Cape Breton woman concerned about health, environment after chemical spill outside home
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Eileen Stewart is calling on the Cape Breton Regional Municipality to take action after a snowplow leaked chemicals on the street behind her house.
On Jan. 19, a snowplow broke down at the corner of Bay Street and Webster Street in Whitney Pier. The spill coloured the snow yellow and smells of diesel.
Stewart said she believes the chemical is diesel due to the strong smell and colour. The municipality said it’s a 10-litre spill of hydraulic fluid.
“There are some dogs that run around in the neighbourhood here as well and I’m worried about their health,” said Stewart.
“I also live with people with asthma and those sorts of conditions and it’s not cleaned up. I’m concerned for the environment. I’m concerned [it’s] sinking into the ground.”
The Department of Environment confirmed a piece of hydraulic line on the plow ruptured and released fluid. It said inspectors responded and determined the release was minor.
The municipality is responsible for snow removal in Whitney Pier and hires Delio’s Property Management Services Ltd. to do so.
CBRM spokesperson Jenna MacQueen said it’s the contractor’s responsibility to clean up any chemical spills from their snowplows.
She said Delio’s did clean up the spill, and the municipality had the Department of Environment assess the site afterward.
“Environment is satisfied that there’s no environmental risk at this point and that every effort was made to clean up the leak,” said MacQueen. “Our understanding now is that the contractor has fulfilled their duty to clean the leak.”
Stewart disagrees. She said she’s not satisfied with the cleanup attempt by the contractor.
“I saw that there was literally one scoop of snow shovelled out of the pile from my property and that was it. I didn’t see any other proof that there was a cleanup,” said Stewart.
CBC News contacted Delio’s Property Management Services, but did not hear back in time for publication.
Stewart said another snowplow has since pushed the chemical-soaked snow onto her property. She’s worried about what will happen when the snow melts the fluid into her soil.
MacQueen said the municipality follows the advice of the experts at the Department of Environment.
“If there’s experts telling us that there’s additional steps to take, the municipality of course will take those to make sure that the safety of our residents is, of course, considered.”
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