MONTREAL – Flood waters in Quebec and Manitoba may continue to cause environmental harm, long after they recede.
The churning mix of human waste, manure and pesticides pose an ecological threat to connecting water bodies.
Aquatic scientists say nearby ecosystems could receive smothering overdoses of sediments and algal blooms.
Gordon Goldsborough, a University of Manitoba ecologist, says the floodwaters of the Assiniboine River will dump enormous amounts of farming chemicals and algae-producing substances into Lake Manitoba.
Goldsborough says he expects to see dramatic changes in the lake’s water quality over the next few months.
He says contaminated floodwaters could feed scummy, oxygen-sucking algal growths that have infiltrated the shallow lake in recent years.
A biologist with Quebec’s Environment Department also says flooding of the Richelieu River will flush more chemicals, sewage and sediments through the water system.
But Marc Simoneau says he expects the heavy floods to dilute the extra contaminants enough to maintain adequate water quality.
His fear is that sediments that collect in the water system could threaten fragile fish habitat.
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