The City of Victoria is investigating the source of milky-white water in a creek that flows into the Gorge Waterway, but says there is no information to suggest cause for alarm for swimmers as it awaits testing results.
The city and Ministry of Environment traced the storm catchment to determine where the pollution was coming from, sending a letter to residents and business owners in the area on July 12 informing them of reports of “unusual white, cloudy water” discharged into Cecelia Creek, which flows into the Gorge Waterway.
The city, CRD and neighbouring municipalities are investigating the source to prevent further contamination.
William Doyle, acting director of engineering and public works, told media on Tuesday that the city is looking into a “very, very concerning” social-media post that caught the attention of staff, who reported it to the Ministry of Environment and the Department of Fisheries and Oceans.
The since-deleted Reddit post alleged a semi-industrial operation in the Burnside-Gorge area has dumped close to one million litres of “chemically altered water” with high bromine and heavy metal concentrations as well as chemicals into a nearby storm drain.
The poster, who said they work at the business, said the storm drain is just a block or two from a creek, and that milky water in Cecelia Creek — documented July 8 in an image posted on X — is likely a result of dumping by their company.
The poster said they wanted to report the pollution, but were worried about losing their job. They did not respond to a Reddit message requesting an interview.
Many commenters who responded to the poster explained how to report the dumping, and some advised the poster to remove the post to protect themselves from potential retaliation by an employer.
The city is conducting an investigation in the catchment area where it’s alleged the dumping occurred, but cannot confirm anything at this point or link the allegations to the discharge documented in Cecelia Creek, Doyle said.
“We do not have information that would suggest a cause for alarm at this time. We’re working closely with our partners to verify and pursue all suggestions that have been put forward. And if that changes, we will certainly let the public know,” Doyle said.
Test results are expected Wednesday that could provide more information, he said.
A city bylaw bans disposing contaminated water, including paint wash water, drywall wash water, sediment-laden water and concrete slurry, into the stormwater system.
“Any harmful substances that enter the stormwater system can damage and degrade this important ecological habitat,” the city’s July 12 letter says.
Staff from the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Strategy are on site working closely with all partners involved to “understand the source of the spill.”
Spills can be reported to the provincial spill reporting line: 1-800-663-3456.
Saanich crews are also assisting the ministry to investigate a potential spill in the Cecelia Creek area, a district spokesperson said. It has not yet been determined which municipality the spill originated from, a district spokesperson said.
“It’s quite a shocking amount of water for it to be true, so hopefully it isn’t,” said Brad Procter, executive director of Gorge Waterway Action Society.
The society received an email from someone July 6 who claimed to have witnessed potential illegal dumping in Cecelia Creek, he said.
The incident serves as a reminder that anything that goes into a storm drain usually ends up in a waterway completely unfiltered, he said. Anyone who sees wastewater poured into a storm drain should report it to the municipality and the CRD, he said.
The Gorge has been through cycles of development resulting in pollution but is currently in a good spot, after a low point in the 1990s, Procter said.
“We’ve all worked hard to clean the Gorge up and we’re really interested in ending the cycle of cleanup, degradation, cleanup, degradation, cleanup, and so with that in mind, we really encourage anybody to report any spills they see,” he said.
