Abbotsford Creek Firefighting Foam Leaks

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Residents concerned about the impact of firefighting foam on the environment are demanding answers from the City following a foam leak into Abbotsford Creek.

Kelly Perrin, an administrator for the Bateman dog park Facebook group, said he started receiving reports Wednesday night of white foam coming down the creek and killing fish in the water. He went to investigate and found foam pools coming out of a sewage pipe and floating along Stoney Creek in Bateman Park.

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At first, he thought the foam was caused by a laundry detergent spill, similar to what happened in a nearby stream in 2021 when detergent was poured on the roof of a terraced house complex to prevent moss growth.

But when he got home, he felt a burning sensation in his feet and calves after getting in the water to document the foam. He reported the foam to the city but got no response.

The next day he learned that five containers of concentrated fire extinguishing foam had been accidentally spilled at a nearby fire station and discharged into the sewage system.

“It killed the fish. It killed everything, every microorganism in the water. Even the green algae turned brown and it could kill the trees,” he said. “The impact will last for years.”

In a statement, the City of Abbotsford said firefighting foam was accidentally released from a disconnected hose, flowing into a storm drain and waterway. It said the city is working with the BC Ministry of Environment and the federal Department of Fisheries to ensure the leak is contained and repaired.

Abbotsford Fire Chief Erick Peterson said in an interview that fish died as a result of the spill, but he did not yet know the extent of the spill or its full impact.

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“We have dispatched crews and are working to remove all spilled material from the creek itself and the drainage manhole that connects to the creek,” he said Thursday.

An outside firm has been hired to develop a plan to repair the leak and assess short- and long-term impacts, added Peterson, who apologized for the incident. “The city feels terrible that this happened … and we will make every effort to fix it.”

Vacuum and flush trucks were at the scene Thursday morning to clear debris from the storm system. Firefighters and city workers posted signs and tape telling people to keep their pets away from the area.

Perrin said that response was insufficient.

“They don’t have any containment dams. Their approach is dilution. They should have tried to contain the leak and pump it out.”

He also questioned why the city and fire department did not notify residents earlier and why they did not directly disclose the source of the foam until the media was notified.

“As a citizen, I want to know what the chemical was. I want to know its toxicity, and I want to know if anything further downstream is going to be killed,” Perrin said.

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Asked about efforts to fix the leak, Peterson said the bunds don’t work well with firefighting foam because the substance dissolves in water. “It’s in all the water. It requires us to suck it up and remove it.”

Peterson said the department has launched an investigation to determine how the firefighting foam was released and how much of it was released, and promised to provide answers “in the coming days.”

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