Landslide Chilliwack

Disclaimer:

• Information provided is based on reports received by Emergency Management and Climate Readiness (EMCR)
• Information provided is considered to be current at the time of posting, but is subject to change

Incident description

Incident Date	December 6, 2023
Name	DGIR: 234799
Source	Landslide, waste oil storage tank
Nearest Community	Chilliwack, B.C.
Spilled Content	Waste oil
Who is involved	Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Strategy (ENV), Ministry of Emergency Management and Climate Readiness (EMCR), Ministry of Energy, Mines and Low Carbon Innovation (EMLI), Ministry of Land, Water and Resource Stewardship (LWRS), Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO), Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC), Transport Canada, Canadian National (CN) Rail, Fraser Valley Regional District (FVRD), Emergency Planning Secretariat, Seabird Island Band, Lower Fraser Fisheries Alliance, S’ólh Téméxw Stewardship Alliance, Cheam First Nation, Sto:lo Nation, Chawathil First Nation, Skwah First Nation, Pópkw’em First Nation, Shxw’ōwhámél First Nation, Peters First Nation, Key-West Asphalt (333) Ltd. (Key-West Asphalt)

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Response phase details

The responsible person or spiller is legally required to clean-up or manage the clean-up of a spill.

In incidents where the responsible person is unknown, unable or unwilling to manage the cleanup, the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Strategy (ENV) may assume the role. 

The updates below reflect the ministry’s oversight of the spillers’ actions. Details describe the spill response phase only and not the complete lifecycle of the spill. Visit the 'More information' page for other reports. 

Updates are in reverse chronological order with the most recent at the top.

Industry-specific language may be explained in the Glossary of Terms (PDF, 106KB).

Most recent updates

March 28

The remedial excavation work is complete. Soil sample results show most of the impacted area is below soil quality guidelines. The remaining few areas show contaminant levels above soil quality guidelines. Further excavation work was prevented in these areas because of geotechnical constraints.

A permit to install groundwater monitoring wells for long-term environmental monitoring is awaiting approval. These wells are expected to be installed next week. These monitoring wells will inform local authorities and qualified professionals if additional cleanup measures are needed.

Coordination calls will continue with First Nations and local communities as needed to share information and sampling results.

The emergency response work to this incident has concluded. No further updates to this webpage are expected. ENV will continue to monitor the remediation progress.

March 12

Landslide and debris material that impacted the dry portion of the Fraser River has been removed. Samples were taken to confirm if all the material was removed. The test results are pending. Additional sampling may be done.

Work continued to remove debris and spilled material around the train tracks. Monitoring supported that the spilled material remained on the uphill side of the train track. This work will continue over the next couple of days until it is complete.

February 3

On January 31, Guardians and representatives from local communities visited the site.

The work to stabilize the slope has been reviewed and deemed adequate to support response activities to be safely carried out.

Communications with Key-West Asphalt continue to be positive and work toward response and remediation of the incident.

Coordination calls continue multiple times a week to allow for the sharing of information with local communities, government agencies, and Key-West Asphalt.

January 24

A site visit from local Guardians will be scheduled once the weather cooperates.

Slope stabilization work has been completed. Review of the work is ongoing to ensure response activities can be safely carried out.

There has been no indication that the spilled material has impacted dry or wet portions of the Fraser River or migrated from its current location. It continues to be monitored.

The resource at risk assessment has been completed and is being reviewed.

Coordination calls continue daily to allow for the sharing of information with local communities, government agencies, and Key-West Asphalt.

January 16

Slope stabilization work continues at the site and is near completion. The slope must be stabilized to allow response actions to the landslide and spilled material to be completed safely. A water management plan to redirect water at the top of the slope is ongoing to support slope stability.

Local partners and First Nations will be at the mine site tomorrow to observe the work that has been completed to improve slope conditions, January 17.

Approval to access private property in ongoing to allow response contractors to reach the impacted area at the bottom of the slope.

There has been no indication that the spilled material has impacted dry or wet portions of the Fraser River or migrated from its current location. It continues to be monitored.

Permits to work in and around the Fraser River have been approved by DFO and WLRS.

Coordination calls continue daily to allow for the sharing of information with local communities, government agencies, and Key-West Asphalt.

December 28

Slope instability concerns continue to limit site access and response actions.

Material and equipment were moved to the site to start slope stabilization work tomorrow, December 29.

Key-West Asphalt’s response contractor is working through the approval process to perform work in and around the Fraser River. Approval has been received from DFO. Approval under the Water Sustainability Act from WLRS is pending.

Key-West Asphalt’s response contractor is working with CN Rail to accommodate work around the train tracks.

Coordination calls continue daily to allow for the sharing of information with local communities, government agencies, and Key-West Asphalt.

There has been no indication that any additional material or contamination has left the mine site or further impacted dry or wet portions of the Fraser River.

A coordination call to complete a resources at risk assessment is scheduled for tomorrow, December 29, with local ecological knowledge holders.

December 22

Slope instability concerns continue to limit site access and response actions.

Key-West Asphalt continues to work with EMLI to develop a safe work procedure to allow work, with constraints, onsite. EMLI has requested 24-hour surveillance on the site.

A geotechnical assessment was completed and indicates a substantial amount of work is required to stabilize the slope. A LiDAR survey is scheduled to provide more information on the slope.

Key-West Asphalt’s response contractor is scheduled to visit the site tomorrow.

Daily coordination calls continue to allow for the sharing of information with local communities, government agencies, and Key-West Asphalt. These calls are scheduled to continue through the holiday long weekend, including Christmas day.

ENV will be coordinating an assessment of resources at risk in the area with local ecological knowledge holders.

December 18

Slope instability concerns continue to limit site access and response actions.

Coordination calls continue daily to allow for the sharing of information with local communities, government agencies, and Key-West Asphalt.

There has been no indication that the spilled material has impacted dry or wet portions of the Fraser River or migrated from its current location.

A geotechnical report on the slope’s stability is expected today.

December 14

Slope instability concerns continue to limit site access and response actions.

Coordination calls occur daily with local First Nations and representatives from Key-West Asphalt, ENV, EMLI, CN Rail, DFO, and ECCC.

There has been no indication that the spilled material has impacted dry or wet portions of the Fraser River or migrated from its current location.

December 9

Slope instability concerns continue to limit response actions.

The spilled material appears to be contained in a depression that is uphill of the train tracks. No spilled material has been observed reaching dry or wet portions of the Fraser River.

Key-West Asphalt’s response contractor visited the site to assess response options. A temporary barricade was installed to prevent wildlife access to the spill area and equipment at the top of the slope was relocated to a more stable location.

Key-West Asphalt’s site is regulated by EMLI. Regular operations of the site are halted until the slope instability and incident can be managed.

December 7

On December 6, 2023, a localized landslide at Key-West Asphalt’s site east of Chilliwack, B.C., caused a waste oil tank to fall down a steep back towards the Fraser River. A dry portion of the Fraser River channel was impacted. Train tracks near the bottom of the slope were also impacted.

The capacity of the storage tank was 20,000 liters. Approximately, 18,000 liters of waste oil was recovered from the tank. It is estimated that 2,000 liters or less was spilled into the environment.

Key-West Asphalt retained a response contractor, but response efforts are delayed due to slope instability.