Sault oil spill leaves mayor disappointed, nearby town shuts off water intake

Sault Ste. Marie Mayor Christian Provenzano told CTV News he is disappointed and concerned that an oil spill happened at Algoma Steel, resulting in the brief closure of the St. Marys River and leading public health to issue a water advisory.

Sault Ste. Marie Mayor Christian Provenzano says he is disappointed and concerned about the oil spill at Algoma Steel. June 10/22 (Mike McDonald/CTV Northern Ontario)

"I don’t think in today’s day in age, with the technology at our disposal, with the importance of maintaining our natural environment, with the critical importance of maintaining the integrity of our waterways ... these types of things should no longer happen," Provenzano said.

Adding he’s been in contact with senior management at Algoma Steel since the spill was first reported.

Malcolm White is the chief administrative officer for the City of Sault Ste. Marie. He told CTV news the municipality was first made aware of the spill by one of its employees.

"That actually came from one of our staff who had come into work in the morning at the Civic Centre and had noted it and notified fire," White said.

"Fire Services responded to this area at a couple of points to start assessing what it was."

Provenzano said he is encouraged by what he calls a "genuine and sincere" conversation with the steel company's new CEO, Michael Garcia.

"As we transition from the technology that we are using and have been using for a hundred years, to the new technology that we will be using when we’re done the transition to the new technology and the new facility, I think it will be better for our environment," the mayor said.

"So, I’m encouraged by that. But, in the meantime, we have to do what we need to do to make sure these types of things do not happen."

The U.S. Coast Guard said around 20,000 litres of oil spilled at the steel plant Thursday.

Ontario's Ministry of Environment said earlier in the day most of the oil spilled at Algoma Steel fell on the ground, but some also entered the city's wastewater system.

Officials on both sides of the U.S-Canadian border are working together on the cleanup.

"We continue to work closely with the Ministry of Environment, Conservation, and Parks and all other authorities engaged in mitigating any potential impact from yesterday morning’s spill incident," Algoma Steel said in a statement Friday afternoon.

"While a thorough internal investigation will be conducted, at the moment all of our resources are committed to doing what needs to be done to protect the environment."

The waterway was closed for a short period Thursday and has not affected the municipal water supply in the Sault.

"The intakes for our municipal supply are wells that are inland or from Lake Superior, which is upstream from the spill,” the city's CAO said.

"So, we don’t have concerns at this point about the municipal water supply."

However, it is a different story about 25 kilometres east of the Sault.

To avoid potential contamination, the nearby Township of Macdonald, Meredith & Aberdeen Additional -- also known as the Village of Echo Bay -- has turned off the intake pipe for the water plant and is asking residents to conserve water.

"Our water tower has a supply of water for a number of days to service Echo Bay," the town said in a news release Friday afternoon.

"Ontario Clean Water Agency has a contingency plan to truck water to our plant to ensure we have a water supply until Algoma Public Health can confirm the safety of the water. This advisory will remain in effect until samples confirm the safety of the water and Algoma Public Health lifts their advisory."

The Village of Echo Bay sign and water tower. Sept. 25/11 (Greying_Geezer/flickr)

 

(Photo credit Greying_Geezer/flikr Sept. 25/11)

Echo Bay has a population of 1,513 people, according to the 2021 census.

Algoma Public Health is warning people located east of Algoma Steel and Great Lakes Power who are not on the municipal water system about the risk of water contamination.

"Do not drink, swim, bathe or shower with this water," the health unit said.