An organic material was the cause of 19 eagles鈥� deaths at the Prince Rupert landfill, according to the city.

The city says a currently undisclosed party dumped the organic material in a pond at the landfill on Jan. 4.

After landing on the pond, the city said it believes the material covered the eagles鈥� wings, eventually causing them to drown.

鈥淓arly results that the City has now received indicate that the material was primarily an organic compound,鈥� said city communications manager Veronika Stewart.

鈥淔or clarity, the eagles landed on the pond and became coated in the substance and sadly drowned as a result. With current available information, this is believed to be their main cause of death.鈥�

The city said it did not release information on the incident until recently so that it could do a thorough investigation along with the Ministry of Environment. Stewart added that the city will not release information on who might be responsible for the incident until their investigation is over.

鈥淭he City鈥檚 initial focus following the discovery of the material was on ensuring that steps were taken to safely clean up the spill, following the guidance of the relevant ministries. From there, we have been conducting a thorough investigation of the incident,鈥� she said.

鈥淲e wanted to be able to go to the community with a full picture of what happened, and the steps we are taking to ensure it doesn鈥檛 happen again.鈥�

Stewart said the city is still investigating the incident and looking at ways to prevent similar incidents from happening again.

鈥淪taff discovered the spill on January 4 and acted immediately to inform the authorities and begin safe clean up of the site,鈥� she said.

鈥淚n the intervening period, the city, relevant ministries and contracted partners have been conducting an investigation of the incident and developing a plan on how to move forward, which is work that is continuing. Our priority now is to get the service restored to the liquid waste collection site.鈥�

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