Read the text, then answer T (true), F (false), or NG (not given) to the statements that follow.
Letter to the Editor - Sewage Dumping
Dear Editor,
I’m writing the newspaper to express my outrage at the recent shock of discovering human waste on the beach that was recently spilled into the sea. I would also like to address the scandalous behavior of the incompetent local city council.
As we now understand, and were horrified to discover ourselves, raw sewage is being dumped into the sea and now, as your paper reported, is being washed ashore, spoiling our beautiful beaches. But we didn’t need to read that in the newspaper, because we saw it for ourselves.
Yesterday, my wife and I had just gone out for our daily swim. To our shock, our senses were affronted by the nauseating stench of the foul waste. Moreover, the public was not informed, nor were the beaches closed, until well after this fiasco was reported in the news media.
My fellow resident and I are well aware that climate change and deteriorating weather conditions on our coast are becoming an increasing issue—one that the local government seems to have turned a blind eye to. City Hall seems to be more interested in raising taxes to invest in resilience efforts, to keep the rising sea levels at bay, so that water firms and construction interests can just carry on as usual. It’s business as usual with the usual suspects!
Why must we suffer this indignity? And, during tourist season, no less! Can you imagine the tax revenue that will be lost because of this bad press?
On a regular basis, the local government has asked our permission to raise taxes in order to pay for upgrades to infrastructure and the wastewater pumping stations. In the past, we’ve approved such measures, but for what? If a storm can knock out the power at the sewage treatment facility, creating this havoc, then it’s obvious the whole kitten caboodle is being mismanaged.
From now on, when asked, we will simply refuse to honor any more requests for tax increases. We will vote, “NO!” If they don’t clean up their act, as well as our beaches, they will receive no further support, especially not funding, from us.
Thank you.
Yours Sincerely,
Mr. Guy Ornery