Alberta investigates family’s lead-contaminated water well near gravel mine

Alberta Environment is investigating how a family’s water well near a gravel mine became so contaminated with lead that it is no longer drinkable.

The investigation comes as Red Deer County considers expanding mining operations that Jody Young suspects are the source of the lead she and her family may have been drinking for months.

“It’s in our blood,” Young said. “My son’s levels are actually higher than mine.”

Young, who lives just south of Red Deer near the banks of the Red Deer River, has lived within a few hundred yards of the county gravel mine for more than a decade.

He got used to the slightly cloudy water from his once-clear well as mines near his home in central Alberta ramped up production. Tests from a few years ago showed that the water was fine and she preferred the tap to a plastic bottle.

But the water kept getting worse.

“We went from seeing it in a bathtub to being able to see it in a glass of water,” he said.

So last summer, she asked Alberta Health Services to test her family’s well water. Within days, she received a call.

“They told us to stop drinking our water immediately,” he said. “We weren’t supposed to cook with it. We were advised not to even brush our teeth.”

Lead, which can cause anemia, weakness, kidney and brain damage, was above levels safe for human consumption. So was aluminum.

Both metals were later found in blood samples from his family.

“It was very concerning to learn of the contamination of well water in Red Deer County,” Carla Jones, a spokeswoman for Alberta Environment, said in an email. “The source of these metals is under investigation.”

On February 7, Young plans to appear at a public hearing hosted by Red Deer County to oppose proposed changes to a county land use statute. The changes would allow gravel mining on land virtually adjacent to its water hole.

The privately owned proposed expansion site is also located on land deemed environmentally significant by provincial regulators.

“We are fully compliant with Alberta Environment on our well,” said Dave Dittrick, assistant manager for Red Deer County. Private operators would have to follow the same regulations, he said.

“Everything they do will have to be in compliance.”

Dittrick said that while the county is cooperating with Alberta Environment, it has not seen the data that raised Alberta Health’s concern.

“We have not seen any information to support these claims,” ​​he said.

Gravel or aggregate mines are needed for everything from paving roads to building houses. Although they are everywhere in Alberta, it is hard to find data on them.

Mines larger than five hectares must be registered and subject to provincial regulation. Mines that go below the water table or involve significant water use require a Water Law license.

“Alberta has a robust regulatory approval process to manage the environmental impacts of gravel quarries,” said Miguel Racin, a spokesman for Alberta Environment.

Smaller mines (the expansion near Young’s pit would be about three hectares) are largely regulated by local land use statutes.

But observers say such mines are a growing concern as Alberta continues to grow.

“It’s a problem in every county,” said Vivian Pharis, an environmentalist who has been involved in previous conflicts over such mines.

“We don’t have good provincial regulations. The main decision is made at the municipal level and as soon as the zoning is changed, it seems like Alberta Environment’s hands are tied.”

Hydrogeologist Jon Fennell, who has consulted on several mining projects, said gravel mines risk exposing and releasing previously stable chemicals.

“If you’re opening (a mine) and exposing things to oxygen, they can resist, rust and mobilize,” he said. “Every time you disturb the earth, things change.”

While municipalities are in charge of much of the permitting process for gravel mines, Fennell notes that they are also heavy users of gravel.

“They are very much in favor of gravel in some parts of the province,” he said.

Red Deer County’s earlier attempt to expand its aggregate operations near Young’s home was thrown out in 2022 by a King’s Court judge for unfair process.

Enforcement is lax even for mines that are subject to provincial regulations, Fennell said. Operators may be required to monitor water levels, but not water quality.

“It’s not mandatory,” he said. “If you do not seek, you will not find.”

Gravel mines are necessary, Dittrick said.

“Aggregate is needed for development and development is ongoing,” he said.

Some sources may be more appropriate than others, Fennell said.

“We have to get (gravel) from somewhere. The question is, where?”

Young wonders how long his family has been drinking lead-contaminated water. And he wonders why she has to wonder about it.

“I’ve had some real moments with this,” he said.

You remember learning about some of your son’s computer searches.

“I found out he was googling lead poisoning. He was researching the potential impacts for himself.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published on January 17, 2023.