Sewage plant needs more money

The City of Iqaluit is petitioning the Government of Nunavut for $400,000 a year to operate the city’s new sewage treatment plant.

That money is needed for the full commissioning, staffing and operation of the plant.

Without the funds, the city faces some grim choices.

They could increase water and sewer rates to absorb the $400,000-a-year cost increase. That would be on top of a recent 5 per cent increase in water and sewer rates.

They could run a deficit within the public works department, which would amount to $350,000 this year, because the plant only went online this spring.

Or they could close the new plant and dump sewage into the existing lagoon, which does not work properly and washes sewage into the bay after a number of weeks, rather than a number of months, as it should.

Council approved the idea of petitioning the GN during a meeting on Tuesday.