Construction Begins on Sydney's Interceptor Sewer Project
TRANSPORTATION/PUBLIC WORKS--Construction Begins on Sydney's Interceptor Sewer Project
Major on-site work on Sydney's interceptor sewer project begins today.
Crews will begin the construction of specialized storage for soil removed during the excavation and installation of the new sewer pipeline. The interceptor sewer project is an important part of the tar ponds cleanup.
Riverside Developments Ltd. of Sydney has been awarded a $531,000 contract to build the soil storage area at the end of Ferry Street on the Sysco site. During sewer construction, excavated soil will be stored and analyzed under stringent conditions at the specially designed area, called a pad.
It is anticipated that most excavated soil will be acceptable for re-use in filling in the 4.8 kilometres of trenches for the sewer lines. Any soil found to be contaminated will remain on-site until it can be treated along with other tar ponds materials during the future cleanup.
"The municipality is very pleased to see action on the interceptor sewer and other on-site activities leading to the cleanup of the tar ponds," said John Morgan, Mayor of the Cape Breton Regional Municipality. "I am also encouraged that stringent environmental practices are in place during the construction of the sewer pipeline."
The main construction phase of the sewer installation is currently being tendered and work should begin this fall. When completed, the interceptor sewer will collect and redirect sewage discharges from Muggah Creek to Battery Point, where the municipality has applied for federal/provincial funding to construct a treatment plant. These new sewage pipelines will end the daily flow of millions of litres of untreated sewage through the tar ponds.
"The Joint Action Group (JAG) is delighted to see the interceptor sewer project moving ahead," said JAG chair Dan Fraser. "The community's commitment to the JAG process is resulting in a whole host of new and positive activities throughout the Sydney area in preparation for the cleanup."
Environment Canada completed an environmental assessment of the interceptor sewer project in March 2000.
Construction of the interceptor sewer soil storage area is part of the $62-million federal-provincial-municipal agreement that covers all the preparatory studies and work leading to the final remediation plan.