‘No immediate risk’ from 2.5-million-litre effluent spill from B.C. fibreboard plant
Advertisement
Read this article for free:
or
Already have an account? Log in here »
To continue reading, please subscribe:
Digital Subscription
One year of digital access for only $1.44 a week*
- Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
- Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
- Access News Break, our award-winning app
- Play interactive puzzles
*Billed as $5.77 plus GST every four weeks. After 52 weeks, price increases to the regular rate of $19.95 plus GST every four weeks. Offer available to new and qualified returning subscribers only. Cancel any time.
To continue reading, please subscribe:
Add Free Press access to your Brandon Sun subscription for only an additional
$1 for the first 4 weeks*
- Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
- Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
- Access News Break, our award-winning app
- Play interactive puzzles
*Your next Brandon Sun subscription payment will increase by $1.00 and you will be charged $17.95 plus GST for four weeks. After four weeks, your payment will increase to $24.95 plus GST every four weeks.
Read unlimited articles for free today:
or
Already have an account? Log in here »
Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 18/04/2024 (915 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
QUESNEL, B.C. – British Columbia’s Environment Ministry says a 2.5-million-litre effluent spill from a fibreboard factory in Quesnel doesn’t pose any immediate risk to public safety.
It says in a statement that Monday’s spill from the WestPine Medium-Density Fibreboard plant into a gravel pit has been assessed and no waterways have been affected.
Factory owner West Fraser says in a statement that a valve on a failed line between the factory and a pulp mill has been replaced, and the cleanup effort is complete.
West Fraser spokeswoman Joyce Wagenaar says in the statement that the effluent is within B.C.’s water quality safety levels, based on an initial evaluation.
She says the effluent is “water softener backwash” that contains concentrations of calcium carbonate and chloride.
The ministry says an environmental emergency officer intends to visit the site this week to confirm West Fraser is taking appropriate action.
“Northern Health, and the First Nations Health Authority have been notified, and thus far, they have not raised any concerns regarding public health impacts, particularly related to drinking water,” the ministry statement said.
“Currently, the ministry does not perceive an imminent or acute risk to the environment.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 18, 2024.
