By Donald W. Deer P.Eng.
Hugh Mitchell DVM
Gary Younghusband
John Cull and Kevin Lamorie.
Directors of the Muskrat Lake Association
WHITEWATER REGION (Cobden) —
In February 2017 Jp2g issued the Environmental Assessment (EA) for the proposed Cobden Water Pollution Control Plant (WPCP). Even after several discussions with and emails to the Whitewater Region staff, the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change and Jp2g there was no mention in the EA as to how the ongoing issue of bypasses to the WPCP were being addressed. Between 2003 and 2016, according to records from Whitewater Region, the Cobden WPCP had bypassed several thousand cubic meters of sewage laden water into Muskrat Lake.
In March 2017 the Muskrat Lake Association (MLA), with the assistance of Jp2g, tried to set up a meeting with either the mayor or any council member of Whitewater Region to discuss the concerns of the MLA about why this issue of bypasses of the Cobden Effluent Treatment Plant was not addressed.
Since the Whitewater Region Council and mayor had taken the position in a 2016 council meeting that they will not deal with any groups other than the Muskrat Watershed Council the mayor and council ignored the request for the meeting with the MLA and Jp2g.
There was a time limit of 30 days to submit a concern about the EA so the Muskrat Lake Association, in March 2017, submitted a Part ll Order Request to the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change (MOECC). That Part ll order put a hold on the new Cobden WPCP pending a decision by the Minister of the Environment and Climate Change.
For the last several weeks the MLA has had discussions with the Environmental Assessment and Approvals Branch of the MOECC in Toronto. They have confirmed that: “The ministry requires a plant to be designed to handle the projected flows without bypass or overflow over the planning horizon. The ministry also recognizes that unforeseen situations that are outside the control of the operator may also result in bypasses or overflows. Therefore, bypasses and overflows are permissible under certain circumstances.”
In an email on March 8, 2018 from the consultant to the MOECC Approvals Services Section, Environmental Assessment and Approvals Branch, it states:”… that the new expanded plant will be designed at a Rated Capacity of 1000 m3 per day with a maximum day capacity of 3500 m3 per day and a peak hydraulic capacity of 5000 m3 per day. There will be two identical membrane bioreactor trains, each with a hydraulic capacity of 2500 m3 per day, which can be sustained for an extended period of 2-3 days…..”
This is a step in the direction of reducing and possibly eliminating bypasses of the proposed Cobden WPCP and reducing Total Phosphorus input into Muskrat lake.
Since the MLA has gotten our concerns addressed by the MOECC the MLA has decided to rescind the Part ll Order Request.
