Questions and Answers
1. Does the City/Region need more regulations for new and future businesses to protect groundwater?
Bob Verdun: Current policies are state-of-the-art and result in new developments that typically have cleaner runoff than the farmland they replace, provided that road salt and pesticides are not abused. We need to severely restrict the use of road salt, and keep the use of lawn chemicals to an absolute minimum. (Remember that two-thirds of existing Kitchener-Waterloo development already sits on the "Waterloo Moraine" and we continue to be able to draw safe water from old wells that are completely surrounded by city development.)
Don Pinnell: my answer would be that the ground water is a important factor to a thriving economy and should be protected.
Ken Seiling: The Region of Waterloo has been a leader and pioneer in ground and surface water protection programs. We are continuing to expand them and will continue to do so.
Ron Koenderink: There is always a need to make changes in law to respond to new information about dangers to groundwater.
2. Do you support a bylaw restricting the non-essential, cosmetic use of pesticides (for lawn and garden care)?
Bob Verdun: Yes, but the law must allow property owners reasonable access to chemicals where necessary. I operated a farm for 15 years where I successfully demonstrated that the routine application of herbicides to grass fields was completely unnecessary. I also had a half-acre personal garden that was 99% chemical-free. However, some weeds and pests do require chemical control.
Don Pinnell: I do support a purely cosmetic ban on pesticides.
Ken Seiling: A by-law imposed on a community must have a high level of acceptance and must be based on good information and science. Regional Council has said it wishes to move towards the use of fewer and fewer pesticides and does that in its own practices. A committee of the municipalities and interest groups is working on the issue. It has recommended as a first step that a major education program be carried out. To date there is no consensus on a complete ban and much needs to be done before we can consider a by-law.
Ron Koenderink: I support more natural methods and products.
3. The issue of a new Highway 7 between Kitchener and Guelph is still simmering. What is your preferred solution? (ie leave existing road as is? widen existing highway? put in commuter train between K/W and Guelph? build new highway, etc.)
Bob Verdun: We definitely need four lanes between Breslau and Guelph, even if we give top priority to the parallel GO train. Wetlands must be protected from any highway expansion. What is not needed is a four-lane expressway from Breslau into a $30-million-plus four-level interchange on the K-W Expressway at Wellington Street. There is a variety of routes from Breslau into Kitchener, Waterloo, and Cambridge. It is only between Breslau and Guelph that increased capacity is desperately needed to stop the carnage on the existing highway.
Don Pinnell: widen if necessary and leave for now if we can.
Ken Seiling: I support the new highway which has been the result of the most recent environmental assessment. Commuter trains will not resolve the issue. A new controlled access highway will have the added benefit of creating a hard edge boundary for urban development along the entire route to the Wellington line, thus providing additional agricultural and environmental protection for rural Woolwich lands.
Ron Koenderink: See below under 5.
4. What are your recommendations for alternate transportation (ie bike/hike trails, buses, LRT, GO train)
Bob Verdun: GO train service to Toronto must be the number-one priority. The streetcar system on King Street in K-W will cost far more than suggested, and will not work. It will cause more traffic congestion, which is an unnecessary assault on the environment. If we have GO trains, they will provide the nucleus of a transit-friendly community.
Don Pinnell: i more bike lanes; ii more and better busses; iii possible subway system
Ken Seiling: I strongly support the Light Rail Transit proposal, improved public transit, the creation of more bike lanes, and other auto reduction strategies undertaken by the Region.
Ron Koenderink: See below under 5.
5. What are your solutions for gridlock?
Bob Verdun: Sufficient road capacity must be provided where we actually need it. Idling vehicles stuck in traffic jams are our worst environmental sin. A growing city needs enough new arterial roads in the right places. We are a car society, and it is foolish to pretend otherwise, especially when we do not have a concentration of office buildings to generate significant transit demand. GO trains would be very well used, and would provide the core service around which a transit-friendly community can be built. The key to encouraging broader transit use is to introduce young people to it (high-school students in particular) and also provide excellent service in areas where we can use it by choice (especially for senior citizens, who face the loss of vehicular freedom). The GO trains would also be well used by university students, and would take the pressure off the City of Waterloo to provide more student housing because more students could comfortably commute. It is treat to visit cities that have excellent public transit, but we have nothing in Waterloo Region that actually encourages transit usage. Streetcars on King Street would be a giant step backward.
