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A New Brunswick government official has named the company allegedly responsible for spilling a substance containing a potentially cancer-causing chemical in Fredericton last week.
XL Plating and Machining allegedly spilled 900 litres of a bright yellow substance on roads in Fredericton’s east end last Wednesday, said Charbel Awad, deputy environment minister, during a news conference.
“Over the coming weeks, monitoring, testing and remedial work will continue as the investigation concludes,” Awad said.
“The respective parties will evaluate appropriate enforcement actions, which may include charges and fines.”
The news conference was the first time the provincial government has taken questions from reporters, almost a week after motorists started noticing a bright yellow substance on parts of Vanier Industrial Drive, the Vanier Highway and Trans-Canada Highway.
A bright yellow substance could be seen on roads in Fredericton’s east end as late as Friday afternoon. (Aniekan Etuhube/CBC)
On Friday, the provincial government issued a notice on social media that those roads would be closed or be subject to lane reductions to accommodate cleanup efforts.
The province also set up a car wash on Vanier Industrial Drive, specifically for motorists who drove on those roads while the substance was still there.
Awad said how the chemical was spilled was still being investigated.
CBC News was unable to contact the owner of XL Plating and Machining for comment on Wednesday.
Timeline of response
Residents have reported seeing the substance on roads as early as last Wednesday evening.
Awad said on Thursday the City of Fredericton notified his department about the spill, and staff took samples and sent them for testing that day.
On Friday morning, the province identified the source of the spill as XL Plating and Machining, Awad said.
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Province names company responsible for Fredericton chemical spill
A Department of Environment official has identified the company responsible for a chemical spill in Fredericton and says an investigation will determine whether it broke the law.
By noon that day, sample results returned showing the substance contained hexavalent chromium, “which could be harmful,” Awad said.
At that point, Awad said his department notified the New Brunswick Emergency Measures Organization and road closures and cleanup efforts began.
Awad said his department estimates about 900 litres of substance was spilled across 14 kilometres of road and highway.
Health risk to public low, says doctor
Exposure to hexavalent chromium is associated with cancer, said Dr. Rita Gad, a regional medical health officer, who also spoke at the news conference.
However, Gad said Public Health has determined the risk to be low for people who drove through the spill.
“I want to stress that one-time or short contact with hexavalent chromium does not increase your cancer risk,” Gad said.
Environment Canada classifies hexavalent chromium as a toxic substance, and the U.S. National Cancer Institute says occupational exposure to the chemical is associated with increased risks of lung cancer and cancer of the paranasal sinuses and nasal cavity.
Gad said there also does not appear to be any risk of drinking water contamination.
She said long-term sampling will be done of soil and drinking water reservoirs, and the public will be notified if any change to the risk level is found.
The cleanup
Cleanup of the spill began last Friday, with EFI Global hired to do the work, Awad said.
That work will be conducted at the expense of XL Plating and Machining, he said.
As of Wednesday, most of the remediation work was completed, said Kevin Burgher of EFI Global.
Kevin Burgher of EFI Global said the chemical spill appeared to be most concentrated on the Vanier Highway interchange, as seen in this photo from last Friday. (Aniekan Etuhube/CBC)
He said the company is focused mostly on the Vanier Highway interchange, where the vehicle carrying the substance appeared to be travelling slowly, resulting in more of it spilling in that area.
“So that area, we’re focused on doing a little bit of more analysis,” Burgher said.
“You might see a little bit more work whether it’s working on the shoulder, scraping some soils, but the analysis will dictate that work.”
The province also published a document online offering guidance for people who drove over the substance prior to it being cleaned up.
For people whose vehicle had visible residue of the substance and washed it off at home, they’re recommended to call EFI Global’s emergency spill line at 1-866-530-4086.
The same is advised for those who drove through the spill but reside outside of Fredericton or New Brunswick.