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OAKVILLE BEAVER Wednesday, April 22, 2009 · 6 OPINION & LETTERS The Oakville Beaver 467 Speers Rd., Oakville Ont. L6K 3S4 (905) 845-3824 Fax: 337-5571 Classified Advertising: 845-3824, ext. 224 Circulation: 845-9742 Editorial and advertising content of the Oakville Beaver is protected by copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited. THE OAKVILLE BEAVER IS PROUD OFFICIAL MEDIA SPONSOR FOR: NEIL OLIVER Vice ­ President and Group Publisher of Metroland West The Oakville Beaver is a division of Media Group Ltd. DAVID HARVEY General Manager JILL DAVIS Editor in Chief ROD JERRED Managing Editor DANIEL BAIRD Advertising Director RIZIERO VERTOLLI Photography Director SANDY PARE Business Manager MARK DILLS Director of Production MANUEL GARCIA Production Manager CHARLENE HALL Director of Distribution SARAH MCSWEENEY Circ. Manager Salute to volunteers No matter where you go in Oakville, you can't avoid them. At events across the community, through the halls of Oakville's only hospital and wherever someone finds themselves in dire need -- they can be found. Visit a food bank, school, blood donor clinic or church, investigate any charitable organization or participate on a local sports field, inside an arena, theatre or art gallery or attend one of the many community-run events such as the Oakville Waterfront Festival, Relay for Life and the Terry Fox Run and it's almost impossible not to encounter a few of them. While most don't wear a name tag or uniform to identify what it is they do, they share a genuine love of their work and a common bond of wanting to help others. We would be lost as a society without them and, remarkably, they do it all for free. They are Oakville's volunteers and National Volunteer Week (April 19-25) is the period set aside to thank them for their selfless dedication to making our communities function. The only reward for these men and women -- and a growing number of young people thanks to the provincial volunteer requirement for high school graduation -- is the satisfaction of knowing they are making a positive difference in someone's life. When you consider every health care organization, non-profit charity, church, school, amateur sports league, cultural, arts and environmental group relies on volunteers, the sheer number needed to keep society moving forward becomes, well, staggering. With retired seniors representing a significant share of the volunteer "workforce" out there, the need to be recruiting communityminded citizens never ends. This week we salute the volunteer and encourage everyone to commit to volunteering even just a few hours each month. Those who already give freely of their time -- with no expectation of recognition or remuneration -- deserve a handshake or a pat on the back for the dramatic impact they have on the countless lives they touch. Keep up the great work. The Oakville Beaver welcomes letters from its readers. Letters will be edited for clarity, length, legal considerations and grammar. In order to be published all letters must contain the name, address and phone number of the author. Letters should be addressed to The Editor, Oakville Beaver, 467 Speers Rd., Oakville, ON, L6K 3S4, or via e-mail to editor@oakvillebeaver.com. The Beaver reserves the right to refuse to publish a letter. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR As an Oakville resident, I read the article Power Plant will impact Oakville, Oakville Beaver, April 15. I also work for Petro-Canada, which operates a world-class lubricants plant in the Clarkson area, and want to clarify Ward 3 Councillor Mary Chapin's comments: "The Clarkson Airshed study indicated this area is already very polluted ... it's mainly from industry and the highways." While I am not in any way involved in the proposed facility for Oakville, the comments could inadvertently distort the discussion occurring in the Clarkson community. The Phase III results of the Clarkson Airshed study (CAS) were released by the Ministry of Environment in July 2008. Among the findings: · The 10 top-ranked industries in the Clarkson area "account for only 3.5-12 per cent of total measured concentrations;" · The most significant contributor of contaminant emissions in the CAS area comes from vehicular traffic, ranging from 12 - 67 per cent; · Long-range sources -- which are defined as air pollutants that have been transported into the Clarkson Airshed study area, either from within other parts of Canada or from outside Canada -- contribute on the average of 15-60 per cent of the total contaminant concentrations measured in the study area. While this data shows industry is the small piece of the overall pie, we understand that we have an important role to play for the bet- Petro-Canada seeks clarification on Chapin's comments terment of the Clarkson Airshed. We've continued to invest and improve our facilities and our performance, but in order to be successful in tackling complex environmental challenges, community, government and industry need to understand and be clear on the causes and work together to find solutions. The full CAS report is at http://www.ene.gov.on.ca/publications/6768e.pdf. JON HAMILTON, DIRECTOR DOWNSTREAM COMMUNICATIONS, PETRO-CANADA This week's poll This week's question is: Do you agree with the Ontario government's ban on the cosmetic use of pesticides? · Yes · No To vote, visit oakvillebeaver.com Last week's poll: The Ontario Medical Association wants calorie content to be posted in restaurants and school cafeterias. Is this a good idea? · Yes 83.78% · No 16.22% Total votes: 37 votes Chapin stands by comments Mr. Jon Hamilton: Thank you for this summary of both the Clarkson Airshed Study (CAS) findings and the position of Petro-Canada. I do believe your additional input supports my comment that the study indicated our air is overburdened and that the pollution is coming from industrial operations (near and far) and from highway traffic (exhaust emissions). I do not disagree that the CAS says it's mostly from vehicular exhaust -- nor do my quoted statements claim otherwise. See Councillor page 9 The Oakville Beaver is a member of the Ontario Press Council. The council is located at 80 Gould St., Suite 206, Toronto, Ont., M5B 2M7. Phone 416-340-1981. Advertising is accepted on the condition that, in the event of a typographical error, that portion of advertising space occupied by the erroneous item, together with a reasonable allowance for signature, will not be charged for, but the balance of the advertisement will be paid for at the applicable rate. The publisher reserves the right to categorize advertisements or decline.