Imperial says about 750 tradespeople will be put to work during planned maintenance at the Sarnia manufacturing site.
The company said work is getting underway and is expected to continue for several weeks, with individual units coming off-line and restarting at various times.
Work will include detailed inspections of equipment that is normally in continuous operation, routine maintenance, and installation of facility improvement projects.
Imperial said it expects increased traffic near the site, especially at the start and end of the workday.
There will also be intermittent use of the flare system during the work period.
The company said their flares are environmentally-approved safety devices intended to burn off excess product or materials, and are especially important whenever they shut down or restart process units. ---
Planned maintenance at Sarnia's Suncor refinery began Tuesday.
Company spokesperson Jennifer Johnson said on the Community Awareness and Emergency Response Line that they're working to shut down a unit at the facility.
"During this time, community members could notice intermittent periods of visible flaring and increased noised levels," said Johnson. "We are working to minimize the need [for] flaring. We have provided notification of this activity to the Spills Action Centre and CVECO."
It's unclear how long the planned maintenance will take.
-With files from Stephanie Chaves.
