April 21, 2005
SCIENTISTS AND CITIZENS GROUP CRY FOUL ON CROFTON AIR POLLUTION
(Crofton BC) On the eve of Earth Day, the Crofton Airshed Citizens Group (CACG) released
a damning 122-page report prepared by RWDI AIR Inc. of Vancouver and Pioneer
Technologies Corp. of Olympia WA. The scientific peer review was commissioned by Reach
For Unbleached on behalf of CACG, using proceeds from the Clean Air Concert. The report
critiques an earlier air emissions study by Norske Canada consultant Jacques Whitford (JW),
which essentially gave the Crofton pulp mill a clean bill of health.
Amongst dozens of problems and inconsistencies with the JW study— the omission of
numbers of pollutants, lack of accurate wind data, gross averaging of emission rates,
etc.—the CACG report identified several major deficiencies with the study. Fundamental
was the lack of transparency in terms of the sources of the data, the assumptions made and
the presentation of the results.
The CACG consultants did not have access to the mill or any operating details other than
those provided by Norske for the original study, and were restricted by the terms of a Non-
Disclosure Agreement with the company. The emissions inventory serves as the basis for the
study and any inaccuracies can have a substantial impact on the air modelling and the health
risk assessment, yet it could not be verified. Even with these limitations, RWDI identified
several significant areas where the emissions inventory was likely understated.
Of even greater concern is the CACG report’s conclusion that Norske's JW study does not
follow basic risk assessment protocol and therefore is not a Baseline Human Health Risk
Assessment. The report does not, for example, evaluate all complete exposure pathways and
sensitive sub-populations. It only looks at the inhalation pathway for adults. Indirect
exposure pathways (such as through the skin, and from eating food and, in the case of
children, dirt) and the effects on sensitive sub-populations like children and elders were not
evaluated.
In addition the JW Report only considers the risks associated with individual substances.
Cumulative risks/hazards should have been calculated and presented. Risk is therefore
greatly underestimated.
"We are disturbed by what we perceive to be a deliberate attempt by the company to conceal
and downplay the impact of toxic pollutants coming from its Crofton facility", said Michael
Ableman of the Citizens group. "This report confirms that citizens in the region are
unknowingly participating in a giant public health experiment, thanks to the mill and our
provincial government".
The full report, and an executive summary, is available at http://www.croftonair.org
For more information call
Michael Ableman 250-537-1449
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BACKGROUNDER
In the fall of 2003, the Norske Canada Crofton pulp mill applied for a permit to burn coal,
railway ties and tires in its aging power boiler. Local residents, concerned about the health
impacts of burning these materials, formed the Crofton Airshed Citizens' Group and in
January 2004 organized a public meeting in Crofton with BC Ministry of Water Land and
Air Protection staff, mill officials, Reach for Unbleached and some independent experts,
including a doctor and a US air pollution regulator.
The meeting was attended by over 500 people, and it became clear that the residents of the
area required more information. The mill responded by forming a Community Advisory
Forum, by funding an air emissions health risk study done by consultants Jacques Whitford,
along with a peer review by another consulting firm, Senes. The mill's study found some
minor problems, but gave the airshed overall a clean bill of health.
In the meantime, the Clean Air Concert in Duncan BC in September, with Randy and Tal
Bachman, Neil Young, and the Barenaked Ladies, generated funds for the Crofton Airshed
Citizens Group and Reach for Unbleached, a registered charity, to do their own research. For
the first time in North America, a local citizen's group was able to hire scientists to
investigate the impact of pulp mill air emissions.
The first stage of this research is an independent peer review of the mill's study, carried out
by RWDI Consulting Engineers and scientists, and Pioneer Technologies from Seattle. These
experts present their findings at the Crofton Community Centre at 6 pm on Thursday April
21st.
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