Another investigation is underway in Pointe-aux-Trembles after an oil contamination was detected in the St. Lawrence River, a week after cleanup of another spill in the area wrapped up.
In a statement, the province’s Environment Ministry said it was notified of the contamination at the marina on Thursday following heavy rains, and that the oil has the same profile as what was detected in the spill on July 11 in the same area.
Environmentalists like Norman Beaudet, head of energy and climate at Fondation Rivière, are concerned.
“First, what we have to understand is the fact that Pointe-aux-Trembles is an area where there is a lot of concentrated activities related to oil,” he said.
Those include oil refineries and boating activities, he added.
The Canadian Coast Guard confirmed on the social media platform X on Thursday that the oil came from a stormwater pipe that drains into the river. But Beaudet said that doesn’t provide much comfort to him and his group, because the source could be anywhere.
For example, he said, the oil could come from an old contaminated site that, with heavy rains, could become so saturated that it drains into the sewage system, and finding where the contamination enters the drain could be a challenge.
“(The sewage) goes along the whole industrial area of Pointe-aux-Trembles,” he noted.
The Environment Ministry said mitigation measures have been put in place.
“The search continues in collaboration with the City of Montreal to find the origin of the spill in the system,” a spokesperson wrote in an email.
Beaudet says “the first thing to do is to check other places where the sewage system gets out to make sure that it comes from one area — one specific area.”
If the spill is limited to the area around the marina, he thinks it’ll limit any damage to wildlife.
For now, access to the marina is restricted to boat owners, and boats won’t allowed to leave the marina before they’re cleaned.
The ministry says there’s no reason to believe that drinking water has been contaminated.