Why this man with disabilities calls Vaughan's waste bylaw 'unfair and unjust'

Ron Lim, 82, says moving his garbage bins every week puts his health at risk

Cbc.ca
September 26, 2018
Talia Ricci

An 82-year-old Vaughan man says the city should make an exception to its waste bylaw, allowing him to keep his garbage bins outside of his garage.

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Ron Lim says he's blind in one eye, and has several injuries from an auto accident two years ago. He now uses a cane to walk.

"I have to struggle and try to bring it out," the senior said. "This is very unfair and unjust."

Lim uses his cane to slowly push the bins in and out of his garage. He has difficulty walking and says he often gets dizzy and loses his balance when he has to bend down.

Lim has been living alone since his wife died two years ago. He's getting ready to move into a smaller place. His garage is currently full of boxes making it difficult to easily manoeuvre.

Lim received a warning notice from the city Sept. 7t, ordering him to "please remove your green and blue garbage bins currently in your front yard."

Lim was told he had to comply with the city's waste bylaw. (Submitted)
Lim argues they're in front of his garage, not in the yard, and this is the first time there's been a complaint.

"I've been doing that for years and there was no problem," Lim said.

City of Vaughan responds

The city of Vaughan declined CBC Toronto's request for an interview, but said in a statement that it couldn't comment on specific bylaw issues involving individual residents.

"Bylaws are in place to establish community standards and ensure neighbourhood cleanliness," the statement reads.

The email exchange between Lim and the city shows representatives visited Lim's home, but told him they could not make any exceptions to the bylaw.

 

Lim uses his cane to move the bins outside. He says he's unable to store them in his backyard because the ground is uneven and he's worried about falling.

The city stated it is "currently in the process of reviewing our municipal bylaws regulating property standards, as part of our ongoing comprehensive By-law Strategy," and Lim's comments "will be heard/reviewed and explored for opportunities to make recommendations for amendments to existing our regulations, subject to City Council's final approval(s), likely sometime in 2019."

'There should be exemptions'

Darren Cooper, the manager of the Accessibility Project at Ryerson University's Chang School of Continuing Education, says often people with disabilities develop alternative solutions to make tasks easier for them.

"My initial thought was that it was unfortunate that the gentleman was being forced to abandon a system that worked for him that met his accessibility needs," Cooper told CBC Toronto.

Darren Cooper says it's important that bylaws do incorporate accessibility and inclusion, and people with disabilities are at the table to address those concerns.

Cooper says it's important that bylaws are inclusive to the disabled and elderly communities.

"In certain cases, there should be exemptions," Cooper said.

"Doing so will allow people with disabilities, or older adults to remain in their communities, and maintain those relationships they've established."

Cooper says people with disabilities should continue to share their experiences with cities, saying a good way to do that is through the Municipal Accessibility Advisory Committees mandated under the Ontarians with Disabilities Act.

"It's about creating an inclusive and accessible community for all."

For his part, Lim says for now he is moving the bins weekly on his own, but is looking into getting help from government services that help elderly people before his move.

"The city should let me continue to put it there for my own safety."