By Bryan Eneas

New reservoir for P.A.; 74 additional water projects for Sask.

Jun 2, 2017 | 1:53 PM

Local infrastructure has received a boost from the provincial and federal governments.

Prince Albert will team up with the province and the federal government to construct two new reservoirs on River St. next to the existing water treatment plant over the course of the next two years.

According to Mayor Greg Dionne, the city currently has four days of water on hand. An additional reservoir boosts capacity to just over seven days.

“Those extra few days are going to make quite a difference,” Dionne said. “It’s a big plus for our city, of course, more jobs, it’s more investment in our community.”

All of the jobs created from this project come from the construction of the reservoir.

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Dionne said last year’s Husky oil spill expedited the projects’ funding. The project has been in the works since he first became the city’s mayor.

The city will contribute $3 million towards the first project, and will fill out an application next year for additional funds to create the second reservoir.

The Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Ralph Goodale, on behalf of the federal government and provincial Government Relations Minister Donna Harpauer, announced a total of 75 water and waste water projects in Saskatchewan.

“The investments in infrastructure we are making will benefit Canadians for years to come – creating economic growth and middle-class jobs now, while laying the foundation for sustainable growth in the future,” Goodale said.

Harpauer said the province has invested more than $350 million into municipal infrastructure in Saskatchewan since 2007.

Prince Albert’s reservoir project is among the largest announced. Nine million will be split between the federal and provincial governments, for a total project value of $12 million. Only Melville’s new wells and water supply pipeline have a greater total, coming in at roughly $10.3 million.

The North was not forgotten either. Creighton will receive almost $2.5 million for a water and sewer main replacement. The Northern Hamlet of Stony Rapids received almost $1.9 million to be directed towards raw water supply, as well as water treatment plant upgrades and reservoir expansion. The Northern Village of Ile-a-la-Crosse will receive just shy of $2.5 million in upgrades to two sewage pump stations.

“Without this federal and provincial support, we would never have the capacity to move our project forward,” Ile-a-la-Crosse Mayor Duane Favel said through a government release.

In total, the 75 water and waste water projects come in at over $94 million.

Bryan.Eneas@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @BryanEneas