Who will speak for us? Redux

I first published this in February, 2008. Not much has changed and ALL of it still holds true as it did 19 months ago. See a few updated comments in red below.

Where to begin? Although I've been away for some time, I've kept up with all the goings on over the incinerator. And in my travels I've had the opportunity to learn much more than I ever wanted to know about incineration, and the pro-incinerator lobby. They are powerful and vocal and are everywhere. They are masterful at showing the best side of incineration and hiding the deep, dark deadly secrets.

They will show you the clean, Darlington-looking control rooms and allow you to speak with those who depend on the industry for their livelihoods. They will point out a school or daycare or apartment building or clothesline just within spitting distance of the incinerator and tell you everyone is content and happy with it. And it makes you want to spit.

If you travel a little farther afield and speak to people not on the industry's "okay list", you'll find a lot of worry, a lot of dissatisfaction, and a lot of anger surrounding the incineration industry. Especially from those who were led to believe that it was safe with few emissions because of all the scrubber technology and monitoring. They found out differently AFTER the fact. They found out that livestock on farms were affected and now it's not safe to drink the milk or eat the meat that has 'bio-accumulated' toxins in them. It has now begun to hurt the farming industry and as that knowledge spreads, it will devastate it.

They found out that they are having higher rates of birth defects in infants in areas within a 20 - 90 km radius of these stacks. They are having more chronic lung disease problems such as asthma (sound familiar?) and certain types of cancers.

But in most cases, their governments are silent. They don't want to be sued and they want to keep up their denials. There are some in government who are trying to speak out and are muzzled. There are many in the general population who are not muzzled and are being heard world-wide, if you care to listen.

Our elected (and unelected) officials have chosen not to listen. They are content to listen only to the paid EFW lobbyists the Region hired to promote incineration. Yes, that's right, they were hired to get it through the EA process and get it approved. They were not hired to do objective testing or studies - and that is more than evident from the so-called studies already completed. Look at the air quality statistics brought forward at Regional Committees and Council, and at Clarington Council numerous times. Those numbers came from the appendices of the Region's very own hired consultant's studies so they cannot dispute them. But those numbers were hidden deep in those pages and never, not once, brought forward by the consultants in all their presentations to committee, council, or the public at the public information sessions, even when asked about them. When air quality numbers are hundreds and thousands of times worse in Clarington than in East Gwillimbury, but they are rated as equal or both "neutral" for advantage or disadvantage, you know SOMETHING isn't right.

And that is only the tip of the iceberg. Confidence in the EA process has been dwindling as it has become increasingly evident that results appear to be manipulated in such a way as to promote or ensure the desired outcome of the process. This is not wild speculation. It seems so abundantly obvious if anyone takes the time to actually read not only the executive summary of these studies, but also dig deep into the bowels of the consultant's analysis to extract the fact from the faeces.

That so many of our elected officials are taken in by this spin and haven't taken the time to flush out the truth for themselves is highly disturbing. These are the people who are entrusted with our health and well-being, yet they refuse to listen to the groundswell of doctors in Durham Region who are vehemently opposed to this incinerator. They refuse to read the medical journals or numerous studies that would support the contention that there are emissions that cannot be captured by present technology - emissions that are bioaccumulative and dangerous to humans, especially in the fetal stages, infants and toddlers, and those with chronic illness who are already compromised. Tiny nanoparticles that can penetrate all organs including the brain through the blood/brain barrier.

They are entrusted with keeping our environment safe and healthy, yet refuse to listen to experts or environmental groups and choose instead to believe the consultants who are paid to PROMOTE incineration, the lobby groups and the industry.

They should be protecting agriculture in the region, including livestock operations, but have ignored expert studies and peer review literature which explains the risks and already proven effects on the food chain.

They should be caring a lot more than they are - and should show some common sense. Mayor Abernethy continues say they MUST push this EA through (though he neglects to say it should be done properly instead of FAST). The way this EA is being conducted, speed is so much more important than accuracy, and speed is a good way to hide many of the facts that should be made public knowledge.

Take the ridiculous reasons given by most Regional Councillors for approving the Courtice 01 site as the preferred site for the incinerator to be built - so that they can get ALL the information needed to make an informed decision. Then they went ahead and made a MAJOR decision in the EA process steps WITHOUT having the necessary information to make that decision. Talk about loony and backward. They needed to have technology information before choosing the site. They completely ignored the information given to them by residents and doctors and experts regarding air quality, for example, using that fake excuse that they want to get more information. Why make such an important decision without having the information first? We know why - it is an excuse they can use to push the EA farther and farther down the road and enable it to skip over information that should be given tough scrutiny. Instead it will get short shrift.

Sept 2009: And it did. This Regional Council approved the EA studies at their June 24th meeting, the last meeting prior to their summer vacation. This was BEFORE all the studies were completed, BEFORE all the results had been reported, BEFORE the Peer Reviews were completed, BEFORE the final of the DRAFT EA was completed.

