8- The Oakville Beaver, Friday May 4, 2007 www.oakvillebeaver.com Spotchecks find fewer retailers selling smokes to minors By Melanie hennessey SPECIAL TO THE BEAVER The Halton Region Health Department has once again seen a decrease in the number of retailers willing to sell tobacco products to minors. Figures in a report to the Region's health and social services committee Tuesday showed only eight per cent of Halton retailers checked for compliance in 2006 sold tobacco to test shoppers aged 15 to 17 -- down from 13 per cent in 2005. OAKVILLE - Celebrating 150 years! NOTICE OF SURPLUS AND SALE OF EASEMENT South of Dundas Street East, West of Ninth Line Take notice that: 1. The Council for the Corporation of the Town of Oakville at its meeting of April 30, 2007, declared certain lands surplus for the purpose of releasing a temporary access easement to the owner of the easement lands. The lands are described as follows: Part of Lot 82, Plan 20M-976, Oakville, designated as Part 1, Plan 20R17050. 2. This notice is in compliance with the Town's By-law 1995-71. 3. Copies of a plan showing the easement lands to be released are available for inspection at the office of the Manager, Realty Services, at the address shown below, by appointment by calling 905-845-6601, ext. 3022 between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Maynard Millman, AACI, P.App., PLE Manager, Realty Services, Legal Department The Corporation of the Town of Oakville 1225 Trafalgar Road Oakville, ON L6J 5A6 For information on Town meetings, services and programs visit www.oakville.ca The decrease came as good news to Halton Environmental Health Manager Tony Amalfa. "We're hoping they're (retailers) starting to understand their responsibilities a little better," he said. He attributed the decline in non-compliance to a number of things, including an increase in the number of test shopper visits, newsletters sent to retailers and the promotion of the new SmokeFree Ontario Act. Regional Chair Gary Carr applauded the health department's efforts. "I'm a big believer in doing everything we can to stop smoking," he said. "We want to put the pressure on to make sure it stops at the source." After a business fails a compliance check, it receives a warning. Health department staff then follows up with an enforcement check. At this point, retailers who once again sell tobacco to a test shopper are charged. The numbers also improved in this area as well, with only two charges being laid in 2006 while 10 were laid in 2005. A report from Halton Medical Officer of Health Dr. Bob Nosal outlined the other findings from last year's round of local tobacco compliance checks. "I'm a believer in doing everything we can to stop smoking. We want to put the pressure on to make sure it stops at the source." Halton Regional Chair Gary Carr Of the 188 gas bar visits conducted by test shoppers, 11 per cent were willing to sell tobacco to minors. This is down from 2005, when 184 gas bars were checked and 18 per cent sold tobacco to the test shoppers. At convenience stores throughout Halton, 404 checks were done, with seven per cent ready to sell cigarettes to youths. In 2005, 13 per cent of the 398 compliance checks carried out at convenience stores failed. Health department staff also conducted 54 checks at supermarkets and 116 at restaurants, with the non-compliance rates for those being 13 per cent and six per cent respectively. In 2005, 20 per cent of the 45 supermarkets visited and 10 per cent of the 135 restaurants checked were non-compliant. In each local municipality, the health department also broke down the numbers and compared variety store non-compliance rates. Milton saw an increase from 13 per cent to 21 per cent, while Halton Hills stayed the same at eight per cent. Burlington and Oakville both saw decreases, going from 13 per cent to six per cent and from 14 per cent to seven per cent respectively. When asked why Milton's rate of non-compliance seems so high, Amalfa explained there's a smaller number of stores in Milton than the other municipalities, so it would only take a couple of stores to change the percentage drastically. Students are employed and trained by the health department to carry out the compliance checks and are always accompanied by a public health inspector or tobacco enforcement officer. When a retailer is willing to sell to them, they complete the transaction and report the incident to the inspector or officer waiting outside who subsequently issues a written warning notice to the operator and returns the purchased tobacco. The health department posts the names and locations of retail outlets that've been found guilty in the last six months of selling tobacco to a person under 19 on its Web site, www.halton.ca.