My diving experiences in Vancouver Island

[Soakedlontra]

Hello Folks!

I have just come back from a long week-end diving trip to Victoria.

A couple of friends of mine mentioned to me that the city of Victoria does not have sewage treatment plants and dumps raw sewage into the ocean.

When I decided to dive at Ogden Point I was excited about diving from a breakwater (I am a novice diver) with a dive shop and cafe' nearby and I did not think much of what those people told me.

During the dive I though the water was OK and felt 'safe' from exposing myself to nasty bacteria etc.

Now I am writing a story about my diving experiences in Vancouver Island and I have began to think harder about this issue of dumped raw sewage along that stretch of the island coast.

Betty Pratt-Johnson in her "151 Dives in protected waters of British Columbia and Washington State" did include this dive site in her book without mentioning the possibility of immersing yourself into a sea of floating human waste, chemicals of all sorts and heavy metals.

What are your feelings about it?

 

[cooldives]

Interesting question.

I grew up in Victoria and spent a lot of time in the ocean there without really thinking about that and without ever having a problem. I know they frequently do fecal coloform counts and ensure the water is safe. Maybe the extra 'nutrients' are what make the ling cod and octopus grow so big and the marine life so colorful?

Seriously though, I am completely against the dumping of raw sewage and amazed Victoria hasn't done more to fix this problem. It is discussed often but the plans always hit the backburner when it's budget time.

The tidal flushing works to keep the water clear and safe for now though.

 

[tjbrh]

You have really managed to hit a nerve with Victoria residents. There are two camps, one for, and one against sewage treatment. I'm in the against camp.

Victoria does not need sewage treatment for a number of reasons. The primary one being that the straights that surround Victoria have a thorough tidal flush causing all of our waste to be removed daily.

Secondly, although fecal matter seems distasteful to humans, many other creatures find it quite tasty, and good for them too! As was already mentioned, the high level of nutrients in our waste promotes the health of a number of marine species.

Now, for divers who find it distasteful to dive in an ocean containing fecal matter I would ask this: are you planning on asking the whales and other marine species to stop *****ting in the ocean?

I think what annoys me the most is that the biggest argument for sewage treatment comes from the tourist industry. A number of tourists and business visitors have voiced their distaste over our choice of sewage treatment. That's great, however, it is not their tax dollars that would be footing the bill for an expensive treatement system that the city doesn't need. So, for all of those who don't like the idea of visiting and diving in a city that discharges it's waste directly into the ocean, please feel free to stay home.

Tony

 

[wwunder]

I have to agree that I am a little skeptical of the need for sewage treatment. First, the currents and flow around victoria are very significant and flush the area multiple times everyday.

The second point about "sewage treatment" is that it does not remove the problem, rather it displaces it. Once you use a bunch of energy to evaporate the excess water, you are left with a dry product that has to be trucked and disposed of in a landfill. So who wants a sewage landfill in their backyard? There is nowhere to landfill it in the south island.

If you are that concerned about sewage treatment, I wouldn't recommend diving anywhere near a small town on the ocean. Most major cities treat sewage, but most smaller developments discharge straight into the chuck. For instance Howe Sound (best diving off Vancouver) all the little communities do.

 

[Pinguino]

I tend to agree with the against camp as well.. For the time being anyways..
I've been diving in and around the breakwater for the last 6 years now.. and have not had the displeasure of coming face to face with mr. Floaty.. Actually the sewage is not dumped at the breakwater.. the closest outfall is at Clover point which is a good 3-5km further along Dallas road and the actual pipe outlet is about a kilometer off shore.. Well into the high current flow areas that assist in dispersing the sewage into the straight and then further into the Pacific Ocean. Actually Clover Point itself is a fairly popular dive site (Albiet shallower with a bottom out of about 35 feet) and I've been there diving at least 20 times over the years and again.. No Mr. Floaty. I'd be more concerned about the cruise ships that dock in our ports probably let more crap into the water (not necessarily raw sewage) then any raw sewage pipe. My advice.. Dive the breakwater.. It's a marine sanctuary and your only real fear of diving there is getting hooked by the darn fishermen or coming face to face with some of the biggest ling cods this diver has ever seen.

 

[Soakedlontra]

I have heard that now Victoria has decided to build a sewage treatment plant. I hope that the city will opt for a revolutionary design that turns waste into energy and screens obnoxious chemicals and heavy metals as much as possible.

