St. Clair Township residents and officials say they want more answers after learning of a diesel spill in the St. Clair River over the weekend, hours after it happened.
“I have lived on the river just south of Stag Island for ten years now, and [Saturday] we witnessed the biggest environmental disaster we have ever seen — and I question if we are getting the full story,” said Corunna resident Nate Broad, who noticed a sheen of diesel fuel on the river around 5 p.m., Saturday, after an all-clear issued by Arlanxeo in Sarnia following a CSX locomotive fuel leak.
“This was not just in spots, but completely covering the water,” Broad added. “So much so that we called the Ministry of Environment to report what we were seeing.
"They seemed surprised, as the all-clear was given at 3:18 p.m. from Arlanxeo. We continued to monitor until dark, and we saw a continuous flow of diesel the entire time — over five hours.
“Why was an all clear given, even though there was diesel continuously flowing?” he added.
There was no CAER CODE 10 issued through the city’s emergency notification system Saturday — which would have would have alerted industry and community partners of a spill to the St. Clair River.
“I myself, am really upset that this was not reported as a spill when it happened,” said St. Clair Township Mayor Jeff Agar, noting he was still waiting for updates on the water advisories, late Tuesday. “I’m so annoyed; it’s like they are just trying to sweep it all under the rug.”
When asked for comment, Sarnia Deputy Fire Chief Dale Gartshore, who is now in charge of the City’s emergency management, deferred to Fire Chief Jeff Weber, who issued a statement Wednesday afternoon:
“CSX did notify spills action through the Provincial Emergency Operations Center as they are responsible to do. As I do not believe CSX is a member company of BASES, they do not have reporting responsibility through the code structure (example Code 8 or Code 10). However, they did meet their legislated requirement to report the spill to the Province and did take responsibility to clean up the spill.”
Lambton Public Health says a water advisory is still in effect following the incident while officials work to collect water sampling data.
“When [we are] confident there are no longer impacts to drinking water systems or recreational water, the advisory will be lifted and media will be notified,” LPH stated in an email.
CSX has confirmed to The Journal that around 1:37 p.m. Saturday, the fuel tank of a locomotive at Arlanxeo was ruptured, “causing the release of an unknown quantity of diesel fuel onto the property and into the nearby St. Clair River.”
The company says its emergency response procedures were activated and containment boom was deployed to “control downstream migration of the release.”
Arlanxeo sent a community alert through Lambton BASES, notifying that emergency personnel were supporting 'a minor leak' at a tenant site, and an all-clear was issued shorty after.
"The Ministry of The Environment Conservation and Parks attended the scene along with the city of Sarnia Emergency Services," Arlanxeo's Sarah Macklin stated in an email. "We are committed to the protection of the local environment and will continue to assist our tenants in the clean-up and mitigation of this incident."
Officials with the Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks (MECP) told The Journal that the Spills Action Centre was notified and "communicated with local partners as needed," including the City of Sarnia, water treatment plants, direct water users, health units, public works, First Nations communities and the State off Michigan.
“Staff with [the] ministry’s Sarnia District office attended the site on Saturday to assess the spill and collect samples,” said MECP spokesperson Gary Wheeler. “The majority of the diesel was contained on site and will need to be assessed. There was no concern/threat to the public.
“Clean up activities were undertaken and only a slight sheen was observed on the St. Clair River. Actions were taken to contain and remove the sheen in the river.”
However, later that evening, just before 8 p.m., the St. Clair Township Fire Department said in a social media post that it was investigating a sheen on the water near Corunna.
Lambton Public Health later issued a news release, advising users of private drinking water systems not to use their tap water, “as the presence of diesel fuel is suspected to have contaminated private drinking water systems near Hill and Lyndoch Street in Corunna.”
“The lack of communication…” Broad added. “We have been told to not swim? And in some areas not to drink the water until further notice? Are there any timelines? What actually happened? And how can we mitigate the risk of this in the future?”
Officials at Aamjiwnaang First Nation also told residents to stay out of the water for the next few days.
While the private water advisory only applies to a handful of users, many residents on social media expressed concern and confusion over the lack of communication.
“We too live on the river across from Stag Island for the last 12 years and have never witnessed this kind of spill,” one user wrote in a Corunna Facebook group. “What I’m questioning is how [they] can make the statement that there was no immediate danger to the public and that the all clear was given.
“How much was spilled? Someone must have the answers.”
In the meantime, Agar says he will continue to push for more information.
“I'm not done yet,” he stated. "I still say, if the river ran north there would be a lot more information."