Ministry of Environment still working to identify ‘oily sheen’ found in Little Lake

The Ministry of Environment continues to investigate an “oily sheen” found on the surface of Little Lake in Peterborough on Wednesday night.

According to Aaron Gordon, a senior environmental officer with the ministry, the MOE’s Spills Action Centre was notified about an oily sheen on the lake after firefighters responded to the marina area around 10:30 p.m.

“The sheen was apparently entering the lake from a storm sewer and was seen in the city’s marina area,” Gordon told Global News Peterborough via email on Friday.

Firefighters and city staff placed absorbent booms around the stormwater sewer outfall and around the sheen area, and samples were taken, said Gordon.

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“While it’s difficult to determine the exact amount of substance, we can confirm that the sheen is contained and there is no ongoing spill,” he said.

He added that ministry staff continue to monitor the city’s containment and cleanup and are still trying to identify the substance, which was “oily in nature.”

“But relatively clear in appearance, unlike typical oils,” Gordon added.

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Gordon says the exact amount of the substance discharged into the water and its source remains unknown.

City staff returned to the site on Friday to pump out potentially impacted waters from storm sewer catch basins and to remove the sheen from the lake, he said.