Nature Canada

Town of Sidney Moves Quickly to Contain Oil Spill in Migratory Bird Sanctuary

Kerry Finley, IBA Caretaker for Sidney Channel Important Bird Area, was on a routine walk along Roberts Bay, part of Shoal Harbour Migratory Bird Sanctuary in B.C., when he noticed something disturbing. Oil was coming out of a green storm water pipe that empties into the harbor. Baffles had been placed to absorb the oil.

Kerry immediately called the city. To his great relief, the city had the situation under control. They had placed the absorbent baffles and located the source of the spill – a privately-owned property. Nevertheless, Kerry collected samples of the effluent for his records.

“I commend the Town of Sidney for responding quickly to a fuel oil spill entering Roberts Bay, March 29th,” said Kerry Finley. “The spill was traced to the perimeter drain of a private residence and a failed fuel oil tank, leaking into the storm sewer system.”

The storm water pipe is located at the delta of a former creek and watershed. According to Kerry, the water quality in the area has improved due to improvements in the storm water system.

“Still, this spill, which is relatively minor, reminds us that we are individually responsible for what gets flushed down our drains, or the chemicals applied to our gardens,” said Kerry.

Shoal Harbour Migratory Bird Sanctuary is one of the oldest national marine bird sanctuaries on Canada’s west coast, and home to the Bufflehead. At Nature Canada’s 2010 Annual General Meeting, a resolution – All Buffleheads Day, October 15th, 2010 – was adopted to recognize that 2010 is the 70th anniversary of the Great Bufflehead Crash of 1940; to encourage the government to implement and support the monitoring of key phenological indicators through citizen-based monitoring programs; and to commend the District of North Saanich and the Town of Sidney in their efforts to protect essential Bufflehead habitat in Shoal Harbour Migratory Bird Sanctuary.

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