MELFORT — An effort to move forward with a $8.5 million upgrade to a water treatment plant that the Melfort area has received a boost from the federal and provincial governments.
The federal and provincial government will pay two-thirds of the cost of the project through the New Building Canada Plan, leaving SaskWater to pay for the remaining $2.8 million.
Courtney Mihalicz, a spokesperson for SaskWater, said the Melfort-based plant, which treats water from Codette Lake and then distributes it to around 9,000 customers in Melfort, Weldon, Star City, Kinistino, Beatty and surrounding areas, was built in 1958, with major upgrades last done in 1972. SaskWater took over the plant in 1993.
“It's at that age where where you need to start looking at at upgrades and we've certainly known these were coming for some time,” she said.
The money will fund upgrades to the water treatment process, as well as the addition of a backup power source.
“That will improve system reliability, facilitate the performance of routine maintenance and reduce the risk of service interruptions, overall improving our service,” Mihalicz said.
SaskWater is expecting work to start in the summer of 2019 and be substantially complete by the end of September 2020.
Mihalicz said the grant won’t have an effect on the water bills SaskWater charges to the municipalities. She said those contracts are developed in such a way that allows SaskWater to pay for upgrades upfront, with communities paying back for the upgrades over a number of years, which in turn allows communities to charge sustainable rates to their residents.
