By Shane O'Neill

City wins provincial award for oil spill response

Nov 4, 2016 | 12:20 PM

The City of Prince Albert has won an award for its response to the Husky oil spill and subsequent water crisis this summer.

The city took first place at the tenth annual Saskatchewan Municipal Awards, which “recognize innovation and excellence in Saskatchewan local governments.”

Jim Toye, Prince Albert’s city manager, accepted the award on behalf of the city and said it was a pleasant surprise for himself and city staff.

“We were surprised that we were number one, but at the same time we did work hard and we didn’t think of doing it for any kind of competition,” Toye said. “We just wanted to do it so we could still provide safe, potable water for our citizens.”

On July 20, a Husky Energy pipeline failed, spilling between 200,000 and 250,000 litres of oil and diluent into the North Saskatchewan River, which is the source of P.A.’s drinking water. Four days later the spill forced the city to shut down the water supply to the municipal water utility, and P.A. began making plans for a temporary overland water pipeline.

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On July 25, a state of emergency was declared and the city initiated its emergency operations centre, as reservoir supplies were expected to run dry within 48 hours. As a result, city council enacted a bylaw to restrict residents’ water usage. With the overland pipeline delayed, the city treated a storm retention pond to extend water reserves, leaving six days-worth of supply available.

Toye said, more than anything, the oil spill response was a team effort.

“When we were going through the process it was all hands on deck and a lot of the senior and regular staff members and the people and companies that we engaged all worked very hard to come to a positive outcome and, pretty much, we were able to do that,” he said on Thursday. “It means a lot to me and my staff for sure.”

Second prize in the Municipal Awards went to the City of Humboldt for their strategic framework, while third place was a tie between the R.M. of Blucher for their Highway 316 concept plan and the Town of Kerrobert for a drone-based survey program.

The award will be officially received in February at the annual Saskatchewan Urban Municipalities Association convention in Saskatoon.

The award winners were selected by an independent committee.

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On Twitter: @princealbertnow