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Swimmers who like to take a dip in the Ottawa River might want to avoid it until later this summer.
The city is continuing to dump unacceptable levels of waste from two water treatment facilities into the Ottawa River, putting it in contravention of a provincial and federal order to clean up.
Ontario’s Ministry of Environment issued an order in May 2003 while Environment Canada officials issued an Inspector’s Direction order in July 2004.
The city was ordered to ensure it had taken all the necessary precautions by Sept. 30, 2007 to eliminate waste from the Britannia water purification plant being discharged into the Ottawa River, and the appropriate steps to eliminate harmful waste being poured into the river from the Lemieux Island plant by Dec. 31, 2007.
The target dates have not been met, making the city non-compliant. It might take until the height of the swimming season to ensure that all necessary steps are complete to ensure that further waste is not dumped into the river to satisfy both environmental orders.
NO FURTHER EXTENSIONS
Environment Canada has already told the city it won’t grant further extensions to its order.
Dixon Weir, Ottawa’s director of utility services, said the city is building a collection system to gather waste from the two water purification plants and divert it to the R.O. Pickard Environmental Centre in the east end, rather than dumping it into the river as it has been doing for the past 70 years.
In a memo from city solicitor Rick O’Connor to councillors and several top city bureaucrats, O’Connor says the cause of the delay to meet government regulations is because of construction delays at the Pickard plant in the east end. O’Connor said the delays are “beyond the direct control of the city.”
To eliminate the “discharge of unacceptable water treatment plant wastes to the Ottawa River” from the two water treatment facilities, the city is spending $85 million to build a digester at the Pickard plant that will manage and treat the residual waste.
LEAKING TANK
But the builders can’t stop the large concrete lined tank, which heats up to 35 degrees C to treat the waste, from leaking.
“Unfortunately, and despite the best efforts of the various contractors involved, resolving the leak problem has resulted in an approximate 27-week construction delay.”
On several occasions last summer, the city posted signs at the Petrie Island beach downstream of the Pickard plant warning swimmers to stay out of the water because of high E. coli levels in the water.
One father reported to the Sun last summer that his three children fell ill after swimming off of Petrie Island.
Ottawa Sun