Another issue has surfaced regarding the contentious Bragg Creek water treatment plant.
Westridge Utilities Inc. filed an appeal with the Environment Appeals Board, Nov. 26, against Rocky View County’s water licence for the treatment plant.
“Westridge Utilities issued a statement of concern to Alberta Environment regarding the water license transfer for the Bragg Creek water treatment plant,” said Rocky View spokesperson Julie Verch.
“While the County has met with the appellant in an attempt to address their concerns, they have chosen to submit a formal appeal. The parties will be entering into the formal environmental appeals process in the near future.”
The appeal is currently in the hands of the County’s legal counsel and, once all the documentation from Alberta Environment, Westridge and Rocky View is in place, the Board will determine how the matter will be processed.
Alberta Environment granted the water licence, which authorized the County to divert up to 277,533 cubic metres of water annually from the Elbow River, Oct. 29. The authorization allowed council’s approval of the $3.6- million treatment plant, which is being equally funded by the Province, the Federal Government and the County, to solve the decades-old water quality issue in Bragg Creek.
Despite the appeal, Councillor Rick Butler said the County will continue to work on the project, as Rocky View has other ways of getting water.
“It is not a risk in our mind,” said Butler. “We will resolve it in the next few weeks or months. We still hope to have the system up and running by the end of March.”
Reeve Rolly Ashdown agreed.
“Nobody has told me there is cause for alarm yet,” he said.
“If there was…serious cause for alarm, infrastructure and operations would have brought it forward (to council).”
