An incident that caused a spillage from the overflow lagoon at Shelburne's wastewater treatment plant may result in charges by the Ministry of the Environment (MOE).

According to Glen Lang, a manager at Ontario Clean Water Agency (OCWA), it was an "overflow event that could have been avoided if operational best practices were followed," and an employee was dismissed after an initial investigation by OCWA.

Earlier last month, it was found berms had been breached at the treatment plants lagoon and untreated and partially treated sewage spilled over the banks and pooled in depressions on and around the facility.

The lagoons are used for overflow at times the sewer plant is working at capacity. Mayor Ed Crewson explained the lagoons are needed during an above-normal rainfall and when the snow is melting, and the water is then held in the lagoon until the facility can handle it.

Initially the problem was blamed on spring runoff.

When the spillage was discovered, OCWA staff used sandbags to shore up the berm and a vacuum truck was used to transfer lagoon contents to a holding tank inside the facility. Because of the amount of overflow it took two days before the lagoon was considered no longer breached.

The MOE was on site once the spill was discovered and ministry spokesman John Steele said the overflow on to an adjacent commercial property led to the incident being referred to the ministry's investigative branch.

"It is now up to the investigative branch to decide what the outcome is, whether or not charges are going to be laid," Mr. Steele said.

Mayor Crewson said he has been dealing with several issues with the water treatment plant and he wanted to make it clear the spillage incident has nothing to do with the questions around the allocation and future growth.

"I think we need to be clear," he said. "The two situations we have been dealing with this month are completely separate. The plant does not have a problem with current capacity."

Larry McGregor, Shelburne's public works supervisor, said OCWA has dismissed one of its employees after the incident and the plant is handling the flows and is in compliance with all regulatory compliance.

"Operations is normal," Mr. McGregor said. "The next step, if anything else needs to be done, is up to the province."

According to the Ministry of the Environment's website, the Clean Water Act is a major part of the Ontario government's commitment to ensure that every Ontarian has access to safe drinking water.

Protecting water at its source is the first step by stopping contaminants from getting into sources of drinking water in lakes, rivers and aquifers and providing defence in the protection of the environment and the health of Ontarians.

For the first time, commu- nities are now required to create and carry out a plan to protect the sources of municipal drinking water supplies. The Clean Water Act will:

+ Require local communities to look at the existing and potential threats to their water and set out and implement the actions necessary to reduce or eliminate significant threats.

+ Empower communities to take action to prevent threats from becoming significant.

+ Require public participation on every local source protection plan. This means everyone in the community gets a chance to contribute to the planning process.

+ Require that all plans and actions are based on sound science.

The legislation is designed to promote voluntary initiatives but does require mandatory action where needed.