LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Pattern of Region problems clear

RE: LAWYER CLEARS D’ANGELO HIRING PROCESS, JULY 6

The story on the report on the CAO hiring, amazing missing papers and emails, stolen phones — this seems to happen too often with our regional government.

Basically, this is just another whitewash by staff and council. How about the reason the previous CAO left, a highly qualified person for the position?

It seems there is a pattern with the present upper echelon of the Region and its boards, etc. Missing papers and emails, disrespect for ratepayers and spend a million dollars. Why? Because the person is doing their job but we did not get to hire him so we will just blow another million of the taxpayers money but that is OK.

How many more reports will be whitewashed or held back until after the fall election? Where is the Burgoyne Bridge report for one? There seems to be a group of councillors who think they are better than the people that elected them and those few taint the whole council with the display of harassment and bullying when someone speaks up for the people and tries to work for the electorate, which is the job. The job is not to be self-centred. You where elected by the people to work for the people not your own little group.

We need to get people out to vote who have given up because of the actions of a few who do not care about the people only themselves. John Hunt Niagara Falls

City’s bottled-water ban a disservice to residents

RE: ST. CATHARINES BANS BOTTLED WATER SALES AT CITY FACILITIES, JULY 11

St. Catharines’ decision to expand its bottled-water ban prevents residents and tourists from purchasing the beverage of their choice at municipal facilities.

Although the article suggests council sinply reaffirmed an existing ban, that’s not the case. In 2012, council moved to ban bottled water in facilities that had adequate drinking fountains and filling stations while stating “where easy access to municipal tap water does not exist, the availability of bottled water is an appropriate alternative.”

The motion passed by council on July 9 removes this important qualification and bans bottled water at facilities without including funds in the 2018 budget to install filling stations.

Thankfully, for residents and tourists, council did make some noteworthy exemptions from its ban, including Meridian Centre. However the exemptions last only three years.

Of course, requiring residents and tourists attending local sporting events and concerts to leave their seats for a drink of water from a fountain when they can purchase a portable beverage, including alcohol, is not practical. The other option considered was to provide tap water in disposable polycoat cups, which are not recyclable.

Plastic beverage bottles, on the other hand, are made of 100 per cent recyclable polyethylene terephthalate (PET), a valuable plastic resource supporting Niagara’s blue box program.

We would strongly encourage council to explore other options, like the City of Stratford recently did. Stratford rejected a bottled-water ban in March and instead opted “to promote the use of municipal drinking water,” investigate “additional opportunities to install water fountains at city facilities” and have garbage cans “twinned with recycling receptacles to promote recycling.”

Given our sector’s leadership on water conservation and recycling, we always welcome the opportunity to work with local governments on increasing access to municipal tap water and building on the success of the blue box collection system, which in Niagara captures roughly 84 per cent of all PET containers at single-family homes. Jim Goetz President, Canadian Beverage Association