Toxic incidents

The recommendation was delivered on April 5, 1982. Less than 24 hours later, the Nacan Products Ltd. plant had one of the worst chemical spills in the neighbourhood’s history. A night shift operator noticed he had miscalculated when mixing raw chemicals. In an attempt to cover up his mistake, he illegally dumped nearly 4,000 litres of toxic chemicals into the city’s sewers. By the following morning, April 6th, the city began receiving panicked calls from residents about an awful stench coming from their sewers and basements. Three neighbourhood schools were shut down temporarily, and seven residents were hospitalized from the effects of the chemical fumes. In addition to the catastrophe at Nacan, two valves were left open on a tank at the Glidden plant in 1983, allowing 2,000 litres of flammable liquid vinyl to spill out into the sewers. Several households were forced to evacuate.

Call for action

Residents were angry and allied for the City to finally start taking the Junction Triangle’s pollution problem seriously. A study was conducted exploring the health effects of these industries on residents. According to a Toronto Star article from May 11, 1984, it found that that children living in the area were six times more prone to health issues such as runny noses, itchy skin, and throat irritation. As a result, in 1983 the Ontario Municipal Board denied Glidden Paints and Nacan Products’ objection to the bylaw that had passed in 1981. Glidden continued to operate for two more decades in the area before finally ceasing operations in 2001.

Aftermath

Glidden left behind the need for a massive clean-up job. A 2008 Now Magazine article called the site “some of the most contaminated former industrial land” in all of Canada. When soil remediation began the year of the plant’s closure, residents were once again bombarded with unusual smells, headaches, and nosebleeds. These were likely caused by Volatile Organic Compounds, also known as VOCs, which were uncovered during remediation. The process was completed in late 2009, at which point the land was deemed safe for residential use once again. Homes now occupy the former site of the Glidden factory, closing this chapter of the Junction Triangle’s history once and for all.

Sources

“The Glidden Compay,” Company Histories, Copyright 2021.

Elle Tesher, “The Junction: Mayor declares war,” The Toronto Star, April 29, 1982, A16.

Enzo DiMatteo, “West-side Worry,” Now Toronto, November 12, 2008.

Lorne Slotnick, “Civic issues sniffing out issues politicians smell vote sin raising stink over pollution,” The Globe and Mail, August 3, 1982, p. 5.

Michael Kieran, “Junction residents seek probe sabotage hinted in toxic spill,” The Globe and Mail, Toronto, April 11, 1983, p. 5.

“OMB upholds law designed to curb Junction pollution,” The Globe and Mail, Toronto, January 15, 1983, p. 5.

Susan Pigg, “Junction kids more likely to get sick, study says,” The Toronto Star, May 11, 1984, A6.