Cleanup underway after diesel spill in Mimico Creek

Emergency crews are responding to a diesel spill in Mimico Creek near Legion Road and Manitoba Street in Etobicoke, the city said Sunday. City crews deployed absorbent booms — floating tubes that trap and soak in diesel — to contain the spill.

The city is working with the Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks on cleanup efforts and investigating the source and cause. The spill comes nearly three years after a massive chemical incident in the same area. In August 2023, an industrial fire at Brenntag Canada's chemical distribution facility spilled oily sludge into Mimico Creek and Humber Creek, killing fish, birds, and mammals with cleanup efforts lasting months.

Tony Morris, conservation policy director at Ontario Nature, said Sunday's spill will damage the ecosystem. "Spills of any sort of hydrocarbons are particularly devastating for wildlife populations," he said Toronto Monday. For birds especially, the oil coats their feathers and impacts food chains across multiple species.

Michael Janetakes, president of Friends of Humber Bay Park, a volunteer nonprofit that cleans streams and hosts nature walks, said the latest spill is a major concern. "We have nesting birds and birds feeding in this area," he said. "This is a migratory route for wildlife."