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An Ottawa City Councillor insists the city needs to “start a debate” on how to reduce the flow of raw sewage into the Ottawa River.
With more than 800 million litres of sewage and untreated storm water runoff flowing into the river so far this year, Rick Chairelli says the options range from “raw sewage in our river to Perrier.”
Chiarelli tells CFRA News reducing or eliminating the flow of raw sewage into the river will depend on how much taxpayers want to spend.
Municipal Affairs Minister Jim Watson says it’s “unacceptable” that raw sewage is flowing into the Ottawa River in the 21st century. Watson says the issue must be a priority for City Council.
Carleton-Mississippi Mills MP Gordon O’Connor added Ottawa needs to address the issue, saying “we now have a history year after year, millions of litres of effluent entering the Ottawa River, and then you have the sewer problem in Kanata.”
A report from City Staff in June said it would cost in excess of $2 billion to completely eliminate combined sewer overflows into the Ottawa River, but with “minimal resulting environmental benefits.”
Building a series of storage tanks underground in neighbourhoods to collect raw sewage would cost $45 million.
Chiarelli points out Ottawa’s current system was “always designed” to overflow raw sewage into the Ottawa River.