NDP's environmental agenda, comd a "free good" which is there to be used, exploited, managed. In retro spect, we could be accused of being simply naive or worse, catatonic in our approaches to managing the
Over the course oftime, mistakes will be made. Some paths may need to be re-traced. That is the price of leadership,the price of boldness and vision. A course is being charted
environment.
that will accelerate the restoration
Mrs. Grier is now proposing a value system that perceives the envi ronment as a heritage that must be conserved and nurtured,rather than exploited and abused. She is chal lenging our industrialists,our manu facturers, our engineers and scien tists, and the community at large to think differently about the environ
of Ontario's environment. The goal is the creation of a healthier, sustai
ment.
nable environmentin which all ofus will be beneficiaries. MISA-1986
Turning to Ontario's Environ mental agenda, perhaps the pro gram you are most familiar with is MISA (Municipal and Industrial Strategy for Abatement). First
Gerald Ronan addresses the 1991 PCAO conference.
launched in 1986, this program is the cornerstone of the ministry's water pollution prevention strategy. However, five years into the pro gram questions are being asked as to what precisely has been achieved.
Environmental liabllltles
don't go away by them selves.You've got to meet them head on, armed with the best possible
Is it on track in terms of substan
tially reducing water pollution? Is it achieving the goal of virtual elimi nation of persistent toxics dischar ged to the environment?
resources. That's why you should know about
Groundwater Technology. As the recognized world
Mired in Middie
leader in environmental
I think it would be fair to say we are firmly mired in the middle. So I
remediation, we specialize in health risk assess
propose to go back to the beginning
ment, laboratory analy
of MISA,review what we set out to do in 1986, assess how far we have
sis, on-site bioremediation,
progressed on the path to the virtual
monitoring and
elimination of persistent toxics dis-
closure of all
types of haz
A course Is being charted that
ardous sites.
will accelerate the restoration of Ontario's environment.
We research,
design, engi neer and manu facture total solutions to
charged to provincial waterways, and explore what might lie ahead.
complex issues. Why wait for a problem
What lies ahead
to surface? Groundwater
Before getting into the specifics of MISA,it would be useful to under stand the new imperatives against which the various programs are being assessed. One certainty lies ahead; Mrs. Grier is keen that the MISA regulations proceed as quickly as possible. As originally conceived in 1986, the program has fallen two years behind schedule. The current MISA process, while admirable in terms of its provisions for compre hensive consultation and analysis, has been tardy on delivery ofregula
Technology has success fully managed more than 5,000 projects. Our 60 offices worldwide can pre vent the threat of environ mental and financial dis
aster right now. Call Jim Vaughan at 1-416-670-1700. Because one lawsuit is all it takes to contaminate
a very bright future.
tions.
[<Âť
Groundwater
Technology, Inc. World leader In soil and groundwater remediation. Offices: Montreal, Quebec (514) 353.6939;
Mississauga, Ontario (416)670-1700; Halifax, Nova Scotia (902) 453-0585.
Targeted Reductions of Toxics The second key change Mrs.Grier wishes to see is a commitment by all dischargers to targeted percentage reductions of persistent toxic pollu tants within a specified time frame. The scale of these targeted reduc tions will be in the context of achie
ving the virtual elimination of per sistent toxics. Continued overleaf
For more information,
20
Circle reply card No. 129
Environmental Science & Engineering, July 1991