Residents have an opportunity to become informed about the City of Powell River’s liquid waste management plan at a series of upcoming events.
Public consultation will unfold in three stages: an open house on May 10, designed to provide information about options; a dialogue event, scheduled for May 17 and based on the World Cafe conversation model, which allows participants to share ideas, comments and concerns; and a town hall meeting after a decision has been made at which council will report back to the community.
The city’s timeline for completing stage three of its liquid waste management plan targets a decision being made in June. That decision will be whether to proceed with co-treatment, a proposal to have city sewage treated at Catalyst Paper Corporation’s Powell River division, or a stand-alone consolidated plant.
City council approved the public consultation plan at a recent meeting. Early in the day, John Braman, the ministry of environment’s regional manager, environmental protection, addressed the liquid waste management steering committee. He pointed out that the city entered into the process in 1998. While 13 years isn’t a record, more typically liquid waste management plans are completed within 18 to 36 months, he said.
The city’s three treatment facilities have challenges, Braman said. The Westview plant quite often doesn’t meet its permit requirements. The Townsite facility, which is old but works well, has one anomaly. It discharges sewage sludge after treatment out into the receiving environment. “That is in accordance with its existing permit, but it is not common practice in this day and age,” Braman said.
The Wildwood facility does work, by and large, but it requires “some pretty steady maintenance” to work properly.
A new Canada-wide standard for municipal effluent has been developed and has moved into law. Discharging sewage sludge into the environment will no longer be allowed, he added, a change that will affect the Townsite facility.
From the ministry’s perspective, the compliance and enforcement policy gives him, as the statutory decision maker, some latitude around choosing methods for enforcement, Braman said, for facilities such as the Westview plant that are not in compliance. “I can look at such things as, is the city making progress in rectifying that? Although it has been slow, I’m seeing progress. That’s good.”
Braman also said he will be briefing the new minister of environment, Terry Lake, on progress the city is making. “I can advise you that my staff will be watching very closely the progress that you make and the comments you receive from the public as you move forward with your consultation on stage three.”
Richard Stogre, the city’s manager of engineering services, asked Braman how long the ministry’s patience would last and what would happen if no decision was made this year. Braman replied that there are no firm dates around the development of a liquid waste management plan, but the city has been in the process for 13 years. “I’m not going to say if you don’t get it done by June, you will be receiving some compliance and enforcement action from the ministry of environment,” he said. “But I will say that we will be looking very closely at that as we move along. It’s progress that we’re interested in.”
