Mass fish kill on Burnaby-Coquitlam border under investigation

Michelle Gomez · CBC News

· Posted: May 07, 2025 4:59 PM EDT | Last Updated: 1 infinitesimal ago

Approximately 100 young food were recovered dormant Tuesday successful Stoney Creek, located connected the borderline of Burnaby and Coquitlam, prompting some cities to analyse h2o contamination. 

Residents accidental it's a predominant occurrence successful the area. 

"I'm bushed of walking the trails and gathering my neighbours and having them successful tears saying, 'Oh my God, there's a large food kill,'" said Janice McAndrew, a resident and manager of the Oakdale Neighbourhood Association.

McAndrew says since adjacent operation ramped up successful the country astir 2021, the assemblage has noticed the watercourse looking visibly polluted. 

"We consciousness there's toxins going in; you tin spot a hazy formed to the water," said McAndrew.

"It's getting much and much frustrating each day." 

The cities of Burnaby and Coquitlam some said successful statements to CBC that they received the study of the food termination connected Tuesday morning, noting astir 100 dormant food were observed successful the country adjacent Broadway and Norcrest Crescent. 

Both said unit had taken h2o samples and are moving to find the contamination and place its source. 

They besides said immoderate idiosyncratic oregon concern recovered liable would beryllium issued fines oregon citations.  

A spokesperson for the City of Burnaby told CBC the metropolis is alert of different erstwhile akin incidents, noting it happens "frequently." 

Officers from Environment and Climate Change Canada were at the creek investigating connected Tuesday.  

Suzana Kovacic, who lives adjacent and is a probe subordinate astatine SFU's chemistry section and a unpaid with the Stoney Creek Environmental Committee, says a important summation successful substances being discharged into the Creek coincides with increased adjacent construction. 

Kovacic said she observed different food termination incidental connected Friday. She says she saw dense achromatic tar from a culvert going into the creek.

"I watched 1 fish, a salmon fry, interact with possibly that tar but possibly thing else, and flip onto its broadside and die," she said. 

Kovacic said astatine the aforesaid clip she noticed a dense ammonia odor from manure coming into the creek and observed Styrofoam pieces and soap suds floating into the creek. 

The City of Coquitlam said it besides received a study connected Tuesday of suds coming from an upstream culvert. 

Kovacic says portion determination are h2o prime monitoring systems installed successful the creek, much needs to beryllium done. 

She says determination needs to beryllium much regularisation for adjacent operation sites, which she says should person upgraded wastewater attraction systems. 

"If the authorities who person the powerfulness to marque alteration bash something, we tin reconstruct this creek," she said.