1 WE'VE BEEN POISONED 1991 - 2003 DOCUMENTATION

This collection of letters and pictures documents the chain of events addressing the issue of compactor garbage trucks releasing garbage leachate on to the streets and lanes of our communities. These sets document this issue from May 1991 to December 2003. There is also a set from the November 18, 2008 spill.
At this point I would like to give you a small preview of this issue using quotes from other people.

From an article Volume 1, Number 3 February 23, 1999

The Compost

MULTI-STATE CRACKDOWN DIGS UP TRASHY PERFORMANCE
"Trashnet" Finds Over 4,000 Violations in Three Days

Though garbage truck drivers knew what to expect and used citizens band radios to help each other avoid checkpoints, police, transportation and environmental officials in eight States and the Nation's Capital managed to pull over more than 3,700 trash trucks in a co-ordinated, three-day effort...............found more than 4100 violations. The problems included overweight trucks, leaky trash and drivers who needed sleep, according to Rick Morrison of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection.
Virginia, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Maryland, Ohio, Delaware, and the District of Columbia participated in the effort, dubbed "Trashnet," which lasted from February 8th to 10th.
"If we found these types of problems during a three-day spot check, what goes on the other 362 days of the year?" asked Bill Bolling, a Virginia legislator who has been supporting that state's efforts to limit trash imports. "

So the above shows the same problem of garbage leachate being released from compactor garbage trucks in eight North Eastern United States and the American Nations Capital.

The following letter is from the Vancouver Sanitation Operations Department and was written November 14, 2003,

" We have investigated your complaint and report back to you as follows.
The Sanitation Branch of Engineering Services has been trying diligently to avoid any such spills especially in the vicinity of the complainant, To help minimize this issue, we have had the plugs in place at the bottom of the packer hoppers during the warmer months. For the rainy season (ie now) we have had the plugs removed so that large 'basins ' of water do not accumulate at the rear of the packers in the hoppers. Such basins of water would create a worse situation in terms of both spillages onto City streets ( especially on packer turns ) and splashing employees standing at the rear of the packer. "
Considering the fact that it rains about 8 months of the year in Vancouver this is a scary thought.

The next quotes are from the head of Vancouver Police Department's Commercial Vehicle Unit, Sean Lane.
" The only deterrent, says Sean Lane............ are two general bylaws that, in a roundabout way, can be used to charge drivers and companies operating leaking trucks.
"A leaking truck is an insecure load," he says. "There's a hundred dollar fine for that."
The other by law, he says, "prohibits anyone from discharging liquid into a sewer. " But of course, says Lane. "If there's no sewer near the leaking truck it's hard to lay charges"....."this is ironic. Overweight fines are far more costly than penalties fro drivers who lighten loads by leaking fluids."


Dr. Fred Bass, COPE Councillor suggests "... a little garbage leachate on the streets could actually be beneficial to Vancouverites. It boosts their immune systems."
There's always going to be bacteria outside our bodies that given our natural defences, might be a part of the environment that keeps us healthy..........That's why, he says, he hasn't pushed for stricter regulations and higher fines for companies and drivers responsible for leaked fluids..... "


Jim Bradley president of the Waste Haulers Association says, "Compactor seals puncture ....and they are expensive to replace......most trucks operating in Vancouver weren't made for its wet climate and hilly terrain. They're built in two dry, flat places: Hamilton, Ontario and Medicine Hat Alberta....That means in extremely wet conditions , it's possible for liquids to rise above the seals that haven't punctured and over flow out the compactor. . . Especially when trucks operate on steep roads. These trucks are a dry-goods hauler... they weren't designed to carry or contain liquids.
Also says Bradley, drivers can't determine how much of their load is fluid. "There is no way to measure or read what's on your truck." he says. " So climbing a hill you get committed, then you find out it's leaking."
And that, alleges Gudmundson, is a problem many drivers, especially those who receive bonuses for fitting more solid trash in their trucks, are reluctant to address. But Bradley, who also owns the waste management Superior Disposal, says his employees are paid by the hour.
"There's no incentive for my guys to overload their trucks, " he says.
BFI, however, Vancouver's second largest waste removal company, pay hourly but also reward their drivers for emptying more dumpsters.
"[For drivers] that's the real cash" says operations manager Kevin Skett. " Most of our drivers average about 150 containers a day. that's about 330 bucks [in bonuses]."