City administration has reported back to council on the costs of hydrocarbon testing the City of North Battleford will be conducting under its new waterworks permit.
According to Director of Operations Stewart Schafer, the testing costs will increase by approximately $5,000 for PAHs and $4,050 for the BTEC/F1 to F4.
This estimate is based on a schedule of 24 tests a year. The combined testing for benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and xylenes and F1 to F4 petroleum hydrocarbons, would be $168 per test, plus taxes. Tests for PAHs (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons) would be $208 per test, plus taxes.
It would amount to once a month during the winter when there is ice buildup, and then once every two weeks when it is not frozen.
These new tests are all required under the City's revised Permit to Operate a Waterworks from the Water Security Agency in effect since Dec. 1. The requirements are in the wake of the Husky oil spill and contamination in the river, and are in addition to the wide range of water testing already required.
Schafer also confirmed to council that Husky Energy will be responsible for paying for the cost of the testing to the City.
These are just the lab costs, Schafer emphasized. In response to a question from Councillor Greg Lightfoot, the operations director confirmed the City is also going to incur additional expenses for labour and for the costs of providing and transporting the samples for testing.
