The Environment

Since taking office, the Ontario government has cut the Ministry of Environment by some 40%. Water testing in the province has been privatized. Regulations have been eased for giant agri-businesses.

WALKERTON TRAGEDY
At least 18 people have died as a result of an E. coli outbreak in the municipality of Walkerton in May. Over 2 000 people were made seriously ill as a result of drinking the poisonous water. A report from the Environment Ministry showed that at least 120 other locations had failed tests for contaminated water. In August, four new cases of E. coli emerged, yet Walkerton residents were not informed about them until the cases were reported in the press. Although clean-up has been underway for weeks, there is no clear end in sight for the residents who must live without access to water.

MIKE HARRIS TURNS HIS BACK
While the Ontario government finds money to pay $2 000 per day for a public relations consultant to help spin the Walkerton tragedy, the residents of Walkerton are left footing the bill for the costs of clean-up. The town's insurance company refuses to pay for any of the clean-up, which includes replacing about 3.5 kilometres of contaminated underground water pipes. It could take years of court battles to challenge the insurance company with no guarantee of success. The Ontario government should be stepping in to pay for the costs and take on the insurance company. Instead, the government has offered a loan to the municipality that would pay only about three months worth of bills, and is leaving the Walkerton residents with the task of fighting the insurance company.

ADAMS MINE - A DISASTER IN THE MAKING
Toronto city council has voted to send Toronto's garbage to the Adams Mine near Kirkland Lake. Experts have warned that dumping garbage in this open pit mine will contaminate the groundwater which feeds wells, lakes and streams. The Adams Mine proposal is an environmental disaster in the making. The plan is untested and unconventional. There are safer alternatives, but that would require investment on the part of local governments and the provincial government. For background, click here.
Update: The Adams Mine deal was defeated last week. Toronto's garbage will instead be sent to a landfill in Michigan. This is good news for environmentalists, but many of them have warned Ontarians to be vigilant nonetheless.

DEPLETED GROUNDWATER RESERVES
The government is allowing companies to obtain water taking permits and remove water from lakes and rivers for commercial uses such as swimming pools and bottled water. This is being done without anyone first finding out how much water is in the system. There is a serious potential for damage to the ecosystems of lakes and rivers, and people in rural areas are concerned about having enough water for irrigation on farms. MPPs who raised this concern were told that they did not know what they were talking about, but Ontario's Environment Commissioner recently expressed the same concern in a report on Ontario's water.

SEVERE AIR POLLUTION
Ontario is rated second on the list of worst polluters in North America. One of the reasons is smog. Smog is unhealthy for anyone to be exposed to, and it is especially hazardous to children, the elderly, and people with respiratory problems. Smog is estimated to cause 1 800 deaths a year in Ontario. In 1998, there were 3 300 illegal discharges of hazardous chemicals and the government only took action on one of them. The Ministry of Environment has simply been too gutted to deal with these significant health risks effectively.