The Kahnawà:ke Environment Protect Office (KEPO) of the Mohawk Council of Kahnawà:ke would like to inform the community that work to dismantle the underflow dam at the boundary line between Kahnawà:ke and Chateauguay will begin today, Monday, April 22, 2024.
The decision to remove the underflow dam was made by KEPO following several rounds of sampling which have shown no additional fuel entering Kahnawà:ke over the past month.
“At this time, the test results have consistently shown that no more fuel is coming downstream from the spill site in Chateauguay, and we are confident that the removal of the dam will not have a negative impact on the Suzanne River,” said Benjamin Green-Stacey, Director of KEPO. “The removal of the underflow dam is the first step in a phased approach to remediation and restoration of impacted areas. The gradual removal of booms along the Suzanne River within the Territory will take place once we complete further water and soil testing and are satisfied with the results.”
The underflow dam, along with other protective devices were installed in February of 2024, following complaints and concerns of a diesel fuel smell from Kahnawakehró:non as a result of an oil spill in the city of Chateauguay’s Industrial Park. The source of the spill was traced to a business on Ford Boulevard. KEPO, the MCK and various government agencies worked together for several weeks to minimize further contamination and to develop a cleanup and mitigation plan.
While there is more work and studies to be done as a result of this spill, KEPO and the Crisis Response Team will continue to provide updates to the community when they are available.
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