Kirsten Murphy
Northern News Services

Iqaluit (Aug 27/01) - Paul Crowley and the City of Iqaluit are unlikely allies.

Both parties oppose open burning of toxic, and possibly cancer-causing plastics at the dump. Yet the two parties are squaring off in the Nunavut Court of Justice Sept. 11.

Crowley, a member of Citizens for a Clean Iqaluit, is asking the court to order a 40-day moratorium on burning any waste at the dump.

"Nowhere else than in the Third World of North America -- the NWT, Nunavut and Newfoundland -- are you allowed to burn garbage," he said.

After 40 days, he expects the city to propose a new waste management system.

Iqaluit has burned solid waste for years. A recent three-month labour dispute, though, created a massive garbage backlog. The backlog resulted in a health order to burn, which in turn raised the amount of smoke hovering over town.

It also raised alarm bells with Crowley about toxic particles. "I want the city to stop flouting the law ... at the very least, if they can't observe the water licence now, I want to see a plan in place," he said.

Under a recently amended Nunavut Water Board licence, the city is prohibited from burning anything plastic or foam. It may burn paper, untreated wood and household food.

The board is a quasi-judicial entity overseeing air and water quality issues. Department of Indian and Northern Development enforces the licence.

However, DIAND is disputing the licence's validity -- thus adding weight to the city's contention it can't violate a licence that doesn't exist.

Crowley's long-term solutions are recycling and incineration -- projects long on the city's to-do list.

However, Crowley, a six-year Iqaluit resident, pointed skeptically to Iqaluit's defunct $7-million sewage treatment plant. "They have no credibility, no cash and no capacity," he said.

Acting mayor Matthew Spence called Crowley's credibility allegation a "cheap shot."

"It's a meaningless argument and it's distracting from the real issue," Spence said.

The real issues, according to Spence, are the city's other infrastructure needs, such road paving and an operational sewage treatment plant, both of which come with their own health risks if not addressed.

Council unanimously favours an end to open-garbage burning, Spence said.

"We're working towards a (residential) waste diversion and recycling program so people can separate plastics and metals at home," he said.

Blue bags and boxes are scheduled to arrive in the next month.

Spence said Crowley and Citizens for a Clean Iqaluit are admirable but misguided.

"Their efforts would be better spent helping us to lobby the federal government for more money," Spence said.

The two sides go before Justice Al Cooke Sept. 11. Crowley, a non-practising trained lawyer, is representing himself.

Prior to adjourning the matter on Aug. 16. Cooke said in open court, "The town's attitude to this point, at least from the ... affidavit, would appear to be just outright defiance."