Nuns' Island spa blamed for putrid pond pollution

A Nuns'Island spa is being given two weeks to correct a plumbing error that has been spewing raw sewage into a once-idyllicbasin bordering a residential neighbourhood.

When the Strom Spa was built on the island a suburb in Montreal'sVerdun borough in 2009, its wastewater piping was connected to the municipal rainwater sewer instead of the sewer that channels domestic waste to a treatment facility.

Since then, fetid wastewater from the spa has been gathering in aretention basin meant for overflow rainwater, and a thick green algae now coats the surface.

Residents who live near theRuisseau aux Hrons basin have been complaining to Verduns borough council for the past few years about the stench.

Pierre LHeureux, a longtime Nuns' Island resident who represents Verdun on Montreal city council, told CBC News that the wastewater and natural biological processes in the basin are producing a nasty smelling brew.

Combined, they create an unbearable stench, he said.

The problem was traced to the spas piping three weeks ago, and borough authorities havenow given the spa'sowners until mid-September to fix the problem.

In a news release issued Tuesday, Verdun MayorJean-Franois Parenteaupledged $1.5 million in borough funding for restoring the basin to a healthier state.

The spas ownerGuillaume Lemoine said he willtake immediate action to correct the piping issue.

He said the borough only brought the issue to his attention three weeks ago.

Lemoine saidthe spa will be closed until the problem is fixed.