While each light fixture contains about an ounce of coolant, Phipps said the city believes only minute quantities leaked to the stands below. "It's not like an ounce of fluid fell out, like somebody dumped a shot glass," said Phipps. "What happened was drops or specks of this fluid ended up fizzling out of the light and leaking onto the stadium. The rest is unaccounted for."

One spectator heard a fizzling sound from the lights overhead during the opening ceremonies and noticed pinprick

The spectator informed a stadium staff member. Another person who was hit with drops of the liquid the next day also contacted the city. Phipps said the city kept in touch with the two spectators, who said they had no concerns about the incident. He said the city doesn't know about anyone else who was affected.

The mayor said city staff immediately contacted the manufacturer to check whether the lights, installed when the stadium was built for the 1978 Commonwealth Games, contained PCBs.

"We let the province know as soon as it happened," Smith insisted. "Saturday morning of a long weekend, we contacted the executive director of Alberta Environment communications, Mr. Bob Scott. And that's on record."

He said the province was kept informed of the situation as it developed, through daily briefings between city and Worlds officials and Scott, representing the provincial public affairs bureau.

Scott is executive director of the government's public affairs bureau, a position he held during the Worlds. Scott said he cannot comment while the case is before the courts, but added he was not Alberta Environment's communications director at the time of the leaks.

The city also informed the Capital Health Authority about the leakage, Smith said. "They advised us that there was no cause for concern as the amount of fluid was miniscule.

"The minute that it was confirmed the lights contained PCBs, we formally notified Alberta Environment."

That was on Tuesday, Aug. 7, 2001, city officials claim.

After the first incident, city workers climbed the towers to inspect the lights for other leaks. They built protective devices around the first light and three other suspect fixtures, Schneider said.

Dr. Gerry Predy, the region's medical officer of health, was not sure of the date his staff were first called to investigate.

Six people, some from out of province, heard a pop and felt drops splash on their clothing and skin, Predy said. They came forward and were interviewed after the incident, he said. All were assured there was no significant threat to their health.

Alberta Environment communications director Val Mellesmoen said the department should have been officially informed of the incident within 24 hours of its occurrence.

"It really constrains our ability to be able to manage or assess what any kind of environmental impact might be if we don't know right away. The sooner you know, obviously the sooner you can deal with something."

Mellesmoen said the city should have contacted an environment official in the prescribed formal manner.

"It's very clear in the law who you need to notify and when."

She said the charges don't relate to how serious the incident is, but rather that the city broke the law by not notifying the correct provincial authority. "Who knew what, when, is really the crux of the eight charges related to the failure to report and that's what needs to be examined in court and determined whether there was guilt or whatever and to what level."

The first court appearance for the case is on March 7.

All of the lights which used old

He said none of the oldstyle lights had ever leaked before at the stadium, home to the Edmonton Eskimos.

The lights were kept on for longer periods than they were designed for during the Worlds because of unexpected requests by event organizers to keep stadium lights blazing most of the day so production crews and international broadcasters could film TV commentary segments and commercials after hours.

Old-style lights with PCBs can still be found in some tennis courts and arenas, Mellesmoen said. A list of those places will be available next week.

Phipps said the city will contest the charges. He also questioned the delay between the incident and the charges being laid. "Why did it take almost 18 months to proceed with these charges?"

Mellesmoen said Alberta Environment took six months to complete its part of the investigation. The file was then handed over to Alberta Justice, which had to determine if there was a strong enough case to press charges.

Jack Agrios, who chaired the organizing committee of the 2001 World Championships in Athletics, issued a statement saying he cannot comment because World's organizers were not responsible for operating the stadium or its lights. "It is a city matter," he said. "It doesn't have anything to do with 2001."

Rick LeLacheur, president and chief executive officer of the 2001 World Championships, said it is not his place to comment on a matter between the city and Alberta Environment.

PCBS: USES AND DANGERS

• Polychlorinated biphenyls are manmade compounds that were once considered a blessing for their fire
• resistant, stable qualities.
• From the 1930s to the 1970s, PCBs were widely used in a number of industrial materials, including sealing and caulking compounds, inks and paint additives. They were also used to make coolants and lubricants for certain kinds of electrical equipment, including transformers and capacitors.
• By 1977, concern about the impact of PCBs on the environment led to a North American ban on manufacturing and importing PCBs. They are considered a hazardous material and are shipped to places like the Swan Hills Waste Treatment Centre for incineration.
• PCBs move up the food chain by getting into the body fat of animals, including humans, and staying there for a long time.
• Scientists do not know much about the long
• term impact of PCBs on human health. Most of what is known about the health risks of PCBs is based on observations of people who were exposed briefly to high levels as a result of accidents or on the job.
• That kind of exposure has been known to cause the following conditions:
• A form of acne called chloracne
• Swelling of the upper eyelids
• Numbness in arms and/or legs
• Weakness
• Discolouring of the nails and skin
• Muscle spasms
• Chronic bronchitis
• Problems with the nervous system
• Low levels of PCBs found in the environment and food are not likely to cause health problems. There may be risks for specific groups of people who eat large amounts of sport fish or game contaminated by PCBs. These higher risk groups include Aboriginal peoples and families of people who hunt and fish for food.
• Given the amount of liquid involved, it would be surprising if people at the World Championships in Athletics were exposed to large amounts of PCBs, said David Carpenter, director of the department of environmental health and toxicology at the University at Albany, N.Y.
• Carpenter, who has studied PCB health issues for 15 years, said everyone is exposed to PCBs at some point. Food with fat, such as meat and fish, contains it. "The thing about PCBs is they are fat soluble and hard to break down," he said. "If people are exposed they will have elevated levels in their blood for at least 10 years."