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tii even Wednesdav by the Fairway I Group. owned by CatyMedta Group Inc ' a sutstdrary ot harsh“ (imp, lhe i L oniem at thes paper " protected tn [ cup' nghl and may be used only to, Jll',U/il'i Hull corautercust purposes l All other rights are reserved and l, commercial use th prohibited To nun: use ot thes "ratenal vnu mun i tirsr “hum the purnuasmn ot the owner ot the copyright the Waterloo Chrorucle Pa publshed WATERLOO CHRONICLE eouriaKiwaterloochronicleia srrrsnsriawaterloochtottwleca sigestuwaterloochronickwa ctrmposuphvarerloochronicle m 279 Weber St.. North, Suite 20 watedooAhtLario N2] 3H8 Phone: WWr2830 Fax: B86 9383 the News of our mlummsls are their own and do not necessarily represent those uf the newspaper, Group Publiiher Group sues mreetort Aland-[e Publisher ' Him-5:} 6211 305013211» t',aT3oso,Fac2H1 Huh I mm tam-r ptthhshed Suhmlswms may he "iited for n-ngm m "lrawrsrhrief r npvnglu m Imlrrs amlunn-I marrnah wHmmcd m the I’uhluhm and arteptrd for pllhlu annn n-malm wuh [hr aurhm hut llw 'Illhlzshm and In In rum may {In-h wpnnhm- them m Pnn1 t-lnmmn orortrrsrbrrrrv, ttut null-m: aridmms Is P7'4 'l'lrhrr q h Um: pn tr"areloo N " IP.' Inlrnmllnlml \Idllllm'll Nerrivl \hmhrl Gerry \LIHIII' '\'-u-na(.u.= Kalil Sages Advertising Man-gen Ext. 230 Sales. km. 223 Hull lawn bt Bull "alum Adnnmng Sales, Adverlhin‘ E11222 Sales, £31.22! I mu “an” Matt \Illlv: $995!.) PrMects Speck! Projects Artdwa Hank". Huh K'rtundx Edllor. Fat. " 5 Sporls Editor. Ext. 225 www waterloochrortMe.ca Ihr. Watertrsr" hrrmu Dr wehonws [rm-m If) uh? Prim-r th'V should be sopaed th name address and phone number and will he rr‘nhrd for an “rm 'dr, unsigm‘d lesttets will he .ulml l’ulslh Aurr. u Mail hulvs Prsrtt .M Agu-m-u-nx Nuuthru Letters Policy ISSN 0832 34 [(1 4005i” TB 1lmayrw v.u.:m.-s._-n qtulrred ' Irrulalmn .' Mart Mille. Hi Why the confusion? he City of Waierluu's environment-first policies I have taken a beating this council term. and it seems like they'll be bloodied again after the court- cillors around the horseshoe got their backs up again this week over the issue of a proposed ban on pesticides. They argue there's still confusion over what regional council is proposing and asked for even more informa» lion before passing judgement. In the past. wiirG; city council would have led on a decision like this instead of being dragged to make a commitment one way or another. After all. our public spaces are already pesticide free. prompting more than a few people to come out in sup- port of what this policy has done for their health and the health of their children. Nevermind the positive effects this has had on the environment around us. Haven't we been reminded enough this past year about man's contribution to environmental degradation? Isn't it time we take steps to improve things like air quali- ty, even ifit is just at the local level? One day pesticide-free policies will he seen with the same regard as the no-smoking policies that have improved the health of the general population. So where's the confusion? Are 1mm:- councillors Inn afraid to make a stand, as Waterloo regional Coun. Jane Mitchell has suggested? (br is Waterloo trying In paint the region as the bad guy when they vventually adopt a stricter pmtiride Poli- w? 'l hath, playing politics an its want. pandering In the vocal minority instead of leading us where science and nur Iota! health department say we already should be. Sn take a deep breath and hike a stiutd nn the environ mvnl, the malorityofWater1tto would 'mpport you. Or are you just tun afraid (n breathe ii, all the contain inanls being sprayed on your neighbour's lawn? CHROIQICLE EDIT( on them amdmtmsfor children in tl.tnda VIEWPOINT NOW, WHERE WERE WE . . . ORIA] 'oc-r, Ir_ _' "r._sii'sr)),','t,'a,l'to" ssq: I i. Our water policies are all WEI live in an area where it's Irecommended I not allow my children to drink water from the tap until they are at least five years old due lo high levels of fluoride in our water. The concern is that the extra fluoride could lead (0 the discolouration of their teeth, which in turn can lead to that white flecking some people have on their pearly whites and break- down of the enamel. That meant when our first baby was born we quickly went from boiled water to bottled water when making his formula. The newest addition to the fami- ly, Dylan. who arrived Sept. 29. has had his formula mixed with distilled water since he was born. I know it's the taxpayers" lament. but you think they could at least guarantee water is rlean when it comes out of the taph. After all. we pay onnugh in taxes for this basic service. The extra rust hasn't ham a real hig deal for my family. At least we can afford it. Btlt Imw ahnm those people who don't have a choice and have to use the water anyway. And don] get me started on disrnluurod water, We installed wan-r "ffiriertt toi, lets when wr' built out house. lined with Styrofoam to prevent the sweating that You sometimes sm- on tlw sidvs of thru- units Tin-vie worked wruidvr, fully in f luring 1hr :nnnunl m waft-I we usv with var" flush, and help cut the over- all consumption of water in our household. But one of the side- effects of the Styrofoam is that it has been an efficient collector of all the iron that pours through our water system, Standing water in the toilet howl would lead In discolouration and count- less hours of scrubbing m get the mst stains out. The unly thing that seemed to solve the prob- lem was putting one of those concentrated chlorine Iahlms in the toilet tank, It's not like there isrit ennugh chlorine in the water as we speak. And judging hy the calls l'w taken during um rerrm series on the Water Wars here in Waterloo. I'm nm the only am- wondering if all of this rhlorirtatirut, and now rhinrmninznirm of lht- water. tstit only hard 0n uur hard, wart" likt' [llpl’S and hows. hm also nn tht, so“ iissnv of our hmlwx VRBANAC That’s not to mention people who have filled bath- tubs or hot tubs for bathing only to be greeted by brown sludge. They call to tell how they've complained to local water officials, and are reas- sured the powers that he are aware of the problem. But nothing ever gets done about it, So filters and liners get replaced as the blame gets passed from this govern- ment to the next. And while I am diametrically opposed to talk of amalgamation, and the hit that local democracy takes in bigger government bodies. there might be something to a streamlining ofservices. The ( 1in of Waterloo and other municipalities, including the hypocrites at Kitchener council who brought up amalgamation again hut voted against regionalizing water services. missed a recent opportunity In seriously lnnk at how water is managed locally. While higgcr government doesn't always mean "rfi, Henry of service m rust» eHertivtntssi. sometimes the uppt-r tier is better ahlv In handle mmvlhing as intensive as water manage- ment. At lvast the local powers that be could hold a walrr summit to honor coordinate their response and tn hotter map out the future. I knnw ths, region it. already under going a review prrrt'ess, but what good ir, it if the munh ipalities who deliver the water mm" drying tiw amm- 1hirn,r?