Concurrent with the requirement to build a new administrative building, Tla’amin (Sliammon) First Nation will be constructing a new wastewater treatment facility.
During the sod turning for the new governance house at the Tla’amin reserve mid-March, it was announced that work would be proceeding on the facility. The existing treatment plant is “maxed” according to Chief Clint Williams and has absolutely no capacity to hook up with any more properties.
Williams said David Nairn and Associates Ltd., the consulting firm that will be coordinating the construction of the new governance building, will also be involved in the construction of the new liquid waste management plant.
Tla’amin was originally planning to tie into the City of Powell River’s planned liquid waste management plant, but the opportunity for a self-sufficient facility came to the fore, which is advantageous for the first nation. Williams said the community’s current system has no more capacity.
“We’ve had a number of overflows and backing up from the treatment plant,” he said. There is a fish-bearing creek in the vicinity and beaches where families swim.
“We’ve had sewage backup in a couple of houses. We don’t want to have any more of these catastrophes.”
Williams said the current treatment capacity has inhibited the possibility of further building development at the Tla’amin lands. Without a new plant, there would be no provision to treat the water from the new administrative building.
Amanda Costa, communications officer, Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada, said funding for the proposed wastewater system for the Tla’amin First Nation was not part of treaty negotiations.
The proposed wastewater system is currently in the final design stage. It is anticipated construction will begin in the fall of this year. Cost will be confirmed following the feasibility study and contracting process.
Costa said, since 2006, the Canadian government has invested approximately $3 billion in first nation water and wastewater infrastructure and related public health activities. The Canadian government has completed more than 220 major projects and has funded maintenance of over 1,200 water and wastewater treatment projects. It also passed the Safe Drinking Water for First Nations Act, which aims to provide first nations communities with drinking water and wastewater standards that are comparable to provincial or territorial standards off reserve.
In terms of the Tla’amin facility, the proposed wastewater system will have a maximum capacity of 1,165 cubic metres per day and the expected service life of the system is 50 years.
Costa said that as part of the tendering process, the Tla’amin First Nation can decide whether to require a contracting company to employ band members during the construction phase.
