Around avenue Tourville, the quality of the water of the Rivière des Mille Îles is pitiful. Here, as elsewhere in the district, wastes from septic tanks flow for several metres in open air before reaching the water.
(Photo: Martin Alarie)
Who manages waste material?
Laval says it's responsible for equipment standards, not waste emission
The city says that every effort is made to respect provincial regulations. Nonetheless, in Saint-François contaminated water flows out of pipes onto exposed ground before it reaches the river. The Quebec government does not mince words: it is a municipal responsibility.
Since the tabling of a report in 2004, the application of norms is in progress, assures Villed de Laval. Several property owners have replaced their installations.
In 2006, the city completed a linking of 41 residences in the neighbourhood of the Boileau Community Centre in Saint-François to the municipal sewer system, in one of the sectors targeted by the CRE de Laval (the Regional Environment Council) Report. (See article entitled The city has known since 2001.) This was a $1.5 million operation undertaken by Ville de Laval and the residents concerned, notes municipal spokesperson Marc Laforge.
At present, 87 installations still do not conform to standards, according to the latest information coming out of city hall. Some of these will be replaced by links to the sewer system, others are under study by the Ministry of Sustainable Development, Environment and Parks (MDDEP) for permit purposes. Eleven contentious cases are presently in court.
The inadequate septic equipment on l'avenue Tourville and on rue Buisson in Saint-Francois east singled out by Courrier Laval are part of the 87 cases known to city hall.
ST:All standards met
As to the five sites where the Courrier Laval study identified staggering levels of coliforms, the municipality maintains that the installations found there conform to standards, since they have been issued permits by the city in keeping with provincial regulations.
Ville de Laval commissioned its own analyses of these wastes in the past, says Mr. Laforge. The results showed that the coliform content did not exceed 1,000 per 100 ml of water, he adds. The city however does intend to re-inspect these sites and analyze the waste again.
"There's a limit to what we'll do," says Marc Laforge. "What we've been asked to do since 1983 is to ensure that the installations are up to standards. We do not control the waste emissions." At the MDDEP, officials declined comment on the results of the Courrier Laval investigation, "Because this falls under municipal jurisdiction."
The MDDEP nonetheless reserved its jurisdiction over apartment buildings and residences of six or more bedrooms. "When there is shared jurisdiction, we meet with them [municipal representatives] on a regular basis," explains Pierre Robert, the Ministry's regional director.
Installation and maintenance
How does one explain that installations which supposedly conform to standards could produce such contaminated waste material? "There are four important elements:
the study of soil, the type of equipment, the maintenance done, and the follow-up," explains Didier Bicchi, town planner and head of municipal water services for the MDDEP.
The expert includes installation in the process of maintenance. "If you're using the right technology and have a good standard of performance, but installation of [the equipment] has been done improperly, it serves no purpose, much like not having made a proper study of the soil serves no purpose."
Within the framework of the summit on blue algae held by MDDEP Minister Line Beauchamp on September 25, the Liberal government announced a tightening of regulations related to the treatment of septic tank waste water.
The regulation presently in effect provides safeguards concerning preliminary soil studies and the installation and performance standards of equipment, Mr. Bicchi maintains.
With the tightening of the regulation, the standards for maintenance and upkeep will be more specifically stipulated.
Photo: Tourville2
(Photo: Martin Alarie)
Météo: Laval, 22 mai 2008 / 12°C
/ Faible averse de pluie
/ Vents: 9 Km/h / Humidité relative: 67 % 
Steven Guilbeault - 
