POLITICAL & BUREAUCRATIC DELAY

They do it because they can. They do it because they aren't accountable to the public. Many months ago the issue of cleanup criteria was raised at CPAC by either Ron Campbell or Graham Chevreau. I think it was Graham who asked whether the Ministry of the Environment would consider the Elmira Aquifers sucessfully remediated even if either deeper or shallower aquifers were still polluted above their drinking water standards. This has led to a response by Steve Martindale of the M.O.E.. He has advised that historically yes, in Guelph, Kitchener, Waterloo and Cambridge there are contaminated aquifers that are pumped for drinking water although Steve feels that they are pumped upgradient of any contamination.

George Karlos (M.O.E.) on the other hand has again at the last CPAC meeting (May 29/14) advised that he has yet to date not obtained the specific conditions and criteria that will be required prior to the M.O.E. declaring the Elmira Aquifers remediated. Keep in mind it is most likely higher up the food chain within the M.O.E. that reluctance may reside over this issue. Fourteen years from now most or all of us may well be retired from our environmental watchdog roles or even retired from life. I've always felt that that was the whole idea back in the early nineties when the thirty year cleanup was first announced. Eventually the date got moved back to thirty years from the start of the off-site pumping which was July/August 1998.

Similarily I've been waiting for feedback on the West Montrose drinking wells since early spring. While my initial study of the Region of Waterloo Annual (drinking) Water Reports found no industrial contaminants; a more thorough and detailed look showed a very peculiar situation in regards to bacteria and both Total Coliform and E. Coli contamination. It turns out that West Montrose has consistently had the most polluted with bacteria (septic) raw water of anywhere in Waterloo Region. As a direct result their water has been treated and possibly overtreated with chlorine and chloramines for at least the last decade, most probably longer. Lo and behold as expected the by-products of disinfection which themselves are toxic have been very high for years. These include Trihalomethanes, Haloacetic Acids and potentially NDMA although no results for it are ever given.

I sat down with Woolwich Councillors Bauman & Bryant many weeks ago and laid out the evidence for them. As a result, at Councillor Bauman's request I submitted to them three pages of questions for the Region of Waterloo to answer regarding West Montrose drinking water; past, present and future. To date I have not received any response from the Region although I was advised by Councillor Bauman eight days ago that Woolwich Township have received responses from both the Region and the M.O.E.. Very nice and while I've been promised the answers to my own questions, I am still waiting. Allegedly the Township wish to study the results before I get to see them. That too is interesting because frankly the Township do not have staff with expertise in these areas, to my knowledge. Therefore what is the purpose of yet more delay?