Ministry approves PCB clean-up plan

A truck and a car sit in front of Reliance Power Equipment in Pointe Claire on Aug. 27, 2013. The Ministry of the Environment says the company is storing PCBs in an unsafe manner.

The company that is illegally storing PCBs in Montreal's West Island has come up with an approved plan to remove the toxic chemicals from its warehouse.

Environment Minister Yves-Francois Blanchet said he has accepted and approved the proposal submitted Sept. 3 by Harry Baikowitz on behalf of Radiance Power Corp.

The plan includes moving all electrical transformers from the Pointe Claire grounds into a secure building, and then testing soil samples to determine how much PCB-laced oil has leaked into the ground.

Blanchet said the Ministry will closely supervise the work, but is relieved a competent individual has been hired to take charge.

"When you know that the people what will be hired to proceed on the site have the competence to do it and have done it before you feel more confident and so that is part of our decision," Blanchet said.

The city of Pointe Claire is hosting an information meeting Thursday evening to discuss the clean-up plan and its timeline.

Ministry discovered PCBs in March

The Ministry of the Environment learned in March that Reliance Power Corp. was illegally storing and recycling PCB-contaminated material at its Hymus Blvd. locattion after 1,000 L of oil leaked into the ground, and was traced to Lake St. Louis.

On April 4 a truck carrying PCB-laced oil was stopped en route to St. Jerome because it was leaking fluid. That required a smaller-scale cleaning operation on Highway 15.

Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB) are fluids used as coolants but also have specific electrical properties useful in transformers and motors. They are also highly toxic and a possible cause of cancer.

Over the summer Ministry workers repeatedly visited Reliance and ordered the company to install secure barriers, to post a 24-hour guard and to come up with a feasible plan to secure and remove the toxic material.