The first round of Sunshine Coast Regional District (SCRD) budget talks included several proposals to upgrade water service.
They included investigation of future water storage, introduced by Janette Loveys, SCRD’s chief administrative officer.
“This is one of the projects I’m recommending we move forward with,” she said.
The project will cost $200,000 and involve site investigation, preliminary engineering and costing and will be funded through capital reserves. The Comprehensive Regional Water Plan (CRWP) recommended constructing an engineered lake next to the Chapman Creek Water Treatment Plant.
Directors voted to move the proposal to the next round.
Loveys also introduced a $320,000 initiative for the second stage of ground water investigation in Areas E, F and the District of Sechelt. A 2016-17 groundwater investigation to supplement the Chapman Creek water supply found 12 potential sites, four of which require test drilling.
During the discussion, Sechelt mayor and SCRD chair Bruce Milne said, “I’m happy to support this. It fits exactly into our need to continue our search for diversified supply.”
Halfmoon Bay director Garry Nohr, chair of infrastructure committee, said: “I’d be pleased if it’s unanimous.”
Gibsons director Jeremy Valeriote raised concerns on behalf of the Town. He said Gibsons does not support investigative drilling into the Gibsons aquifer until joint groundwater management is adopted and long-term monitoring is established to ensure groundwater use won’t negatively impact the Town’s long-term water strategy.
That proposal was also moved to the second round.
Another major initiative discussed was phase three of universal water meter installation in the District of Sechelt and Sechelt Indian Government District, with a cost of $5,896,550. The proposal was forwarded to the next round, pending further information on a grant application, which would provide some of the funding.
The budget report called water metering “the leading priority identified within the CRWP’s intensive demand management program,” and said water metering will lower average daily demand for water by 20 per cent. This is the third and final phase of the SCRD’s universal metering program.
Discussions around a rainwater harvesting rebate pilot program were also moved to the next round. The program involves a rebate of $500 to partially reimburse the installation of rainwater harvesting systems, and will replace the toilet rebate program, which ended in 2017.
Other water service initiatives were endorsed at a Nov. 30 pre-budget meeting, including $100,000 to upgrade to the Langdale Well pump station.
