Cocaine, antibiotics: report finds pollutants released in Lake Sumus region following 2021 floods

When the atmospheric river hit southern BC last November, the ancient body of water Semmers Shotza (Lake Sumus) resurfaced.

A lake near Abbotsford was drained for agriculture decades ago.

A new report from the Raincoast and Sumas First Nation finds that water surges and the emergence of lakes are creating pollution in the area and nearby fish habitat.

The study identified an “amazing variety of contaminants in fish habitat, including excess nutrients, metals, faecal coliforms, hydrocarbons, pesticides, pharmaceuticals, personal care products, perfluorinated compounds, sucralose, and tire-related chemicals.” I recorded the substance.”

Raincoast Senior Scientist and Healthy Waters Program Director Peter Ross said:

The Raincoast Conservation Foundation, along with its partners, collected water samples in the former Semá:th X̱ó:tsa (Sumas Lake) area for seven weeks after the flood.

Twenty-nine surface water samples were collected and tested for 379 analytes, including 262 anthropogenic contaminants.

The study found an average of 87 analytes detected at each sample location, 20 of which were anthropogenic chemicals not found in nature.

The samples showed multiple contaminants in the fish habitat, including excess nutrients, metals, hydrocarbons and pesticides.

The report also shows that cocaine, painkillers and pesticides were also widely detected.

“Cocaine and its metabolic byproducts were found in all samples,” Ross said.

“We found veterinary drugs, antibiotics, painkillers, diabetes and asthma remedies.”

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The lack of pre-flood baseline data makes it difficult to determine the extent to which the 2021 disaster will affect water quality, Raincoast said, but the study does Deteriorating health of fish habitats has become apparent.

According to the report, levels of E. coli in faeces were 641 times higher than the upstream reference site, 135 times higher for pesticides, 60 times higher for pharmaceuticals, 43 times higher for nitrogen, 19 times higher for phosphorus and 7 times higher for hydrocarbons.

“The former Sema:Su Shuo:Tsa was once trusted by our ancestors and provided many of the resources needed to sustain the people. It showed that the spirit of :tsa is alive and well and that we must learn to live in harmony with Mother Nature today,” said Murray Ned, executive director of the Lower Fraser Fisheries Alliance (LFFA), in a statement. I was.

Key takeaways from the report include poor water quality in the Lake Smus region, exposure of fish to high levels of metals, pesticides and other contaminants of concern; limited or inconsistent oversight of It is difficult to understand the risks associated with land use and chemical use.

“Our report reveals a collective failure to protect water and fish habitats from pollution caused by multiple activities in British Columbia,” Ross said.

“We hope these findings will contribute to innovation, stewardship and collective investment in green infrastructure that protects both communities and fish habitats.”

— with file by Paul Johnson

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