Wilderness Committee: "Speak now or forever hold your breath"

VANCOUVER - An environmental group is warning the public to "speak now or forever hold your breath" on the issue of trash incineration in Metro Vancouver.

The Wilderness Committee has released a light-hearted video, that suggests residents speak out against Metro Vancouver's plan to burn its waste. To underscore its message, the video pokes fun at flaws in Metro's research, such as hiring a consultant who once promoted the tobacco industry, and shows people wearing gas masks to avoid air pollution from the proposed plant.

The video, which is aimed at raising awareness, coincides with a public consultation session on Metro's draft regional waste management plan, which wraps up on July 14. The plan calls for at least one incinerator in the region to deal with trash after the Cache Creek landfill closes in 2012.

Metro argues it needs new ways to deal with waste closer to home as the landfill reaches capacity. But the Wilderness Committee points out that the B.C. environment ministry has already approved an extension for the Cache Creek dump. And if it approves incineration, the region will need "tonnes of garbage" to help it run efficiently.

"People generally support the idea of recovering energy from waste but the idea of mass incineration of plastics and organics, there's a concern," said Ben West, Healthy Communities Campaigner for the Wilderness Committee.

West notes that proponents of waste incineration are big corporations who will do or say anything to get the multi-million dollar contracts. The video encourages viewers to take action by sending a personal message on the ZeroWasteBC.org site. The message will be forwarded to the Metro Vancouver board and to Environment Minister Barry Penner.