Analysis of Sydney Tar Ponds and Coke Ovens Sites Remediation Project Environmental Assessment of 2005

Table of Contents
1.0 Introduction1
2.0 Sydney Tar Ponds Environmental Assessment2
2.1 Critical Discussion4
3.0 Conclusions5

References7
Assignment Checklist9

AppendixI

1.0 Introduction
The Sydney Tar Ponds in Nova Scotia are the result of lack of foresight by the Canadian government and the Dominion Iron & Steel Company Ltd. on the effects of the steel mills operations on the social, economic and environmental factors which affected the communities around the tar ponds. The Coke Ovens is a 68 hectare former industrial property bounded by residential and former industrial lands. It contains several watercourses including Coke Ovens Brook. From 1901 to 1988, various coke production plants operating on the site provided carbon and fuel for the nearby steel mill. Other industrial plants on the property used by-products from the coking operations to manufacture various commercial products. An estimated 560,000 tons (280,000 m3) of soil on the Coke Ovens is contaminated with petroleum hydrocarbons, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and metals. An additional 1,300 tons (1,000 m3) of PAH contaminated sediment is present in Coke Ovens Brook and 25,000 (12,500 m3) tons of contaminated soil is present in the in-ground tar cell (Griffiths et al. 2006). The main problem with the Sydney Tar Ponds was how the toxic waste material from the coke ovens (tailings) was stored. The dumping sites of the tailings became known as the Tar Ponds after the steel mill closed down. The surrounding communities suffered from the toxic waste due to its improper disposal, leaching lead, arsenic and other toxic elements into the soil. These elements could be found in soil 20km away from the ponds themselves. (Lambert & Lane, 2004) Many people developed cancer from