As the Lac Ste. Anne Northeast Wastewater Lagoon nears completion, the County of Barrhead has inked a $3,000-a-year deal to use the site as the Dunstable lagoon nears capacity.
Four years ago, Lac Ste. Anne County entered into a similar contract with the County of Barrhead to use the Lac La Nonne Water Stabilization pond (also known as the Dunstable lagoon). County councillors said they felt it was only fair to pay the same rate. Furthermore, Lac Ste. Anne has requested an annual review of the agreement, which is pretty common in such deals, said County manager Mark Oberg.
“The Dunstable lagoon is filling up and is close to being full, and an agreement with Lac Ste. Anne County would help considerably,” Oberg said.
Increasing amounts of sewage effluent has been straining the Dunstable lagoon’s storage capacity, which is further exacerbated by the fact the lagoon is designated as an evaporating storage cell, so draining is not permitted, Barry Billey of the County’s water and sewage department told council at a meeting in November 2010.
Being able to use the Lac Ste. Anne lagoon means the County of Barrhead could shut down its Dunstable site to allow for evaporation. When the level is low enough, the Dunstable site could be reopened, Oberg said.
The agreement also stipulates the County of Barrhead will provide and transport gravel for the road leading into the lagoon, which will cut down on the amount of dust generated from vehicles travelling to and from the site. A total of 1,280 cubic yards of gravel will be required to cover about a one-mile distance, and it would come with a cost of $20,570.
Residents wishing to use the lagoon in Lac Ste. Anne County will pay $12 per load, however, that could be split among two or three different vehicles, depending on the load, Oberg said.
Years ago, Lac Ste. Anne provided $14,000 to the County of Barr-head to take care of road issues when using the Dunstable Lagoon, Oberg said. The County never used that money, so there is already $14,000 in place to cover the $20,000 price tag.
Councillor Bill Lane was in favour of the agreement, and said it is nice to have a contingency plan in place for when the Dunstable lagoon reaches capacity. However, he expressed concern over the cost, given the fact it isn’t clear how many Barrhead County residents will actually use the Lac Ste. Anne facility.
Oberg confirmed the gate leading into the lagoon will be equipped with a keypunch system, which will allow the county to keep track of the users and from where they are coming. The County of Barrhead will request reports detailing those numbers from Lac Ste. Anne.
Councillors discussed the possibility of using the Manola lagoon site instead, but Deputy Reeve Darrell Troock said it is much more cost effective to have residents go to the Lac Ste. Anne site.
Lac Ste. Anne was waiting for warmer weather to open up the lagoon, Oberg said.
“The government wants us to work together as municipalities, and this is a good way to start,” Coun. Lane said.
