THE COST OF SOLVING A HEALTH-THREATENING CONTAMINATION PROBLEM FOR HOMEOWNERS ALONG THE WAINFLEET SHORELINE COULD EXCEED $60 MILLION -- MORE THAN $15 MILLION HIGHER THAN FIRST THOUGHT.
THAT WAS AMONG THE SOBERING NEWS THAT CAME OUT OF A FIVE-DAY WORKSHOP IN NIAGARA FALLS IN WHICH MORE THAN 20 EXPERTS FROM ACROSS CANADA AND THE UNITED STATES WERE BROUGHT TOGETHER BY NIAGARA'S REGIONAL GOVERNMENT TO EXPLORE SOLUTIONS TO THE PROBLEM.
"I FEEL WE ARE MUCH CLOSER TO A SOLUTION NOW," SAID BOB STEELE, A PUBLIC WORKS OFFICIAL FOR NIAGARA REGION AT THE END MONDAY OF THE INTENSE BRAINSTORMING SESSIONS THAT COST THE REGION CLOSE TO $200,000 TO PLAN AND HOST.
AS THE WORKSHOP DREW TO A CLOSE, THE ENGINEERS, PUBLIC HEALTH SCIENTISTS, CONSTRUCTION COST ESTIMATORS AND OTHER EXPERTS SITTING AROUND A LARGE TABLE AT NIAGARA FALLS' MARRIOTT FALLSVIEW HOTEL CONCLUDED THAT POSSIBLY THE SAFEST AND MOST FULL-PROOF SOLUTION IS TO EXTEND WATER AND WASTEWATER LINES FROM PORT COLBORNE TO ROUGHLY 1,400 WAINFLEET HOMES ON OR NEAR THE LAKE ERIE SHORE.
REPEATED TESTING CONDUCTED ON A SAMPLE OF THOSE WAINFLEET HOMES HAVE FOUND EXCESSIVE LEVELS OF CONTAMINATION, INCLUDING THE STRAIN OF E. COLI BACTERIA THAT LEFT SEVEN DEAD AND THOUSANDS SICK IN A TAINTED WATER EPISODE IN WALKERTON, ONT. FIVE YEARS AGO, LEAKING FROM AGING SEPTIC TANKS AND ENTERING WELL WATER FOR THE HOMES. THE REGION'S PUBLIC HEALTH DEPARTMENT HAS DESCRIBED THE SITUATION AS A SIGNIFICANT HEALTH THREAT AND URGED RESIDENTS NOT TO INGEST TAP WATER DRAWN FROM WELLS.
"THERE IS NO QUESTION IN THE MIND OF THIS REVIEW TEAM THAT THE PROBLEM HAS TO BE SOLVED," SAID GEORGE RIEK, AN ENGINEER FROM OREGON WHO WAS THE FACILITATOR DURING THE WORKSHOP. RIEK ADDED THAT IF THE REGION AND MUNICIPALITY DECIDE TO CONSTRUCT THE SERVICES IN STAGES, THEY SHOULD FOCUS ON THE WATER LINE FIRST BECAUSE THE TEAM IS "EXTREMELY CONCERNED ABOUT ANY POSSIBILITY SOME PEOPLE MAY STILL BE USING THE WATER" FOR ANYTHING FROM DRINKING TO BATHING AND BRUSHING TEETH.
WAINFLEET MAYOR GORD HARRY SAID HE PLANS TO TALK TO REGIONAL AND PROVINCIAL REPRESENTATIVES ABOUT THE POSSIBILITY OF SHIPPING IN SAFE, POTABLE WATER UNTIL A PERMANENT SOLUTION IS IN PLACE. AT THE MOMENT, MANY RESIDENTS ARE PURCHASING BOTTLED WATER. OTHERS HAVE INSTALLED TREATMENT SYSTEMS ON THEIR TAPS, ALTHOUGH TESTS HAVE SHOWN THEY DON'T ALWAYS DO A RELIABLE JOB OF REMOVING CONTAMINANTS.
"I THINK WE HAVE TO MOVE FORWARD," SAID HARRY, EXPRESSING CONCERN ABOUT ANY POSSIBILITY A YOUNG CHILD OR SOMEONE ELSE MAY DRINK CONTAMINATED WATER FROM THE TAPS "BETWEEN NOW AND THE TIME THOSE PIPES GO IN THE GROUND."
