New Democrat MPP Andrea Horwath says the McGuinty government should launch a major provincial land use inventory in the aftermath of the propane factory blast that rocked Toronto on the weekend that cost one firefighter his life.

“The Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing should waste no time in partnering with Municipalities to identify high risk land uses in Ontario and then develop a plan to mitigate their impact on residential neighbourhoods,” said Horwath, Ontario’s NDP Critic for Municipal Affairs.

“There should be an inventory listing the location of land uses that pose a potential risk or danger to the public and residential neighbourhoods. Those sites should be flagged for scrutiny, audited for safety, proactively monitored for compliance and the operations posing the greatest risks be assisted in relocating, if necessary,” Horwath said.

Horwath pointed to the notorious 1997 Plastimet toxic fire in Hamilton and the 2007 pesticide factory fire at Biedermann Packaging, where run-off killed thousands of fish in nearby Spencer Creek.

“Had a provincial inventory of high risk sites been undertaken in 1997, it is possible the provincial government could have prevented the devastating outcomes in 2007 with pesticide run-off in Hamilton and here now in Toronto in 2008 with a fatal propane explosion,” Horwath said.

Some industrial concerns were grandfathered in days gone by and communities grew up around them.

“It’s high time the McGuinty government identified and reviewed these sites. To do nothing is irresponsible and reckless,” Horwath said.