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A Straight Goods exclusive by Charlie Angus
Less than two years after opening a Canadian branch plant, Trans Cycle Industries (TCI) of Penn City, Alabama, is threatening to pack up its toys and move home. The company is angry because it is the first waste management venture to be turned down by Ontario's "open for business" Ministry of Environment and Energy (MOEE).
In July 1999, TCI applied for what it called a "minor amendment" to its recently opened plant in Kirkland Lake, Ontario. That amendment would have opened the Canadian border to the international importation of PCB-contaminated metals.
On Christmas Eve, the Ministry ix-nayed the plan. TCI says it's "astonished" at the ruling. Environmental advocates are also astonished. They point out that until this ruling, Ministry rejection rates have been running at "basically zero".
TCI isn't taking the rejection lightly. Calling the move a "political knee jerk reaction," they are threatening to leave the country if they don't get their way. If they do leave, Canadian taxpayers might just have to kiss goodbye the recent $1.25 million "contribution" made to entice the company to set up in Canada in the first place.
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The 130,000 kilos of toxic goodies from U.S. military bases in Guam, South Korea and Japan may just be the beginning |
The money was granted to TCI through the federal government's Canada Jobs Fund (formerly known as the Transitional Jobs Fund), which was blasted last week by the auditor general for its lack of financial controls and vulnerability to political manipulation.
Suzanne Dupont, a spokesperson for Human Resources Development Canada (HRDC) in Timmins, says she is unaware of any action the federal government could take to reclaim its "contribution" if the company pulled up stakes.
"If the company moved out of the area, I'm not aware of what we could do," the official told Straight Goods. "Personally, I don't see how HRDC can run after a sponsor."
When TCI president David Laskin first appeared in Kirkland Lake in late 1997, things were looking good for the company. They had plants operating in Alabama and New York State. As well, they had secured a major contract with the U.S. Overseas Service (which handles the affairs of military bases) to handle PCB-contaminated waste from American bases in Japan.
The 130,000 kilos of toxic goodies could signal the start of a very lucrative business dealing with U.S. military waste from bases in Guam, South Korea, and the Philippines. And why stop there? The company could also start bidding on waste from other OECD countries and nations that had signed the Basel Convention (which governs international shipments of toxic waste).
 The only problem was the fact that the United States border was firmly closed to the importation of PCB-contaminated metals. But Laskin wasn't talking about his international problems when he came to Kirkland Lake. Instead, he waxed on about the economic potential of recycling PCB -contaminated transformers from regional mining, hydro, and pulp operations.
Laskin stated that Kirkland Lake was "a central location" for dealing with customers "in the mining and pulp and paper industries". If local people were receptive, TCI promised to build a plant and hire 68 local people. In a region beset by chronic, high unemployment, such words were like manna from heaven. The mining industry - which provides the town's economic base - was hitting the skids.
"We were dying for any new business at all," says one local businessman, "They [TCI] came in and were very sophisticated. We went down and saw their operation in Alabama. We were impressed by their pitch. But I don't remember any talk about the plant taking waste from elsewhere. I was under the impression it was going to serve regional needs." The Feds, eager to get the project off the ground in a Liberal riding, threw in a $1.25 million "contribution". A local investment fund kicked in another $500,000.
In May 1998, the TCI plant was licensed by the Ontario Ministry of Environment. No mention was made of potential overseas business. TCI asked for and received a license to deal with metals from within Canada.
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