The following letter was sent to Mayor Milt McIver and Council
Re: Council Meeting Minutes No. 21-38, page 3, line 2, “Councillor Golden suggested the Plan should investigate options for the amount of garbage produced by STA’s”.
Dear Mayor McIver and Council,
Councillor Golden’s comment about garbage generated by STAs only applies to a minority of overcrowded STAs that are rented with complete disregard to limiting the number of occupants. The quantity of garbage and recycling produced by any residential property is a direct result of the number of occupants; obviously, overcrowded residential dwellings, including some STAs, will generate enormous quantities of trash.
Moving forward, Bylaw 2021 – 84, limits STA occupancy at two people per bedroom, in addition, the requirements for STA garbage and recycling will further assure minimal garbage generation.
1) All residential properties, pay for garbage disposal 365 days of the year, either by roadside pick up or by depositing at a Municipal Landfill.
2) The majority of Seasonal Residences including Short Term Accommodation Cottages are primarily occupied May through October with occupancy concentration occurring in July and August.
3) Seasonal residences generate the majority of property tax revenue for The Municipality of Northern Bruce Peninsula with low overall demand for municipal services including garbage disposal.
The significant increase in garbage and litter over flowing containers and strewn everywhere is the direct consequence of the ever increasing number of people who flock daily to the area. Most notably, are the vehicles loaded with day-trippers that will most likely have garbage ranging from disposable coffee cups, to pizza boxes to an entire take out meal. This imported garbage in most cases will end up in our landfills.
Note the ever increasing number of food trucks in recent summers, the patrons are served their food and beverage in disposable containers, all destined to end up in our landfills. Restaurants increasingly, as a result of Pandemic restrictions, have shifted to take out menus that use disposable table ware all intended to a landfill.
Our tourist season is expanding year over year; many lodgings are now fully booked in the shoulder months with resultant increased revenues and at the expense of heightened requirements for all municipal services including waste disposal.
In conclusion, the surge of visitors to our area, more and more, places a strain on our infrastructure. Whether our waste disposal sites fill up in five years or seven years is a rather moot point. Plans have to be made for Government help for new ones or for new disposal methods.
This constant finger pointing and self-serving references to our landfills serves no purpose.
Respectfully submitted
St. Edmunds Property Owners Inc., Executive
David Almack, Kevin Doyle, Dave Hartney, Carrie King, Tom McAfee, Udo Nixdorf and Jack Schenk
Copy: CAO, Peggy Van Mierlo-West
Clerk, Cathy Addison
Tobermory Press
