42 Spencer Avenue,
Maketu 3189.
Hon. Todd McClay M.P.
Parliament Buildings,
Wellington.
26th August 2010.
Dear Sir,
You may remember I requested a meeting with you, as my member of Parliament and we spoke about the proposal to build a cycle pathway following the Kaituna River and Waiari Stream to the Bell Road intersection with the Kaituna at the point the new motorway bridge will be built, and from there to Papamoa East. This is proposed to be part of a bigger scheme to unite the parks and reserves of Te Puke into a "Mountains to the Sea" network of walkways and cycle paths.
You informed me that the budget for cycle paths is from Tourism and that therefore it was unlikely that out town's scheme would receive any funding directly. My costings show that approximately 50% of the cost would be materials such as gravel for the formed pathway and slightly less than 50% would be wages for a small gang of labourers.
We haven't given up, but are concentrating on planting and growing native trees in conjunction with out primary and secondary schools.
I also mentioned that I wanted to speak with you about a compensation which I am seeking from the government regarding wrongful detention, and my treatment by the New Zealand Police and the Health Authorities, specifically the Tauranga Hospital Board. I'm writing you a separate letter about this which I will publish on my web site here:
http://whitechapel.yolasite.com/letters-mcclay-02-26-08-10.php
The topic of this letter is recycling, and funding for schools. As you know, most people buy a rubbish bag from their supermarket, which is collected by the weekly council rubbish collection.
Have you considered the possibility that they be able to purchase for around $3 a plastic bag to put their recyclable materials such as aluminium cans, steel pet food tins, plastics, beer bottles and other clean glass jars, and newspapers?
I think the most valuable materials for schools are aluminium cans, steel cans and bottles, as there is a ready market for them. This scheme would enable a payment of 2-3 to be made directly to the school from the sale of the collection bag, whether or not the materials are able to be sold at a profit, and the cost of the collection to be deducted from the price of the bag. Is this not a more efficient scheme than the scheme we already have?
I propose two different coloured bags, one for the school collection, and one for the council's recycling scheme. It would be very simple to implement, and there are many improvements to the basic scheme, but in the case of a family with one student at school, $2 per week raised in this type of collection, would contribute $100 per year to a school, and make a big difference in the quantity and quality of the rubbish being recycled, by effectively sorting it as source. Further sorting could be easily undertaken by local councils as part of their normal operations, employing unemployed people one day a week to sort out different grades of plastic, for example.
I'd appreciate your giving this some urgent attention because the need for better funding for our schools is urgent, and students benefit from feeling that they are doing something positive for the environment which is daily coming under increasing pressure.
Thank you for your time and consideration.
This letter is published here so the public can watch any progress made:
http://whitechapel.yolasite.com/letters-mcclay-01-26-08-10.php
Yours sincerely,
Malcolm James Baker.
