Is Victoria dumping raw sewage?
Argument: Victoria dumps 129 Million liters of raw sewage into the Strait of Juan de Fuca each day (Victoria Times Colonist – web site- http://www.canada.com/victoriatimescolonist/features/sewage/index.html) Counter argument: Victoria does not dump its sewage – the sewage effluent is screened and discharged through two deep ocean outfalls into the marine waters of the Strait of Juan de Fuca. The terms “dump” and “raw” unfairly characterize this effective, engineered approach that has enabled the natural disposal of Victoria’s sewage effluent for the past 30 years and in this specific marine environment, is considered as effective as primary or even secondary treatment of sewage. Analysis: The word “dumping” has many meanings but is a generally a negative term. Included in definitions are the North American slang term “take a dump”. The term “raw sewage” is used by engineers to describe the sewage effluent that is collected from households, industry and business by a sewerage system pri