Which means that ALL those ridiculous excuses for pushing this EA ahead at every step were just that - ridiculous excuses. That they wanted to have "ALL the information" before giving approval? If that were really true, wouldn't they have waited for the final studies and peer reviews to be completed before approving it? There is no excuse or justification for their actions that will make this community believe them or trust them again.

The public is not being fooled, other than a few who have listened to their politicians and not questioned any of the information or done any research themselves. And those are the people who won't be changed anyway. They're probably still using that old DDT in their yards and have kept the asbestos in their walls and don't worry about it because they're not sick yet. They probably smoke too (no lung cancer yet) and think there will be hundreds of jobs to run this new facility. They certainly haven't done their homework there, either.

The incinerator lobby can be excused to some degree for their shameless promotion of EFW, WtE, incineration or whatever you want to call it. They get paid for it. But the fact that our politicians in whom we place our trust are shamelessly promoting it and not even asking questions is totally inexcusable and disgraceful.

That our Mayor Abernethy and Regional Councillors Charlie Trim and Mary Novak put the Region AHEAD of Clarington is disgraceful and inexcusable. Where they got the idea that their first allegiance is to the Region, above Clarington and its residents is not hard to figure out. They are being used by the Region to get what the Region wants. And they haven't even figured that out yet.

Add Local Clarington Councillor Gord Robinson to this bunch. He betrayed his constituents in Clarington, including his agricultural constituents by flip-flopping and voting to approve the Host Community Agreement - an agreement that did NOT contain the monitoring that had been promised to Clarington residents previously by the Region, but ended up being too expensive for them to include in the final EA. No agricultural monitoring for effects from the incinerator. He told other Councillors it was included when it wasn't. A request from the Agricultural Committee was not even considered by Clarington Council because Councillor Robinson decided to betray us all and receive it for information, not vote to endorse it. While I was not present at that meeting, it was talked about afterward by residents and the information can be found in Council minutes.

It is unbelievable that these three (Abernethy, Trim, Novak) voted AGAINST the motion by Brian Nicholson that said if a municipality was an unwilling host, the region would not force an incinerator on them. They would not even protect their own municipality - the Region as always comes first. None of the three can claim they are being protective of Clarington or NOT putting the Region first in all things incinerator.

This is why these three must NEVER be allowed to be re-elected in Clarington. (Add Councillor Robinson so there are now four) They have given up their right to speak for us since they have never spoken for us. They speak for the Region at all times. This is something none of us should forget, no matter how this incineration farce turns out. They have not stood up for Clarington. Only our four local councillors have done so. Hats off to Councillors Foster, Hooper, Woo and Robinson (REMOVE ROBINSON). They are the only ones looking our for our welfare, and it can't be easy with the pressure from the Region and from our Mayor. They deserve our gratitude and our support. And more than ever now.

Now comes the PR farce the Mayor is trying to foist upon the good citizens of Clarington. These people who will be speaking are not experts on incineration. They are promoters, lobbyists, but where are the experts? How can residents give their councillors questions to ask the presenters before they hear them speak? Our hands are tied and the Mayor knows it. That is why these people were invited by our Mayor are being promoted in this forum rather than at an open forum where residents can ask questions.

There is so much more to say on this subject and it will be said. The entire scenario as it is playing out simply disgusts me. All that I hold dear, namely fairness, openness, honesty, transparency, democracy... they are all missing from this entire process. The dirty little bag of tricks continues but is not fooling anybody. Instead it is strengthening those in opposition to this entire debacle. The word is rapidly spreading. They may have the votes at Regional Council to approve this incinerator. But WE have the votes at the ballot box, and we will not forget.

I reiterate: WE WILL NOT FORGET.

Watch now for all the green washing attempts by individual Councillors and Mayors who voted in favour of the incinerator without having all the facts first, without listening to the residents, without considering all the documented evidence against incineration and without regard for our health or that of our children. WITHOUT having any proof that is is SAFE. The best that could be said by our Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Kyle, was that he couldn't find irrefutable proof that it ISN'T safe. But he also could not find proof that it IS safe.

Absence of proof is not proof of absence. Whatever happened to the Precautionary Principle?

2010 Election not that far away - Abernethy the first target

People are already gearing up for the 2010 municipal elections, even though they are a little over a year away. But it is not too soon to begin planning to oust certain municipal politicians who very blatantly gave the one-finger salute to their residents during the last couple of years. Residents have every right to target those who refused to listen to overwhelming opposition to the incinerator, especially when so many tried to make their voices heard.

Silly me. I always thought that we elected our municipal council and mayor to represent us and to do what is best for the residents of Clarington. What happened? Do they not know that WE are their bosses? Have they become so big-headed that they don't need to listen to those who elected them? Do they honestly believe that they know better than 80% of the residents of Clarington? Do they really believe that the Region's propaganda was any more honest than the biased and misleading studies done by their paid consultants?

