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Volume 73, Number 36 GST Included $1.25 Wednesday September 22, 2010 Orono Town Hall Publications Mail Registration No. 09301 Agreement No. 40012366 Serving Kendal, Kirby, Leskard, Newcastle, Newtonville, Orono, Starkville and Tyrone since 1937 Regional candidates grilled on incinerator While the Region of Durham incinerator, slated to be built in Courtice, was approved by Regional Council in June 2009, it remains the number one issue of this election campaign. All of the candidates running for the two Regional Councillor seats were peppered with questions relating to the incinerator, at a candidates' meeting held last Tuesday in a Courtice church. Don MacArthur, Lynn McCulloch and incumbent Mary Novak are running against each other for the Ward 1 and 2 Regional seat. Gord Robinson, Willie Woo and Carl Zmozynski are running for the Ward 3 and 4 Regional seat, which will be vacated by Charlie Trim at the end of this term. Zmozynski sent the organizers a letter prior to the meeting which stated he was unable to attend for personal reasons. The very first question of the evening came from a Courtice resident who asked councillors what they will do to protect the residents of Clarington, in light of the fact that Covanta, the U.S. company selected by the Region to construct and operate the incinerator, has a long record of environmental violations in the U.S. Robinson's response was that the Ministry of the Environment will handle any concerns if the incinerator is ELECTION see page 3 Kirby school children stay after school to hang out on the slide. Kirby Centennial Public School held an open house last Tuesday evening with a BBQ and corn roast for all past, current and future members. Council ammends building policy In their second last meeting of this term, Clarington councillors ammendment their policy which restricted the use of municipally owned buildings for political activity. Two candidates in this fall's municipal election appeared before council Monday night asking councillors to strike down the policy. "Unfortunately, [Policy] H18 goes beyond its intended purpose," Steve Simic, Ward 3 Local Councillor Candidate, told councillors. The policy restricts freedom of speech on municipal property, according to Simic. The purpose of the restriction is to protect the integrity of the public service, according to policy H18. With the policy in place, community halls could not be used for events like candidate meetings. "This policy is undemocratic," Mayor Jim Abernethy said on Monday night. "We as members of council should not be restricting the democratic process from taking place." Councillor Willie Woo, who introduced an ammendment Monday night to remove the restrictive clause from the policy, said the policy restricts freedom of speech and the democratic process in buildings owned by the public. "These buildings should be used to further the election process, not hinder it," Tim Tufts, a Ward 4 Local Candidate told councillors Monday night. "If we support this," said Councillor Adrian Foster, who is seeking the Mayor's position, "[then] during a hockey game, I can go to arenas and distribute flyers." He warned against making policy on the fly, and the unintended consequences that could result if the policy was changed. Councillor Mary Novak agreed with Foster and said she worried about residents being accosted by candidates at a public venue, which could make the public uncomfortable. "If you are swimming, you don't want someone sticking something in your face," she said. In a recorded vote, Mayor Abernethy, Councillors Ron Hooper, Mary Novak, Charlie Trim and Willie Woo supported the lifting of the restriction. Councillors Adrian Foster and Gord Robinson voted against the removal of the restriction. See Page 8 For More Information