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Gorge waterway pollutant identified

A substance that polluted Gorge Creek and the Gorge waterway this month has been found to be a combination of motor oil and engine-cleaning fluid.
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Booms are used to contain an oil substance that travelled down Gorge Creek into the Gorge Waterway on Thursday, at foot of Sioux Place in Esquimalt.

A substance that polluted Gorge Creek and the Gorge waterway this month has been found to be a combination of motor oil and engine-cleaning fluid.

While most of the liquid has been collected, booms and absorbent material are being left in place for at least the next three weeks to ensure that if more appears, it will be contained.

The Ministry of Environment said five ducks were found to have been affected by the liquid.

The ministry has brought in wildlife experts and a veterinarian to asses the condition of the ducks.

Municipal officials from Esquimalt are trying to determine the source of the spill, which was reported on May 8.

Anyone living in Rockheights or near the Esquimalt industrial park who saw someone pouring liquid into a sewer or catch basin is asked to call the municipality’s department of engineering and public works.

The municipality repeated a reminder to residents that anything put into the sewage/stormwater system can come out in water courses or the ocean and cause damage.