N.W.T. town's water not at risk from spill, say Alberta officials
Response team says spill is contained and presents no threat to Hay River's drinking water
Alberta officials have told Hay River, N.W.T., its drinking water is not at risk from an oil company’s massive waste water spill near Zama City.
A pipeline operated by Apache Canada Limited leaked 9.5 million litres of industrial waste water about 20 kilometres from Zama City, Alta., a community near the Northwest Territories border.
Ross Potter, Hay River’s Emergency Measures Organization co-ordinator, said he had been in contact with the Alberta Environment Support and Emergency Response Team dealing with water resources and was told that the spill is contained and that it presents no threat to the Hay River area.
The spill was reported June 1. Waste water extracted during oil and natural gas operations contains oil, gas, salt and other minerals.
Apache said the nearby Zama River has not been affected by the leak, which has been plugged. The Zama River is a tributary for rivers further north, including the Hay River in the N.W.T.
Potter said he would be staying in contact with AESERT until the situation is resolved.