ELMIRA INDEPENDENT EDITORIAL: "CLARITY NEEDED"

Gail Martin, editor of the Elmira Independent, wrote this Editorial last Thursday namely "Clarity needed". The previous week we the public as well as CPAC and SWAT learned that there are no written specifics surrounding Chemtura Canada's 2028 deadline for restoring Elmira's groundwater. We learned that there is absolutely no mention of whether the Bedrock Aquifer is considered part of the Elmira Aquifers and thus included in the remediation process. That the Bedrock Aquifer is highly contaminated with NDMA is undisputed. What appears disputed is whether it will be addressed in a timely fashion.

Secondly Gail Martin has rightly pointed out that Chemtura's attempts to do pilot testing of ISCO or In Situ Chemical Oxidation have to date been unsucessful. ISCO is a type of source removal of contaminants via chemically breaking them down. What Gail only briefly touched on was the plan, now a year old, to triple the pumping rates of off-site wells allegedly in order to speed up the cleanup of the Elmira Aquifers. Again to date no progress has been presented. There are major issues and studies required and while the consultants to Chemtura, Conestoga Rovers, may be doing them, that is unacceptable. When it comes to tripling the volume of mostly remediated groundwater to the Canagagigue Creek; an independent study needs to be done. Mostly remediated groundwater in moderate quantities is a far cry from even better cleaned groundwater at three times the volume. Simply exporting the contamination from Elmira's Aquifers down the Canagagigue Creek to be shared with Kitchener-Waterloo is not the solution.