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Sydney Tar Ponds
Hazardous waste site in Nova Scotia, Canada / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Sydney Tar Ponds were a hazardous waste site on Cape Breton Island in Nova Scotia, Canada.[1]
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Located on the eastern shore of Sydney Harbour in the former city of Sydney (now amalgamated into the Cape Breton Regional Municipality), the Tar Ponds formed in a tidal estuary at the mouth of Muggah Creek, a freshwater stream that empties into the harbour. Throughout the 20th century, runoff from coke ovens associated with Sydney Steel Corporation's (SYSCO) now-decommissioned steel mill filled the estuary with the typical variety of coal-based contaminants and sludge.[2] Efforts to clean up the waterway were dogged by false starts, delays, and political controversy.[3] The coke ovens closed down but 12 years later, the toxic mess remained.[4] After extensive public consultation and technical studies, a C$400 million cleanup plan, jointly funded by the Government of Canada and Government of Nova Scotia, was announced in January 2007.[5] The cleanup was completed in 2013 with the opening of Open Hearth Park which is situated on the site of the former steel plant.[6]