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Water Quality/Spills
The quality of water in the St. Clair River has been assessed by:
• Measuring the chemical
content of the water itself, river sediment, and aquatic life forms (biota) in
and around the river.
• Analyzing contaminants for
concentrations, patterns, and trends that identify environmental impacts.
• Using biological indictors
that measure toxicity, community health, reproductive success, and chemical
data.
• Comparing findings with
relevant guidelines or objectives.
The
Issue
The Binational Public Advisory Council (BPAC) has determined that numerous goals
must be met in order for the St. Clair River to be removed from the list of
Great Lakes Areas of Concern. These goals are referred to as delisting
criteria. Regarding water quality and spills, the goal is “no water
treatment plant closures as a result of spills to the St. Clair River over a
two-year period.”
Condition of Concern
At the time BPAC wrote this goal, BPAC also noted, “The water in the St. Clair
River has never been determined to be undrinkable. However, the river has
sometimes been an unreliable source of water as a result of spills,” which,
prior to 1994, resulted in periodic government-mandated closures of water
treatment plants.
Evidence of Concern
Losses of habitat and chemical alterations within the St. Clair River have been
documented for decades. However, chemical contamination received the greatest
attention due to daily discharges of pollutants, including mercury, that forced
closure of commercial and sport fisheries in 1970 and regular occurrence of
large chemical spills into the river.
Studies reviewed by BPAC in the late 1980s and published in 1991
showed excessive amounts of the following chemicals in water, sediments, and/or
biota:
• Oil and Grease
• Nutrients: nitrogen and
phosphorus
• Chloride
• Bacteria
• Metals: mercury, lead, iron,
zinc, copper, nickel, cobalt, cadmium and chromium
• Other toxic contaminants
including: pesticides, PCBs, and chlorinated industrial organics such as
octachlorostyrene, hexachlorobenzene, and hexachlorobutadiene
Sources of these chemicals were industrial discharges, water
pollution control plants (wastewater treatment plants), urban runoff, and
contaminants from tributaries such as Black River, Talfourd Creek, and Murphy
Drain.
Based on this evidence, BPAC reported in 1993 that:
• The Michigan shore had good
benthic health and low concentrations of contaminants.
• Chemicals from Ontario
sources had impacted the Ontario shore.
• There had been marked
improvement in benthic health from 1968 through 1990 and reduction in chemical
concentrations between 1982 and 1990.
River monitoring equipment at the Courtright
station is operated by the Sarnia-Lambton Environmental Association (SLEA)
(formerly known as the Lambton Industrial Society).
Goals
and Strategies
In 1995, BPAC
published the Stage 2 Recommended Plan, which contains goals and
objectives for water quality in the St. Clair River. These goals are:
• Aesthetics –
Achieve and maintain an aesthetically pleasing clean “blue water” and an
appropriate balance of natural shoreline and human uses. Assure sufficient
public access to the river for recreation, enjoyment, and cultural activities.
• Consumption of Fish and
Wildlife – Eliminate the need for restrictions on human consumption of
fish and wildlife for reasons of health.
• Ecosystem Health
– Attain and maintain healthy, diverse, and self-sustaining biological
communities and habitats. Ensure there are no negative impacts on the health of
local populations due to water quality. Ensure no net loss of fish and wildlife
habitat. Reclaim, rehabilitate, and enhance habitat where possible.
• Recreation and Shipping
– Ensure that the water quality is safe for body contact at all times. Eliminate
adverse environmental effects caused by recreational and shipping activities.
• Sources of Contaminants
– Ensure that no source (point or nonpoint) impairs water quality. Eliminate
spills.
Various St. Clair River monitoring stations such as the one
pictured owned and operated by the Sarnia-Lambton Environmental Association (SLEA)
(formerly known as the Lambton Industrial Society) are used to keep a close eye
on water quality in the St. Clair River.
These goals and objectives are consistent with standards, objectives, criteria,
regulations, and policies of the International Joint Commission (IJC), Ontario
Ministry of Environment (MOE), and Michigan Department of Environmental Quality
(MDEQ).
Regular Spill
Response Exercises Ensure Local Companies Are Ready to Respond.
Remedial Measures
Since the absence of spills is important to the quality of water in the St.
Clair River, BPAC’s primary strategy has been to advocate elimination of spills
and to minimize the impact of any spills that might occur.
BPAC’s
position is consistent with the Spills Prevention Strategy, written by
the Ontario Ministry of the Environment (MOE), and the Waste Prevention
Strategy, written by the Michigan Department of Natural Resources. These
strategies require companies with the potential for spills to develop spill
contingency plans. These plans must include procedures for detecting spills,
facilities for containing and diverting spills, spill response plans,
environmental awareness training for employees, and a means to assess the risk
of spills.
All
companies with major facilities along the St. Clair River have implemented spill
prevention strategies.
Regular Spill
Response Exercises Ensure Local Companies Are Ready to Respond.
Accomplishments
As a result of these spill prevention strategies, increased employee and public
awareness, the number and volume of spills to the St. Clair River has been
significantly reduced.
Current Conditions
The goal for water quality—“no water treatment plant closures
for two years”—has also been met. In fact, there have been no closures as a
result of a government directive due to water degradation in the St. Clair River
since November 1994. During that time, there may have been discretionary
closings at local plants as a precautionary measure.
In
addition, BPAC reports that:
• Significant source control and spill prevention efforts have
been implemented and daily discharges and the size and frequency of spills has
declined since the 1980s.
• Benthic health is better in 1990 than in 1957.
• Chemical concentrations in the water continue to decline.
• Spill
that occur close to shore remain relatively close to shore.
This report
comes as a result of monitoring at various locations along the St. Clair River,
including at Pt. Edward near Lake Huron and Port Lambton near Lake St. Clair.
Of
significance is the fact that, at the time BPAC began in 1988, chemical
contaminants in water could be routinely measured. Today, many chemicals are at
such low levels that they cannot be detected even with state-of-the-art
technology.
Spill
Notification Plan
If a spill should occur, an Ontario-Michigan Joint Notification Plan is
in place. Under this plan, responsible parties at the spill site in either the
U.S. or Canada must contact local government officials. A spiller in Canada must
also contact the Ministry of Ontario Environment Spills Action Centre. Telephone
calls are then made to appropriate local and state government agencies in both
countries. Walpole Island First Nation is also contacted. |
