Correspondence regarding Pollution in Portage Inlet

Pollution in Portage Inlet

Sent: February-17-17 5:53 PM To: Mayor And Council Email; Lindsay Chase Subject: Pollution in Portage Inlet

Dear Mayor Screech, Councilors , and Lindsay Chase,

This is to all of you, as I suspect that you may not be aware that Portage Inlet has been polluted by sewage.

The contractors currently working on the McKenzie interchange I feel sure signed agreements stating that they would proceed in an environmentally friendly way, given their proximity to the Colquitz.

Not only did they cause a huge spill of silt into the Colquitz right in the middle of the salmon run for that stream, they then, unbeknown to anyone in seems, in Saanich, diverted their surface sediment runoff from their site into the Saanich sewer infrastructure. Sewage then flowed from a manhole on private property into the Colquitz for 6 hours. Once in December, and again February 10th. This is when there are migrating Coho, herring, and Cutthroat Trout in the area, and of course migratory birds.

I am sending you the above photographs because:

I want to point out it is the blue listed Great Blue Heron, one of three remaining on the Inlet. This one feeds beside my dock, and it is an offence to disturb their feeding areas.
That brown soup like substance is the water around my dock. Having lived here for over 40 years, I have NEVER seen it is such a disgusting state of silt pollution. So what will happen to the ghost shrimp that live under my dock and on which the Herons and migratory birds feed? No one has been around to let us know how these spills will affect our environment.

My concerns are:

A) We were not told of the sewage/silt contamination . People are in contact with that water for recreation all the time. B) This body of water at the end of the Gorge takes at least 7 years to clear. C) Like it or not we DO.. . YOU do have a duty of care to our urban sanctuaries.

Just as we are constantly told that every car taken off the street is of benefit to the environment, every spill into our sanctuary and incident of pollution compounds the harm.

My greatest concern now is that obviously Christie Point mega-project will go ahead at full speed. It will require massive earthworks to dig out that basement parking area. How much pollution will THEY put into the Inlet? These Mckenzie Interchange characters promised to be "green" and environmentally friendly. At this rate, by the time Christie Point is built, one of those amenities you are asking for may need to be a big box of rubber ducks as there will be nothing left for birds to feed on in the Inlet.

I expect no response, this is for your information, in the hope that you will hold the Christie Point "wolves in sheep's clothing" to a higher standard than the Ministry of Transport is managing for that crew down the road.

Yours sincerely, Lindsay Critchley