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BYLAW COULD HELP TRACK TOXINS

Originally printed in the Toronto Star
http://www.thestar.com/Comment/article/476650

Aug 12, 2008 04:30 AM

Only 4 per cent of Toronto businesses that use toxic chemicals are required to report the substances, health officials say.


Toronto's public health department is pushing a Community Right to Know bylaw that would force most businesses using chemicals from a target list of 25 "priority substances" to track them, identify the emissions and help limit their use.

"There is a large reporting gap in the city," said Monica Campbell, manager of public health's environmental protection office.

Of the roughly 9,600 facilities estimated to be using chemicals in Toronto, only 350 are required to track their substances through a federal program called the National Pollutant Release Inventory, according to a public health study.

Many of the smaller industries that use toxic chemicals, such as dry cleaners or printers, are excluded, health officials say.

Katrina Miller, a spokesperson for the Toronto Environmental Alliance, said a bylaw could have helped firefighters respond to the weekend propane explosion, giving them vital information about any chemicals stored nearby.

It's absurd," Miller said. "When accidents like the propane explosion happen, communities and (firefighters) have no idea what the level of risk is."

Moira Welsh

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