Over 530 km of asbestos cement pipes in Regina: investigation by W5
Regina has 531 kilometres of asbestos cement pipes, according to findings by a W5 investigation.
CTV Regina Morning Live spoke with W5 correspondent Eric Szeto on Friday to learn more about the research.
Szeto said asbestos cement pipes were a popular material decades ago before it was discovered how toxic and harmful asbestos could be.
“It was so popular at one point, there was close to two million kilometres of this pipe around the world, including right here in Canada, but as these pipes start to age, as this infrastructure starts to go, they tend to fail catastrophically,” he said.
“There’s concern that these fibres go off, break off these pipes, and end up going into your taps, and you end up drinking it.”
W5 spent several months trying to figure out where the pipes are located and whether or not there is asbestos in their water. Part of their investigation brought them to the Queen City.
“We reached out to over 100 communities across the country,” he said. “Ninety per cent of the communities that responded still use asbestos in their piping, including Regina, where there’s over 500 kilometres of this stuff.”
“I think we should note with Regina, for example, there’s been thousands of pipe ruptures in recent decades, and that’s caused concern for activists that see this happening quite frequently.”
Szeto said to push the investigation forward, they wanted to find out where the asbestos is and if there is any in the water from the asbestos cement pipes.
“We ended up taking water samples from Canadian cities, including Regina, and got them sent off to a lab for analysis,” he said.
To find out the results, the full story, “Something in the Water,” will be aired on Saturday at 7 p.m. on CTV’s W5.
- With files from CTV’s Eric Szeto and CTV Regina Morning Live
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Widow looking for answers after Quebec man dies in Texas Ironman competition
The widow of a Quebec man who died competing in an Ironman competition is looking for answers.
Tom Mulcair: Park littered with trash after 'pilot project' is perfect symbol of Trudeau governance
Former NDP leader Tom Mulcair says that what's happening now in a trash-littered federal park in Quebec is a perfect metaphor for how the Trudeau government runs things.
World seeing near breakdown of international law amid wars in Gaza and Ukraine, Amnesty says
The world is seeing a near breakdown of international law amid flagrant rule-breaking in Gaza and Ukraine, multiplying armed conflicts, the rise of authoritarianism and huge rights violations in Sudan, Ethiopia and Myanmar, Amnesty International warned Wednesday as it published its annual report.
Photographer alleges he was forced to watch Megan Thee Stallion have sex and was unfairly fired
A photographer who worked for Megan Thee Stallion said in a lawsuit filed Tuesday that he was forced to watch her have sex, was unfairly fired soon after and was abused as her employee.
Amid concerns over 'collateral damage' Trudeau, Freeland defend capital gains tax change
Facing pushback from physicians and businesspeople over the coming increase to the capital gains inclusion rate, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his deputy Chrystia Freeland are standing by their plan to target Canada's highest earners.
U.S. Senate passes bill forcing TikTok's parent company to sell or face ban, sends to Biden for signature
The Senate passed legislation Tuesday that would force TikTok's China-based parent company to sell the social media platform under the threat of a ban, a contentious move by U.S. lawmakers that's expected to face legal challenges.
Wildfire southwest of Peace River spurs evacuation order
People living near a wildfire burning about 15 kilometres southwest of Peace River are being told to evacuate their homes.
U.S. Senate overwhelmingly passes aid for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan with big bipartisan vote
The U.S. Senate has passed US$95 billion in war aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, sending the legislation to President Joe Biden after months of delays and contentious debate over how involved the United States should be in foreign wars.
'My stomach dropped': Winnipeg man speaks out after being criminally harassed following single online date
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.