October 16, 2008

Sewer, watermain contractors beat election drum for infrastructure cash

TORONTO

It took the wettest summer in history, but Ontarians have finally woken up to the desperate state of water and sewer infrastructure in this province, and the Ontario Sewer and Watermain Construction Association (OSWCA) is calling on the federal government for help.

“For years, we have been sounding the warning bell about our water systems. This past summer, we saw our crumbling sewers cause pollution, resulting in flood damage to homes, businesses and institutions such as hospitals, and putting the health of Ontarians at risk,” says Frank Zechner, executive director of the OSWCA.

OSWCA is urging MPs and political parties to make this an issue in the federal election campaign. Municipalities must replace their aging systems before they collapse. But they cannot do the job alone.

“What we need is a multi-year commitment to stable (federal) funding, with this money being dedicated solely to the upgrading and maintenance of water and sewer infrastructure,” says Zechner. Ontario has a massive backlog of water system repairs, an infrastructure deficit valued at close to $18 billion. A new survey of 500 Ontarians in August found 78 per cent were willing to pay more in taxes in order to build new sewage infrastructure.

The infrastructure deficit, coupled with extreme weather, has led to sinkholes, flooding and sewage spills — most recently in Toronto, Hamilton, Kitchener Waterloo and Durham Region. Ottawa has been hit hard this summer with spills and overflows of raw sewage into the Ottawa River.

Ontario also has the dubious distinction of having more boil water advisories than any other province, with 679 Ontario communities on alert since 2006.

“If we think we have problems now, just imagine the future as more uncertain weather patterns place our crumbling water and sewer systems under even greater strain,” says Zechner.

OSWCA has a three-part plan to put our water systems on sound financial footing: full metering, full-cost pricing and dedicated reserves.

Metering would enable municipalities to charge residents the true cost of the water they use. With full-cost pricing in place, municipalities can then begin to address their infrastructure deficits, while also creating dedicated reserves for water and sewer systems that will provide consistent, sustainable funding. Metering and full-cost pricing will also provide an incentive to consumers to make modest conservation efforts which collectively would reduce the demand and volumes that our water infrastructure must handle.

CANADIAN PRESS

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