Region says CUPE claim about leak at water treatment plant is inaccurate

The Region of Waterloo is responding to allegations lodged by a local union.

Last week, CUPE Local 1656 released a statement online which alleged there was a recent chlorine gas leak at the Mannheim Water Treatment Facility.

The union, which represents striking outside workers, claimed it happened because experienced plant operators were off the job as they take part in ongoing labour action.

“Had the leak not been fixed, (it) is possible that residents in the area could have been at risk of inhaling the toxic gas, which comes with serious health risks,” the CUPE statement read.

The Region of Waterloo (ROW) responded, saying the information released by the union is both inaccurate and misleading.

“The Region of Waterloo is considering legal action against CUPE’s repeated attempts to needlessly mislead residents with unfounded claims of unsafe operating procedures,” reads a statement from the municipality.

The region noted there was a small leak last week due to a manufacturer flaw. It was detected in a chlorine cylinder, which is not connected to the water system.

“Trained Water Operations staff completed a perfect containment response following strict safety protocols,” wrote ROW. “At no time was the public at risk.”

The region stressed that the local water system operates with highly trained staff and that there are strict operating procedures in place, along with engineering controls to protect public health.

Since then, the Region of Waterloo and CUPE Local 1656 reached a tentative deal. The CUPE statement has also been password-protected on the union’s website and any posts about it were removed from their social media channels.

A spokesperson for the union said, “We agreed to take it down as a condition of the settlement we reached with the employer. It is not a retraction on the content of the release itself.”