Only about 70 people came to see how the district is planning to spend approximately $18.7 million to upgrade Sechelt's aging sewer system at an open house held last Thursday night.The district hosted a wastewater strategy public open house on Sept. 29 at the Seaside Centre where a series of detailed story boards laid out the issues facing the sewer system.A summary of those key issues are: Many system components are aging and will soon need upgrades or replacement. The district does not own the land upon which the Dusty Road treatment plan now sits. Land use conflicts persist at the Ebbtide treatment plant, which is located in a residential area.It is expected that the capacity of the treatment plants will be reached in the next five years. The district is on the verge of exceeding its licence to discharge 3,400 cubic metres a day of effluent into Trail Bay and there is a need to comply with new provincial legislation that has replaced the permitting process. In addition, it is expected that the 4,000 cubic metres a day capacity of the Trail Bay outfall will be reached in the next five years. The district plans to connect approximately 500 West Sechelt residences that have septic fields to the sanitary sewer system over the next 20 years. District personnel have been working on creating a wastewater strategy for about 10 years now, foreseeing the growth of Sechelt and the inability for the current sewer system to keep up.Currently the district has two treatment facilities, one at Dusty Road and one at Ebbtide. Councillors are looking at replacing the aging and failing plants with one new treatment plant estimated to cost $5.8 million.The district is also investigating the possibility of changing their effluent disposal from a strictly marine outfall to a ground and marine disposal option. The land disposal option could include a new poplar tree plantation that would use the effluent as fertilizer.Mayor Cam Reid noted his hope to reduce or even eliminate ocean discharge in Sechelt with the new plan.The district also wants to eliminate septic fields within its borders, as seepage into Porpoise Bay and Georgia Strait from such fields has become a concern.That's why the district's vision is: "A sewer for every home."But that vision is far from reality. In fact, only homes in West Sechelt and West Porpoise Bay are being considered for sewer hook-ups by the district in the proposed plan.District staff said the reason areas such as Selma Park, Davis Bay and Wilson Creek are not included in the sewer plan is that it is not feasible to extend the trunk lines to these areas at this time."We have lines in West Sechelt, downtown, through the Sechelt Indian Band to Dusty Road with a finger to West Porpoise Bay now. Selma Park is a very long way to extend that line. It's very expensive and pressure in a line that long is a concern. Port Stalashen has a treatment plant nearby and it has been discussed that these areas hook into that line. It's on the table," said Connie Jordison, administrative assistant at the District of Sechelt.The total estimated cost to build a new treatment plant, hook up identified areas currently on septic fields in West Porpoise Bay, Davis Bay and West Sechelt and reduce or eliminate ocean outfall is upwards of $18.7 million. That number breaks down into $9.5 million to upgrade sewage collection, $5.8 million for a new treatment plant, $1.6 million for marine effluent disposal and $1.8 million for biosolids disposal.The upgrades would be financed through user fees from connected properties, taxes, operating surplus, development cost charges, district reserves and possibly a two-thirds senior government grant.Whether or not a grant is awarded, homeowners will pay a district-wide environmental levy of $50 for properties not on sewer, while those on sewer would pay $75 with the grant and $100 without it.The annual user rate will also increase in order to build reserves, while West Sechelt property owners can expect to pay a one-time lump sum of around $11,500 per parcel without a grant or $5,500 per parcel should the grant be awarded to the district. That sum would go to pay for the new West Sechelt sewage collection system that should be completed by 2014.A detailed financial plan is yet to be completed by the district, as council is currently at the "gathering public input" stage of the wastewater strategy plan.Once all the information submitted by residents at the recent open house is compiled, it will be presented to Sechelt council for consideration. Director of engineering Ken Tang said he expects that report to be before council at either the Oct. 19 or Nov. 2 regular council meeting.He also noted the story boards used at the open house will be uploaded to the town's website at www.district.sechelt.bc.ca for more public perusal early next week.Once the district decides to go forward with a waste management plan, they will have to complete an implementation plan and start applying for government grants.
