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City Hall targets single-use plastics

A phased-in elimination of single-use plastics is being adopted by the city of Timmins, with the corporation itself setting the example for the rest of us.

The matter was raised by Councillor Kristin Murray this week.  She related how she saw workers cleaning out the flower beds in front of City Hall.

“We did have some staff members picking that up, putting them in black garbage bags which most likely went to the garbage dump,” she told her fellow councillors. “Was the garbage bag necessary? Could it have been put in the back of the truck and then just taken to the compost pile at the dump?”

Plastics being targeted range from those bags to grocery bags and cutlery.

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Another concern is bathroom wipes —  the ones you’ve seen on TV commercials with the British woman chatting up people in an airport..

Councillor Noella Rinaldo raised the issue from the standpoint of them clogging sewer pipes and causing other problems in the system.

Public utilities manager Scott Tam said they don’t break down as they’re supposed to.

“It is a growing concern,” he said, “but it’s not at the point where it’s really causing detrimental issues.  But with that being said, that could just be a matter of time as well.”

Mayor George Pirie noted that the wipes aren’t the problem.  Flushing them is.

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