lundi 25 août 2008

Developement Baie L'Ours: Municipal Negligence Yet Again? Part 1

Photos taken Saturday evening, August 23, 2008
The chainsaw massacre begins on Saturday August 9...




In 2005, Baie L'ours had an outbreak of blue-green algae!


Ministère du Développement durable de l'Environnement et des Parcs
Direction régionale de l'Outaouais
98, rue Lois
Gatineau (Québec) J8Y 3R7

RE: Developement Baie L'Ours - 100 Condo sur Chemin Caron!

NO to bulldozer cleared "droit passage" along stream.
NO to damaged water source.
NO to Developer incompetence.
NO to new unmonitored lake access point.
NO to Municipal incompetence.

The municipalité de Lac-Simon has allowed a private developer to clear a "droit passage" along a stream that lies along chemin Caron. The work was done in early August - probably the weekend of August 9, 2008.

The "droit de passage" is for the proposed 100 condos/homes on the slopes of Baie L'ours on chemin Caron! That means 100 more septic tanks, 100+ more boats...

How much development is too much development, especially for saturated Baie L'ours?

A lire: Rapport Fondex-Shermont 2006 Etude Ecologique 2006 (sur Baie L'ours) prepaper pour la municipalité de Lac-Simon.

There must be a Responsibility to Protect: Water.

Paul Malouf

dimanche 24 août 2008

Epursol, Depotoir & Municipalité

update: It now appears that Épursol received 3000 tons of waste. Épursol was charged by Environment Québec with 7 infractions in July. 2000 tons were converted into compost. 1000 tons remained. But what to do with the 1000 tons? Benjamin Leblanc contacted maire Serge Thivierge. 600 of the 1000 tons were transported to Dépôtoir on Tuesday August 19 and Wednesday August 20 at $35.00/ton. If the waste was transported to Lachute, the charge = $70.00 with a contract? Savings = $35.00/ton plus transport costs. Without a contract the charge = $130.00? Savings = $95.00/ton plus transport costs. Was Municipalité de Lac Simon charged by Environment Québec with 2 infractions? ...Interesting indeed.

*****
DÉCHARGEMENT IMPORTANT AU SITE D'ENFOUISSEMENT DE LAC-SIMON
Les propriétaires s'inquiètent du manque de surveillance
Le mercredi 03 septembre 2008
Yves Soucy
Le Droit

L'Association des propriétaires du lac Simon (APLS) dénonce le manque de vigilance de la part des élus municipaux simonets qui ont laissé l'entreprise Épursol décharger au dépotoir plus d'une trentaine de camions semi-remorques remplis de sacs vides de restants de table provenant de Toronto, le 20 août dernier.

Le maire de Lac-Simon, Serge Thivierge, a avoué au Droit, la semaine dernière, que la quantité déversée au dépôt en tranchée dépassait largement ce qu'il avait constaté avant que son conseil municipal donne son accord au propriétaire de l'usine de compostage et de traitement des eaux usées de Chénéville. "La municipalité s'est-elle fait avoir dans toute cette affaire ? Comment donner une autorisation sur la foi d'une simple inspection visuelle, de si peu de renseignement et de la parole de l'entrepreneur ?", fait remarquer Lise Villeneuve, présidente de l'APLS. Elle souligne que n'eût été la vigilance de certains citoyens, cette situation n'aurait jamais été connue de la population.

Selon l'APLS, Épursol aurait déjà reçu du ministère du Développement durable, de l'Environnement et des Parcs, en juillet dernier, un avis d'infraction sur sept points, dont un concernant le traitement du même type de matières résiduelles. Une information que le ministère tarde à confirmer ou démentir.

*****
Inquiétude chez les résidants de Lac-Simon
Dechargement de plus d'une trentaine de camions semi-remorques
Yves Soucy
Le jeudi 28 août 2008
ysoucy@ledroit.com
Correspondant régional
Le Droit

Le déchargement au site d’enfouissement de la municipalité de Lac-Simon, la semaine dernière, de plus d’une trentaine de camions semi-remorques de matières résiduelles provenant de l’usine de compostage et de traitement des eaux usées Épursol, de Chénéville, suscite plusieurs interrogations de la part de certains citoyens.

À la demande de la municipalité de Chénéville, qu’elle dessert pour la disposition des ordures, la municipalité de Lac-Simon a accepté de recevoir certains résidus provenant de l’usine Épursol moyennant un tarif de 35 $ la tonne métrique.

« Lorsqu’on a visité le site de l’usine, la quantité de résidus qu’on a vu ne semblait pas énorme. C’est pourquoi, on a exceptionnellement accepté de les recevoir », souligne le maire simonet Serge Thivierge.

Quantité importante

Mais à son retour d’un séjour à l’extérieur du village, mardi dernier, l’inspecteur municipal lui apprend qu’il y a eu n’ont pas une quinzaine de camions de déversés au dépotoir, mais de trente à quarante, et que ce n’était pas fini.

« Ça a largement dépassé ce qu’on s’attendait à recevoir. C’est pourquoi j’ai tout arrêté car on aurait été obligé de creuser une nouvelle tranchée et il n’en était pas question », raconte le maire de Lac-Simon, en avouant que la municipalité avait manqué de vigilance dans ce dossier.

De son côté, le président d’Épursol, Benjamin Leblanc, soutient n’avoir transporté que ce que les élus municipaux avaient constaté lors de leur visite à l’usine. Mais il admet que la quantité s’est avérée plus élevée que ce qu’il avait estimé au début.

D’autre part, M. Leblanc dément les allégations de certains citoyens affirmant que les résidus enfouis au dépotoir de Lac-Simon provenaient des États-Unis car ils ont noté que des camions étaient immatriculés de l’état de New York.

Or, le règlement québécois sur les déchets solides interdit à un exploitant d’un lieu d’élimination d’accepter des déchets provenant hors du Québec.

« Ce qui a été enfoui, ce sont des sacs vides de restants de table provenant de Toronto. Les matières putrescibles ont été compostées dans notre usine et ce sont uniquement les sacs de plastique, certains biodégradables d’autres non, dans lesquels contenaient ces résidus, qui ont été acheminés au dépotoir. J’ai les preuves », affirme sans hésitation le président d’Épursol.

