Dear Editor
I was recently at North Battleford's landfill, disposing of an old fridge and noticed a fridge in the pile that looked like the one I currently have in my house. I grabbed one of the door shelves to see if it fit my fridge. I recently had to replace a shelf and it cost me $71. I was thrilled to see the dump fridge parts fit. When I brought my second load to the dump I told the City employee of my find and he reminded me about the city bylaw that prohibits scavenging. After I unloaded my second load of garbage, I proceeded to the discarded fridge and took approximately $600 worth of shelving and drawers that I could use in my own fridge. That is a huge saving to me. Yes, I took the fridge parts despite the bylaw that is against recycling. I guess they can issue me a ticket. They know where I live.
As a child, my family didn't have a lot of money. All my bikes came from the Hudson's Bay garbage dump. My father and I built some amazing bikes from the so called garbage. It was a weekend thing for my dad and I to get parts for our next creation. I can't do that with my kids, because of the local bylaw.
I put on a big Halloween display every year. To help save money we used to go to the dump to find lumber, metal fence, hinges and steel for our display. We still use a lot of the salvaged material. Now, if I need to add to the display I have to go buy. I no longer have the choice to use recycled materials and keep some money in my pocket.
I was recently visited my sister who lives in Marsh Lake, Yukon, which is 40 minutes out of Whitehorse. I took a load of garbage to their landfill, which encourages scavenging. They actually have a building set aside which they call the "Re-Store." This is an area where residents bring used but useful items. Anyone can take them if the need them. There was everything from fridges, jet tubs, ornaments, light fixtures, plumbing fixtures and many more reusable items. What a fantastic idea. I was impressed. Sounds like something we should do as a community. If the City would embrace this idea we could really do some great things for the environment and hey, you might even save a couple of bucks or help someone less fortunate.
Why is the City of North Battleford so against keeping as much as we can out of our landfill? Is it a liability issue? It is just as easy to put up a sign that says scavenge at your own risk as a sign that prohibits it. It think the City should reconsider their policy and try to be more environmentally friendly.
Guy Turcotte
North Battleford
