FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE June
13, 2000
Privatization scheme “appalling”:
Casselman
TORONTO - An Ontario government scheme to strong-arm municipalities
into privatizing their water treatment systems is “absolutely
stunning and appalling” in the wake of the Walkerton tragedy, the
president of the Ontario Public Service Employees Union says.
“The cabinet document revealed in today’s Globe and Mail makes
it crystal-clear that, given the choice between public safety and
right-wing ideology, this government will go with its ideology every
time,” said Leah Casselman. “In light of what happened at
Walkerton, the government should be supporting municipalities in every
way possible and working to undo the damage that privatization caused.”
Casselman said the privatization of Ministry of Environment
laboratories was a major contributing factor in what happened at
Walkerton because it severed the natural link between the labs and
Ministry officials.
“When you have a private lab company saying it can’t tell the
Ministry about a public health threat because to do so would violate
‘client confidentiality,’ you’ve got some idea about how
privatization can destroy a public health system,” said Casselman.
Ontario Tories have been pushing water privatization since 1997,
when they passed Bill 107. Bill 107 gave municipalities ownership of
the Ontario Clean Water Agency’s treatment plants, but not the money
to upgrade them.
“The concept with Bill 107 was that cash-strapped municipalities
would be forced to privatize in order to get access to capital,”
said Casselman. “Obviously, a better plan would be for the
provincial government to take responsibility for public safety.”
She said it was ironic that the government automatically brings in
public service professionals whenever privatization goes off the
rails.
“At Walkerton, the first thing the Tories did was bring in the
Ontario Clean Water Agency to take charge of the water system,” she
said. “When inmates escaped from their private ‘boot camp,’ Camp
Turnaround, on opening day, they immediately brought in professional
Correctional Officers to secure the facility.”
Like prison privatization, privatization of water and wastewater
treatment facilities has been a disaster wherever it’s been tried,
Casselman said.
OPSEU represents 580 employees at the Ontario Clean Water Agency,
1,100 at the Ontario Ministry of
the Environment, 85 at the Bruce Grey-Owen Sound
Health Unit, over 700 at Grey Bruce Health Services, and over 100 at
the South Bruce-Grey Health Centre, Walkerton’s hospital.
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For more information: Bill Trbovich (416) 443-8888 ext. 793; (416)
561-5613
