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Visitors' Comments:
The Concerned Citizens of Ottawa Group invite your comments.
Those who wish to come forward with information, (civic employees, and
others in vulnerable positions), who require anonymity,
However, to ensure the veracity of the information we
receive, all email correspondence must have contact information,
This is YOUR chance to help change things for the better. INDEX PAGE | 2 | PAGE #3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | NEXT | BACK | HOME
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THE BIGGER PICTURE
THE BIGGER PICTURE The City continues to connect new sewage pipelines to the City’s sewage collector system (2,000 km of pipe and growing). Extensions of sewage pipelines to new subdivisions or outlying villages increase the amount of sewage flowing through the collector system and ultimately the amount of effluent ---both treated and untreated--- that is discharged to the Ottawa River. Increased volumes increase the volume in the existing collectors and ultimately require the replacement of existing pipes with larger pipes. Everyone should realize that this translates into expensive capital projects and these are never borne by the new developments; they come from the collective pot. The answer is the installation of local (communal) high technology, tertiary treatment plants to meet the sewage treatment needs of new subdivisions or outlying villages. Such high tech installations would not increase discharge of pollution to the Ottawa River, would not increase the strain on the existing sewage collection infrastructure and, consequently, would reduce the strain on the public purse. Brian Finch FORMER RESIDENT’S CALL TO ACTION Although I live in Toronto now, I grew up in the Munster area. I’m disgusted with what I’m reading about this fiasco. I'm sure that if the issues at stake were a little more fashionable, there would not be such a successful cover-up. But sewage is nasty - and an easy topic to sweep under the carpet (figuratively speaking!). I also think that because Munster is a small, remote town that no one in Ottawa seems interested in, let alone will advocate for, it is easy for its citizens to be taken advantage of. I urge everyone in Munster (and Richmond, because it affects you, as well) to inform yourselves about what is going on in your own communities, and speak up as a strong, united voice - don't let yourself be "(dumped) on," any longer! Lisa Parker MUNSTER IS NOT ALONE I work in the Business Development Department of a company in Oregon that manufactures, designs/engineers, and sells alternative wastewater solutions. My position requests of me that I consult regularly with people in communities just like yours, and you would probably not be surprised to learn that there are thousands of you throughout the United States and Canada that all are shockingly similar in your circumstances. And yes, while my position is to let people like you know that better technology exists and that usually you are not being told all of the options, especially the least expensive and least polluting of them, I have found over time my job is much more than that. The situations in towns like yours are repeating over and over and over again, with appalling similarity. 1) Elected officials disregard public input or in fact find it contemptible and infuriating. 2) Engineering firms are looking more at retaining a client at any cost, and maximizing their own business, with no regard to the cost to individual homeowners or consumers. If an engineering company gets a percentage of the project price tag, why would they recommend a less expensive system, regardless of its value to the environment or savings to homeowners (in their taxes). Why does the engineering firm care if the prohibitive cost of a system puts elderly people on a fixed income out of their homes as long as they maximize their profits. 3) What I call community "spark-plugs" such as yourselves who call the bluff of elected officials and professional engineers are thrown out to the general public as whackos, weirdos, and anti-anything fanatics who should be feared instead of listened to as local heroes trying to protect their fellow citizens. 4) Any proposals then set forward by these Citizen-activists are summarily dismissed without investigation or merit, no matter how much research was put into them or information and data to back them up is supplied. 5) Engineering companies use fear tactics to scare people into buying into their projects NOW "before it's too late", "before the price for this doubles", "before you or your children die of E-coli poisoning". You have already recognized one aspect of this project that most communities do not....you do not want to pipe your waste to another community for treatment. You deplete your watershed and lose the ability to replenish it. 6) Sanitary Sewer superiority is a myth. If one component of an on-site system fails, it alone has a very minor affect on the local environment. If a big pipe system fails, or overflows, we read of thousands or millions of gallons of raw sewage flowing into our waterways. In fact in the United States (I don't know about Canada) the EPA issues permits to every wastewater treatment plant that includes allowable overflow, so as long as the raw sewage overflow does not exceed that allowed in the permit, they will not be fined. 7) Inflow and Infiltration (I & I) is the plague of North America. Every time it rains somewhere thousands if not millions of gallons of raw sewage flow into our rivers and streams. It is estimated in America alone that 720 billion dollars could not fix all the I & I problems. Some of the on-site systems are more capable of handling wide flow variables, thus maintaining performance at the same level, rain or shine. Because of all these reasons and more, I say local systems are not "alternative systems" (sometimes used in a negative manner), but, rather, they are the preferred solution for the community, for the environment, for efficient use of your tax dollars, and more. 8) Why will your engineering firms not support it, (and believe me I have heard every argument)? The bottom line: Do you want 10% of 1 million or 10% of 6 million? There is long standing evidence to counter every single argument they can come up with. The facts are clear, even though the rhetoric is plentiful. I talk on the phone to people like you every day (though I must admit I have never seen a website like yours). I applaud your tireless efforts. I would love to hear from you and/or even connect you with others who are sharing in your experience right now. Kendra Pettengill (YOUR COMMENT HERE)
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