Wetaskiwin, Alberta — Maskwacis–Wetaskiwin MLA and Minister of Indigenous Relations Rick Wilson met with Mayor Tyler Gandam on Friday to announce an additional $17.9 million in funding for Wetaskiwin’s Wastewater Treatment Plant.
The City would like to thank the Provincial Government and specifically Minister Rick Wilson, our local MLA, who has been an integral part of this funding request. Through many years of lobbying efforts and the support of Minister Wilson, Wetaskiwin’s City Council has secured over $34 million in funding for the Wastewater Treatment Plant — including $12.9 million from Alberta Provincial Grant in August 2020 and an additional $4 million from the province in 2023.
The City also acknowledges Minister of Transportation and Economic Corridors Devin Dreeshen, Minister of Finance and President of Treasury, Nate Horner, along with the other members of the Board for the additional funding for the new Wastewater Treatment Plant.
“The new Wastewater Treatment Plant is a win for the environment and our local economy,” said Mayor Gandam. “It will give our community the capability to accommodate increased residential growth and allow for specific industries to open in our community that we otherwise would not of had the resources to support, such as craft breweries.”
Previously, Peace Hills Utilities Inc. informed City Council that a total approximate 41 per cent utility rate increase would be required to fund the mandatory project. The additional $17.9 million in funding from the province means that Wetaskiwinites will see an estimated 10 per cent decrease in their current utility rates, which were increased by 31 per cent in 2023 for the project.
Construction of a new Wastewater Treatment Plant was deemed necessary after it became clear the City’s old lagoon system — which was constructed in 1979 and had been in service for over 40 years — did not have the technologies required to meet the revised effluent (wastewater) regulations set out under both the Provincial and Federal Wastewater Systems Effluent Regulations. The new Wastewater Treatment Plant is expected to be fully operational by August 2024.