I am horrified and disgusted at the wasteful event I just witnessed – the Salmon Arm Fair parade.
The worst offender was the Five Corners Church float, with hundreds of wasteful balloons on plastic sticks being handed out without invitation, left to litter our downtown and find their way to the landfill within days. Cheap and inedible plastic-wrapped candy continues to be handed out, along with flyers and brochures with unwanted or irrelevant advertising. Is this the reason a parade exists? To distribute garbage?
The Salmon Arm and Shuswap Lake Agricultural Association should seriously consider a paradigm shift in parade practice. It should be a zero waste event, with a focus on people-powered transportation.
This is the time to be a leader in the community in addressing the climate crisis through the fair’s principles, and act as an agent for the agricultural industry by prioritizing water, air and soil health.
Tracey Kutschker