Those consultants were hired for one reason. They were hired to see the EA process through to a favourable conclusion (favourable to the already decided end result of the Region to make incineration the option of "choice"). Numerous times residents were told publicly that the Region had decided on this course of action in 2000, with their 20 year waste management plan. Of course that plan only mentioned that burning garbage should be looked into. It did not say that this was the course that should be taken.

Too many of our myopic councillors either can't read and comprehend or they intentionally twisted that plan to mean exactly what they wanted it to mean. The writing was on the wall (and in the direction given to the consultants) before the EA even began.

The writing is now on the wall for several councillors and a handful of Mayors of Durham municipalities. But none more so than Clarington, which harbours 4 who need to be replaced.

The Mayor of Clarington, with his sometimes incomprehensible mutterings needs to be soundly punished and relegated to the trash heap. He was not able to fool all his residents with such gems as his declaration in explaining his "No Waste by '38" motion which he made a point of making clear "didn't mention incineration or landfill". The reason for that? "Neither of these two options is acceptable to me, but you've got to do something with it," Abernethy stated.

You could have fooled us. The mayor was a huge supporter of incineration from the start, despite his attempts to convince residents that he was looking for the truth (not a very funny joke) and that he hadn't yet made up his mind. Early on he took a trip to Nova Scotia and made a home video of the Halifax Otter Lake landfill. All he was interested in was the seagulls (meaning there was garbage present) and that it didn't look pretty. He made that DVD available to people who made it available to even more residents for their viewing pleasure. Abernethy also promoted an industry made propaganda infomercial for SYSAV - yes, promoting incineration in Europe. He played it for audiences around Clarington, all the while promoting incineration. Yet he had the audacity to continue to tell people he hadn't yet made up his mind. How insulting to the residents of Clarington.

As recently as last month he said neither landfill NOR INCINERATION are acceptable. The way he has promoted incineration for the last 2 1/2 years it is apparent that he believes incineration is not only acceptable, but desirable. The facility will have floors so clean you could eat off them (his comments about the European incinerators) and even more important - no seagulls!

This mayor ran his 2006 campaign on having "an honest and open government". He also said, "The role of council is to manage the assets of the municipality and ensure that there is a democratic process." What exactly does "democratic process" mean to this man?

On his campaign video he also said, "There's a lot of important issues that have to be dealt with, and have to be dealt with uh, fairly, uh, dealt with uh in the best interest of all of the people of the municipality." Is that what he has done? NO.

"I think that what needs to be done is we need to have a look to see what will Clarington look like in 50 years from now." Well, for the next 30 - 35 years at least we will be dumping more pollution into an already dirty air shed where record numbers of children now have asthma, older adults have respiratory problems, and cancers are already on the rise. Now we will be adding to those problems and adding new ones. Does he care? Apparently not.

In 2006 Abernethy said, "Our municipal Council needs a made in Clarington agenda." Does that sound familiar? Like the "Made in Durham garbage solution" he is always promoting (which isn't made in Durham at all)? This incinerator being forced on Clarington residents is most certainly NOT a "made in Clarington agenda". Was this an outright lie, or was he so quickly and easily sucked in by Regional Chair Roger Anderson immediately after he was elected? Enquiring minds want to know! This Mayor betrayed Clarington and put the Region first and foremost, unlike the other mayors in the Region. He said on more than one occasion that he was "elected to represent the Region". Funny, I thought he was elected as Mayor of Clarington to represent Clarington.

He ranted against the "Mutton shell-game experience" - or was that "Mutton-Schell game" - (his words). "Higher taxes, higher salaries, higher mileage charges, and numerous international trips," Abernethy said. So what has changed since 2006? It has only gotten worse. Have we heard an apology to Mutton since then? No, only attacks on his campaign financing by Abernethy's former campaign team, and those charges are ongoing. Was Mutton faultless? Hell no. But was he worse than Abernethy? That is debatable at this point, but I'd say no. At least Mutton didn't give away the (Clarington) store to the Region while he was in office. Would he have, on the incinerator issue? Very possibly he would have supported the incinerator as he did quite a job in facilitating the political acceptance of the incinerator and approval of Covanta as the builder/operator. But we won't know because Abernethy beat him to the punch. At least Mutton surely would have gotten a better deal for Clarington. As it is, there is hardly anything in the Host Community Agreement that wasn't already in the works or owed to Clarington without it. That's another discussion altogether.

Speaking of Mutton, Abernethy said, "I've had enough of their experience. Have you?" I can tell you that I, along with the majority of Clarington residents (according to several recent polls), have had enough of the Abernethy experience. More than enough.

