A $45-million regional waterline in east Central Alberta is about two-thirds complete and on schedule for a spring 2009 completion, despite tendering problems with a related Stettler water treatment plant upgrade.

“The project can go ahead,” said Wayne Richardson, chairman of the Shirley McClellan Regional Water Commission. “The treatment plant has the capacity to fulfil the initial needs of the communities.”

Concerns would increase if 2010 proves extremely dry and the treatment plant is still not upgraded, he said.

The cost of upgrading Stettler’s treatment plant was estimated a $17 million, but tenders coming in last month were in the “low 20s,” said John Keith, director or operational services. He did not want to provide exact figures because the project will be tendered again.

Among the problems the first tender turned up was the Aug. 31, 2009, completion date, which narrowed the number of potential bidders and drove up costs. The demand for contractors in a hot economy was another factor.

The new tender is not expected to include a set completion time. “It just makes it a little easier for the contractors to work with it,” said Keith.

As for the waterline, it is expected all of the pipe will be in the ground and connected by the first or second week of November, said County of Stettler chief administrative officer Tim Fox.

“It’s going very well. (Using) the right-of-way of the railway has made a big difference. You’re off the road, you’re off private land. It’s worked very well that way.”

Work on a transfer station south of Stettler is about half to two-thirds complete.

“They’re hoping to have the cement work and have it up to lock-up by the end of November or the first part of December,” said Fox. “Then the mechanical and electrical can be done over the wintertime.”

The 142-km project involves building a pipeline from Stettler water treatment plant through Halkirk, Coronation, Castor, Veteran and Consort. The upgrading will allow communities to discard using well water of questionable quality for a better and more reliable source of water. Besides the obvious benefits to residents, the upgrading is expected to provide an economic development boost.

Richardson said communities along the route have faced a variety of water problems.

“For instance, Coronation’s water is very hard and stains clothes and that sort of thing.”

In Consort, chlorination reacting with natural organic material in well water has created undesirable chemical reactions.

Castor, which relies on surface water, is eager to ensure it has enough water to meet future needs.

The entire project is expected to be done in April and the tap will be ceremoniously turned on in June.

The provincial government is picking up 90 per cent of the cost of the waterline, which is the first phase of a long-term plan to improve water supplies in eastern Central Alberta. A second phase would extend the pipeline to the Hamlet of Compeer, near the Saskatchewan border. Future lines could feed the Buffalo Lake area, Ferintosh and other communities.

Contact Paul Cowley at pcowley@reddeeradvocate.com