À la demande de citoyens, le ministère de Développement durable, de l’Environnement et des Parcs a été saisi du dossier pour vérifier si des infractions ont été commises. L’enquête est toujours en cours.

Mentionnons qu’à compter du 19 janvier 2009, les dépotoirs en tranchée exploités par les petites municipalités devront cesser définitivement leurs activités au Québec.

samedi 23 août 2008

Depotoir de Lac-Simon

-- BREAKING STORY --
What is going on at Depotoir de Lac-Simon?
What is being buried?
Is the waste coming from out of province?
Is either Epursol and/or municipality breaking the law?
(see law below)

Point 1: On Tuesday August 19 and Wednesday August 20, thirty to forty 18-wheel truckloads of "industrial and/or human waste material" were dumped in the municipal dump of Lac Simon.
Point 2: The Municipalité de Lac-Simon was having these trucks weighed at the Lirette weigh station.
Point 3: As per my conversations with 2 city councillors,
the Municipalité de Lac-Simon had a deal and was getting payed to accept these truck loads at the municipal dump.
Point 4: The waste came from Epursol, a septic tank waste treatment facility in Chénéville. Epursol had been warned in July against receiving this waste material by Environment Québec.
Point 5: Councilors Nelson Barnes and Michel David as well as Maire Serge Thivierge were seen at the municipal dump on Wednesday.

Wednesday afternoon - dumping with help of a contractor?

Wednesday afternoon - dumping?
*************
Merci pour les photos/Thanks for the pictures.
Keep them coming!

Wednesday night - waste material in back?

Wednesday night - entrance to municipal dump

Wednesday night - modern septic tank waste treatment facility



Wednesday night - front gates are wide open.
Was the huge exterior pile the balance
of material waste ?
Would that balance be shipped if citizens had not noticed the burying?
Should there not be a fence around this commercial operation?

Question 1: Is the council of the Municipalité de Lac-Simon allowed to dump "industrial and/or human waste material" from the commercial operator in the municipal dump of Lac Simon?

Question 2
: Why did the council agree to this contract at yet another secret council meeting and not at the regular first Monday of the month meeting?

Question 3
: With a cumulative municipal budget surplus of almost $400,000.00, why did the council feel the need to accept this contract of between $10,ooo - $15,000? Does the contract benefit the commercial operator more than Municipalité de Lac-Simon?

Question 4: Has the Ministère du développement durable, de l'environnement et des parcs given any special permits for this week with respect to dumping 30-40 18-wheel truckloads of "industrial and/or human waste material" in the municipal dump of Lac Simon?

Thursday morning - the burying continues

Thursday morning- the burying continues

Thursday morning- the burying continues
Is the material waste buried too close to forest?


Has the Municipality been digging too deep?
How many years of trash touches the water table?
Has the dump compromised our water table?

??Municipal Incompetence??


The dump will be closed December 31, 2008 ...Why?
Is it because it does not conform to new provincial standards?
...then why add waste from outside municipality?
Is it because it was full?
...then why add waste at all?

So 3 Big Questions:
(1) What
(kitchen or toilet) was being dumped?
(2) Is this dumping Legal?
(3) How's our water table?

...a developing story indeed.

Règlement sur les déchets solides
115. Acceptation des déchets solides:

Sauf les cas prévus à l'article 114, à l'article 115.1 ou au quatrième alinéa de l'article 131, l'exploitant d'un lieu d'élimination n'est tenu d'accepter que les déchets solides qui y sont apportés et qui proviennent du territoire de la municipalité régionale de comté ou de la communauté urbaine ou régionale où est situé le lieu d'élimination.

Toutefois, l'exploitant d'un lieu d'élimination ne peut accepter les déchets qui y sont apportés et qui sont générés hors du Québec.

Loi sur le développement durable (L.Q.2006, c.3)


- la Loi sur le développement durable (L.Q.2006, c.3) déclare que « les personnes, la protection de leur santé et l’amélioration de leur qualité de vie sont au centre des préoccupations relatives au développement durable ; les personnes ont droit à une vie saine et productive, en harmonie avec la nature » (art.6, par.a) ; par conséquent, la loi demande aux organismes de l’administration publique de prendre en compte, dans leurs différentes actions, la santé et la qualité de vie des citoyens;

- la Loi sur le développement durable (L.Q.2006, c.3) déclare que « pour parvenir à un développement durable, la protection de l’environnement doit faire partie intégrante du processus de développement » (art.6, par.c) ; par conséquent, la loi demande aux organismes de l’administration publique de prendre en compte, dans leurs différentes actions, la protection de l’environnement;

- la Loi sur le développement durable (L.Q.2006, c.3) déclare que « en présence d’un risque connu, des actions de prévention, d’atténuation et de correction doivent être mises en place, en priorité à la source » (art.6, par.i) ; par conséquent, la loi demande aux organismes de l’administration publique d’appliquer, dans leurs différentes actions, le principe de prévention;

- la Loi sur le développement durable (L.Q.2006, c.3) déclare que « lorsqu’il y a un risque de dommage grave ou irréversible, l’absence de certitude scientifique complète ne doit pas servir de prétexte pour remettre à plus tard l’adoption de mesures effectives visant à prévenir une dégradation de l’environnement » (art.6, par.j) ; par conséquent, la loi demande aux organismes de l’administration publique d’appliquer, da
ns leurs différentes actions, le principe de précaution;

...The Municipalité de Lac-Simon acknowledges Loi sur le développement durable in fall 2007: RÈGLEMENT NUMÉRO 395-2007 RÈGLEMENT VISANT À COMBATTRE L’EUTROPHISATION DES LACS ET DES COURS D’EAU ET LES RISQUES DE PROLIFÉRATION DES CYANOBACTÉRIES.

*********************
A little over the top perhaps as a comparison; our case is not as extreme... but...

Mutated fish caught in lake downstream of Alberta's oilsands
August, 2008
The Canadian Press"It was really unusual. The fish has an obvious abnormality. I had never seen anything like that myself before. I can't speculate on what might have caused it."

