INSTITUTIONAL MEMORY OR LACK THEREOF

The Ontario MOE have certainly mixed and matched their representatives at UPAC/CPAC over the years and the decades. The only really consistent, longterm rep was Steve Martindale who I couldn't help but like. I believe all of twice were harsh words exchanged between us and we sorted that out on both occasions to our mutual satisfaction. Others complained about Steve's alleged or apparent ultra laid back responses but I always figured that was just his personality etc. Steve was no better or no worse than all the other MOE personnel who showed up on occasion over the decades.

With Uniroyal/Crompton/Chemtura and now Lanexess we had company name changes far more than personnel changes. Jeff Merriman and Dwighte Este carried the corporate banner for decades with others dropping in and out such as Dr. David Ash, Ron ...? Dmitri Makres, Josef Oleajarz, Helder Botello etc. at the helm. Jeff is now retired. The company's consultants were Conestoga Rovers forever (CRA) who were recently taken over by GHD although some of the personnel remain from CRA such as SQuigley and Alan Deal. Luis Almeida currently is GHD's point man.

Now we come to Ramin Ansari, hydrogeologist for Lanxess and possibly for Chemtura although I'm not certain. CPAC members who have seen him at meetings are split on his sincerity, credibility, veracity etc. Some think he is the real deal others believe that yes he's very knowledgeable in his field and that he presents very well when speaking, however that does not necessarily mean that he is sincere, and truthful in all matters.

My first initial bias was that he's a mouthpiece for a corporation who likely are no different from Uniroyal, Crompton and Chemtura. In other words all talk about the environment and all receptors while their actions always appears to be in the interests of their shareholders versus their stakeholders here in Elmira. Their stakeholders are every living thing that breathes the air that they discharge into and who used to drink the groundwater and still drink or live in the surface water that their corporate predecessors dumped into and contaminated. That's one option.

Of course another option is that Ramin is the real deal from start to finish. He's highly knowledgeable along with morals and ethics that demand that his employer live up to their responsibility to clean up their mess both in the Elmira Aquifers, Canagagigue Creek and more.

A third option may be that Ramin will face the reality that whatever his personal scruples are, he's working for Lanxess Canada and they provide his paycheque. They could bluntly tell him to toe the line or they could do it more subtly. For example if Ramin is simply not provided with crucial past information, his employer could essentially fib to him by omission. Dwighte who is still there knows where all the skeletons and coverups are and he could potentially plead ignorance to Ramin on the DNAPL coverup and so much more.

Institutional memory is often lost when employees retire or leave for other reasons. It can also be intentionally "lost" as new employees enter the scene, such as now. It is very easy for new employees to correctly state that they are not so and so from the past and not responsible for errors, mistakes or intentional truth deflections from the past. I agree that they personally are not so responsible but that they do bear responsibility to not assume that everything they are told by their colleagues or supervisors are gospel. If they repeat dishonest environmental statements and facts after being advised by stakeholders otherwise, then they will assume the mantle and reputation of their predecessors.

A fourth and more likely option is that Ramin is somewhere stuck in the middle of the three proposed options. He could be the real deal however he is facing the reality of working for a typical corporation who, whatever their public declarations, have to look out for number one. He may technically be miles ahead of anyone else we've seen and he might based upon that technical superiority be willing and able to move this employer further along the road to environmental remediation than we have so far seen. As always time and actions will tell, not words.

A RATHER DIFFERENT RAC MEETING LAST NIGHT

Well the usual cast of characters were present at the Remediation Advisory Committee (RAC) meeting. Jason Rice from the MOE along with Assistant Director of the West Central Region of the MOE, namely Jane Glassco. I had met her years previously at CPAC meetings, perhaps back in late 2011. The GRCA was represented by Nancy Davy and the Region of Waterloo, of course, were not there. They have clearly once again backed away from what I believe they believe is a do nothing committee. Lanxess were well represented with Ramin Ansari, Dwighte Este and Helder Botello. Louis Almeida from GHD was also present late, albeit back in the gallery with us common folks. Tiffany Svensson, TAG Chair as well as TAG reps Joe Kelly and Linda Dickson attended. Sandy Shantz and Mark Bauman were co-chairs.

Vivienne Delaney, Sebastian Seibel-Achenbach and I were the common folk in the gallery. Tiffany opened things up by explaining TAG's July 5, 2018 Motion asking for greater sampling in the "Gap" area near the south-east border between Lanxess and the Stroh farm. She stated that the samples should be taken from the topographically lowest level in the "Gap" area and they should not be only the top 15 cm (5.9 inches). Also the more stringent Table 8 standards for soils within 30 metres of a waterbody are more appropriate as the Stroh Drain is a waterbody.

Ramin advised that Lanxess intend to complete the excavations and remediation on the Stroh property along their eastern boundary before the year is out. He also suggested that Lanxess could take another look at the "Gap" when they start their work on the Risk Assessment for the Canagagigue Creek.

