I just installed my bedroom window A/C unit in time to blow the pending stench of a possibly drawn out city workers’ strike.
Garbage disposal seems to be the big news item with the 24,000 city workers currently in their second day off the job.
At a press conference held yesterday at Metro Hall, the tone of questioning was incredulous.
“You really expect people to carry their garbage home?!” asks one reporter as close to rhetorically as possible.
“We expect most Torontonians to follow the plan,” responds Geoff Rathbone Solid Waste Management Services GM. File that under wishful thinking as the pile in Christie Pits grows. Just walking along College yesterday, I saw a couple of mini garbage mountains.
So what are you supposed to do? The city says residents and commercial yellow bag customers have seven transfer stations to pick from (at no cost), but more will be announced if the strike goes past five days. Double bag it. Here they are:
Two transfer stations will be open 24 hours a day, seven days a week to accept both residential and commercial garbage:
Bermondsey Transfer Station, 188 Bermondsey Rd (Eglinton Ave. E. & Victoria Park Ave. area)
Ingram Transfer Station, 50 Ingram Dr (Keele St. & Eglinton Ave. W. area)
(Yellow bag customers may deliver their waste to a transfer station free of charge and without use of yellow bags. Proof of registration in the yellow bag program is required. All other commercial waste must be weighed and will be subject to a $100 per tonne tip fee. All odorous commercial waste must be double bagged.)
In addition, five transfer stations will be open 12 hours a day, from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., seven days a week, to accept both residential and commercial garbage. Remember to double bag.
Disco Transfer Station, 120 Disco Rd (Dixon Rd. & Carlingview Dr area)
Dufferin Transfer Station, 35 Vanley Cr (Chesswood Dr & Sheppard Ave. W. area)
Victoria Park Transfer Station, 3350 Victoria Park Ave (Victoria Park Ave & Finch Ave. E. area)
Commissioners Street Transfer Station, 400 Commissioners St (Lake Shore Blvd. E. & Logan Ave area)
Scarborough Transfer Station, 1 Transfer Pl (Markham Rd & Sheppard Ave. E. area)
Expect a wait.
Realistically, what 500,000 affected households should do is put a little forethought into their waste.
Don’t create pointless trash. With Environmental Days being “rescheduled,” what better time to dust off the refillable coffee mug? This would be a great time for places like Tim Hortons to stop using paper cups. Full-stop. Blame the strike, get people used to the idea of bringing their own mugs.
Encourage, don’t just tolerate, the use of refillable take-out containers. My local Chinese lunch stop loves my tiffin tin, and I’m sure we’re going to have a talk about one less Styrofoam container blowing through a park in a couple of hours.
Take up composting or apologize to that hippie friend you mocked for setting one up a decade ago, and see if they can take in your eggshells.
Need a new printer, but don’t want the box in your office? Try getting one off craigslist (tell the seller packaging isn’t part of the deal).
There are people out there laughing at our collective garbage freak-out. It’s like Winnipeg’s near endless mockery of the army digging us out of a snow storm. Well, enviros are laughing at Joe Trash in the same way right now.
Residents really don’t have a reason to go nuts. Even moms with diapers can bite the bullet and go washable instead of disposable. It’s not as easy, but giving it a trial might even pick up some converts.
Ecoholic will have more environmental tips during the strike on Thursday.
Unfortunately, it’s fair to say garbage will sit at the top of the pile of people’s concerns and the city will continue to threaten troglodytes with $380 illegal dumping tickets. But in case you can manage to lighten your junk tossing for a few days, here’s a partial list of stuff you might not even know is affected by the strike (find the full list here):
- The Toronto Archives are closed.
- All park permits (tennis, soccer, etc.) including wedding photos are cancelled.
- City camps, clubs, tours, anything planned for community schools, pools, arenas, fitness centres, golf courses, greenhouses, conservatories, and public washrooms – all closed.
- The Toronto Island ferry is out of service.
- Routine repairs to expressways, roads, sidewalks and bridges are suspended, and many Transportation services issues that are functioning will see delays.
- Here’s one that is huge: all child care centres operated by Toronto Children’s Services are closed. The list, as linked above, available here under the Children’s Services header.
- Streets to Homes walk-in is closed as is the Adelaide Women’s Resource Centre.
- Grade 7 and 8 students who missed their Hep B, Meningitis C and HPV immunizations are out of luck for now.
- Routine restaurant inspections are out, which should give you even more reason to cook at home.
- The city’s sexual health clinics, needle exchange on Victoria, and dental clinics are shut down.
- Water quality won’t be monitored on beaches, so it’s probably a bad idea to swim.
- Taxi, limo and CPR training at Municipal Licensing and Standards is off. More importantly, taxis get training?
- It’s unclear whether parking tickets are still being issued, but you won’t be able to go to Metro Hall to dispute one.
If CUPE Local 416 prez Mark Ferguson is serious about being “miles apart” and not allowing the city to “rip the heart and soul out of our collective agreement,” as he said in front of City Hall yesterday, you might want to get an idea of how much of the city will actually be shuttered.[rssbreak]