Stuart Macmillan, Parks Canada's manager of resource conservation at Wood Buffalo National Park

vendredi 22 août 2008

Algues bleues dans le lac Simon

Deux Baies du plan d'eau sont affectees
Algues bleues dans le lac Simon
Charles Thériault
Le mercredi 06 août 2008
Le Droit

Deux baies du Lac Simon sont affectées par des cyanobactéries, aussi appelées algues bleues.

Le directeur général de la municipalité du Lac Simon, Jacques Leblond, a confirmé hier (municipal press release et citizen photos) la présence de cyanobactéries dans les baies Groulx et Yelle, du côté est du lac. Dans les deux cas, le ministère du Développement durable, de l’Environnement et des Parcs du Québec a fait des analyses démontrant que la concentration d’algues bleues n’est pas critique mais la municipalité demande aux résidants de ne pas se baigner ni de boire l’eau du lac dans ces baies.

Minimiser les risques
« Même si les concentrations ne sont pas assez élevées pour sonner l’alarme, nous avons décidé de ne pas prendre de risque et d’inciter les citoyens à la prudence. On recommande donc de ne pas utiliser l’eau et de ne pas se baigner dans ces environs. S’il fallait que l’on découvre que les concentrations sont plus élevées que prévu, les citoyens nous reprocheraient de ne pas les avoir avertis alors nous préférons être plus prudents », a déclaré M. Leblond.

La municipalité a aussi profité de l’occasion pour rappeler aux propriétaires de maisons et de chalets qu’ils doivent éviter d’utiliser des savons avec phosphate et qu’ils doivent faire vérifier l’état de leur fosse septique.

« On rappelle aussi aux gens de ne pas utiliser de fertilisants et de laisser la végétation naturelle sur la bande riveraine mais cette dernière mesure est plus difficile à appliquer. Bien des gens nous disent qu’ils ne veulent pas de foin sur le bord de l’eau et ne veulent rien savoir de ce règlement. Il est difficile pour une municipalité d’aller contre ses propres citoyens. En Estrie, une municipalité voulant imposer la norme de la bande riveraine de 10 mètres a dû reculer sous les pressions des citoyens. Pour les fosses septiques, nous avons engagé un inspecteur mais la municipalité ne peut pas tout faire en une seule année », a ajouté M. Leblond.

Le lac Simon n’a pas été affecté par les algues bleues l’an dernier mais on en avait trouvé dans la baie de l’Ours, en 2006.

*****
Lac-Simon - Des algues bleues
le jeudi 7 août 2008
Radio Canada

En Outaouais, les algues bleues ont fait leur apparition dans deux baies du lac Simon. La municipalité de Lac-Simon a confirmé la présence de cyanobactéries dans les baies Groulx et Yelle, situées du côté est du lac.

Le ministère de l'Environnement affirme que la concentration des micro-organismes n'est ni critique ni dangereuse. Toutefois, la municipalité met les résidents en garde. Elle invite la population à éviter la baignade dans ces baies et à ne pas boire de cette eau.

« Ce sont des situations qui ont mis des dizaines d'années à se produire et ça va peut-être prendre plusieurs années avant qu'on puisse venir à bout du problème », soutient Serge Thivierge, maire de Lac-Simon.

Le maire rappelle que des gestes simples peuvent aider à venir à bout du problème, comme d'éviter l'utilisation d'engrais et de pesticides. Il précise aussi qu'il est important que les citoyens vérifient que leurs installations septiques sont conformes et qu'ils permettent à la végétation de se refaire sur la bande riveraine.

*****
Blue-green algae discovered at popular Lac Simon
Jean-François Bertrand
Published: Friday, August 08, 2008
The Ottawa Citizen

Lac Simon, a 11-kilometre-long lake north-east of Buckingham, is surrounded by more than 1,000 cottages, has a nice municipal beach at the south end and is the weekend destination for many of the Outaouais' young adults who like to have fun in the sun.

It also has blue-green algae.

Blooms were discovered last week in Baie Yelle and Baie Groulx, on the east side of the lake. On Monday, tests by the Ministry of the Environment showed that the concentration of toxins is not critical. Nevertheless, as a prevention, the municipality recommends that residents neither swim in or drink from the 3,000-hectare lake.

When she heard the news, Lac Simon Property-owners' Association past president Lise Leduc was surprised -- and worried. Surprised, because her lake is quite deep, 100 metres in some spots, and has a current, because the Petite-Nation river runs through it.

Blue-green algae blooms occur where there is shallow, quiet water, explained mayor Serge Thivierge. Council's reaction was to launch an awareness campaign that was planned for September.

"Every resident on the lakeshore is responsible and must see that his actions don't harm the lake," said Mr. Thivierge.

A government publication says that phosphates from fertilizers, septic tanks, the removal of shore vegetation are human factors contributing to the formation of blooms, which can look like broccoli soup.

Last year, as hundreds of lakes across the province were faced with cyanobacteria (blue-green algae's scientific name), the municipality of Lac-Simon, which covers the southern two-thirds of the lake, adopted a bylaw outlawing the use of fertilizer and soaps with phospates and protecting a 10-metre strip of vegetation on the lake's shore.

The municipality, along with its northern neighbour Duhamel, also started a program where every septic installation around the lake would be inspected. But it will take three to five years to do them all. That's too long of a time frame, said Ms. Leduc.

Ivars Sayfy has owned a cottage on Baie Yelle for 40 years. His property is at the edge of the bay, not the far end where blue-green algae were seen last week. He suspects that some of the septic systems are in need of repair or replacement outright. "And we have many other problems contributing to the situation: grass throughout properties, and I have this neighbour who keeps cutting trees down." The cottage owner said that many are ignoring the rule against fertilizing.

The municipality has decided to issue a public warning because the Ministry of the Environment doesn't do it anymore. The ministry only publishes the names of the bodies of water where the toxicity levels are harmful, in seven Quebec lakes so far.

*****
Aucune interdiction, mais de la prévention à Lac-Simon
Présence de cyanobactéries dans deux baies du lac Simon
par Jessy Laflamme
le 12 août 2008
Le Petite Nation

Des cyanobactéries, plus communément appelées des algues bleues, se trouvent dans les baies Groulx et Yelle du lac Simon.

