Board will monitor Environment Department on tar ponds cleanup
By Doug Mackenzie
Cape Breton Post
Sat., Mar. 8, 2008
SYDNEY - A three-member board
has already begun work monitoring
and reporting on how the Department
of the Environment and Labour
is performing as the primary regulator
of the Sydney tar ponds and coke
ovens clean-up project.
"I want Nova Scotians to know
that the department takes its role as
regulator very seriously," said Minister
of Environment and Labour Mark
Parent. "I welcome the opinions of
the board to assure the public that
my department is closely monitoring
the clean-up project."
The creation of the remediation
monitoring board was announced in
January 2007 when an environmental
assessment approval was granted to
the Sydney Tar Ponds to move forward
with the cleanup.
Selected to the board were chair
Sinclair Dewis, retired from Environment
Canada after 35 years, Edwin
MacLellan, an engineering professor
at Cape Breton University and Colin
Hines, principal with Atlantic Environmental
Training and On-Site Services
Inc.
"It’s a huge project and it was certainly
a big one for my department to
take on," said Parent. "It was difficult
(to find the right people), but we are
very pleased with the people we have.
"I am pleased to have highly qualified
individuals that have experience
in environmental auditing, emergency
response, risk management
and contaminated site remediation."
The board will submit an annual
report to the minister of environment
and labour with copies of the
report being made available to the
public.
"We will be monitoring the
department throughout the cleanup
and (will) prepare an annual report
highlighting the department’s regulatory
performance," said Dewis. "We
look forward to advising the minister
on the effectiveness of his department
as a regulator on this clean-up
project."
Five staff have already been hired
to help the department with the regulatory
role and two more be added
shortly.
Staff are involved in all aspects of
the project, through technical review,
compliance audits, use of third-party
expertise and co-ordination with various
federal and provincial regulatory
bodies.
dmackenzie@cbpost.com
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