Potentially contaminated water in La Baie, according to a study by the University of Montreal

The professor responsible for the research, Sébastien Sauvé, targets the Bagotville base as a potential source of contamination.

A first sampling was carried out by UdeM in October 2021. The results of the analyzes obtained in October 2022 showed a presence of the contaminant up to four times greater than the recommendation proposed by Health Canada. Sébastien Sauvé claims to have notified the authorities in November 2022 after noticing these results, because he saw a public health issue. Another round of samples were taken in December 2022 and the latest results came in around February 2023.

Me, I wouldn’t drink the water from La Baiesaid Sébastien Sauvé during an exchange of text messages, citing the extent of the tests carried out.

Health Canada suggests a limit of 30 nanograms per liter of drinking water. PFAS to keep it safe for consumption. Sébastien Sauvé indicates that the worst sample collected at La Baie showed 129 ng/L of PFAS.

” The first sample we took in La Baie is really the worst concentration we measured in Quebec. »

There is no standard in Quebec on the presence of PFAS in water.

The study conducted by UdeM targeted specific samples. The professor cannot therefore specify which sectors of La Baie are affected.

For us, it’s a research process, so we’re continuing our work, we want to publish it, but since there was a public health interest, I thought, we immediately notified the Ministry of the Environment. of Quebec and, possibly, after that, Health Canada, the direction of public health of Quebec and the City of Saguenay, indicated the professor of environmental chemistry at UdeM in an interview with Radio-Canada. So they’ve been aware for, most of them, several months.

The same study also revealed high rates in Saint-Donat and Val-d’Or. The Saint-Donat results show the presence of a total of 68 to 82 nanograms/litre (ng/L) of PFAS per sample. On the Val-d’Or side, a make-up well showed a rate of up to 171 ng/L. However, the main well samples ranged from 35 to 37 ng/L.

Health risks

Polyfluoroalkyls are chemical molecules that have certain useful properties since they repel water and grease and resist heat, according to Sébastien Sauvé. Experts were not initially afraid of these substances, but advances in science have found potential toxic effects in them.

“The effects that are recognized are the low weights in babies at birth, there is an impact on lipid metabolism, therefore potentially on cholesterol, he continued. These are certain cancers that are associated with excessive exposure to PFAS […] There is an effect on the immune system, so the response to vaccines is diminished when exposed to too much PFAS. »

A possible provenance from the Bagotville military base

For the professor of chemistry at the University of Montreal, the Bagotville military base is the easiest target as to the origin of PFAS.

We have something exceptional as a concentration and we have a military base, which are recognized [comme source potientielle], there are many cases in the United States that are also associated with military bases. So, yes, it’s a suspicion. It’s still a suspicion, it can’t be proven beyond doubt, at least not without doing more sampling to see the extent and to see the patterns.

Sébastien Sauvé adds that we should also check with the Canadian Armed Forces if the profiles measured correspond to the products they use. One such substance is foam for extinguishing fires.

The Bloc Québécois demands more transparency from Ottawa

Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet and Bloc Québécois MP for Jonquière, Mario Simard, held a press briefing in Saguenay on Tuesday to ask Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to release all information regarding the contamination. of soils and underground water sources by PFAS runoff from the Bagotville military base.

Very recently, Justin Trudeau came to Saguenay to meet the mayor, but almost without public activity, said Yves-François Blanchet in a press release. At the same time, rumors were beginning to circulate of PFAS spills in Bagotville. The City and citizens must be informed if they are exposed to risks, since when they would be and the solutions envisaged. Likewise, it would be deplorable if Justin Trudeau’s government had known about it for months or years without having done or said anything.

Concerned citizens

Citizens expressed concern following the revelations on Tuesday morning. The possible water contamination was first reported by The Daily in the morning.

I live in the Bagotville sector. The base, it is sure that it is not very far from our home. It’s sure, it’s always worryinga man said first.

How come this thing happened, that’s what I don’t understand. Then the water, of course it’s worrying for the people who live here, but in any case I hope they will solve the problemlet another know.

I’ve been drinking unsafe water for a while, so it sure is a little disturbingreplied a lady. Obviously, I would like to know the right information, even if it means buying me cans of water if necessary.she added.

A city meeting

The elected officials of the City of Saguenay will participate in a plenary meeting on Wednesday morning to learn about the situation. The City has also called the media for a technical briefing where representatives of the federal government and the public health department will also be present. A special meeting of the municipal council should follow this meeting.

For his part, Sébastien Sauvé believes that Saguenay could have responded to him more quickly.

It took quite a while before they got back to me, then worried about what I had to say, but eventually they called me back, then I was able to talk to them, but it took longer longer than I thought. I would say that the other cities, the other mayors, to whom I had left the same message, of sending data which is potentially worrying for your city, I had been called back much more quicklyhe replied in an interview during the show Public place.

With information from Gabrielle Morissette and Priscilla Plamondon Lalancette