I hope everyone is keeping their heads above water, literally. Please notify the City of Kingston Customer Service if you are experiencing drainage issues in ditches, culverts etc. The number is 613.546.0000 or e-mail contactus@cityofkingston.ca The service is very efficient, but please contact me directly if your complaints are not being acted upon within a work week.

And now for something completely different. I’d like to clear up some of the issues around the City of Kingston’s backyard hen bylaw that passed on May 17th.

First I wish to make my own position clear on the keeping of backyard hens. I do not favour the keeping of laying hens in an urban environment. My position comes from personal experience. My wife and I visited good friends of ours who retired and thought laying hens would be a fun retirement project with the benefit of fresh eggs. The fun project ended a year. I helped clean up the mess, tear down the coup and have the “sickly” hens disposed. I warn any family who believes this will be a “fun” family project to do with the kids. It is worse than getting your children a dog. I know, we went through the dog years with our children.

Secondly this is not inexpensive or sustainable. I must admit that I am concerned we are overusing the word sustainable, stretching it beyond the true meaning. The United Nations established the Bruntland Commission in 1982 to study sustainability out of concern for an ever growing global population and shrinking resources to share. This commission defined sustainability as, “development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”. It contains within it, two key concepts:

• The concept of ‘needs,’ in particular the essential needs of the worlds poor, to which overriding priority should be given and
• The idea of limitations imposed by the state of technology and social organization on the environments ability to meet present and future needs.

The costs associated with being a “henner” are considerable. I admit I do not know the cost of buying or rearing hens (I am told they are good for about four years) or the cost of building the coup (most of us know the cost of building a garden shed). The coups also require insulation and a heating source (most likely electricity, another cost and additional resource use). I was told by experienced “henners” that the hens require quality feed to lay good eggs, not human table scraps. Quality feed costs around $27.00 to $30.00 a bag for 25kgs.

The people who raise hens may be able to walk past the egg counter at the grocery store, but they still have to make the trip. They also have to make the trip to the feed store, (TSC, or even further to Hartington) which adds to their carbon footprint. What if you have sick hens? A trip to the vet perhaps? More expense and more emissions. A Vet or abattoir has to dispose of dead or unwanted hens (around $80.00). Another trip in a vehicle adding emissions and more expense.

This is a hobby for people, not a sustainable practice, and is not for the faint of heart as a family project. The low income and City poor cannot afford to be henners. They will not benefit from this unless the people raising the hens will share their bounty.

I know some people will not agree with me, but I believe all decisions should be made on fact and not ideological emotion. Here is another interesting fact to consider. Mr. Mike Payne who is with Urban Agriculture Kingston and the champion of backyard hens does not want any himself.

My advice to anyone who wants to take on a hen project is to obtain all the information you can. Spend some time with folks who already do this in rural areas or towns and cities close to Kingston. There is a “henners” website that can also be of value. Lastly ask Mr. Payne why he is not raising hens.

One last item: I voted for the amended animal bylaw which made this a two year pilot project and requires a notification in writing signed by your two closest neighbours. If we, as a Council were not successful in passing this amended motion, it would have been open season. A number of Councillors did not favour the amended motion and have spoken publicly against it, so I recommend you ask these Councillors if they are going to raise hens before you begin your project as well. To those who take on this project I wish you well and be honest with enquiries you receive once you are underway.

Lastly I have two additional items of interest for Kingston East News readers. I will be facilitating our second Pittsburgh District Town Hall Meeting on Monday evening JUNE 20th from 7:30 pm to 9:30 pm at the ANAF Hall on Gore Road. Please speak with your neighbours and friends and let them know. We will be having a guest that evening as well. Jeff Garrah the Ceo of KEDCO will be available giving us an economic update for Kingston and will take your questions.

With the assistance of Terry Telford I will be doing an ASK YOUR COUNCILLOR segment as part of my monthly column. You can submit your questions to Terry@KingstonEastNews.ca and we will select 2 or 3 questions per column for me to answer.

I wish all residents the very best during the coming months of summer, as you vacation, relax or busy yourself with outdoor activities. Remember there is so much to explore right here in Kingston and area.