I N S I D E : Santa Madness is upon us. Pages 8-9
Journal ASHCROFT t CACHE CREEK
Volume 120 No 49 PM # 400121123
The
Thursday, December 5, 2013
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MMBC, newspapers fall out
The Desert Bells Handbell Choir gave their first performance of the Christmas season last week at Cache Creek Elementary School for students and staff. Listen for them on Dec. 14 at the Community Christmas Concert at Ashcroft Elementary School and Dec. 19 at the Winter Lights Singalong in the Cache Creek Community Hall. Bell ringers above are (l-r) Lorna Delling, Elizabeth Ranta, Natasha Grimshire, Bonnie Chen, (Shirlee Johnson, unseen), Kirk Watson (and Maria Russell Martin, unseen).
by Jeff Nagel Black Press Multi-Material BC will accept newsprint even though it has no deal yet with B.C.’s newspaper industry to contribute to the costs of the expanded blue box recycling system that will roll out next year. Newspapers Canada president and CEO John Hinds said newspaper firms had an agreement with MMBC to make their contribution through in-kind advertising. But MMBC later came back and pressed for payment mostly in cash - equivalent to draining $6 million a year from the print newspaper industry. “The newspaper industry simply can’t afford the millions of dollars in fees they’re looking to set,” Hinds said. “Our view is we had an agreement. We negotiated in good faith and we expected them to honour that agreement.” Newspapers Canada represents the three main publishing groups community newspaper publishers Black Press (owner of this newspaper) and Glacier Media, as well as Postmedia, owner of the Vancouver Sun and The Province. Hinds said MMBC’s reversal came after it became part of a national producer stewardship group, the Canadian Stewardship Services Alliance, which is mainly con-
trolled by multinational firms like Unilever, Walmart, and Proctor and Gamble. Newsprint makes up about half of what goes into blue boxes but Hinds said newspapers had no representation on MMBC or CSSA. He noted 85 per cent of newsprint is already recycled and it makes up the most valuable recyclable commodity. “We feel we’re the gold star pupils of the blue box,” Hinds said, adding unfair fees on newspapers would effectively subsidize the international consumer goods firms that must now recycle more packaging. Allen Langdon, managing director for Multi-Material BC, said all member stewards are expected to contribute financially to the costs and letting newspapers do so in-kind would have left other firms unfairly subsidizing them. “I would gather the newspapers are still figuring out how they want to discharge their obligations under the regulation,” Langdon said, noting papers have a duty to collect the waste they generate, regardless of whether or not they are ultimately represented by MMBC. As it stands, print newspapers are not MMBC members. Hinds said he remains concerned that the entire MMBC initiative is badly flawed and will put at risk the good recycling programs run by municipalities. “Decisions are no longer going to be A 46 year old Ashcroft woman called police made locally, they’re on Dec. 2 to report that a quilt she had been storing cash in had accidentally been taken to the going to be made in Hospital Auxilliary thrift shop. The quilt had Toronto or Arkansas been sold by the time she realized that it was or wherever else about B.C.’s recycling promissing the following day. An envelope containing approximately grams,” Hinds said. “I don’t think this $2,200 in bills of various demonimations had works for the environbeen hidden in the quilt. ment and I don’t think The owner is asking for the return of the this works for commoney, no questions asked. It can be returned munities.” to the RCMP.
Owner loses quilt stuffed with cash
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