Municipality postpones annual Pitch-In community clean-up
Jesse Bonello - Staff Writer
In a statement on April 13, the Municipality of Sioux Lookout announced the decision to postpone their annual Pitch-In community clean-up event, which coincides with the annual Pitch-In Canada event.
“The annual Pitch-In (Litter Clean-up) Event hosted by the Municipality of Sioux Lookout in conjunction with Pitch-In Canada Week - 2020 will be postponed this spring due to the current pandemic situation, including the requirement for social distancing and the inability to obtain sufficient supplies to operate the event. The Municipality will consider rescheduling the annual clean-up event at a later date when the current pandemic situation subsides and supplies become available,” the Municipality’s statement read.
“Anyone wanting to conduct litter clean-up within the Municipality with their own resources (i.e., gloves, garbage bags, etc.) prior to the Municipality rescheduling this event is asked to contact Public Works prior to undertaking the initiative,” the statement continued.
According to Pitch-In Canada’s website, pitch-in.ca, “Tim Hortons & PITCH-IN Canada partner to promote environmental stewardship across Canada. Residents and organizations dedicated to environmental conservation will come together across Canada to participate in the 53rd Annual PITCH-IN Week running April 19th-26th, 2020. PITCH-IN Week began in 1967 with a handful of concerned citizens picking up harmful debris along the shore of Vancouver Island. In 2019 over 850,000 people committed to participating in their local neighborhoods from St. John’s, Newfoundland to Port Alice, British Columbia, and collectively removed over 5.65 million pounds of litter!”
Along with contacting Public Works, the Municipality recommends that residents should follow safety protocols from previous clean-up events if community members plan on conducting their own clean-up.
“Referencing guidance and best management practices issued by the Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA) and the Ontario Waste Management Association (OWMA) to address waste handling concerns during the COVID-19 pandemic has provided direction that municipal waste management practices during this time can proceed as per normal with regular protocols maintained and no special precautions required; “Continue to use those precautions already in place to protect workers from the hazards they encounter during their routine job tasks.” Knowing that, any clean-up tasks performed locally around town should follow the same protocols considered for past clean-up events, such as “Pitch-In Canada”, by wearing gloves and being aware of the potential to encounter needles/sharps which need to be collected and disposed of per Northwestern Health Unit guidelines,” explained Andrew Jewell, Public Works Manager.
For further information, contact the Public Works Department at 737-1234 or pwadmin@siouxlookout.ca.
