Hamilton has been hiding that 24B litres of raw sewage leaked into Chedoke Creek
- Craig Clark
- 21 Nov 2019
The City of Hamilton released a press release yesterday that revealed 24 billion litres of raw sewage and storm water runoff was leaking into Chedoke Creek for the past four years.
And Hamiltonians are understandably upset that the City seemed to keep the environmental damage a secret for so long.
24 billion litres of sewage was leaked into Cootes Paradise. Hamilton literally shit the water bed. #Hamont
— Chris Paul Rainbows They/Them (@CPRainbows) November 21, 2019
24-billion litre sewage spill secret in Hamilton not victimless crime. Many people use Chedoke Creek & Cootes Paradise for recreation. Underscores need for real time mandatory reporting to public. #swimdrinkfish & good local media! https://t.co/pMg1k2ieKv
— Mark Mattson (@waterkeepermark) November 21, 2019
In July 2018 the city discovered that one of the combined sewage overflow tanks was leaking wastewater into the creek. The discharge was immediately stopped and clean-up activities began in the area.
The City has been working with the Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks over the last year to determine the amount of damage and a plan to remediate the creek.
The investigation discovered that a bypass gate in the combined sewage overflow tank was open to approximately 5% since January 28, 2014. The City was not able to determine that the bypass gate was open until 2018.
Every single #HamOnt City Councillor and employee who has been aware that raw human sewage has been released into our waterways since 2014 and did nothing should be fired. Immediately. #Hamilton #Ontario #ONPoli
— Andrew A. Hanna (@AndrewHanna) November 21, 2019
WHY IS THIS NOT THE LEAD STORY TONIGHT. 24 BILLION! WITH A B!
They've cleaned 1/100,000th of the spill
GROSSSSSSSEXCLUSIVE: Hamilton city council, staff have kept a 24-billion litre sewage spill secret https://t.co/KRD1F6fJHS
— Jack Fisher (@Jack_Fisher_4) November 21, 2019
During the time the gate was open, 24 billion litres of stormwater runoff and sanitary sewage had leaked into Chedoke Creek. This represents 4% of the annual volume of flow to Hamilton’s wastewater treatment plants.
In response to the discharge, the City of Hamilton has taken a number of actions toward recovering the creek and preventing it from happening again. Some of the actions include completing enhanced inspections, review of procedures, posting warning signs, and retaining a licensed external qualified consultant to perform a review.
Within weeks of stopping the discharge, the water quality has improved in the Chedoke Creek area. Sample reports show that E.coli levels dropped and are similar to levels before the leaked sewage.
Hamiltonians continue to rage on social media and search for answers to why the City kept this under wraps for so long.
I just can’t even form words to describe how I feel reading this….
EXCLUSIVE: Hamilton city council, staff have kept a 24-billion litre sewage spill secret | https://t.co/CWcCM0j16g https://t.co/sx5fQxo5wp
— Dr. JoannaWilson, she/her (@WilsonToxLab) November 21, 2019
This is unacceptable and should be remembered on Election Day. #HamOnt
Hamilton city council, staff have kept a 24-billion litre sewage spill secret https://t.co/qO92wTgGIE
— Wade Poziomka (@WPoziomka) November 21, 2019
The cover up is the most recent in a growing number of scandals the City of Hamilton has faced this year, including the unraveling of a report about known low friction levels on the Red Hill Valley Parkway as well as the known employment of a City employee who once led a Canadian white supremacist organization. These scandals and more have contributed to a growing distrust in City Council and have led many to speculate what other known issues are being withheld from the public.
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