While most of the work to update the Whitney-Tisdale sewage system is complete, the province has granted the City of Timmins another extension to complete the final work.
Upgrading the system in the east end of Timmins is required for the city to meet the requirements of a Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks director’s order.
The new deadline for the city to complete the work at Pumping Station 4, just east of the Whitney Arena, is Jan. 28, 2022. The previous deadline was this past Saturday, Oct. 23, 2021, however, the original date for it to be completed was October 2020.
The project is nearing completion, according to a City of Timmins news release.
"The commissioning activities, which are required to be completed before the new pumping station can be put into operation, have led to an extension of the completion date. The extension is necessary due to leaking of the equalization tanks and flooding of the pump equipment, which occurred during mandatory facility testing," reads a City of Timmins news release.
"The City is confident that the contractor will complete the construction of a fully operational station before turning the project over to the City by the end of January, including any delays in final commissioning that may occur over the holiday break. The City has taken all commercially reasonable steps to mitigate the impact of any further delays."
The city doesn't expect the extension will to add to the cost of the remediation project.
Right now, when the wastewater system's capacity in the city's east end is exceeded, raw sewage is pumped into Porcupine Lake.
A two-phase project to remediate the system started in 2014. The deadline for phase one was Feb. 28, 2018, while the second-phase date is Oct. 31, 2020.
Ground-settling and legal issues have contributed to work at Pumping Station 4 not being completed yet.
Work to upgrade the mechanical, electrical and instrumentation systems, along with other work, at the remaining five pump stations was completed in 2020.
