最近的一次严重污染事件是2009年一月, NRU的核反应堆排放高放射性的重水(highly radioactive heavy water)进渥太华河。每天排放7,000升,连续排放了很长时间。
“Canadian reactors routinely release radioactive tritium into the atmosphere and nearby bodies of water. All radiation releases increase risks of birth defects, cancer and other diseases. Tritium - radioactive hydrogen - is particularly dangerous because it can move readily as water to any cell in the body and accumulate in DNA; and it has just the right decay energy to damage DNA without killing the cell.
渥太华河上游有9个大纸浆厂。Ottawa river is impacted by several sources of pollution including municipal sewage and industrial wastewater. A combination of human waste, suspended solids, debris and a variety of chemicals derived from residential, industrial and agricultural sources pollute the river. The nine pulp mills on the banks of the OttawaRiver are significant sources of contamination.
Municipal wastewater pollution: large amounts of sewage is disposed in the river. The combination of raw and treated sewage contains toxic substances such as human waste, suspended solids, debris and a variety of chemicals derived from residential, commercial and industrial sources. Furthermore, storm water running across the cities of Ottawa and Gatineau is discharged in the Ottawa River
Industrial pollution: nine pulp mills on the Ottawa River significantly pollute the water. A typical mill generates some 90 to 130 million litres of industrial sewage per day. Colour, taste and odour have been detected 900 km downstream of pulp mills.
No sustained research: water quality information for the Ottawa River is not integrated or consistent along the river. There is no one government agency that continually collects water quality information on a wide-scale basis for analysis. Water quality monitoring is piece-meal throughout the watershed and there are currently no monitoring programs designed to answer questions about water quality trends in the mainstream of the river over time. No one is adding up the cumuative inputs into the river.
No central oversight of efforts to protect the river: the Ottawa River falls between two provinces and a number of municipalities.
Dams: More than 50 major dams and several smaller water control structures can become barriers to species migration and negatively impact the river's biodiversity.
Agricultural waste pollution: discharging of fertilizers, manure, pesticides and herbicides into the river.