Ontario engineers attempting to sound the alarm about public safety concerns in Sarnia’s Chemical Valley are being “muzzled,” according to a report cited by the National Observer. The document is said to detail a meeting between the Office of the Environment Minister and the Professional Engineers Government of Ontario (PEGO), a union representing provincial engineers, and indicate that the government is ignoring concerns about chemical pollution from the area’s petrochemical refineries.
The engineers reportedly first expressed their concerns over the impact of the refineries on Sarnia’s communities in 2009, fears that included “acid gas flaring resulting in significant sulphur dioxide air emissions and risk of irreversible health impacts or mortality for sensitive individuals” and a “lack of engineering regulatory oversight relative to U.S. jurisdictions resulting in an increased risk to nearby communities of chemical leaks and explosions.” The revelations follow a separate investigation that exposed a series of toxic spills and leaks in the Chemical Valley area, according to the National Observer.
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