Le ministère de l’Environnement et des Parcs du Québec a confirmé que la présence d’algues bleues n’est pas critique. Il demande toutefois de rester vigilant.

La municipalité de Lac-Simon a profité de cette occasion pour mener une campagne de prévention. «Il n’y a aucune interdiction, on demande seulement aux gens de faire attention», a indiqué le directeur général de Lac-Simon, Jacques Leblond.

Il est donc encore possible de se baigner aux plages de Lac-Simon et Duhamel.

«On demande aux gens, par mesure de sécurité, de ne pas toucher, boire, se laver et même se baigner dans les deux baies touchée», a ajouté M. Leblond.

La municipalité a également rappelé aux citoyens qu’il est interdit d’épandre des fertilisants et d’utiliser des détergents contenant du phosphate et qu’il est important de vérifier l’état de leur fosse septique.

«On demande également de laisser la végétation naturelle sur la bande riveraine, mais cette dernière mesure est plus difficile à appliquer, a indiqué M. Leblond. Concernant les fosses septiques, un inspecteur a été engagé, mais il ne peut tout faire en une année. On demande aux citoyens de faire leur part.»

D’autres analyses seront effectuées de façon régulière. La municipalité avisera les résidants immédiatement s’il devait y avoir une évolution de la situation.

*****
See previous press release/photo gallery from August 5:
Algues dans Baie Groulx et Baie Yelle!
(municipalité de Lac-Simon press release & citizen photos)

*****

l’Association des propriétaires du lac Simon
Raport - L’état de santé du lac Simon
Resumé - santé du lac Simon

ONE LAKE - ONE FUTURE - ONE CHANCE

mercredi 20 août 2008

Environment Canada Report: Stop Taking Water for Granted

Stop taking water for granted, report warns Ottawa
August 2008
The Canadian Press

OTTAWA — Canada's stores of fresh water are not as plentiful as once thought, and water shortages threaten to pinch the economy and pit provinces against each other, says a newly released document.

An internal report drafted last December by Environment Canada warns that climate change and a growing population will further drain resources.

"We can no longer take our extensive water supplies for granted," says the report, titled A Federal Perspective on Water Quantity Issues. (...)

Canada has a fifth of the world's supply of fresh water, but only seven per cent of it is renewable. The rest comes from ice-age glaciers and underground aquifers.

One per cent of Canada's total water supply is renewed each year by precipitation, the report says.

Moreover, government data on the country's groundwater reserves is deemed "sparse and often inadequate." MORE >>>

lundi 18 août 2008

Proteger Lac des Étoiles 2008

Ministre Claude Béchard
Minister of Natural Resources and Wildlife
500, boul. René-Lévesque Ouest
Bureau 9.500
Montréal, Québec
H2Y 1W7

RE: Le lac des Étoiles must be protected (lac des Étoiles sur L'ile Canard Blanc dans le Municipalité de Lac-Simon)

First, we would like to thank the Minister of Natural Resources and Wildlife for their kind reply of November 13, 2007 to my original letter of October 15, 2007.

Unfortunately we have to disagree.

Six reasons why we are against a "sentier" up to and around lac des Étoiles:
  1. Protection of flora and fauna; particularly the three turtles that live in lac des Étoiles, as well as frogs and Blue Spotted Salamander;
  2. Sightings of 1 year old bears this June;
  3. Threat of overnight campers and fires;
  4. Threat of e-colie & algues on Lac Simon as boats moor in bays on both side of L'ile Canard Blanc - another Baie Groulx we need not!;
  5. Threat of e-coli in lac des Étoiles;
  6. Lack of oversight and control.

Needless to say, there has been no consultation with any of the citizens of the Municipalité, and more importantly, the residents of Ile Canard Blanc. The proposed "concept" will have a direct impact on the quality of life of the residents of Ile Canard Blanc.

For various levels of government to make these plans without citizen input is not right.

We, the citizens of L'ile Canard Blanc, will fight the proposed development around Lac des Etoiles.

There will be more signatures as we continue around the island the balance of the summer.

I would be more than happy to discuss this matter with any of the officials on this file.

Thanking you in advance.

Sincerely,

Paul Malouf avec Les Citoyens de L'ile Canard Blanc Pour la Protection de Lac des Etoiles

(1) Mike Haerkens, (2) Pierre Caron, (3) Alain Surprenant, (4) Richard Lemire, (5) Chris Daly, (6) Judy Daly, (7) Connor O'Brien, (8) LA O'brien, (9) Mckayla O'Brien, (10) Jennifer O'Brien - Gross, (11) Jayden Gross, (12) Tracy Daly, (13) Todd Simons, (14) Christine Suprenant, (15) Marc Suprenant, (16) Maude Suprenant, (17) Denis Suprenant, (18) Danielle Suprenant, (19) Dominic Suprenant, (20) Nancy Suprenant, (21) Sebastien Lavoie, (22) Jim Landon, (23) Mary Jo Landon, (24) Patricia Falk, (25) John Falk, (26) Valerie Landon, (27) David Landon, (28) Sue Muskett, (29) Ryan Muskett, (30) Al Muskett, (31) Alain Bernatchez, (32) Anne Marie Gagnon, (33) Marianne Solama, (34) David Zavitz, (35) Sonja Pozar, (36) Kathy Andrews, (37) Kate Andrews, (38) Ellen Andrews, (39) Kate Lery, (40) Francois Caron, (41) Crystal Hedrick, (42) Andrew Salmaso, (43) Nancy Girard, (44) Rick Simboli, (45) Michel Suprenant, (46) Anna-Maria Salmaso, (47) Lisa Salmaso, (48) Marc Hainaut, (49) Gardiea Maiczan, (50) Anita Salmaso, (51) Fred Maiczan, (52) Steve Hainaut, (53) Nicolas Bissonette, (54) Francois Bissonette, (55) Linda Gaudreault, (56) Martine Gaudreault, (57) Chantale Gaudreault, (58) Denis Sabourin, (59) Maryse Lapointe, (60) Sylvain Tremblay, (61) Isabelle Lavallee, (62) Denis Loiselle, (63) Sylvie Lebrasseur, (64) Claire Loiselle, (65) Pierre Loiselle, (66) Jean-Francois Loiselle, (67) Scott McMillan, (68) Patti Esposito, (69) Stacey Lowe, (70) James McMillan, (71) Robert McMillan, (72) Michel Carpentier, (73) Anne Morin, (74) Paul Carlos Jolicoeur, (75) Ronald Haughton, (76) Corrie Haughton, (77) Michael Haughton, (78) David Haughton, (79) Exton Varty, (80) Melba Hall Varty, (81) Stephan Varty, (82) Wayne Wilson, (83) Ronald Wilson, (84) William Daigle, (85) Anthony Skinner, (86) Shane Howe, (87) Andre Brault, (88) Michael Jolicoeur, (89) Paul C. Joliceour, (90) Pat Frayne, (91) Rick Frayne, (92) Tod Frayne, (93) Patrick Frayne, (94) Gerard Pelchat, (95) Helen Moore, (96) John E Myers, (97) Karen Myers Hackem, (98) Cheryl L. Myers, (99) John C. Hackem, (100) Michael Muirhead, (101) ...


