OLDS — The Town of Olds is looking at the possibility of pulling out of the South Red Deer Regional Wastewater Commission (SRDRWC), setting up its own system and pumping effluent into Olds Creek again.
The municipality used to treat wastewater itself using its own lagoons and pumping the effluent into Olds Creek before it joined the SRDRWC roughly 10 years ago. Effulent is currently transported vie pipleline to Red Deer for treatment and discharge.
The main reason for the proposed pullout is cost, chief administrative officer Brent Williams said in an email to the Albertan.
“The main issue with our membership in the wastewater commission is the cost of inflow and infiltration (I&I), which is sending thousands of cubic metres of potable and stormwater to Red Deer each month for treatment,” Williams wrote.
“This is costing the town about $1 million in unnecessary utility expenses each year.
“The scale of I&I was not properly understood when the commission was established ~10 years ago.
“As such, we are paying larger financial consequences, the older our sanitary system becomes, as breaks and cracks in pipes and manholes allow more external water into the system.”
The town has been spending big bucks over the past few years to address the I & I problem and another $1.8 million has been set aside for that work in 2025.
Williams has said those expenditures are paying off, as the I & I problem is not as great as it was earlier.
“But since it will take decades to fully repair our sanitary system, the town is exploring all options, including returning to a lagoon treatment system,” Williams wrote.
Another factor is rising treatment costs charged by the City of Red Deer, “which commission members like Olds have no say in and are given little justification for, despite being responsible for proportional capital costs to Red Deer's treatment plant,” Williams wrote.
Williams said the cost of the move is not yet known. He said that depends on what the Alberta Environment’s regulations will be regarding the required infrastructure. Town representatives are currently meeting with Alberta Environment officials to discuss that.
Williams noted that before 2015, the Town of Olds had a lagoon system that had “a natural hold and treatment system for sanitary effluent.” It discharged that effluent into Olds Creek.
Those old lagoons still exist about four miles northwest of Olds in Mountain View County and the town is proposing to use them again for its wastewater processing, “should it make financial sense.”
Williams said other municipalities not connected to regional treatment systems, like Sundre, Carstairs and Didsbury, also discharge into nearby creeks or rivers.
The town has brought its concerns and is proposed solution to Alberta Transportation and Economic Corridors Minister Devin Dreeshen, who oversees regional commissions, as well as Alberta Environment and Protected Areas Minister Rebecca Schulz.
“(We) are hoping Minister Dreeshen will provide guidance on the matter soon, as the current situation is not fiscally sustainable,” Williams wrote.
The Albertan reached out to Dreeshen’s office about the issue and received the following statement from a staff member in that office.
“Environment and Protected Areas is working with the Town of Olds as they explore options for wastewater treatment and release.
“If the Town of Olds decided to change its existing management of wastewater, they would require approval from Environment and Protected Areas under the Environmental Protection and Enhancement Act.”
Schulz sent a letter to Town of Olds Mayor Judy Dahl on the matter dated Nov. 25.
In that letter she acknowledged discussing the town’s concerns earlier during the Alberta Municipalities convention.
“I now have a better understanding of the town’s concerns about the cost of membership on the South Red Deer Wastewater Commission,” she wrote.
“As discussed, Environment and Protected Areas will support the town as it explores the possibility of discharging into Olds Creek.”
Schulz noted her department had arranged a meeting with Williams to “further explore multiple wastewater management options.”
“I encourage the town to discuss with the City of Red Deer solutions to reduce wastewater volumes, decrease groundwater infiltration into the town’s piping system, as well as regional upgrades needed to improve system integrity,” Schulz wrote.
“Regional collaboration will reduce costs and increase efficiency for smaller communities by leveraging economies of scale.”
However, she also added that the town could look at submitting an application for funding municipal water supply and treatment facilities as well as wastewater treatment and disposal facilities.
That application would be filed under the Alberta Municipal Water/Wastewater Partnership, which Schulz noted is facilitated by the Transportation and Economic Corridors ministry.
Williams said the town has apprised Olds-Didsbury-Three Hills MLA Nathan Cooper of its concerns. The Albertan reached out his office for comment, but no reply was received by press time.
