'Acres and acres' of sewage in river from Sault plant - Mich. official
Ontario Soo Denies Charge
6/28 - Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., is dumping on Sugar Island, says a Michigan state representative. Democrat Gary McDowell was on the St. Mary's River Monday to inspect for himself long-standing complaints from residents across from the Canadian Sault's east-end sewage treatment plant that discharges are fouling their waters.
He said his nose led him to the plant's discharge pipe. "When you're out there, it's so obvious. Right at the outlet, it's coming out. Even if you didn't see the floaties and the colour (of the water), the smell takes right there," McDowell said Tuesday from Lansing, Mich. "It was absolutely horrible. I was just aghast. It was worse than anything I expected.
"You start to come up to it and you just see acres of sewage. "It's literally sickening what's happening out there."
The Chippewa County Health Department's director of environmental health accompanied McDowell. David Martin, who has taken samples from the river at Sugar Island numerous times, called the level of sewage "unbelievable" Monday.
"It's the worst discharge I've ever seen. Maybe it's going on more than I realized. There were acres and acres and acres of floating sewage, partially untreated sewage," Martin said Tuesday. Like McDowell, he said there's "no question" it's originating from the Ontario Sault.
Sault, Ont., has repeatedly denied raw sewage is being released into the water. Don Elliott, manager of construction and environmental engineering, said earlier this week some speculate what they see is "pollution from years past, from both cities. . . . The water warms, the thought is, and the sludge gasses up and floats to the top."
The 46-year-old plant, which treats the majority of municipal sewage, is in the midst of upgrades that are expected to be completed this summer to get Sault Ste. Marie secondary treatment. The Sault and a handful of other communities were singled out for having just primary treatment in the 2003/04 annual report of the Environmental Commissioner of Ontario, Gord Miller.
By coincidence, Miller was also on the St. Mary's Monday. He described taking a boat out to the discharge pipe and watching dredging work being done, and called it "reassuring" the Sault is joining the rest of the province. "You, Kingston and Thunder Bay were the only ones left. It's good to see that in a short time, they'll all be on line," Miller said in an interview.
From the Sault Ontario Star
Spilled Sewage Fouls St. Marys River
6/28 - Sault Ste. Marie - “There is no question where it is coming from,” said State Rep. Gary McDowell of the raw sewage streaming into the St. Marys River from Canada. “It didn't take a whole lot to put two and two together.”
McDowell was part of a contingent traveling along the waterway at the request of Sugar Island residents Wayne Welch and D. J. Bumstead. Others on the trip included Chippewa County Chairman Earl Kay, along with Dave Martin and Jim German representing the Chippewa County Health Department.
“What we found was the most appalling, sickening thing I think I have ever seen in my life,” said McDowell. “I just couldn't believe how bad the situation was.” McDowell said to see the beautiful St. Marys River awash in raw sewage “makes you sick to your stomach.” This, from a self-described old farm boy who has shoveled manure in bare feet without batting an eye. “You could see it (the raw sewage) floating on top,” he said, adding the filth covered “acres” of waterway.
If this situation was occurring in any other Eastern Upper Peninsula waterway, McDowell speculated it would only be a matter of hours before state officials brought a quick resolution to the problem. With the Canadian sewage going into international waters, however, the solution is not as easy. McDowell said the first thing he did after returning from his Monday afternoon boat ride was contact Congressman Bart Stupak (D-Menominee), seeking additional allies in the effort to get this mess cleaned up.
“We have to work with the federal government and the Canadian government,” he said. “It's not going to be an easy solution.” McDowell also explained that even though the sewage was coming from Canada, he did not blame the people of Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario for the discharge. “The Canadian people are good people,” said McDowell. “They have to stand up to their government.”
From the Soo Evening News
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