Representatives from the provincial government and Environment and Sustainable Resource Development (ESRD) met with local municipal leaders last month to discuss what options the Bonnyville/Cold Lake region has for supplying residents with clean, secure drinking water.
Members from the MD of Bonnyville, the Town of Bonnyville, the City of Cold Lake and Cold Lake First Nations traveled to Edmonton Aug. 2 for talks about how best to supply those residing in the region with a clean, reliable water source.
The two options being discussed focus on either taking water from Cold Lake itself, or from the North Saskatchewan River, and then distributing it to communities in the area.
Representing the Town of Bonnyville at the meeting was Deputy Mayor John Irwin and Coun. Ray Prevost, with Irwin saying he was impressed with how the discussion went.
“I think it was an excellent first meeting between the municipalities and the powers that be, we talked about a number of things and decided who else we needed to bring in for the next batch of discussions. So it was definitely a positive first step,” Irwin said.
He said one of the main concerns of politicians in the region was how Cold Lake First Nations was going to be represented and ultimately how it would be involved in the project.
And although he pointed out which option the town would prefer, Irwin said no final decision had yet been made.
“I think at the moment everybody is still looking at options, certainly nothing is written in stone yet,” Irwin said. “For us, it's a fairly simple decision. If you're looking to water some cattle, you don't want to pump dirty water uphill to them if you can pump clean water downhill,” referring to the clean, fresh water Cold Lake would provide as opposed to water from the North Saskatchewan River that is high in sediments and other contaminants that have to be filtered out.
MD Reeve Ed Rondeau said he too was happy with how the meeting went, and that he was looking forward to getting together again following the municipal election in October so that a final decision could be made.
“I think the meeting was very good and very productive. I think it needed to happen and it was a good start to the proceedings,” he said. “I think everyone in attendance wanted to meet again soon, but decided we would wait until after the municipal election.”
Rondeau added, “At this point I think the preferred option by almost everyone in attendance was to pull the water from Cold Lake, but we'll have to wait and see.”
The City of Cold Lake Mayor Craig Copeland was also in attendance at the meeting and he said it was an absolute priority to ensure everybody in the region has access to clean, secure drinking water and that the city had tentative plans in place for whatever option the province and municipalities agree upon.
“The expectations here is to identify a common ground and find out where the focus is from a regional perspective with regards to supplying water,” Copeland said. “Obviously that focus is to supply everybody in the region – which includes the likes of Kehewin First Nations, Frog Lake, Fishing Lake, Elizabeth Metis Settlement, Glendon, Bonnyville, Cherry Grove, Cold Lake First Nations and the City of Cold Lake. Some of those areas have some significant drinking water issues, so right now the focus is on the two remaining options and to make a final decision.”
The first option would see water pulled from Cold Lake and distributed throughout the region. At a meeting held in March, Dr. Ernst Kerkhoven, senior hydrologist with the northern branch of ESRD, said Cold Lake could “probably provide water for between 50,000 and 100,000 people without having a significant effect on the level and quality of water.” The second option would see water pumped from the North Saskatchewan River to Lac St. Cyr, in a system similar to how St. Paul retrieves its water.
Copeland said, “The issue right now that everyone is concerned about is how the project is going to be funded. Everything is on pause for the moment and I imagine it will reconvene after elections, at which time the government will have priced out the two options and determined which is the best one to move forward with.”