July/August 1998
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July/August 1998 |
The governments of Canada, the United States, Ontario and Michigan met in Windsor on April 17, 1998 to sign a letter of commitment to re-energize the restoration and cleanup of the St. Clair, Detroit and St. Marys Rivers. Under the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement, the two federal governments are committed to restore Areas of Concern (AOCs) in cooperation with provincial and state governments and others.
The letter was signed by the Honourable Christine Stewart, Canadian environment minister; David Ullrich, acting regional administrator of the United States Environmental Protection Agency Region 5; the Honourable Norm Sterling, minister of the environment for the province of Ontario; and Russell Harding, director of the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality.
Last fall, governments on both sides of the border were challenged by the IJC's Detroit River Area of Concern Status Assessment to examine and recommit sufficient financial and human resource support to the binational AOC, as well as re-establish their leadership roles and responsibilities. These include administrative commitments, development of a binational de-listing process, public involvement and outreach and reporting progress to the IJC and public.
All four agencies recognize the importance of environmental improvement in these areas and the underlying need for mutual cooperation and commitment as being keys to achieving progress. The four agencies will now work toward effective implementation of the Detroit River cleanup plan. This work will complement the local community-based, action-oriented restoration and cleanup approaches also being implemented on the Canadian and U.S. sides of the Detroit River. For further information, contact:
Mark Colpitts, Office of Environment Minister Christine Stewart (819)997-1441;
Simon Llewellyn, Environment Canada (416)739-5839;
Jake Vander Wal, St. Marys River contact, Ontario Ministry of Environment (807)768-2104;
Gary Johnson, St. Clair River contact, Ontario Ministry of Environment (519)383-3794;
Marc Olender, Detroit River RAP liason, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (312)886-4587;
Ken Silfven, Department of Environmental Quality, State of Michigan (517)241-7397.
Cleanup of the creosote blob at the Northern Wood Preservers site in Thunder Bay, Ontario is progressing with treatment of the sediment to start this summer. For the last several years, the Public Advisory Committee (PAC) to the Thunder Bay Remedial Action Plan has been actively trying to bring about cleanup at Northern Wood. The Thunder Bay PAC represents a cross section of stakeholders from the community including municipal, environmental and academic interests, along with many of the city's major industries, including Northern Wood.
Historically, studies have shown concern over elevated levels of contaminants including creosote, an oily liquid distilled from bark and used as a wood preservative and insecticide, and other chemicals that affect the harbour's water quality, benthic community and sediment quality. Sediment contamination around Northern Wood contributed to identification of Thunder Bay Harbour as an Area of Concern.
The federal and provincial ministries of the environment, Canadian National Railway, Northern Wood Preservers and Abitibi-Consolidated are partners in the $9.3 million (CAD), three-year project to remove and treat contaminated sediment. So far, dredging has been carried out over two periods in 1997, with remaining targeted sediment to be removed in the summer of 1998. Treatment of the sediment is expected to commence in summer 1998, and be completed by fall 1999. The eventual goal is to replace the site with additional green space, a buffer between industrial and park land, and fish and wildlife habitat. For more information, contact Jake Vander Wal, Ontario Ministry of the Environment and Energy, R.R. #12, Site 8, Box 16, Thunder Bay, ON P7B 5E3. (807)768-1854; fax (807768-1889.