UNIROYAL/CROMPTON/CHEMTURA/LANXESS - MASTERS OF THE RED HERRING

97.5% . That was the figure we were advised by Steve Quigley of CRA back in 1994. Allegedly 97.5% of all the contaminants entering the Canagagigue Creek from Uniroyal waste pits and lagoons came from Uniroyal's south-west quandrant. That figure later was lowered to 95% but regardless it was nonsense then and it's nonsense now.

A small part of RPW-5 and all of TPW-2 were allegedly the sole repositories of free phase DNAPL back in the early 1990s. They were partly excavated in late 1993. That too was nonsense as far as being the sole repositories of DNAPLs.

GP-1 and GP-2 supposedly were the highly contaminated low lying areas where Uniroyal's overland flow of contaminated waste waters ended up. GP-1 was excavated and capped in 2013 and 2014 and GP-2 was capped only. It turns out however that GP-1 was probably relocated on maps by Chemtura to a location that was a) less contaminated and b) further from both the "Gap" area on their site as well as further from the lowest lying area on the Stroh property, most likely the repository of a "sink" of persistent organic pollutants (dioxins/furans, DDT, PCBs etc.).

During the air fumigations in Elmira, CPAC and the public were led in circles by Uniroyal for three years while they fixed this production process or that in search of the cause of the odours and worse. Diacetyl was often blamed as the culprit as were other individual processes. It was mostly a case of Uniroyal looking busy and cleaning up the easiest odours first rather than getting right to the heart of the problem which was their wastewater treatment system. More red herrings.

The December 2018 and January 2019 excavations at the north end of the Stroh farm by the cemetery are also a red herring. Of course just like GP-1 and GP-2 they are contaminated with Dioxins and DDT etc. however they again are a cheaper, more accessible and less contaminated substitute for the Gap area, the "sink" and the Stroh Drain itself.

The game goes on and our local authorities whether municipal or provincial allow it. May I live long enough to see serious polluters routinely sent to prison for their crimes against people and the natural environment.