Dear Editor:
Re: Process is worse than coal burning, Burnaby NOW, April 5.
Yes it is true that we over consume and waste too much, and we should all try harder in our efforts to do better.
However, it never fails to amaze me how environmentalist overstate their concerns.
Firstly, do they really want to repair and reuse old appliances like refrigerators?
Recently we replaced our 20-year-old fridge with a new Power Smart one and the savings on our electric bill were simply amazing. B.C. Hydro hauled away the old one for recycling and proper disposal of the refrigerant. Does it make environmental sense to have repaired this old energy-wasting refrigerator?
Secondly, I can see the incinerator in Burnaby from my neighbourhood. The south slope of Burnaby, with its million-dollar homes, is certainly not a low-income neighbourhood.
Lastly, this goal of zero waste is completely unreasonable and unattainable. Mankind for tens of thousands of years has produced waste. This is what archaeologists spend their careers digging through in every corner of the globe.
No matter how hard we all try to reduce, reuse, and recycle we are still going to have some waste; environmentalists have to compromise and accept this fact.
Larry Melnyk, Burnaby
