Norfolk County’s Board of Health had the chance to hear the reasoning behind the migrant worker travel restrictions at the meeting on Wednesday.
Heidy Van Dyk-Ellis, interim General Manager of Health and Social Services, spoke with the board during the meeting.
She told them that there have been multiple local farm outbreaks this year already prior to the travel restrictions being put in place.
Under the new rules, workers will have to have proof of a negative COVID-19 test 72 hours before their departure, have a test done upon arrival in Canada, and then head to their approved isolation location where they are required to take another test after ten days.
The board still had questions regarding the rules following the presentation.
That was member Chris Van Paassen.
Van Dyk-Ellis said that through the contact tracing of the virus the transmission has been linked to the travel in the vans and buses.
Haldimand-Norfolk’s Medical Officer of Health was unable to attend Wednesday’s meeting.
Further questions were recorded to be brought forward to him at a future time.
These rules were the final straw that led to over 200 farmers driving their tractors to the Norfolk County Fairgrounds in Simcoe last month to rally against the regulations.