REGIONAL NEWS | ONTARIO
MORE MASKS Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Ontario Premier Doug Ford have announced a deal to ensure Canada always has access to personal protective equipment during a pandemic. The agreement means 3M will have to increase its capacity at its Brockville facility to allow it to produce up to 100 million medicalgrade N95 masks a year. The federal and Ontario governments are each contributing $23.3 million to help increase production capacity at the facility. The masks will be used to meet the private sector, provincial and North American market demand during the COVID-19 pandemic and in the future. Full production is slated to begin early next year, according to Prime Minister Trudeau. Ontario has recently been concerned with the production of personal protective equipment in the country when the COVID-19 crisis caused a global competition for a limited supply of masks and other equipment. The N95 masks set to be made at the 3M facility were in particularly short supply. Ford has said that he felt particularly frustrated at President Donald Trump’s attempts to limit the export of N95 masks from American plants, which includes 3M.
“We were at the mercy of other countries when it came to the PPE we desperately needed,” said Ford during Friday’s press conference. “We will never be put in this position again. I’m not going to rely on any country ever again.” This is the second domestic contract to produce N95 masks–Medicom, a Quebecbased company that recently signed a 10-year agreement to supply N95 and surgical masks to the federal government. Health Canada regulations require the
approval of the masks and each shipment must be inspected by the Public Health Agency of Canada for quality control. Canada currently has contracts for 154.5 million N95 and KN95 masks. However, as of Aug. 3, only 54 million N95 and KN95 respirators had been delivered. All masks were imported from outside the country. KN95 masks are the Chinese equivalent of the N95 respirators that are certified by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health in the United States.
With support from the federal and Ontario government 3M will produce up to 100 million N95 masks a year at its Brockville, Ontario facility.
PEDALLING A NEW PARTNERSHIP On July 14, Bike Share Toronto and CAA South Central Ontario (CAA SCO) signed a multi-year agreement that will make CAA SCO an official partner of Bike Share Toronto. The agreement includes CAA SCO’s commitment to continue its official sponsorship of Free Ride Wednesdays. It also provides CAA members and CAA On the Move members with special offers on bike share memberships and rides through its CAA Rewards Program. “The new partnership is a great example of what we can accomplish when we collaborate with the private sector. Through this partnership, residents can take advantage of the Bike Share program and find new ways to get moving across the city. I want to thank CAA for their support for our Bike Share program, and for being a road safety partner to help make our streets safer for pedestrians, cyclists and drivers,” said Mayor John Tory.
CAA may be best known for its automotive roadside assistance, but its advocacy work has always focused on making Ontario roads safer, including providing access to resources and roadside assistance for bikes through its CAA Bike Assist program. CAA Bike Assist helps CAA members who run into a bicycle problem that can’t be fixed on the spot. “CAA has a long history of advocating for the safety of the travelling public, no matter how they get from point A to point B,” said Rhonda English, chief marketing officer, CAA SCO. “We are always pleased to team up with the city of Toronto on road safety initiatives. Whether it be the Watch for Bikes program that kicked off over two decades ago, or the cycling safety programs aimed at sharing the road, today we are excited to once again partner and to help get more people moving safely around the city.”
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Bike Share Toronto and CAA South Central Ontario (CAA SCO) signed a multi-year agreement that will make CAA SCO an official partner of Bike Share Toronto.
