Vol. 136, No. 41 — October 12, 2002

GOVERNMENT NOTICES

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH ACT

Voluntary Compliance Agreement for annual inspections of the food and water quality and the sanitation on board and off board VIA Rail Canada passenger trains

Under the Department of Health Act, Section 4, the Minister of Health may take measures relating to the promotion and preservation of the health of the people of Canada. More specifically under paragraph 4(e) the Minister's powers, duties and functions include "the protection of public health on railways, ships, aircraft and all other methods of transportation, and their ancillary services."

Health Canada has been working in a collaborative effort with the passenger train industry to develop a voluntary compliance program to allow Canada to fulfill its national and international responsibilities of protecting the health of the travelling public. This collaborative approach allows more flexibility for industry to participate actively in the development of the program.

As part of this voluntary compliance program, Health Canada has reached an agreement with VIA Rail Canada to conduct on an annual basis periodic inspections of the food and water quality and of the sanitation in general on and off board VIA Rail Canada passenger trains. These inspections will be conducted on a cost recovery basis by Health Canada as per Table 1.

TABLE 1

Type of Passenger Train (on board only)	Number of Hours Per Inspection	Amount Billed (GST not included)
Level 3: Full Service (Raw to cooked food preparation, potable water system, accommodations)	7.5	$810
Level 2: Rapid Transit, First Class and Economy (Re-heat/finish cooking prepared food, potable water system, accommodations)	4.5	$486
Level 1: Rapid Transit, Economy Class only (Packaged food, re-heating not required, potable water system, no accommodations)	2.0	$216
Watering and Provision Stations (Vancouver, Winnipeg, Toronto, Montréal, Halifax)	4.5	$486

For further information, please contact the Director, Public Health Bureau, Workplace Health and Public Safety Programme (WHPSP), Healthy Environments and Consumer Safety Branch (HECSB), Health Canada, Room A 323, Address Locator 1903A1, Jeanne Mance Building, Tunney's Pasture, Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0K9, (613) 957-3427 (Telephone), (613) 952-6014 (Facsimile).

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