Canada promises to fight move to ban garbage trucked to United States
18:42:19 EST Nov 29, 2005

BETH GORHAM

WASHINGTON (CP) - Canada is jumping into a garbage dispute with the United States, much to the relief of Toronto-area politicians who'll be sitting on a mountain of trash if Michigan follows through on threats to stop taking it.

International Trade Minister Jim Peterson is telling U.S. officials pending legislation to ban foreign trash breaks free trade rules and Canada will challenge it, raising the spectre of another fracas between two countries already at loggerheads over softwood lumber.

Peterson has already complained to U.S. Trade Representative Robert Portman, saying Michigan legislation and proposals before the U.S. Congress giving states the right to restrict foreign trash contravene the North American Free Trade Agreement and the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade.

There's been no official response from Portman.

And in a recent letter to Toronto Mayor David Miller, Peterson said Canada will mount a legal challenge if the U.S. legislation goes through.

But Ontario municipalities should mount aggressive lobbying efforts south of the border with key U.S. legislators, he said, since a challenge would take a minimum of eight to 12 months.

"Should the state of Michigan close its border to shipments of municipal solid waste from Canada, the government would vigorously defend our rights under the NAFTA and the World Trade Organization," Peterson wrote.

Toronto city Coun. Shelley Carroll said Ontario politicians are relieved the federal government is taking a stand.

"That is a big change," said Carroll.

"Formerly, it was: 'We've got our lumber problems, we'll address this later."'

"We have a clear indication now that they would be involved."

Miller requested federal intervention in September.

"Torontonians are not proud of our waste shipments to Michigan and have overwhelmingly embraced a commitment to reduce and eliminate our dependence on Michigan landfill by 2010," he wrote to Peterson.

Toronto shipments are down from a peak of 140 trucks a day in 2002 to 105 trucks daily, he said.

The Greater Toronto Area has been trucking about 3.5 million tonnes of trash to Michigan every year since 2002.

But state politicians are worried Canada has become the largest source of garbage dumped in its landfills.

Michigan approved legislation in September to prohibit the practice. But the U.S. Congress must still move to give the state authority to ban foreign refuse.

The ban would start 90 days after a new U.S. law took effect.

Ontario municipalities are working on their own contingency plans to deal with a ban and a report has listed possible new dump sites from Cornwall to Windsor.

But new plans will be "enormously expensive" and face a long environmental assessment process, said Carroll.

"We know we have to come up with plans and we know we have to pay for them. But the province is still in charge."

"We've seen in the last few months they're starting to realize their role is key in solving this problem."

Opposition critics have accused Ontario Liberals of negligence for failing to anticipate an abrupt ban on garbage.

Premier Dalton McGuinty has insisted trash is a municipal problem. But the province is considering whether it can cut down on the time it will take to identify and approve new landfills under the Environmental Assessment Act.

Canadian officials said they'll step up advocacy efforts in the United States but it's clear solid waste is considered a good, like cars or clothes under trade laws, so it shouldn't be treated differently than garbage that goes to Michigan from other U.S. states.

"Any legislation that changes the rules governing commerce between our two countries must continue to reflect the rights and obligations under international trade agreements," said Brooke Grantham, a spokesman for the International Trade Department in Ottawa.