Recycling will top conference agenda
Derek Neary
Northern News Services
Fort Simpson (Jan 26/01) - A conference in March may change the way Deh Cho residents think about garbage.
That is the intention of a Fort Simpson planning committee that will attend the March 2-4 waste management and recycling conference in the community.
"What we're trying to do here is educate the public about the importance of (waste management)," said committee member Kevin Mulligan.
"I want the community to become environmentally conscious. It doesn't take a big effort. It becomes routine," said Mulligan, who added that every action taken now will lessen the impact on future generations.
The conference, spearheaded by the Deh Cho Friendship Centre, is an extension of a recycling feasibility study that the centre carried out last year. The majority of funding is coming from the Community Animation Program and that will be supplemented by local contributions.
Gerry Antoine, executive director of the centre and a planning committee member, said he foresees new waste management practices having repercussions on the way the municipality operates the landfill.
Waste products would be collected and separated differently, new collection vehicles would be required and the landfill would have designated areas for various types of materials, he explained.
Other than fax toners being accepted by a local business for proper disposal, and bottles and cans being stored for refund, there's little effort made to recycle in Fort Simpson, said Antoine.
"There's no waste management program in the Western NWT. We'd like Fort Simpson to be a pilot project for the NWT," said Antoine.
Antoine said everyone generates garbage, therefore everyone's co-operation is needed. He added Slavey translation will be offered during the conference.
Hilda Antoine, another member of the planning committee and chair of the Fort Simpson Beautification Society, said the conference's community feast should be advertised as environmentally friendly. People would be encouraged to bring their own silverware and cups or mugs, she said.
Waste management plans have to be undertaken before the community grows too large and then the problem becomes overwhelming, as witnessed in many southern Canadian cities, she noted.
"We're a small community. If we can get things like this organized when we're small, it will be more cost effective and easier to maintain," she said.
