City of Regina says leak from Co-op refinery made its way into Wascana Creek

The City of Regina says oil from a leak at the Co-op refinery has made its way into and out of Wascana Creek.

The city discovered the oil in its wastewater collection system on May 22 and notified the Water Security Agency, the Ministry of Environment and the Co-op Refinery Complex (CRC).

"Despite our quick action, no municipal wastewater treatment plant is designed to treat for this type of event," said Regina's director of water, wastewater and environment Kurtis Doney.

Doney said the "majority" of the material was isolated in city lagoons, but testing showed some oil was released with effluent into Wascana Creek.

On May 29, the WSA told the city to notify downstream users in the Qu'Appelle River system of the leak and determined it to be "low-risk" with "no action is required at this time."

He did not say how much oil was discovered at the city facility or how much may have made its way into Wascana Creek.

"We first discovered the hydrocarbons in our main wastewater pumping station. That was diverted into lagoons and the wastewater that leaves Wascana Creek was treated as part of our process and there were small amounts of hydrocarbons that were identified leaving Wascana Creek."

Doney said the city and EPCOR, which operates the wastewater treatment plant, are testing the plant, Wascana Creek and the Qu'Appelle River.

He said the city is not aware of hydrocarbons having got out of the wastewater treatment plant in the past.

The city has an effluent agreement with CRC.

When asked if the city would fine CRC, Doney said, "the City of Regina is working through a full investigation which includes tracking all of our costs. We will continue that investigation and looking to recoup any costs."

CRC blames strong and sustained winds for causing leak

A statement from CRC on Friday said the leak was discovered on May 22. CRC said the situation was immediately isolated.

"Strong and sustained winds leading up to the date of the incident resulted in stirring up sediments in the pond resulting in a discharge of sludge into the sewage system," the CRC statement said. 

On Saturday, the union representing 700 locked out employees at the CRC put out a statement calling for a full investigation.

Unifor Local 594 president Kevin Bittman, a 23-year CRC employee, said that although he didn't have all the details about what caused the leak, he felt CRC's explanation didn't have merit.

"To say that it was winds that caused that, to me, without a thorough investigation, how do we determine that?" he said.

Regina Ward 3 City Councillor Andrew Stevens expressed concerns over the leak and why it was reported and discovered by the city and not the CRC.

Stevens said he wants clarity on how the city can fine and regulate industry within its jurisdiction.