Jason Rice of the MOE stated that the MOE feel it's better to wait for further examination as well regarding the Stroh Drain and the "Gap". He basically suported Ramin's position.

There was discussion on the ongoing trials and tribulations in regards to the failure to get pumping well W9 up and running. This had been strongly criticized at the TAG meeting a week prior. Ramin claims that Lanxess are doing their best. Ramin also suggested that to date they have not discovered who and where the excess chlorobenzene is coming from. This was the approximate 1,300 kg that Dr. Neil Thompson had indicated could not be accounted for by Uniroyal Chemical.Ramin indicated that they were looking diligently for other sources of this chlorobenzene. Personally I think they are just about thirty years late on that exercise. The off-site cleanup required full knowledge of all sources and this was even claimed by Uniroyal Chemical's own consultants in notarized Affidavits to the Environmental Appeal Board. Interestingly Ramin mentioned that one of the co-owners of the former Varnicolor site (Elmira Pump) was involved in these discussions. This involvement could be simply a sharing of groundwater results or possibly more.

Joe Kelly and Linda Dickson of TAG both presented comments and issues at the meeting as well.


To my discomfort I may have to say something nice about Mark Bauman. My recollection is that he suggested a private meeting after the RAC meeting in order for TAG and friend to elaborate and clarify on the issues surrounding the Stroh Drain, Interceptor Trenches and the "Gap". Sebastian agreed to this meeting prior to him being able to dig up the specific CRA report with the topographical map (ground elevations) on it. That was a good thing as I raced over to my home just prior to the meeting ending and grabbed both my 2' x 3 1/2' map plus the specific CRA 2013 report with the pockets in the back including the map titled "Existing Conditions".

Lo and behold I was treated as exactly what I am, a very well informed stakeholder on these matters when I got back. We talked, discussed, debated and argued I'm guessing for 3/4 of an hour. Sebastian was magnificent. Tiffany spoke little but observed, listened and learned more details about these issues from the debate. We ended on a very collegial note with kind words all around. Either an optimist or a naive person would call it a breakthrough. Thirty years of double dealing, backstabbing and lying to the public makes me a skeptic even though I appreciated the back and forth discussions last early evening. Some of the points and comments were very good and strong and others frankly I viewed as spurious although I did not say so. As always time will tell as to whether Ramin and Louis along with Helder and Dwighte really want to know the truth and take appropriate steps.

RAC SHOULD FOCUS ON SOURCE REMOVAL

This should always have been the focus and various UPACs and CPACs over the decades have made this obvious to Uniroyal, their corporate successors and the Ontario MOE. The July 2003 Request For Action was a huge step in that direction and Crompton, Chemtura and Lanxess have only grudgingly taken steps to follow through on that. The scam involving GP-1 & 2 , in my opinion, should have sent various CRA and Chemtura personnel to jail. Similarly the Stroh Drain, possibly combined with what appear to be Interceptor Trenches, should do the same. These issues certainly provide evidence that significant amounts of Uniroyal Chemical contamination have been diverted surreptitiously onto the neighbour's farm and then into the Canagagigue Creek. This all needs to be investigated by unimpeachable parties, not by self-serving or corrupt bodies that Woolwich Township have long been inflicted with.

TOMORROW AFTERNOON'S RAC MEETING

RAC - Remediation Advisory Committee. Is the purpose of most committees to solve problems or simply to give the impression that somebody is doing something about the problem, whether they are or not? In the cases involving the public interest such as Uniroyal Chemical, did the MOE and Township form a committee (UPAC) with the express purpose of letting the community vent while behind the scenes assuring Uniroyal that votes, motions or resolutions from UPAC, at most, would receive lip service only?

Tomorrow's RAC meeting has a very brief Agenda. There are no Delegations and under Section 4. there are three Recommendations from TAG namely 4.1 "East-side Remediation and Investigation Follow-up"
4.2 "Offsite Groundwater Containment Update"
4.3 "Creek Investigation, CSM Development, Timelines and Next Steps"

There is also under 5. "Stakeholder Consultation-The TAG/RAC Process" That should be interesting and I expect mostly a self-congratulatory pat on the back attempting to legitimize the illegitimate.

Item 4.3 above refers to CSM. That stands for Conceptual Site Model and is an example of both too much discussion in private behind closed doors as well as what happens when meetings are held five months apart and Minutes don't come out in a timely fashion. I have not missed a single public meeting of either RAC or TAG yet here I am wondering what the hell a CSM for the Canagagigue Creek is. We did receive a CSM for the Elmira Aquifers a while back produced by Dr. Neil Thompson.That CSM essentially described the stratigraphy or subsurface aquifers and aquitards beneath Elmira as well as showing how contaminant migration from Uniroyal to the north and south wellfields occurred.

From that am I to assume that a CSM for the creek is going to describe the various soils , clays, stones , sediments etc. and then explain how contaminated sediments move downstream along with dissolved solvents in the surface water? At this late stage all citizens should know what is going on and if those attending all the public meetings don't, then clearly the public meetings are just for show. In other words MOE, RMOW, GRCA, Lanxess and GHD start sharing in the public meetings and not using them as camouflage for what's happening behind the scenes.

