DETROIT — State officials planned to test drinking water at 12 municipal water plants over concerns that contaminants up to 40 years old from a dredging site in the St. Clair River might have spread downstream.
Sediments in the river contain a range of chemicals dumped there over the years by a Dow Chemical Co. (NYSE: DOW), Midland, MI, plant in Sarnia, Ontario, the Detroit News reported [below].
The state Department of Environmental Quality planned tests at intake pipes along the St. Clair River, Lake St. Clair and the Detroit River Tuesday to see if high levels of mercury and other heavy metals, as well as oils, gases and organic compounds, were stirred up during dredging, the newspaper reported.
The dredge site is south of Sarnia, across the river from the Marysville water plant in St. Clair County.
About 6 million people in southeast Michigan get their drinking water from water treatment plants along the lake and river, said Doug Martz, chair of the Macomb Water Quality Board, which prompted the state to conduct the tests, the News reported.
Catherine Creber, a spokeswoman for Dow Chemical of Canada, said dredging to remove the contaminants from 2,300 cubic meters of sediment from the river bottom started last week.
Contaminants in the sediment on the bottom of the St. Clair River were discharged by Dow as far back as the 1950s, according to the article, which reported that the Ontario Ministry of the Environment and Dow conducted tests 28 May after the company started the dredging.
The ministry also had boats in the area to see if the sediment was being released, but none was detected, Ministry spokesman Gary Johnson said in the article.
Dow was slated to spend CAD$15.3 million (US$10 million) this spring to help clean contaminants from the river bottom, the News reported.
source: http://www.waternet.com/news.asp?mode=4&n_ID=31882 5jun02
MT. CLEMENS -- The state will test drinking water Tuesday at a dozen municipal water plants over concerns that mercury and other contaminants from a dredging site in the St. Clair River may have flowed downstream.
Sediments in the river contain a wide range of chemicals dumped there over the years by Dow Chemical in Sarnia, Ontario.
The state Department of Environmental Quality plans to conduct the tests at intake pipes along the St. Clair River, Lake St. Clair and the Detroit River to see if contaminants were stirred up during dredging.
The Metro Detroit communities where testing will be done are Mt. Clemens, Grosse Pointe Farms, Detroit, New Baltimore and plants along the Michigan side of the St. Clair River.
Catherine Creber, a spokeswoman for Dow Chemical of Canada, said Michigan and Ontario environmental officials believe no contaminants will be found in the drinking water. The tests will be conducted as a safeguard, state officials said.
The dredge site is south of Sarnia, across the river from the Marysville drinking water plant in St. Clair County.
About 6 million people in southeast Michigan get their drinking water from water treatment plants along the lake and river, said Doug Martz, chairman of the Macomb Water Quality Board, which prompted the state to conduct the tests.
"This is a safety net. I hope they don't find anything," Martz said.
Dredging to remove the contaminants from 3,000 cubic yards of sediment from the river bottom started last Tuesday. About 360 cubic yards have been dredged so far, Creber said.
About 28,000 cubic yards will be removed from the river later this year and in 2003, Creber added.
The contaminants in the sediment on the bottom of the St. Clair River were discharged by Dow as far back as the 1950s.
The Ontario Ministry of the Environment and Dow Chemical of Canada conducted tests last Tuesday after the company started the dredging. The ministry also had boats in the area to see if the sediment was being released. None was detected, said Gary Johnson, spokesman for the ministry.
Tests conducted as far as 22 1/2 miles downstream showed no dangerous levels of contaminants, such as mercury, were found in the water, Creber said.
Bryce Feighner, a supervising district engineer with the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality, said he inspected the test results and is satisfied that Michigan drinking water is not in peril.
"All of the sample results were within drinking water standards," Feighner said. "We will sample all drinking water plants just to satisfy public concern. I think it is worth it if the public is genuinely concerned about drinking-water safety."
Michigan scientists will test Tuesday for high levels of mercury and other heavy metals, as well as oils, gases and organic compounds.
Martz and Oakland University professor Linda Schweitzer plan to conduct private tests today and Tuesday of water downstream from the Dow Chemical of Canada dredge site.
Mt. Clemens' Water Treatment Plant draws from a point in Lake St. Clair that is 20 miles downstream of Dow. Charles Bellmore, the plant's supervisor, said he is relieved last week's tests in the St. Clair River showed no contaminants were released from the dredge site.
"If the state is confident, I'll put my confidence in them," Bellmore said. "My primary concern was for mercury and volatile organic compounds. Lake St. Clair is full of mercury, and we feel it is the result of discharges from the St. Clair River."
Lake St. Clair was closed to fishing in 1969 because of high levels of mercury in sport fish. It was reopened to fishing a year later when the levels declined.
The mercury was traced to discharges from Canadian chemical companies along the St. Clair River.
You can reach Gene Schabath at (586) 468-3614 or gschabath@detnews.com.
|
If you have come to this page from an outside location click here to get back to mindfully.org |