Government Plan to Respond to Whitney Pier Concerns

The federal and provincial governments have developed a multi- faceted response to address the health concerns of residents in Sydney neighbourhoods adjacent to the tar ponds and former coke ovens site.

Dr. Richard Lewis, an independent expert in health risk assessment, was hired to interpret the findings of recent soil and groundwater testing in the area of Whitney Pier immediately north of the former coke ovens site. The first part of his report, which deals with acute health risk, was shared with residents in the North of Coke Ovens (NOCO) area today.

Dr. Lewis agreed with experts from the Nova Scotia Department of Health and Health Canada that the findings did not indicate any immediate health risks to residents of the NOCO area. However, he has recommended several short-term, medium-term and long-term activities to address the health concerns of residents. As a result, the following steps have been taken:

• In recent soil tests, one site on publicly owned land away from any homes showed levels of arsenic that could be an acute risk to a small child if a large amount of soil was ingested. The Nova Scotia government is taking immediate steps to make this site safe within 24 to 48 hours.

• Nova Scotia’s Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Jeff Scott, has outlined practical measures for minimizing exposure to soil and dust until further testing is conducted on residential properties.

• Dr. Scott is arranging with public health staff in Sydney for NOCO residents to voluntarily have hair and blood samples analyzed for lead and arsenic exposure.

• The federal and provincial governments will immediately begin a program to sample residential properties beginning with the NOCO area. Participation in this sampling will also be voluntary.

• The two levels of government have immediately begun to design a chronic health risk assessment program.

• Government officials will immediately begin developing relocation and remedial contingency plans concurrently in case the testing of the residential properties indicates contamination levels and exposures that pose a health risk to residents of the area affected.

• To better understand the overall quality of soil in the Sydney area, a comprehensive background sampling program will be implemented.

These actions have been developed in response to Dr. Lewis’ recommendations, as well as two April 25 resolutions passed by the Joint Action Group (JAG) to relocate residents and to engage a chronic health risk assessment. Many of these activities can be financed within the federal-provincial-municipal cost-share agreement currently in place for all the design and preparation work leading to cleanup of the tar ponds and coke ovens site. Additional funding will be appropriated if required.

The JAG resolutions and Dr. Lewis’ review and recommendations stem from an analysis of soil and groundwater samples taken primarily from publicly owned land in the NOCO area, results of which were released April 24. Those results were compared against several benchmarks, including remedial guidelines suggested by the Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment (CCME).

Levels for various natural or artificial soil contaminants in the CCME guidelines are not -- as often portrayed -- a regulatory or legal “limit.” They are simply benchmarks used to determine whether further investigation is prudent. The CCME acknowledges there are often cases where its guidelines should be substituted with regional or site-specific guidelines to accurately reflect local geology and soil characteristics.

For example, CCME’s suggested remedial level for arsenic is 12 parts per million (ppm). However, that level would be rarely achievable in Nova Scotia where naturally occurring levels for arsenic average 23 ppm but can exceed 1,000 ppm. In downtown Halifax, levels average 51 ppm while some areas of Halifax County average over 100 ppm. In the NOCO area, arsenic levels averaged 67 ppm.

Dr. Lewis’ report has been forwarded for peer-review by the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR), which is part of the respected Centres for Disease Control in Atlanta, Georgia. Over the next three weeks, Dr. Lewis will review existing data to determine what other information will be needed for a chronic health risk assessment and will comment on the proposed background soil sampling program. His full peer-reviewed report will include a full set of recommendations and is expected to be shared with the community in mid-June.