Environment officials to skip citizen meeting

London Free Press Mon, April 28, 2008

PCBs: Ministry plans its own information sessions soon

By CHIP MARTIN Environment Ministry officials don't plan to attend this week's meeting of Londoners concerned about PCBs, but to hold their own in the near future to answer questions about a $56-million remediation plan. London PCB Watch is holding a community information meeting Wednesday at 7 p.m. to share concerns about health issues that may be linked to the chemical compound once used by London industries, including the former Westinghouse Canada transformer plant in East London. Organizer of the group. Ali Haidar, whose father worked at the plant in the 1970s and now has cancer, said he expects a full house at the Local 27, Canadian Auto Workers hall at 606 First St. Londoners who worked at the plant or had relatives who worked there, or who played in PCB-contaminated Pottersburg Creek and Walker Drain, say they are worried health concerns today may be traced back to the compound. The province announced recently it had set aside funds for the multimillion-dollar removal of 2,100 truckloads of PCB-contaminated soil from a storage vault beside the now-vacant plant at Clarke Road and Huron Street. The plan has prompted Haidar to seek answers about it and ask environmental officials and local politicians to attend the April 30 gathering. But Tina Dufresne, district manager for the Environment Ministry, said plans will be announced soon for ministry public information sessions about the PCB removal and destruction. "We'll be announcing dates next week," she said. In the meantime, the ministry, which she said "has been quite open," has no plans to attend Haidar's gathering. Dufresne said she expects most of the 12 questions posed by Haidar will be addressed. She said the ministry meetings also will include health officials who can deal with questions that relate to health worries.