Abernethy in 2006 asked us to vote for change. This is not the change we wanted or anticipated. A Mayor who refuses to listen to the residents unless you are one of his favoured friends, or unless you are someone he considers "important to the community". Anyone who is a plain old resident, a plain old taxpayer isn't important to him and he has shown people that in spades, including not allowing street parties which could foster more community spirit. Including the elderly who have been the first to have services cut. Including those speaking out against the incinerator, who were basically given the Trudeau salute, in so many words. Including those asking for more time to speak or to be allowed more input. He shut people up, made them sit down if he didn't like what they had to say, and even went so far as to throw people out. One of the biggest complaints about former Mayor Mutton was that he was a bully. Abernethy has turned out to be as big a bully. But he hates that word because he threw out a resident for calling his best buddy Roger Anderson a bully. He'd better take a good look in the mirror.

I wonder what half-truths this Mayor will tell us during his 2010 campaign. Or will he give up and run away, knowing he hasn't a chance in hell of being re-elected?

Mary Novak and Charlie Trim deserve the same fate, although the word on the street is the Trim is retiring, allowing local ward 4 councilor Gord Robinson to attempt to move up to Charlie's regional seat. Fat chance, after the betrayal of his constituents and those of the entire municipality. Were it not for Robinson, who has now been given the label "traitor", at least we would have remained an unwilling host, which, in spite of statements to the contrary publicly by Anderson, everyone knew would be the nail in the coffin at the Regional Council vote. And it was. This man deserves to hit the unemployment line next year and there are already groups seriously working toward that end.

There are groups spread across Durham Region already making plans for the 2010 election. They are organizing and are determined. They are looking for strong, ethical and honest candidates who understand what democracy is and who will listen to their residents rather than their political bosses in issues affecting our very lives. There will be some massive campaigns not only in support of good candidates but also against those who need to be replaced.

Those who chose to ignore the will of the people will suffer the consequences in 2010. And they will deserve it. They think 2010 is far enough away that people will forget the insulting behaviour of these councillors and mayors, but the opposition to these people is building, not waning since the June Regional vote. We are not stupid. We will not forget. The damage done to our municipality which now has a very deserved reputation as being the dumping ground for Durham Region is irreparable. And Durham Region's reputation for being the dumping ground for York Region is also building. From Stop the Incinerator to Stop the Stink, we get all the crap from York while York Region gets all the benefits. Is that the sign of a good and effective Durham Regional council or leadership? We think not.

The "Elect the Chair" movement is alive and well, and has now been joined by the "Dump Durham's Democratically Deficient" Mayors and Councillors. The most targeted already of the Mayors is Abernethy, O'Connor, Pearce, Perkins, Shepherd and Ryan. Some (most) of these are very vulnerable. Pearce is probably the least vulnerable, even though Scugog could do so much better. The rest are not at all secure in their seats according to local sources. There are more Councillors already with a bull's eye on their backs. Stay tuned for more in coming days, weeks and months. Mayor Abernethy can be assured that we will "Vote for Change" in 2010.

Big Vote Today, Big Vote in November 2010

Today Councillors in Durham Region will vote on their incinerator folly, and will anger and alienate even further the majority of their constituents.

Mr. Anderson, Regional Chair, stated last week that he could not believe people would work to put Regional Councillors out of office over one item. Well, think again Mr. Chair. This "one item" is the largest expenditure ever in the history of Durham Region. It locks us into a chemical spewing, ash producing, resource destroying incinerator that few people want and many are strongly opposed to, for 25 to 35 years. This "one item" is one which has brought out more people than any other issue since the landfill wars many years ago. This "one item" has made people realize that their Regional Councillors (most of them) could care less what their residents think, what their concerns are, what their better alternative ideas are. This "one item" has been bought and paid for with our health, our Gas Tax money that should be used to improve and increase our public transit, our roads, our quality of life. Instead this "one item" has been pushed through by this council without the benefit of all the information.

Throughout this process the excuse has been used by Councillors that they were simply voting to approve each step so that they could get ALL the information before making a final decision. Well, that excuse won't work anymore. So many large, complex studies and reports have come forward all at once that there is little time for anyone to read through them all, and we KNOW that most Councillors only bother to read the Executive Summary and nothing more, if that. We also know that ALL the studies are not completed and ALL the Peer Reviews are also not complete.

Yet these same Councillors are now voting before all the information is in, so that lame excuse that no one believed anyway, is now so much junk.

I want to tell you, Regional Council, we resent being treated like dunces. I would submit to you that it is not the residents who are unworthy of being listened to, or unworthy of respect. It is you, those who have lied to residents and who continue to do so. Those who refused to listen to the people who voted them into office.

We voted you in, and we can most certainly vote you out. This Watchdog Blog was active during the 2006 campaign, and will be even MORE active during the 2010 campaign. I won't let people forget, and I am not alone. There are many who have vowed to organize to help in each municipality to defeat those who have betrayed us right across this region. There will be qualified candidates running, with support (monetary and door to door legwork) from those who have been snubbed and dismissed by their regional representatives.

