NIPAWIN — Nipawin council awarded a tender for the tie-ins of the water treatment plant into the existing water distribution system for more than $1.5 million, plus contingency.
The tender was awarded to DC Trenching for $1.5 million dollars, plus a construction contingency allowance of about $250,000. This resulted in a total project component budget of $1.8 million exclusive of tax.
The cost of the project is being split by the federal government, provincial government and the town through the Small Communities Fund.
The pre-design budget for this work was originally estimated to be $2 million dollars.
The tender was decided at a special council on Aug. 7. The decision to not wait until a regular council meeting was due to the accelerated construction schedule required to complete the tie-in at the Sixth Street and Maple Road intersection prior to school starting.
“This is one of the integral parts of the overall water treatment construction project,” said Barry Elliott, Nipawin’s administrator. “There needs to be an ability to link it to our system and this is what this will actually do. It will connect all the pipes together.”
The upgraded water treatment plant was previously connected to the town through a temporary piping system.
Elliott said continuing to use the cheaper, temporary tie-in wasn’t an option.
“It’s in the same vein as hooking up a new system at a house and connecting it to the same system with a garden hose. Temporary is exactly that. It’s only meant to last until such time as you can do a permanent installation.”
He said they have to make sure everything is according to the various codes, government authorization and guidelines.
“This is what this is intended to do.”
Starting on Aug. 14, the work on the project meant that Sixth Street East was closed from Canawindra Cove to south of the Maple Road East intersection, as well as the Maple Road East and Sixth Street East intersection.
Elliott said the new water treatment plant is doing well, with excellent water quality coming from it.
“Tests are being done as required by the ministry, all of the results have been incredibly positive. So it’s progressing, an excellent quality of water. That’s going to be further enhanced because there is one more stage of this project that needs to occur and that’s the installation of the membrane filtration system.”
The overall budget for the entire water treatment plant project is approximately $20.6 million.
