02/13/2006: "BC Weasels Out Of Sewage Clean-Up?"

Under heavy pressure from private groups and the media, appears to have come up with a novel way of doing little to nothing about on-going sewage dumping into the waters they share with the San Juan Islands. In a letter to an environmental group, the Ministry of Environment appears to acknowledge contamination of the sea floor is the result of the dumping, and indicates it would be investigating the matter further.

However, the MOE's letter goes on to state that it is policy to not apply the Province's contaminated rules to an active source of pollution, and implies that application of the contaminated site rules to the Capital Regional District (CRD) would only be considered if the "use" of the outfalls were to cease. Oh. Well, okay, and thank you for your time.

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In their submission the groups had used the CRD's own scientific data to show it has polluted to the sea floor. ( Previous Stories ), the BC Minister of Environment (MOE) Many contaminants were found to be at levels in excess of the province's standards under the BC Contaminated Sites Regulations. The groups requested that the Director of Waste Management designate the sites as contaminated under BC law, and order the CRD to put in advanced sewage treatment to stop the pollution from getting worse.

"On one hand, it's a positive step that the province seems willing to acknowledge that the CRD's effluent could be an 'active source' of pollution," said Christianne Wilhelmson, Program Coordinator with the Georgia Strait Alliance. "On the other hand, we are extremely concerned that it is unwilling to use the contaminated sites rules to stop this pollution. Applying its contaminated site rules only after the CRD stops the use of the sewage outfall is illogical. Existing regulations must be used to protect the environment today."

"Normally, before any industry receives a permit to pollute, it must prove it is applying the best technology available to minimize pollution," said John Werring, Sierra Legal Staff Scientist. "Right now, the CRD is using the absolute minimum standard of sewage treatment that exists and, as a result, it is polluting the environment. The government should be holding the CRD to a much higher standard, especially with the 2010 Olympics coming to BC. The world is watching."

The MOE says it should have a report by the end of March on its findings into the environmental groups' assertions. The groups are calling on the government to make that report public when it is delivered.