Vandalism Threatens Municipal Services
The Municipality of Cumberland is growing increasingly frustrated with continued vandalism at its transfer stations.
Speaking during council’s committee of the whole meeting, yesterday, chief administrative officer Greg Herrett said the vandalism may reach a point where the municipality has to look at other options.
Earlier this month, a compost bin at the Joggins transfer station was set on fire, while vandalism is continuing at the transfer station on the Irishtown Road in Pugwash.
“While there has been some improvement with the level of vandalism in Pugwash, it is continuing,” Herrett told council. “Sometimes it’s the lock being cut off, sometimes it’s the chain being thrown away or the chain stolen. It’s happening multiple times.”
The CAO said the municipality is in discussion with the RCMP on the continued vandalism.
Cumberland will soon begin testing new security cameras in a partnership with LED Roadway Lighting of Amherst. Seven of the sophisticated, high-tech devices will be installed, including one to keep tabs on the Pugwash Transfer Station.
Herrett said, “Those facilities are only open during the posted times and they’re not for trespassing when they are closed.”
Upon investigating the fire at the Joggins transfer station, it was also noticed the bin was mostly filled with unsorted garbage.
“That’s equally unacceptable,” Herrett said. “That’s not sustainable and to those people who are using it to dump unsorted garbage it has to stop or we will have to take other action to control that.”
The CAO is also urging residents to “step up their game” when it comes to separating waste into the proper streams. An audit found too much contamination in recyclables with garbage items and/or compost being included in the recycling bags.
Herrett said the municipality intends to work with GFL Environmental — owners of the Little Forks landfill, Miller Waste, and the Town of Amherst to better educate residents on the waste streams and better source separation of garbage, compost, and recyclables.
“We’re going to work with our partners to put forward an education campaign to give people some advice on sorting and prompt folks to up their game when it comes to recyclables,” the CAO said. “It’s not only an education campaign but beginning in February GFL will be rejecting loads at the landfill if they don’t meet an acceptable level of separation.”
Herrett said residents will likely begin to see more rejection stickers on their recyclables placed at the curb. That doesn’t mean it’s to be left there until the next collection day, added Herrett, it means they must correct the issue before it will be collected.
Herrett says, “We’re urging people not to look at those as failing grades, but an opportunity for improvement.” He noted, “The information is out there now and we’re encouraging people to take that extra step to sort their recyclables.”
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