You may see more local councillors moving up to run for regional seats as well as new candidates moving in. There are a number of pro-incinerator (from the start) candidates who are already being targeted and things will only get tougher as next year draws closer.

In Clarington, the choices are obvious. Mayor Abernethy, should he choose to run again or run for any other seat whether at the local, provincial or federal level eventually, will run into a brick wall. His reputation has suffered greatly with his obviously unequal treatment of residents, his lack of understanding of the EA process and of his municipal duties (he thinks he represents the Region first, over and above Clarington, unlike the other Mayors in Durham Region). This man has lost all credibility and is known as one of the most "un-green" Mayors in this Region, and with so many ungreen mayors, that's reaching quite the pinnacle.

Mary Novak has done nothing to distinguish herself from Abernethy - they are voting together (as usual) on this incinerator, although using different excuses. No one has believed she was 'on the fence' or hadn't made her decision early-on as Abernethy did. Her continual denials only convinced people more that she would vote to approve this incinerator. Her acceptance of the Host Community Agreement that was basically blackmail and gives Clarington very little of anything shows her incompetence and her bias. She will never convince anyone she is doing what is best for the community, or that the incinerator has been proven "safe". It has not.

Charlie Trim has sold out his community and isn't worthy of his seat. The buzz is that he's not running again and has given his seat to Councillor Robinson next term. Well you can't do that. Charlie's supporters are not sheep and will vote as they please, and from those I've heard from, very few will even consider voting for Robinson after his total betrayal of the entire municipality as it was his vote that accepted the HCA and gave up the unwilling host status. He single-handedly, in one fell swoop, destroyed any future he may have had in Clarington politics. Or maybe he's been promised an appointment by Roger Anderson. Whatever the reason, no one has any respect for the man any longer. It was a total and blatant betrayal, and one that won't be forgotten. I hope he believes it was worth it.

I hope a lot of residents show up at today's meeting and aren't so discouraged that they give up. There is still much work to do, right through next year's election. I will take bets on how much larger a voter turnout there will be next year, and how many seats we can put new faces into. I do know of 4 seats in Clarington that MUST be cleaned out and re-filled. We won't forget.

Yes I may be a little premature, but I can't seen any of them changing their votes today. I've even heard that at least one municipality won't receive emails from their own constituents, and openly won't listen to them. Why Would We Wish to keep elected officials like that around?

To the good Councillors who have done the real research and have had a very open dialogue with residents, I commend you. To those of you who have listened only to one side of the story and who have betrayed your own residents, I say you deserve what you get next year, which will be a spot in the unemployment line.

And to Mr. Anderson, we will work diligently to make sure that the Durham Regional Chair is elected and accountable to the people.

Rally Against Incinerator - May 20th

Stand Up & Say No To Incineration Before It's Too Late!

We have the power to avoid over 30 years of regret!

Host:	Concerned Citizen and Tax Payers from Durham Region
Type:	RALLY

Date:	Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Time:	5:30pm - 8:30pm
Location:	Durham Regional Head Quarters
Street:	605 Rossland Rd. East at Garden St.
City/Town:	Whitby, ON

Here is an opportunity for you to show that Durham residents want a real sustainable solution to waste management, not a heavily subsidized pollution factory that will make money for the private sector and burden us with additional taxes and health risks for the next 30 years.

The Site Liaison Committee is responsible for getting our message to the region. They have so far been stunningly ineffective and its time to show the Region how we feel.

We are blessed with the Freedom of Peaceful Assembly, the Freedom of Speech, the Freedom of Expression and the Freedom of Association to protect us from oppressive government at any level.

The incinerator threatens not only our health but the financial viability of this Region. We cannot afford to sit on our hands and be complacent any longer.

The time has come to stand up and say NO to this incinerator!

Facebook group:

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/event.php?eid=55173887613

******************************************

More information:

Rally in Opposition of the Proposed Durham/York P3 Incinerator May 20th

Many questions have been raised about the potential threat this project poses to the region. In addition to the concerns about health and economic effects, residents are now faced with the the possibility that Metro Toronto garbage could be heading there way as a result of this project.

Press Advisory:

Durham Region residents are planning a peaceful demonstration Wednesday May 20th, to express their opposition to the proposed Durham/York P3 (Public Private Partnership) Incinerator Project beginning at 530 pm outside the Durham Region Headquarters, 605 Rossland East in Whitby, Ontario.

According to documents released by the Region the controversial plan would see a mass burn incinerator built in the municipality of Clarington less than a kilometer from the shores of Lake Ontario. The incinerator would burn residential garbage from Durham Region as well as waste transported from York Region on a continuous basis, for no fewer than 25 years. Once the option is exercised to expand the capacity of the facility from 140,000 TPY (tons per year) to 400,000 TPY, waste from other municipalities would also be accepted.

