Gas Tax Fund to improve water quality in British Columbia

Water-related projects continue to be a priority in British Columbia communities as more money flows into the province through Canada’s Gas Tax Fund.

An open-air drinking water reservoir in Nanaimo, BC needs to be replaced to prevent the risk of contamination.

The fund has been around since 2005 and goes towards maintaining infrastructure and new constuction across the country.

Many municipalities lack the finances for these projects, and in December 2011 the federal government made the Gas Tax Fund a permanent part of Canada’s budget.

Water quality is a priority in British Columbia, although the funding is not always available, says Bill Sims, manager of Water Resources in Nanaimo, a Vancouver Island community.

“Municipalities are starting to realize they have a lot of infrastructure in the ground that they need to think about replacing, maintaining and upgrading,” says Sims. “We rely every day on turning on our taps and brushing our teeth or taking a shower, we rely on flushing our toilets.”

The Fund

The Gas Tax Fund was established in 2005 to deliver $13 billion to municipalities across Canada over nine years.

Projects covered by the fund include drinking water, wastewater infrastructure, public transit, community energy systems, solid waste management and local roads.

In December 2011, the Gas Tax Fund became a permanent program of $2 billion a year, says Caroline Grondin, senior communications advisor for Infrastructure Canada. The money is given to the provincial and territorial governments twice a year, and they then distribute the money to their communities.

In the last month, eight water-focused projects have been announced to receive funding in British Columbia.

Recently, many water quality projects in British Columbia have received help from the fund.

Since 2003, tougher drinking water standards have made water quality guidelines stricter. With these new standards, municipalities have been saving to upgrade their facilities. A substantial one third of Gas Tax projects in 2010 dealt with water and wastewater systems, says a report by the Union of British Columbia Municipalities.

Nanaimo

The large drinking water reservoir in Nanaimo needs to be replaced to prevent the risk of contamination. The city is building a water treatment plant to filter and store water for about 30 per cent of the city, Sims says.

“Many municipalities are in the same boat as Nanaimo, which was taking water from the mountains, piping it to town and putting some chlorine in it,” says Sims. 

The District of Nanaimo was awarded $7.7 million for re-construction of the drinking water reservoir.

Sims says the legislation on treating water came into effect quickly, giving municipalities little time to adapt. Upgrades were costly, putting a strain on many communities in British Columbia.  

In the province, funding is small compared to the demands of the municipalities, Sims says. If there is $800 million in applications for only $100 million of funding, some projects get partial funding, while others are rejected completely.

“In this case we were successful in receiving everything we applied for, which is exciting,” he says.

This water treatment plant is a requirement of the provincial government and it took about a year of planning before applying. With help from the Gas Tax Fund, Nanaimo feels some of the burden lifted.

“We applied for the grant in April, meanwhile we had figured out how to fund the project by delaying other water projects, “ says Sims. “Receiving the grant will allow us to also build the other projects in a timely manner.”

Projects like expanding the city’s pipelines were delayed even when there was a pressing need for this additional infrastructure, Sims adds. Now they will be completed at the time they need to be done.

Lillooet

In Lillooet, the Gas Tax Fund is also rebuilding water systems. 

Ben Parnell, the deputy corporate officer for the district of Lillooet, agrees with Sims - without federal funding, these projects are in jeopardy.

“There’s no way that the district of Lillooet has the capacity to take on a project of this magnitude. It’s something that can only be accomplished with the assistance of the federal government,” says Parnell.

Even a one per cent municipal tax increase would only raise $14,000 dollars, barely a fraction of the almost $10 million they have received from the Gas Tax Fund for this project.

“We would have continued to use the existing water sources and continued to brainstorm as to how we can solve the problem,” he says. “But I think the need for a new water source is an immediate problem.” 

“We rely every day on turning on our taps and brushing our teeth or taking a shower, we rely on flushing our toilets.” – Bill Sims

In the last month, eight water-focused projects have been announced in British Columbia. Port-Alberni for wastewater treatment, Ladysmith for sewage treatment plant upgrades and Cranbrook for water system upgrades are a few examples. Recent projects and the proposed amount of provincial funding can be found on Infrastructure Canada’s website.

Sims says the newly announced projects reflect a need in the province and across the country, but there is still a long way to go.

“I think the federal government is trying to do their part to help fund it,” says Sims. “There’s a lot of expectation, rightly or wrongly, on the part of the municipalities that someone should come and help us out. We may have created the problem, but we need help.”

Gas tax projects in British Columbia