The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

Program helps prevent kids from setting fires. Viewpoint You said it Jcanada.«â€"com| Smokers butt out on Weedless Wednesday. Classified Saab of Kitchener Waterloo 663 Victoria St. N. 744â€"5811 WATERLOO CHRONICLE WHAT‘S INSIDE Sangsters® Murrays* *Selected Distribution nISRIRTH Page 10 13 19 Environment a key campaign issue in Tory leadership race, Witmer says he environment has I now become an issue in the leadership camâ€" paign to replace outgoing Premier Mike Hartis. And in light of Justice Dennis O‘Connor‘s damning report on the deadly E. coli contamination of the town of Walkerton‘s â€" drinking water, which caused seven deaths and 2,300 illnesses, current Environment Minâ€" ister Elizabeth Witmer said it is one of the pillars of her campaign to win the leaderâ€" ship _ of the â€" provincial Progressiveâ€"Conservative party this March. _ Witmer said her governâ€" ment has already acted on By Bos VrBanac Chronicle Staff . WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 23, 2002 + WATERLOO, ONTARIO Visit our: SHOWROOM @ 1151 Yictoria St., N., | Website @ www.bavarianwindows.com Phone @ (519) 578â€"3938 Serving your community since 1856 four of the 28 recommendaâ€" tions contained in the report made public last Friday. Another 15 are being responded to, and she‘s committed to implementing the remaining nine. Topping that agenda are new laws to govern the use of manure, thought to be the original cause of the outâ€" break in May of 2000. "It was a good report and a fair report, and it certainly demonstrates that the govâ€" ernment has a role in proâ€" tecting public health and safety," said Witmer. "Anyâ€" time you‘re making policy changes, or changing legisâ€" lation, you always need to make sure that you continue to protect public health and safety." Witmer has already asked staff at the Ministry of the Environment to develop a plan of action that will include additional resources for the beleaguered ministry Tory leadership hopeful Elizabeth Witmer 272 2s s‘eTalole+,8 $1 INCLUDING GST in order to ensure the conâ€" tinued protection of the environment and public health and safety. "That includes nutrient management | legislation," said Witmer. "It also includes the new waste diversion organization that we‘re setâ€" ting up to achieve our goals of recycling and diverting more from our landfills. After all, environmental health is tied to what Witmer considers the most imporâ€" tant issue in the leadership campaign â€" the public supâ€" ported healthâ€"care system in Ontario. "We‘ve also made very significant progress in air quality issues." â€" While other leadership hopefuls like Emnie Eves and Jim Flaherty have mused about bringing a private component to the public healthâ€"care system, Witmer continues to support a sinâ€" gleâ€"tier system that is uniâ€" versally accessible. "As I‘ve travelled the province, the most imporâ€" tant issue for people is health," said Witmer. "My health policy speaks to the need to ensure that we have accessibility to health providers, _ services _ and treatment. "And I‘m saying that we need to first and foremost develop a comprehensive human resource strategy." A $3.8â€"million survey of Ontarians‘ opinions on health care, released on Home Depot stores across Canada hosted special child indentificaâ€" tion clinics over the weekend in conjuction with Child Find and the Canadian Red Cross. The clinics, called Safety Works for Kids, providâ€" ed parents with a colour photo of their child and a free parent‘s identification guide. Taking part in the proâ€" gram at the Waterloo Home Depot store last Saturday were Mary Jo Brideau, with her son Zachary, two. Showing Zachary his colour photo as part of his identification kit was assistant store manager Kelly Oldfied. Keeping an eye on the kids Continued on page 2 Bo8 reANAC PrOTO