Verdun beach: closed 1/3 of the time
The new Verdun beach has been closed a third of the time it’s been in existence because of doubts about the water quality.
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Faiz Imam 19:47 on 2019-07-23 Permalink
Well, that’s what you get when every reaction to this beach opening up is concerns about “Montreal’s water is so bad, I wound never want to swim in that crap!”
In response, the city has been very sensitive (I wound say overly sensitive) about water quality.
If anyone angry about these closures was previously concerned about bad water quality… well just be careful what you wish for.
ant6n 20:17 on 2019-07-23 Permalink
I passed by there the other day, it was insane full. Just as I got there they stopped allowing ppl in the water because they heard a thunder, oh well.
My take: this beach is way too small, tiny really, and there’s way too few such beaches in Montreal. How overflowing this place is with people despite barely being more than a kiddie pool shows the pent up demand for being able to go into the water.
Oh btw, I think the Grand Splash 2019 didn’t happen yet and one can sign up per e-mail: https://montrealbaignade.org/
Faiz Imam 22:16 on 2019-07-23 Permalink
Montreal has a lot of trauma from how toxic the water was in decades past. Even if its much better now, that hesitancy persists. And this is a big part of why we have no beaches. If the water is always toxic, why bother?
It’s going to take a long time to get over that, but activist groups have done a ton of hard work over the past decade to make it happen, and this beach, plus the attempts of a beach on the old port, show its working.
Are there any other plans of new beaches on the books anywhere? I hope they move ahead, Verdun is hopefully a statement to municipalities that its in huge demand.
ant6n 22:37 on 2019-07-23 Permalink
Oh puleaze water used to be toxic in all industrialized countries, and in plenty of places people have cleaned it up and gotten over it. You just need to understand the value of these non-profit generating icky things, and actually invest in it.
Faiz Imam 23:08 on 2019-07-23 Permalink
Hey, we’re on the same page here, i’m just describing the fears that a lot of opponents of this have.
They exist, and there is a lot of them. And they come out of the woodwork every time any sort of water access is suggested.
They are wrong, but unless we understand how they think, we can’t convert them.
John B 23:48 on 2019-07-23 Permalink
If we look at the water quality at Ottawa beaches we see they’ve also been closed quite a bit this season. Not quite as much as Verdun, but still a fair bit.
Beaches closing sometimes because of water quality is something we’ll have to live with until we can sort out runoff and sewage issues. Hopefully that’ll be soon.
But every day the beach is open is a swim day that we didn’t have in 2018!
ant6n 08:33 on 2019-07-24 Permalink
@Faiz No we’re not. I’m claiming the water quality issue is a red herring, you claim it’s a deep-rooted issue.
Michael Black 08:33 on 2019-07-24 Permalink
From previous stories, I thought one issue was too much rain, so the filter system got overflowed, allowing untreated water back into the ecosystem. I don’t know if that applies this summer, but if so, it’s not the beach’s problem, though it affects it.
I certainly hope I get back to wa!king before the nice weather ends, I suddenly do have a urge to go to the Verdun beach.
Michael
MarcG 08:47 on 2019-07-24 Permalink
Nothing says “poor planning” quite like a hand-written sign.
Faiz Imam 14:42 on 2019-07-24 Permalink
ant6n : We are on the same page. I agree its a red herring, but its a myth that is also deeply rooted.
Its like removing parking from commercial streets. All the evidence is clear that its the right move, but that means little for the proportion of the population who strongly hold to the idea that the cars are essential to economic survival.
Just telling them they are wrong, is not effective in changing their minds. The issue here is not ignorance, its an irrational fear of something different than what they are used to.
Ant6n 16:40 on 2019-07-24 Permalink
Le sigh…