LANXESS CONTINUE TO SET RECORDS

Well they do! They've now set a record during July and August 2018 for the lowest volume of off-site pumping in years. 44.6 litres per second for the month of July combined with a whopping 44.2 litres per second for last month (August). For perspective realize that six years ago they promised to TRIPLE the volume of off-site pumping from approximately 53 litres per second to presumably 150 litres per second or so. A couple of years later and they had reduced their brag from TRIPLE to DOUBLE. Well generally since 2012 they've obtained regular pumping rates of approximately 60 litres per second which is approximately a 14% increase. Doubling the pumping from 53 to 106 would be a 100% increase and tripling to the magical, mystical 159 l/s would be a two hundred percent increase by my math.

Instead they've generally avergaed a 14% increase since 2012 with this summer being a major decrease of 18% from the 2012 averages. Not to worry though, Lanxess just like their predecessors have a whole litany of excuses. Fortunately for them both the Ontario Environmental Protection Act and the MOE themselves obviously must accept excuses as a defence because no charges have been laid. I mean really who are we to suggest that the environment is more important than the feelings of corporate polluters or that profits to shareholders should in any way be diminished by illegal or immoral behaviour?

THE SCAM OF THE PUBLIC CONTINUES

We received the Minutes of the last RAC meeting three days ago. That would be six days before the next RAC meeting which is this Thursday, September 27 at 4 pm. in Woolwich Council Chambers. Now here's the punchline. The last RAC meeting was held on April 26, 2018. Yes that is FIVE MONTHS ago. That folks is not public consultation. To just receive the Minutes of a public meeting held five months ago is asinine. Welcome to Woolwich folks. This is the home of world class polluters receiving world class adoration and protection from accountability. It is a team effort involving the Ontario Ministry of Environment, Woolwich Council, well paid client driven consultants, and last but not least, co-opted hand picked (by the polluter) citizens, willing to deliver key concessions under the guise of representing the public. No I am not describing generally citizens on TAG. There are some good ones although there are also two who are not. One of them is not a Canadian citizen, does not live in Woolwich Township and by her own admission, while allegedly representing the public, has accepted work and favours from Conestoga Rovers, decades long consultant to Uniroyal/Crompton/Chemtura. The other, while allegedly representing the public, has accepted all expense paid trips including accomodations, air travel and meals from the chemical industry lobby (CCPA/CIAC) of which Uniroyal/Crompton/Chemtura are members.

I repeat only in Woolwich Township folks is corruption so blatant and yet so unaccountable.

WOOLWICH POLITICS DISCUSSED IN THE RECORD

Luisa D'Amato has written an Opinion piece titled "Don't make candidates organize the debate". While I agree completely with her basic premise that's not why I am discussing her article here in today's posting. She has possibly inadvertently raised some interesting issues politically in Woolwich Township. Firstly we have Ward 1. The alleged "incumbents" are Pat Merlihan and Julie-Ann Herteis. In fact Julie-Ann is no incumbent. She was appointed by Woolwich Council last spring via a blatant scam. Ten other very capable and professional applicants went to the trouble of applying and then writing a speech and delivering it to Council for their consideration. Council considered nothing. At least three or four out of the five of them considered nothing at the public meeting. They had privately and hence likely illegally decided prior to the public meeting that Julie-Ann was their kind of councillor, namely quiet, uninformed and capable of following direction just as she did under the Todd Cowan council.

Not good. Now we come to Scott McMillan whom I do not know. Mostly. I have one alleged incident from his school days. More importantly he was/is chair of the Waterloo Region District School Board (WRDSB). News flash folks. That for me at least, is not a positive recommendation. I will never again vote for anyone who has held that position and I should have known better the first time. History and time have taught me that lesson. Let me put it this way. My experience with the WRDSB is that they are most unlikely to vote as chair an honest, informed individual who's sole goal is improving the educational system for STUDENTS. There are lots who want to improve it for teachers, bureaucrats at the WRDSB, the unions or other stakeholders.

Soooo as weak a candidate as Julie-Ann is I would rather have her on council than a strong but flawed in the public interest individual such as I believe Mr. McMillan to be. Plus privately I have heard that she is basically a good person. If that is correct then maybe I'd better get used to her.

Patrick Merlihan far and away in my opinion is the best of a bad lot on that council. Yes he's arrogant and a bit of a know it all but I think he's still the best by far.

Larry Shantz and Murray Martin are a disappointment. Murray is and always has been beyond hopeless. Maybe Larry has some redeeming social value but I haven't seen it so far.

In my opinion both Eric Schwindt and Fred Redekop are excellent candidates. It is a shame that they are running against each other.

The only bonus with our pretend mayor Sandy Shantz returning is that she's got one more term to publicly self-destruct. Todd Cowan did it in one term. Sandy is pushing her luck with a second term.

See you all during the election!