Montreal Begins Dumping 2.1 Billion Gallons Of Sewage Into St. Lawrence River

Published November 11, 2015 at 1:52 PM EST

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A freighter is sailing in the St. Lawrence River on July, 18th along L'ïle d'orléans Island (Québec, Canada). Just after midnight this morning, the city of Montreal began dumping raw, untreated sewage into this main waterway. Over the next six days, the city will dump more than 2 billion gallons of untreated sewage into the river, which runs from the Great Lakes to the Atlantic Ocean. (Clement Sabourin/AFP/Getty Images)

Just after midnight this morning, the city of Montreal began dumping raw, untreated sewage into its main waterway, the St. Lawrence River. Over the next six days, the city will dump around 2.1 billion gallons of untreated sewage into the river, which runs from the Great Lakes to the Atlantic Ocean, along part of the U.S.-Canada border.

Here & Now‘s Jeremy Hobson talks with Tracey Lindeman of the CBC in Montreal, about why the city is dumping so much sewage into the river, and what the environmental implications could be.

Guest

Tracey Lindeman, journalist with the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation in Montreal. She tweets @traceylindeman.