August 4, 2012

Page 1

HER MAJESTY’S DIAMOND JUBILEE MEDAL Nominate a deserving citizen of Kitchener-Conestoga by August 31st, 2012 download a nomination form from:

www.HaroldAlbrechtMP.ca

08 | 04 | 2012 VOLUME 17 | ISSUE 34

team in training for fundraising cycling event SPORTS PAGE 9

COMMENT PAGE 6

Province has public on side in wage-freeze battle

www.OBSERVERXTRA.com

MOE carries out testing of contaminants on Elmira's Lot 91 elena maystruk

er transported to Hamilton General Hospital by helicopter with severe head injuries. She died at 5:30 p.m. later that day. The driver of the vehicle, a 47-year-old Kitchener woman, is not facing any charges at this time, as police are still investigating the incident and are looking to speak to members of the public that may have

No stranger to environmental testing, an Elmira property known as Lot 91 was the scene this week of another Ministry of the Environment inspection to determine if contaminants are spreading. Provincial officer and water resource technician Brian Thorburn was on site Tuesday for a routine check of groundwater beneath the property at the eastern end of Oriole Parkway. The testing was a routine confirmation of last year’s analysis of the area, explained MOE district supervisor Amy Shaw. Lot 91 drew national headlines in the late-1980s when a former employee of Varnicolor Chemical blew the whistle on the company’s illegal dumping of hazardous wastes. The buried material, which had the potential to cause serious health problems, was removed in 1994. Two years prior, Varnicolor owner Savarin Argenton was sentenced to eight months in prison for breaking environmental laws. Following excavation of the waste, hydrogeological studies of the property conducted by the MOE found varying concentrations of hydrocarbons, petroleum and methane, as well as various other chemicals. Methane levels at the time indicated the property was unfit to house a structure, but additional remediation work was deemed unnecessary. Inspections continue, however. “A soil vapor and groundwater study was conducted by a consultant on behalf of the MOE in 1996. The conclusions indicated that impacted groundwater was not mov-

fatality | 5

lot 91 | 4

Waterloo Regional Police investigate the scene where a woman using a mobility scooter was struck by a vehicle in St. Jacobs on Wednesday. The woman was airlifted to Hamilton General hospital, where she died later that day from severe head trauma. [colin dewar / the observer]

St. Jacobs woman, 74, dies after being struck by SUV Doris Bast was crossing King Street on motorized scooter when collision occurred colin dewar A collision in St. Jacobs Wednesday that left a pedestrian dead continues to be the subject of a police investigation. Doris Bast, 74, of St. Jacobs was crossing King Street North near Cedar Street in the village when she was struck by a Toyota Highlander traveling southbound.

Bast was using a motorized scooter at the time but was not crossing in a designated crosswalk, Waterloo Regional Police report. She was knocked to the ground from her scooter and hit her head on the roadway, police said. Police, firefighters and paramedics were called to the scene around 11:30 a.m. Bast was taken to Grand River Hospital and lat-

COME IN AND SEE OUR LARGE SELECTION OF INSTOCK: SHADE TREES | ORNAMENTAL FLOWERING SHRUBS | HEDGES FLOWERING TREES | FRUIT TREES Container and field grown trees and shrubs Contact: MAYNARD | 519.669.8583 | 7223 3rd Line RR4, Elmira


Turn static files into dynamic content formats.

Create a flipbook
Issuu converts static files into: digital portfolios, online yearbooks, online catalogs, digital photo albums and more. Sign up and create your flipbook.