CC: Norm MacMillan, Député de Papineau
Ghislain Ménard, Directeur Général MRC Papineau
Richard Charlebois, Directeur Général Centre Local de Dévelopment
Municipalité de Lac-Simon
Association des Propriétaires du Lac Simon

ONE LAKE - ONE FUTURE - ONE CHANCE
*****
See previous lac des Étoiles letter from 2007

*********
Over half of Europe's amphibians face extinction by 2050
· Climate change, disease and urbanisation blamed
· British toads and newts among those under threat

Ian Sample, science correspondent
Friday September 26 2008
The Guardian

More than half of all frogs, toads and newts living in Europe could be driven to extinction within 40 years as climate change, diseases and habitat destruction take their toll, scientists warned last night.

The majority of the most threatened species live in Mediterranean regions, which are expected to become warmer and drier. Island species, such as the Mallorcan midwife toad and Sardinian brook newt, are especially at risk because they are unable to move to cooler climates.

In Britain, where viruses are already wiping out many hundreds of amphibians a year, conservationists fear for the future of the common toad, natterjack toad and crested newt.

Researchers described the bleak outlook for Europe's amphibians at a meeting of the Zoological Society of London last night. Sir David Attenborough, who was due to attend the symposium, said: "Amphibians are the lifeblood of many environments, playing key roles in the function of ecosystems, and it is both extraordinary and terrifying that in just a few decades the world could lose half of all these species."

One in three of the world's amphibians are already on the International Union for the Conservation of Nature's red list of endangered species, with some estimates suggesting 150 species have already become extinct since the 1980s. MORE>>>

dimanche 17 août 2008

World View: IWMI Report - Food Grown Polluted Water

Millions eating food grown with polluted water, says UN report
Study of 53 cities across the world finds 'widespread' use of waste water contaminated with heavy metals and sewage

John Vidal
Monday August 18 2008
Guardian
At least 200 million people around the world risk their health daily by eating food grown using untreated waste water, some of which may be contaminated with heavy metals and raw sewage, according to major study of 53 world cities.

Urban farmers in 80% of the cities surveyed were found to be using untreated waste water, but the study said they also provided vital food for burgeoning cities at a time of unprecedented water scarcity and the worst food crisis in 30 years.

The study from the UN-backed International Water Management Institute (IMWI), said the practice of using waste water to grow food in urban areas was not confined to the poorest countries.

"It's a widespread phenomenon, occurring on 20m hectares across the developing world, especially in Asian countries like China, India and Vietnam, but also around nearly every city of sub-Saharan Africa and in many Latin American cities as well," said IWMI researcher Liqa Raschid-Sally.

"Nor is it limited to the countries and cities with the lowest GDP. It is prevalent in many mid-income countries as well", she said.

The report, launched today at World Water Week in Stockholm, Sweden, found the practice "widespread and practically inevitable".

"As long as developing countries lack suitable transport to deliver large quantities of perishable produce to urban areas, urban agriculture will remain important. In the face of water scarcity generally and a lack of access to clean water, urban farmers will have no alternative except to use … polluted water", write the authors.

The report found that few developing countries have official guidelines for the use of waste water in agriculture. Even if they do, monitoring and enforcement rarely happen and may not be realistic. As a result, though the practice may be theoretically forbidden or controlled, it is "unofficially tolerated."

Earlier in 2008, the UN's World Health Organization stated that a global environmental and health crisis was unfolding with more than 200m tonnes of human waste a year being dumped untreated in water systems, exposing hundreds of millions of people to disease.

The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), said on Sunday that rivers around the world are now seriously polluted "to the brink of collapse".

"Many rivers in developing countries and emerging economies are now polluted to the brink of collapse. For example, the Yangtze, China's longest river, is suffering because of pollution by untreated waste, agricultural run-off and industrial discharge", said a spokesman.

jeudi 14 août 2008

World View: Dead Zones Spread Across Oceans

"No Lake is an Island"
- Paul

With more than 400 oxygen-starved dead zones in global coastal waters, scientists are calling for such dead zones to be recognised as one of the world's great environmental problems

Suffocating dead zones spread across world's oceans

Critically low oxygen levels now pose as great a threat to life in the world's oceans as overfishing and habitat loss, say experts
David Adam, environment correspondent
Friday August 15 2008 00:01 BST
guardian.co.uk

Man-made pollution is spreading a growing number of suffocating dead zones across the world's seas with disastrous consequences for marine life, scientists have warned.

The experts say the hundreds of regions of critically low oxygen now affect a combined area the size of New Zealand, and that they pose as great a threat to life in the world's oceans as overfishing and habitat loss.

The number of such seabed zones – caused when massive algal blooms feeding off pollutants such as fertiliser die and decay – has boomed in the last decade. There were some 405 recorded in coastal waters worldwide in 2007, up from 305 in 1995 and 162 in the 1980s.

Robert Diaz, an oceans expert at the US Virginia Institute of Marine Science, College of William and Mary, at Gloucester Point, said: "Dead zones were once rare. Now they're commonplace. There are more of them in more places."

