August 11, 2004

On August 10, Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) Director Steven E. Chester met with Ontario Environment Minister Leona Dombrowsky to discuss collaborative measures that could be taken to limit the impacts of spills into shared waters.

Recent spills from businesses located in Sarnia have raised the public’s concern over the safety of public water supplies. Although the spills to date have not resulted in the contamination of municipal water supplies, Minister Dombrowsky and Director Chester agreed to meet to discuss ways of preventing future spills.

“We will not tolerate industrial spills that shut down water intakes and disrupt lives,” said Minister Dombrowsky. “The citizens of Ontario, as well as Michigan, deserve safe, clean and livable communities they can call home. I look forward to working with Director Chester and his staff on keeping our waters healthy.”

Ontario and Michigan have agreed to participate in a continuing dialogue to discuss how to reduce the incidents of spills, with a goal of zero releases; review real time monitoring technology; coordinate the development and integration of flow models; and other topics of mutual interest.

“I would like to thank Minister Dombrowsky for hosting this productive meeting,” said Director Chester. “By working together, we will certainly be more effective at preventing environmental damage on both sides of the border.”

Editor’s note: DEQ news releases are available on the department’s Internet home page at www.michigan.gov/deq

Revised August 11, 2004 by Michelle M. Cancino