It’s really noxioux chemical vapours

I must admit that I found the July 24 Cape Breton Post editorial a little puzzling and a lot annoying (First Pond Grass Promised Soon).

Cape Breton Post
Letter by Faith Hall
Fri., Aug. 6, 2010

My friend tells me that noxious fumes have been evident all over the city and yet this unnamed writer waxes philosophical about the “pervasive sense of artificiality.” I find it distressing that hydroseeding and future use of the ponds take priority over the health and safety of Sydney residents.

I’ve noted that officials make reference to odours rather than calling it what it is: the release of noxious chemical vapours directly into the adjacent community. Apparently, the crude mixing of cement into the toxic sludge produces a noxious plume that moves undeterred into the community. Check out the video at www.tarponds cleanup.info and I think you’ll agree this process should be done under cover.

Where is the Community Liaison Committee that should be addressing these concerns of residents?

While I know the method of cleaning up the ponds has been locked in for quite some time and is not likely to change, I sincerely believe the health of Sydney residents is being unnecessarily compromised by current cleanup practices. These practices can and should be changed. If money is the issue, take it from the future use budget.

Faith Hall
Sault Ste. Marie, Ont.

Faith Hall angrily responded with an online comment to her own letter - Aug. 7, 2010

The CB Post did not print what I wrote, and BTW, the word is "noxious", not "noxioux". This is what I actually wrote for those that may be interested.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I must admit that I found the most recent CB Post article on the tar ponds (First pond grass promised soon - July 23, 2010) a little puzzling and a lot annoying.

My friend tells me that noxious fumes are evident all over the city and yet this "unnamed" official in charge of the cleanup waxes philosophically about the "pervasive sense of artificiality". I find it distressing that hydroseeding and future use of the ponds takes priority over the health and safety of Sydney residents.

I've noted that officials make reference to "odours" rather than call it what it is - the release of noxious chemical vapours directly into the adjacent communities. Apparently, the crude mixing of cement into the toxic sludge produces a noxious plume which moves undetered into the community.

Check out the video at the the tar ponds blog (www.tarpondscleanup.info), and I think you'll agree that this process should be done under cover as recommended by the Tar Ponds Panel.

Where is this Community Liaison Committee that should be addressing these concerns of residents?

I checked out the Tar Ponds Agency Website under "Community" and they claim a "Regularly Updated Website" and "Monthly Community Liaison Committee (CLC) meetings", yet the last posted CLC minutes are for March!

In these minutes, I was pleased to see that a guest was invited to attend the CLC meeting, one "Dan Fraser of the Sierra Club of Canada", But Marlene Kane tells me (and I quote) "Sierra Club has applied for membership in the CLC every year for the last 5 years and they’ve been turned down every year. This year they were the only group to apply for the CLC environment seat within the posted time-frame and they were still turned down...I hear an environmental group located at the other end of the island (2 hours drive from Sydney) applied LATE and got the CLC position instead of the Sierra Club" - very puzzling.

While I know that the method of cleaning up the ponds has been locked in for quite some time and is not likely to change, I sincerely believe that the health of Sydney residents is being unnecessarily compromised by current cleanup practices. These practices can and should be changed.

If money is the issue, take it from the "Future Use" budget.

Faith Hall
Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario