Taxpayers in Peterborough, Ont., are on the hook for more than $1.8 million as part of ongoing remediation and cleanup efforts of multiple fuel spills into Jackson Creek since last August, according to a city staff report.
The report going to city council on Monday outlines the costs involved since an initial oil sheen was discovered on Aug. 22, 2022, at the south end of Jackson Creek in the area of Townsend and Aylmer streets.
The initial incident prompted the Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks to investigate the leak which continued to worsen with “some organic debris discharging” from the Jackson Creek outlet structure, the report notes.
The ministry stressed the need for immediate action to remediate the discharge and to investigate potential sources.
The city staff reports an environmental consultant was hired to coordinate emergency remediation and help determine potential sources of the sheen. Work included the use of ground penetrating radar, the removal of “previously unidentified and potential sources” of contamination, and the installation of a permeable reactive barrier.
Throughout the fall to spring of 2023, the area of containment measures was consistently monitored and included periodic removal of products, the report notes.
However, in mid-March, the report cites heavy rains resulted in an oily sheen getting beyond the containment measures that were in place. The incident required additional cleanup activities including the installation of a temporary underflow dam in the Townsend Street storm culvert.
“Considering the time-sensitive nature, uncertainty of environmental remediation, and authority of regulatory agencies, continued support from environmental contractors will be needed to maintain containment measures, perform impartial monitoring and reporting as well as provide emergency response and clean up services if necessary,” states the report issued by Jasbir Raina as commissioner of infrastructure and planning services. As of Tuesday, he is the city’s new chief administrative officer.
Provincial officials have said the sheen was “possibly” caused by a historic underground release of diesel fuel from the city’s transit yard on nearby Townsend Street.
The city notes there is known historical contamination in the area including its own property.
“One possibility is that the oil sheen is residual or remaining from the contamination last summer and fall that was caught upstream over the winter,” the city stated in March.
To date, the Jackson Creek emergency remediation efforts have cost the city $1,8883,339.04 which has included:
- Spill response – funds paid to contractors since original contamination in August 2022: $1,376,765.57
- Provisional work – known and forecasted costs for continued monitoring, remediation, clean up, and reporting: $474,000
- HST Payable by the city: $32,573.47
The staff report says funding for the emergency remediation response has been accommodated within the city’s 2022 capital budget emergency environmental remediation (EER) ($305,500) and capital levy reserve ($891,018.50). Anticipated additional funds can be accommodated within the 2023 capital budget EER ($200,000) and capital levy reserve ($486,820.54).
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