The initial Environmental Assessment excluded outright the possibility of accepting garbage from Metro Toronto; however, an addendum to a motion at Clarington Council last week indicates that this might not be the case. The motion outlined a $10/ton tipping fee ‘royalty’ to go directly to the host Municipality, Clarington, for waste received specifically from Metro Toronto. This is notably higher than the tipping fee ‘royalty’ previously discussed of $2/ton

Recently the preferred vendor, American company Covanta Energy, announced that it had reached a deal with Miller Waste to transport the toxic fly ash produced by the incineration process, (equal to approximately 5% of the total mass of waste burned) to a toxic waste facility in New York State for the lifetime of the facility - 25-30 years. The toxic waste will either be stored in a toxic waste storage facility near Niagara Falls, processed for landfill in Lewiston or Incinerated at a site in New York State. The bulk ash remaining after incineration, between 20 - 30% of the original mass and 10% of the original volume, would then be transported to a landfill site that is yet to be determined.

"The project once called a 'Made in Durham Solution' is beginning to reach pretty far from Durham Region." said Whitby homeowner Chris White at the Region’s Public Information Session in Bowmanville last week. “With this deal we will have trucks transporting garbage to Durham from who knows where, as well as trucks transporting toxic waste to someone else’s back yard, day in and day out."

The rally is scheduled to take place prior to the Site Liaison Committee meeting at the Durham Region Head Quarters next Wednesday.

“The SLC was designed as a conduit between the people and the Regional Council on this matter." said Rebecca Harrison resident and one of the rally’s organizers. “I’m very disappointed in the way in which the various politicians and regional staff that sit on this vital committee have acted during the SLC meetings I have attended. I know I am not alone. Our hope is that this rally will refocus these committee members and gets our message to Regional Council.”

Come May 20th the concerned residents will be joined by several labour unions who are also opposed to the Durham York P3 Incineration project.

Dave Renaud, President of the CAW Durham Region Environment Council will be speaking at Wednesdays rally. “The organized Labour movement (Canadian Labour Congress, Durham Region Labour Council, CAW, CUPE) across Canada is opposed to the use of incineration of municipal waste due to our resounding belief that Extended Producer Responsibility will lead us down the path of sustainable green production, cancer free jobs which are the opposite of what Durham Regions EFW consultants and some of the Regional Councilors want for our communities.”

Mr. Renaud will be joined by CUPE Ontario President Sid Ryan who held a press conference in regards to CUPE's oppostion to this P3 Incinerator earlier this month. “This is typical of P3 projects,” said Mr. Ryan “They underbid to get the project going then the taxpayer is on the hook for the cost overruns. This project smells like an environmental and fiscal disaster.”

Jim Freeman President of the Durham Region Labour Council, who is also addressing Wednesday’s rally, expressed his concerns with Covanta’s track record in his delegation to Regional Council last November prior to the company being selected as the preferred vendor by the Region. “As you know the Durham Region Labour Council does not support the construction of an Energy from Waste facility in our community but we have specific concerns about Covanta. According to the Utility Workers Union of America (UWUA), Covanta has a deplorable track record of anti-union , anti-worker activity in the United States.”

All three labour leaders have made delegations in opposition to this project over the course of the proceedings.

In a Region that has been hard hit by job loss this P3 project does not appear to be sitting well with area residents who are currently out of work. According to the Business Case provided to the public by the Region this project with an estimated capital cost of $236 million is estimated to create only 33 long term full time positions.

"Burning garbage kills people and jobs.” said Marissa Kata, an Oshawa home owner and mother who recently lost her job. “Other regions are seeing garbage as an opportunity; a resource that is desperately needed right now for the unemployed and the manufacturing sector. We need good ‘green’ jobs in this community and $236 million could go a long way to making that a reality if invested in more sustainable programs. ”

With the Region prepared to vote June 12th, on a recommendation to proceed with this project, these Durham residents are confident that as a result of their increased presence Regional politicians will hear their concerns and act accordingly.

“All we are asking them to do is the same thing Halton Region did when they were faced with the decision,” said Ms. Harrison, “apply the precautionary principle and vote against the health and economic risks posed to Durham residents by this incinerator.”

For more information on the rally and Durham York Incinerator including links to Regional Documents on the proceedings please visit:

www.cawdrec.com – CAW Durham Region Environment Council
www.durhamenvironmentwatch.org – Durham Environment Watch
www.zerowaste4zeroburning.ca – Zero Waste 4 Zero Burning
What: Stand Up to Incineration Rally

Where: Durham Region Headquarters,
605 Rossland Road East,
Whitby Ontario

When: Wednesday May 20th, 2009
5:30opm-830pm
(Site Liasion Committee Meeting begins inside at 7:00pm)

Why: To oppose the Durham/York P3 (Public Private Partnership) Incinerator proposal.
Media Contact
Rebecca Harrison
(905) 999-5479

Who Speaks for US?

