Flyer bundles continue to appear in Sackville driveways in spite of town bylaw
Residents of Middle Sackville awoke to another illegal offering this morning: fat bundles of pink, plastic-wrapped advertising flyers that had been tossed onto their driveways in spite of a town bylaw that requires them to be placed in mailboxes, on doorsteps or in special tubes or receptacles.
After the bylaw took effect in December, the driveway flyers kept coming, especially in Middle Sackville, courtesy of Brunswick News. That company is now owned by Postmedia, the country’s biggest newspaper chain.
“When the bylaw was approved by council, we began with education with the company responsible for the delivery of the flyers,” Treasurer Micheal Beal told councillors on Tuesday.
“We went through months of education, reported things that we had seen that went against the bylaw,” he added.
“We then indicated a few months back that we would begin enforcement of the bylaw and issuing fines.”
Beal said that so far, Brunswick News has been issued four, $140 fines and after the latest one, the company promised to hold another meeting with its drivers and to conduct “route audits” to make sure the bylaw is followed.
He said that the company has also indicated that, if it needs to, it will change carrier drivers to ensure compliance with the flyer bylaw.
Beal added that the company has been warned that if the bylaw infractions continue, town council may decide to ban residential flyer delivery altogether.
Moncton issued dozens of fines in the year after it passed a similar bylaw in 2020, but Austin Henderson, the city’s manager of communications, said today there have been only 18 complaints so far this year.
Meantime, Mike Power, Vice President of Editorial and Sales Operations for Brunswick News, says the company is doing everything possible to make sure its delivery contractors comply with Sackville’s bylaw.
“We acknowledge that the bylaw is there and we give instructions to our contractors about what we are obligated to do,” he said during a telephone interview.
“We are making our best efforts.”
Power says the company distributes just over 2,000 flyer bundles in Sackville each week.
He declined to discuss how much the flyer contractors are paid.
Hmmm…I wonder if that law applies to Westcock, Rockport, British Settlement. She was putting in mailboxes but criss-crossing the road and becoming a danger to oncoming cars. As a result she was told she had to toss them. Now they land in our driveway (she still criss-crosses even to do that.)
Please don’t advise to contact her manager or the paper owner. I’ve had enough fighting back and forth between delivery person and her manager.
Does Town not know that we do not have ‘old fashion” post boxes at side of road. Canada post took those away several years ago !
Perhaps large distribution boxes could simply be placed next to all the Mail Box systems. I believe the mail box systems are almost always on Town land, or on provincial or town right of ways. One could pick their package of flyers up there. It would be very convenient for box holders and for the general public. Then the flyers are only being picked up by those that want them. Much less waste and no more driveway tosses as a result.
If those are appearing in driveways of people who don’t want them why not just put them into your waste bins, blue bags, whatever and stop making so much noise about something so irrelevant. Canadians are experiencing 7.7% inflation, a record high since 1983, and I’m having deju vu to when my parents were barely able to hold onto their home due to double digit mortgage rates under Pierre Trudeau… can we please focus on real stories and not “silly complaints”.. honest to God!
Because it’s 100,000 plastic bags in Sackville alone each year that probably go to a landfill. I doubt they’re recyclable. Plus the waste of gas driving these things around to every house. Extrapolate that to a country, and you have an environmental problem that isn’t “irrelevant” or “silly”.
Recycle repurpose reuse… this is where creativity and technology meet up… I recommend people see the potential for things that are ‘trash’ because they’re there.. you’ve seen the house built from recycle plastic right? Well this is where they go with their plans… making use of things that are seen as at the end of their ‘plastic lives’ is the future.. so think out of the box . https://halifax.citynews.ca/local-news/nova-scotian-house-built-from-plastic-bottles-is-a-world-first-1548797
Could the town publish the contact information needed to stop delivery of flyers? I suspect many people just put them in the trash, a monumental waste of resources. Stop it at the source!
Just look at the top of the first or second page of the flyer package: there is a number to call for them to stop delivery. It works – most of the time… When they reappear, supposedly because a new carrier forgot that I don’t want them, I call again and they stop again dropping it off. Just a small thing to do if you want to stop waste appearing in your driveway 🙂
And no, Kata LP, it’s not an insignificant thing; plastic waste is a huge problem, in the ocean, the land, etc. Micro-plastics have now been found in fish and will make their way into humans as well, if it has not already happened.
Again, the issue is whether technology and innovation can solve the problems of plastic waste with recycling – its not enough to just arbitrarily ban things and complain about them — I have come to realize that academic world does not actually contribute much to our society, other than complaining – but if they get paid well and have some letters after their name I guess that’s enough for them?
Recycle repurpose reuse… this is where creativity and technology meet up… I recommend people see the potential for things that are ‘trash’ because they’re there.. you’ve seen the house built from recycle plastic right? Well this is where they go with their plans… making use of things that are seen as at the end of their ‘plastic lives’ is the future.. so think out of the box . https://halifax.citynews.ca/local-news/nova-scotian-house-built-from-plastic-bottles-is-a-world-first-1548797
“I have come to realize that academic world does not actually contribute much to our society, other than complaining”… yes, Sally, what has the academic world ever done for us? Oh yeah, I forgot – they have educated doctors, nurses, pharmacists, pharmaceutical researchers, scientists in all other fields of science, engineers, lawyers, etc, etc. The next time you go to the hospital or drug store for a prescription, or drive over a bridge without it collapsing, you can thank the academic world for ensuring that all of the professionals who look after your health care or build the buildings you live in and roadways you drive on have been thoroughly trained. You sure seem to have an irrational hate on for anything or anyone in the academic world. Is it possibly a case of envy?