With a continued focus on dealing with climate change in our community, waste management is a big part of the battle.
As a member of the Waste Management Site Advisory committee at Halton Region, I have been working with Milton and Halton residents on promoting waste diversion options to help reduce what is sent to our landfill site and increase the lifespan of the facility. From increased options for recycling and improvements to our Blue Box collection to highlighting the benefits of the Green Cart program, together we have been able to extend the life of the Halton Waste Management site to 2040.
COVID-19 has altered our lifestyles quite a bit over the last 20 months and that includes how much waste is being sent to the landfill and we need to ensure we are doing everything to improve our customer service at the WMS along with new and innovative ways to divert waste and improve our local environment. We need your input!
Halton Region is currently reviewing and getting public feedback on the next steps in our waste management strategy and we would like to hear from you. From the Halton Region Website – “Reducing community waste and protecting the natural environment have always been top priorities for Halton Region and the community. As the region grows and the community changes, our proposed Solid Waste Management Strategy(PDF file) includes medium and long-term initiatives to help increase waste diversion, extend the life of our landfill and lower carbon emissions.“
Follow the link to provide your input on Halton’s waste management future. Deadline is December 10th, 2021.
Together with Laurie Hepburn from Halton Women’s Place, I am joined with Milton Mayor Gord Krantz as we read the proclamation declaring November to be Women’s Abuse Prevention Month in Milton.
Violence against women continues to be a problem in our community with proof that both locations of HWP (Burlington and Milton) are exceeding capacity regularly. As we have been dealing with COVID-19 for almost 2 years, it has further increased the demand for the services HWP and other agencies in our community provide. It begins with education and continues with advocacy at all levels to government to help eliminate this problem. I am proud that over the last several years I have organized the Hope In High Heels walk fundraiser in Milton to help raise the much needed funds to keep the shelter open and give those in need help to get back on their feet.
By declaring the month of November as Womens Abuse Prevention Month, we hope to raise awareness in our community that this is a problem and needs to be solved.
For more information please visit check the following websites for more information.
A heartwarming candlelight ceremony was held this evening by Townsend Smith Foundation at the Italian Cultural Centre of Milton
There were readings and songs throughout the evening as we remember loved ones that are no longer with us and hope for bringing a hospice to North Halton.
Thank you to everyone who came and shared in this wonderful ceremony.
As the Province of Ontario considers extending the Stay-at-Home emergency order beyond May 20, today, Halton’s Mayors and Regional Chair are reiterating our call to safely reopen outdoor activities.
Outdoor activities done safely with physical distancing and masking are a necessary support to physical and mental health, especially during this prolonged period of lockdown.
Keeping people safely connected: Maintaining social connections and outdoor activity are important to our overall physical and mental health. This means allowing small groups of people from different households to meet outside with masking and two-metre distancing. It means keeping playgrounds open and clearly encouraging safe outdoor activities.
As noted by the Science Table:
“Policies that discourage safe outdoor activity will not control COVID-19 and will disproportionately harm children and those who do not have access to their own greenspace, especially those living in crowded conditions.”
While the Halton Mayors and Regional Chair continue to discourage large gatherings in any setting, small groups can be at the same amenity at the same time as long as they are following the health guidelines.
We also stand with our Halton students who are calling for a safe return to sports when health guidance and evidence suggests it is safe to do so. The Halton District School Board’s (HDSB) Student Senate recently passed a motion declaring sports essential in students’ lives and created a Safe Sports sub-committee, co-chaired by two Halton students. The committee seeks to work with the Province to develop a plan for the safe return of sports, beginning with low-contact sports such as track and field, tennis, badminton, and swimming.
You can hear more about the Safe Sports movement here on an edition of Local Matters with Mike Cluett courtesy of YourTV Halton.
https://youtu.be/ZyVJ9R5HrRI
Given that many sporting activities occur in city facilities, the four Halton municipalities stand ready to partner with the Province, school boards and our local fitness providers in planning for a safe restart of sports.
In light of the evidence and advice from the Science Table, we renew our call to the Province to review and reconsider the list of currently prohibited outdoor activities. We further call on the provincial government to consult with school boards and our youth to design a safe return to sports plan, so that low-contact sports can resume as soon as it is safe to do so.
On this weeks edition of Local Matters with Mike Cluett (seen weekly on YourTV Halton) I discuss some very important issues that effect not only ward 4 residents but the Town of Milton & and Halton Region as well. In part one, Town Councillor Sameera Ali and Regional Councillor Zeeshan Hamid and I provide residents with an FAQ of what residents are asking, what is being done and the future of the proposed CN Intermodal.
In the second part of Local Matters, we discuss other important issues facing residents from storm water pond safety, parking in new developments as well as a Britannia Road construction update.
As always feel free to email me questions or comments to mike@mikecluett.ca and follow me on Twitter and on Facebook with the hashtag #LOCALMATTERS
Here are the clips (Courtesy of YourTV Halton YouTube)
It’s hard to sum up ones feelings of what’s happened over the last year.
When this was all beginning there was a palatable feeling of fear in the air. We saw reports of deaths and sickness on the news each and every night but the general feeling was “it’s over there in another country…not here.”
Then suddenly things changed. There was one case diagnosed … then another … and then more.
Our country and our town lost its sense of being safe almost overnight. It wasn’t safe to go out in groups, out shopping and being with our friends. Things that we had taken for granted were now abruptly called into question.
I won’t go into the details of the food and toilet paper hoarding that followed (some things we now chuckle about) and at the time that fear was real. The schools were closing down for a couple of weeks after the March break and that should do it. Then 2 weeks turned into 2 months and then graduations were cancelled. It all seems like a blur but it also feels like a life time ago.
Fast forward to today and we’re still hearing of rising and lowering numbers of infections and sadly more deaths. But there’s also a sense of hope now that more and more vaccines are being approved and in addition to the gloomy numbers we hear on news broadcasts, we’re now seeing people being vaccinated.
We’ve been through a lot over the last year. We have been forced to change the way we live, the way we act, the way we do business and the way we interact with families and friends.
We’ve learned about variants … mask technology … the words social distancing, pivoting, Zoom meetings (along with statements like “You’re on mute” and “Next slide please”) have been engrained into our vocabulary.
Sadly many of have lost friends and family members due to COVID and that is the ultimate cost of this pandemic. This is why today we take the opportunity to remember those who lost their lives and the impacts on their families because of COVID.
Things are getting better now. More and more people are getting vaccinated and that will have an impact on the spread of this horrible virus. We as a community still have to be vigilant going forward but here is light at the end of the tunnel. While all this is happening we must remember where we have been and learn lessons from it. Most importantly we can’t forget the people we have lost…our friends, colleagues,and family members.
Our flags are lowered to do just that.
We also need to take a moment and thank our frontline workers, health care professionals, doctors, nurses, AND everyone who has had to deal with this each and every day in order to keep us safe. Thank you so much for the time and sacrifice … it will be a debt we won’t be able to repay. Thank You!
I am continuously amazed at how our community has come together so quickly. We think of the physical distance we keep from each other, this event has brought us closer in so many other ways.
Whether you feel we’re at the middle of all this or we’re in the beginning stages of the end goal, I ask you all to remain strong … MILTON strong … and we will get through this and get back to handshakes, hugs and high fives all around. Our community has such a strong resolve we can’t fail and we won’t.
