The City of Cranbrook, British Columbia, says it is appealing an administrative penalty of $175,783 from WorkSafeBC over allegations that local officials used contaminated soil during a three-show monster truck event held at Western Financial Place in February.
The June 19 fine was the result of four violations under the Workers Compensation Act and the Occupational Health and Safety Regulation, according to WorkSafeBC.
In a July 14 statement, Cranbrook officials said that while soil for the event was stored on dry land upstream from its wastewater lagoons, the fill was initially removed from a natural forested area for a road reconstruction project.
“The risk of contamination travelling from the lagoons uphill across land to the clean dirt pile during the four months of winter is extremely low,” Cranbrook officials wrote in a statement. Additionally, they noted that the lagoon water “does not contaminate Joseph Creek and it does not travel out of the lagoons to the dry land on the same property.”
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Local officials also utilized third-party testing in early July to assess some portions of the soil from the same stockpile spot. Those tests confirmed the soil to be negative for contaminants, they said. However, the WorkSafeBC concerns may relate to the fact that the soil involved in the show was not tested prior to the event.
“The employer also failed to conduct a walkthrough survey to assess the potential for overexposure to hazardous substances, failed to assess the work area to determine the potential for exposure to harmful levels of exhaust from mobile equipment, and failed to implement an exposure control plan,” the WorkSafeBC investigation states.
The WorkSafeBC findings also allege that engine exhaust levels were too high for staff working during the Cranbrook monster truck event. This includes carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide and nitrogen dioxide levels. The agency says on-site monitoring determined “levels above the acceptable exposure limit.” In response, city staff noted that, “these types of events held in arenas anywhere always experience high exhaust levels.”
Cranbrook officials said they also had the air system and seating areas at Western Financial Place tested for contaminants. These tests were also negative.
