Sampling and Monitoring
Follow-up monitoring since the initial cleanup of the former Shamrock Chemicals site showed that the ecosystem was not impaired and the cleanup work was successful. Monitoring of organisms living in the sediment showed that the creek's ecosystem was healthy. Remediating the creek was not necessary.
Summer 2009 sampling
In early 2009, the Ontario Ministry of the Environment (MOE) held a public meeting in Port Stanley to address concerns that oil tar remaining in Kettle Creek was moving downstream. At that meeting, the ministry committed to undertake further sampling of sediments and share the results.
This sampling was done in the summer of 2009 the results were presented at a public meeting in Port Stanley on June 15, 2010. The sampling showed that sediment polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) (a type of pollutant) levels upstream and downstream of the study area are similar and within environmental guidelines. The sampling results confirmed that:
- the contaminated area remains consistent in location and size
- organisms from surface sediment layers show no evidence of toxic effects from PAHs
- Water quality has increased by 18 per cent over previous samples
Although the findings do not support prioritized environmental action by the ministry, we will work in partnership with government agencies, stakeholders and the public if the community feels that there are other reasons to look at further improvements supporting the community's evolving vision for the area.
You can read more about the 2009 sampling in the following materials:
- Plain-language summary of the report
- Presentation of the study findings and recommended next steps
- Full technical report
Scientific and technical information
Technical Memorandum : Assessment of short-term impacts from a “worse case” release of Kettle Creek oil-tar sediments, September 2010 - This technical report prepared by the Ministry of the Environment’s Environmental Monitoring and Reporting Branch provides the results of state-of-the-art computer modeling carried out to study the potential impacts of Kettle Creek discharges on the near shore waters of Lake Erie at the Elgin Area Water Intake in the vicinity of Port Stanley, Ontario.
Screening-Level Human Health Risk Assessment for Kettle Creek, Port Stanley - PAH Contaminated Sediment, November 2011 - This technical report prepared by the Ministry of Environment’s Standards Development Branch provides the results of a Screening-Level Human Health Risk Assessment (SL-HHRA) to estimate the risk to human health from potential exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) contaminated sediment in the Kettle Creek Area of Concern (AOC) and the George Street Drain located in Port Stanley, Ontario.
The ministry has reviewed more than 30 reports about the environmental conditions of Kettle Creek, Port Stanley Harbour, former industrial sites and the drinking water system. You can read the reports on this list at the ministry's office at 733 Exeter Road in London. Please call 519-873-5000 to make an appointment to view the reports.
