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The Ontario and Quebec governments plan to discuss the Ottawa River’s water quality woes this fall.
Marc Dubreuil, the Outaouais regional director of water analysis for the Quebec environment ministry, said for years there have been discussions in that province about how to better manage not only the river, but the watershed as well.
The two governments currently don’t work together to deal with the future of the river, but that could soon change.
Dubreuil said officials from both ministries will meet this fall to discuss the impact of sewage released into the river by both provinces.
Dubreuil applauds federal Environment Minister John Baird for stepping in, and he is encouraging Baird to direct funding to help fix the problem.
“If he takes this problem to heart, he can allocate money to it,” Dubreuil said.
Like the provinces, Gatineau and Ottawa officials don’t communicate when sewage spills occur.
“Day to day, each municipality looks after its own business,” Dubreuil said. “But there is a common interest in the well-being of the river.”
The water quality of the river has greatly improved since the 1970s because of Quebec’s investments in sewage treatment infrastructure, Dubreuil said.
SEWAGE SPILLS
Ottawa Mayor Larry O’Brien wants the sewage issue on the agenda for his Sept. 22 meeting with Gatineau Mayor Marc Bureau and Marie Lemay, CEO of the NCC.
The controversy over sewage being spilled into the river began in the spring, when the public learned that a billion litres of raw sewage flowed into the Ottawa River over a two-week period in August 2006 after a sewer regulator became stuck.
All three levels of government have since launched investigations into what happened and whether proper protocols were followed.
Baird, who is also the MP for Ottawa West-Nepean, has said his government will hand over $20 million to help the city find a way to reduce the amount of raw sewage released into the river.
Gatineau also releases large amounts of sewage into the river after rainfalls, but doesn’t report how much.
Raw sewage was released into the river from the Gatineau side about 1,500 times in 2007.
(C) Ottawa Sun