The Northern View has confirmed that 19 eagles were recently killed after an undisclosed party illegally dumped toxic waste at the Prince Rupert Landfill.

City communications manager Veronika Stewart said staff have started the cleanup and hired an environmental consultant to assist with the identification of the offending material and help staff develop a long-term action plan.

鈥淭he City is thankful that this spill was contained to the pond and has not been released into the environment through the outfall,鈥� Stewart said in an emailed statement to The Northern View. 鈥淯nfortunately, 19 eagles did perish due to this event, which was a devastating outcome that deeply impacted our staff.鈥�

She added the provincial Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Strategy and Environment Canada are also involved in the incident. They will be assisting the city in identifying mitigation strategy and controls to prevent similar incidents from occurring in the future.

鈥淲e are also reworking a past information campaign to raise awareness about the disposal of deleterious substances,鈥� she said.

More to come.