Vermilion-Lloydminster-Wainwright MLA Garth Rowswell, Lloydminster MLA and Sask Advanced Education Minister, Colleen Young and Nathan Neudorf, Sask’s Minister of Affordability and Utilities, were all smiles on Tuesday afternoon as Mayor Gerald Aalbers ceremoniously put the City of Lloydminster’s long-awaited wastewater treatment plant online by turning a valve. Geoff Lee Meridian Source
The $81.5 million cost of the City of Lloydminster’s new mechanical wastewater treatment facility may be worth every penny.
That was the consensus of the project partners who spoke about the benefits at a grand opening celebration and tour of the site on Tuesday afternoon.
“We affect the lives of well over a quarter million people downstream from the North Saskatchewan River where our water is turned back to,” said Mayor Gerald Aalbers.
“It’s imperative we do the right thing for people in North Battleford, Prince Albert, Cumberland House, all the way to the Churchill (river) into Hudson Bay.”
Aalbers says the need for a new facility was dictated by federal regulations that were exceeded with the plant built to meet the needs of the community for the next 20 years.
The new wastewater facility was completed last November when it received a permit to operate from the Saskatchewan Water Security Agency.
Aalbers also assured residents the city’s water system is also in good shape, following a recent water emergency in nearby Wainwright and ongoing water pipeline repairs and a state of emergency in Calgary.
“Water and wastewater are some of the key factors that we provide each and every day and people have that expectation,” said Aalbers.
“You’ll be hearing more about water from the city as well because it is very important.”
Lloydminster MLA Colleen Young also noted how important it was to build the wastewater plant for the future noting the original facility dates back to 1980 and served a much smaller community.
“We have to look forward to the future which is important for the province to see that growth in our population and economy. You need to have facilities like this to provide the services to the people,” said Young.
The project can handle 70,000 cubic metres of wastewater a day.
“The new integrated design (Integrated Project Delivery) that was put in place—the technical aspect of it treats the water in a way all of the environment and all of the people and the animals in the area and the plants that grow in the fields are benefitting from it as well,” said Young.
The new facility includes an influent lift station, a primary clarifier with a dry pit, and an intermediate pump station with fine screens and top-quality membranes.
The site features include a new lab, an operations room and office space.
The three existing lagoons with a total capacity of approximately 500,000 cubic m were converted to wet weather and sludge storage.
Landon Code who manages the new wastewater facility was eager to talk about the environmental benefits of the new treatment facility.
“By far the biggest thing I’d like to follow up is the education to the public on pollution prevention on how we maintain this facility and let it work to its best potential,” said Code.
“What we’re putting back is actually cleaner than what we’re taking out of the North Saskatchewan.
“To me, it comes to the ‘down user’ side of things—that respect for the environment that what we’re putting back again can help communities down river from here.”
The City of Lloydminster received the Canadian Association of Municipal Administrators 2024 Willis Award for Innovation in June for cities with a population from 20,000 to 100,000.
The grand opening noted funding for the project included $24.1 million from the Government of Canada along with a $12.7 million contribution from the province of Alberta, $12.1 million from the province of Saskatchewan and $32.5 million from the City of Lloydminster.
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