TRAC MEETINGS ARE SO MUCH LIGHTER, BRIGHTER, FUNNY AND FRIVOLOUS

This of course is ideal for the responsible polluting company Lanxess Canada and as well for their alleged regulator the MECP (not the Ministry of Enhanced Corporate Pollution - not in name at least ). Now today I listened to approximately the first hour and a quarter of last Thursday's TRAC meeting with the very smooth snake oil salesman Joe Ricker (WSP) taking the lead. He supposedly does plume analytics which a skeptic (knowledgeable realist) like me views as part public relations and part comedy set. In this presentation he is partially assisted by Hadley Stamm of Lanxess who never saw a presenter that she didn't want to interrupt. 

Mr. Ricker analyzed four plumes in the Elmira Aquifers namely the MU  (Municipal Upper) NDMA plume, the ML (Municipal Lower) NDMA plume, the MU chlorobenzene plume and the ML chlorobenzene plume. Right off the bat this is leading us down the garden path as is fully intended by the guilty parties. Of course no mention of DDT or Dioxins in the Elmira Aquifers and certainly no mention of benzene, toluene, xylene, aniline, carboxin, benzothiazole, mercaptobenzothiazole, chlorophenols, polyaromatic hydrocarbons or a myriad of other solvents. I mean really all of these others contaminants absolutely affect the drinkability of the groundwater right along with NDMA and chlorobenzene. But really TRAC is more of a celebratory party rather than a dirge. No one is mourning the  wildlife that have suffered and died much less the human beings who have contracted various cancers from Uniroyal/Lanxess toxins in the air, soil, ground and surface water. That would be gauche don't you know.

Almost every second sentence is a brag about decreasing toxin concentrations of only TWO toxins. Nothing is mentioned about the status of all the other toxins. Nothing is mentioned about how very far away even the two are from drinking water standards, in both aquifers. These meetings are feel good, lets pat ourselves on the back not for any kind of successful resolution but for having deflected appropriate public approbation. Frankly I can't stomach either the company's behavior nor the MECPs. There is not one hard core citizen activist on the committee willing to rock the complacency on view. Perhaps Sebastian is the closest but he too is far too willing to always give the professional B/S artists the benefit of the doubt.

It is this complacency and glad handing that has allowed Lanxess and predecessors to change the channel and the story from a disgusting, polluting corporation killing local citizens to a supposedly successful  (it is not) environmental cleanup story.   

1982 LETTER FROM MOE TO UNIROYAL TELLS ALL

 

This above letter was written on May 5, 1982 and published in the Elmira Independent on February 19, 1991. It is the Ontario Ministry of Environment telling Uniroyal Chemical in Elmira that among other things both their Upper and Municipal aquifers on their site are heavily contaminated plus the municipal wells in the south end of Elmira (E7, E9) are in the same Municipal aquifer as is beneath the Uniroyal site. Furthermore there is a direct hydraulic connection between both locations. Uniroyal and the MOE had seven and a half years from this point to 1) tell the public the truth  2) take drastic steps to avoid the shutdown of Elmira's south wellfield (E7, E9) in November 1989.. 

A  LEFT CLICK ON THE NEWSPAPER ARTICLE SHOULD MAGNIFY IT FOR YOU. OTHER METHODS MAY ALSO ASSIST.

NOW IT'S OPIOIDS AND ANTIDEPRESSANTS FOUND IN LOCAL FISH

 

The title of the story in today's K-W Record is "Researchers find traces of opioids in Ontario fish population". A few years back we were advised that birth control pills were the source of feminization of some fish in our local waters. Apparently even trace amounts of hormones getting through our wastewater treatment plants were adversely affecting fish species in the Grand River. Today it's more drugs both legal and illegal also damaging fish species. These include fentanyl, methadone and venlafaxine and as testing and research continue we will find more in the future. 

This is the big fraud, if you will, both with wastewater treatment and drinking water treatment. We don't know what we don't know. The numbers of untested chemicals in both treatment systems vastly outnumber those that are tested for. A prime example of this neglect was NDMA allegedly not being tested for in Elmira's drinking wells until 1989 despite a large chemical plant (Uniroyal Chemical) as well as Sulco, Varnicolor Chemical, Borg Textiles, Nutrite and more all in town. Both regional and provincial governments knew that NDMA was associated with rubber and rubber additives production as well as fertilizers, animal wastes (pig farms?) and chemical companies yet they conveniently let Elmira citizens unknowingly imbibe it for decades prior to sampling for it.