Marine bacteria feed on the algae in the blooms after it has died and sunk to the bottom, and in doing so they use up all of the oxygen dissolved in the water. The resulting 'hypoxic' seabed zones can asphyxiate swathes of bottom dwelling organisms such as clams and worms, and disrupt fish populations.

Diaz and his colleague, Rutger Rosenberg of the department of marine ecology at the University of Gothenburg, call for more careful use of fertilisers to address the problem.

Writing in the journal Science, the researchers say the dead zones must be viewed as one of the "major global environmental problems". They say: "There is no other variable of such ecological importance to coastal marine ecosystems that has changed so drastically over such a short time."

The key solution, they say, is to "keep fertilisers on the land and out of the sea". Changes in the way fertilisers and other pollutants are managed on land have already "virtually eliminated" dead zones from the Mersey and Thames estuaries, they say.

Diaz says his concern is shared by farmers who are worried about the high cost of fertilisers. "They certainly don't want to see their dollars flowing off their fields. Scientists and farmers need to continue working together to minimise the transfer of nutrients from land to sea."

The number of dead zones reported has doubled each decade since the 1960s, but the scientists say they are often ignored until they provoke problems among populations of larger creatures such as fish or lobsters. By killing or stunting the growth of bottom-dwelling organisms, the lack of oxygen denies food to creatures higher up the food chain.

The Baltic Sea, site of the world's largest dead zone, has lost about 30% of its available food energy, which has led to a significant decline in its fisheries.

The lack of oxygen can also force fish into warmer waters closer to the surface, perhaps making them more susceptible to disease.

The size of marine dead zones often fluctuates with the seasons. A massive dead zone, some 8,000 square miles across, forms each summer in the Gulf of Mexico as floodwater flushes nitrogen-rich fertiliser into the Mississippi River.

Experts said it was slightly smaller than expected this year because Hurricane Dolly stirred up the water. Dead zones require the water to be separated into layers, with little or no mixing between.

As well as fertilisers rich in nitrates and phosphates, sewage discharges also contribute to the problem because they help the algal blooms to flourish.

Diaz and Rosenberg say: "We believe it would be unrealistic to return to pre-industrial levels of nutrient input [to oceans], but an appropriate management goal would be to reduce nutrient inputs to levels that occurred in the middle of the past century," before the rise in added nutrients began to spread dead zones globally.

Climate change could be adding to the problem. Many regions are expected to experience more severe periods of heavy rain, which could wash more nutrients from farmland into rivers.

In May, scientists reported that oxygen-depleted zones in tropical oceans are expanding. They analysed oxygen levels in samples of seawater and found the effect was largest in the central and eastern tropical Atlantic and the equatorial Pacific. The increase could push oxygen-starved zones closer to the surface and give marine life such as fish less room to live and look for food.

The scientists, led by Lothar Stramma from the Leibniz Institute of Marine Sciences in Kiel, Germany, say the change could be linked to warming seas. At 0C, a litre of seawater can hold about 10ml of dissolved oxygen; at 25C this falls to 4ml. Stramma said: "Whether or not these observed changes in oxygen can be attributed to global warming alone is still unresolved." The reduction could also be down to natural processes working on shorter timescales, he said.

jeudi 7 août 2008

Developer Barge: Business Permit or Free Rider?

Update (August 20): Ce n’est pas le MTQ qui délivre les permis de transport requis en vertu du Règlement sur le transport maritime de passagers, mais la Commission des transports du Québec (CTQ), et ce, au vu de la certification de l’embarcation et de l’équipage (par Transports Canada / Sécurité maritime) et de la couverture d’assurance de responsabilité civile.

Update: As per Inspectrice de la Sécurité Maritime at Transport Canada:
"the Municipalité de Lac Simon should verify if the developer has insurance. Specially, in case of an accident - pollution. Transport Québec started some years ago to request permits. They give permits only if the ship has its TC certificate and valid insurance."

*****
June 26 saw the return of the developer's barge on Lac Simon

Pics from early July

Pics from early July

Pics from early July

barge & flatbed truck waiting on a boater - Monday August 4 holiday

Transport Québec
Direction de l'Outaouais
170, rue de l'Hôtel-de-Ville, bureau 5.110
Gatineau (Québec) J8X 4C2

Parties: municipalité de Lac-Simon & Ile Canard Blanc real estate developer
Object: barge
Issue: insurance & permit
Questions: Does not a municipalité have to ensure that a commercial barge have insurance in case of a spill? ...Otherwise could not the citizens get stuck with the clean up costs? Why does municipalité deny & delay?

The barge is being navigated by a commercial real estate (land & building) developer trying to sell & construct up to 60 homes on Ile Canard Blanc. The developer is trying to alter Ile Canard Blanc with utility connections (electricity), roads, earth grading etc. all the while building single family homes, that are then sold. The barge continues to carry cement trucks, supply trucks, bulldozers and dump trucks to the island.

On September 18, 2007 the developer was issued an "ordre de detention" by Transport Canada for failing to have a license, registration and insurance. The barge returned to the waters of Lac Simon the last week of June 2008.

Timing: The barge receives and delivers these vehicles at the municipal quai disrupting homeowners and visitors alike with delays. Furthermore, as is often the case, the barge sometimes uses the quai during peak hours in July, even Friday nights when homeowners and tourists are putting their boats in for the weekend. Citizens find this practice unnecessary.

Wear & tear: Commercial wear and tear on the quai, especially with large flatbed trucks transporting the equipment to the quai, is far greater than regular cars and trucks. Who will pay for the inevitable repairs in the long run? There should be no commercial free riders?

Permits: It is my understanding that Transport Quebec requires that a commercial operation supply the municipality of Lac Simon proof of insurance, license & registration. In return the municipality of Lac Simon then gives the developer and general contractor a business permit.

Citizens have repeatedly asked the Maire (October 2007 and July 2008) to conform to the laws of Transport Quebec, but to no avail.

The municipalité de Lac Simon can grant a business permit, only after the developer has decided to:
  1. provide the municipalité with the required documents (insurance, license & registration);
  2. not use the barge at peak hours (Friday nights, weekends and holidays);
  3. pay a user fee (like all boats entering Lac Simon).

Thanking you in advance.

