Feature Article October 7, 2004
LAND O' LAKES NewsWeb HomeContact Us
Dombrowsky feels very comfortable after one year as Environment Minister
by Jeff Green
Never
one to shy away from opportunity, Leona Dombrowsky said in a telephone
interview on Tuesday that she was very surprised and pleased when she
was called by Premier McGuinty a year ago and told she would be the
first Environment Minister in the new Liberal government. Although she
was touted as a possible cabinet minister, no one in the media
predicted she would receive such a senior posting before the
announcement.
One year later Leona Dombrowsky says she is pleased to report that we have made progress in the areas we have identified as priorities, such as Source Water protection, a piece of legislation we hope to be introducing this fall. We are also working hard to set up a structure that will allow us to prepare water budgets. We placed a one-year moratorium on new water taking permits and appointed new water inspectors. We are addressing water quantity and water quality."
Among the initiatives undertaken by the Ministry of the Environment has been an increase in the target for waste diversion within the province, from 50% to 60%.
Dombrowsky said that the Ministry has just completed a consultation, inviting public input on what will be needed to put that in place, including composting facilities.
She says that the province is not prepared, however, to come in as a partner with municipalities to manage recycling. That is a municipal responsibility, and it is one that has been well managed in many cases. As an example from her own backyard, she points to an enterprise called Quinte Waste Solutions, which has enabled Centre and South Hastings townships to enjoy a 60% plus diversion rate without even having composting in place.
Acknowledging the difficulties presented by the current Environmental Assessment Act, which makes establishing new landfills an onerous and expensive process, she says the government is making recommendations of a more effective process that will making setting up a landfill more viable.
On incineration, of which she has been critical in the past, Dombrowsky said, I need to be clear. It doesnt matter what the technology is; we have a set of emission standards in Ontario, and they will become increasingly more stringent. This government is intent on ensuring that any proposals that come forward meet the standards that we will be imposing. We will make that clear from the outset, so if a municipality wants to consider a technology, they know what the expectation is. We will look at any technology that can meet the standard.
The rural agenda
As a senior minister from a rural riding, Leona Dombrowsky feels strongly that the government has been good for rural Ontario, and bristles at suggestions to the contrary. She points to recent funding announcements regarding rural schools, and an agreement on infrastructure funding with the Federal government that is now in place. As well, she talked about water regulation 170/03, which requires testing and treatment of water systems in township halls, churches, and businesses that serve water, a regulation that the Liberals inherited from the previous government. My position on Regulation 170/03, which I see as a flawed piece of legislation, is that it needs to be fixed. We are working on that, and we are going to get it right. Im not going to short change my community, she said.
She knows that groups like the Lanark Landowners Association (LLA) think the government is against rural Ontario, but says, When you have people who are intent on seeing things a certain way, there is not much you can say to them.
The LLA has confronted the Ministry of the Environment over regulations governing sawmills in Eastern Ontario.
There are both large and small sawmills in Eastern Ontario. There are some small sawmill operators that are challenging the ministry concerning whether sawdust piles can cause environmental damage. To settle the matter we have commissioned a study on wood waste by a private agency that is respected by both government and industry stakeholders, which will report back in the spring. No new orders have been issued by the district office while we wait for that study to come in. The MoE, through our district offices, have indicated they will work with the sawmill operators to comply with these regulations, Dombrowsky said.
She expressed concern, not only about the positions taken by the LLA, but about some of their tactics.
I think it is regrettable when they take actions that could put other peoples health at risk.
Leona Dombrowsky said that one of the biggest surprises she has found in government is the length of time and the work that is involved in making change. In spite of that, she thinks that the government is on the right track and says, We have a transformation agenda. I hope in the next year to continue to build on the foundation weve laid.
