PCB Cleanup on Lake to Begin

The Nova Scotia government will spend $2 million dredging PCB-contaminated sediment from the delta and north bay of Five Island Lake this summer, said Clifford Huskilson, Minister of Transportation and Public Works.

"The community and government have worked diligently to reach this point, and I am very pleased funding has been earmarked in yesterday's budget to move into the first phase of the lake cleanup," said Minister Huskilson.

PCB, or polychlorinated biphenyls, contamination affected the community and lake system as a result of improper disposal practices during the 1960s and 1970s at an electronics salvage yard. About 75 per cent of the contamination is within Five Island Lake's small north bay.

The plan, developed in co-operation with a citizens' liaison committee, calls for dredging sediment from the lake, removing water from the sediment and storing the sediment in an onshore cell. Dredging of the north bay will be conducted in two phases, with the first phase to be carried out this summer. A community meeting to discuss this plan is to be held later this month.

"We are pleased that the government has dedicated this $2 million funding to clean our community," said John Hoyt, chairman of the liaison committee. "It's encouraging to see that government is taking action on the top priority of the committee --to remove the sediments from North Bay."

The Department of Transportation and Public Works has been managing the cleanup since 1994. Since that time the department has collected and contained contaminated soils from the salvage yard, neighbouring properties and an adjacent brook. Monitoring wells test groundwater quality in the area. A boat launch was constructed for boaters of north bay, and a weir was built as a control structure during the dredging and to discourage boating in the lake's north bay.

Pilot dredge testing was carried out last year to verify that this scientific and technical method was the correct choice for this sediment. It worked successfully.

Earlier this year, 14 of 52 containers of contaminated soil, which came from nearby properties, were sent to Quebec for destruction. Three properties were purchased as part of the cleanup plan. Including today's announcement, funding for this project totals about $6 million.

"A clean environment is an investment in future generations," said Finance Minister Don Downe. "The government is demonstrating our commitment to this belief by supporting important environmental cleanup projects and initiatives across Nova Scotia."

The work is expected to begin this July.

"We hope the co-operative efforts of Five Island Lake residents and government continue," said Mr. Huskilson. "The consultative efforts have obviously been successful."