Will Miller's legacy be rubbish?
(19) Will our mayor be remembered as an eco-visionary who led Toronto toward a sustainable future? Or will historians conclude he was an erratic, power-hungry dictator who imposed a punitive waste management system on the city that, in the end, did more harm than good?
On Saturday night, while driving east on Finch Ave. toward the southbound DVP ramp, I noticed a bag of garbage. Abandoned near the curb, it sat upright, plump and defiant, as if to say: "My owner threw me out the door and raced away because he doesn't know what to do anymore."
Earlier in the day, I passed another bag of tossed trash. This one was on Pottery Rd., not far from Fantasy Farm. It was deflated and motley. It said: "My owner knows illegal dumping is wrong. But he's desperate. His bin has yet to arrive."
And so it begins.
My parents live in a North York townhouse. They were not given a new garbage bin. Instead, they were told to buy yellow stickers and affix one to every bag of trash on a permanent basis.
Compounding the insanity, there is no green bin program in their development. So in effect, they're paying a user fee to throw out "garbage" that, given their lifestyle, is made up almost entirely of organic materials.
Since the city's goal is to divert waste, does this make any sense?
When I now visit my folks, I leave with a bag of kitchen trash. This is then placed in my trunk and transported across the city where it's deposited in my green bin.
I don't mind doing this. But what about the people living in townhouses and apartment buildings who don't have access to familial green bins?
Last week, the city released a report breezily titled, "Proposed Measures to Reduce In-Store Packaging Waste and Litter, Municipal Hazardous and Special Waste and Plastic Water Bottles."
The recommendations include incentives for green consumers. For example, if you buy coffee and bring your own reusable mug, the city wants the shop or restaurant to give you a 20-cent discount. Similarly, if you bring your own bags to a grocery store, you should be entitled to a 10-cent discount for every new bag that's not required.
If these measures are implemented, coffee cups and plastic bags that are not recyclable in Toronto will eventually be banned.
How did garbage become the bane of our existence?
Gazing into the future, I wouldn't be surprised if we see an explosion in black-market activity across the GTA. Never mind guns and drugs. In alleyways, thugs will soon be hustling new contraband from the back of vans, enticing inconvenienced caffeine addicts with exotic blends of South American java in cups with plastic lids.
Soon, you'll need "connections" to score some bottled water. Soon, suburban moms will drift into rough neighbourhoods, seeking out "bag pushers" who will open their trench coats to reveal a shiny inventory of outlawed plastic with non-biodegradable handles and metal grommets.
What? The city also wants to develop a reusable container for takeout foods?
I believe such a product already exists. It is known as "Tupperware."
Let's hope all of this has a happy ending and Toronto helps save the planet. That said, before the city declares war on coffee cups, I'd like to know what it plans to do with the millions of old garbage bins that are now obsolete and headed for a landfill.
Is David Miller leading us toward a better tomorrow? Maybe. But right now, today, all this refuse fascism has the stench of political overreach.
Oh, this one is different. It'll be a propaganda sheet to disseminate news that's been carefully crafted to paint the politicians in the most positive light. But you need this.
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