 Currently our authorities knowingly are allowing citizens to drink tap water with high sodium, nitrate and nitrite levels as well as low level TCE . Then there are all the toxic disinfection by-products such as THMs, HAAs, chloramines and chlorine. I wonder if locally either drinking water or wastewater is being tested for PFAs? Glyphosate concentrations, the active ingredient in Round Up herbicide are not fully known partly because of the highest Method Detection Limit in regional tap water of 25 parts per billion  

Current generations are the guinea pigs of modern day technologies and production. While the current crisis concerns water capacity we should also remember that constantly expanding populations also put enormous pressure on our surface waters which are used for their assimilative capacity (i.e. usually treated human sewage).  At the same time the more water we pull from our aquifers for expanding industry and populations the less is available for downgradient discharge into surface waters. 

Short term thinking (I.e. the growth mantra) is both unsustainable and eventually will lead to collapse. We are on that route now with limited time to reverse course. 

ONGOING, LONG TERM LIKELY NONSENSE CLAIMS BY LANXESS, MECP etc.

 

1) No chlorobenzene in the Bedrock Aquifer

2) No second source of NDMA

3) There is ongoing hydraulic containment on site

4) There is ongoing hydraulic containment off site

5)  Uniroyal is the only source of chlorobenzene in the aquifers

6) Varnicolor never handled chlorobenzene

7) There are no unacceptable health issues in the downstream Canagagigue Creek

8) DDT and Dioxins are hydrophobic hence none in the Elmira aquifers

9) DNAPLS don't need remediation. Leave them alone.

10) Achieving drinking water standards by 2028 is for certain

11) Honest unrigged, unmanipulated public consultation is beneficial

Late in the day admissions by Lanxess, MECP etc.

1)  A second source of chlorobenzene-tacit- other companies near south end of Uniroyal/Lanxess used chlorobenzene   Also an "excess" 1,900 kg. found in aquifers by Dr. Neil Thompson 

2) Yes there was off site DNAPL near W4 and Howard St. Water Tower-Jesse Wrighte

3) We can't achieve drinking water standards by 2028

4)  O.K. maybe pump & treat (hydraulic containment) on its' own won't restore the aquifers to drinking water standards

Lying to the public is both appropriate and necessary for polluters and their regulators. Based upon their behaviour they clearly believe that shareholder profits trump ethics, morality, decency and health concerns. 

      

THE GROSSLY DISHONOURABLE JUSTICE (Former?) ROBERT REILLY

 

 I was advised that in civil cases involving men versus women that he tended to side with the women's testimony. Whether accurate or not it was evident in my case in which allegations of defamation were made against myself. Now of course after reading up on libel law it seemed clear that the truth was the best defence against libel or defamation claims. That may be so but what I found was that the truth simply did not hold up against a biased or ignorant judge right from the start. Also keep in mind that the school board were involved as they backed the other party. Perhaps the dishonourable R. Reilly merely was biased in favour of the local power establishment.

I was manipulated by both the Judge and the Plaintiff's attorney out of my right to a jury trial. Without advising myself, an unrepresented defendant, the Judge agreed to a on the surface ridiculous pre-trial Motion stating that I could not attend the Plaintiff's property. I asked the Judge why this was necessary as I had not been alleged to have already done so and furthermore I had absolutely no idea or interest as to where she lived. Regardless he granted the Motion which I was later told then gave the Judge the right to remove my choice of a jury trial in favour of him (Judge) alone. What a scam!

During the trial the dishonourable judge asked me if I would appeal a verdict made against myself. While warning bells were going off  as this felt like a weird question mid trial nevertheless I answered no. I honestly didn't see how losing was possible with the numerous parent witnesses I had ready to give supporting testimony to my case. Turned out that answer likely emboldened a possibly corrupt (stupid?) judge.

Judge Reilly also refused to enter as documentary evidence written reports by the Council of Teachers. Now if I have that name incorrect the group I am referring to were the provincially mandated oversight committee who had made detailed notes of interviews they had done with a number of my witnesses. I had copies of those detailed notes and my multiple witnesses had done an excellent job in detailing odious behaviour by the Plaintiff. Judge Reilly flatly refused to enter them into the record claiming that my witnesses could speak for themselves on the stand as they did. My view was that the notes would help my defence as my witnesses testimony was reaffirmed by their earlier testimony. Then of course when Judge Reilly found against me without any legitimate contradictions or breakdown in testimony by my witnesses he flatly stated that they had all been enthralled by me and actually referred to me as the Pied Piper without a shred of any such evidence before him. He did this with confidence that if I didn't have the money for a defence lawyer at his trial, combined with my suggesting I wouldn't/couldn't appeal his decision ; then he could decide the case not based upon evidence but based upon his biases or worse.

