UNIROYAL FACES THE MUSIC IN COURT FINALLY

By 2001 the every week stench coming from Uniroyal/Crompton especially in the summer months was lessening. After three horrible summers residents were beginning to think that there was hope afterall. Uniroyal/Crompton had been slowly upgrading their facilities with more air scrubbers as well as thermal oxidizers for specific processes. It was still too little, years and years too late, but it was at least going in the right direction.

The February 14, 2001 K-W Record reported on the public meeting held by Uniroyal/Crompton regarding their Worst Case Scenario. This meeting about a potential release of Anhydrous Ammonia quickly turned into a debate about their odours. Unfortunately one very uninformed and ignorant Elmira resident whose house was bypassed by the worst of the stench publicly stated "I don't think they are telling the truth". "I don't get the smell." Mr. Robert Bolender while living nearby did not live on Duke St.. Nevertheless his woefully ignorant comment about one of the Duke St. residents flew in the face of all the evidence and testimony of many who did and some who responded to Duke St. during the "fumigations".

In the February 27/2001 Record Bob Burtt wrote about Uniroyal being charged with four counts of violating the Environmental Protection Act in regards to the "pink spill" (Toluene) of a year earlier. These charges come on top of the 20 charges Uniroyal will face in court next month in regards to their above mentioned fumigations of the Duke St. residents.

On March 2/2001 Julie Sawyer of the Elmira Independent reported that Crompton was charged under the EPA and could face fines as high as $1.3 million. They were charged under Section 14(1) causing an adverse effect, Section 92(1) 2 charges for failing to notify the Ministry and the municipality of the spill and Section 93(1) failing to do everything to prevent, eliminate and ameliorate the adverse effect. All of this behaviour by Uniroyal and their successors over decades explains my overall contempt for them, their consultants and even their so called regulator (M.O.E.).

The K-W Record carried an opinion piece by Susan Bryant of the Community Editorial Board that same month. She described well the Region of Waterloo's Groundwater Protection Plans. She also honestly described the lobbying of Regional Councillors by business and developers in opposition to this necessary and common sense proposal to further protect our proven vulnerable groundwater resources throughout the Region. Of course pro business Councillors rolled over and appeased the likes of David Ash (Crompton) and Gord Chaplin (Canadian General Tower-Cambridge).

Both Julie Sawyer and Gail Martin of the Elmira Independent covered the sentencing of Crompton later in March. Crompton were ordered to pay $168,000 for multiple odour emissions in August 1998. Two and half years to get them fined for just a few offences which carried on for years after the charges were laid. The Independent in their March 30, 2001 edition carried Gail Martin's Editorial titled "Is $168,000 enough?". Gail also called for a health study for Elmira. Still hasn't happened. Way too embarrassing for Ken Seiling and all the local business and industry supporters of the status quo.