Jennifer Dart , Westerly News, October 11, 2007
Sewage treatment is moving to the front of line for Tofino.
The district has five years to come up with at least some of the money to begin treating its sewage. That's the time limit imposed on the district by the provincial Ministry of Environment, reported members of council.
Administrator Leif Pedersen said Tofino will have to come up with at least a third of the cost of building a treatment plant, estimated in 2006 to cost $11.33 million plus yearly operating costs.
They are hoping the provincial and federal governments will pick up at least two thirds of the project's cost.
The district voted to implement the liquid waste management plan -- and the construction of the treatment plant -- over a 20 year period when then public works superintendent Gary Holte presented it to council last year.
But pressure from both levels of government has caused that timeline to be sped up considerably.
The federal environment minister recently announced new regulations that will be published next year requiring all municipalities to move to secondary treatment.
They also pledged $33 billion in money to support the regulations.
Currently, Tofino has primary treatment, or grinding.
Provincial environmental protection officer Conrad Berube said Tofino has twice exceeded the limits of its outflow permit.
The outflow, located in Duffin Passage and fed by two lines (see map), has a daily maximum of 3,843 cubic metres.
In 2006, the district exceeded this outflow on two separate occasions.
"Because measurements are averaged over seven days it is very likely that excusrsions from permit limits occurred on a number of other occasions," Berube said.
"The District of Tofino has been issued an advisory relevant to the Ministry's concerns about these excursions."
Data for 2007 was not yet available.
Pedersen said when the district has gone over its permit, it's been during the winter when rainfall is high and actual effluent levels are low.
Staff is currently trying to find out where storm water is getting into the system.
"This is literally fresh water going into the sewage and increasing our volumes," he said.
Berube noted that although Tofino's flows are high, the environmental impact of the discharge has been within acceptable levels for fecal coliform, ammonia-nitrogen and nitrate concentration.
Environmental impacts of the outflow in Duffin Passage were found to be "negligible" according to a report submitted by the district to MOE in August of 2005.
Berube said MOE used to measure environmental impacts at outflow sites, but now "dischargers" can be exempt from permits if they provide information about their outflow and show "ongoing compliance with the regulation."
In the past, residents of Wickaninnish Island, located opposite the outflow location, have complained about smell and water quality.
The location for the waste treatment plant will be Industrial Way.
—Westerly News, Tofino/Ucluelet