From my understanding, the human body waste in itself causes a problem if it is in high concentration. What complicates things further is the fact that, unfortunately, we flush not just body waste but traces of chemicals through consumption of drugs of all sorts and dumping out-of-date drugs too into the toilet.

This problem is particularly acute in the Puget Sound area. The physiology of the fish gets screwed up resulting in abnormal deformations and the development of female egg sacs in males.

According to the book "The Humanure Handbook A guide to composting human manure" by Joseph Jenkins:

'The average person can now expect to find at least 250 chemical contaminants in his or her body fat'…

Anyway what I am trying to say is that this issue is far more complicated than just dumping some human body waste into the ocean that it is not immediately dangerous because tidal currents take it away and gets diluted far off shore.

It seems to me that a lot of folks, regardless where they live, struggle to see the whole picture and understand that if they were willing to make adjustments to their lifestyle and habits far less chemicals, heavy metals and plastic etc. will end up in the ocean to begin with.

...I'd be more concerned about the cruise ships that dock in our ports probably let more crap into the water (not necessarily raw sewage) then any raw sewage pipe...

I wonder about that too. A friend of mine told me that people in Alaska complain about cruise ships dumping their waste off shore. They have to put up with it whether they like it or not. What kills me most is the fact that people who actually travel on those 'monsters' do not seem to be concerned to find out where their waste ends up!

 

[wedivebc]

I am undecided on this issue, but I am curious about these heavy metals you refer to. Can you cite a source and confirmation that there are in fact heavy metals being ejected into the ocean by the city of Victoria?

 

[Hyper-limits]

I am undecided on this issue, but I am curious about these heavy metals you refer to. Can you cite a source and confirmation that there are in fact heavy metals being ejected into the ocean by the city of Victoria?

Once I use my waterproof MP5 during a long deco stop, I was listening to Iron Maiden so it is possible that I did inject some heavy metal in our sea of floating human waste.

Cheers

Al

 

[cfenton]

From my understanding it is true that Victoria is the only major city in Canada that dumps raw sewage directly into the ocean without any secondary treatment. The sewage does have primary treatment - it is run through a screen to remove solids. It is also true that human waste is by no means the only waste that ends up in any cities sewage. It can hardly be argued that this is not a source of pollution. There are two sewage outfall pipes and both are approximately a kilometer off shore in the straight of Juan de Fuca which has very strong currents. Therefore the idea that you have to worry about swimming in sewage at Ogden Point is nothing short of ridiculous. Having said that, just because the sewage is washed away into the Pacific on a daily basis - and does not have any major affect on the immediate coastal waters of Victoria - doesn't change the fact that the city is polluting the world's oceans. In my opinion: a environmental concern, yes; and diving concern, no.

 

[cfenton]

Hello Folks!

I have just come back from a long week-end diving trip to Victoria.

A couple of friends of mine mentioned to me that the city of Victoria does not have sewage treatment plants and dumps raw sewage into the ocean.

When I decided to dive at Ogden Point I was excited about diving from a breakwater (I am a novice diver) with a dive shop and cafe' nearby and I did not think much of what those people told me.

During the dive I though the water was OK and felt 'safe' from exposing myself to nasty bacteria etc.

Now I am writing a story about my diving experiences in Vancouver Island and I have began to think harder about this issue of dumped raw sewage along that stretch of the island coast.

Betty Pratt-Johnson in her "151 Dives in protected waters of British Columbia and Washington State" did include this dive site in her book without mentioning the possibility of immersing yourself into a sea of floating human waste, chemicals of all sorts and heavy metals.

What are your feelings about it?

Here is a quote from "Whidbey Island septic system law takes hold" from August 20, 2008 on WhidbeyNewsTimes.com:

The city uses both its own treatment plant at Windjammer Park and the Navy’s lagoon system at Crescent Harbor to treat its wastewater. City workers do a great job keeping the system operating at peak efficiency, but the fact is that the finished product that pours into Puget Sound is not up to modern standards. As a demonstration to the city council last year showed, Oak Harbor is putting murky, rather putrid-looking treated water into Puget Sound, while a modern sewer plant produces a clear product that, as sewer plant operators like to boast, “is clean enough to drink.”

You might think about working on bringing awareness to the sewage problems at home before worrying about ours.