RR Legion goes smoke free, CN doesn’t

Ken Johnston
Editor

The smoke continues to hang in the air at several businesses across the greater Northwestern Ontario, despite a ban on all second hand smoke in workplaces by the Northwestern Health Unit January 1, 2003.
The first charges took place last Monday in Kenora and quickly spread throughout the region. Inspectors fanned out across the region making surprise inspections and also following up on complaints made by citizens.
Last Tuesday the Rainy River Legion was visited for the second time in four days. Inspector Murray Coates told acting President Linda Johnston that if the Legion did not go smoke free he would be forced to charge it. The minimum fine, if it stands up in court, will be $5,000. Johnston opted to declare the Legion smoke free immediately.
Meanwhile the CN Hotel opted to allow smoking to continue. The inspector visited there again later in the week but as of Monday had not charged the CN.
A group of more than 30 NWO businesses banded together to fight the charges in court. The first hearing on the charges is scheduled to take place today in Kenora.
It is felt that once the law is tested in court, businesses will either have to all go smoke free or things will return back to the way they were.
In 1994 the Ontario Tobacco Act was passed and it excepted restaurants and bars from having to go smoke free or have designated smoking areas. That act says that any other laws that are more stringent than the Tobacco Act, including municipal bylaws, supercede it. The NWHU tried to get municipalities to pass tough smoke free bylaws last year but only convinced three to follow suit.
The ball is definitely in the courts’ hands now and business owners, particularly bars and restaurants, will be waiting anxiously to see if the ban will hold up.