PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Montreal, October 15, 2015 – The Fondation Rivières wants the mandate of the independent expert from the federal government to evaluate all the means that can be implemented to reduce pollution from a possible spill. Thus, the working methods, the sections to be dried and the prescribed deadlines must be questioned. A multidisciplinary approach is required at all levels.
For Catherine Huard, general director, “It is not only a question of quantifying the pollution generated, but also of obtaining the expertise of all stakeholders, including the entrepreneur himself.” She also said she was surprised to see that the federal government does not already have the resources to deal with such a problem. This is certainly not the first time that work has had to be carried out on a wastewater interception facility in Canada.
As already highlighted by Fondation Rivières, this file highlights numerous contradictions between the City's declarations and those of the Ministry of Sustainable Development, the Environment and the Fight against Climate Change (MDDELCC). The federal expert will have to analyze them. Among these, it will have to rule on the possibility of building the Riverside snow chute and removing the damaged hangers, without having to dry out the interceptor over its entire length and for seven consecutive days (now reduced to six since the 24-hour work /24h would now be required from the contractor following pressure).
It will have to deal with the new information revealed Thursday October 8, 2015 in an MDDELCC report: the addition of work which would cause the largest number of dumping sites (15 of the 26 places according to the report), between Joliette streets and the station purification. This involves maintenance work to replace steel grooves upstream of the interceptor valve well. They had not been mentioned until then. What are these works and how long does it take? Why were they not covered in the MDDELCC analysis report since they will cause a significant portion of the 8 billion liter spill?
The federal expert must therefore be able to assure the population that the quantity of wastewater discharged is fully justified. And that all possible measures to reduce the pollutant load will have been put in place. Nothing less.
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For informations :
Alain Saladzius
President
514 924-2013
presidency@fondationrivieres.org