Who can we count on to speak for us? It appears, not our Clarington Mayor. He is apparently under the impression (and said so) that Durham Region comes first. Clarington must come second to the Region which is the upper tier. He says he was elected to represent the Region.

Well I have two words for our mayor. WAKE UP. Believe it or not, you were elected to work for Clarington, to work for us, the taxpayers. You were elected to represent Clarington in all things, including at the Region of Durham. To put Durham Region first, as you have admitted to doing, is to slap Clarington taxpayers in the face. Either you don't have a clue or you are intentionally ignoring the words and wishes of the majority of residents in favour of kissing up to the Region, for some unknown reason.

I will qualify that previous statement. You listen to your friends, your campaign team, those who agree with and support your views and your ambitions. That is evident at the meetings I have either attended or watched on Rogers television. You blatantly cut off speakers who disagree with your warped view of what your own job as mayor is or of your complete support for the incinerator Roger Anderson wants to put in our midst. You hold them to the exact 5 minutes (which was a ten minute allowance before you decided to shorten it to five) and even cut people off mid-sentence. When your 'friends' or someone you believe to be 'important' (unlike the majority of residents) is speaking, there are no interruptions, you overlook your own rules, you give them plenty of latitude. It is blatant and you do not seem to even care.

You appear to have no understanding of what an Environmental Assessment entails, or how it actually works. You appear to be only too willing to pass the buck to others - the Region and next to the Province, to decide for you and for us whether incineration is 'safe' or not.

The incinerator plan is an iceberg... and the consultants are only showing you the tip. You are satisfied with that, but residents have made it very evident that they are not. Somebody needs a reality check.

This goes for Regional Councillors Mary Novak and Charlie Trim too. Both have voted in EVERY vote at Clarington and at the Region to go along with Regional Chair Roger Anderson's wishes to 'push this forward'. No matter that there are so many unanswered questions. They plan to push it forward to the Province with still many of those questions unanswered and then hand over the responsibility to the Minister of Environment for him to make the decision as to whether it is safe for Clarington and Durham Region residents. That is unconscionable. But not surprising since none of these people have any guts.

There are others on Regional Council who must also bear the responsibility for their actions. Some simply are glad it is not in their backyard. These councillors accuse Clarington residents of NIMBYism, when in reality it is those politicians who are the NIMBYs.

Councillor Rick Johnson (Pickering) continually talks about the old landfill wars, and how many people came out to say they didn't want a landfill in their community, and that he would not allow that to happen again. Well, Mr. Johnson, since you are the prime mover behind this incinerator, why didn't you offer to host it in YOUR community since it is, according to you, so clean and safe? It is fine to push it off on Clarington residents, as long as your residents don't have to deal with it. How much more NIMBYish can you get?

Numerous Regional Councillors have been targeted by a new group called "Concerned Citizens of Durham Region" to be unseated in the 2010 election. These are Councillors who have continued to vote FOR and be supportive of this incinerator at every step of the way. The word is that this group (CCDR) will be fielding reputable and viable candidates for each of these seats in each municipality. They will be actively involved in campaigning against the incumbents and working for the opposing candidates.

CCDR will also be supporting and campaigning for those Regional Councillors who have shown that they are aware of the concerns of the people and are willing to listen and work for them, not for themselves.

Now this list (provided to Watchdog but not yet published) may change at any time, and may have already. We received this list from members of CCDR a few weeks ago. They will also be actively campaigning for an elected Chair, and against Mr. Anderson. He has shown his complete disdain for Clarington, Clarington Residents, and Clarington Councillors as well as for residents in the rest of the region. His ego and bullying tactics may be in his own best interests, but not in the best interests of residents of all 8 municipalities.

CCDR will also be looking at and giving support to local councillors who have been supportive of residents and who have had the guts to stand up to the region. There are several who appear to be poised to move up and run for regional seats in 2010 and many of them will have the support of not only their own residents but also from CCDR. That will be financial as well as active campaign and word of mouth support.

So be forewarned - the war has only just begun. If this is pushed through the door to the Province and not decided locally by our elected regional politicians as it appears they will do, residents will NOT forget what they have done. There will be no excuses good enough for not putting the health and welfare of their residents first. And they must remember that it is quite likely that this will all come to a head, or building will begin in 2010, which will be a constant reminder to residents what has been forced upon us. We will not forget nor will we let anyone else forget. This issue will not fade into the background. And certainly not before Elections 2010.

The Best of the Best Promise from Durham Region Joins the Other Crap in the Landfill

Durham Region, back in 2007, promised the public that they would commit to the best of the best regarding emission control technology and monitoring of emissions to protect the health and safety of its citizens. It would all be open and transparent.

