Fish-kill 911 attracts lots of officials, but problems persist
Frustrated resident says salmon creek's still 'a private dump'
Kent Spencer, The Province
Published: Thursday, October 09, 2008
A half-dozen agencies responded to a recent fish kill in Surrey, but the area still looks like a garbage dump, says a disgruntled resident.
Greg Banfield is upset that so many government personnel attended to the dead salmon fry but did so little to clean up or find the cause of the fatal oil spill.
"Do we have to bust our heads against a concrete wall for somebody to do something? B.C. Pacific salmon were red-listed as a threatened species this week," a frustrated Banfield said yesterday.
The kill, which Banfield reported to authorities on Sept. 27, occurred in a city-owned ditch between the 7800 and 8000 blocks of Harvie Road.
"There were clusters of 50 dead salmon fry. There had to be 500 floating on the surface," said Banfield, a construction manager who walks in the area with his wife.
"Two weeks later, there is still a five-gallon oilcan nearby and what looks like a private dump."
The fish-bearing watercourse is a tributary of Latimer Creek, which flows into the Serpentine River.
After Banfield alerted authorities, numerous personnel showed up, including bylaw officers, firefighters, conservation officers, the province's Ministry of Environment, the federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans and hazardous-material officers.
Although the oil spill extended for 300 metres, Banfield said all the authorities did was remove an abandoned trailer at the south, or downstream, end of the ditch.
"The true nature of the incident was never investigated. The oil slick extended farther up from the trailer," he said.
"People are ripping apart trailers for aluminum. I've seen insulation lying on the ground. Wire is being stripped. It looks like a private garbage dump."
Last week, city council approved a new Sustainability Charter, which it said would provide state-of-the-art protection to city waterways.
Banfield wonders if Surrey's charter is more about good intentions than serious enforcement.
"The Sustainability Charter is not working," said Banfield. "This is one more salmon run which is not coming back."
In the course of Province interviews with Surrey staff, the incident was initially downplayed. Staff felt a good job had been done and there was little more to the incident.
A briefing note by Surrey fire Chief Len Garis, supplied to The Province, referred only to "several small fish" being killed.
Garis said that a towing company removed the trailer, which held propane and gas, and placed containment booms.
"The containment operation was effective," wrote Garis, adding further investigation was needed because the trailer may not have been the source of the problem.
Surrey Mayor Dianne Watts, in an interview after staff had rechecked the site, said the city is investigating.
"We've got someone who's dumping recklessly. If we catch the individual, criminal charges will be laid," she said.
"Dumping is unacceptable. We've got people who dump and leave and we've got other properties where people think it's OK to dump.
"We won't tolerate that sort of behaviour, especially near the rivers and creeks."
Kate Thompson, Environment Ministry spokeswoman, said officials are still investigating.
The Department of Fisheries could not be reached.
kspencer@theprovince.com© The Vancouver Province
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Topic: Fish Kill (Read 3970 times)