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A bylaw cracking down on vehicles that idle for too long in Saskatoon would be difficult to enforce.

This finding was part of a report presented to a city council committee on Monday.

READ MORE: Anti-idling bylaw could be coming to Saskatoon

It stated that the majority of city bylaws are typically enforced by complaints and a more proactive approach would have to be taken to catch offenders.

That could include monitoring or staking out areas where there have been complaints.

“Should time limits be introduced into a bylaw respecting idling, timing offenders to prove the offense would also be required,” the report stated.

“This approach would be resource intensive and may not even result in successful enforcement.”

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Enforcing the bylaw could come at a cost as high as $300,000.

“Is it the responsibility of the city to tell citizens when to turn their cars on and off?” Coun. Darren Hill asked.

“I’m not entirely sure that it is, but to be able to make that decision I need to know the information that’s happening in other areas and the work that’s currently being done by stakeholders.”

The report also stated that the city does not typically enact bylaws it has no intention to enforce or that cannot be enforced.

The Saskatchewan Environmental Society recommends the bylaw limit idling to no more than three minutes

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The society is also recommending that it apply in the spring, summer and fall.

The report has been sent back to administration to gather more information on how to implement this sort of bylaw from stakeholders like the health region and school boards.