A diesel spill in an inlet near Tahsis last December is slowly clearing up - but not before closing down commercial clam harvesting just ahead of the holiday season.
According to a notice from Ehattesaht First Nation, Zeballos Inlet was closed to clam harvesting a day after the Dec. 14 diesel spill. On Dec. 20, Fisheries and Oceans Canada also issued an emergency closure of shellfish harvesting in Esperanza Inlet due to the spill.
It was on Dec. 14 that the Environmental Emergency Branch (EEB) received a report that approximately 7,500 litres of diesel was spilled into the ocean at a salmon farm operated by Greig Seafood. A Greig Seafood employee was transferring fuel at a floating platform when the accident happened.
The company immediately made efforts to mitigate damages by contracting a qualified environmental professional and putting down oil absorbing booms at the site of the spill, Lutes Creek.
The province, Canadian Coast Guard, local First Nations (Ehattesaht, Nuchatlaht and Mowachaht/Muchalaht), as well as the villages of Tahsis and Zeballos were all notified of the incident and included in strategic planning for clean-up and observation of the area.
On December 16 and Incident Command Post was established in the Ehattesaht administration office at Zeballos. Multiple parties and agencies are working together under the concept of Unified Command to assess the waterways in search of recoverable fuel. Oil boom pads would be placed if recoverable oil was observed.
By Dec. 22, Unified Command, represented by federal agencies, provincial agencies, Greig Seafood, Ehattesaht First Nation, Nuchatlaht First Nation and Mowachaht/Muchalaht First Nation, reported that no more spilled diesel could be detected and no oiled animals were seen.
On Dec. 24, Unified Command reported, “based on modeling, it is estimated that most of the spilled diesel has partially evaporated or naturally degraded and the rest dispersed throughout the area.” They also reported that diesel sheen was observed at Nuchatlitz Park and along the shoreline.
By January 8, 2025, a waste and wildlife management plans were finalized, following a flyover by the National Aerial Surveillance Program, which conducted a survey on Jan. 6. They they observed ‘0.03 L of weathered sheen entrained in tide lines of Esperanza Inlet and an incalculably small volume of sheen in proximity to the fish farm (Lutes Creek)”.
Greig Seafood, as the agency responsible for the spill, is legally required to clean up or manage the clean up of fuel spills.
As a result of the diesel spill the Pacific Region Interdepartmental Shellfish Committee (PRISC) had reason to believe the quality of bivalve shellfish in Subarea 25-9 and a portion of Subarea 25-13 may be compromised and closed the areas to harvesting on Dec. 20.
According to the DFO Shellfish Contamination Map, portions of Esperanza Inlet, Espinosa Inlet and Ceepeecee remain closed to shellfish harvesting as of January 16, 2025.
Local clam digger, Kyle Harry, shared that he’s received word from both Ehattesaht First Nation and DFO that he could harvest clams for the Dec. 16 clam tides.
“Just Little Zeballos to Tahsis Inlet is closed,” he told Ha-Shilth-Sa.
There is no indication of when those areas located within Esperanza Inlet will re-open to shellfish harvesting.