Sincerely,

Paul Malouf

August 5, 2007 letter warning of dangers & pics
Letter/Photo Gallery: Destruction Environmentale ou "Droit Aquis"?
+
September 18, 2007 barge pics & "ordre de détention" by Transport Canada
Letter/Photo Gallery: L'ile Canard Blanc & illegal barge
+
October 22, 2007 Québec ministre de l'Environnement letter
Lettre/photo gallery: Proteger la Grande Plage de Canard Blanc
+
May 3, 2008 L'ile Canard Blanc Development - Municipal Incompetence?
Letter/Photo Gallery: New septic tank & weeping field are under water

mercredi 6 août 2008

World View: Climate Change, 4C Rise & Rainfall

Moon transits Earth (infrared)

Such a pretty planet. Why don't we take better care of it?


*****
As the lake's pollution increases (12 cases of e-coli in 2007 & 2 cases of algae in 2008), I recall 2 conversations.

One was with a person who suggested some years back that the lake was too deep to be polluted. All along his family's home was dumping their septic system into the lake. Just last summer the neighbours caught "wind" and notified the authorities. They live in Baie Yelle, site of the algae outbreak!

A second person suggested this July that climate change was a hoax; and that the horrible summer and that the increase in rainfall was proof that the temperature was getting cooler. According to this person climate change was all crap.

In both instances I tried to make my case that all the scientists (NOAA, IWMI, NASA's GISS, UCS, WCS, USGA, AMS, UNEP, WMO, WHO, IPCC) ...blah blah blah. The U.N. Climate Panel, drawing on the work of 2,500 scientists, said last year that rainfall was likely to get more intense... blah blah blah. But to no avail.

...In short, global warming is going to make extreme weather even more extreme than scientists have thought.

So, as both these articles suggest, these 2 people's mindsets are clearly wrong (I am being polite). Except their mindset and resulting actions, and lack their of, are causing harm to the lake and their neighbours.

*****
The
Stern Report established that - from the point of view of climate change on the global economy - prevention is cheaper than cure. Can not the same can be said of e-coli & algae blooms, on the lake, the local economy and property values?

Moreover, the Stern Report has come up with potential scenarios. ...Yikes!

"No Lake is an Island"
- Paul

Melting ice caps in Greenland. Photograph: Uriel Sinai/Getty Images

Climate change: Prepare for global temperature rise of 4C, warns top scientist

Defra's chief adviser says we need strategy to adapt to potential catastrophic increase
James Randerson, science correspondent
Wednesday August 06 2008
The Guardian

The UK should take active steps to prepare for dangerous climate change of perhaps 4C according to one of the government's chief scientific advisers.

In policy areas such as flood protection, agriculture and coastal erosion Professor Bob Watson said the country should plan for the effects of a 4C global average rise on pre-industrial levels. The EU is committed to limiting emissions globally so that temperatures do not rise more than 2C.

"There is no doubt that we should aim to limit changes in the global mean surface temperature to 2C above pre-industrial," Watson, the chief scientific adviser to the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, told the Guardian. "But given this is an ambitious target, and we don't know in detail how to limit greenhouse gas emissions to realise a 2 degree target, we should be prepared to adapt to 4C."

Globally, a 4C temperature rise would have a catastrophic impact.

According to the government's 2006 Stern review on the economics of climate change, between 7 million and 300 million more people would be affected by coastal flooding each year, there would be a 30-50% reduction in water availability in Southern Africa and the Mediterranean, agricultural yields would decline 15 to 35% in Africa and 20 to 50% of animal and plant species would face extinction. MORE >>>

*****
Environment: Intense rainfall due to global warming could raise flood risk
Ian Sample, science correspondent
Friday August 8 2008
The Guardian

Climate scientists have issued a fresh warning over the future risk of flooding after research showed heavy rainstorms are likely to become even more intense than predicted.

Rainfall is expected to increase with global warming because the atmosphere can hold more water as it heats up, but the extent to which rainfall patterns will change in the future has been unclear.

Writing in the US journal Science, researchers warn regions that are already vulnerable to flooding will be hit hardest by rainstorms in the future, and that previous predictions may have underestimated how intense these rainstorms will be.

Researchers from Reading and Miami Universities used satellite data from 1987 to 2004 to see how natural changes in surface and air temperatures caused by El Niño weather events influenced rainfall over the tropics. They found a clear link, with countries experiencing far more rainfall as temperatures rose.

"When we first looked, we saw that the warm periods were associated with the periods of heaviest rainfall, but when we looked more carefully, we found the models underestimated what the satellite data showed by a factor of two to three," said Richard Allan, who led the study.

If other researchers are able to confirm the findings, it suggests areas already prone to flooding may experience far more problems as global temperatures rise.

Yesterday one of the government's chief science advisers, Robert Watson, said the UK must prepare for a 4C rise in average temperatures, despite Europe's declared goal of no more than a 2C rise.

mardi 5 août 2008

Algues dans Baie Groulx et Baie Yelle!

Ministère de l'environnement confirme que la Baie Groulx (Algue Rouges) et Baie Yelle avaient une prolifération de cyanobactéries

Baie Groulx

Baie Groulx

Baie Groulx

*************
Merci pour les photos/Thanks for the pictures.
Keep them coming!

ATTENTION, ÉLIMINONS LES PHOSPHATES DE CERTAINES PARTIES DU LAC
À TOUS LES INTERESSÉS

SOYEZ INFORMÉS QUE:
Plusieurs observations, nous ont été rapportées à l'effet que des substances qui pourraient être des cyanobactéries auraient été vues dans les baies GROULX et YELLE.

Nous avons avisé le ministère de l'environnement qui, après analyse, nous confirme la présence de cyanobactéries une concentration, qui n'est pas au-délà des normes acceptables. Le ministère nous conseille de demeurer vigilants.

D'autres analyses seront menées de façon régulière et nous vous aviserons immédiatement s'il devait y avoir évolution de la situation.

En attendant et par mesures de sécurité, nous vous invitons à la prudence et nous vous conseillons de ne pas toucher, boire, se laver et même se baigner dans les secteurs visés.

