ACTION ALERT

Deposit-Returns Needed in Ontario!
Please sign the petition sponsored by Zero Waste Simcoe!

August 31, 2011

 
WHEREAS Disposable Beverage Containers: contribute to waste problems in Ontario; litter streets, parks and waterways; burden municipal taxpayers with costs to collect, and market/dispose of them.
WHEREAS Deposit/Return programs: prevent litter and result in higher diversion rates; provide a financial reward to people for returning containers; generate good quality materials that can benefit industry and increase jobs; and make producers/consumers financially responsible for containers they make/use (instead of all taxpayers).

Let’s Say “No” to Incineration in Canada

TOOLKIT:

• Sign Our Position Statement
• The Facts
• Who Can Help
• Incineration Resources
• Updates and Articles

OVERVIEW:

Domestic and international vendors are aggressively promoting their “energy-from-waste” incinerator technology to Canadian municipalities as a way to manage solid waste. Mass-burn incineration or gasification proposals are now being considered in: Durham Region (Southern Ontario), Metro Vancouver, City of Ottawa, Port Hope (Southern Ontario) and Red Deer (Alberta).

Incinerators emit hundreds of pollutants, including carcinogens, to air, land and water. Health Canada states that the biggest source of dioxins and furans, which are persistent carcinogens that accumulate in our bodies and in the environment, is the large scale burning of municipal and medical waste.

A comprehensive cancer prevention strategy means reducing exposure to carcinogenic and toxic substances at every opportunity. Our “Incineration Tool Kit” is designed to inform you about the health impacts of municipal incineration, to provide an overview of other concerns with incineration and to introduce the concept of Zero Waste – a sustainable and healthier long-term materials management strategy. We also provide links to other documents and organizations as well as to a list of groups and individuals we’ve identified to date who are opposing incineration and/or advocating for Zero Waste in Canada.

We are calling on all Canadians to inform themselves about the health and environmental impacts of waste incineration and sustainable and healthy alternatives. We urge you to sign our Position Statement and inform municipal, provincial and federal politicians of your concerns.

– Linda Gasser, PCN Anti-Incineration Campaign Coordinator

“The Story of Broke” – short film by Annie Leonard

Here’s a great short video that gives viewers a quick understanding about how our government uses our taxes and how we could improve on that. Note the references to incinerators and our health. It’s a US production but the story could well apply here in Canada …