How many other asshats sit as judges in Ontario? In Canada? Could what I view as bias  actually be corruption or maybe simple influence?  Did the dishonourable  judge have somebody important whisper in his ear that I was a *hit disturber causing trouble for the school board? Did they whisper that I was a *hit disturber causing trouble for Uniroyal Chemical in Elmira? Regardless the facts were clear. The Plaintiff had a long history of poor behaviour. Thirty years later the province (and the courts) have both commented and acted upon bad behaviour of the same board. How much damage and disrespect have all parties including the courts suffered because of this gross miscarriage of justice? 

"MAGIC BULLET" CLEANUP THEORY : THE TAIL (DEVELOPERS) CONTINUES TO WAG THE DOG (WATERLOO REGION)

 

Today's K-W Record has yet another front page story  about the Region of Waterloo Water Crisis written by Luisa D'Amato and titled "There could be more water available than we think, engineer says". This engineer of course represents local homebuilders looking for more water capacity in the region. The engineer involved claims to be both an engineer and a groundwater expert. Hmm a certain odour is already arising.

Once again we are advised in this article that Cambridge water can't be sent to Kitchener-Waterloo due to the different disinfection system used. Now again this isn't spelled out but I had presumed that it related to a chloramine disinfection system versus a straight chlorine system. Again I wish the Region as well as the Record would clarify and or confirm this. There is another possibility and that refers to the AOP or Advanced Oxidation Process used at the Middleton Wellfield to remove TCE (trichloroethylene) from the groundwater. Now technically this is not a "disinfection" system because disinfection normally refers to the removal of bacteria such as Coliforms and E. Coli.

The "magic bullet" cleanup theory mentioned in the title above is a quote from the first and by far best Chair of TAG (Technical Advisory Group) namely Dr. Richard Jackson. The homebuilder's engineer suggested that "recent scientific advances" may result in a safe water supply for Elmira "sooner than we think". Hmm my experience (36 years) here in Elmira is that hot air and bulls*it are plentiful whereas new technologies all come with drawbacks. Dr. Jackson also suggested the same whenever Uniroyal/Chemtura representatives made extravagant claims about faster cleanup.

Apparently the Parkway resevoir and wellfield has been upgraded and or repaired. I hope they are properly treating the TCE that's been there for decades. Meanwhile still no further mention of the Greenbrook Wellfield (Stirling & Homer Watson Blvd. Kitchener) or the river wells along the Grand River in Kitchener known as the Woolner and Pompeii Wellfields. Just what we need, more contaminated wells added to the system likely with minimal treatment and counting on dilution from other wells to reduce contaminant concentrations.   

WHY HAS THE UNIROYAL CONTROLLED ELMIRA GROUNDWATER CLEANUP FAILED?

 

First of all keep in mind that the Elmira groundwater cleanup is barely one third of the problem. The Uniroyal site was and is a disgusting subsurface mess with wastes in the form of tars, sludges, liquids and solids in places down to seventy feet below ground surface. Then there is of course the Canagagigue Creek which to this day has not received so much as a shovelful removal of soils or sediments downstream from the company's property. Air has also been a huge problem in the past although it would appear that the company and successors have done better with it than anywhere else.

The off-site Elmira groundwater has failed because of both on Uniroyal and off-site failure to do source removal of toxic wastes. Years of pump & treat (hydraulic containment) could have been reduced if they had done so. This failure to do source removal off-site is particularly egregious when decades after the fact Lanxess and consultants (Jesse Wright) admitted that there were companies using chlorobenzene in the area of First and Union St. This combined with the known but denied  DNAPL for twenty plus years one hundred feet below surface at OW57-32R (Howard St. water tower) is a big part of the reason why chlorobenzene to this day is still well above drinking water standards in both the Elmira Municipal Upper and Municipal Lower aquifers. Its' removal or encapsulation or other remediation would have cut decades off of the time required by using pump & treat alone. 

On-site failure to remove DNAPL and other wastes has also guaranteed that each and every slowdown or stoppage in on site pumping has allowed even more contamination to readily flow off site. It has also then demanded more and more off-site pumping in order to catch up the new and ongoing leakage of contamination off site. I also believe that besides the now known and admitted sources of Nutrite (Yara), Uniroyal and Varnicolor Chemical that contaminated the municipal aquifers with ammonia, NDMA, chlorobenzene and dozens of other solvents; that there was at least one more source of NDMA. It could easily have been Varnicolor or someone else although our authorities would rather pass on of old age than ever admit to it.

Finally there is the obvious failure for Uniroyal and successors to maintain pumping rates at their own Target pumping rates for years at a time. They even admitted that they needed to grossly increase their own off-site pumping rates (Triple them) and never even got close much less been able to maintain their original far too low pumping rates. They talked a good cleanup and lazy politicians and a few citizens let them get away with it.