CIIA'S WORK TO SIMPLIFY ENVIRONMENTAL APPROVAL MEANS SHOP SAVINGS OF $2 MILLION
Auto collision repair facilities in Ontario will now be able to apply to the new environmental Registry starting October 31, 2011. The Registry will replace the Certificate of Approval that is required for all shops using either solvent or new waterbased paint product.
This Registry is the end result of years of work by the trade association to make environmental compliance simpler, easier to obtain, and less expensive while maintaining and improving environmental compliance levels. The Ontario Ministry of Environment application fee of a minimum $600 will be dropped on October 31, 2011 for qualifying collision repair and auto body shops.
The new environmental Registry targets two required entry requirements of no more than 2 liters of paint use per hour and a distance from a one-booth shop’s exhaust stack of at least 40 meters to the lotline of the nearest residence.
“We believe most shops will easily qualify for the new Registry standards and most already meet the operating requirements. Assistance is available from CIIA to meet or exceed those requirements. Our fee for handling this new Registry work is greatly reduced now as well, to provide even more savings for shops” says John Norris of Ontario’s collision repair trade association, Collision Industry Information Assistance.
Shops that have not yet completed their application for environmental compliance have been contacted by the association and routed to the new Registry. A notice is being forwarded to all shops identifying the value of using the new Registry process. This new process reduces member shop costs by 75% and eliminates the provincial application fee entirely for qualifying shops. Approvals that sometimes took nine months or more are now expected to only be a few days.
Assistance is now available at CIIA (Collision Industry Information Assistance) and shops should call the office at 1-866-309-4272 or review the information at www.autobodyhelp.ca.
