The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

w at er lo oc hr on ic le .c a W at er lo o C hr on ic le | T hu rs da y, Ju ne 3, 20 21 | 8 Show your support for St. Mary's Regional Cardiac Care Centre with #RedDAYFriday On June 11th Share Red for heart health Visit RedDay.ca to learn more with #RedDAYAYA Friday Visit RedDay.ca to learn more Only water 5:30-10 a.m. and 7-11 p.m. Know your day and follow the rules to help conserve our community's water. Water lawns once per week, based on your house number. The Water Conservation By-lawThe Water Conservation By-law is in effect May 31 to September 30is in effect May 31 to September 30 WaterWater wisely!wisely! If your address ends in: 0 or 1 your watering day is: Monday 2 or 3 Tuesday 4 or 5 Wednesday 6 or 7 Thursday 8 or 9 Friday Follow the by-law to help reduce summer strain on our water supply. Thanks for doing your part! For more information: bit.ly/WaterBylaw, 519-575-4400 Deaf and hard of hearing (TTY): 519-575-4608 • You can water shrubs, trees and gardens, wash vehicles or top up pools every other day: even-numbered addresses on even days of the month and odd-numbered addresses on odd days. • Using a bucket, watering can or rain barrel is allowed anytime. • For newly-planted grass and nematode applications, apply online or call. Waterloo residents can now pay $25 a year to city hall to put a chicken coop in their backyard and raise up to four egg-laying hens. But residents will still not be able to light backyard campfires, over concerns about air quality, health concerns and nuisance to neighbours. "We have lots of opportunities for folks to enjoy their backyards and burning fire is not one of them," Coun. Diane Freeman said. Coun. Jeff Henry said he that while he understands the appeal of wood-fuelled fires, "we have people that really need, desper- ately need in many cases, to have clean air." Decisions made by council Monday about backyards pleased some residents and disappointed others. "We're really excited to get started," resident Danielle Duerrstein said after spearhead- ing a public campaign to end a de- cade-long ban on backyard chick- ens. Her family plans to install a coop. "It's an opportunity for kids in the neighbourhood to be edu- cated on where our food comes from." Under new Waterloo rules, you may keep up to four domestic hens but no roosters. Eggs can't be sold and home slaughter is for- bidden. The coop must be 1.5 me- tres from any lot line. Council voted in April to end its backyard chicken ban pend- ing regulations approved Mon- day. Kitchener allows backyard chickens as well. "This is the time for this. Long overdue," Coun. Angela Vieth said. "I'm just really thrilled." She was less thrilled when council voted 7-1 to maintain its decade-long ban on backyard campfires. Vieth sees campfires as an af- fordable way for people to enjoy their property and socialize. Kitchener allows backyard fires. "I don't think that penalizing families in their backyards for having a small fire now and then is the way to go," she said. Other councillors said they heard from many residents who pleaded with them to maintain the fire ban. Allowing backyard fires would force neighbours to go in- side, close their windows and look for fresh air to breathe, Free- man argued. "In my conversation with folks, there is a real concern around safety, and there is a real concern around neighbourli- ness," Coun. Royce Bodaly said in rejecting backyard fires. "Smoke from wood fires does not respect property lines." Complaints about backyard fires are common. Waterloo has received 224 complaints over four years about fires it does not allow. Kitchener allows fires yet it has received 554 complaints over the past two years. Under new chicken policies, hen-keepers will have access to an online education package to help them care for the chickens and the coop. Care will also be guided by the city's animal con- trol bylaw. Enforcement is by complaint. The city hosted an online sur- vey that, although not statistical- ly representative, found 63 per cent support for backyard hens. Supporters of backyard chick- ens cited the top appeal as fresh eggs, fun and education, and chickens as pets. Opponents cited top concerns as rodents, smell, health and noise. Supporters of backyard fires urged council to loosen its ban. "I think the pandemic has tru- ly highlighted the importance of getting outdoors," resident Laura Bannon told council. Resident Ryan Hammar point- ed out that 81 per cent of respon- dents to a city survey support backyard fires. But Bill Anderson, a chemical engineering professor at the Uni- versity of Waterloo, presented re- search that shows "it doesn't take a whole lot of wood-burning to pollute a fair amount of air." City bureaucrats advised council to maintain the backyard fire ban, citing safety, nuisance to neighbours and high costs. Coun- cil was told it would have to spend $430,000 a year to hire more staff to regulate backyard fires. CHICKENS WILL ROOST BUT BACKYARD CAMPFIRES REMAIN BANNED Waterloo residents can now pay $25 a year to city hall to put a chicken coop with up to four domestic hens, but no roosters, in their backyard. Peter Lee/Metroland JEFF OUTHIT jouthit@therecord.com NEWS