Health Professionals Task Force
International Air Quality Advisory Board
Health Professionals Task Force
International Air Quality Advisory Board
January 28, 2003
Dear Co-Chairs Gray and Schornack:
At a Public Meeting in Vancouver on September 20, 2002, the Health Professionals Task Force (HPTF), with the assistance of Michael Brauer of the International Air Quality Advisory Board (IAQAB), heard public health concerns related to environmental issues in the western trans-boundary region. Concerns raised included: thallium and mercury releases from the Teck-Cominco plant in Trail B.C.; emissions from ships in the Port of Vancouver; and, the need for secondary waste treatment in the greater Vancouver area. However, the majority of the meeting time was consumed by a discussion of the potential deleterious impacts on air quality and human health from the proposed SUMAS 2 Generation Facility (SE2) in Sumas, Washington, immediately adjacent to the boundary and in close proximity to Abbotsford, British Columbia.
An overview of the issues raised at the HPTF public meeting was discussed with you on October 9, 2002 at the IJC Semi-Annual meeting in Ottawa. As an outcome of that discussion, the Commission directed the HPTF and IAQAB to work collaboratively to provide more detailed information on the proposed facility and to consider what recommendations the Commission might wish to consider related to the SE2 facility. The Commission asked the HPTF and the IAQAB to consider the following:
Enclosed is a jointly developed paper by the HPTF and the IAQAB, with the support of your staff, that provides an update on the current status of the SE2 proposal, as well as current information on air quality in the region.
The proposed facility is located in the state of Washington. At the HPTF's public meeting, interventions were largely from Canadian citizens concerned regarding transboundary pollution from emissions from the facility. The IAQAB has previously noted that plants which operate as interruptible or 'peaking' plants, will on occasion emit higher levels of pollution than a comparable facility operating continuously. It is unclear whether such conditions were adequately considered in the permitting process, thus potentially underestimating the emissions. Proponents of the SE2 facility maintain that it will be built with state of the art emissions controls. It is expected that emissions will be low compared to existing power generation facilities currently operating in the region on either side of the boundary.
Even though emissions are expected to be low, opponents to the SE2 facility have expressed concern that incremental increases in pollutants released during SE2 operations should not be allowed because current air quality in the region is already on occasion unacceptable. Some contaminants, particularly during hot summer conditions, exceed current air quality standards.
The government of Canada has been tracking the status of the SE2 proposal. Interventions were made by interested parties from both Canada and the U.S. during the state approval process. The Minister of the Environment, David Anderson, communicated Canada's disappointment with the decision made by Washington state Governor Locke to approve the facility. Minister Anderson also expressed Canada's opposition to the siting the facility at Sumas in a letter of November 6, 2002 (see Appendix A of attached document).
It was suggested by those who attended the HPTF meeting that a formal binational process is required to ensure that all interests from both sides of the boundary have an opportunity to be heard and considered during any approval process.
Through their collaborative effort, the HPTF and the IAQAB have developed the following recommendations:
1) The Commission should advise the governments of Canada and the U.S. of the continuing concerns with respect to SE2 that were raised at the HPTF public meeting.
2) The Commission should consider recommending to governments that they review the adequacy of existing binational or bilateral processes to address potential transboundary impacts from project proposals. Such processes should ensure public participation from both sides of the international boundary.
| Yours sincerely, | |
Alan Abelsohn, MD |
Peter Orris, MD, MPH, FACP |
| Co-Chairs, Health Professionals Task Force | |
Dr. Gary Foley |
Dr. Don McKay |
| Co-Chairs, International Air Quality Advisory Board | |
