Dow moves closer to shuttering Sarnia site

Dow Chemical Canada Inc. took another step towards shutting down its Sarnia, Ont. facility this week when representatives presented a closure plan to community representatives with the assurance that environmental and property ownership responsibilities would be met during the process.

Dow will proceed with its closure plan of the 322-acre industrial site with completion in the spring of 2011. By that time, according to Dow, all employees will have left the site, equipment and buildings will have been removed, and the site will be in an environmentally secure state. At present, three of the sites four manufacturing units have been shut down and are in various stages of decommissioning as they are readied for demolition, which will begin next year. The remaining facility on the site, Dows Propylene Oxide Derivatives unit, will close in April 2009.

Approximately 75 percent of the sites original 340 employees will be eligible for retirement at the end of their tenure, according to Don Fysh, the sites director of operations. Close to 15 percent of employees will be re-deployed within Dow, while those remaining continue to look for jobs, undergo further training, or are still working at the site.

During the past year, we have provided a variety of individualized services, ranging from financial planning to career counselling and resume preparation, to assist our employees as they make decisions about their futures, Fysh said. In many cases, we have been able to extend their length of employment to reach employment milestones.