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Backgrounder

The Role of the Fact-Finding and Outreach Coordinator

BG–05.022 - August 16, 2005

The Coordinator has two key responsibilities. First, he will be the principal conduit of information between those with concerns and the Government of Canada. The Coordinator will hear the concerns of the community, ensure those concerns are communicated to both government and those completing the fact-finding tasks, and will inform the community about the fact-finding work being conducted for the government.

As the primary focus of his work, he will communicate with people who have concerns, including current and former citizens who live and lived near the base, current and former CF members and current and former civilian employees of DND who may have been present during the spraying of herbicides at CFB Gagetown from 1952 to present. Included in this outreach are those people who have been identified as being present during the testing of Agent Orange, Agent Purple and other herbicides in 1966 and 1967.

The Coordinator will provide a report to the Minister of National Defence documenting his discussions with people, including some personal comments. This report will be an important consideration in subsequent decisions made by the Government of Canada.

The Coordinator may also suggest additional research that could be useful to the government in dealing with this issue.

Secondly, the Coordinator will be the guardian of the fact-finding process. He will liaise with the Government of Canada through a committee of assistant deputy ministers from departments including the Department of National Defence, Veterans Affairs Canada, Health Canada and the Public Health Agency.

Through ongoing liaison with government, the Coordinator will be able to assure that information is shared between the different aspects of the project to ensure consistency and thoroughness. He will provide relevant information obtained from government to the local population, and inform the government of any findings, information and questions that emerge through his outreach activities.

The Coordinator will establish an office in the Oromocto area and will have a small staff to support his activities.

Tasks

The Coordinator will work with government officials responsible for coordinating three fact-finding tasks (for more detail of these tasks, see associated fact sheets).

• Fact-finding Task 1 will seek to identify, to the extent possible, through a paper review and initial contact, former and current serving Canadian Forces' members, and former and current civilian employees of the Department of National Defence (DND) who were present at CFB Gagetown during the spraying of the herbicides in question . This task will involve the determination of when they were present and in what capacity. The contractor completing the paper review will share the findings with the Coordinator on a weekly basis to facilitate the Coordinator's outreach activities.
  
  Only information on current and former CF members and DND employees can be captured by this task, as they are the only groups for whom the Government of Canada has records. In addition, the Coordinator will attempt to capture as much information as possible about current and former citizens of the area through his outreach activities. Current and former citizens of the area can also call the government's toll-free number (1-866-558-2945) to identify themselves.
• Fact-finding Task 2 will be a review of the history and science of the spraying of herbicides at CFB Gagetown from 1952 to present day and an assessment of their environmental fate and impacts. This task will also incorporate the results of environmental testing undertaken by CFB Gagetown in summer 2005.
• Fact-finding Task 3 is divided into two parts: Part 1 is a health study that will assess potential risks to human health from the herbicides used at CFB Gagetown, based on the properties of these products and the probability and degree of exposure (type, volumes, concentrations, application conditions, and frequency of use, etc.). Part 2 is a descriptive epidemiological study, which would determine whether there is a higher incidence of illnesses in the population in the area surrounding CFB Gagetown, versus a control population from elsewhere. This study will include illnesses that the scientific and medical communities have previously associated with exposure to the types of herbicides used at CFB Gagetown.

The Coordinator will co-chair, with DND's Assistant Deputy Minister (Infrastructure and Environment), three steering committees that oversee the fact-finding tasks. He will also share and explain final report results to the public as soon as they are received.

The Government will use a fair, open and competitive process will be used to select the non-government experts to undertake these three essential tasks.

These tasks will help provide a clear and consistent set of facts that will allow the Government of Canada to make responsible, informed decisions about future actions.

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