Fallout from spill could linger for 20-30 years
Saskatchewan’s environment minister says the province has started to monitor several surface and subsurface locations on the North Saskatchewan River in an effort to determine the next steps in its response to a Husky Oil pipeline leak that spilled more than 200,000 litres into the river.
“We’re expecting some of the first results to come back very soon,” Environment Minister Herb Cox said Tuesday. “We’re monitoring both the sheen on the surface and we’re monitoring the subsurface areas, so there is going to be different results coming back from each of these areas and different areas in the river.”
Experts at the University of Saskatchewan’s Toxicology Centre said the acute effects of the spill will be gone within weeks, if not days, but remnants of the oil may remain for years to come.
John Giesy, the Canada Research Chair in Environmental Toxicology at the U of S, said the North Saskatchewan River will recover, but the timeline is dependent on numerous factors.
Oil being transferred in the pipe will eventually separate from chemicals in the pipeline used to help it travel freely, he said.
“That’s what can accumulate onto beaches, onto sand, onto vegetation and onto sediment. That can persist for a long time.
“Are we talking centuries? Probably not. But 20 (to) 30 years? Possibly.”
He said oil can collect under rocks and in sediment, where interactions with the environment are limited, but the oil is still present. How much will remain buried depends on numerous factors, like the speed of response, the amount of oil recovered and the speed at which the plume travels and separates on the river.
“The good news is that when it’s buried like that, it’s generally not interacting with people or wildlife,” Giesy said. “But that can be a continual, low-level source of materials dissolving into the water. It might be detectable and it might not, but that could go on for a long period of time.”
He said more tests would need to be conducted before he could provide insight into how that dilution may affect humans, but it’s important to monitor the situation closely in the coming years.
Members of the NDP Opposition said they feel the province should be doing more to address the situation and ensure there is safe and reliable drinking water for communities.
“On the ground, local leadership have come together and are doing all they can,” NDP Leader Trent Wotherspoon said.
“But it would appear on many fronts that this premier and cabinet have been missing in action in recognizing what a disaster this is and how it’s compromised this incredibly important and vital river.”
Cox said he’s contacted several mayors in affected municipalities, noting other government ministries have been contacting elected officials throughout the province as well.
He conceded that communication from the government may have been slow to start.
“In all fairness, there maybe was a little bit of a lack of communication at the beginning, because as you can imagine, everything was happening pretty fast,” he said. “But I can say that I think the communication lines have been open and have been working very well in the past couple of days.”
Nicole Rancourt, NDP MLA for Prince Albert-Northcote, said she has received no information from the province regarding her riding, adding she has been getting “100 per cent” of her information from municipal leaders.
On Tuesday afternoon, Premier Brad Wall thanked workers via Twitter for their efforts to ensure people affected by the spill have water, adding that he and Minister of Government Relations Jim Reiter will continue to “reach out to community leaders along the river to offer any additional help from the province.”
Husky Energy Inc., which has claimed responsibility for the spill, said in a statement on Tuesday that it is “committed to completing a full and thorough investigation, in active cooperation with the relevant authorities.”