Geneviève Vitali, a resident of Saint-Edmond-de-Grantham, who was first alerted by fellow residents on a Facebook group on August 2, quickly realized the extent of the damage. His property borders the David River, one of the main tributaries of the Yamaska River, which empties into the St. Lawrence River.
“It smelled strong, so I went to the water’s edge and that’s when I realized: all the fish were dead.”
— A quote from Geneviève Vitali, resident of Saint-Edmond-de-Grantham
The water of the David River became cloudy and its surface was covered with foam. With a quick glance, the Edmondoise could see around 30 fish washing up on the banks of the creek and guessed there were hundreds more on the banks upstream.
Urgence-Environnement agents, under the Ministry of Environment and Combating Climate Change (MELCC), were dispatched to the site of the spill and found the deaths of around a hundred fish in the 10th row sector, surrounded by farmland and forests.
In an area about 100 meters down the river we saw deposits of manure spills. It resulted in a release of pollutants that were visible in the river for about two kilometers, explains Sophie Gauthier, spokeswoman for the MELCC. However, Urgence-Environnement did not disclose the amount of manure dumped.
The decomposition of the liquid manure leads to a depletion of the oxygen levels in the water and thus to the death of the fish.
Enlarge picture (New window)The water in the David River turned cloudy while around 100 fish were found dead.
Photo: Genevieve Vitali
Ministry officials, who returned to the site in the days that followed, took water samples between the 10th row and the bridge on rue Notre-Dame-de-Lourdes to determine what might have happened.
Like the community residents, the MELCC biologists observed the turbidity of the water and foam on the river surface. More than that did not worry them, said the mayor of Saint-Edmond-de-Grantham, Richard Kirouac, last Thursday. They are still concerned and are closely monitoring the situation.
An irretrievable substance
It took the community of Saint-Edmond-de-Grantham two days to respond to citizens’ concerns, warning them on Facebook not to swim or come in direct contact with the river’s waters.
I still think it’s a shame, regrets Geneviève Vitali. I tried calling the church [le lendemain du déversement], but the offices were closed for the holidays. I had no access to anyone.
This delay, explains Richard Kirouac, was necessary to carry out the controls at the ministry. When I called Urgence-Environnement to let them know, they were already there, he said.
On August 5, the municipality issued a new press release to assure citizens that the situation is now stable. Due to the river’s rather slow flow, the substance takes longer to drain, which may explain the foul odor that owners of properties along the river have to endure.
The administration has not committed to removing the dead fish littering the banks. Citizens who wish to get rid of it are urged to do so with gloves and a mask, it said.
In addition, no measures were taken to prevent the sediments from penetrating further into the river.
“We rely on specialists [du MELCC]. It was not blocked by the agents who told us that the substance will leave normally. »
— A quote from Richard Kirouac, Mayor of Saint-Edmond-de-Grantham
For its part, the ministry assures that there is no longer an active source of the spill in the vicinity. The liquid manure in the river cannot be used technically, it is added.
Regular checks are carried out to ensure that the quality of the drinking water is not affected. According to the ministry, there is no municipal drinking water supply near the site of the accident.
Even if the community wants to reassure, Geneviève Vitali is concerned about the impact that such an incident could have on their artesian well. In this respect, the owners and not the authorities are responsible for carrying out the necessary investigations, reminds the MELCC.
However, if the probability of contamination is very low, there is no zero risk, the city administration notes. Anyone wishing to have the quality of the water in their artesian well analyzed at their own expense can contact the municipality, which intends to establish the connection to a specialized laboratory.
An option that Geneviève Vitali is considering. However, the citizen is waiting to learn more about the circumstances of the burial before taking these steps.
An identifiable person
Richard Kirouac believes he doesn’t have enough details to suggest it was an illegal or accidental disposal. The Mayor calls for caution pending the results of the investigation conducted by the MELCC.
However, the municipality, which relies on the ministry’s expertise, does not rule out conducting its own tests to assess the quality of drinking water. Until further notice, it is best to avoid swimming in the David River.
We have a city council planned [mardi soir] and that is the message I will repeat to the citizens, he says.
According to the Environmental Quality Act, which prohibits the release of toxic substances into the environment, liquid manure and manure are exempt from the list of hazardous substances in the Hazardous Substances Ordinance. However, it is likely that harmful substances such as pesticides or bacteriological contaminants are present in the manure.
Some watersheds, such as that of the Yamaska River, are particularly affected by the contamination of water from intensive crops and livestock that produce solid and manure, the MELCC points out.
The ministry says it is continuing efforts to identify the person responsible for the spill and determine if there were any violators. On August 4, the MELCC confirmed that no recourse was ruled out. The government has since been unable to follow Radio-Canada.