Seaway Oil Spill Cleanup Expected to Last a Week

Oil collected along the Kahnawake shoreline yesterday (pictured).

Cleanup of the first-ever oil spill in the St. Lawrence Seaway in Montreal has begun and is expected to last a week, Canada Steamship Lines officials announced.

CSL, as the owner of the vessel which leaked the fuel, has committed to paying for the job. The cost of the operation is still unknown.

Over the next week, boats equipped with special filters will push the fuel (a hybrid of diesel and heavy oil) onto the shore where it will then be collected manually and disposed of. Much of the fuel has already been carried to shore by waves and wind. Nearly all the fuel has been confined to parts of the north side of the canal, and behind floating boom on the south side due to winds.

More than 30 staff of Eastern Canada Response Corporation, a certified oil spill cleanup company, will be at work on the canal.

The oil leak happened on Monday night when the M/V Richelieu, a cargo ship carrying wheat and headed to the Port of Montreal, stopped near Ste. Catherine. Strong winds caused the ship to roll over its anchor and puncture a reserve fuel tank, leaking fuel into the canal.

The quantity of leaked oil is is estimated to be between 1 & 20 tonnes. The remaining fuel is now being pumped out of the ship's 204-tonne tank.

It is not clear whether the seaway will open before the cleanup ends. By yesterday afternoon, 10 ships were waiting to go through the corridor. (On average, between eight and 10 ships go through the seaway each day.)

Provincial officials have reassured nearby municipalities that drinking water is safe because the spill does not affect the river.

As of yesterday evening, no other birds or wildlife were affected by the spill. However, residents have been advised to not fish along the Ste. Catherine shoreline while the cleanup is under way, although is still safe to fish along other parts of the canal.

A steel plate will be welded over the 10-meter gash in the side of the M/V Richelieu. It is expected to sail to Quebec City at the end of the week to unload its cargo and undergo repairs.