PUTTING WATER AND WASTEWATER PIPES IN THE GROUND ALONG SEVERAL KILOMETERS OF THE LAKESHORE COULD PROVE FAR COSTLIER THAN PREVIOUS $40- TO $45-MILLION FIGURES ESTIMATED BY THE REGION FOR A NUMBER OF REASONS, ACCORDING TO THE TEAM OF EXPERTS. THOSE REASONS INCLUDE THE ROCKY TERRAIN THE PIPE WOULD HAVE TO TRAVEL THROUGH AND THE AMOUNT OF DE-WATERING OF THE TRENCHES CONTRACTORS WOULD HAVE TO DO AS THEY WORK THROUGH A LAKEFRONT AREA WHERE THE WATER TABLE IS NATURALLY HIGH.
THE HIGHER COST OF THE OVERALL PROJECT WOULD NOT ONLY MEAN A BIGGER HIT FOR REGIONAL TAXPAYERS, WHO WOULD CONTRIBUTE SEVERAL MILLION TO THE WORK, BUT ALSO TO HOMEOWNERS, WHO WERE ALREADY BRACING THEMSELVES FOR THE POSSIBILITY OF PAYING ROUGHLY $25,000 OR MORE PER HOME.
STEELE SAID THE TOWNSHIP AND REGION ARE HOPING THE COST TO HOMEOWNERS AND THE MUNICIPALITIES CAN BE REDUCED SUBSTANTIALLY IF THE PROVINCIAL AND FEDERAL GOVERNMENTS COME THROUGH WITH FUNDING FROM AN INFRASTRUCTURE RENEWAL PROGRAM THEY ARE OFFERING. HE SAID TOWNSHIP AND REGIONAL OFFICIALS MET LAST WEEK WITH DAVID CAPLAN, THE PROVINCE'S MINISTER FOR INFRASTRUCTURE RENEWAL, AND CAME AWAY WITH THE IMPRESSION HE WAS "VERY RECEPTIVE" TO AN APPLICATION THEY FILED LAST MONTH FOR SOME FUNDING.
A DECISION ON THE FUNDING, WHICH WOULD COVER UP TO TWO-THIRDS OF THE TOTAL COST OF THE PROJECT, COULD BE ANNOUNCED BY SENIOR LEVELS OF GOVERNMENT AS SOON AS APRIL.
COLIN PILMER, A WAINFLEET RESIDENT AND ONE OF EIGHT MEMBERS OF A PUBLIC ADVISORY COMMITTEE THE REGION ESTABLISHED IN THE TOWNSHIP TO ADDRESS THE CONTAMINATION PROBLEM, SAID RESIDENTS ARE HOPING THE SENIOR LEVELS OF GOVERNMENT COME THROUGH WITH THE FUNDING TO LESSEN THE FINANCIAL BLOW ON HOMEOWNERS.
AT THE END OF THE WORKSHOP, PILMER AND OTHER COMMITTEE MEMBERS SAID THEY WERE SATISFIED THE EXPERT TEAM GAVE OTHER ALTERNATIVES, INCLUDING A NUMBER OF ONSITE TREATMENT SYSTEMS, A THOROUGH REVIEW BEFORE DECIDING THAT RUNNING PIPES FROM WATER AND WASTEWATER PLANTS IN NEIGHBORING PORT COLBORNE IS PROBABLY THE BEST WAY TO GO.
PILMER SAID HE IS ALSO SATISFIED WITH ASSURANCES FROM THE REGION THAT THE PIPES THAT WOULD BE USED WOULD NOT HAVE THE CAPACITY TO ALLOW FOR MUCH MORE GROWTH IN WAINFLEET. RESIDENTS HAVE BEEN CONCERNED THE REGION AND TOWNSHIP MAY LAY PIPE WITH A LARGE ENOUGH DIAMETER TO ALLOW FOR GROWTH THAT MIGHT DESTROY THE TOWNSHIP'S RURAL CHARACTER.
"THERE IS A CONCERN IN THE PUBLIC MIND THAT THIS WOULD OPEN WAINFLEET UP TO MASSIVE DEVELOPMENT," HE SAID, ADDING THAT DESPITE THE ARGUMENTS RESIDENTS HAVE HAD WITH REGIONAL OFFICIALS IN THE PAST, HE HOPES BOTH SIDES "CAN NOW MOVE ON AS PARTNERS."
IT COULD TAKE ANOTHER MONTH OR TWO BEFORE A FORMAL REPORT OF THE WORKSHOP FINDINGS IS PREPARED AND COUNCILORS AT THE TOWNSHIP AND REGIONAL LEVEL CAN MAKE SOME DECISIONS ON WHAT MEASURES WILL BE TAKEN NEXT. PILMER SAID THE COMMITTEE ALSO PLANS TO HOLD A PUBLIC MEETING OF RESIDENTS IN THE NEAR FUTURE TO DISCUSS THE OUTCOME OF THE WORKSHOP.