by Glen Howard

Many Canadians living in Toronto were excitedly anticipating the "green" rejuvenation of their waterfront area. Consequently, areas such as Harbourfront, Harbor Castle Hotel, and the Bathurst Quay neighborhood were established in the 1970's.

In the early 1980s there was considerable opposition to commercial flights out of the Toronto City Centre Airport (located on an island in the waterfront area), because of concerns about air, noise, and water pollution. Consequently, the Tripartite Agreement was signed in 1983 between the city, the Toronto Harbor Commission and the federal government, setting rules for commercial operations at the airport. The agreement primarily disallowed the use of jets which were considered to be highly pollutive. Commercial traffic continued its prior decline thereafter.

Airport Expansion

In the late 1990s the federal government decided to revise the way it managed ports in Canada and proposed a new Canada Marine Act. In June 8, 1999 the Toronto Port Authority (TPA) administered by a majority of federal appointees, appeared on the scene and the Toronto Harbor Commission, controlled by city appointees, disappeared from the scene.

Firstly, TPA commissioned a report on the island airport by Sypher Mueller, a consulting firm that worked for the airline industry. The report published in 2002 concluded that the airport could not continue at its present level of operations because it was losing substantial amounts of money. They recommended that the airport should expand and additionally add a fixed link (bridge) to the airport across the Western Gap (harbor). The TPA accepted.

Robert Deluce, another important player whose family had long involvement in the airline industry, joined forces with the TPA. Deluce envisioned starting an airline operating out of the island airport using Bombardier Q400 aircraft. He agreed that a bridge was essential if his airline was to be a success. The TPA agreed to build it.

Airport Expansion Concerns

Simultaneously, CommunityAIR, (CAIR) was being formed. CAIR, a volunteer group of citizens opposed to airport expansion, began to research the impact of an expanded airport on the surrounding community. The group soon became one of the largest and most successful community groups in the city of Toronto, www.communityair.org. CAIR argued that the airport should close and reasonably showed that an expanded airport would lead to increases in air, noise and water pollution.

At the 2003 Toronto municipal election the island airport issue was a decisive factor in victory for the candidate. A huge majority of Toronto residents according to polls were against the expansion of the airport. David Miller, one of the five major candidates, was elected mayor chiefly because he was openly opposed to airport expansion and building the bridge. By December 2003 the issue came before council and after a heated debate the bridge was categorically rejected.

However, on February 2006 Robert Deluce announced that he had placed an order for ten Q400 planes and would start service to cities within a 1500 kilometer radius of the island airport by the summer. His new airline was to be called Porter Air. The initial number of passengers was estimated at 600,000 a year and this was to be expanded up to 1.2 million.

CommunityAIR , argued that this 215 acre airport, occupying about a third, of the island was being expanded adjacent to a bird sanctuary; the city's most loved Park; and in the vicinity of the newest and the most interesting condo developments. Thus being located in the center of Toronto's park system, the airport was polluting air, creating traffic and destroying the calm, natural environment along the shores of Lake Ontario.

Additionally, CommunityAIR claimed that there would be losses to the city on adjacent property values and associated property tax. They related studies showing that busy commercial airports tend to devalue adjacent residential properties from 20% to 25% compared to similar properties elsewhere. This decline apparently would amount in the order of hundreds of millions of dollars per year.

Toronto's major film production centers would be negatively affected as well. In 2006 production companies spent $704 million filming on location in the city. In the Port lands new film studios and sound stages are under construction with promising profits for the city; however since the Port lands are on the flight path of the island airport, filming would suffer from major noise pollution, a thing which no film director will tolerate.

Outdoor entertainment attractions, it was argued, would be negatively affected as well. These include Harbourfront which provides leading cultural activities for the city; the Toronto Music Garden; HTO Park; the Molson Amphitheatre; Ontario Place; Ireland Park, Tommy Thompson Park and the important Toronto Island Park. This includes restaurants, tour boats, recreational boating, among other activities. Toronto's waterfront receives over 5 million visitors a year. Each of these represents a significantly larger part of Toronto's economy than the island airport. It would be quite unnecessary for this one airport to ruin the whole of Toronto's park system, entertainment and sports culture, while there are two underutilized international airports nearby: the Pearson Airport and the Munro Airport in Hamilton. Both of these airports cover a larger area and have the passengers, facilities and connecting flights to fill planes.

Finally, CommunityAIR argued that the airport is a potentially serious source of water pollution from de-icing chemicals, fuel spillage and solvents used in the airport region. They argued that one should never locate an airport on a fresh water source, and sited that a main water intake for Toronto is not far offshore the island airport. It should be noted though that water sampling and mitigation programmes are in place since 1992. All storm water discharged into Lake Ontario is apparently monitored and tested. The extent to which this is effective and far reaching is quite questionable and apparently will be a controversial topic.

Effects of Noise Pollution

The Tripartite Agreement had issued clauses on the maximum level of noise permitted by planes. To hinder disturbance of the surrounding communities this was set at 92 EPNdB. The standard used was taken from the International Civil Aviation Organization, (ICAO). However the ICAO's noise data for the Q400 airplanes establishes a clear violation. It certifies that that the airplanes approach noise level is between 93.1 and 94.8, thus creating noise pollution. According to Port Authority laws the planes should be either prohibited from using the island airport or pay a fine for each violation. However according to CommunityAIR these laws have never been enforced by the Toronto Port Authority.

According to Larry West the author of "What are the Health effects of Airport Noise and Airport Pollution?" (May 2007), environment.about.com/o d/pollution/a/airport_noise.ht m. Research has shown that exposure to excessively loud noise can cause changes in blood pressure as well as changes in sleep and digestive patterns- all signs of stress on the body. Consequently, this can lead to coronary heart disease and stroke.

Additionally, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in the United States have taken noise pollution very seriously. They spent $1.6 billion helping people sound proof their homes between 1996 and 2003 and envision spending another $1.3 billion in sound proofing construction between 2004 and 2009, quietsolution.com/html/ airports.html?gclid=CNSz1MPz0p ACFQlxOAodxEafXA?0414ace0 .

Effects of Air Pollution

Carbon dioxide is the most serious of the green house gases. It is produced by burning fossil fuels. According to CommunityAIR's research carbon dioxide emissions per passenger per kilometer traveled is at least double the amount produced by car and six times the amount produced by trains and buses. Carbon dioxide emissions they state have 2.7 times the effect on the environment when released in the upper atmosphere than when released at ground level. Additionally, the jet fuel used by Porter Airlines gives a pervasive smell in the Bathurst Quay neighborhood.  Air pollution is also ranked as one of the most serious public health issues in the city of Toronto today.