October 18, 2015 – Ottawa, Ontario – Environment Canada
Today, the Honourable Leona Aglukkaq, Minister of the Environment, Minister of the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency and Minister for the Arctic Council, announced a panel of three independent scientific experts to undertake a review of the City of Montreal’s plan to discharge eight billion liters of raw sewage into the St. Lawrence River.
As a result of Environment Canada’s review of the City’s information, the department has determined that the environmental impacts of the planned release are likely significant. Further, Montreal did not study the predicted impacts of this specific planned discharge of approximately eight billion liters of untreated wastewater. Based on limited data, Environment Canada cannot conclude whether or not the untreated wastewater to be released will be acutely toxic.
Recognizing these issues, the significant concerns of the public, and the need to ensure we have the best possible and most complete scientific analysis for this project, Minister Aglukkaq has mandated a panel of three independent scientific experts to review the project.
The panel will consist of three renowned experts in their field:
- Robert Hausler, PhD, Professor in the Department of Construction Engineering at École de technologie supérieure (ETS)
- Viviane Yargeau, PhD, Associate Professor & P. Eng., Department of Chemical Engineering at McGill University
- Daniel G. Cyr, PhD, Professor at INRS-Institut Armand-Frappier (Université du Québec)
The panel will consider matters such as whether there are other technically feasible measures that the City of Montreal could take to mitigate the effects of the planned release, what the environmental risks are of both planned and unplanned releases, and whether there are other parameters that should be included in the City’s planned water quality monitoring that would increase its effectiveness. As they conduct their work, the panel members will review available information from the City, the province, and other scientific and technical experts in this field.
The restriction to the City of Montreal’s project will be in effect until the end of November 2, 2015, pending the results of the independent scientific review. Once the findings of the independent review have been submitted to Environment Canada, the Government of Canada will advise of any further action it plans to take.
Ted Laking
Communications Director
Office of the Minister of the Environment
819-997-1441
Media Relations
Environment Canada
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