Nous vous rappelons que la municipalité a adopté le 'règlement visant à combattre l'eutrophisation des lacs et des cours d'eau et les risques de prolifération des cyanobactéries' et le règlement limitant l'usage des pesticides en 2007. Ces règlement prévoient des normes qui régissent entre autres:

L'interdiction d'épandre des fertilisants, l'interdiction d'utiliser des détergents contenants du phosphate et surtout l'interdiction d'altérer la végétation herbacée des rives et des milieux humides, dans une bande de 10 mètres de la ligne des hautes eaux.

Dans la mesure oû ces interdictions seront respectées par les citoyens elles permettront de limiter l'apport en phosphore qui est le principal nutriment de la cyanobactérie. Ainsi, nous protégerons nos lacs et nos cours d'eau contre ces manifestations d'algues suspectes qui peuvent survenir à tout moment.

Nous vous invitons à respecter toutes les dispositions de ces règlements et nous vous encourageons fortement à faire vérifier la qualité de vos installations septiques par un technologue professionnel, dans tous les cas oû vous avez le moindre doute sur le bon fonctionnement de celles-ci.

La Municipalité ne peut pas tout faire
Les citoyens doivent faire leur part.

Donné à Lac Simon, ce 5 août 2008

Le Conseil Municipal

par:
Jacques Leblond, avocat, OMA
Directeur général

*************
Plus de 300 km2 de marée rouge dans le fleuve
Carl Thériault
Le mercredi 20 août 2008
Le Soleil
Collaboration spéciale
Rimouski

En moins de deux semaines, la marée d’algues rouges du Saint-Laurent aurait déjà causé la mort d’une cinquantaine de mammifères marins sur les deux rives de l’estuaire et de centaines, voire de milliers d’oiseaux.

Cette masse rougeâtre qui se déplace au gré des vents et des marées est l’objet d’une surveillance de jour en jour par plusieurs spécialistes qui se demandent si elle n’atteindra pas la superbe île Bonaventure ou la baie des Chaleurs dans sa route vers le golfe et l’océan.

Ce phénomène affecte pour le moment le travail d’une cinquantaine d’employés des usines de transformation des mollusques de la Haute-Côte-Nord — interdits de récolte. Les emplois d’une centaine de cueilleurs sont aussi en jeu. PLUS >>>

samedi 2 août 2008

NEF Report: Simms on Climate Change

Rising greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions could pass a critical tipping point and trigger runaway global warming within the next 100 months, according this report.

"We know climate change is a huge problem, but there's a missing ingredient of urgency," said Andrew Simms, policy director at the foundation.

According to the UN's experts, GHG levels in the atmosphere, which are at around 377 parts per million, would have to be stabilised at 400 ppm to avoid a rise of more than 2C.

Indeed, "No Lake is an Island"

- Paul


The final countdown
Time is fast running out to stop irreversible climate change, a group of global warming experts warns today. We have only 100 months to avoid disaster. Andrew Simms explains why we must act now - and where to begin


Andrew Simms
Friday August 1 2008
The Guardian

If you shout "fire" in a crowded theatre, when there is none, you understand that you might be arrested for irresponsible behaviour and breach of the peace. But from today, I smell smoke, I see flames and I think it is time to shout. I don't want you to panic, but I do think it would be a good idea to form an orderly queue to leave the building.

Because in just 100 months' time, if we are lucky, and based on a quite conservative estimate, we could reach a tipping point for the beginnings of runaway climate change. That said, among people working on global warming, there are countless models, scenarios, and different iterations of all those models and scenarios. So, let us be clear from the outset about exactly what we mean. MORE >>>

- Andrew Simms is policy director and head of the climate change programme at NEF - New Economics Foundation. For suggestions for what individuals and groups can do to take action, and links to a wide range of organisations supporting the focus on the 100 months countdown go to: onehundredmonths.org. The Green New Deal can be downloaded: neweconomics.org

vendredi 1 août 2008

Health Canada Report: Climate Change & Water

Outbreaks of E. coli, typhoid and other water-borne pathogens are expected as drinking and recreational water is contaminated by run-off from heavy rainfall - sounds eerily similar; Here are some recent Lac Simon examples:

Baie L'ours blue green algae outbreak in 2005,
12 outbreaks of E-coli on Lac-Simon in July 2007;
Le Petite Nation riviere flooding April 2008;
heavy rainfalls these past 2 weeks in July 2008;
Baie Groulx blue green algae outbreak on July 28...
- Paul


*****

Health Canada report: Diseases, heat-related deaths likely to spike from climate change
Thursday, July 31, 2008
CBC

A new Health Canada report warns Canadians of the potential health risks of climate change, including spikes in heat-related deaths, an increase in respiratory and cardiovascular problems, and the spread and emergence of diseases.

"The findings of this assessment suggest the need for immediate action to buttress efforts to protect health from current climate hazards," says the 500-page report, entitled Human Health in a Changing Climate: A Canadian Assessment of Vulnerabilities and Adaptive Capacity.

It examines the effects under three categories: extreme weather events and natural hazards, air quality and heat, and diseases transmitted by water, food, insects, ticks and rodents.

The projected increase of floods in some areas and drought and forest fires in others are some of the natural disasters caused by climate change that will cause health-related problems, the report says.

As well, a rise in heat waves will be accompanied by an increase in heat-related deaths, the report says, with the greatest risk to cities because of higher population densities and the urban heat island affect.

Those at greater risk are people aged 65 and older, with summer mortality rates projected to be two to three times greater than for those aged 15 to 64, the report says.

Quebecers are singled out in the report, as they are noted for historically being able to adapt well to very cold temperatures "but have not been as successful adapting to extreme heat."

The report also focuses on how the increase in global temperature will affect the air Canadians breathe by increasing smog, wildfires and pollen production.

For example, an increase in the formation of ground-level ozone could lead to more respiratory and cardiovascular problems.

Based on a four degree increase in average temperatures, the report projects 312 more premature deaths each summer because of increase in ozone and a 4.6 per cent or $1.366 billion increase each summer in the health burden to Canadian society related to air pollution.

Climate change may also increase the spread of some infectious diseases, with the increase in temperatures allowing them to survive longer. More rain in some areas and more frequent droughts could increase risks of water contamination and water-bone disease outbreaks, the report warns. MORE >>>