Don Pinnell: complete a ring road with other possibilities down the road
Ken Seiling: See 4 as means of avoiding future problems.
Ron Koenderink: I support changes to the existing Highway 7 as well as rail transit between cities to help with gridlock as well as rebuilding busy intersections to smooth traffic flow in the cities. I also support decentralization of all levels of government services in co-operate ventures to bring those services to more areas throughout the region (e.g. Galt, Preston and Hespeler downtowns) in order to reduce the need for more traffic on the roads.
6. Do you support defining an urban border that puts an end to urban sprawl to protect farmland and natural areas?
Bob Verdun: Clear boundaries to limit urban sprawl are essential, but they must enclose enough land to allow a freely competitive housing industry -- otherwise housing becomes unaffordable. There is plenty of land in southwestern Kitchener that is ideal for residential development because it is mediocre farmland but well endowed with forests and scenic areas that can be permanently protected as park reserves within well-planned city subdivisions. Prime farmland north of Waterloo must be absolutely protected, especially because it is home to the unique Mennonite community.
Don Pinnell: yes I think a line should be drawn to preserve rural and natural areas.
Ken Seiling: Yes and this is why I initiated the Growth Management Strategy study some two years ago in which I proposed to create hard edges.
Ron Koenderink: See below under 12.
7. Do you believe that our size should be limited to our carrying capacity (ie groundwater resources, geographical barriers, impact on natural environment)
Bob Verdun: The Kitchener-Waterloo-Cambridge area is the 4th largest attractor of immigrants in all of Canada. We have always been a nation of immigrants, dating back to the first arrivals from Asia. This has always been a land to be shared with waves of new arrivals. Our wealth and cultural diversity are rooted in our tradition of immigration. This is the most spacious country in the world, with the most resources per-capita. Surely we can continue to find the land and other resources to allow families to live comfortably and securely in our community. Yes, we must set high environmental standards -- and I am a committed pioneer in protecting our land, air, and water -- but it can be done if we have the vision and determination. Successful cities are collections of neighbourhoods and communities; we can grow wisely without losing our virtues.
Don Pinnell: no but with an eye to the future.
Ken Seiling: Much of our current planning is based on what we as an inland community can reasonably do.
Ron Koenderink: See below under 12.
8. What measurable initiatives can you take to improve air quality locally?
Bob Verdun: No public official should ever knowingly create conditions that cause traffic jams. Congestion is the worst environmental sin in our Region, and we have seen cardinal sins this past summer.
Don Pinnell: i biodiesel; ii invite r&d on hydrogen fuel cell manufacturing; iii solar and wind initiatives
Ken Seiling: We can continue to implement our smog day policies, improve and expand public transit, support traffic demand management strategies such as car pooling, and continue to educate the public about the things they can do to help.
Ron Koenderink: See below under 14.
9. How do you envision reaching zero waste?
Bob Verdun: Zero waste is impossible, but in my 15 years as a farmer I rarely produced waste that was not recyclable. All containers should have deposits, so there is a financial incentive and reward for reusing and recycling. All waste is a potential resource with the right market incentives.
Don Pinnell: set a foundation for total recycling in this region.
Ken Seiling: Although the Region has done much in waste reduction, we need to continue to monitor other approaches and study those which seem like they might have application here in the Region. Hopefully the new Ontario Government will introduce new measures such as bottle deposits.
Ron Koenderink: See below under 14.
10. How do you see the City/Region 20 years from now?
Bob Verdun: Under current leadership, we will be mired in socialist mediocrity -- as a result of restricted growth opportunities and unaffordable housing. No one can "control" growth without shutting down all expansion of employment and educational opportunities. If our industries, businesses, universities, and Conestoga College are going to continue to grow, we must use our intelligence to continue to create liveable neighbourhoods, that are well-linked with roads and with public transit systems that work.
