MP Gallant attends public meeting on CFB Petawawa beaches

June 15, 2007

CFB PETAWAWA – Renfrew-Nipissing-Pembroke MP Cheryl Gallant was pleased to take part in a public meeting to announce that Ottawa River beaches along CFB Petawawa are now to be re-opened.

At a public meeting Thursday night at the Troyes Cinema, MP Gallant along with about 40 interested boaters listened as the Unexploded Ordinance UXO Legacy Site Program was explained.

“At long last the clean-up has been completed and while there is not a 100 per cent guarantee that everything has been cleared from the beaches I believe the problem and the risk have been greatly reduced. It is certainly a welcome announcement to boaters that we can now once again use those beautiful beaches,” MP Gallant said.

Earlier this week in the House of Commons, MP Gallant commended CFB Petawawa Base Commander Lieutenant-Colonel Dave Rundle for his role in having the beaches cleared and re-opened to the public.

“I am pleased to recognize the leadership that Lieutenant-Colonel David Rundle, CFB Petawawa Base Commander, has played on this and many other issues during his posting to Petawawa. On behalf of the Petawawa community, we wish him well on his next posting. We will miss him,” MP Gallant said.

In 2001, a company specially trained in locating UXOs visited the beaches and using a grid system, surveyed a small area to estimate the number of munitions along the entire stretch of beach. They were also responsible for locating UXOs in the Ottawa River to a five-metre depth.

Throughout the project fencing, signs and buoys in the river were prominent to warn people of the dangers. Discussions are ongoing between the base and UXO Legacy Sites Program to determine what kind of fencing and signage will be used now to make it more aesthetically pleasing, especially the fence.

The $5-million project to rid the beaches along the Ottawa River of Unexploded Explosive Ordnance took four summers to complete, beginning in 2002, when the beaches were closed and the public was first alerted to the dangers lurking in the sand and water. The hazard zone stretched approximately 6.5 kilometres from Black Point to Black Bear Beach along the north bank of the river next to the base. Landmarks in between include Angler Point, Wegner Point, Gust Point and Kiska Beach. The affected area comprised 27 hectares of beach and 167 hectares of river bottom.

For more information about the Department of National Defence’s UXO Legacy Program go to their website at www.uxocanada.forces.gc.ca.