Accessibility and Access Keys [0]
OTTAWA – The amount of untreated sewage and rainwater that overflows into the Ottawa River has been cut by more than half since 2006.
The results come as the City of Ottawa continues to roll out its $250 million Ottawa River Action Plan.
One component, the $30 million real-time control system, made a big difference according to Mayor Jim Watson, who was speaking as part of a June 3 announcement.
That system was completed in December and Watson said sewage overflows are expected to go down even more in 2011 during the first full year of operation of the control system.
Despite above average rainfall between April and November of last year, there were “significant reductions” in the amount of sewage that overflowed into the river, the mayor said.
The mayor said the action plan is the city’s response to residents who said the safety of the river is a top priority.
The investment is a good one, aid River Ward Coun. Maria McCrae, because it will create a better, safer community for future generations.
“Just like roads and buildings, our environment is an asset,” said McCrae, who is also the chair of the city’s environment committee. “Nothing hits closer to home than the river.”
In 2010, the total combined sewage overflow was 424,000 cubic metres. That’s compared to more than a million cubic metres of sewage measured when the city first began to collect the data in 2006.
The next step in the Ottawa River Action plan is construction of a $140 million system of huge underground tanks to hold the overflow so less of it is released into the river.
That project is supposed to get underway in the next two years, McCrae said, but the city needs to secure funding from the federal and provincial governments before it moves forward – something the mayor has been working on.
Where are the overflows?
Of the five sites where major overflows occurred, the worst offender in 2010 was the Rideau Canal interceptor. While it didn’t have the highest number of overflows (it overflowed 44 times in 2010), it did release the largest volume of sewage into the river: 146,000 cubic metres.
Manor Park had the most overflows, with 48 incidents dumping 25,800 cubic metres of sewage into the river.
The Booth Street sewer was also a major offender, leaking 122,000 cubic metres of sewage into the Ottawa River (this site alone released 268,000 cubic metres last year – the largest volume in the city).
Read more here.