Don Pinnell: i cleaner; ii healthier; iii happier; iv safer; v more orginized
Ken Seiling: I see the Region very much on the way to what is laid out in the new growth management strategy. A central transportation corridor fed by an expanded transit system with better use of urban lands. A permanent greenbelt will mark the west, north and south of the cities while incremental development will take place in north Cambridge and the Breslau area.
Ron Koenderink: ?
11. Should Cambridge fit into the Region's future? If yes, how?
Bob Verdun: The City of Cambridge is already large enough to stand on its own, and should be allowed to gain its independence from the Region (subject to an honest financial assessment, and the consent of the residents). This nation is overgoverned, and we should remove the burden of the two-tier municipal system wherever it is practical and desirable.
Don Pinnell: Cambridge is an important part of the region as all parts are wonderous events can take place with co-operation
Ken Seiling: Cambridge is an important part of the Region with many services already integrated. The agreement to create hard edges to development in the west and north is premised on lands being available in south Woolwich and North Dumfries.
Ron Koenderink: I support the wishes of the people of Cambridge in whatever decision they reach either as a stand alone city, an equal partner in the region or as an anchor community for Ayr, North Dumfries, Flamborough and all other areas to the south of the Kitchener Line as want to join.
12. How do you propose to obtain the maximum level of forest coverage for this area?
Bob Verdun: I have personally planted thousands of trees. There is no way to force property owners to plant trees, but there are plenty of incentives that can be reasonably offered, including tax exemptions on forested land, windbreaks, and wildlife corridors, plus tax reductions for people who plant and maintain trees. Tax systems must, of course, raise enough revenue to operate governments, but they must also be used creatively to discourage undesirable actions and reward desired achievements.
Don Pinnell: not sure at the moment but will research if elected
Ken Seiling: Currently the Region maintains a number of Region forests while private woodlots are covered by a trees bylaw. Increase planing of urban trees will only increase the number of trees in our community.
Ron Koenderink: I support an urban border and reforestation of barren areas as well as protecting existing forest-lands by offering incentives to developers on brownfields.
13. How can you best work with community groups and concerned citizens to achieve environmental sustainability?
Bob Verdun: The Regional Council is woefully lacking in citizen involvement. There should be many more opportunities for citizens to have direct and meaningful input at the Regional level. The Region currently has only 22 positions for citizens on its advisory committees. The City of Kitchener, which operates only a small fraction of the municipal services, is seeking 90 citizens for its advisory committees. I would immediately move to end that Deficit in Democracy.
Don Pinnell: with an electronic medium to address immediate and ongoing concerns.
Ken Seiling: The current environmental assessment process for public project gives us the opportunity to work with many groups and individuals such as the one at Bearinger Road and Westmount in Waterloo. Other environmental matters are often dealt with by committees with citizen appointments and involvement. The EAAC Committee is made up of people chosen from the public to deal with development in and around environmentally sensitive areas.
Ron Koenderink: See below under 14.
14. How would you support and develop lifelong environmental education in the City/Region?
Bob Verdun: We are already benefiting from a generation of children who have grown up with a type of environmental consciousness that was unknown 25 years ago. We have to act in ways that show idealistic young people that the right things can be done. Meaningful citizen involvement is essential, including more citizen roles as indicated in answer to question 13, but also in actually listening to, and interacting with, citizens who come to Regional committee and council meetings. Under the current Regional Chair, citizens speak but are not heard. There is no dialogue. The same person has been Regional Chair for 18 years. We are overdue for change.
Don Pinnell: look at latest technologies and find what is able to suit the region the best and show the children as their intreast will insure generations of good things.
Ken Seiling: The Region is already involved in many public education initiatives either on its own or in partnership with others. It has a history of doing this and will, I am sure, continue.
Ron Koenderink: I support working with community groups and environmentalists to bring forward the best solutions that bring harmony between a good quality of life for our citizens and a respect for our environment and to incorporate into our education system a strong course for students to learn aobut the need to save the environment for their own sake.