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Zurich Citizens News, 1976-10-13, Page 4Page 4-t'ittzens News, October 13, 1976 News Item: NIGHT BAN SOUGHT FOR TEEN DRIVERS if YVOR son WAN13 7o LtBRM How toVRNE,VOAY SfANV U1 H45 waY OfOif "May 1 borrow the chauffeur tonight, dad?" local hang -oat it has come to our attention that the car wash in Zurich is rapidly becoming the "in" place to hang out ,for the teenagers of the village, especially late at night. Just what is so exciting about a car wash we haven't managed to figure out yet. After all, water fights with the sprayers seems to us to be a rather childish past time and from what we have seen these are not young children hanging around. Zurich has not had much luck with its car washes as most of you know. For a long time there wasn't one, then there was, then it was destroyed by vandals, then there wasn't one and now there is one. We fear if it is wrecked, there will never be another. and sooner or later if kids continue to hang around there, boredom is bound to drive them to do something really stupid. A curfew for teenagers does not seem to be the answer to us. It unfair to punish everyone because of a few and besides, ho\<< and who would enforce it? No, that just isn't practical. However, these kids must have parents, or someone who iS responsible for them. If a good deal of damage is going to be done it will likely happen under a cloak of dark- ness. somehow the night seems to bring out so-called bravery, especially in cowards. So. where arc the parents of these kids? Why are they allowed to roam the streets at night? Do you know where your kids are and what they arc doing? Perhaps this problem lies not solely with the kids, but with the parents too. At any rate, we hope everyone will do everything they can to discourage this hanging out, it doesn't do anyone any good and the poten- tial for someone or something to be hurt is certainly there. Aerosol sprays Do aerosol sprays harm the environment? That's one of today's most discussed but least understood environmental questions. Let's try to clear some of the clouds hanging over the controversy: Many aerosol sprays contain fluorochlorocarbons (FCCs), the most widely used of these designated as F-11 and F-1.2. They are completely manmade, low in toxicity, chemically inert and live a veru long time in the lower atmosphere or troposphere. Scientists tell us that every FCC ever produced is still with us today. Half of the FCCs in our atmosphere get there via aerosol sprays with refrigeration fluids and plastics manufacturing account- ing for a further 40 per cent and other industrial activities responsible for the balance. North America and Europe share equally the world production of FCC's. We in Ontario use about one per cent of that production. Through vertical mixing FCCs reach the upper atmosphere or stratosphere lvhcrc the action of ultraviolet radiation releases chlorine atoms from the compound. The atoms act as a catalyst in a chain reaction leading to a reduction of ozone levels in that region. Ozone is important to us because it shields the earth from dangerous ultra- violet B solar radiation. Scientists. say depicted ozone levels could lead to increas- ed incidence of skin cancer, earlier skin aging, possible eye damage and changes in our crops and vegetation. Even our weather could be affected. The destruction of ozone is a natural and ongoing process. But it's also being replaced in a constant equilibrium with that depletion. What scientists are concerned about is that FCCs \vitt upset that equili- briunl. The \word is concern. Not alarm. Evidence indicates that there's little addi- tional risk in delaying controlling action for FCCs, but should controls be required. they'll have to be applied internationally. In the illeantime nuillerous government. academic and industrial research groups are watching the situation. In Ontario, staff of the air resources branch of the Ministry of the Environnicnt . is involved in an ongoing monitoring pro. gra in. Plciw90 Published Each Wednesday By J.W. Eedy Publications Ltd. EA Member: Canadian Weekly Newspapers Association Ontario Weekly Newspapers Association Manager - Betty O'Brien News Editor - Cathy McKinley Second Class Mail Registration Number 1385 Subscription Rates: $6.00 per year in advance in Canada; 0 in United State and Forel n, sin • le co les 200 the Firsi by Cathy McKinley I think I'm a little bit out of shape. Whether you know it or not, the public school in the south end of the county held their cross-country runs last week on a hilly course set out on the farm of Ron Jewitt. Thinking this would be a good place to get some pictures, I too headed in the direction of Mr. Jewitt's farm. When I got there, there didn't seem to be many children around and 1 could see a finish line but no starting line. This I was told was back about a mile towards the bush, and no, there was no way you could drive a car back. So, 1 walked it. The seniors were racing over the course the same time I was walking and they seemed to be having very little trouble negotiating the mile and a half course, but I certainly couldn't have run all that way without severe card- iac arrest. I finally made it to the starting line and managed to get pictures of the juniors and intermediates. All ages ran the sante distance, but most of the ,juniors walked at least part of the way. However, there were no serious casualties even though there were a couple of large puddles along the course big enough to drown in. The students who took part must have trained long and hard to make the showing they did, and should be commend - ,ed for their efforts. I just hope that next year they put both the start and finish a little closer to the road. However, the crowning event concerning the cross-country run for me did not happen until the following day when I sent my film over to Exeter to be developed and prints made. Unfortunately for me, if something can go wrong, it usually does. All my effort went for naught when one of the darkroom technicians accidentally spoiled the film. 1 just can't win. I've always said people in srnaIl towns, villages and on farms were much more conservation minded than people in the cities, and something occurred to me the other day which backs my theory. I was at home and went to throw something in the garbage, well two things actually. There was a paper wrapper and an apple core. Automatically I put the core in the pail under the sink and then walked to the cellar -way to put the wrapper in another garbage bag there. Then it occurred to me how sens- ible we are compared to the wastefullness of the cities. While living in Toronto, one of the things I could never really get used to was the way all the garbage goes into the same bag and is dumped down the same shute. It doesn't platter if it is paper garbage, organic garbage, tin cans or glass jars, they just stuff it all into one bag, set it out for the garbage man or shove it do.vn a shute in apartment build- ings. Now that is being wasteful and costing everyone a lot of money. In the country we have always divided our garbage and it isn't a lot of trouble. The burnable garbage goes in one place to be used in the furnace, organic garbage in another place to be used as composte, tin cans go into a barrel to be taken to the dump and glass jars are usually saved for canning purposes. The result is a very efficient way of reducing the amount of garbage which must be buried in dump sites com- bined with an effective recycling of the rest either as heat. fertilizer or containers for canning. Surely the cities could learn a lesson from this type of con sei'saflan . it seems a shame the place where this type of conservation is most prevalent is the place where there are so few people compared to in the cities. if they would only sort their gar- bage, it would be even more practical than in the country because with the quantities they have available, surely it would be worthwhile recycling the tin cans and reusing the Mass bottles. 1 know there arc some stations in Toronto at least where you can take your tin cans. glass and newspapers to be re- cycled. so why not expand on these by having regular pick ups such as they now have for all kinds of garbage. By recycling metals, glass and newspapers on a regular basis we could save a lot of money in garbage expenses. Also, couldn't there be some use found for the organic gar- bage as well as the paper garbage if they wt .c separated? It seems likely. The amount of money presently being spent on land fill sites could be cut drastically if eveyone only tried a little and the government supported the idea. It's not a hard thing to do, separate your garbage. Heck, we learn to do it as soon as we can reach the garbage pails. Surely those in, the cities could learn to be just as sensible. What puzzles nue is win nobody ever thought of this be- lore, or if somebody did, why are cities still continuing to dis- pose of their gai'b,age the wasteful way they do? I think I'll run for .mayor of Toronto and straighten the whole place out ---anybody want to donate to my campaign fund?