Citizens hope to stop idling motors

Posted Feb 2, 2012 By Scott Pettigrew

EMC News -Tweed - A delegation attended the Tweed municipal council meeting January 24 and spokesperson Penny Vance did a presentation to council in the hopes of creating a bylaw that would result in stopping engines from idling in Tweed. She started her presentation by citing one of the proposed actions in the Integrated Community Sustainability Plan (ICSP) that was issued July 21, 2010.

"I attended the (ICSP) meetings in my own area and noted a number of respondents like myself who were concerned about the environment and in combatting climate change. On page 22, #8 Proposed Actions-Environmental Pillar it states: Consider development of anti-idling bylaw

or advisory in the municipality. My delegation is here today to ask Tweed council to act on this consideration ... to enact an anti-idling bylaw."

Penny went on to define the word advisory which essentially is to give advice and she felt an advisory would not result in any change.

"A letter about information in our tax bill or local paper might not even be read, in fact information about idling has been in pamphlets available to the public a number of times on the past." At that point Penny held up a number of pamphlets on idling she had gathered off an information shelf just outside council chambers.

"Before Christmas my husband and I spent a number of hours beside the Sal-

vation Army kettle mostly outside of the Tweed Tim Hortons site and we each noticed the number of cars idling, sometimes for long periods, while they (car owners) were inside. In one instance a car parked directly in front of the main entrance was left for fully twenty minutes while my husband stood outside breathing the fumes. He thought it was ironic to see the "no smoking within nine metres of the building" sign on the wall. I have noticed other spots where idling happens regularly (in Tweed) including the Post Office, Daisy Mart, the Beer Store and at the Valu Mart."

Penny went on to say she and her husband have been in the habit of turning off their engine when parking for many years.

"Sometimes we notice a difference in the interior temperature but I guess we must be that tough that we don't mind it in the least."

Penny and her group had definitely done their homework before coming to council and brought information from the Ontario government web site under the subtitle "idling can be costly."

"We have learned that vehicle engines are the better for being shut down versus being left idling. The web site states that unnecessary idling of vehicles harms our health and our environment. Turning off

your engine, wherever possible, saves fuel and reduces vehicle maintenance costs. Natural Resources Canada recommends if you are going to be stopped for more than 60 secondsexcept in trafficturn the engine off. Idling more than 10 seconds uses more fuel and produces more CO2 than restarting your engine."

Penny said Natural Resources Canada's web site under Idle Free Zone at < idling.gc.ca>has a wealth of information and has examples of how trucks and buses can reduce fuel consumption and engine wear with reductions in idling.

Penny and her husband recently visited Perth where they have the idling bylaw and she said there are a number of signs posted and she brought pictures of the signs to show council.

Penny also brought a copy of the bylaw for council to examine. The fine for idling in Perth is $8.

Penny also brought with her a statement signed by the Green Team at St. Carthagh School that read, "As students we do not drive yet, but we do breathe the air and would appreciate it not being polluted by exhaust fumes. We hope to support this bylaw by telling our parents to turn off their cars, (by) designing posters to remind people to turn off their motors and write articles to our newspaper. We work very hard to 'green' our school and now would like to help green our community. It would be good to know if you were walking around town that you are not breathing unnecessary fumes from idling parked cars." The Green Team had

signed the document but their signatures were removed for privacy.

Penny concluded by saying, "The thrust of the (Perth) law is to stop the kind of idling I have noted here, idling that could make a real negative difference to our air quality and raise the quantity of greenhouse gasses through thoughtlessness and indeed ignorance. As much as anything, a law like this (in Tweed) will be an opportunity to educate those who do not know the downside of this behaviour. It will be one act by our municipality that will be seen by the public, by those residing here and by visitors ... that there are those who care about present and future generations and who care about our reputations as responsible stewards of our place in the world."