Funding for Sewage System Problem

An unhealthy situation in Wolfville Ridge will soon be eliminated thanks to a cooperative effort between the Municipality of the County of Kings and the Town of Wolfville, with assistance from the provincial departments of Housing and Municipal Affairs and Environment.

Education and Culture Minister Robbie Harrison, on behalf of Wayne Gaudet, Minister of Housing and Municipal Affairs, announced today that up to $72,500 in funding will be provided to the Municipality of the County of Kings under the Provincial Capital Assistance Program (PCAP) to direct raw sewage from three properties to the Town of Wolfville's sewage treatment plant. The funding represents 50 per cent of the project cost.

Mr. Harrison said, "The government was very pleased to support the project so this difficult problem could be addressed in a timely manner."

Last spring, it was brought to the attention of the Department of Environment that failing sewage systems were causing problems in the Wolfville Ridge area. The source of the problem was identified as malfunctioning on-site sewer systems. The small size and physical location of the properties, as well as the soil conditions in the area meant that on-site solutions would not solve the problem.

Kings County Council recently contracted a municipal engineering firm to analyse the problem. As a result, the municipality is putting in a system that can collect sewage from a total of six properties. What is collected will flow through Wolfville's sewage system. The town has agreed to lift a moratorium on sewer connections outside of the town limits in order to allow the project to go forward.

The $145,000 undertaking represents the first phase of a larger sewer improvement initiative planned by the municipality. It is anticipated that a number of houses with failing disposal systems may eventually be connected to the new sewer main.