the erroneous item, together with a reasonable allowance for signature, will not be charged for, but the balance of the advertisement will be paid for at the applicable rate. The publisher reserves the right to categorize advertisements or decline. See Pack page 8