The company running a railcar repair yard in Sarnia has been hit with a six-figure fine for discharging a chemical into the air that made several people briefly sick and forced nearby residents and businesses to take shelter.
Procor Ltd. was ordered to pay $105,000 after a lawyer representing the Oakville-based company pleaded guilty last week in Sarnia’s provincial offenses court to a charge under the Environmental Protection Act.
The court heard staff were cleaning a railcar at the company’s facility in southeast Sarnia on Sept. 4, 2019, that had recently transported butyl acrylate. But an employee didn’t follow the complex cleaning procedure, which caused a safety valve to open due to excessive pressure inside the car.
A mixture of steam and residual butyl acrylate, a colorless liquid with a sharp odor used to make paints, sealants and adhesives, was released into the air.
“After the discharge, local emergency response agencies received a high volume of calls reporting an abnormal odor present in the community,” Catalina Karam, an articling student with the Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks, said while reading an agreed statement of facts . “CN Rail stopped two inbound trains outside the area and had its employees at a nearby facility shelter in place for approximately 45 minutes.”
People living and working in the area closed windows and shut down ventilation systems, but some still felt the effects.
“Local residents, as well as staff and patrons of nearby businesses, who were exposed to the discharge experienced various symptoms including nausea, headaches, sinus irritation, sore throat and difficulty breathing,” Karam said.
But the effects were temporary, with most people resuming normal activities within two hours, she said.
It was the first time this has happened in Procor’s 39 years of operating in Sarnia – the firm has been planning a $20 million expansion – and it has since enhanced protocols related to spill response and pressurized railcar cleaning, Karam said.
Alexander Steele, a Toronto-based lawyer who focuses on environmental, occupational health and safety, and regulatory law, pleaded guilty on behalf of the company Wednesday. Both lawyers suggested the $105,000 penalty. Justice of the peace Helen Gale agreed to impose it, plus associated costs, and gave the company 60 days to pay the fine.
Two other charges were withdrawn.
A company spokesperson did not respond by press time Sunday to a request for comment about the conviction.