Peter O'Neil, Vancouver Sun, CANADA & WORLD, Page: B3
Duplicates: TIMES COLONIST (VICTORIA) (FINAL) BRITISH COLUMBIA, Page: A6; WINDSORSTAR.COM.
The bulk of B.C.-destined debris from Japan's tsunami disaster in March
of 2011 is expected to arrive on the province's shores in early 2013, but
chances are remote that any material will be radioactive, according to the
federal government.
The debris moved away from Japan's shores several days before
radioactive material was released from the dam-aged Fukushima nuclear plant,
and only a small percentage of the debris originates from the Fukushima area,
Health Canada said in documents tabled in Parliament this week.
"For any items that were contaminated, prior to arriving on Canada's
West Coast much of the contamination would have been removed through
degradation and dispersion of the material at sea," the department said in
response to questions from B.C. New Democrat Peter Julian.
Report rebuts warning
The report rebuts a warning earlier this month from provincial New
Democratic Party MLA Scott Fraser, who suggested B.C. could face dire
consequences due to an allegedly lax response to the debris issue by the
federal and provincial governments.
Both governments "have a responsibility to ensure the aftermath of
that horrible disaster in Japan doesn't become a disaster for West Coast
com-munities," he told a Vancouver Island newspaper.
Julian said the government's response is unconvincing since it indicates
Ottawa has so far spent only $11,000 on ocean radioactivity sampling. The U.S.
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has set aside $600,000
for cleanup, while Washington State Gov. Chris-tine Gregoire said in June that
her state will set aside at least $100,000.
"The Americans are taking this seriously, the Canadian government
isn't," Julian said.
The documents tabled in response to Julian's questions show numerous
federal departments have been working with B.C. ministries as well as U.S.
state officials on plans to deal with the debris moving slowly across the
ocean.
The bulk of the B.C.-destined debris - mostly in small chunks - will
begin arriving in the first half of 2012 and peak around March 2014. It will
remain present along the coast for at least three years after that at reduced
levels, the documents state.
But some debris has already made the journey.
Debris routinely spotted
Plastic and Styrofoam from the disaster has been routinely spotted along
the U.S. and Canadian coast-lines for months, and some larger pieces, such as a
fishing vessel spotted in Alaskan waters in March, a Harley-Davidson motorcycle
that landed in Haida Gwaii in April and a massive dock that arrived on the
Oregon coast in June, signal more substantial pieces may be on the way.
According to a study from Fisheries and Oceans Canada, the majority of
the debris landing on the North American coast will arrive on the shores of
Washington, Oregon, and California.
However more than 90 per cent of the debris that left Japan may never
wash ashore even after five years, the report said, and is instead expected to
circulate in the "North Pacific Garbage Patch" - a large expanse of
ocean northeast of Hawaii where floating ocean junk, especially plastics, tends
to accumulate due to wind-driven cur-rent patterns.
Plans underway
A Tsunami Debris Coordinating Committee co-chaired by Environment Canada
and the B.C. environment ministry is working with B.C. municipal governments,
First Nations, U.S. federal and state governments, and other stakeholders on
plans to deal with the arrival of the debris, the government documents said.
Several national and provincial parks on Haida Gwaii and the west coast
of Vancouver Island are already participating in a debris monitoring program.
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA), meanwhile, is still testing
food imports from Japan to ensure no food products - especially seafood - are
contaminated.
The CFIA issued a preliminary report last spring saying that tests of
imported Japanese food products and domestically produced milk in B.C. showed
radiation levels below the Health Canada threshold for required action.
But the documents tabled in the House of Commons noted that the agency
will be studying Japanese food products in Vancouver during the 2012-13 fiscal
year as part of a semi-regular Health Canada analysis of contaminants in
Canada's food sup-ply that began in 1969.
"The CFIA with Health Canada continues to monitor food for
radionu-clides through the Total Diet Study (TDS). For 2012-13 the focus will
be on testing food products from Japan, in the Vancouver area."
Twitter.com/poneilinottawa Read my blog, Letter from Ottawa, at
vancouversun.com/oneil ILLUS: Bill Wagner, The Daily News, The Associated Press
Files / Pieces of an 18-foot Japanese fishing boat washed up on Benson Beach
near North Head at Cape Disappointment State Park at Ilwaco, Wash., on June 15.
Fisheries and Oceans Canada claims more than 90 per cent of the garbage that
left Japan may end up in the 'North Pacific Garbage Patch.
NDP Critic for Canadian Heritage Peter Julian issued the following statement:
"It has come to our attention that a consultant for a federally funded anti-racism project has a disturbing track record of spewing hate speech online against Jewish and francophone communities. This is completely unacceptable. We call on the Minister of Heritage to take drastic action and terminate his contract.
NDP Heritage Critic Peter Julian issued the following statement:
“Today’s announcement by Hockey Canada is another attempt to delay the important and urgent work to deal with the toxic culture in this organization. While a former Supreme Court Justice is a credible appointment to conduct the review into Hockey Canada, this won’t be the first time the organization undergoes this process.
NDP critic for Canadian Heritage, Peter Julian, made the following statement:
“Canadians are horrified by the incidents of sexual assault and by what they’re hearing from Hockey Canada. They are left with many questions about how this toxic culture is allowed to persist in our sports organizations and what the government is actually doing to ensure this doesn’t happen again.