The New River Task Force also called a press conference today to give an update on the river. The majority of their presentation was information that the general public had already heard: what is happening to the river, how did we get here, and how well their mechanical aeration pilot project is going.
But one thing we hadn't heard was what happens when the river does start to flow again normally due to the impending rains? Can the pollution spread?He said that there are concerns for the Corozal Bay, which the river empties into.:
Edgar Ek - Deputy Chief Environmental officer
"It's a huge concern for the department, however, there is nothing much that we can do to stop it from flowing into the Corozal Bay. We are not sure to what extent the damages will be, hence we're also doing water quality analysis. We're working Along with SCD to conduct baseline water quality analysis from Corozal Bay, going all the way down to headwaters. That will give us an indication as to how water quality stands. And then, we'll be monitoring once all of this reach the bay, we will continue to do monitoring to evaluate, and then, I think we will have to find a strategy on how to deal with the problem, because right now, we don't know what is going to be the extent of [it]. Again, once it reaches the ocean, dilution starts to take place."
Email
Print