But when Chair Anderson found out it would cost another $270,000 or so to implement the monitoring residents had asked for (and been promised), he decided our health and welfare isn't worth it. As did ALL the Durham Councillors on Joint Waste Management Committee (all except one lone York Region Councillor), and as did the usual suspects at the Joint Works and Health and Social Services Committee meeting this week I've been told. These recommendations will go to Regional Council next Wednesday, and what do you think they will do? Of course the majority will again approve this travesty, with no thought to the wishes or the concerns of residents - concerns the Councillors themselves should have.

Now if you think that they're just trying to save the taxpayers money, think again.

They already approved extra spending on the "important" things, such as an additional $9 million on "architectural" features to make the incinerator look nice, $1.25 million for a "viewing deck", and another $512,000 for additional promotional features. Who will these benefit? Why, the industry of course. Promote the heck out of this pig and make the industry happy. The residents? Who cares if we're happy or not? The only time they care about that is at election time, but they seem to be forgetting that they will have to face the music next year. Not soon enough for those of us ready to campaign to defeat those who care more about the industry than they do about our health and safety.

Now ask yourselves why would they not want to do the necessary monitoring, such as ambient air quality monitoring and environmental monitoring? Could it be that they don't want us to know when our air is becoming more and more polluted, or when the accumulation of toxins in our vegetation and agricultural products becomes unacceptably high? Yes that can impact our local farmers when locals don't want to "buy local" because of the dioxins and furans, heavy metals and other pollutants that will be carried from the stack (yes, more than the one km they're saying would be the limit).

Why would they not even consider human biomonitoring?

Could it be that they don't want to be held liable for lawsuits that may very likely turn up against the Region (and even possibly against individuals) in another 10- 15 years? How about class action suits? Or maybe one or two of them have a conscience? They can't use the excuse the weren't warned. Residents and doctors have been warning them for the last couple of years, but they choose only to listen to their paid salesmen who are pushing this through the EA.

Another big promise that has gone the way of most others - "We won't build it if it's not safe". Another broken promise. Already they have changed that instead to, "we won't build it if it is determined that the level of risk is unacceptable". What does that mean? What is acceptable to consultants who live many miles from here may not be acceptable to residents who live within 50 km., or who have family who live in the vicinity. How will the determine whether it is safe if they only do stack testing and don't bother with testing the surrounding air, vegetation, animals or humans? This stuff bioaccumulates in vegetation, in humans, in the environment. It builds up over time.

They promised independent peer reviews but Dr. Kyle's choice to peer review the health studies is Dr. L. Smith, who has been working with and used by Jacques Whitford (consultants) for some time, and not the first time. Getting her to review work she's already reviewed, and accepting a peer review which seems more concerned with spelling and grammar, along with presentation (those nice boxes and pretty graphs) than with content does not inspire confidence. Dr. Smith's 4 page review of the "Final Report - Review of International Best Practices of Environmental Surveillance for Energy-From-Waste Facilities" discusses very little about the flawed conclusions drawn, and even I could find more errors in the final document and conclusions than she did.

They need to hire a truly INDEPENDENT peer reviewer who the public could have faith in. Much credibility was lost by Dr. Smith in 2007 when she was asked at a public PIC in Bowmanville whether dioxins or other hazardous compounds produced from the burning of municipal waste are considered safe, and whether she could say it is SAFE to burn plastics in the waste stream and that doing so will NOT allow dioxins or other hazardous compounds to adhere to any microfine or nanoparticles emitted from the stacks and spread beyond the artificial 1 or 2 km boundary set by the consultants, and she declined to answer saying it was not her "area of expertise". She also changed the text in her original peer review in 2007 without any notation in the new version, and without any notice. It took residents to notice it. Now she's hired again to do more peer reviews on other topics for Dr. Kyle.

If it was not her "area of expertise", then why did she make the statements in her report and why would that be accepted as an expert peer review? She is being considered an expert by Dr. Kyle, Durham Region Council and Staff and Clarington Council, but won't answer questions that are significantly related to the building of an incinerator in our community and to the health and safety of our residents.

She has refused to say "it is safe". She will instead say "the risk is acceptable". Yet our politicians now appear willing to accept something less than a guarantee and statement that "it is safe". Gives you lots of confidence, no?

Now let me see, what other promises have been blatantly broken by our Councillors? There are plenty. Such as the promise when elected that Clarington Councillors would stand up for Clarington at Regional Council. So far that has not happened and we don't expect it will. From watching each regional meeting (they are all televised) it is very easy to see where their loyalties lie (Abernethy, Trim and Novak), and it is not with their "lower tier" little municipality. It is with the big, upper tier, all-important region.

They may be fine with that. But residents are not. And residents will remember this next year at election time. If any of them forget, they will be loudly reminded during the campaign. I fully expect that we will have at least 3 new faces at Clarington Council in 2011. The anger is growing and is becoming palpable.

What do YOU think?