The City of Windsor hopes to find the source of an oil spill in the Little River and possibly recoup the cost of the cleanup.
City officials and Windsor Fire and Rescue Services responded to the spill on Boxing Day.
"We immediately boomed off the river where we noticed the sheen or the oil slick, and we were able to contain the oil as much as possible," said City Engineer Mark Winterton. "We don't believe anything got out into the Detroit River. However, it did make its way down to almost the marina."
The city notified the Ministry of the Environment, which is assisting the investigation, but Winterton notes finding the source will take time, and it didn't help that it was raining.
"We have confirmed it is an organic compound. It is an oil product. We don't know exactly what that is, and that's something we can continue to proceed through the environmental testing that we do," said Winterton.
He said the city will use a vacuum truck to suck up the oil from the river.
"I'm not sure of the damage to the flora and fauna on Little River, but because we were able to react fairly quickly, we think we contained most of it," added Winterton.
The penalty for discharging or spilling a toxin in a natural environment in Ontario ranges depending on the violation. However, a notice on the Ministry of the Environment's webpage says fines can go up to $100,000 a day for more egregious offences that cause significant environmental impact.
