The large recycling bins at the Lavigne Community Centre will be removed, declared West Nipissing’s municipal council. Removing the bins was a suggestion from the Community Centre’s board of directors, who met in early May to discuss the issue.
“Members would like to advise you that the [board] does not wish to keep recycling bins at the multi-purpose park,” noted Daniel Corriveau, the president of the Centre Communautaire de Lavigne, in a letter to council.
The size of the bins “limits the parking space available at the park and some people leave their garbage cans on the site and not their recycling.” Indeed, abusing the bins – depositing trash instead of recyclable materials, or toxic waste like paint – has been an issue at the site.
The bins are located very close to the park, and the excess refuse becomes unsightly. Also, the president noted that the trash attracts animals, “which creates concerns about the safety of users.”
Perhaps move the bins to the back of the parking lot at the community centre? That idea has already been played out, and Corriveau recalled that experiment failed. “The bins were removed” from the parking lot “due to abuse,” involving the usual suspects of discarded propane tanks, tires, and excessive garbage at the recycling bins.
Plus, the park is undergoing a revival, with a new playground and equipment, “and we are expecting a significant increase in usage and traffic,” said Stephan Poulin, West Nipissing’s Director of Community Services, “and those bins will become problematic for parking.”
Out with the bins, council agreed.
What’s one to do with their recyclables? For some, the bins at the Community Centre provided a convenient dumping ground. Now, the bins will be relocated to the Lavigne Landfill, so you’ll have to take your bottles and cans there.
David Briggs is a Local Journalism Initiative reporter who works out of BayToday, a publication of Village Media. The Local Journalism Initiative is funded by the Government of Canada.
