As IqaluitSA国际影视传媒檚 drinking water crisis carries on toward a full month, thereSA国际影视传媒檚 still much unknown about a historical fuel spill detected near the water treatment plant in late October.

What is clear is that the Qulliq Energy CorporationSA国际影视传媒檚 Iqaluit power plant stands near the citySA国际影视传媒檚 water treatment plant, and the power generation site has experienced numerous toxic spills over decades.

There was a 10 to 15 litre fuel spill at the plant as recently as October, when a flex line was being replaced, but QEC president and CEO Rick Hunt assured that the fuel was contained within a berm, as confirmed by a subsequent investigation.

QEC also had a 300-litre spill of glycol, water and SA国际影视传媒渁 little fuel and oilSA国际影视传媒� at the Iqaluit power plant in February, which was also SA国际影视传媒渜uickly and efficiently contained and cleaned,SA国际影视传媒� according to Hunt.

SA国际影视传媒淒epartment of Environment staff have recently inspected the location of the spill and indicated that there were no further concerns,SA国际影视传媒� he stated.

Hunt noted that QEC has automated and manual systems continually monitoring fuel levels at the Iqaluit power plant. Staff perform daily visual inspections of the fuel tanks and surrounding areas. Fuel pipes are looked over prior to and during fuel transfers. All spills that occurred in the last 20 years have been immediately contained and remediated, he added.

But the toxic spills at the site predate the QECSA国际影视传媒檚 two decades of existence. Some stretch back into the 1970s and involved as much as 4,546 litres of diesel on a single occasion: Oct. 30, 1974. There is no documented clean-up record from that incident. Several other toxic spills, including 2,455 litres of glycol in July 1999 and 1,136 litres of diesel in January 1977, are also listed as SA国际影视传媒渘o information availableSA国际影视传媒� in regards to how the contaminants were dealt with after they hit the ground.

SA国际影视传媒淭he Government of Canada is responsible for the majority of legacy contamination on QEC sites based upon the principle of SA国际影视传媒榩olluter pays,SA国际影视传媒橲A国际影视传媒� Hunt said.

Catherine Forget, communications adviser with the Department of Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC), directed Nunavut News to a website listing sites that the Government of Canada has agreed to remediate. Among the 27 locations listed in Iqaluit, the power plant is not one of them.

Forget noted that ECCC is currently managing two contaminated sites in the city: Iqaluit Canadian Ice Services (Building 1082) and the Iqaluit Upper Air Station.

Some of the fuel spills that occurred at the Iqaluit power plant date back to the 1970s. Forget said the amount of time required for hydrocarbons to biodegrade in the ground varies depending on the type of fuel, nutrient levels and temperature.

Diesel spills can be remediated through natural processes over a period of weeks SA国际影视传媒渦nder optimal conditions,SA国际影视传媒� she noted, but that would entail warmer ambient temperatures. Heavier oils would take longer to break down.

Other factors include the availability of oxygen, the presence of moisture and the SA国际影视传媒渋nteraction between the hydrocarbon, the soil types and bacteria or microbes that degrade oils. These oil-degrading microbes can be found in virtually all environments,SA国际影视传媒� she said.

A decision whether to dig up and remove fuel spills or to leave them in the ground depends on the numerous aforementioned circumstances and is determined through site-specific risk assessments, she added.

SA国际影视传媒楴ot speculatingSA国际影视传媒�

As of Nov. 2, the City of Iqaluit wasnSA国际影视传媒檛 yet prepared to place blame for the fuel spill that recently tainted the local water supply.

SA国际影视传媒淎s this is an ongoing investigation, we are not speculating who is responsible at this time,SA国际影视传媒� was the official response from city hall, which also declined to acknowledge whether there has been any communication with QEC or its predecessors about historical fuel spills at the power plant.

The municipality is also unsure why the water treatment plant was built next to the power plant in 1962.

SA国际影视传媒淲e have not located documentation regarding this location, however, this location was probably proposed given the water treatment plantSA国际影视传媒檚 proximity to Lake Geraldine and its ability to distribute water to the community via gravity feed at the time of the build,SA国际影视传媒� city hall stated.

Relocating the municipal facility to another site is not in the citySA国际影视传媒檚 SA国际影视传媒渋mmediate capital plans,SA国际影视传媒� it was stated.

Work is ongoing to determine the cost to clean up historical contamination at the Iqaluit power plant, and at other contaminated sites across the territory, according to the Government of Nunavut.

SA国际影视传媒淭he cost estimates for these legacy sites are still being tabulated,SA国际影视传媒� stated the GNSA国际影视传媒檚 Department of Environment, which leads the Contaminated Sites Working Group and engages the federal government on the issue.

The topic was last discussed with QEC on Oct. 29, the GN stated in early November.