Wee street treated as landfill
One of the lowest forms of life is a person who’s too ignorant or arrogant to do the right thing with their garbage.
Living in a big city is a messy business. With so many people crammed into such a small space, there will always be trash strewn by those who can’t be bothered to properly dispose of it.
And then there are those who litter on a larger scale, by illegally dumping large amounts of trash late at night in quiet, secluded locations where they are unlikely to be caught.
It does not appear to be the epidemic it was a dozen years ago, when the city changed the rules to require tipping fees for garbage hauled to waste transfer stations and began charging residents for pickup.
But it’s still a problem, judging by the mess we found on tiny Richelieu Rd., near Bathurst St. and Wilson Ave.
We were in the area when we spotted piles of garbage bags, old tires and other waste next to the curb, not far from a gas station and a joint that sells coffee and doughnuts under a well-known name.
The garbage bags were ripped open, probably by scavenging critters, with water bottles, food containers and takeout coffee cups scattered around the area.
About 100 metres further along we found an old couch and cushions on the boulevard, across the street from single-family dwellings and a pallet and pieces of wood nearby on the same boulevard.
It had all the earmarks of illegal dumping done under the cover of darkness, possibly by a culprit who is closer to the scene than the rest of us.
All the junk is close enough to the curb to be in an area that makes up part of the city road allowance, which means the city is unlikely to be able to issue an order that forces a private-property owner to clean it up. Status: We sent a note to solid waste management, which is responsible for removing trash from city property, and also to transportation services, which is in charge of right-of-way issues, asking if the mess can be cleaned up. Pat Barrett, who deals with media for solid waste, said her department will clean it up Wednesday. What’s broken in your neighbourhood? Wherever you are in Greater Toronto, we want to know. To contact us, go to thestar.com/yourtoronto/the_fixer or call us at 416-869-4823 email jlakey@thestar.ca. To read our blog, go to thestar.com/news/the_fixer. Report problems and follow us on Twitter @TOStarFixer.