By Mike De Souza
OTTAWA, Aug 10 (Reuters) - Environmentalists are urging
Canada's Conservative government not to loosen rules involving a
substance used for treating oil spills in water, citing research
questioning its ecological impact.
The oil dispersant, Corexit EC9500A, was deployed during the
deadly Gulf of Mexico Deepwater Horizon disaster in 2010. The
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency had concluded in a June
2010 report that Corexit 9500A was "slightly toxic" to mysid
shrimp found in the Gulf of Mexico.
A scientific study said in March that Corexit EC9500A was
toxic to corals near the BP spill site.
Canadian Environment Minister Leona Aglukkaq proposed in
July that energy companies should be allowed to use the product
and another spill-treating agent supplied by Nalco, a unit of
U.S. environmental and industrial services company Ecolab Inc (NYSE:ECL)
ECL.N .
Companies in both countries can already use these
dispersants on a restricted basis with permission, but
Aglukkaq's proposal would loosen those rules in Canada.
Aglukkaq's department said the substances were not harmful
in its tests on a range of species, but it has not yet announced
a final decision.
Nalco's website says dispersants are safe and effective,
often containing ingredients similar to household cleaning
products and cosmetics.
But Temple University biology professor Erik Cordes, who
supervised the latest study's lead author, Danielle DeLeo, said
the effect on corals could be significant since they provide
habitat for other organisms.
"The loss of a foundation species in a community leads to
drastic repercussions throughout the ecosystem," Cordes said in
an interview.
Aglukkaq's department, the EPA and a spokesman for
Minnesota-based Ecolab declined to comment on the study.
The EPA said it was reviewing its own rules about treating
spills, based on "lessons learned" from the BP BP.L incident,
while encouraging development of safer and more effective
products.
Former Toronto mayor David Miller, who is president of
conservation group WWF-Canada, urged Aglukkaq not approve
Corexit 9500A, which he said did not have a reliable enough
track record. Writing in a blog, he also said the proposed
approval gave a "false impression of a quick fix for oil
spills."
Environmentalists and opposition parties have criticized the
right-leaning Conservatives in recent years, accusing them of
weakening regulation of the energy sector.
The Conservatives, now in the middle of a hotly contested
Canadian election campaign, say they are promoting responsible
development of the energy industry and that the recent proposal
to approve new dispersants would strengthen environmental
protection through a "world-class" regulatory system.
(Editing by Jeffrey Hodgson and Lisa Von Ahn)