Residents need to petition City about green cart program

By Letter to the Editor on November 25, 2021.

Editor:
Apparently $4.75 million has been allocated from the provincial government to the City of Lethbridge to support “Municipal Infrastructure Improvements.” The City has  earmarked this money for “purchasing solid waste carts and vehicles for the city’s green cart program.”
Do residents realize what is going on here?  In short, the City plans to implement the “green cart program” and you will be expected to maintain yet another bin on your property, this one for “organics.”
 It appears that the City is trying, once again, to hoodwink us into believing that the “green cart program” is necessary and will be beneficial. Similar to the “blue cart curbside recycling” program? 
Actually, full disclosure on City-operated, curbside recycling has never been released. 
We do know that in addition to the City operated curbside recycling, the three City operated recycling facilities are still opened. We also know that since the City began their curbside recycling, three private companies that provided curbside residential recycling have been forced out of business.
Residents have been saddled with perpetual and constantly increasing costs for recycling. 
Well, here we go again, with no chance of opting out of the green cart program, who knows the eventual additional costs to the taxpayer for this program?
 Perplexing is the fact that the provincial government allocated the $4.75 million to Lethbridge for “municipal infrastructure improvements.” 
The definition of “infrastructure” in any dictionary is:
 “The basic physical and organizational structures and facilities (buildings, roads, power supplies) needed for the operation of a society or enterprise.” 
 How, by any stretch of the imagination, can this provincial funding be allocated to a currently non-existing “green cart program” by our City?
In fact, how can the green cart program be considered infrastructure? 
Have the residents determined, or have they even been asked, as to whether they want or need green carts? The answer is a resounding “no!”
 Perhaps the “green cart program” should have been included as a referendum with the other referendums we recently had the opportunity of voting on.
 Apparently “infrastructure improvements” in our City are not required for replacing ancient sewer and water lines; road repairs. Municipal building upgrades?
 Before waking up one day finding a “green cart” in your driveway, you need to act now and petition our newly elected city council not to proceed with the “green cart program.”  
Harold Pereverseff
Lethbridge