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Where does the buck stop for members of the Canadian Chemical Producers Association?
Tuesday, December 3, 2002
There used to be a time when asking questions was considered unladylike and asking too many questions was considered just plain bad manners. It also depended on who was asking the questions, for example, the person's level of formal education or social status. In some parts of the world this status still exists.Thousands of people died in Bhopal, India due to a poisonous gas which escaped from a Union Carbide plant in 1984. How could it happen? Could it happen in North America? Could Bhopal or Walkerton have been averted if more questions had been asked and more importantly if the consequences could have been anticipated? It all comes down to accountability and telling the truth, a tragic lesson experienced by the victims of Walkerton. The pre1980's could now be considered the dark ages for many manufacturing industries, especially the chemical industry. Bhopal was to the chemical industry what Walkerton was to the Ontario government.
As a result, the 1980's was the decade of enlightenment for the environment, a kind of renaissance. Canada drafted its Environmental Protection Act (CEPA) and the Spills Bill. Greenpeace and Green Parties in Europe gained momentum. The chemical industry under the guidance of the Canadian Chemical Producers' Association (CCPA) drafted Responsible Care and initiated a National Advisory Panel.
What would happen if you invite a group of environmental activists, some more actively challenged than others, and allow a forum of constructive dialogue and debate? The industry calls these people ÑstakeholdersÑ and then listens. Are they really listening or pretend they are listening? That's the million dollar question.
In the case of CCPA's National Advisory Panel in the 1980's and early 1990's, they didn't mince with words. ÑChemical industry: Clean up your act.Ñ They further went on to demand that
1) Spills are unacceptable. Reduction of all emissions should be on-going not intermittent.
2) Simply meeting the regulations is not enough. Go beyond the legal standards. Raise the bar.
3) Take responsibility for historical waste sites and remediate them at your own expense.
4) Be more diligent in transportation of your products. Be prepared for the worst case.
5) Allow outsiders who have no stake in your company to come in and check up to see that you are doing what you claim to be doing.
6) Kick out the members who are not co-operating.
7) Have Responsible Care encompass every aspect of your business. It's not a program. It's an ethic.
It's now 2002 and here's where they seem to stand. There are now 73 member companies who produce 90% of the chemicals in Canada. According to government statistics, the number of spills to the St. Clair River, for example, have been drastically reduced.
TRANSCAER is a national program that looks after the safe transportation of products across the country. CCPA has mapped out the transportation corridors and given responsibility to its members to ÑcoverÑ the designated area in case of accidents. Resources, both human and technical, are spent to maintain equipment and training.
And what of companies who have not co-operated with Responsible Care? They have parted ways and are no longer allowed to display the CCPA logo.
What about the issue of outsiders checking up? CCPA calls this 3rd party verification. Every 3 years outsiders visit the site and check on the status of Responsible Care. This is a condition of membership in CCPA and Responsible Care
External verifications are a condition of membership and the information from the report generated must be made available to the community, the roses and the warts. Many members have placed the entire report on line. To my knowledge, no member has refused to disclose the information in the reports to anyone upon request.
Their suppliers and customers are also part of the external verification. If they're not up to snuff, the Responsible Care company will stop buying from or selling to those companies. It's like being black listed.
Marion Gamble, has been a member of local advisory panels and participated on verifications, spending several days asking questions. She proposes a Catch 22 for industries regarding panels and verifications: ÑMost of the public don't think about the companies at their back door until there is an emission or spill. In my experience the companies tried to be accountable to the panel. There did not seem to be a vehicle for that accountability to be made public. Any campaign would take money and that must come from the companies (panels have no financial resources). The campaign then will be seen as PR and panel independence suspect.......An unsolvable dilemma?Ñ Tom Chatterton of Wallaceburg has also been a panel member and for several years was very involved in community dialogue and education between companies and communities. ÑI found my CAP experience to be challenging for the most part, frustrating at times but always interesting in its scope and content. The Company generally responded positively to the Panel's ideas and suggestions and even though we were never totally sure, it seemed that management viewed the CAP as a valued sounding board and resource. Where public input and advice is considered worthwhile, a corporation should give serious consideration to the CAP technique.Ñ
If Responsible Care is so great, what's the problem. First of all, Responsible Care covers only CCPA members. Although Responsible Care companies produce 90% of the chemicals manufactured in Canada, there are many (usually smaller) chemical companies that do not belong and do not allow outsiders to ask those important questions about their process.
Secondly, the chemicals produced end up in landfills, sewers and air once they are sold. In my opinion, the industry does not have a handle on the life cycles of these chemicals once they reach the consumer. There just are not enough government enforcement personnel to catch those bad guys. One bad actor makes every company look bad. Therefore, the industry, as a whole, must take some responsibility in pressuring the bad actors to shape up, refusing to buy from them or sell to them.
The good news is that globally Canadian Responsible Care is the most stringent of all the Responsible Cares in the world. In my opinion, CCPA is far ahead in its external verification, including the U.S. verifications. Responsible Care first began in Sarnia in the 1980's and has radiated throughout the world. People in Sarnia should be proud of that fact.
The web site http://www.ccpa.ca will link to more information. If you go to their site map there are extensive links to libraries, publications on health, safety, environmental issues etc. This site is not only of interest to residents but students who are researching chemistry or environmental science topics.
From the web site, find out the location of your nearest Responsible Care member company. Call and ask them about their next verification or information about their last one (every 3 years), whether or not they have a community advisory panel, do they give tours and ask them to send you information about the chemicals they produce.
It's not bad manners to ask questions.
ÑWisdom consists of the anticipation of consequences.Ñ Norman Cousins (1912 - 1990)
ÑA guest sees more in an hour than the host in a year.Ñ An old Polish proverb.
ÑWhile the spirit of neighbourliness was important on the frontier because our neighbours were so few, it is even more important now because our neighbours are so many.Ñ Claudia ÑLady BirdÑ Johnson
Kris Lee is a high school science teacher in Wallaceburg, Ont. She is working hard to bridge the gap between industry and community, with a major goal of reducing harmful effects to the environment. For over 10 years Kris has been an active member of several national industry and government advisory panels.
