Concrete Truck Washout Poses Potential Environmental Threat in Placencia says D.O.E.

A video has surfaced of a concrete truck apparently washing out its contents into a drain near mile twenty-one along the Placencia Road. Concrete in its liquid state is considered to be an environmentally-hazardous material because it contains a high concentration of alkaline that can cause serious damage to drainage systems, streams and rivers. We reached out to Warren Garbutt, the Chairman of Placenia Village, who informed us that he visited the area and found no signs of any significant washout occurring or anything that would raise an alarm. He did, however, assure us that he would get in touch with the company to caution them against such a practice. We also reached out to Anthony Mai, the Chief Environmental Officer who told us “this practice has the potential to create serious ecological impacts. The DOE will investigate this matter to ascertain the extent of any potential impact and to determine the responsible party. We advise all companies that has it uses cement truck to ensure that it’s cleaning is done in a way that will not have negative impacts to the environment”.  We also reached out to the company that reportedly owns the truck, AL Construction. We were informed by a representative of the company that while the company would never encourage such a practice, concrete is an environmental friendly product, used in water and bridges all over the world. No one from the company explicitly stated that the truck is one of their own. We continue to follow.